Back to Chapter 26
Chapter Twenty-Seven � Three Familiar Faces
Danka
and Isauria spent several days traveling northwest through the forest
along paths that were barely visible to anyone not accustomed to
navigating the backcountry. Danka walked in front of the mule while
Isauria held her new crossbow and watched for potential trouble. Danka
enjoyed those days of walking, of exploring the forest while not having
to carry anything, of feeling the cool breezes blowing against her
exposed body. She was able to clear her mind and enjoy the moment,
knowing that troubles and responsibilities would catch up with her soon
enough. But for now, to just casually walk through the forest, with her
belongings on the mule and her former servant watching over her with her
crossbow, that was enough for Danka to momentarily feel at peace with
the Realm of the Living.
The travelers were silent when they were moving, but chatted about many
things when they were resting. Danka continued with Isauria's education,
teaching her about rock formations and explaining how flowing streams
had shaped the land they were passing through. They exchanged stories
about their lives in Mal�nkta-Gordn�ckta and their troubled
relationships with the family of Alex�ndrekt Bul�shckt. Danka later
talked about the towns and villages in the western valley she had seen
when she was a member of the Followers of the Ancients.
When Danka described Seb�rnekt Ris and the university, Isauria seemed
especially interested. The more Danka told her companion about her
experiences there, the more the girl wanted to see the city herself.
Every detail fascinated her, the waterfall, the cliffs full of Royal
Guards and cannons, the hills, the strange foreign country to the north,
and especially the details of student life. Danka found Isauria's
interest in the university surprising, because she was not an
intellectual. She seemed much more suited for running around with a
sword or a crossbow than sitting at a desk with a quill in her hand.
But, maybe there was a hidden side of Isauria, because the teenager kept
asking questions and returning to the topic of Danka's university time.
"I'd like to do that... I mean, what you did when you came back from the
Kingdom. You wrote all about the war in Aksheriri Ris. Because of that,
people won't forget. They'll always know who was there, and what
happened. You told everyone's story with your report. I think that's
really wonderful. Because... there wasn't anyone to tell the story of my
village. The Lord of the Blue Moon's men came in, they killed most of
us, and then they left. Now no one remembers and no one cares. You saw
it for yourself when you went through, didn't you?"
"It was abandoned. You're right about that."
There was a long pause. Then Isauria asked: "When you were there, at the
university, did you see any foreigners?"
"Oh yes. Many foreigners. Including people from the Kingdom of the
Moon."
"Do you think the university would accept someone like me?"
"I have no idea, Isauria. No idea at all if they'd take you. I think
they would if you had a recommendation from a Priest or a town elder,
and if you could show up with writing samples, maybe give them an idea
of what kinds of research you'd be able to do and what topics interest
you."
Danka thought about the thick packets of parchment in her bucket, all
those heavy papers that made it unpleasant to carry. They had a lot of
information that perhaps would be useful to future generations, so there
was no way Danka could part with all that work. All that writing and
research... she didn't have time to develop it, but she'd gladly turn it
over to someone who could appreciate it, who'd work with it and could
put it into a publishable format and share it with others...
She caught her breath... Isauria... why not give the papers to Isauria
and enroll her in the university? She could spend the next four years of
her life working with all that material and adding it to the
university's historical archives. Yes... that was a solution to two
problems. Isauria wouldn't have to come up with any research topics: she
had everything she needed in those packages. Being from the Kingdom of
the Moon, she could look at the wars of 1754 and 1758 from a unique
perspective. She didn't want to make any promises to the teenager about
the university, but there wasn't any reason they couldn't at least go
there and look at the town.
"Then we have a place to go. I need to return to the capitol anyway.
Seb�rnekt Ris is just to the north and I can give you the chance to see
it."
----------
Their path led well to the north of the three villages and the now-empty
garrison. Danka had hoped to find a trail that would lead back in the
direction of H�rkustk Ris province, but it turned out there was no such
path. Instead, a mountain loomed ahead and the trail veered to the
right, which meant Danka and Isauria were heading almost straight north.
Danka recognized the mountain, because it also was visible from
Star�vktaki M�skt, the town where Danka had spent her first year away
from home living in the Old Believers' seminary. Danka looked towards
their destination with anxiety: she did not want to return to
Star�vktaki M�skt and risk running into the High Priest or anyone else
associated with the Temple.
As
the women descended the foothills, sure enough, there it was,
Star�vktaki M�skt. Fortunately there was a fork in the trail that veered
to the right and would emerge into open farmland to the north of the old
provincial town, which meant that Danka and Isauria could bypass it.
Isauria was clearly disappointed about not having the chance to see
Star�vktaki M�skt, because from a distance it looked like a really nice
place. Danka responded:
"I'm a fugitive in that city. I'm sure they'd welcome me back, but only
so they could put five arrows into my chest."
They emerged near the Rika Chorna river and took a ferry across. They
passed the road going northeast towards the Vice Duchy of Rika Chorna,
went over a low hill, and emerged onto the main road going north to
Sev�rckt nad Gor�dki. Danka felt a lot of personal pain as she entered
the familiar stretch of countryside, thinking about her trip with
Bagat�rckt seven years before and how she was so naively in love with
him.
The women traveled along the main road until sunset, making a very
strange sight. Danka was still naked and wearing her penance collar, as
she walked accompanied by a very young-looking maiden with black hair,
wearing a trader's outfit, and sitting with a crossbow on top of an
over-loaded mule. Isauria's wide eyes took in all the sights, because
now she was in the western valley, the very heart of the Grand Duchy of
Upper Danubia.
