Island of Darkness (17 page)

“Do not interfere,” commanded the general. “They are taking the bodies to the marketplace. Cordon off the area and keep things from getting out of hand, but do not interfere with their sorrow. I do not want us attacking our own people.”

“I had better go to the marketplace,” stated Mayor Reaker. “I think the people fully understand what this tragedy means to our city. I must explain this accident, or your soldiers may well be blamed for what has happened.”

“This was no accident,” scowled the general. “This is what our future is now that the Katana has decided that these Sakovans are our enemy. You had best explain to the citizens that we cannot depend upon the Sakovans for any more food. We are on our own now.”

The mayor nodded sadly to the general. He walked to the marketplace and pushed his way through the crowd to see what was happening. When he got close enough to see, his mouth opened in amazement. Each of the dead Sakovans had been placed on one of the tables in the marketplace. Women knelt alongside the tables and cried hysterically. Others placed jewelry and flowers beside the bodies.

The Imperial Guards sent to keep order stood silently around the perimeter of the marketplace. They kept their backs to the nearby buildings, and it appeared as if they wanted to be somewhere else. The mayor could hardly blame them. Suddenly, the mayor’s arm was grabbed, and he was pulled towards the body of SpringThaw.

“Is this what our protectors are supposed to do for us?” shouted the man who had dragged the mayor from the crowd. “Are we now to starve to death because these young folks were Sakovans?”

The Imperial Guards around the marketplace tensed and began to close inward to rescue the mayor. The mayor held up his free arm to halt their advance.

“Maintain your positions,” shouted the mayor as he pulled his arm free from the citizen.

The mayor turned in a slow circle as his eyes scanned the angry mob. He saw an empty table nearby and he jumped up onto it so the crowd could see him.

“Citizens of Alamar,” he shouted, “hear my words. I grieve alongside you for the loss of the brave Sakovans. They brought us food when we had none. We owe our lives to them, but there are things that you must understand in your grief. The Imperial Guards of Alamar did not do this nasty deed. Do not take your hostilities out on them. They are here to protect you and had granted the Sakovans safe passage.”

“Who did it then?” shouted one of the mob. “We heard it was Imperial Guards. Where are they?”

“What does it matter?” screamed another. “We will never see another wagon of food from the Sakovans. They may be willing to share their food, but who can blame them for not forfeiting their lives?”

“The Imperial Guards who did this are from Okata,” declared Mayor Reaker. “General Manitow has ordered their arrest. There will be an investigation, and I assure you that I will demand swift punishment from the Katana for this deed. Still, we must prepare to fend for ourselves where food is concerned. We can no longer depend upon the Sakovans for our meals.”

“I heard that the Katana has declared war on the Sakovans,” shouted a man. “Is this true?”

Mayor Reaker bit his lip as he tried to figure out how to answer the question. His eyes scanned the crowd in search of a safe exit. He suddenly felt very vulnerable.

“I have not received word of that from the Katana,” he finally said. “The troops from Okata supposedly carried word of such a decree, but I am hesitant to believe the words of a group who would slaughter innocents as they have done. Let me go speak with General Manitow about this accusation.”

The mayor jumped off the table and quickly made his way through the crowd before anyone else decided to grab him. He ran back to the Imperial Guard headquarters and into the general’s office.

“They are honoring the dead Sakovans as they would a hero,” panted the mayor. “I think we have serious problems on our hands.”

“I gathered as much when they carried the bodies away,” nodded the general. “I can hardly blame the people. Let them grieve as they wish. It will distill their anger.”

“I do not think so,” argued the mayor. “They are an unruly mob. Your own soldiers can sense it. They are failing to make the distinction between our troops and the Katana’s.”

“In fact,” sighed the general, “there is little distinction. While it was not our men who ambushed the Sakovans, it could well be us that strikes the next time.”

“Then you believe that Captain Gachiral was telling the truth?” asked Mayor Reaker.

“Yes, I do,” nodded the general. “I only demanded confirmation to forestall any attacks. I thought that we could just let the Sakovans return home without any bloodshed. They earned that much from us by bringing the food, but we do not have the option of defying an edict from the Katana. When General Romero arrives here, we will be at war with the Sakovans. There is nothing that we can do about it.”

