Chapter 48

Year 163 – Fall – Quintus Mensis – 16th day

Avem, town of House Kalator, land of the Vale

The smell of burned flesh was hovering around the town. Tables, chairs, food, livestock, and valuables of any kind were being stacked in piles on the main road. The slaves had been tied together. Each slave had a rope tying their hand on their back, which was also tied to the neck of the slave behind them. The first and last rope had been held onto by a mule, and each mule was attached to the ground using sturdy sculpted timber.

The Silver Lining had found a large house in the northeast of town and was now carrying their injured and their supplies inside their new apartment.

Lanaya – “Bring the injured on the second floor; there are four bedrooms. The rest of you, start cleaning the area while I join Alphael.”

Nelis – “What do we do about these papers? There’s an entire room full of them!”

Lanaya – “Keep them! We might be able to use them as a bargain with Egmond.”

Lanaya then left and walked across town until she joined the slave trader and the Northern king. When she arrived, they were arguing in front of a slave wearing a dirty tabard with a golden eagle on it.

Alphael – “This one’s injured, so he’ll be ten.”

Egmond – “He’s injured, but he’s a war general. If he gets healed, he could fight well.”

Alphael – “I don’t know if he could fight anymore.”

Ethen – “Then give me a sword and we’ll find out.”

Egmond – “See?”

Alphael – “He’s just eager to kill you. It doesn’t mean he’ll survive the travel.”

Lanaya – “I fought him during the first assault. He’s more than decent as a fighter. If he survived, you’ll get much more than your average slave.”

Alphael – “Lanaya . . . Such a great help you’re giving me.”

Lanaya – “I’m receiving a share, so I won’t dismiss them for free.”

Alphael – “Alright, I’ll give 40 for him as well.”

Egmond – “Good! Then we’re done.”

Ludger – “You’re certain you want to sell all these slaves?”

Egmond – “The best slaves come from far away and have nowhere to go. These slaves have a reason to fight back here, and I’m not interested in dealing with it. The only few slaves I kept are the 20 most docile girls I could find.”

Alphael – “That gives us 241 slaves in good condition and 71 in poor condition. So, as we had agreed upon, 40 Utos for those in good condition and 10 for the injured.”

Egmond – “Correct.”

Alphael was moving around the beads of his abacus to calculate the total cost.

Alphael – “Where do you want us to bring the coins?”

Egmond – “Inside the town hall, so Ludger can count it.”

Alphael – “It’s a total of 10,350 Utos. I’ll also need the food provisions before the end of the day.”

Egmond – “It’s already being carried inside the ships, just bring the gold inside the town hall.”

Lanaya – “How much is a third of that?”

Alphael – “Hm, let me think a second . . .”

Egmond – “Wasn’t it a quarter?”

Lanaya looked at him with mad eyes.

Lanaya – “With all the work we did, you better not try to fuck us in the ass!”

Egmond – “I suppose you did well . . . Alright, I’ll give you what you want. You can have your third of the share.”

Alphael – “One-third would be 3,450 Utos and some pebbles.”

Egmond – “Separate a pile with 3,500 Utos as proof of my good deed.”

Lanaya – “Thank you, I’ll remember it.”

Egmond – “You’d better.”

Lanaya – “I’ll be going then.”

Alphael – “Lanaya, do I bring your money to the town hall?”

Lanaya – “No, I intend to use it in Almuharib.”

Alphael – “Understood.”

Egmond – “The East use the Union currency?”

Alphael – “The Celestial Trader does.”

Egmond – “They have an outpost in Almuharib?”

Lanaya – “A small one where they deliver light requests.”

Egmond – “So, they wouldn’t sell food and military equipment?”

Alphael – “Only if they are highly priced.”

Lanaya – “My sorcerer buys some of his plants there. We pay in advance, and they bring the specific ingredient later.”

Egmond – “I see, and how long is the wait?”

Alphael – “They travel twice a year.”

Ludger – “Don’t waste your time with this, Egmond. They are only located there for the ancient temple of Ira Arcum, north of Almuharib. They keep a presence to remain aware.”