Danka thought about the best route to take towards Seb�rnekt Ris. There
were two options: go directly northwest between the towns of
Nagor�nkti-Ser�fkti and Dagur�ckt-T�k (avoiding going into both places
if at all possible), or go first to Sev�rckt nad Gor�dki and try to use
the old forest trail built by the Followers of the Ancients. Sev�rckt
nad Gor�dki had an advantage and a disadvantage: her former lover
K�loyankt. There was no question he would help Isauria, but did Danka
really want to see him again? What would she tell him about her life
since she last saw him? How would she feel, looking at his elegant wife,
knowing he'd probably leave her in a heartbeat if she gave him any
indication she loved him? She could face enemies with a crossbow, but
was she strong enough to face a man she mistreated? No. She was not
strong enough to do that, not even for Isauria. She couldn't return to
Sev�rckt nad Gor�dki. She'd have to take the diagonal route across the
farming country of the western valley.
It was getting dark, so the travelers had to stop for the night. Setting
up a campfire and sleeping in the forest was no longer an option. They'd
have to find a Church and Danka would have to use her status as a Public
Penitent to request safe lodging. Fortunately there was a small town
called Gordn�ckt Suy�stenckt just a short distance to the west of the
main road. They entered the town, approached the Church, and Danka
looked for a Priest or Priestess. Following protocol, she knelt and
stretched her hands on the ground in front of her while the attendant
summoned the ordained Clergy members. It was very strange for Isauria to
see her former mentor in that position, kneeling with her hands on the
ground, her legs spread, and her back arched to expose herself in
absolute humility. Well, it was what she had to do. Danka and Isauria
needed a place to sleep and a decent meal, which meant following Church
protocol. Danka whispered to Isauria that she needed to kneel as well,
but to remain upright and not to put her hands on the ground or spread
her knees.
The Priestess came out and told the penitent to kneel upright. When
Danka looked into the face of the Clergywoman, she felt her heart stop,
because she was looking into the face of her former mentor from the
Seminary, the student who first taught her how to read and exposed her
mind to the world of education. As a Priestess, the woman had aged, but
very clearly she was Danka's old mentor, with the same haughty
expression and strict demeanor she had eight years before.
"You look very young, Penitent. Obviously the passage of time has been
kinder to you than it's been to me."
"Thank you, Priestess."
The Priestess ordered Isauria to stand up, take the mule to a nearby
stable and unsaddle him, the to report to the Church bath house so she
could clean up for the evening meal and prayers. That left Danka alone
with the Priestess. Danka's knees quivered, because had she known her
old mentor was the Priestess of Gordn�ckt Suy�stenckt, there was no way
she would have wanted to stop there. The Priestess took her visitor into
the study that she shared with her husband and shut the door. Danka, not
knowing what else to do, assumed the kneeling position.
"Stand up, Penitent. Stand up and face me."
When Danka stood up, the Priestess continued:
"I prayed that I'd have this moment. I prayed for seven years I'd have
you standing in front of me. The Creator answered my prayer by
delivering you into my hands, so you can answer my question."
"What question is that, Priestess?"
"As though you wouldn't know? What do you think my question would be? I
want to know how you defeated the High Priest's son. How did you manage
to kill him?"
"I didn't kill him, Priestess. The Destroyer killed him. I was with him,
however, and I did see what happened."
Danka spent the next hour describing in detail how Bagat�rckt took her
into "the Graveyard of Virtue", how the house servant comforted her
afterwards and gave her advice, the ill-fated trip into the forest to
hunt for "the Joy of the Ancients", and finally how Bagat�rckt ended up
hanging on a branch. She also explained how it was Bab�ckt Yaga who
drove a stake in the back of the corpse and put out the sign. She
concluded with: "I wish I had more to do with his death, because I hated
him as much as you did, and for the same reason. But no, I was just a
bystander. A mere witness."
"That is the strangest story I've ever heard. People in Star�vktaki
M�skt have made up plenty of weird stories about you and what happened
to Bagat�rckt, but no one ever came up with anything as bizarre as
that." The Priestess smiled, the first time Danka had ever seen her
smile. "Well, I can say hearing all that was worth the seven-year wait."
"So... I was right to stay away from Star�vktaki M�skt?"
"Oh, very much so. You're quite the villain at the Seminary. I have the
vicious seducer and cruel murderer of poor dear pious Bagat�rckt, the
son of the High Priest, standing right in front of me. You're still
wanted. The new High Priest keeps a couple of old fugitive posters
inside the Temple, just in case anyone happens to see you. If I wanted
to turn you in, I'd probably receive a promotion and most certainly a
blessing from the entire Temple." The Priestess smiled again. "Not that
my turning you in is likely to happen."
The Priestess interrupted the conversation so they could join the rest
of the Church staff and penitents for dinner at a dining hall owned by
the town's most wealthy landlord. Danka and Isauria saw the Priestess's
husband sitting at the head of the table. He seemed shocked to see her,
but his wife silenced him by quickly drawing her fist across her chest
to warn him not to say anything until she had a chance to explain to him
what was going on with their fugitive guest. At dinner Danka could see
why the Priestess had aged: she had three children. Also seated at the
table were three penitents and an apprentice.
Danka cleaned up in the bath house and made sure Isauria was settled in
bed before seeking out the Priestess. Just a few hours before, she would
have done anything possible to avoid seeing anyone from her past, but it
seemed the woman could be trusted and had nothing against her. Danka was
comforted at the thought of seeing and talking to someone familiar.
