A Warrior's Path (The Castes and the OutCastes) (6 page)

Rukh remembered all he could of the Chims scouts.  Hairless and scaled in black with a tuft of green hair atop their heads.  A serpent’s head with a forked tongue tasted the air.  Excellent sense of smell and hearing but relatively poor vision.  And despite their reptilian appearance, they were warm-blooded.  They slithered on the ground or walked upright, depending on the need.
Typically, they fought with a sword, but their tails could also be used as a weapon.  It took an entire trap to take down a Rahail or Muran and several traps to defeat a Kumma in the open field.

The Ashokans kept to their initial path, and the column bunch
ed for the briefest of intervals.  Rukh saw mangled flesh pass under the stallion’s hooves, and he realized they must have run down the Braid scouts who had discovered them.  They circled the hill, and took a trail east.  Howls directly ahead were picked up by more traps further in that direction followed by a chilling roar.  It was a sound he had been trained to recognize, one he was hearing for the first time in his life on this grim day.  It was the basso roar of a Bael, the leaders of Suwraith’s armies.

The Chim commander was close.  If he was a Jut, he would lead a Smash, one hundred Chimeras, something the Ashokans could easily handle.  But, if he was a Levner, a Fracture commander, that meant a thousand of Suwraith’s creatures.  The Ashokans could still take them on and win through, but it would be a hard fight; long enough for the other Fractures to arrive and tip the balance in the favor of the Chims.

The trail split, and the column surged west, away from the roar of the Bael.  Rukh urged them on, glad to be on the stallion even though the rock-strewn trail made footing unsure and slowed them to no more than a slow trot, almost a jog.  A few horses whinnied in fear as they slipped on the scree, and a few even went down, screaming in panic.  Luckily, none of them were injured, and their riders quickly remounted as their friends disregarded orders and waited on them.  They rode for hours, past dusk, into the edge of night.  Watch fires lit up the hills along their path, signaling their location.

Rukh cursed. Fragging Chims.

They switched directions, now heading northwest through a wooded valley.  The smell of moss and mold lingered in the dry air.  Oak, elm, and maple loomed large, their trunks dark and thick in the fading light.  The branches high above hid them from the lurking Chims in the hills, and the ground, littered with leaves and fallen branches, made footing nearly as tricky as the rock-strewn slopes but the detritus softened the hoof beats, muffling their sound.  They made better time through the woods and exited a half hour later, moving up the slope of a granite hill along a narrow trail.  The path widened, and the captain pushed them into a canter.

Another half hour and no further cries came to them
.  Rukh started to breathe easier.  Maybe they would make it out of here after all.

No sooner ha
d the thought crossed his mind when a yipping howl, like a dog in pain, rose before them.

Ur-Fels.  And judging by the number
of barks, three or four nests.  Suddenly, a number of arrows clattered against the rock around them.  They chipped the stone but none of them struck the column.  The warriors unlimbered their small, round shields and held them at the ready even as they pushed forward.

More arrows followed and now came the hissing grate of Braids and the basso roar of several Baels.

Rukh swallowed heavily, once more feeling the cold finger of fear.  They were surrounded.  No way to escape.  He glanced at Farn and Keemo.  Their faces were tight with worry.  Even the veterans looked uneasy.

“We aren’t done yet,” Lieutenant Pume growled.  “That’s for the damn Chims.”  He leaned past the side of his mount and spit before turning to glare at the men of B Company.  “We
will
carry out our mission.  Remember who we are.”

Rukh took a steadying breath.  The lieutenant was right.  They were Ashokans.  Most of them
might die in these hills today or tonight, but all they needed was for one of them to escape.

Captain Bosna called a halt as he consulted his maps once more.  He glanced around, getting his bearings before leading them off their hill and heading them south east.  He
spurred his horse almost to a gallop and the rest of them followed close behind.  The pace was dangerous in such poor light and footing, but they didn’t have any other choice.

