Читать книгу The Seekers: Soul Ties - Anton Anderson - Страница 6

Today was a good day, by any definition. Frolicking birds were filling the air with their songs. They made their nests on a Land crumb – a piece of a rock and dirt, slowly floating hundreds of meters into the sky. Safe from land predators, the Land crumbs were a nearly perfect place to be safe and to raise offspring.

When such rocks flew above her head, they always reminded Sabiri about the good old times when her own children were home. Now they’d all left in search of something new and exciting. Yes, that meant she was living alone with Iskrila for a few years now. The house seemed too big and too empty. But it was okay. Sabiri was proud of her children, and she did everything to enable them to go wherever they wanted.

Warm, gentle wind was stroking her skin. No one bothered her. The breakfast Iskrila made this morning was amazing. Yet, she felt no joy. No joy at all.

Sabiri was sitting on a wide bench near her house, trying to get some work done. Dark-orange skin on her palm was muddy with black ink – she was too lazy to wait for it to dry when she wrote. Her red eyes were staring at a single point without moving. To one of her big horns, twisted like a spiral staircase and narrowing at the top, was pinned a small piece of paper. It was quietly rustling in the wind, making sure she wouldn’t forget to read it. Her thick leather jacket could stop a knife, like the one she was carrying in a holster on her shorts. But the main weapon was a sword, attached to Sabiri’s belt.

A big table in front of her was used for meals about as often as for work. She wished the work was as enjoyable as a meal with good company, but it was still nicer to read and write under the bright sun than with a lamp. A pile of scrolls in front of her seemed endless and useless: maps, duty rosters, schedules, supply inventories… The smell of old paper was teasing her long nose, but today there was no joy in it. Smaller, unrolled pieces of paper were laying all around, even on the blue grass under her hooves – that was mail. A beautiful quill was sitting in a bottle of ink, waiting to be used.

The more she looked at the map, the more frustrated she got. There it was, the Great Lake. Four igni villages were dispersed evenly over its bank.

Imbralestan, named after the beautiful vapor that rises in the air when it rains upon the lava lakes. The name has transformed greatly over the years, and now people of Imbralestan were usually called just the Vapors.

Poinistan, marking their chief’s love for the scarlet color. The Scarlets, in fact, all seemed to like red.

Imbrergoso, or Drowners in casual speech.

And, finally, Coracastan – her home. Sabiri still hadn’t asked Star about the name’s origin. As she recalled, Star didn’t really like to dance, but maybe she used to? It was almost three hundred years ago, after all.

Sabiri was born much later, but just in time to take part in building the road that encircled all the villages. Later, the igni and other species all around the Lands connected their own paths to the road, ending the villages’ seclusion. Star had so many hopes of becoming a transport or a trade hub in these parts, but it never happened. All major places of trading and crafts were eventually interconnected by straighter and wider roads, leaving the villages with few visitors.

She needed a distraction, to stretch her legs. There were still a few hours before lunch so almost everyone was working, leaving the streets empty. Sabiri always liked to look around when she walked. Their village was considered rather large, with about three and a half hundred population and about a hundred buildings. But those numbers were still low enough for everyone to know each other. Every road was familiar, every building. Sometimes Sabiri found this boring, but every year kept bringing her something cool.

The wonderful smell of soup grabbed her attention, as she was making her way towards the market. Through an open window, Sabiri saw a cooking lesson in action. Two girls looked focused, listening to an adult igni who was standing in front of a big, steaming pot with a ladle in her hand. Sabiri grabbed the note from her horn, refreshed its contents in her memory, then pinned it back on. Today she wouldn’t forget to buy what she needed!

«Hey, Sabiri!» She heard a familiar voice.

Instead of using the road, Star was making her way between the houses, which was often faster. Her favorite white sweater and shorts looked great on her skin, which was such a deep purple it was almost black. White eyes were even more unusual, matching a pair of simple, smooth, white horns. Beside her golden earrings and rings, nothing else conveyed Star’s high status.

«Hello to you too.» Sabiri smiled and shook her hand. «Where are you heading?»