The Priestess took her back to the study and closed the door. For a
while the Clergywoman did most of the talking, updating Danka on events
in Star�vktaki M�skt and the surrounding region and also giving some
details about her own life and family. The conversation lasted well into
the night, as the Priestess updated Danka on events throughout the
western valley. Danka found out some details about Sev�rckt nad Gor�dki
and how her former lover K�loyankt had used his family's influence to
consolidate control over the town for the Grand Duke and the Old
Believers' faction of the Church. The Old Believers also took over the
parish in Nagor�nkti-Ser�fkti following the very public display of
madness and evil by the leading priest of the True Believers. Danka
explained her part in the incident, but added that she never found out
what happened to the priest after she and her companions fled the town.
Now she knew how much her Lilith ploy really did change the course of
Nagor�nkti-Ser�fkti's history.
They chatted all night. Sunrise already had passed when Danka and the
her former mentor finished talking. It was obvious she and Isauria would
not be departing that day, because it was raining heavily and traveling
would be unpleasant. More importantly, the visitor and her former mentor
wanted to continue exchanging experiences and information. Danka rested
while Isauria took care of the mule and cleaned up and organized their
equipment. That night the Church apprentice asked the teenager to
entertain him and the penitents by describing her travels through the
mountains and H�rkustk Ris province.
While
Isauria was occupied with the Church staff, Danka resumed the
conversation with the Clergywoman. Now it was her turn to talk. She
needed to describe her life, to confess, to make sense out of all the
weird things that had happened to her over the past eight years. The
Priestess listened to the torrent of information, trying to comprehend
how all those strange and unpleasant experiences could have happened to
a single person. And yet, she believed everything Danka told her. Even
if there was something she didn't believe, Danka had all those notes and
writings in her bucket to prove she was telling the truth. Had the
Priestess questioned anything, chances were her doubts could have been
resolved by reading her papers.
So... over a two-day period Danka unburdened all of the secrets she had
kept to herself for eight years, from her sentence on the pillory for
petty theft to her departure from the Defenders' winter encampment with
Isauria. The only detail she did not share was the fact her Public
Penance collar was not a real one issued by the Church. At the beginning
of her travels she had promised Farmer Tuko Orsktackt she'd never
divulge that secret and she would stay loyal to that promise. When the
Priestess asked about her collar, she presented the certificate with the
alias Vesna Rog�skt given to her by the Defenders' Priest. The Priestess
decided not to pursue that issue. The certificate was issued by an
ordained Priest, even if he was a renegade militia cleric, and it did
look authentic. Given Danka's situation, it was better that she was
traveling under an alias anyway.
The most difficult episode for Danka was describing her two years with
the Grand Duke and the ongoing humiliation of being a pleasure slave and
having dozens of the ruler's household staff seeing her every day with
her hair loosened. When the Priestess responded that Danka shouldn't be
ashamed of something she had no control over, the visitor countered:
"But it was my fault. More than anything else I ever did, my internment
in His Majesty's castle was my fault. My mind was full of hubris, I had
evil thoughts of using the Church to pursue my own fantasies, and the
Ancients punished me for that hubris."
Danka held back tears as she described the circumstances under which she
left the university and the thoughts going on in her head the moment the
Grand Duke and his entourage spotted her in the Plaza of the Ancients.
The Priestess responded:
"So let's consider what happened. It was your knowledge of the
Followers' explosives that helped His Majesty win two, not one, but two
battles in H�rkustk Ris. It was because of you he withdrew the Royal
Guards from Sumy Ris, just in time to avoid a disastrous defeat. You
comforted your companions and because of you many of them became better
women. In those two years you accomplished more than all of His
Majesty's ministers together. Because of you, the Duchy is safe and
strong. The Creator blessed the Duchy and protected it during those
difficult years, through you. It was your Path in Life to provide wisdom
to His Majesty so he could carry out his Path in Life as a competent
ruler. So, it was not your fault you ended up in the Royal Household. It
was your Path in Life. And when your usefulness to the Duchy as a
concubine ended, the Creator allowed you to leave and serve the Duchy
elsewhere. Yes, you committed the sin of hubris, but that sin was
necessary for you to fulfill your purpose."
Danka knelt forward and placed her hands on the ground. She had
confessed to the person who would have been the one most likely to judge
her harshly, but there was no such harsh judgment. Instead, the
Priestess encouraged her to look at herself in a more forgiving manner,
and to understand that her suffering and humiliation were part of the
Creator's larger plan to protect the Danubian people in a time of
extreme danger.
The Priestess stood up and told Danka to kneel upright and hold onto her
hands. She gripped them very tightly and her arms trembled as she
prayed. When she finished, she ordered Danka to stand up.
"I saw your future. The Path in Life the Creator has placed in front of
you will include another act of redemption, a very significant act of
redemption, not just for you, but for many others. But that lies in the
future. This summer you'll still have to travel. If you're going to the
capitol, you'll need to continue your journey."
Danka had one outstanding issue to ask about before leaving; if it would
be possible to write a recommendation for Isauria to enter the
university in Seb�rnekt Ris.
"I will, but any such document would be for next year, not this year. I
can't write a letter of recommendation unless I know her and can say
that, in the eyes of the Creator, she'd make a good scholar. You've done
an admirable job teaching her certain skills, but you couldn't do
everything and the girl's knowledge needs refinement. Also, she's 14.
She shouldn't enroll until she's at least 15. I don't want to write a
lie on her letter about her age."
"But, what can I do? I don't think she should stay with me."
