by David Angelo
“My love for Kaw-Ki is a fruitless endeavor?” Black-Tooth asked. “What about your brazen attempts to keep her under your control? Isn’t that a fruitless endeavor?”
“Isn’t that the pot calling the kettle black?” Tec-Nan retorted. “You, the man who manipulated my daughter into throwing away everything she loved to join your pitiful militia of gullible morons?”
Black-Tooth narrowed his eyes. “Kaw-Ki left of her own will. I did nothing to force her or brainwash her into going with me.”
“The Kaw-Ki I knew would never have done such a thing,” Tec-Nan said. “She loved her tribe, was proud of it. She was the last dragon in all the world who would ever burn the cloth. But then she met you, and you corrupted her mind. You turned her against me, against her people.”
“Has it ever occurred to you that Kaw-Ki was mature enough to make decisions for herself? She wasn’t a child when she met me, and she certainly isn’t a child now.”
“She was still a young woman then, who had lived under the protection of my tribe all her life. She had never known a purebred personally until that point, and when you promised her love and affection, her vulnerable mind could not resist. You exploited her weaknesses, manipulated her fragile mind—”
“Do you honestly think Kaw-Ki was that deprived?” Black-Tooth snapped. “I didn’t ask Kaw-Ki to love me when we first met, and the only reason she attended Dragon Storm lectures with me was because she was curious. It wasn’t until weeks after we first met that we realized we were in love.”
“Watch your mouth,” Tec-Nan growled. “Are you suggesting that you know my daughter more than I? I was the one who found her abandoned as a cold, hungry infant who was left out in the wilderness to die. I was the one who provided her with a home and watched her grow, and I saw every transition she made in her life. Kaw-Ki grew up in front of my eyes, and make no mistake, there is no one on Edon who knows her better than I.”
“You’re right,” Black-Tooth sighed. “Kaw-Ki is your child, and I have no doubt that you love her very much. But where were you the last twelve years? Where were you when Kaw-Ki became a warrior and fought the forces that keep your kind in oppression? Where the hell were you when we were struggling to survive, all while being chased night and day by parliamentary forces? The last twelve years have been the hardest of her life, of my life, and during it all, you were just sitting here, sulking, plotting my death, all without ever bothering to ask if she was okay.”
“I would have,” Tec-Nan said, “had you not kept her away from me.”
“I never kept her away from you,” Black-Tooth said. “Kaw-Ki could have gone back anytime she wanted, whether it was just for a visit or forever if that was her desire. And she tried to contact you dozens of times over the years, but you never once made an effort to reply.”
Fin turned to Rocklier. “Is that true?” he whispered.
“Indeed,” Rocklier said. “After we stopped receiving death threats, Kaw-Ki figured he’d cooled down enough to be open to negotiating a peace treaty. She tried everything, including speaking to allied tribes who could relay her message to him, but every attempt she made was unsuccessful, and in the end, she just gave up.”
“Ahem…” Elk-Jun said loudly. “Is there something you two would like to share?”
“No, thank you,” Rocklier said.
“Then quit yapping,” Elk-Jun replied. “Unless Tec-Nan says you can talk. Otherwise, stick a cork in it!”
“No wonder Kaw-Ki left him,” Fin mumbled, to which Elk-Jun replied by flashing him a cold glare.
“I heard that,” Elk-Jun hissed.
“Elk, please,” Tec-Nan said, holding up a hand, “don’t be so thin-skinned. There are plenty of misconceptions about our race being savage. We don’t need to make new ones.” Turning back to Black-Tooth, Tec-Nan continued. “Even though I am struggling just as much as you, thanks to this hike in food prices, I will not play soft with my negotiations. I know the exact location where the grain is being stashed, and I will tell you where it is after you relinquish Kaw-Ki to me.”
“Think about how much is at stake,” Black-Tooth said. “How are you going to feed your people during the winter? What if the land doesn’t yield enough for your tribe to survive and the farmers don’t have anything left to trade? What are you going to do then?”
“Adapt,” Tec-Nan said. “We will go without the luxury of prepicked crops and work harder for our sustenance, just like every Edonion did before modern agriculture. Face it, Black-Tooth, you have more to lose from this than I do.”
