Chapter 7: Hanging From Ropes

The five boys were still sleeping. Cah’lia knew if she wanted some alone time, this would be the opportune moment to grab it. The sun would rise in under an hour, and while Sehn and Nero might be content to smell like pigs, she wasn’t as willing to walk around in filth. She got out of her sleeping pallet and grabbed her travel pack.

Cah’lia had tried to get them to wash up, but the two of them ignored her. She couldn’t even force Nero, because the foolish boy did whatever Sehn did. When she’d told Sehn that he was beginning to smell a little funky, he merely laughed at her and said it was probably the wind pushing her own smell back into her face. He even had the nerve to complain when she decked him, causing a bruise to form on his cheek.

Let Sehn make up whatever rationalization he wants, Cah’lia thought with a grin. I got him good.

She crossed over the shallow grass to the nearest pond. Undressing, she took a moment to examine herself in its murky reflection. She was not a vain Elf, but she could understand why so many Elves—and even Humans—found her appealing. Except Sehn, she thought bitterly. He didn’t even seem to notice her.

Bathing in the warm summer water, she tried to understand everything that had happened to make her end up here. There was something wrong about this journey, something she couldn’t grasp.

Suhn, high Chief of Elvar, had refused to assist her when she had begged him to intervene. She told him that Nero would run away and that she was unable to stop him from following along with his son. Rather than protect the little Elf, Suhn had told her that if she wanted to see him safe, she needed to go with him. Suhn was a strict ruler, but he was never cruel. So why would he want her and her brother to go along?

She exited the pond. Drying herself off, she changed into the fresh pair of clothing she’d brought along with her. She looked scandalous in the hide leather-pants and tight white top. The shirt had no back, revealing her smooth, tanned Elven skin. Even Sehn would lose it when he saw her like this. She chuckled as she walked back to camp.

Despite the sun already beginning to rise, all five boys were still snoring. Nero had kicked off his blanket and was lying on his back, his little chest rising and falling. Sehn was tossing and turning, fighting with a dream.

“No, Nero!” he moaned. “It’s called the ‘Cave of Castration’ for a reason. Don’t go in there!”

Cah’lia laughed. She wondered if she should tease him about this little dream when he woke up, but thought the better of it. The lengths Sehn would go just to make himself look evil amazed Cah’lia. For the longest time she wondered why, but then she came to realize a simple truth—why was anyone anything? Why was grass green, or why did chickens lay eggs? Sehn was Sehn, and that was all there would ever be to it, even if, on occasion, it did make her want to rip the hair out of her head.

She walked over to his sleeping form. He looked different asleep than he did awake. Without that mask of high-and-mighty he always wore hanging over his face, he was actually one of the most attractive Elves in the city of Elvar. He really did look like his father, with those deep green eyes.

She shook the thought from her head and kicked him in his side. He woke with a grunt. “Cah’lia,” he said. He sounded groggy. “You…you dare to awaken the Great Sehn from his slumber? Just for that, your firstborn…” Sehn trailed off.

I guess he’s too tired to finish the threat.

Instead, Sehn grumbled and wobbled his way to his feet before setting out to prepare his horse. The other men also seemed to be snapping to it. Rillith got up first of the three Humans and saw to watering the animals and preparing the feeding bags. Patrick helped Daniel up and applied another layer of the anti-burn ointment. He grunted in pain as Patrick rubbed on his back and shot evil glances at Sehn.

Cah’lia leaned over her little brother and gave him a shake. “Come on, Nero, we’re moving out.”

Her little brother didn’t respond. He instead brushed her hand away and turned over, his eyes closed and his face peaceful.

“Nero, come on,” she repeated.

His ears wobbled, but that was his only response.

Cah’lia thought for a moment. “Hey, Nero, guess what; Sehn has just stumbled upon a new Disciple. He’s so pleased that all his torture-sessions have been waived.”

Nero flew up so quickly that he almost bumped his head into Cah’lia's.

“What was that?” He looked around and remembered where he was. “Hmm, thought I heard something. Hey, Cah’lia, are we moving out already?”

She nodded. Nero got up and pranced his way over to his horse, which was clearly too large for him. Before long, everyone was ready to go and they resumed their travels.

The second day began mostly uneventful. It was a tad cooler than the day prior but only slightly so. Large crows soared through the skies, hoping to find recently deceased animals to feast on.

With a ‘yah’, Cah’lia kicked her horse and trotted alongside Sehn.

“So, what are you going to do with your share of the money?” she asked him. “Will you buy a new home? Or do you plan on saving it.”

Sehn looked at her as if she had spat on him. “You speak like someone who’s getting a share, Cah’lia. Yet you shall receive none of the money.”

