Podcast Episode Listing
Story #7: Pushed To The Edge
For fifteen years invaders from the distant land of Kallis have held Alsalam in servitude to their army, but they’ve brought peace and prosperity as well. When a murderous and enslaving change in command comes down from the eastern King, Alsalam must use the military knowledge he’s learned from them not only to defend himself, but all the tribes of his homeland.
Current Episode: Part 3
Part One, August 3, 2010
Alsalam sheathed his sword, body still heaving in labored breaths from his swordplay. The duel was not won, but when General Brannis summoned, it was best not to delay in responding. After fifteen years of servitude, Alsalam had earned some minor freedoms, but he always walked with careful steps.
Alsalam dismissed the two men facing him with a salute and they sheathed blades of their own. They were getting better with the weapon, at one point he’d thought they might even win this time. He felt a great deal of pride at that.
"You are dismissed. Zukawa, give the men two hours rest." Alsalam said. They bowed and left without question or comment.
There was something to this military obedience from the east. If his people had possessed such discipline before the invaders from Kallis had arrived, they would not have been conquered so easily. Alsalam approached the gate separating his troops from those of the proper army.
The guards at the gate opened it to let him through. One nodded his head in recognition toward Alsalam and he returned the gesture. Many of these men he’d grown to like over the years. He may be no more than a slave to most eyes, but there was an understanding among these troops that rose above society, and he had earned some measure of respect in their eyes.
The structural contrast of the two camps was as striking as the contrasting skin colors of the troops they housed. His slave camp was a collection of large tents surrounded on all sides by a tall wooden fence. The army proper was made up of numerous wooden cabins and buildings. All of the important structures were found in the middle of the camp, surrounded by the protection of soldiers.
General Brannis had a grand two story structure as his command center. The guards posted outside didn’t move at his approach, their expressions never changed. Alsalam didn’t recognize the four men, which surprised him. They stood more erect than Brannis’ usual guards and it made them seem more focused. If they were sending more troops, that could be bad for Alsalam’s people.
The Kalish people who had invaded didn’t just bring destruction. They may have taken men for their army, but they paid them for it, and paid well. Their military was a force of stability that the warring tribes had not seen in decades or more. Was life worse under these conquering people?
Alsalam had earned the respect of the men in his camp, they had come to trust his training, trust his words of encouragement. These were men from tribes that had fought for a long, long time. And it was General Brannis that given him the command and brought them together. Alsalam wasn’t sure that was all bad. Ever more significant, many of the surrounding tribes now were richer, safer, and more productive after a decade of peace in the region.
Alsalam stepped up and knocked hard on the door. The latch wasn’t down on the inside and it opened at the pressure from his hand. Inside, the general sat at his desk, but there were also other men in the room. One of those men was speaking as the door opened, anger hot in his words. He obviously hadn’t heard the knock or the door opening.
"Lord Suleth is dead, Brannis. Commands come from a different source now, and Lord Mallic Pince has very different objectives." The room’s stares finally made the speaker turn to see Alsalam standing in the doorway. The man glared angrily at the interruption.
"Alsalam, thank you for coming, gentlemen if you’ll excuse me, I warned you that I had a meeting when you arrived." There was an edge to the general’s words. Whoever these men were, they obviously made the man unhappy.
The man who had spoken when Alsalam arrived looked back, and for a minute he thought the man might actually growl at the General. Alsalam noticed that both men wore the same uniform, which made this man another general. Why would they have sent him? Alsalam didn’t like the reasons that came to mind.
When the men moved to file out of the room Alsalam moved to the side and bowed respectfully. The angry man laughed and said, "at least they know to show deference. Perhaps your time here wasn’t a total waste, Brannis" It took everything inside him to push down any reaction. Just keep his head down, that would be best. The door closed behind the men with a loud crack.
Alsalam turned to regard General Brannis. The man looked tired. What had been going on these last few days? He’d heard that more support had arrived by boat, but this had the feel of a changing command. Hadn’t the man said that the High Lord was dead? That meant this new man, Mallic Pince was in charge.
"Welcome, Alsalam, I didn’t mean for you to have to see that. The man should have sent a messenger at the very least. You’re probably wondering what it all means?" Brannis said.
"That man must be general under Lord Mallic Pince," Alsalam reasoned. General Brannis smiled and some of the fatigue left his eyes. He stood and walked toward Alsalam, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"Come, let’s sit. How long have you been with us Alsalam?" Brannis said.