“But how many of your people would die as a result?” Black-Tooth asked.
“We’re strong,” Tec-Nan replied. “Hunger is not a new experience for a Faranchilldon, especially not this tribe. We have been through famine and drought before, but we persevered. We lost many over the years to the hand of hunger, but we always rose and faced the challenges that beset us. We survived it all, and I know we can weather the next big calamity.”
Fin could sense that Black-Tooth was growing nervous. His theory was slowly being dismantled before everyone’s eyes, and the negotiations had seemingly ended before they began. Fin felt that he had to do something, but what? There was no time to think, just to throw caution to the wind and hope for the best.
Fin stood up. “Then how do we know you’re telling the truth?”
“Sit down,” Elk-Jun said. But Tec-Nan shushed him, uttering a string of cryptic words in a stern tone, and Elk-Jun backed off.
“Forgive his arrogance,” Tec-Nan said. “He has been ill at heart ever since Kaw-Ki left him. Now, Red One, what was that question of yours again?”
“How do we know if you’re telling us the truth?” he continued. “Do you know the location of the grain, or is this some ruse to get Black-Tooth to cave?”
“You’re a smart young man,” Tec-Nan replied. “I have every opportunity to lie to you right now. I could spout a bunch of fibs just to get my daughter back, and I would if the threat were not real. Because you see, Red, while I’m used to hunger and death, I do not like to witness it. The way I see it, death hides behind every blade of grass and under every pebble, waiting to emerge and inflict pain on those I love. Throughout my life I’ve been forced to watch literally hundreds of my own people, men, women, and children, young and old alike, die of every cause and cruelty imaginable. I’ve seen so much death in my years that the concept of life itself feels like a waiting game. As Faranchilldons, we are surrounded by it. It permeates our culture, influences everything we do. When I tell my children goodbye as they depart for a hunting expedition, I say it as though it is the last I’ll ever see them, because when you live your life surrounded by enemies and at the mercy of nature, you get used to saying it for the final time.
“But one thing that I will never outgrow is the pain of losing someone who trusted me to lead them. I have no tears left, for I’ve cried them all over those who’ve died under my command. I would much rather keep death at bay, if only for a while, and because I know where the grain is held, we all have the ability to do just that. So to answer your question, no, I’m not lying, and I wouldn’t if it means that I have one less Faranchilldon to bury.”
“Then why don’t you just tell us?” Black-Tooth said.
“Not until my demands are met,” Tec-Nan said.
Black-Tooth had had it. He slammed his fist into the table, shaking it, causing Fin and his comrades to jump. Black-Tooth glared at Tec-Nan with fire in his eyes and blood on his mind, and Fin knew then that violence was inevitable.
“Fuck your demands!” Black-Tooth said through locked teeth. “You sit here, thinking only of your own ambitions, knowing damn well that thousands of dragons will die this winter. You don’t give a shit about your people, or even Kaw-Ki, for that matter. You’d rather see the whole world starve to death just because you can’t accept the fact that your daughter can make decisions for herself.”
Tec-Nan stood, scowling, his face contorted in a look of sheer bitterness.<
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“I take this to mean that the negotiations are over,” Tec-Nan said coldly.
“I guess,” Black-Tooth said. “But I’m not leaving here without learning the location of the grain, and I will do whatever it takes to get that information.”
“What are you suggesting?” Tec-Nan asked, cocking his tattooed eye. As he spoke, several Faranchilldons drew closer to the table, their hands on their weapons.
“Perhaps…” Black-Tooth said, “…something a little less civil.”