"No. She shouldn't. You've been an excellent mentor for her, but I know
your Paths in Life must separate. I also know you would be doing her a
great disservice simply taking her to Seb�rnekt Ris and thinking that
she could withstand being separated from you, precisely at the time
she's starting new studies with a bunch of people she doesn't know. She
would be lost, quit within a month, go looking for you, and probably
risk being captured by brigands and re-enslaved. She needs a period of
transition, to prepare mentally and spiritually before she goes to
Seb�rnekt Ris."
"Do you think you could provide her with that transition?"
"I could. I'd spend the winter helping her prepare the notes you're
planning to give her, so when she goes to the university those reports
would already be prepared for publishing. She'd know the material, so
that it would be hers as much as yours. I can do that for you... for
both of you. Then, next summer she'll go to Seb�rnekt Ris, and I will be
proud to send her off with my recommendation and my blessing."
Danka separated the papers that she'd leave behind, the packages that
would provide Isauria with the work she'd need to attend the university
and enter Danubian society as an educated adult. She also took Isauria's
slavery and emancipation certificates to hand over to the Priestess. She
wanted to make sure the Danubian Church had, in its possession, proof
Isauria was not a slave and hadn't been for a couple of years. Danka
re-packed her bucket with her medicines, recipes, her two collaring
certificates, her supply of salt, the brush and thread to keep her teeth
clean, and the silver coin given to her by Tuko Orsktackt. There were
other coins, but she'd leave those behind so Isauria could buy herself a
nice dress before going to the university.
Isauria was not happy when she found out about Danka's plans to leave
her behind. It took a full day for both Danka and the Priestess to
reason with her, explaining that if she wanted to attend the university,
she had to spend the next year getting ready and only the Priestess
could help her prepare. Also, now that Isauria was about to become a
ward of the Church, she would be much less likely to ever be
re-enslaved, in spite of her dark hair and foreign appearance. The
Priestess explained the need for Isauria to spend several months
converting Danka's writings into real reports and that only through
correctly-written works could either Danka or Isauria complete their
obligations to "bear witness" to all the events they had witnessed over
the past several years. When Isauria's determination to leave with Danka
finally started to weaken, Danka took her to the Church garden.
"There is something else you need to know about me. I carry with me the
Destroyer's curse. Everyone I've ever loved, even remotely, has had
their soul separated from their body, and I had to bear witness to that
separation. There is only one person I loved who ever escaped, and that
is because she was lucky enough to be separated from me before my curse
caught up with her. You have no idea how much it meant to me that she
survived, that one person I loved, when all the others died. It was
always my fear that you'd fall victim to my curse as well. Had that
happened, I would have hated myself even more than I do now. Isauria,
you have the chance to get away from me before it's too late. It would
mean a lot to me to see that happen, to leave you behind and know that
you will prosper and lead a Path in Life that serves the Creator, that
you won't fall victim to whatever the Destroyer has planned for my
future. If you love me as much as you say you do, if you care for me as
much as I care for you, you won't put me through having to witness your
soul separate from your body."
Danka put her head in her hands. Leaving Isauria turned out to be harder
than she realized. The girl was both a daughter and a younger sister to
her, but like all children, the time was coming when she'd have to
pursue her own Path in Life. The Priestess would train and mentor her,
just as she had mentored Danka eight years before, and then she'd be
ready to travel to Seb�rnekt Ris and hopefully be more successful as a
student than Danka had been. Isauria was crying, but finally she agreed
to stay behind and accept the life offered to her by the Priestess. She
changed her merchant's outfit for a Church apprentice robe and knelt
before her new mentor, accepting that her Path in Life had changed and
that she was now officially under the jurisdiction of the local Old
Believers' parish.
Besides transcribing Danka's notes and turning them into reports,
Isauria was left with another task. Danka wrote two letters to the
sisters-in-law she never met: informing them about her marriage to
Ilm�tarkt, the final months of his life, and the circumstances under
which his soul separated from his body. Danka couldn't go into
Star�vktaki M�skt to deliver them in person, but Isauria, escorted by
the Priestess, would deliver them the following week.
----------
As soon as she was convinced Isauria would not change her mind and try
to follow her, Danka lost no time getting out of Gordn�ckt Suy�stenckt.
She donated the mule to the Church and went out on foot as a penitent,
wearing nothing but the same collar and same boots she had set out
wearing when her journey began in 1750. She could have bought new boots,
but instead chose to wear the ones her father had given her nearly a
decade before. They had been repaired so many times that almost none of
the leather was original They looked hideous with all the patches, and
yet Danka had kept them, not understanding herself why.
For the moment she wanted to rid herself of all the trappings from the
previous eight years. She would carry no weapons, no clothing, and no
money. She would start over, place her faith in the Creator, rely on the
charity of the parishes along her way, and return to the capitol as a
penitent. She still had her recipes, medicines, and supply of blue
powder, but anything that couldn't fit in her bucket would not accompany
her on the trip.
She
walked naked along country roads in the heat of July, trying to avoid
passing through towns where people would be likely to recognize her from
her service with the Followers of the Ancients. Whenever possible she
slept in isolated chapels or the houses of clergy members. She stayed a
single night and moved on as soon as she had breakfast the following
day. Along the way she stopped to take snacks from farms, but was
careful to adhere to the protocol of taking only one piece of food from
any place she stopped. Still, she traveled well-fed, eating breakfast
and dinner with whoever hosted her for the night and munching on fruit
and raw vegetables throughout the day as she walked.
In spite of choosing a route to minimize the chances of running into
someone who'd remember her from her days with the Followers of the
Ancients, she did pass through plenty of villages she had visited with
Ermin, K�loyankt, or other companions from the Cult. She even saw people
she had vaccinated but, because she was not wearing her Followers'
dress, no one recognized her. To the locals she was just a wandering
penitent, worth looking at because she was attractive, but otherwise not
noteworthy.