"Fifteen years, General."
"Fifteen years," the man repeated with a sigh. "All these long years we’ve kept the peace, established trade. We’ve made this land prosperous haven’t we, Alsalam?"
"You more so than me," he said deferentially.
"Come now, Alsalam, you can’t believe that. Your people would never have worked with me without you." They both stopped walking and sat on chairs in the corner. "You would have gone far in Kallis," Brannis laughed softly. "Perhaps you would already outrank me even."
What had this man asked him here for? He had never been so open or familiar before. Certainly he had never been called friend.
"How has Zukawa’s training proceeded?" General Brannis asked.
"It is well, Sir. He understands after one telling. He is trustworthy should anything happen to me."
"I hope you are right, Alsalam, He’ll be tested sooner than I planned."
Alsalam was suddenly alarmed, was that a threat? "Sir, have I done something wrong?"
"No, no, nothing like that. I’m relieving you of your command, Alsalam." The general said.
"I can’t, General, my men. Those men need me."
"Did you lie to me about Zukawa’s progress then?"
Alsalam shook his head fiercely, Zukawa was a good man. "No, I did not lie."
"Then your men will be fine. You have been a good officer, Alsalam. You never questioned your position, you accepted and you fought to make things better for everyone around you. You have all the qualities of a good military leader, and more heart than most. It’s time to have some freedom and time with your family." General Brannis paused and looked unsure if he should continue.
"Things are going to be changing soon, I fear. High Lord Pince is a despicable man, he poisoned my Lord, or he had it done anyway. That man’s method has never been to dirty his hands personally." The general spat the words.
"Why do you tell me this?" He asked cautiously. General Brannis turned and met his eyes, his expression became very serious.
"I tell you, Alsalam, because there is no one else to tell. I tell you because you may be the only one who can protect your people soon." Alsalam’s heart sank as the general paused. "Mallic Pince was sent here because our home is facing a great war. He’s here to ravage these lands for natural resources. Taxes, government takeover, I don’t know what their methods will be, or how brutal. I fear fifteen years of work could be destroyed in less than one, but then that always seems to be the way of it." He trailed off again, Alsalam wondered what destruction he’d seen.
"I’ll be shipped home soon, most likely put into the service of another Lord or Lady, but I can do this one thing as revenge for this plot, I do this one thing for my Lord’s death, for all the progress and peace that we created. Your people will not be ready to face what is coming, Alsalam. We’ve shown them peace and prosperity, but I fear it will be replaced with fear and death. There is only one thing I can give them, and that is you. You must be a leader now more than ever."
It had been just over five years that Alsalam had been singled out by General Brannis, personally trained and put in charge of others. Had he been thinking about these events for that long? "I will do my best, General." His commander relaxed visibly at the words.
This was all too much for Alsalam to take in at once. It wasn’t long after agreeing that he was heading home, bags packed and slung over one shoulder, to his old village of Jalsalam, named for his own great grandfather who founded it.
He was free. Free to see his wife and daughter without escort, without guards. How good it would be to be home at last. But it sounded like he wasn’t going home to rest. His work now would be more important than ever.
Part Two, August 10, 2010
Jalsalam came into view over a tall hill, one of hundreds across the large Mowarro plains he’d traveled these last three days. The village was a welcome sight at the base of Mount Bassavi. Even from this distance he wondered if it was still just a village. It had surely doubled in size, if not more.
The closer he got Alsalam expected to see the bustle of activity he’d grown to love in the expanded village. The growth was partly because of the stability in the region, and partly because he had acquired something of a reputation. Yet there wasn’t anyone in sight. Windows were covered by cloth, doors were shut tight. It gave an eerie impression of a fabled haunted village. It certainly should more alive at this time of day.
Alsalam’s home was no less quiet. As he approached he noticed the fresh tracks of horses and a carriage. Closer inspection showed they weren’t just fresh, but perhaps not even ten minutes old. Had General Brannis changed his mind? But that didn’t make sense, why would they have left without him?
Something was wrong. Had the village been abandoned? Had they been enslaved? Part of him didn’t want to see what was inside his home, but it was up to him to protect his family. There was no running away.
Alsalam pushed open the wooden door of his hut to see his family crouched together against the back wall. When they saw it was him Alsalam noticed a mix of emotions looking back at him: relief, fear, and even anger. What had happened here? Then he noticed his daughter wasn’t present.