30
BLACK-TOOTH TURNED THE TABLE over, lunged toward Tec-Nan, and slashed with his nail, catching him just under his tattooed eye. Tec-Nan did not scream but stumbled backward and clutched his cheek, a look of bewilderment on his face. Before Fin realized what was happening, the arm of a particularly strong Faranchilldon wrapped around his neck and pulled him into a choke hold. Unable to breathe and on the verge of blacking out, Fin let his instincts take over. He pulled his nail from under his glove and jammed it into his attacker’s thigh. The nail hit an artery, and Fin could feel the blood spurt from the wound. The attacker’s grip loosened, allowing Fin to swing his elbow behind him, nailing the Faranchilldon in the teeth. A jolt of pins and needles rushed up Fin’s elbow as his attacker let go and fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
Fin whirled around, ready to knock his attacker’s lights out permanently. But when he looked down, he saw that his attacker was none other than their young guide from earlier. Blood saturated his white cloth, the nail embedded in his flesh. The boy looked up at Fin, dazed, and spat out a few teeth, while strings of bloody saliva dangled from his chin. Fin froze, well aware that if he pulled the nail out, it would unblock the artery and cause the boy to bleed to death. And yet, even though he could’ve strangled him to death, Fin could not find the strength to take his life. He was still a child, trying to protect the ones he cared about, and Fin knew he would’ve done the same.
Fin heard the metallic click of a pistol’s hammer being pulled back, just behind his ear.
“Don’t move,” Elk-Jun hissed, his breath tingling Fin’s neck.
“Do as he says, Red,” Tec-Nan said. Fin glanced in his direction and saw that his friends were not faring any better. Black-Tooth was on the ground, knocked out cold, and a Faranchilldon was binding his hands with rope. Rocklier and Chinaw were on their knees, their hands on the backs of their heads, while two Faranchilldons stood behind them, rifles in hand. Meanwhile, Kyu struggled against the might of another Faranchilldon who had pinned her against the side of a nearby hut and was attempting to tie her hands together.
“Let go of me, you brute!” Kyu said. But the Faranchilldon tightened the rope around her wrists, pulled her off the hut, and forced her to kneel next to Rocklier and Chinaw.
“As you can see, Red,” Tec-Nan said, dabbing the cut under his eye with a piece of cloth, “your leader’s ill-advised attempt to pry the grain stash’s location from my lips has failed, and now you have two options. You can surrender and avoid getting yourself or your friends into more trouble, or we can put a lead ball in your heads and call it a night. It’s your choice.”
Seeing that there was no way he could wiggle himself out of this mess, Fin woefully raised his hands. Elk-Jun pushed him over to where the others were and made him kneel, while his and everyone else’s hands were bound. Several Faranchilldons who appeared to be medics attended to the youth’s wounds, talking among themselves in their cryptic language. Yet, somehow, Fin could understand what they were saying this time. Their mouths moved in their native tongue, but he heard every word, as though something was translating it into the language he had known all his life.
“Be careful,” the lead medic said to her assistants. “We need to cut off his circulation before we remove the nail.”
Elk-Jun ran to where they stood. “Is he going to be okay?” he asked.
“Yes, if we do everything exactly the way we’re supposed to.”
“If you screw up…” Elk-Jun said, raising his pistol.
“Don’t fret about it,” the medic replied. “Your brother is in good hands. Now, could someone help me move him out of the way so we can begin the procedure?”
The medics loaded the boy onto a stretcher.
“I’m coming with you,” Elk-Jun said.
“No,” the lead medic said. “Your brother needs his space, and we can work a lot faster if you’re not standing around, getting in our way and not doing anything of use.”
“Don’t worry, Elk,” the boy whimpered. “I’ll be strong, just like you taught me.”
“I know,” Elk-Jun replied. “Just hang in there, little guy.”
The youth was carried off into a hut on the other end of the camp.
Elk-Jun went up to Tec-Nan and pointed at Fin.
“If he dies, I’ll have the prophet’s head.”
“You will do nothing of the sort,” Tec-Nan scolded. “We need him to get the grain, after we deal with their leader.”
“But…” Elk-Jun started.
“Your brother will be okay,” Tec-Nan said. “Our tribe’s medicine ladies have worked without error for decades, and they’re not about to tarnish that spotless record anytime soon.” Tec-Nan then turned to a nearby guard, who handed him four of the five nails they had carried.
“Clever,” Tec-Nan said, holding each individual nail up to his eye and observing their sharpness. “Very clever.”
Tec-Nan handed the nails back to the guard. “Be sure to tell the others to be more thorough next time we allow outsiders into the camp. As for them”—he gestured toward Fin and the gang—“take them to the execution stump, and I’ll meet you there after I retrieve my tomahawk.”