As Danka traveled westward, she was able to clear her mind of a lot of
the memories that had burdened her up to that point. During the trip she
used her new identity Vesna Rog�skt and tried to remember not to refer
to herself as Danka. She had no past and was nothing more than a
uncovered traveler moving with the protection of the Church. She was not
Follower Danka, nor Jadranka the student, nor Silv�tya the concubine,
nor Defender Danka the wife of Doctor Ilm�tarkt. She had no
responsibilities apart from trying to find out what happened to her
former squad leader Oana. Perhaps Oana didn't even survive the
evacuation from Aksheriri Ris and if that were true, then she didn't
have any other concerns or responsibilities. But, if she didn't have any
responsibilities, then her life really had no purpose. She pushed that
thought aside. Better to enjoy the moment while it lasted, because she
was sure that responsibility and duty would crowd into her life soon
enough.
After spending July walking at a leisurely pace across the entire
western valley, Danka finally arrived in the capitol on August 2. The
area outside the walls had changed dramatically over the past four
years. Instead of military encampments and rows of squalid refugee
tents, the zone immediately outside the walls was covered with new,
nicely-built houses and shops, which had been built from the huge piles
of lumber, stone, and bricks that were stockpiled in anticipation of
expanding the city wall. The buildings were much roomier than the
cramped wooden structures of the old capital because there was plenty of
space for the builders to spread out. Many of the newer structures had
gardens or courtyards, and all of them had tile roofs because thatch was
prohibited as a fire hazard. Danka realized that the capitol's
inhabitants must have learned their lesson about fire, because the new
houses were built from much less wood and flammable materials than the
older structures that burned in 1755. Most of the old wall and its
watchtowers were still standing, but they were barely visible behind all
those new buildings.
Danka made her way towards an opening in the wall. An entire section
between two watchtowers on the eastern side was missing, leaving a gap
that was four blocks wide. She freely walked through and was greeted by
a truly bizarre sight. The entire city was a huge construction zone,
with the ground covered by the foundations of stately ministry buildings
that were part of the Grand Duke's plans for a renovated capitol. The
narrow winding streets of the old city were gone, replaced by straight
boulevards. From her location Danka could see all the way to the
opposite side of the old walled area, because in most places only the
new buildings' foundations were in place. To the southwest she could see
the hill containing the Grand Duke's castle and the military buildings
at its base. To the northwest the Great Temple and a couple of ancient
stone buildings loomed in the distance. A few older stone buildings,
most notably the Christian cathedral and another Roman Christian church,
remained standing. Straight ahead there was an old fortress-like
garrison standing next to the cathedral that had survived the fire,
which would become the future headquarters of a national police force.
Danka looked around at the wall. To the south the Merchants Gate,
through which she and Alex�ndrekt Bul�shckt had escaped during the Great
Fire, was still intact, although its wooden doors had never been
replaced. To the north there were two other large gaps between
watchtowers, openings through which new streets could pass. Danka
noticed the cannons had been taken down and the towers were mostly
unoccupied. It was clear the Grand Duke had completely dismissed the Old
City Wall as being a useful part of Dan�bikt M�skt's defenses, although
he left the majority of it in place to demarcate the new government
district.
It was much easier to move about Dan�bikt M�skt than it had been three
years earlier, in spite of all the construction. Danka's goal was the
Great Temple of the Ancients, so she simply walked along a wide
boulevard until she arrived at the western side of the city, then turned
north and followed another wide street for two blocks until reaching her
destination. The area near the Temple was much more "normal" than the
rest of the capitol, because the old stone buildings around the Plaza of
the Ancients remained standing and the rebuilding of some adjacent
blocks to the north had proceeded faster than elsewhere. Near the Temple
there were businesses offering services and food to its visitors.
Danka approached the Plaza of the Ancients and for the second time in
her life looked at the front of the Great Temple. At least that hadn't
changed. Five years had gone by since she stood in that spot, wearing
the same penance collar and boots, and carrying the same bucket.
However, during her second visit she had no illusions about the Danubian
Church nor any desire to seek greatness for herself. Her purpose was
very straightforward: to see if she could find out what happened to her
fellow militia members and whether or not Defender Oana had survived the
battle.
The crowd in the Plaza suddenly fell silent and was stepping to the
sides of the plaza. She heard a series of very loud whistles and then
the shout:
�Doc-doc Danube!�
The crowd roared its response and snapped to attention. Fortunately,
Danka was paying attention and managed to slip behind some standing
spectators and avoid drawing attention to herself. She knelt upright,
her heart pounding. The Grand Duke was passing through the plaza. Four
foot-soldiers preceded the nation�s ruler, loudly whistling to announce
their presence. The Grand Duke followed, along with four Royal Guards
and two of his ministers, on horseback. The Royal entourage rode past
the crowd, placing their fists against their chests to return the
public�s salute. Danka was scared out of her wits, wondering if bad
fortune had followed her and the ruler would somehow notice her. She had
enough time to imagine the Royal Guards returning her to the castle in
chains to face the hard judgment of an imperious man who undoubtedly
would think she betrayed him by escaping. Still, she couldn't resist the
urge to peek through a gap of the people standing in front of her and
catch a fleeting glimpse of her former Master. He seemed not to have
changed at all, as he scanned the crowd for attractive young women. He
was unaware that just three fathoms from his entourage his favorite
former concubine was kneeling and shaking badly.