"Jarabi, my heart, what has happened here? Where is Nigani?"
His wife rose and rushed to throw her arms around him, fresh tears filling her eyes. "They took her, Alsalam. Men came for you; they accused us of hiding you. They took her and said it was punishment for our betrayal." Jarabi laid her head on his chest.
He thought of the tracks and a deep rage filled him. A rage he had never felt before. Jarabi stepped back from him instinctively. She saw the change and everyone else in the room did as well. Well they would find he wasn’t quite the man they knew so many years ago.
"They didn’t leave very long ago, my heart. Where have they taken her? Did they say?" His wife shook her head and shrugged. "Do not worry, I will find these men. I will bring her back." He turned to leave again.
Jarabi cried out in alarm and put a hand around his arm. "No, they will kill you too!" He looked back, hand falling to his sword by reflex as he thought of who would be killed today, and she let go of his arm.
"How many were there, did you see?" He asked. It was his nephew Dakkswa that answered.
"I was watching from my home, Uncle, there were four of them. They," he paused and held back tears before continuing, "they took my wife as well. Please, bring her home to me."
Alsalam approached the youth and knelt down by his side, hands falling on his nephew’s shoulders. "These men will pay, Dakkswa," he said, "if she still lives I will save her." He turned to leave the hut. He regretted how much he had scared his own family. What did they think of Alsalam the soldier? Should he be staying to protect them instead?
Worse still, after today there would be no going back. What he was about to do would not be forgiven by this new ruler, Lord Pince. This would be an act of rebellion. He supposed that was why he came home, but exactly what that meant made it all a bit more real.
The tracks from the carriage were easy enough to follow. No other carriages came through here. Whoever had kidnapped the women apparently had not intended to leave the village at all. The tracks led to a hut at the very back of Jalsalam, against the slopes leading up the mountain.
Four was an accurate count. As expected, that meant there were three guards protecting whoever the real enemy was. This wasn’t the soldier’s fault, they were only doing their duty. But that wasn’t true. Alsalam knew he would never accept what was going on in there, even as a soldier. These men were no better than the one inside that hut.
Three-to-one odds were not something Alsalam wanted to tempt. That meant an open charge was out of the question. He crept between huts near the one the carriage was stopped in front of. Two of the guards stood there, and another was guarding from the back.
With a quiet step he came around the back corner of the hut next to the guard. A long knife never made a sound as it slipped from its sheathe. The knife was as old as this village. It had been discovered here when they founded Jalsalam.
The blade was hundreds of years old, but it still looked newly forged. The metal used had never been found except as the handful of blades. There had been a spear tip, an arrow head, and the blades of a dagger and sword. The first two had been reproduced in other forms, mostly rock from the mountain.
Luckily, General Brannis had never realized the importance of that. Although, neither had Alsalam until being in the Kallis military. The importance of such kinds of metal hadn’t occurred to him before that.
When Alsalam was as close as he dared, his arm came back and he threw his knife with great force. The soldier tried to scream in his last moments, but the weapon had flown true into the man’s throat. He peaked around the corner and ran across the gap between huts. He wiped the bloodied dagger on the dead soldier and sheathed it again.
He took a few deep breaths and cleared his mind of everything. His shoulders rolled in circles to stretch, preparing for combat. There was no quiet way to kill these two. His eyes opened with a determined calm and he walked around the corner, drawing his sword.
The first guard turned and saw him approach with a sword. The man laughed and said, "Now where did you find that? You best put that down before you cut yourself."
Alsalam took on an offensive stance and rushed forward. The man gasped in shock and tried to pull his own sword, but he was dead before it was all the way out. The other guard called out a warning and drew his sword, all mockery gone from his face.
They faced off and began to circle one another. Steps falling in synchronized steps, they watched each other. Alsalam needed time for the man inside to come out. It would be too dangerous if he went inside. When he heard boots on wood, Alsalam attacked. The man was not bad with a sword, but he wasn’t used to Alsalam’s style. The soldiers of Kallis all used the same two-handed long swords.
His opponent was on the defensive from the start. Their swords clashed together again and again but the soldier just didn’t have Alsalam’s speed or strength. With a fluid sweep he knocked the man’s sword to the side and then thrust through his chest. The man died as the door to the hut was flung open.