“Then we are doomed,” sighed the mayor. “Without Sakovan food, many will die.”

“The best approach is to end the war quickly,” retorted General Manitow. “Perhaps the Sakovans will surrender. They certainly appeared peaceful enough when they delivered the food.”

“You don’t really believe that, do you?” questioned the mayor with disbelief.

“No,” sighed the general, “but neither do I believe that the Sakovans are anxious for war. I truly believe that they hoped that the food shipments would buy peace for themselves. They were wrong.”

“What do you plan to do now?” asked the mayor. “Having the Sakovan bodies in the marketplace will keep the suffering of the people on their minds. We must do something to get the citizens back to normal.”

“Leave that to me,” replied the general. “I will have my men remove the bodies during the night. We will load the wagon up and drive it towards the Sakova. When they are far from the city, they will bury the dead and burn the wagon. It may take a few days, but the people will return to their daily tasks.”

“What of FalconEye?” asked Mayor Reaker.

“The mage, Temiker, took him away,” answered General Manitow. “He will try to save the Sakovan, but I fear there is no hope for him. I am surprised that he lasted long enough to arrive here alive.”

“And in a few days General Romero will arrive,” nodded the mayor. “I think you are right. The worst is behind us.”

“At least as far as the turmoil over the dead goes,” countered the general. “The people will still not have food to eat. We must find a solution for that problem before we are finished with this business.”

* * *

Ukaro carried FalconEye as Temiker led the way to the schoolhouse. The Omungan mage swept through the doorway and brushed everything off the teacher’s desk. The teacher backed away as he saw Ukaro enter with the body. The students all rose from their desks to see what was happening. As Ukaro was placing FalconEye’s body face down on the desk, the wind swept his hood away. The students gasped with shock at the sight of the Chula’s face.

“Quiet,” admonished Temiker. “Ukaro is a Chula shaman. You would be well advised to observe his powers in silence. No word of this will be spoken outside these walls. Close the door.”

One of the students leaped towards the door and slammed it shut. Ukaro drew a knife and cut the clothes off the Sakovan’s body. Temiker moved close and examined the shafts sticking out of FalconEye’s back.

“They are deep,” frowned Temiker. “There is not much life left in him.”

“There is enough to try,” replied Ukaro. “If we work together, we may be able to save him.”

“Then we shall work together,” agreed Temiker. “I can work the arrows free of the flesh.”

“I will start healing from the inside,” nodded the Chula shaman. “We must work in unison to succeed.”

“I will queue off your efforts,” volunteered Temiker.

The magic student raced through the streets of Alamar. He dashed into the common classroom and along the corridor to the dining room. Temiker and Ukaro were sitting at the table, each on a different side of FalconEye. Temiker was feeding soup to the Sakovan.

“The soldiers are taking the Sakovan bodies,” the student panted.

“What are they doing with them?” asked Temiker.

“Piling them into the wagon,” answered the student. “I heard the soldiers talking. They plan to take the bodies out of town and bury them and burn the wagon.”

“No,” FalconEye said weakly as he pushed Temiker’s hand away. “They must return to the Sakova.”

“Eat your soup,” interjected Ukaro. “I will see that your people are returned safely.”

“That is not wise,” offered Temiker. “The Sakovans do not suffer trespassers. I will go. They know me.”

“Stay and teach your students,” Ukaro shook his head. “Alamar is not the place for me to be. The Sakovans will not attack me, and I will not attack them. Trust me.”

After a long pause Temiker nodded his agreement. Ukaro rose and pulled his hood over his face.

“Do you want help?” asked the student. “I will go with you.”

Ukaro smiled at the student and gently placed his hand on the lad’s shoulder.

“You are a brave one,” he said calmly. “Stay here and help FalconEye. There will be a test of your bravery before things are done in Alamar. A wagon I can handle on my own.”

“But there are soldiers escorting it,” frowned the student. “They will not let you take the wagon. You will have to battle them.”

“There will be no battle,” smiled the Chula shaman. “These flatlanders have not yet proven to be my enemy. When they declare that they are my enemy, then the battle will begin, but not before. This is their land that I am on, not mine.”