The crowd dissipated and resumed walking as soon as the Sovereign left
the plaza. The Grand Duke and his men turned south before turning east
to move along the same partially constructed boulevard through which
Danka had entered. When she realized where they were going, she was
sickened by that narrow miss. Had the Royal entourage passed that way
while she was coming in, her naked body would have been visible from a
distance and there was no way she would have been able to hide. Protocol
dictated she would have had to kneel immediately and remain stationary
until the Sovereign came up to her... and recognized her.
Danka knew her dead husband would have told her it was lack of caution
and bad luck that made her fall into the hands of the Grand Duke in
1753, and that five years later she avoided falling into his hands
because she moved out of the way in time and her luck was better.
Danka's religious mind would never accept such a casual dismissal of the
deities and their impact on her life. In 1753 the Ancients chose to
punish her for her hubris, but in 1758 she interpreted her narrow escape
as a sign she needed to proceed with her plan to enter the Temple and
find out the fates of the surviving militia members. She also was
curious to see the inside of the Temple building. Previously she only
had a fleeting glimpse of the entrance while she struggled to remove and
hide her fake Church penance collar, but this time there was no
impatient Royal Guard waiting for her outside. Apart from having to
remember to properly kneel whenever she was near a Clergy member, she
could examine the Great Temple at her leisure. Meanwhile, she worked up
the courage to select an approachable-looking Cleric and ask how she
could find out what happened to the Defenders' militia.
It turned out, she didn't even need a Priest or Priestess to answer her
question. She went all the way to the back of the Temple and explored an
ancient stone platform that contained a row of deep fire pits. Several
naked penitents were cleaning out the ashes and stockpiling
cave-charcoal for the next round of religious ceremonies. Danka
recognized one of the men as a fellow militia member from the Defenders.
He was older than most of his companions and had a resigned expression
on his face. She hadn't known him well because he was with a squad of
musketeers, but she remembered his name as Marksman Tan�lickt. When she
approached him and he recognized her, his expression changed from
resignation to shock.
Tan�lickt excused himself from his fellow penitents. He motioned Danka
to kneel and wait for him so he could request permission from a Priest
to take a break from his duties. When he returned, he had two charcoal
circles drawn on his left shoulder to indicate he had requested and been
granted consent to leave the main building. He motioned with his
fingertips for Danka to stand up and follow him.
The former Defenders exited the back of the Temple and made their way to
the forested shore of the East Danube River. They looked across the wide
stretch of water and the distant steep cliffs on the other side. It was
a very peaceful setting on a lazy hot August afternoon that gave the two
survivors the opportunity to collect their thoughts. Finally Danka broke
the silence and asked what happened during the evacuation from Aksheriri
Ris. Before he responded, she added:
"As you can guess, I missed it. I missed the evacuation. I'll explain
why in a few minutes."
Tan�lickt
spent the next hour giving Danka a detailed description of the
evacuation and how he and his surviving companions managed to escape
from the Kingdom of the Moon. In doing so gave his visitor more insight
into the personalities of both the Grand Duke and Commander S�upeckt.
Although the Grand Duke provided material support to the Defenders, it
turned out from the beginning he was very skeptical of the militia's
chances of being able to capture and hold onto Sumy Ris. Suspecting the
Defenders' operation was likely to end in disaster, he organized a
column of Royal Guards who had trained to fight in open terrain,
stationed them at the fort in Iy�shnyakt-Krep�ckt, and waited to see
what happened to the south. When he received the message that the
Defenders had conquered Aksheriri Ris and were "waiting to assist the
Royal Army in the glorious re-claiming of Sumy Ris for the Duchy", the
Grand Duke fully understood the Defenders they were not ready to
re-claim anything: they were cornered and needed to be rescued. The
Sovereign personally led 4000 Danubian Royal Guards to extract the
Defenders. He was correct about the need for a rescue, but the militia's
condition was much more dire than he had anticipated. His scouts
observed enough to give him a summary of the situation: the Defenders
were mostly fighting against the Red Moon faction among the houses,
while the Blue Moon faction occupied the area outside and was mostly
fighting the Red Moon faction at the east gate to get in.
As his army approached Aksheriri Ris, the Grand Duke sent a messenger to
the commander of the Blue Moon Army asking for a temporary truce,
pointing out the Danubians' desire to extract their fighters and the
Blue Moon Army's desire to seize control of the town were compatible. A
truce would allow both the Danubian Royal Army and the Blue Moon Army to
concentrate their efforts against the Lord of the Red Moon's men. The
Blue Moon commander responded that he would agree to a truce as long as
the Danubian Royal Army stayed to the north and did not send anyone into
the city. The Blue Moon troops would concentrate their fighting on the
east gate and not interfere with any Danubian militia fighters trying to
get out through the north gate.
When the Royal Army secured the area between the north gate and the
outer wall of the demolished Ottoman garrison, the surviving Defenders
had about 40 minutes to flee through the two escape routes, while having
to withdraw under fire. During those 40 minutes, 534 Defenders managed
to escape and bring out the bodies of 97 fallen companions. The Lord of
the Red Moon's Army tried as much as possible to prevent the break-out,
but they were occupied with the advancing Blue Moon units and thus
unable to stop any Danubian who made it past the open marketplace
square. The Danubian Royal Army provided cover fire for the Defenders as
they scrambled down the hill, but took shots themselves and lost a total
of 43 men. The Grand Duke later pulled his Guards out of range of the
city's cannons to re-group and to give a few extra minutes to any
remaining militia members who might have missed the main break-out.
Thirteen stragglers managed to join the Royal Army before it started
moving northward. Tan�lickt was one of those lucky stragglers, and he
claimed that he owed his life to the militia's commander.