«To you, actually. I was hoping to talk.»

Sabiri snickered. «And what are we doing? Can we walk at the same time?»

Star led the way. Seconds passed, yet she was keeping silent. At first, Sabiri didn’t mind, but then decided that a conversation could help her out. Yet, what should she talk about?

«See how the paint’s flaking from those door frames and windows? I do like to put little details onto my own home, and some paint is an obvious way to do it. But is there really no way to make it stick better? Or to last longer? I mean, the paint hasn’t improved in ages!»

Star scratched her head. «I don’t know, really. I’ll ask around, but there were always more important things to do.»

«Speaking of important – you wanted to talk.»

«Yes. I was thinking whether we need so much military. How many years ago did we repel the last raider attack? There’ve been no slavers in the area for quite a while now. I really think we’ve finally reached the peaceful times.»

That was almost the very question that bothered Sabiri. Still, what was the answer? Walking past the home of one of their butchers, Sabiri noticed a little stone path in front of the door. She wondered whether it was just a decoration, or to better hear the hoofsteps of the visitors?

«And we won’t hear or see them coming without the scouts and lookouts,» Sabiri said. «Those we cannot disband. But we can disband the soldiers.»

Star’s mouth curved in a wide smile. «Cut the crap, please. Just tell me what’s bothering you. There’s always something – I know you well enough.»

«Yeah, you’re onto me.» Sabiri shook her head, regretting ever agreeing to this conversation.

«I always am, and you’re always dodging questions! You need to work on yourself. Every day you need to make yourself do what’s right, what’s good for you and for all of us!»

Star was right. Shit, of course she was right! But… Sabiri cursed herself for the thousandth time today. She hated it! Keeping it all in her head already felt hardly bearable, but now when Star mentioned it out loud! That foul feeling at the bottom of her stomach… That feeling of helplessness… She hated it!

Sabiri sighed heavily. «That’s so stupid! Even if we leave the numbers of scouts intact, there are quite a few roads leading to us! Who knows if and when a new trouble would arise? Who knows exactly what would happen? How can I possibly risk getting us killed if I reduce our military numbers? But how can I keep spending so much when it’s peaceful? Even you showed up to complain about our expenses.»

«Sabiri.» Star smiled. «Don’t worry. We’ll sit down and discuss this. I know you can do it. Do you really think I’d make you my war mistress without having faith in you?»

Sabiri shook her head. «Screw that «faith’! There are facts, there’s information, and there’s crap! I do know that if we let ourselves relax, if our soldiers forget how to fight – we’re screwed when the danger comes! I don’t have «faith’ in that – I know it for a fact.»

Sabiri was about to snap but managed to control herself. She felt pathetic. And then she felt remorse. Star wasn’t at fault here. She didn’t have to listen to her yelling.

«So, should the danger come?» Star was trying a different approach. «Wouldn’t we see it coming? Couldn’t we face it together with our allies?»

«Grrr!» Sabiri let the anger out and stopped.

Could we? Would we have time? Certainly not, if the enemy is good. We shouldn’t hope to face amateurs, but we also must be realistic! Everybody is demanding me to know the future!

They stopped near the house of one of the tailors. Standing near the door was a wooden statue of an igni. It was either guarding the home, or welcoming guests. While it was as tall as a real igni, the sculpture was lacking the detail and life, especially that tail made of simple rope. Flaking paint wasn’t improving the looks, but it still was a piece of great work.

Sabiri pointed at the statue. «If we set up a bunch of them on the walls, then the enemy would overestimate our numbers greatly. Should I count on that? How can I count on anything when so many lives are at stake? How can I choose anything even remotely dangerous? But how can I keep spending more than absolutely necessary?»

Star came closer and put her hand on Sabiri’s shoulder. «Sabiri, calm down. We’ll figure it out. I’m definitely helping you with this.»

Sabiri sighed heavily. «Isn’t the final call still my responsibility?»

Star, no doubt, wanted to say something else, something encouraging perhaps. But her attention was taken by a scout, rushing as fast as the wind towards them. There was a piece of paper in her hand, and it didn’t look like good news.