Alphael – “A dismal hope if you want my take, as there haven’t been any new preachers in decades. Only a few old apostles who barely keep the dust in check. If it wasn’t for the Celestial Traders wasting their time and efforts, the place would have been sacked by burglars a long time ago. Lanaya might as well be their biggest client at this point.”

Egmond – “I see.”

Alphael – “Lanaya, we’ll be going tomorrow, so make sure your men don’t feast too much.”

Lanaya – “Count on us!”

Egmond – “I’ll be going with you to Oluja-Borough.”

Alphael – “I take it there will be more slaves?”

Egmond – “It depends. Now that we have Avem, they don’t have much to run to. I’ll give them the choice to become my loyal subjects or be turned to slavery, in which case we will sell them to you, of course.”

Lanaya – “You’d allow them to become Kalator?”

Egmond – “Well, to be a Kalator means to serve your people and fight for their interest. It is a code of honour, a creed. Had House Valmai surrendered, I would have allowed them to become Kalator. Were you to fight for us with intent nobler than a simple wage, you could become a Kalator.”

Lanaya – “Aren’t your generals and soldiers paid?”

Egmond – “Their wage is minimal for their service and bravery and is more a way to facilitate their management. They don’t own their armour and blades like you sellswords do. They are provided with food and equipment. That wage is to let them take care of their minimal expenses, such as trinkets, tools, spices, whores, quills, ink, paper, musical instruments, or fancy food. It’s way simpler to let them handle such needs than to manage it for them. Giving them a wage doesn’t take away their intent to fight for their people. If you wonder why I see sellswords like you from a different eye, ask yourself. How many lords have you fought for, and how many more will there be?”

Lanaya – “As many as the war will create out of greed.”

Later that day, the Silver Lining had fully installed themselves in the large house with two floors and a large room full of documents.

Owen – “Finally! We’ll sleep, away from the moist!”

Lanaya – “Only for one night. You’ll be coming with us tomorrow.”

Owen – “What? Why me? Brys can cook!”

Brys – “Don’t bring me into this! I want to stay!”

Lanaya – “Both of you will be coming with us tomorrow. I’ll only leave the wounded and a few to take care of them behind. We still have to protect Alphael all the way to Almuharib, east from the Union. We’ll also take control of Oluja-Borough with Egmond.”

Jurren – “I can come with you.”

Lanaya – “No, you stay here, and so will Nelis, Jowrik, and all the wounded. The others will come with me.”

Leo – “I’m fine. I can come.”

Elgan – “Shhh! We’re lucky enough to be part of the wounded.”

Nelis – “Your wounds are closed, but they are not healed. If you start walking for 10 hours a day, you simply won’t be able to keep up. And after two or three days, you’ll be left behind. There are quite a few days of walking from Oluja-Borough and Almuharib.”

Lanaya – “My words won’t change. All of you will be free from duty for the winter once we come back.”

Nelis – “Tally, do you remember what to buy for next spring?”

Tally – “White willow barks, conium maculatum flowers, and salt. Was there anything else?”

Lanaya – “Probably sulfur.”

Tally – “We don’t have enough?”

Nelis – “We’ll need more.”

Lanaya – “See?”

Tally – “I’ll keep it in mind!”

Lanaya walked upstairs to see how the two heavily injured were doing. In the first room, Petra still hadn’t woken up since the fight. Jowrik was sleeping next to her in the bed. Lanaya sat on the other side and laid her head on her chest. Her pulse was hitting slowly but strongly.

Lanaya whispered – “Keep fighting!”

Nelis entered the room with an herbal broth. The noise woke Jowrik, who looked at Nelis with a look filled with anxiety.

Nelis – “She’ll be fine. I’m much more scared for the other girl.”

Lanaya – “She’s not going well?”

Nelis – “She doesn’t have hypothermia anymore and her wound is sealed, but she caught a cold, and her blood is still dark near her heart. She’s stable, but I really don’t know what it is.”

Lanaya – “I’ll take a look, but if you can’t cure her, then no one will.”

Nelis – “Jowrik, can you hold Petra’s head while I feed her?”