"We were the last ones to make it to the outer wall of the garrison
before the Red Moon soldiers closed in on us. We were with Commander
S�upeckt. The hole was small and only one of us could fit through at a
time. There was a platoon of Red Moon troops chasing us. They were
getting their muskets ready to fire all at once, and it would have been
an execution against a wall, pure and simple. But the commander grabbed
two crossbows and ran back at them, screaming. He shot a crossbow, then
the other. The Red Moon troops emptied their muskets into him instead of
us and they had to reload before coming after us. There were sixteen of
us, and thirteen managed to run down the hill to join His Majesty's
army. The other three didn't make it. A Royal commander asked if anyone
else was coming out. I told him what happened to Commander S�upeckt and
that I thought we were the last ones to get through the garrison ruins.
So, we all left. 547 Defenders and a hundred recovered bodies. And 43
dead Royal Guards. And to think... we started out with 2500 fighters and
600 assistants. All those people, and only a sixth of us made it out,
and even that was only because of His Majesty's rescue. What a disaster.
We should have stayed in the forest." Tan�lickt paused for a moment
before concluding: "Commander S�upeckt and the Priest told us to place
our faith in the power of the Destroyer. Well, we did place our faith in
the Destroyer, didn't we? And we were the ones who were destroyed."
"We shouldn't have been surprised. My old Mistress from the Followers
told me: 'the Destroyer helps no one. The Destroyer won't help you.' We
should have known better than to think relying on the Destroyer wouldn't
end badly. So, what happened when you returned to the Duchy?"
"Well, the march back wasn't pleasant, not pleasant at all. No one from
the Royal Guards spoke to us, except to give instructions and orders.
They let us know they were very angry at our folly and they had every
reason to be, because they lost 43 of their own men trying to save us.
As soon as we passed the fortress in Iy�shnyakt-Krep�ckt, most of the
Guards went back to their garrisons, but His Majesty and about a
thousand of his men escorted us to the capitol. When they took away our
weapons, we realized we were prisoners. We didn't know what was going to
happen to us, but rumors started circulating the Danubian Church wanted
to collar us as heretics. And we were right, the Prophets did want to
collar us. We were brought to the Plaza of the Ancients and ordered to
strip. They took all our clothes and burned them. We were not a pretty
sight, if you can imagine 500 dirty, starving, exhausted militia
fighters, many of us with injuries, having to huddle naked in the plaza
over there. They had execution stakes set up and we were wondering if we
had been rescued only to have our souls separated from our bodies in the
capitol. Then the Guards separated us into groups and the Priests
started calling us forward, one by one. They wrote our names, asked what
unit we were with, and demanded to know who we saw killed in combat and
under what circumstances. Then each of us had to stand on the steps of
the Temple and in a loud voice publicly rebuke the Destroyer. You can
imagine how hard that was for many of us, to deliberately insult the
Destroyer and claim the Destroyer has no power over the Creator or the
Ancients. There were 19 militia members who couldn't do it, couldn't
insult the Destroyer, and they ended up tied to the execution posts with
five arrows embedded in their chests. The rest of us did as we were
told."
Tan�lickt paused to collect his thoughts. Danka stayed silent until he
continued:
"The Prophets wanted to collar everyone from the militia and have us
spend the rest of our lives performing Public Penance, but the Grand
Duke wanted to take us as experienced fighters for his army. So, he and
the Prophets reached an agreement over what to do with us. We are
sinners, worshipers of the Destroyer, and renegades, so we deserved to
be collared. It is the Path in Life of each of us to be collared and
spend the rest of our time in the Realm of the Living serving the Church
and performing Public Penance. But the Grand Duke issued a reprieve for
those of us willing to serve him first. If we join the Royal Guards, we
can delay wearing a Church collar until our enlistment ends. I'm sure
you can guess which choice, the collar or Royal service, was more
popular. And the arrangement makes sense for both the Grand Duke and us.
As long as we stay with the Royal Guards, we can avoid wearing the
collar, but we must report to the Temple and turn ourselves in for
Public Penance the moment we leave His Majesty's service. Not much
incentive to leave the Guards and return to civilian life, is it?"
Danka smiled slightly.
"No... I suppose not. I guess I'm different, because I really don't mind
wearing a collar. I enjoy being naked, and in some ways I feel I have
more freedom with a collar than without. Very well, I have a question. I
was wondering if you know what happened to Defender Oana, the nymph
who..."
"Oh yes. Her. She fled the city through the north gate with the
first group of survivors. It was strange, because she was the only nymph
from the two squads of women serving directly under Commander S�upeckt
to survive. Plenty of nymphs from other companies escaped, but no women
from the commander's group. Just Oana... and you, of course."
"From Defender Dalibora's squad... no one got out?"
"No."
"Nor from Oana's group of recruits, no one?"
"No one."
"Oana left completely by herself? She didn't bring anyone else out?"
"No, and I found that very strange. She was the only commander who
didn't come out with at least some of her troops."
"What did she say about that?"
"She said it was simple luck. All of her nymphs were killed on the
rooftops, except for four who were injured. She helped them get into a
stone house and went to get help, but when she returned, the door was
kicked open, the four women had been bayoneted, and the house was set on
fire. She managed to kill one of the men who set the fire, but then had
to flee because she didn't have time to reload her crossbow. Then she
saw the Defenders had started to evacuate, so she joined the others.
That was the story she told. So... now... I'd imagine what she said
wasn't the truth. If it was the truth, you wouldn't be sitting here,
would you?"
"I was one of those four nymphs she was talking about. I wasn't injured,
but I was taking care of the others. My squad leader, Defender Dalibora,
had a bad leg wound and was with me, along with a couple of Oana's
women. When she last saw us, we were very much alive. She left us and
never came back."
