The Awakened: Book One (34 page)

“Come in, please,” one of the monks said, peering around the door.

Kael rose to his feet and entered the room where Ukiru and Soren stood by the table.  “This exercise has reached a point where the smallest of decisions will affect the outcome.  Now that your two forces are within close range, you will be able to see everything that your enemy is doing; therefore, you are both allowed in the room at the same time.”  Ukiru waved Kael over to the table to update him.  “The rest of your archers were killed in the attack.  They could not compete with the range of the archers on the wall.  However, they provided enough cover for your foot soldiers to breach the gate.  You lost one quarter of your foot soldiers taking the gate, but you still have half of your original forces.”

Kael surveyed the map and noted the location of Soren’s forces.  “How has my enemy reacted?”

Soren looked up from the map and winked at Kael, who smiled in return.

Ukiru answered.  “After breaking down the gate, your soldiers have found themselves in a narrow corridor leading into the courtyard of the city.  Your enemy has massed his foot soldiers in the courtyard to meet your attack and has placed his archers on top of the corridor to fire arrows down on your soldiers.  You have already lost several men in the initial surprise.”

Kael looked up at Soren who was now expressionless.  “The soldiers in the rear will lift their shields over their heads to defend against the volley of arrows.”  Kael tried to imagine actually being in that situation.  “The entire unit will drive the enemy back into the courtyard and get out of the narrow corridor.”

Ukiru looked to Soren for his instructions.  Soren looked straight at Kael.  “My foot soldiers will push back to keep his forces inside the corridor.  And my archers will continue to shoot.”  Ukiru looked back to Kael for his response.

“What is the status of both armies?” Kael asked.

“Both forces are dwindling, but the archers have given your enemy the advantage,” Ukiru responded, still waiting for Kael’s decision.

Kael knew that it was just a matter of time before he was defeated.  It was strictly a numbers game now.  His soldiers were evenly matched against Soren’s, but the archers were bound to take out a few of his men, even with their shields above their heads.  “My forces will retreat out of the northern gate.”

Ukiru looked to Soren for a nod of confirmation before picking up the pale statue from the courtyard and placing it back in the corridor.  He then reached for a black statue and placed it outside of the gate.  “The other half of your enemy’s force exited the western gate and has come behind you.  Your men are now trapped in the corridor by a force in the courtyard, another outside of the gate, and archers above you.  Your men are defeated.”

Kael immediately looked up from the map and extended a hand to Soren.  “Well done.”

Soren grasped Kael’s hand and shook it.  “Thank you,” he said with a smile on his face.

Ukiru turned to Soren and clasped a hand on his shoulder.  “You are the winner of this competition.  Congratulations.”

Soren only smiled in response.

“Now, you must finish packing.  Tomorrow we begin our pilgrimage.  We must be ready to leave at first light.”

The two young men walked out of the room together and Soren put his arm around Kael.  “You put up a good fight.”

“No, I didn’t,” Kael argued.  “You’re just saying that to make me feel better.”

“Yeah.  You’re right.  You didn’t stand a chance,” Soren said, patting Kael on the back.  “Come on.  I’ve got to hurry.  I haven’t even started packing yet,” Soren said, running ahead.

“We were supposed to start a week ago,” Kael yelled, but Soren had already rounded the corner and was out of earshot.

* * * *

The light from the quickly sinking sun filtered through the trees, leaving the ground in the garden dappled with alternating yellow light and purple shadows.  Maeryn sat on a rock ledge surrounding an island of flowers, carefully pruning them by snapping off the dead parts of each plant.  The soft humming of a melody drifted to her ears from across the garden and it brought a smile to her face.  Aelia liked to sing and it warmed Maeryn’s heart to have the child in her presence.

Life is difficult to understand sometimes.
  It seemed like such a long time ago that she was surrounded by very different circumstances.  She used to watch while Kael and Ajani would play in the courtyard.  Saba would always be nearby, ready to give an explanation to the boys about how something worked.  Eventually, when the sun went down, Adair would come home and everyone would sit down to a meal together.

Life was different then.
  Maeryn knew that even in her current circumstances she was more fortunate than most, but somehow, that didn’t make her feel any better.  It was peaceful in the garden, among the trees and flowers.  Somehow, regardless of the things going on around them, the plants and trees kept growing, kept going through their seasons.  They would shed leaves or change colors depending on the species, but eventually, all would bloom again. 
What will my life look like when it blooms again?

“Ma’am?” came a voice behind her.  Maeryn was so deep in thought that she had not heard the footsteps in the coarse sand.

“Yes,” she replied, turning to see Zula standing patiently behind her.  The woman held a piece of parchment in her hand, which she extended to Maeryn.  “Thank you, Zula.”

“Yes, ma’am,” she replied with a nod and quickly turned and walked away.

She is a strange woman to figure out.
  One moment she would speak with such passion, disregarding every manner expected of a slave.  Then the next moment she would be polite and follow all of the rules to perfection.  Maeryn thought that it must be difficult for such a passionate woman to keep quiet.  And it seemed to be getting more difficult for her.  Indeed, Maeryn herself was finding it more difficult lately to be in the presence of Lemus and not say all of the things she wished to.  She only hoped that Zula would not make a mistake in front of that man, for her own sake.