Cah’lia’s ears twitched. She needed that money, and she was working harder than all the men. Whatever this treasure was, Sehn was not hoarding it all to himself.

“And why is that, Sehn?” she asked. “Did I not defeat that plant you foolishly activated? Have I not contributed just as much if not more than any of you boys?” Cah’lia tried to remain civil, but when speaking to someone like Sehn, it was close to impossible.

Sehn shook his head. “Silence yourself, Cah’lia. You are a Woman, and thus you are therefore not entitled to the same happiness and respect as a—”

For the second time in two days, Sehn tasted her cold fist. She hit the idiot in the side of the head, knocking him off his horse and sending him rolling around in the stalks of grass.

Sehn leaned up and rubbed his jaw. He looked at her with trepid fury, like someone caught between wanting to provoke her and yet fearful of receiving more pain.

“Damn you, Cah’lia! What was that for?”

“Take a guess!” Cah’lia ordered her horse to speed and left him behind in the dirt, ignoring his foolish shouts and commands. Gods forbid he learned a lesson.

Sehn tried to exact revenge during the whole first half of the day, launching fireballs at her, which she avoided with ease. Several almost hit Daniel, and the result was a few fights that had to be broken up. Cah’lia wondered why men always had to behave like this. If it were just her and a few other reliable women, they’d probably already have the treasure in hand by now.

The scenery changed slightly towards the middle of the day. They entered a stretch of land in the gap between two mountains running along both sides of the plains, leaving them roughly as much room to travel as a child’s playing field. Cah’lia had been to Koringrath before. These mountains would run for another day or two, before once again opening up to another few miles of vast plains. It was then that they would finally arrive in Koringrath.

Cah’lia once again pulled up beside Sehn. He had been refusing to talk to her since the earlier altercation, and Cah’lia was feeling a little guilty.

“What do you want now, Cah’lia? You’re lucky I decided to get comfortable by leaning to my left while you happened to be swinging your fist. Otherwise you’d have been destroyed, and your life forfeit.”

There he goes again with his non-Sehns, she mused. The thought put a smile on her face.

“What are you laughing about? Out with it.”

“Oh, you know, just what I’m going to buy with my share of the money.”

Sehn peeled his lips back in frustration. “We’ve been through this, Cah’lia. You weren’t invited, and so you aren’t getting any. But I am not entirely cruel, either. When this journey has ended, and the Elvens are in my hand, I shall make sure you are rewarded for your honorable service to the Great Sehn. You shall be given a bag of carrots, numbering no more than five, and a ball of yarn.”

Cah’lia had to resist the urge to deck him again. She almost wanted to do it just to see what excuse he’d make up this time. Sehn would rather die than admit defeat to a woman. Cah’lia had made it her goal to make him submit to her at least once by the time they had returned to Elvar.

“Halt!” Rillith called out, causing the party to stop in their tracks.

Here we go again, Cah’lia thought. What stupid thing am I going to have to save Sehn from this time?

As if following a script, Sehn leaped from his horse and stormed up to Rillith. “You dare halt the progress of my journey? What foolish thing do you detect this time, Rillith? Is it another harmless plant? Or perhaps it’s a terrifying mouse.”

Daniel sneered at Sehn’s mention of the “harmless plant.”

“Something’s up ahead, Sehn. It doesn’t feel right.”

Just above them was a steep hill, covered on top by small boulders. To pass, they would need to squeeze the horses between them single file. After that, the land leveled out and it was again a straight and smooth journey. Cah’lia traced Rillith’s eyes to a spot just beyond the boulders, where whatever had him spooked resided.

Patrick dismounted. “Well, let’s have a look then, shall we?” He walked side by side with Rillith. Sehn and Daniel traveled behind.

Cah’lia shot Nero a warning look, with eyes that promised pain if he dared follow. She grabbed her dagger and followed the men. Together they climbed the hill on foot and crouched behind one of the large boulders, peering beyond it at the large stretch of grassy plains.

There were several horsemen, all Human-riders, ten in total. They were formed in a circle surrounding some kind of sack being lifted by a rope. It was to Cah’lia’s horror that she realized a young Human woman was held captive inside the sack.

“What the hell is that about?” Sehn asked.

“Bandits,” Rillith growled. “They sometimes patrol this stretch of land, because it’s far from any of the Kingdom’s garrisons.”

Patrick nodded. “They carry their weapons as if they’ve used them often, and I don’t doubt that they have. I recommend laying low until they have their way with the woman and have moved on.”

“What do you mean by that, Patrick?” Sehn asked. “You said, ‘Have their way with the woman.’ What’s that mean?”