“Yes, sir,” the guard said, before Tec-Nan disappeared into his hut.
Black-Tooth groaned as rope was wrapped around his ankles, while Fin and the rest of the crew were escorted at gunpoint by five guards along a narrow trail. They were led out of the camp and arrived at a small clearing in the surrounding trees. The area was marked by a circle of torches around a small tree stump that was about the size of an ale keg. It was on its side, fastened atop two smaller logs, and a U-shaped dip had been carved into its bark, just wide enough to fit someone’s neck. Fin observed a stale, brownish stain that saturated the stump and the two logs beneath it, and he needed no explanation as to what it was and where it had come from.
Fin and the others were made to sit down at the edge of the clearing. Elk-Jun and another guard arrived behind them, dragging Black-Tooth by his shoulders before dropping him at the foot of the stump. Dazed, Black-Tooth looked around in confusion at his new surroundings.
“Nice going,” Kyu said. “That was the best move you’ve pulled in years.”
“What the hell happened?” Black-Tooth asked.
“You went after Tec-Nan,” Chinaw said, “but only managed to give him a nice scar. Then someone knocked you in the back of the head with the butt of a rifle, and now we’re about to be beheaded.”
“Damn…” Black-Tooth said. “I really fucked up this time.”
“That’s an understatement,” Kyu snorted.
“Everyone falls on occasion,” Rocklier said. “Granted, some falls happen to be worse than others, but just leave it at that.”
“Actually,” Fin said, “I think they’re going to let us free.”
“What makes you think that?” Black-Tooth said.
“Because I think I can understand—”
“Wait…” Rocklier said. “Tec-Nan’s coming.”
Tec-Nan appeared at the edge of the clearing, brandishing his aforementioned tomahawk. Charms and stones of many vibrant colors dangled from the leather-bound hilt. Its silver head looked as though it had been recently sharpened. Elk-Jun dragged Black-Tooth to the center of the circle and forced his neck into the small dip, his head hanging over the log. The guards backed up to the edge of the circle, while Tec-Nan approached the stump, running a finger along the fine, paperlike thinness of the ax’s blade.
“I’m sorry it had to come to this,” Tec-Nan said with indifference.
He rested the blade on the back of Black-Tooth’s neck.
“If you kill us,” Black-Tooth said, “then you kill everyone in your tribe.”
“I’m only going to kill you,” Tec-Nan said, “and after your head has been placed firmly on a stake, I’m going to tell your teammates the location of the grain so that they can find it without you.”
“Cheeky son of a bitch,” Black-Tooth mumbled.
“Have any last words?” Elk-Jun asked.
“Fuck you.”
“Very well,” Tec-Nan said, raising the ax. He turned to the rest of the resistance. “Take one last look at your leader while he’s still in one piece.”
Fin looked at his friend and mentor and shut his eyes, unable to witness the fall of one of the most important dragons he had ever known. He braced himself for the moment, for the sound of the ax hitting flesh and the thump of Black-Tooth’s head as it hit the grass. A mix of anger and grief swelled in Fin’s heart, and he wanted nothing more than to hack Tec-Nan to death with that stupid tomahawk of his, one piece at a time, so that he’d see himself being reduced to a pile of bloody stumps before his eyes. He wanted to cry out, shout hateful, nasty things, words that he knew would cut the Faranchilldons to the bone and trigger their every negative impulse. But he knew that such a longing to offend would be foolish, given the circumstances.
But rather than what he had imagined he would hear, the silence of the forest was instead broken by a gasp of pain followed by the sound of a metal object hitting the ground. Fin opened his eyes and saw Tec-Nan cradling his hand, blood dripping from a deep cut along the top of his knuckles, the tomahawk lying at his feet. Black-Tooth, still alive, opened an eye and looked around, a look of bewilderment on his face. As Rocklier, Chinaw, and Kyu slowly realized what had happened, Elk-Jun pointed to something over Tec-Nan’s shoulder.
“Look over there,” he said.
Everyone’s eyes focused onto an arrow sticking out of the tree.
