Bedtime Stories 6

Posted on Mon Jun 6, 2016 @ 9:42pm by Lieutenant Cassandra Kennings

2,378 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: The Fall
Location: Kansas, Earth
Timeline: Years in the Future

OOC: I'd intended this little tale as a way to keep my creative juices flowing when we got quiet, but it got away from me for a time. I'll work to finish it off, if anyone's interested, and maybe progress to other tales.


IC:

Cassandra and Karadee reappeared midair, shouting in surprise as they fell. Fortunately they landed on a hill of loose dirt and rolled gently down the side to the bottom.

Cassandra stood up and brushed herself off quickly. Either the Sultan was off with his estimate, or he covered quite a bit of distance in four days. *Or a day here is longer than I thought, and I've been gone from the Victory that much longer...* she thought. She looked around briefly to get her bearings. The landscape in front of her was barren land indeed, just as the Sultan described, but past it there was another hill and, she hoped, salvation. A gasp from behind her made her spin and rush back up the hill she'd tumbled down to reach Karadee who was staring into the distance.

The fields within the valley were a dusky red, and the landscape was littered with sharp objects jutting out from the ground like a metal bamboo. On the ground were little piles of leather and metal armor, and now and then a flash of off-white where a piece of the fallen soldier was showing through the armor he died in, his weapon and shield serving as his headstone.

"It's the land of the dead," Karadee said, her voice quiet with fear.

"It's a battlefield," Cassandra said. "But in the end, it's the same thing."

She took Karadee's hand and turned her away, beginning their walk towards the borders of the next kingdom.

"Why are there so many dead?" Karadee said.

"Because so many fought," Cassandra said.

"Did they have to fight?" Karadee asked quietly.

"They thought they did," Cassandra sighed. "Perhaps it was for a good cause, perhaps they just thought it was a good cause. We won't know.

They walked in silence for a time while Karadee processed that. "Have you ever had to kill?" she said after a long stretch of silence had passed.

"No, thankfully," she said. "I come from a people who once had to, in order to live, but that time is over now. Now, I work to stop the fighting and preserve life."

"That's good," Karadee said, "but how do you stop people from fighting?"

"Often, by finding common ground. Give them something to help see each other as equals. They can use that as the bedrock of a relationship."

"What if they have nothing in common?" Karadee said.

"Then you give them something," Cassandra said, ruefully as they approached the crest of the next set of hills. The view from here was much more reassuring, trees and grass were more abundant and she could see a large settlement beyond the tree line.

They rushed down the embankment and walked quickly towards the trees, eager to put as much distance between themselves and the skeletons behind them as possible. The trees were sparse, but wide, giving them room to pass between, but also shade to cool them down. Cassandra thought briefly about how they would make a good hiding spot if the sultan came looking for them.

Her theory was confirmed when a sword came swinging into view, stopping centimeters from her throat. "Do not move," a gruff voice said.

Cass glanced to the side and saw Karadee similarly frozen mid step, a sword to her throat as well. "We come in peace," Cassandra said, her voice soft, and her hands out at her sides. "We've just escaped from the neighboring kingdom, and we seek asylum and offer our help to your ruler."

"Women do not 'escape' from there," the voice said.

"They do now," Cassandra said, quietly. The man's voice was behind her, far enough from her ear that she could tell he wasn't standing directly behind her, and he was considerably taller. She wasn't going to get out of this by physical force, even with what she was capable of. She kept her eyes down and willed her heartbeat to slow. "Please allow us to speak to your leader and offer our assistance to him. We fear that the Sultan will be massing troops to invade."

The guards were silent for a moment, then Cassandra felt the knife removed from her throat. "March forward," the voice said. Cassandra reached her hand out to Karadee who took it, and they walked forward, hearing footsteps behind them.

They didn't speak as they walked, nor did their captors. By the time they'd arrived at the gates of a large stone wall, the sun was almost down, and they were both tired and hungry. The gates swung open slowly and they were brought into what looked like a large, enclosed village. Far from the opulent halls and strong citadel enclosures of the Sultan's palace, this place was small stone dwellings and communal fires. Everyone looked more worn, and many looked like there wasn't enough food to go around. Cassandra looked around at the children and it broke her heart to think they were going hungry.

Finally they were led to a larger stone building in the center of the compound and pushed through the doorway. The inside was considerably cooler and had three men sitting together and hunched over a table, discussing something among themselves. They stopped as the women entered and stared. The one in the center had the courtesy to stand and bow, then look at the guards behind the newcomers. "Who are they?"

"They claim to have escaped from the city," Cassandra's guard said. "We will have them interrogated and then disposed of."

Karadee let out a small squeak of fear, but Cassandra kept her violet eyes leveled at the man in front of her. He stared back for a moment, stroked his chin and finally sighed. "Leave us."

The guards glanced at each other then back at their leader for confirmation. He nodded and bade them leave. As they stepped out, Cassandra nodded her head in thanks. "We're not here to harm you."

"You already have," the man said gravely, sitting back down. "Now he has an excuse to raid us once again." He looked to the two men sitting with him. "Prepare to leave."

The other men nodded and left quickly, brushing past Cassandra as she stared harder at the leader. He sat up straight and looked at her with a familiar stare. Her eyes quickly raked over the rest of his features and she took a gamble. "Your brother is the older of the two of you?"

The leader's eyebrows went up slowly. "Older," he confirmed, "but the years have been somewhat harder on me."

"He allowed you to live in exile, so that he could take the throne unchallenged?" Cassandra guessed.