Sehn’s ignorance shocked Cah’lia. So, Sehn didn’t know what was going on? Cah’lia wasn’t sure she wanted to see his reaction if he did. There were many aspects of life that Sehn boasted of being informed of, but the reality was entirely opposite. Elvar was a peaceful place, and this would be an odd sight for someone like Sehn, who only left home on rare occasions.

Daniel squatted next to Sehn, all anger and hatred removed from his eyes. What resided there now was a bitter sadness.

“Sehn, do you remember your promise? That no matter what happened we’d avoid trouble and keep on moving? Now more than ever you need to keep it.”

“What are those fools doing to that woman?” Sehn asked. “Why is she being tossed around in a sack?”

Daniel sighed. “I might as well tell you, because you’re about to find out, anyway. They’re going to rape her and then hang her. It’s common practice among bandits. Just lay low, and they’ll be gone before you know it. Don’t make any attempt to help her, or you may just get us all killed.”

Sehn’s expression remained blank, giving off no trace of emotion. “Help her? And why would you worry about me doing something like that? Her life means nothing to me. The Great Sehn does not worry about the strife of others.” Sehn’s ears twitched as he spoke, which Cah’lia knew was a bad sign.

Doubt, uncertainty, and confusion—none of these things registered at that moment in Cah’lia’s mind. She knew as sure as the sun rises and again sets that there was going to be a fight.

“Good, Sehn. Now, let’s return to our horses. I despise what is being done here, but there are ten armed men and we number but five. And like you said, the last thing we need is people thinking you’re some kind of hero, right?”

Sehn nodded.

The woman screamed, cried, and flailed her arms and legs as the ten men pushed, prodded, and passed her around like a tray of food, their eyes glowing with deviant lust. They were a hairy bunch, and the whole of them appeared unwashed and messy.

The woman shrieked as they dropped the sack to the ground with her still inside. She screamed, and they kicked her, punched her, and grabbed at her hair. Cah’lia noticed Sehn watch all of this without so much as blinking an eye.

But his ears did twitch, Cah’lia reminded herself. This won’t be good.

Patrick tried to get Sehn to leave, but each time he placed a hand on his shoulder, Sehn shrugged him off.

“Sehn,” Patrick said, “do you really want to see this? What if we’re spotted? Let’s just return to our horses until these men leave.”

Patrick said something else, but his words were drowned out by the woman’s screams. What these men were doing was disgusting, and Cah’lia could barely contain her emotions. Never once in her life had she been so revolted, so angry, so willing to shed blood. Cah’lia couldn’t bear to take any more of this, and from the looks of things, neither could Sehn. She had to do something, but she couldn’t act alone. She decided to give Sehn an easy way out of his twisted ego.

“Sehn, is it just me, or does that woman appear to be carrying a diamond bracelet?”

There was no such bracelet. She just needed to give him a way around his ridiculous mental hang-ups.

Sehn’s eyes widened, and his hands gripped into fists. “Yes, I see it now, Cah’lia. It’s no wonder those fools are after her. All stolen property falls into the sole dominion of Sehn! I shall rob that woman blind and delight in her suffering. Let’s go!”

Patrick, Daniel, and Rillith tried desperately to halt Cah’lia and Sehn. Rillith grabbed a hold of Sehn’s tunic, but Sehn brushed him off. Together, Cah’lia and Sehn charged out of their hiding place behind the boulders and sprinted, in plain sight, at the ten bandits torturing the poor woman.

It didn’t take long for them to be spotted. The men released the woman and turned to the two Elves rushing at them.

“Halt, you two!” the leader cried out. “This is Raven Corps territory now. Be gone from here at once!”

Cah’lia heard Sehn chant under his breath. It wasn’t his usual, arrogant sound, either. It was a low, mumbling growl of disbelief as he focused intently on the beaten state of the woman.

“Remmos Salas!”

“Remmos Salas!”

The men looked on in disbelief as a volley of fireballs struck six of them, causing them to roll on the ground, crying out in pain. The other four drew their weapons and met Cah’lia’s charge head on.

“Lookie here!” one of them shouted. “We gots us another pretty to play with. Elven, too.”

Cah’lia grinned. They had no idea what she was capable of.

The first man to reach Cah’lia attempted to decapitate her. Moving with a grace that only a dagger and training allowed, she ducked and spun, twirling around like an Elven dancer, and then sliced the man across the stomach. He coughed as he dropped to the floor.

Three more came upon her, each determined to end her life. They surrounded her, two using great-swords, and one wielding battle-axe. They lunged at her, eyes widening in surprise as she nimbly avoided each attack.

They swung, and she ducked; they aimed at her feet, and she hopped over their weapons. One tried to run her through, but she sidestepped and, with a flick of her wrist, slit the man’s throat.

The man who had aimed for her feet prepared himself for another attack. Carrying the massive battle-axe slowed his movement to almost a crawl. But her real threat was the other man. He tried yet again to run her through, learning nothing from his companion’s demise.