Rukh patted the stallion’s neck as the horse kept pace, blowing hard but showing no signs of quit.  The beast
might have been a right unholy terror to handle during most of the Trial, but in this run, he had been worth every moment of his pain-in-the-assedness.  He had the power, speed, and endurance to run this race to its end.  For that, Rukh was grateful.

The column thundered up
a switchback trail, heading for the top of a tall, flat-topped hill.  The track narrowed and was open to a harrowing drop on one side and pressed tight against stone and dirt on the other.

The column slowed.

As the trail climbed, it cut deeper into the hillside, and Rukh now found himself flanked on both sides by a rock wall with the quickly darkening sky still open above. Their track was now a small gap, barely wide enough for two or three horses to ride abreast.  Just before the crest, however, the path opened onto a broad summit, several hundred yards wide and deep, and the column of warriors quickly spread out, making room for those coming behind.

Starb’s men, who had been riding point, closed ranks as soon as the last of the warriors exited the narrow gap.

The top of the hill was flat, the rock dusted red with a thin rind of clay.  A thick pillar of stone – many yards wide, worn by time and wind to form a laddered terrace – thrust up near the center of the summit, reaching over thirty feet into the air.  Parts of it had cracked, falling over into jagged boulders.  The granite’s serrated edges glistened in places.  On the far side of the flat peak, the ground fell away in a sheer cliff, except for a ragged and rocky path even steeper than the hard trail they had just climbed.  At the base was spread out a long, forested valley.  If they could make it down into the trees, escape was still a possibility, especially with the darkness.

The captain issued orders, breaking Rukh away from his reverie.  “We’ll make our stand here,” he shouted.  “That gap…” he pointed to where Starb’s men had taken up position, “…will act as a bottleneck, funneling the Chims.  Their numbers won’t count for as much then.  We’ll make them choke on their dead!  C and D Companies will hold the trail, halfway down the hill. A and B Companies will retreat down to the valley floor.  We’ll lose the Chims there.”

“Sir?” Lieutenant Starb said.

For the first time on this hard day, Rukh saw emotion flit across the captain’s face: regret and heartache.  “Someone has to slow the Chims down,” he said.  “We have to carry word back to Ashoka.”

“C and D are all going to die,” Brand said, coming up to stand next to him, his voice sounding hollow.

Rukh nodded, unable to speak beyond the lump in his throat.  These were his brother warriors who were about to sacrifice their lives so he and the others might live.  “It’s a fragging world we live in, isn’t it?”

“Suwraith’s spit,” Keemo cursed, arriving just then.  “I wish I was going with them.”

“You want to die?” Brand asked, not sounding surprised.

“No.  I just don’t like the idea of running from a battle while our brothers are fighting and dying.  It makes me feel dirty, like a some filthy naaja, a tainted bastard.”

Rukh nodded.  “I imagine we’ll be fighting plenty,” he said.  “The Chims
are sure to have scouts on those far hills.”  He pointed to several nearby peaks, including one looming no more than forty feet away.  “They’ll be watching for us.”

“Unholy hells.  We
definitely
should have chosen a different caravan for our first Trial,” Farn joked as he dismounted.

“I’m starting to think you might be right,” Rukh agreed with a faint smile.

“It was good knowing you, cousins,” Keemo said.  “And you, too, Brand,” he added a beat later.  “You’re not bad for a Rahail.”

Brand smiled back.  “And you’re not too stupid for a Kumma.” he answered.

Keemo chuckled.

Pume rode up.  “Form up,” he shouted.  “We’ve got point.  Ulrit and A Company will follow right behind us.  You’ll have to lead your horses.  No way to ride them down this fragging goat trail.  Hustle down as quick as you can.  The faster we’re down, the more chance someone from C and D Company might be able to make it out of here, too.  Shektan.  Get your men ready.  You’ve got the lead.  Go!”

Rukh’s men gathered around him, and he led them to the far side of the summit, lined up behind the captain.  They dismounted and prepared to head down the sheer path.  Rukh glanced down.  In the fading light of the early evening, it would be a hard descent, and he took a quick swig of water, his mouth suddenly dry.  Suwraith’s spit.  Men and horses were going to get hurt bad or even killed going down that steep, thread of a trail.  What a dumbass way to die.