Alsalam recognized the man who came out. He’d been one of the men in the room when the new general had spoken with Brannis, his uniform marked him as a captain. The man recognized Alsalam as well as he took in the dead guards. Any hope that the sight would put him off was dashed when the man grinned at him.
"I thought this might get your attention." The man said.
"These people were not hiding me, Captain. I arrived less than an hour ago. I have no horse to carry me." The fool of a man actually paused at that, considering. He nodded after a moment but shrugged. "Well, it doesn’t matter now does it?" He grinned again and drew his sword, taking an attacking stance.
There was no circling this man, no sizing each other up. Alsalam held his rage at bay, but just barely. His muscles were taught and ready to strike. If the captain of their army was like this, then Brannis must have been right about Lord Pince as well. These were not men that they could work with.
The man moved like lightning as he came for Alsalam. With an effort he knocked the blade aside but it was approaching again as fast. He moved backward with the speed of the captain’s strikes. Alsalam had never trained against anyone so skilled and he felt a little foolish.
He began to notice the man’s strain at recovering those deflected blows though. The man was not used to fighting someone as strong as Alsalam, he realized. His stomped down his nerves and focused his blocks on hard strikes. The captain’s eyes widened slightly as Alsalam took the offense. His muscles tightened on his sword and he drew the knife at his waist.
The two men moved in a dance of terrible violence. Finally Alsalam found his opening. The man thrust, thinking he had the kill. But Alsalam’s knife came up to deflect the blow as his sword arm fell upon the captain’s neck. The knife didn’t deflect the thrust though; it simply sliced right through it!
The captain stared in open shock as his sword, no longer with a pointed end, stabbed into Alsalam’s side. It was the stare of a dying man, for Alsalam’s sword had landed true and sliced a deep, diagonal gash across the man’s chest.
As the captain died Alsalam found he couldn’t hold himself up any longer. He fell to his knees and pain wracked his side where he’d been stabbed. The blow had lost much of its force, and the tip of the sword probably saved his life, but it still bled badly. His vision began to blur.
Movement caught the corner of his eye as he fell onto his side. It was his daughter, Nigani, standing in the door to the hut. He smiled knowing she was alive, but his smile slipped away at the terror in her eyes.
Would everyone he knows think different of him now? Was everyone going to afraid of what he had become? This was who he was now, who he had to be. Even if it meant he would be alone.
"I’m sorry," he said to her, hoping she could hear. Then he lost consciousness.
Part Three, August 24, 2010
Pain shot through Alsalam’s side and he woke with a gasp. Still in shock, he tried to sit up but he didn’t have the strength and was hit with another wave of pain for his effort. His head fell back onto a soft pillow.
His wife was there within moments with a cool, wet cloth. Jarabi gave him a worried smile as she wiped away the sweat forming on his brow. Even scared she was a very beautiful woman. This certainly wasn’t the homecoming he’d prayed for all these years.
"How long have I slept?" He asked.
"Only a few hours, star of my sky, not long enough." Jarabi’s tone said that she planned to stay by his side to ensure more rest. She laid a hand softly on his chest. "I thank the gods that you woke at all. Elder Healer said you would recover, but you lost a great deal of blood. You will be weak for a few days."
"Jarabi, what of the girls?"
"They are alive, and very grateful for you I imagine. The man did not hurt our Nigani more than a few bruises. Her real hurt is from being forced to watch…" Jarabi’s eyes lowered to the ground and she closed her mouth without continuing.
"Dakkswa’s bride, what did he do to her?" Even Alsalam could hear the anger in his question. He saw tears form in her eyes. His side burned when he tried to move to comfort her.
"It is enough to say she lives, my star. If she wishes to tell you more that is her choice and you should respect it." Jarabi said decisively.
Alsalam nodded and didn’t press her further. He felt great admiration for Jarabi already. He was allowed to visit her from time to time, but she was always so guarded with her emotions. Now he saw what strength she’d found over the years.
He put his hand on hers and squeezed. There would be retaliation for the men he killed. Had he only brought death home with him? There hadn’t been time to consider his actions. The warrior in him had taken control.
At the time, he’d assumed that anyone would do the same given the circumstances, but nobody else had. Word had obviously spread about the abduction or the streets wouldn’t have been empty. The village had known, and they’d hid in their homes and shops. Alsalam didn’t know if he should be angry or sympathetic.