She kicked at the bandit’s stomach, causing him to bend over in pain. While he was leaned over, she leaped at him, placing her two hands on his shoulder and pushing off into a flip. She landed on the axe-wielder behind him, plunging her dagger deep into his chest.

Recovering from the kick, the first man looked at her and trembled in terror. He dropped his sword in a gesture of surrender. He backed up slowly to join his six living companions rolling on the ground in a desperate attempt to put out the fire that Sehn had brought on them.

It was at this point that Patrick, Rillith, and Daniel caught up to them. They gawked at the victory. Patrick gasped at the sight of the dead and wounded bandits.

“I can’t believe you two just did that,” Daniel said.

Sehn let out a mighty laugh. “Hahahah! Do not be surprised. My only regret is that my fireballs did not kill any of them.”

Patrick nodded. “A problem we can easily fix. Under our Kingdom’s law, these men have committed a serious crime. I’ll personally see to their execution.”

Before either Sehn or Cah’lia could utter a word in protest, Patrick walked up to the first of the burned men lying injured on the ground. He unsheathed his sword and plunged it into the man’s chest. Other than a barely audible cough, followed by a gurgle of blood from his lips, the man died without a sound.

“Cah’lia,” Sehn asked. “Did that just happen?”

Cah’lia struggled to prevent tears from forming in her eyes. Sehn wasn’t ready for this yet. His father had kept him from the darker side of the world.

“They’re rapists and thieves,” Patrick said. “All law abiding, Kingdom-born Humans have a responsibility to execute people like this for their crimes.”

One of the men pushed himself up on his knees and folded his hands over his chest. “Please be sparin’ me, good sir. I begs you. I don’t want to die.”

Patrick looked down at the man in disgust and raised his blade. “Save your tears for those who would care to hear them. Your time in this world ends now, scum. Prepare to—”

“Patrick!” Sehn thundered. “Cease this at once!”

Patrick, only moments from executing the begging man, turned to look at Sehn, confusion on his face for the briefest of moments. Then, as if remembering whom he was dealing with, he smiled.

“Don’t worry, Sehn. I’m making this quick and painless.”

In the blink of an eye, Sehn crossed the distance between the bandit and Patrick. He grabbed Patrick’s sword arm, causing both Rillith and Daniel to snap their heads to Sehn. Patrick gave them a nod, and they stood down.

“Sehn, what is the problem here?”

“Are you a fool, Patrick? If you execute these men, then how will they spread the name of the man that defeated them? Don’t get me wrong—the Great Sehn intends to murder many, many people. But first, I must ensure my name inspires fear and hatred throughout the land.”

Patrick reluctantly sheathed his sword and turned away. “Have it your way, Sehn, but just this once. Next time, they die by my blade.”

The remaining men carried away their comrades and abandoned the scene with a renewed vigor, thankful to still possess their lives.

Cah’lia rushed to the fallen woman. She was injured and in critical condition, but Cah’lia was certain she could patch the Human woman up. She would be able to save her life.

“Sehn, I think I can save her. In fact, I’m certain of it.”

“Bah! Just take her valuables and leave her. Oh, and if she starts to die come and find me so I can return and laugh in her face. Too bad those bandits threatened us, I was looking forward to betraying you and joining them instead.”

Sehn about-faced and marched away. Sehn’s comments did not bother her. In fact, Cah’lia had expected something along those lines. Now that the woman’s life was no longer in danger, she expected nothing less of Sehn.

The woman looked up into the eyes of her savior. “Thank you. They took me from my family, and I thought this was the end.”

“Don’t speak,” Cah’lia said. “Just rest. I’ll have the men bring you food and water.”

She returned to the camp to find Sehn chatting excitingly with Nero. The little boy was jumping up and down, exclaiming surprise during every moment of Sehn’s boastful tale.

“And then what, Sehn? And then what!”

“Do you even have to ask, Nero? Once they entered combat with the Great Sehn, they knew immediately they had no chance. Do you remember how I abused Daniel yesterday? I did that times ten.”

“So, where are they now, Sehn?”

Sehn made an exaggerated growl. “Unfortunately, they escaped.”

“All of them?”

“Yeah, Nero, all of them.”

Cah’lia turned around with the supplies so that none would see her cry. So, Sehn had not told Nero the full truth? He had spared him from terrors of life that even he was only first coming to grips with: that she had killed three men, and Patrick executed a fourth.

Cah’lia had wondered what Nero would do upon learning of his sister’s role in combat. Would he still look at her the same? Would he be appalled to know his sister had taken not one, but several lives?

Thanks to Sehn, she’d never have to find out.

For once, I owe him my thanks.