A roar came from the edge of the wooded valley at the base of the hill.

His jaw clenched as he focused on the sound.  The Chims were down there.  His heart sank as he saw hundreds of Suwraith’s fragging beasts pour out from the gaps between the trees.

The captain sighed.  “Damn,” he said softly before turning around and
calling for the lieutenants.

A moment later. 
“New orders,” Pume said.  “We aren’t going to live through the night, but none of that matters.  We’re Ashokan warriors.  We don’t quit.  We fight to the last!”  With a roar, the men shouted their assent.  “C and D Companies have been recalled.  They’re to hold the trailhead.  A and B will act as a reserve.  We’re to plug any breeches in the line.  But until that time comes, we wait in the heights and empty our quivers.  Make every shot count.  Now, here’s where I want you.”  He quickly had the men positioned along the rocky prominences of the summit.

Rukh’s troop along with Keemo and Farn’s w
ere positioned near one another next to the wide column of stone centered upon the summit.  The other warriors of A and B Companies were also stationed nearby, some behind boulders or higher up the laddered terrace of the broken pillar.  Most faced forward where C and D Companies held the trailhead and where the main force of Chimeras was expected to arrive in minutes.  Only a few warriors held the far side of the summit.   The Chims who had exited the forested valley and cut off the Ashokans’ retreat would take hours to ascend to the top of the cliff.  By then, the battle would be over.

“Fight with us, Brand,” Rukh urged.

“But if I do, you won’t be able to form a Quad,” he said, looking confused. 

“We’ll form a Triad,” Rukh said dismissively.  “It won’t matter if we have a Quad.  Besides, we’re all brothers in the Trial.”

Brand nodded slowly.  He straightened, his eyes bright with unshed tears but also filled with a brazen fire.  “Unto the last breath, wield the wild sword and scream defiance!” he shouted.

Others heard his words.  “Until the sun’s demise or Suwraith’s death, we war!” Pume’s unit roared in answer.

Rukh blinked back tears.  Brand would have made a damn fine Kumma.

They made their way to where Pume had indicated, readying their weapons.  Their bows were strung, and they sat in silence as warriors from C and D Company rounded up the horses.

No one needed their mounts anymore, but the animals might still have a use.  The horses were stampeded down the hill.  Many would run off the trail into empty space, screaming until they crashed on the hard, rocky floor hundreds of feet below, but a few might make it to the Chims host, causing some damage, however minimal and fleeting before being put down.  Regardless of how they died, they would all end up meat for the Chims horde.

Rukh saw his white stallion – he had never named the animal – look back at him several times before he followed the rest of the herd down the trail.  If Rukh didn’t know better, he’d have thought the horse had sorrow in his eyes.

“Here’s where it ends,” Keemo said.

“Or where it begins,” Brand countered.  “Devesh waits on the other side of life.”

Rukh considered Brand’s words, wishing they were true.  “I envy you, your faith,” Rukh said in a soft voice.

Brand smiled.  “We’ll all talk about it one day over a cool beer in Ashoka.”

Rukh smiled while Farn chuckled softly.

Keemo licked his lips.  “A cold beer sounds great about now,” he said.

“Cold beer and a warm woman,” Brand agreed.  “In that order.”

Rukh laughed.  “Now isn’t that something to live for?” he asked.

They murmured assent before once more falling silent, waiting for what was to come.

Soon enough, sounds came, close and unmistakable.  The yipping of Ur-Fels; the trumpeting hoots of the Balants; the gravely roars of the Tigons;
and the hissing cry of the Braids.  And over it all, rumbled the deep roar of their commanders, the Baels.

It wouldn’t be much longer.  Only a few minutes.

The last light of the sun had long since set. A waxing, gibbous moon hung low, and stars twinkled uncaring.  A cold wind blew on the heights.  At the base of the cliff, seven Fractures, half a Shatter – more Chims gathered in one place since the fall of Hammer almost three centuries before – announced their presence with a cry of triumph.