Raised voices in the other room made him open his eyes again. Jarabi was looking back at the curtain obstructing the view from the other room. She turned back to look at him. "That is Dakkswa and Mavis. They should know better than to wake you."
Had he really dozed off again? Jarabi left and the voices quieted at once. Alsalam smiled at the thought of their similarities. Maybe she wasn’t a soldier, but she certainly led this family. It had been so long since they spent any length of time with each other, but he knew already she was still woman he’d married.
The curtain opened and a woman he’d never seen stood in the entryway. He assumed it must be Dakkswa’s bride, Mavis. "You will not tell me that I cannot speak with him!" The stranger said sharply, but not to Jarabi like he expected. Instead she said it to her own husband. Alsalam could see Dakkswa standing in the background with an angry expression.
Mavis entered the room with the other two on her heels. He could tell that Jarabi had no problem letting the younger woman in. Perhaps she felt Mavis earned the right to speak with the man that rescued her.
"Alsalam, I owe you my life. I know I can’t thank you enough for what you did, but I needed to say it." Mavis said. "How are you feeling? I admit I found it hard to believe when they said you would survive. I’m… Well I’m sorry. You came for us and you were the one who got hurt." She hid tearing eyes in her hands.
"It could be said I was the reason you were taken in the first place." Alsalam pointed out.
"No, that man was the reason we were taken. That is all that matters." She said. Alsalam met her eyes. They were fierce but she looked away embarrassed. Alsalam hated what had happened to this woman, she was too young.
"Jarabi, could I have a minute alone with him?" Mavis asked without turning around. Dakkswa tried to protest, but Jarabi had him out of the room in a hurry.
"Alsalam, I can’t imagine what pain you must be in, but I need to ask you something." She paused and took a deep breath. "Your family has been there for me since I came to this village as a girl. My village was attacked when I was eight, the Gingawi tribe killed everyone and burned the village to the ground. I was out filling water buckets when it happened. If anyone else survived I never knew."
"Someone will eventually notice these men you killed are missing. You were a soldier for them. You must know more of them than we do. How many will come when they realize what we’ve done here today?"
Alsalam had been thinking about that as well. "It won’t be a small force, but they won’t expect much of a resistance, so it likely will not be large either."
"We don’t have enough able warriors in the village to stand up to them." Mavis said. Alsalam looked up at her with a new curiosity. She had a sharp mind for strategy.
"I don’t know how much I can do about that in my condition. I’m afraid I haven’t come up with anything yet." Alsalam said.
Mavis put a hand on his shoulder and smiled nervously. "If you were not stuck in this bed, then what would you do?"
That was a question Alsalam could answer. He’d spent most of his walk home thinking about what he could do to prepare his people for the coming war. So far none of it had gone as he’d expected.
"I would send the fastest messengers to friendly villages nearby. Many know me around here and many have shown loyalty. The first step would be to boost our numbers. Each of their soldiers is worth two or even three of our own on the battle field. They are efficient and tough with better weapons."
"And then what would you do?" She prodded.
"The town will need defenses. The mountain is a good defense in itself protecting our backs, but if we are outnumbered it will only make it more difficult to escape."
"What are our best defenses against them?"
This was something he’d thought a lot about over the years. Cooperation was the most important difference between the Kallish armies and their own. His people were no strangers to combat with all the tribal wars spanning many centuries, but they had no experience working together as a solid unit.
"Spear and bow are the best weapons we have. They will be over confident and expect to overrun the village. Close combat and easy kills will be the aim, a fast strike. Maintaining a good distance is our best bet. It has been years since they’ve had to fight our tribes. They won’t be as used to our spears anymore."
He noticed the girl was studying him while she listened. She had looked timid and scared upon arrival, but all that was gone. It occurred to him that he was talking to someone with no military training. "That was probably more than you were asking. I apologize for rambling on." He said.
"There is nothing to be sorry about. I will have messengers sent out within the hour. Warriors will be more difficult. We have good fighters but they are afraid the Kallish armies. Word is already spreading about how you killed four of them though, that should help." Mavis paused and smiled at the surprised expression he knew he must have. "I’ll make them pay for what they did to me, Alsalam. I need you to do that. And you need someone not bound to a bed to do what needs to be done."
She was certainly right about both things. Could he really build an army when he couldn’t even sit up? It wouldn’t be easy. Then again, at the moment he didn’t have much choice in the matter.
Part Four, Coming August 31, 2010
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