The Last Sundancer (51 page)

Antuk’s
attention was captured by a blade of green grass and the sky above which was tinged with the colors that signaled dawn.  “Keep your focus, Antuk.”

“I will avenge your injured finger.” Antuk swore as Kaichen tried and failed to withhold his laughter.  He had all but forgotten about the finger that he had purposely injured so that he could break free of the bonds that tied his wrists.  He looked down at the offended hand and confirmed that the finger was still tied fast to its closest companion. 

Kaichen pressed his lips to the top of Denoa’s head as she clung to him for a moment.  “Mother, thank you for all that you have done.”

“I have not done enough.” Denoa
knew that she could not protect him and she could not keep him safe.  He was a man that his father would have been proud to stand next to in battle.  Denoa only hoped that the coming fight would not take her son from her forever.  

“Take this, it is the knife given to me by your father.  He wanted me to always feel protected, even when he was not near.” Denoa held up the thin blade and displayed its sharp edge, along with the bone handle that had been carved by Shale’s skilled hands.  She would thank
Tamol later for retrieving the weapon for her but for now she focused completely on her son. 

After thanking his mother, Kaichen turned away with Amara’s hand clasped firmly in his own.  He stared at Pele for a long moment before
extending his open palm.  Pele stared at Kaichen’s hand and he saw that the man offered an unspoken truce.  Pele grasped Kaichen’s wrist in return.  Kaichen nodded his acceptance. 

H
e put distance between himself and the rest of Tamol and Farren’s men.   He had been reluctant to hope that Farren would join their fight against the raiders.  Whether he wanted it or not, Pele had won his friendship by his act of loyalty.  

“Our enemies draw near!” Antuk’s voice was an urgent whisper as he drew Kaichen’s attention.  Kaichen watched as the raiders appeared on the canyon floor.  The captives that walked behind the men on horseback appeared to have suffered much at the hands of the raiders. 

There was no more time for words as Kaichen and Antuk crept forward.  They were two men against a band of ruthless raiders and there was little hope of success.  Antuk had been tasked with the responsibility of freeing as many villagers as possible. Kaichen knew that he would have to make each hastily drawn arrow count. 

He raced toward the raiders and the captives that were tied one to another.  For the time being they had surprise on their side, but they were outnumbered.  Kaichen was not under the illusion that they would succeed but they had chosen to take a stand. 

The battle cry of the raiders rose up to the heavens as Kaichen
and Antuk ran toward their enemy.  It was with arrows drawn from Kaichen’s bow that they brought a few men down. 

Antuk raced toward the captives with his knife drawn.  He knew to free the men first and then the women.  The raiders formed an impenetrable circle around their captives as they took cover behind their horses. 

Kaichen knew that arrows would be sent his way in return but he ran swiftly, with the intent of taking down any man that stood in his way. 

Kaichen was in a fight for his life, surrounded by men
on all sides.  He took a glancing blow to his right arm, but fought on, heedless of the pain.  He knew that if he backed away, his life would be forfeit. 

Antuk grunted as he faced several of the raiders, while keeping flush to Kaichen’s back.  There was no room for retreat. 

Kaichen realized that the battle was over before it had ever begun.  He saw a death blow coming toward him as he faced the downward thrust of his enemy’s war club. 

The man was knocked aside by an object that flew through the air.  Kaichen watched as the man tottered and swayed and he did not hesitate to dispatch his second opponent. 

His eyes caught and held as they landed upon the object that had saved his life.  A large rock. 

Kaichen raised his eyes to catch sight of
Farren and Tamol running toward him as they shouted, “We fight with the Sundancer!”

A renewed cry went up from those that fought at Kaichen’s side. 

Men screamed in agony at the slashing blows that came from the spears and knives of those that they sought to suppress.

Tamol
did not want any of his men to fall under the well-aimed spears of one of the hunters from Denoa’s band.  He and Farren had turned their backs upon the plight of Denoa’s people once before and he knew that they would not expect their help.  He continued to shout that he and his men fought on the side of the Sundancer.  Farren’s bellowed words echoed those of Tamol. 

With the strength born of season upon season of hard work
Tamol threw his spear at a man on horseback who raced toward him.  His aim was accurate and the strength of his spear took the man from the back of his horse where he landed with a sickening crunch of flesh against stone. 

Others were not armed with weapons for fighting. 
Three of Tamol’s sons were with him, fighting at their father’s back.  Some of the men held axes carved out of stone, others carried hand crafted tools made from petrified wood and sharpened over time. 

Tamol
did not spare a glance for the fallen raider, except to check to make certain that the man would not rise again.  He pulled his spear free of the man’s body as the men spread out in an ever-widening circle.  

Farren’s eyes were wide but his mouth was set in a grim line of determination.  He fought
beside Tamol and though he was not a warrior, long-held loyalty and a sense of brotherhood gave his blows force.  Those that were injured made their way to the captives, using the blades of their knives to cut and hack at the ropes that held the men and women. 

Despite the battle being waged, the women immediately gathered their children to them and
hurried away from the fighting men. 

T
he freed captives began to take up the fight alongside Tamol and Farren’s men.  They fought alongside Kaichen and each man that stood with him.  They fought as one, seeking freedom from the raiders that had overtaken them. 

As
Kaichen fought, he looked for the men that led the raiders.  As the number of raiders left standing dwindled, the men around him shouted in victory. 

Though they fought for their lives, the outcome was not certain.  Before the battle was underway
Kaichen refused to share parting words with Antuk.  His friend would have become distracted by what he considered to be useless chatter. 