Maeryn turned the letter over in her hands and the sight of the wax seal on the other side sent her heart racing.  She immediately lifted her head and glanced around the garden to make sure that no one was watching her.  The slight movement of Aelia at the other end of the garden was the only presence she could see.

She broke the seal on the letter and unfolded the parchment.

I know not the final destination of this letter.  Nor do I know to whom it is sent.  What I do know is that the one who reads it has proven himself time and again to be a true ally.  For that I must extend my appreciation as well as the offer of my aid in any circumstance where I may be of assistance to you.  As I do not know your identity, I will trust that if you ever need anything that is in my power to give, simply communicate it to me and it will be done.  As a gesture of my trust in you, I wish to give you information as well.  Please forgive the generalities as I do not wish to endanger anyone with specifics.  Indeed this letter is already incriminating and I hope you will follow my advice and burn it as soon as you are able.  In the past,
Bastul
has not been a major focus of our efforts throughout the Empire.  Therefore, it has gone overlooked for some time.  Lately, certain events have brought
Bastul
to the forefront of our attention, due in large part to your own contributions.  However, we do not have enough allies in your city to make any difference.  Therefore, I must ask a favor of you, if you wish to continue this relationship, but it will require much patience.  The Empire has been built upon the backs of slaves who reap none of the benefits of its citizens, but who must labor every day for its welfare.  The city of
Bastul
has one of the largest slave populations in the Empire and I believe that these people are the key to developing a large base of sympathizers to our cause within your city.  My request is that you take note of every slave within
Bastul
and find out if there are any who would not want the chance to change their way of life.  From the information we have received from you in the past, I feel confident that you are the man for this task.  My hope is that you are willing to take this next step and become an active part of our cause.  However, if you do not wish this relationship to continue, simply burn this message and I will not contact you again.

I await your reply.

Maeryn quickly folded the parchment into its original form and looked around the garden to make sure that no one was watching.  Her heart was still beating loudly in her chest in stark contrast to the silence in the garden.  Aelia had only moved a few feet from her last position and was now staring in awe at the butterfly flexing its wings on her arm.

Maeryn looked back at the letter, afraid to open it again.  Somehow it seemed more dangerous if she were to reread it, as if the first time had been an accident.  Many thoughts raced around her head, crashing into one another and making it difficult to think clearly.  She raised her hand to her eyes and massaged them until her mind cleared.  The words of the letter shocked her in many ways.  She had no idea that the Resistance was so elaborate and involved so many cities.  It made perfect sense that a movement such as this would not be limited to
Bastul
, but for some reason, she hadn’t considered the vastness of it and the consequences of involving herself in such a cause.  When she first wrote a letter and gave it to Zula, it was a result of her own personal struggle with Lemus and a desire to see him fail.  She didn’t realize what she was getting herself into.  But the more she thought about it, the more sense it made. 
Who else is capable of doing this task?  Who else has my position and is not fiercely loyal to the Empire?  What about the attack on the shipment in the harbor?  If
Bastul
really has been ‘overlooked’, what kind of power do they have in other cities?
  It all became too much to think about.  Maeryn knew that she would need to think more on this matter before deciding, but something inside her already knew the answer.

“Aelia?” she called out.

“Yes, Mother,” came the reply from behind a flowering bush, followed by a sweet little face.

“Let’s go inside, the sun is almost down.”

Chapter 20

Tears flowed down Saba’s face.  He had no images to recall, only the feeling of a deep and immense sense of loss.  Someone had died in his past; someone he loved deeply.  In the recent months since this memory—if it could be called such—came back, there were several occasions when the feeling would overwhelm him and he would cry until his body fell asleep from sheer exhaustion.  He would wake, only to find that the feeling had not gone away, but had only lessened in intensity.  Eventually, he would heal and begin to feel normal for a while until it happened again, unexpectedly.  As far back as his time in
Bastul
, Saba had wished that he could remember what was in his past.  But on these occasions, he knew that the pain was too great for him to experience and that it was a blessing to have no memory of it.  He wondered now if there were other painful things in his past, things from which he was being protected by his own forgetfulness.

* * * *

Kael sat at the prow of the ship, watching as waves broke into white foam around the hull.  From somewhere behind him he heard the laughter of Horace and Donagh as they shared a joke.  They had all been at sea for weeks now.  Initially, the trip had been an exciting break from their normal routine.  But when the first day of the week arrived, they began with the usual morning meditation, followed by all of their normal instructions in various subjects.  The afternoon’s physical training consisted mainly of hand-to-hand combat while trying to keep one’s balance during the rocking, swaying motion of the boat at sea.  It was difficult at first, but Kael found that the rhythm of the ocean was like everything else in nature; it felt alive and seemed to have a predictable pattern once you got to know it.

But Kael wasn’t thinking of any of that right now.  He was preoccupied at the present with trying to catch a glimpse of their destination.  He had been told, along with all of the others, that they would reach the temple before sundown, and he had grown tired of being at sea.  Finally deciding not to torture himself any longer, he got to his feet and moved past the others, taking a seat at the stern.  The view was much of the same.  Stormy skies and ocean as far as the eye could see.  The only difference was the wake left behind the large boat.