"Hardly," the leader laughed, coming around from his seat at the table. "A servant loyal to my father helped me escape. My brother was the one strong enough to seize power, so he seized as early as he could, and my life was forfeit. Once I escaped, I was raised by the gentle hand of nature, and I decided that those of us banished to the wilderness could tame it peacefully. For a time we succeeded, but my brother eventually learned of our prosperity, and decided to intervene. If you've crossed the expanse, you've seen the result of his attempts to capture me."

"Those bodies are your people," Cassandra said.

"Not all, some are his soldiers," the younger brother said. "We are peaceful by nature, but not weak. We fight back when we must." He looked the two of them over again. "And it seems we must now."

"But the Sultan said your people were planning to attack him," Karadee said.

"His usual excuse to his troops when he wishes them to attack us. It gives them more reason to fight when they think they're defending something, rather than slaughtering. "We've learned to anticipate his whims and fight accordingly."

"Why?" Karadee said. "He's your brother. Can't you two talk? Agree on something?"

"Yes," the man said, leaning down to look her in the eye. "We can agree that he's never going to let us live in peace."

"But how do you know if you don't try?" Karadee said.

The man smiled at her and knelt down, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I did try, young one. When he first learned I had survived, he came with a squad soldiers to capture me. My people attempted to protect me while I tried to talk to him. When they failed to capture me, the soldiers killed twenty of my people and hung their bodies in the expanse as a warning."

Karadee's face turned pale and her knees began to shake. "That's awful," she whispered.

"Yes, it is," he said, his voice heavy. "And since then we have had to fight back. We've dealt blows to his side as well, but it always ends the same; we lose more people than he does, and we are forced to go further into hiding."

"You're in a walled village," Cassandra said. "Not exactly something you can hide."

"We've learned to hide our people. Walls can be rebuilt, people cannot. The men who found you are lookouts. The can send back warning for us to hide," he said.

"You should have some time on your side," Cassandra said. "We have a few days head start, and it only took us a few hours to walk here from the expanse."

"You walked here?" the brother said, his eyes wide with surprise. "It's a few days journey from the palace. How did you survive?"

"With a bit of luck," Cassandra said, ignoring his suspicious stare. "But even if the Sultan chased us immediately after we left, he will be a few days away, more than enough time to conceal your people safely."

"Did you have a haster?" he asked, curious.

"A...what?" Cassandra said.

"A riding steed," Karadee said. "I was reading about them. They're very swift."

"Of course," Cassandra said, sitting down in a chair and rubbing her eyes. "How long until they can get here?"

"They'll be here by tomorrow morning, I would assume," he said. "We only have few hasters here, but I will provide you with one so that you may make your escape, and I will see to it you are given some provisions. Beyond that, you are on your own."

"You're very kind," Cassandra said, "but I can't have us taking away your means of escape."

"You aren't being given a choice," the leader said, his voice hard and unwavering as his brother. "I wish to say honestly that the women he's searching for are not here. Perhaps then, he'll spare us."

"Or you could surrender us," Karadee said suddenly, eliciting stares from both the adults. She looked at Cassandra, frowning in thought. "Emin--Cassandra, you said we were going here to negotiate, right?"

"That was what I told the Sultan," Cassandra said.

"So why not let us be their protection? Let them turn us over to the Sultan as a peace offering. The Sultan won't be mad at us, because we are being given back, and he might even be grateful to his brother for returning us, and leave him in peace."

"Or he'll kill us all and take you back as rescued prizes," the leader said.

"Oh..." Karadee said. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Always assume the worst, hope for the best," Cassandra said. As Karadee silently processed that nugget of wisdom, Cassandra's brow creased. "And plan for both," she said, slowly.

"What are you thinking?" the leader said.

"Best hope? You hand us over, and he lets you go."

"The worst, and more likely reality however, is that we all end up dead," he said.

"What if I could ensure your protection?" Cassandra said.

He stared at her for a moment, unsure whether to hold on to an unlikely hope. "How?"

"I'm not at liberty to divulge how," Cassandra said, "but if I could convince him to leave in peace, and guarantee that his men could not harm you or your men, would you agree to the meeting?"

The leader sat back against his table, crossing his arms over his chest in thought. "And what of after? Once he has you, takes you away, and your protection is gone?"

"If we meet him at the expanse, he will not be able to attack you again," she said, staring at him intently.

The village leader looked into her eyes and searched for a hint that she was lying, or puffing herself up. When he couldn't find either, he sighed, and looked down, coming to a decision. "Very well," he said. "What will you require?"

"Yourself, two bodyguards to flank us as a show of power, and a promise from you," she said.

"Have I not already given one?" he said, his voice tinged with suspicion over what she was going to ask.

Cassandra inclined her head in acknowledgement. "And I require one more," she said. "Once your safety is assured, and I have returned to the Sultan, you will take my ward back with you, and help provide her with a comfortable life."

"What??" Karadee shouted.

"If the point of this plan is to turn you both over to my brother--"

"The point is to prevent your brother from attacking you," Cassandra said. "My return to him can assure that. She is merely a concubine. I am something much more valuable to him."

"And what is that?"

Cassandra let the question hang in the air a moment, then raised her hand and snapped her fingers. A swirling ball of flame appeared above her hand, growing in size and brightness until Karadee and their host had to shield their eyes. Cassandra snapped her wrist and the ball flew as if shot from a cannon, striking a tall, carved, wooden statue and burning it to charcoal.

The leader looked at the smoking cinder, then back at Cassandra with renewed awe, suspicion, and a tinge of fear.

"A Warrior of Light," Cassandra said.


TBC

 

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