Kaichen simply clasped Antuk’s arm at the wrist as his friend haphazardly repeated the gesture.  It was a sign of their long friendship when Kaichen only
grinned as Antuk blinked his eyes up toward the heavens and then looked away.  Antuk stood by his side now, as they fought.  Kaichen did not glance over at his friend, he simply trusted that Antuk would fight at his side, no matter the outcome of the battle.

Farren and
Tamol continued to fight beside the men of Kaichen’s band.  The enemy raiders were overwhelmed by the sheer number of men that stood against them.  It did not matter that many of the men were armed with tools better suited to the reaping of the harvest than for a fight.  It did not matter that Tamol heaved rocks and fought with hand and fist, when his weapons were lost in the melee.

T
he remaining raiders were willing to fight to the death.  It was obvious that the men that had marked themselves as their enemy would fall under the hand of those that they had once sought to enslave. 

“No!” The shout was heard as if from a distance as time slowed and Kaichen turned.

He saw a familiar figure race toward him.  It was Pele, the son of Tamol.  Kaichen was distracted momentarily as Pele threw himself in front of him, shoving him to the ground. 

It was only as he freed himself of the man’s cumbersome weight that he saw what had prompted Pele’s actions.  The man had taken an arrow to his chest.  An arrow meant for Kaichen.

Tamol’s anguished shout brought a halt to the battle.  Kaichen and his men guarded Tamol’s back, holding off the remaining raiders, as Tamol fell to his knees beside his son. 

“Pele, my son.”
Tamol’s grief-stricken voice was harsh in the sudden silence. 

Kaichen fell to his knees beside
Tamol.  The breath left his lungs as he saw the vacant stare in Pele’s eyes.  Tamol’s son had already breathed his last.  Tamol grabbed hold of Kaichen’s arm and shook him fiercely even as his eyes blazed. Tamol’s eyes were filled with indescribable sorrow.

“Father!” The shout came from one of
Tamol’s other sons.  The young man was the image of his fallen brother.  His face was filled with fury as he looked upon the body of his brother. 

“Kill them!” The cry went up with renewed vigor as the men caught sight of Pele
’s body.  He had been a brother to many, a friend to all. 

The raiders
that were left alive began to back away with teeth bared and eyes that promised death.

A lone figure approached, carrying a
large bow and it was obvious that this was the man responsible for the arrow which had taken Pele’s life.  The man shouted to those that stood with him.  Soon a second man joined him.

Kaichen noticed that th
e raiders left their fallen companions behind.  Animals had more regard for those of their own kind.

Tamol
forced his injured leg to hold him as two of his sons removed Pele’s body.  He narrowed his eyes at the two figures that walked out of the darkness.  “No, it cannot be.”   

Farren
felt the loss of Pele as if the young man had been his own son.  He could only imagine the grief that surged through Tamol, even now.  Farren inhaled sharply as his eyes took in the sight of the men that walked toward them. Even with their faces painted and their hands reddened with blood, he knew them.

Kaichen stared at the men that stood
before him.   He refused to turn his gaze away from the men that threatened their way of life and all that they valued. 

His first impression was that the men
that led the raiders were fearless.  They walked forward without any way to shield themselves against the countless arrows and spears that were raised toward them.  The similarities between the two men told him that they were closely related, perhaps even brothers.  The men were dressed similarly, wearing animal skin breechcloths, with bare chests, arms and legs.  Their faces were painted black, showing only the whites of their eyes. Both men wore feathers braided into their hair, displaying their status as leaders of their people. 

Kaichen looked between the
four men that faced each other. He stood with Farren and Tamol on either side of him, but it was as if he did not stand in their way at all. They studied one another with dark glances that spoke much, but he could not understand the silent communication that passed between them.

“
Tamol.  Farren.” The man spoke in a raspy voice, full of loathing. 

His eyes roamed over the men before him
and his stance did not speak of defeat.  When his gaze landed upon Kaichen his eyes glittered with untold anger. 

“Ni’zin
and Tonaka.” Angry disbelief tinged Farren’s words as he named their enemy.

“You killed my son.”
Tamol ground the words out between lips that were pressed together in fury.

The man called Ni’zin smiled with malicious
disregard for Tamol’s grief.  He caught and held the gaze of his brother, Tonaka. 

“
Your son’s death is the result of the path that you have chosen. Today you and your men stand with those that we have marked as our enemy and so this is what you have become.” Ni’zin’s voice held no remorse.

“
It has always been so.” Tamol stood firm even as Farren voiced his agreement.

Ni’zin
’s eyes landed upon Kaichen again and this time he did not look away.

Kaichen saw that the
markings on the raider’s faces were heavily painted on as if to darken out their features.  He heard a familiar tone in the man’s voice, but he could not say why it should be so.  He also knew the sound of their names, but he could not identify their source. 

The urge to end the
battle once and for all was strong within Kaichen and he stepped forward before Tamol and Farren could speak.

“
You are outmatched and outnumbered.  If you wish to allow your men to die by the slaughter, then that is your choice.” Kaichen’s voice rang out over the men that stood in the clearing, ready to fight until they breathed their last breath.

He felt the loss of Pele as if it was his own brother that had died.
It did not matter that Pele had once challenged him, in the end he sacrificed his life so that Kaichen might live, so that their people might survive.

“
The arrow that I sent was meant for you.  I will fight you now and end your worthless life.” Ni’zin ground the challenge out between lips that were white with fury.