"...and you think she left you on purpose?"
"Absolutely."
"But why would she do that?"
Danka explained the circumstances surrounding Oana's squad being taken
away from her for poor leadership and the commander's effort to soften
the blow by having her recruit a new squad of nymphs. Then she described
what Oana told her and the others in the house, not to look outside
until she came back. Finally, she repeated Dalibora's suspicions about
her fellow squad leader.
"But, you think she was so bitter that she'd abandon injured nymphs,
women from her own squad, to the enemy? I've never heard of that. I
always thought nymphs went to extremes to make sure other nymphs were
never captured."
"Oana went to extremes, but in our case to do the opposite. She wanted
to abandon us and make sure no one found us, except Kingdom of the Moon
troops."
"So... are you planning to do anything about it?"
"Well, the main reason I came here was to find out if she was still
alive. Dalibora was still my commander when she issued her final order:
for me to poison her so she wouldn't be captured, and then I was to
sneak out of Aksheriri Ris. The reason she wanted me to get away was so
I could find Oana and deal with her. The Ancients helped me escape. Now
that I've returned, I'm sworn to carry out my squad leader's final
order. Do you have any idea where Oana went?"
"The last I heard, she went east to a town called Novo S�kukt T�k, which
is located in the Vice Duchy, to the south."
Danka sighed. "I just came from that direction. Now I have to go back."
"Then you'll have to hurry, if you want to get to the pass before the
weather gets cold. I suppose I can learn more about her from my
supervising Priest, if you'd like, and make sure your trip is not
wasted."
Danka nodded, but she was curious about her companion's decision to stay
at the Temple. "What about you? How did you end up here, performing
Public Penance at the Temple? Why didn't you join the Royal Guards?"
"I prayed about it. I wanted to join, but I received a very strong
feeling I needed to accept the collar and stay behind, that there was
something important I needed to do. I suspect I just did it."
"Telling me about Oana?"
"Yes. If it's true she deliberately abandoned you to the enemy, then
Oana is the very definition of dishonor. As Defenders, it is our duty to
remove such a person from the Realm of the Living."
Danka wondered about Tan�lickt's words "our duty". Was he planning to
help her seek vengeance against Oana?
The two penitents sought out and knelt in front of the Priest
responsible for supervising Tan�lickt's duties in the Temple. Danka
recognized the Priest: he had been one of the younger Followers in
Bab�ckt Yaga's encampment and had enrolled in the Old Believers'
seminary with the Alchemist's encouragement. He was shocked upon seeing
her, but quickly regained his composure.
Danka and Tan�lickt explained the situation and Oana's reprehensible
actions in combat. The worst part of her behavior was not that she acted
from mere cowardice, but from pure malice. She deliberately left four
subordinates behind, fully expecting the enemy to capture and torture
them. On the topic of retribution, the Priest was a Follower of the
Ancients first, and a Clergy member of the Church second. Yes, he agreed
it was very important that Danka and Tan�lickt find and exact revenge
against Oana. However, he added the two ex-Defenders would have to
figure out how to avenge Dalibora and the other nymphs without actually
killing the former squad leader.
"Killing is very easy. You militia fighters know that better than anyone
else. So, let me lay a challenge at your feet. How can you achieve
vengeance without killing? It can be done and it's what I expect from
you. So, you will leave this Temple, both of you, with my permission and
my blessing, provided you don't shed her blood. Think it over, and we'll
talk tomorrow."
Danka and Tan�lickt were too tired to further discuss Oana that day.
Instead, they exited the back of the Temple to walk through the woods
and bathe in the East Danube River. When they emerged from the water,
she noticed him looking at her with a longing expression. It was obvious
he wanted her. She saw nothing wrong with that: she was a widow and he
already had endured several months without having sex. She took his
hand, placed against it her chest, and allowed him to explore her body.
She expertly teased him until he was hard, before pushing him to the
ground. She straddled him and pushed his penis deep inside. For a moment
her old fantasy of being Lilith returned as she climaxed. It was the
first time she had enjoyed an orgasm since the beginning of April, the
last time she made love to her husband.
When they both finished, she bent down to kiss him. Then she put her
finger on his lips:
"Until we're finished with Oana and we part ways, you can have me
whenever you want. My only request is that we always make love this way.
I can't explain it, but it's what I need. Give me that, and I'll give
you what you need."
Tan�lickt agreed. As a penitent, he didn't have any opportunities to
have sex, so Danka's condition for love-making was a very small
sacrifice for a man in his situation.
----------
When Danka and Tan�lickt returned to the Priest the next day, he handed
them letters instructing any Clergy member in Novo S�kukt T�k to remove
the penitents' collars when asked, and also to provide lodging. He gave
Tan�lickt another letter granting him permission to join the Royal
Guards as soon as he completed his tasking with Danka. The ex-Defender
was very grateful for the second letter. When, against his wishes, he
chose the collar over the Royal Guards, he had assumed the choice was
final, that he'd have to endure the rest of his time in the Realm of the
Living as a penitent.
The Priest took Danka aside, away from Tan�lickt.
"Do you remember the True Believers' Priest in Nagor�nkti-Ser�fkti?"
Danka smiled. "Of course I remember him. That was one of the most fun
things I ever did in my life."
"That will give you something to think about when you go looking for
Oana. Think about how you'd set up something like that. And most
important, think about what you'd want to say to her."
Danka's heart raced at the suggestion. Of course. It was so obvious.
Oana would receive a visitor... from the Realm of the Afterlife.
----------