Ukaro walked out through the kitchen and the back door of the schoolhouse. He transformed himself into a kitten and ran towards the main street through the city. It waited patiently for the wagon to appear. As the wagon rolled by, the kitten raced into the street and leaped aboard. It stood next to the bodies for a while to see if anyone had noticed its entry and then curled up for a nap.

Several hours later the wagon jolted to a halt. The kitten immediately rose and stretched. It hid in a dark corner as the soldiers reached into the wagon and removed the shovels. Calmly it waited until it heard their voices and the sound of digging. The cat moved to the rear and gazed out. Five soldiers were digging individual graves while the other seven were relaxing. Some of them were stretched out on the ground with their eyes closed.

The kitten leaped out of the wagon and landed soundlessly. It looked around until it found where the Imperial Guard horses were tied and then it padded softly in that direction. Before it reached the tree that the horses were tied to, the kitten hid and transformed into Ukaro. The Chula shaman walked softly to the horses and untied their reins. The horses were skittish as if they sensed something abnormal in the Chula. Ukaro’s split lips smiled and then opened wide as he let out a low growl. The horses panicked and fled while Ukaro stepped into the darkness behind a nearby tree.

The soldiers noticed the noise and turned to see their horses running away. Several of them raced after the horses while the others looked on in confusion. Ukaro waited patiently for the soldiers to resume their digging. He watched the chasers go by and wished them luck with their task of retrieving the horses. When there was no further attention directed his way, Ukaro moved silently to the wagon. He climbed onto the seat and grabbed the reins. He felt the horses begin to fidget nervously. With a light slapping of the reins, he urged the team to begin moving.

The wagon creaked terribly, and Ukaro held his breath as they moved slowly away from the soldiers. As soon as Ukaro heard the first shout of alarm from the soldiers, he growled mightily at the horses. The team panicked and began running as fast as the wagon would allow them. Almost immediately, Ukaro tried calming the horses even as he fought the reins. A few minutes later he managed to get the team under control.

* * *

StarWind’s eyes popped open and she sat up quickly. She jumped to her feet, and a Sakovan star slipped into her hand. She turned and saw StormSong standing just outside the clearing. The tall Sakovan warrior signaled for the spymaster to move to the opposite side of the clearing. StarWind immediately complied, even as her mind was trying to analyze the sound that had awoken her. She moved into the darkness outside the clearing and waited.

Suddenly, she heard the noise again. It was a faint noise, but one that was unmistakable to a Sakovan. She waited patiently for the chokas to arrive. When the large warbirds came into view, LifeTender was astride one of them. StarWind deliberately stepped into the path of the giant warbirds.

“Why are you here?” asked the Sakovan spymaster.

“We had a message from Temiker,” LifeTender said as she slid off the warbird. “I must inform Lyra right away.”

“Inform me of what?” Lyra asked groggily as she moved from one of the wagons towards the healing mage.

“Our caravan to Alamar was ambushed on their way home,” reported LifeTender. “Only FalconEye has survived and his condition is not good.”

“So Alamar is already closed to us,” Lyra sighed with frustration. “How could they have reacted so swiftly? What else did my uncle have to say?”

“Several things,” reported LifeTender. “The attack was not by the garrison soldiers at Alamar. It was a group from Okata. General Manitow has ordered them arrested.”

“So Alamar will still receive us?” asked StarWind.

“Maybe,” frowned LifeTender. “The situation there is volatile. The citizens carried the bodies of our dead to the marketplace and mourned them. They appeared genuinely distressed by the loss of our people.”

“You mean they will miss their food shipments,” snipped StormSong. “That is what they cry for, not Sakovan dead.”

“Temiker doesn’t think that is the case,” LifeTender continued with a slight glare at StormSong. “While the citizens did speak loudly about the end of our food shipments, they also paid tribute to our fallen warriors. Even the Imperial Guards knew better than to interfere.”

“That is saying a lot,” StarWind interjected as her eyebrows rose. “It sounds like General Manitow is walking a fine line. He is allowing the citizens to mourn the enemy, and he is arresting those responsible. That will not make the Katana happy.”