Jowrik – “Yeah I’ll do it.”

Lanaya walked outside of Petra’s room and entered the room right in front of it. Vatra seemed in pain. The sheet was sticking to the sweat of her body. She was having some kind of spasm while sleeping.

Lanaya raised the cover and moved it to the side, revealing her nude body. Her skin was pale from blood loss. The wound in her waist had been sealed, but the scar was nearly an inch deep.

Lanaya – “I’m sorry . . .”

She took a dry cover from the nearby wardrobe and placed it above Vatra from her feet to her head. As she was covering her chest, Lanaya noticed the strange dark line emanating from a dark, moon-looking tattoo above her heart.

Lanaya – “How curious indeed . . .”

At first sight, it seemed like a curse of some sort, yet as Lanaya laid her hand upon the mark, she felt a strangely familiar presence emanating from within Vatra.

Lanaya – “That can’t be a blessing, can it? No . . . Could it be a curse from Aya? How peculiar . . .”

Lanaya closed her eyes and whispered.

Lanaya – “Aya, I know little of the burden you’ve inflicted upon her soul, but I ask you to give her a second chance. Lend me your strength and free her from the wicked within her.”

For a long moment, she waited in vain. Powerless against her own disability, she gave up to the tears streaming down her face.

Lanaya – “A monster to mankind and defect to my own kin . . . I suppose I too, am, in my own way, cursed by Aya . . .”

At that moment, Lanaya felt a presence she hadn’t felt in a long time. A stream of warm light overwhelmed the room. The light was so intense it blinded her sight like the ray of a blazing sun piercing through and between the cracked floors. Lanaya tried to use her hand to protect her eyes from the dense light, only to realise it didn’t hurt. She tried to look around when she heard a mellow voice she had long forgotten.

Talaya – “When doubt torments your mind, look for the sight of those who love you.”

Lanaya – “Mother!”

Barely had she spoken when the presence vanished. At that moment, Nelis opened the door, followed by the footsteps of her comrades walking up the stairs.

Nelis – “Are you alright?”

Owen – “Hey! What was that light?”

Lanaya wiped her tears and looked at Nelis.

Lanaya – “Everything’s fine.”

Nelis was still confused, yet he turned around to calm his companion.

Nelis – “Everything’s fine!”

Leo – “What was it?”

Jurren – “Everyone, just get downstairs; you’ll wake the wounded.”

Nelis then entered the room and closed the door behind him.

Lanaya – “I knew she was still there looking out, but to feel her presence like that was . . .”

Nelis walked to her and hugged her.

Nelis – “Don’t cry. You’re supposed to smile right now.”

Lanaya – “They are tears of joy!”

Nelis – “You’ll see her again in the future. I’m sure of it.”

Lanaya tightened her grip on Nelis.

Nelis – “You’re hurting my back.”

Lanaya – “Oh . . . I’m . . . I’m sorry . . .”

Nelis – “How is she doing? Did you see the dark shade in her vein?”

Lanaya released Nelis, and both of them turned toward the girl.

Nelis – “She cleared it?”

Lanaya – “The tattoo still there.”

Nelis – “What about it?”

Lanaya – “When I touch it, I feel a familiar presence.”

Nelis – “A familiar presence?”

Lanaya – “I think she’s been cursed by Aya, although I fail to understand why.”

Nelis – “Could it be a scar left by the curse?”

Lanaya – “It could be . . .”

Nelis – “Well, at least she seems better for now. I suppose we’ll have to thank your blessing for that one.”

Lanaya – “Yeah, we sure will . . .”

Nelis – “I’ll return to take care of Petra. You should go to sleep like the others who are leaving tomorrow.”

Vatra then grabbed Lanaya’s arm strongly while muttering incomprehensible words in her sleep.

Lanaya – “I’ll stay a little more.”

Nelis – “Do as you wish. Good night.”

Lanaya – “Good night.”

When Nelis left the room, Lanaya looked toward the far Eastern girl. She seemed afraid, so Lanaya leaned toward her head and whispered in her ear.

Lanaya – “Don’t worry, it won’t come back . . . You’re under my protection now.”