Amazon Challenge (31 page)

"Well," said Malora. "I believe you came here to die,
Parlomith. Shall we get it over with?"

Malora
unwrapped her arms from me, but I caressed her once more. I knew the voices were gone, and I could see the confidence.

"I'll be right here," I said. "Waiting for you."

She nodded.

Then she turned to Nori, and Nori handed Malora her swords.
Parlomith and her supporters moved away from us a bit, taking places at the edge of the training circle, and then she stepped out from between them. She was holding a staff, and on her waist, a whip.

Nori turned to me and winked.

Parlomith was still worked up, but as she stepped onto the grounds, I could see as she relaxed, not as much as Malora, but she undid some of the damage to her composure that I had caused.

Still, she didn't calm completely. I had done my share to protect Malora.

I took a place at the edge of the circle, Nori on one side of me, Ralla on the other, and the rest of the Amazon's of Queen's Town clustered around me.

"Fight!" cried Malora.

Parlomith
waved the staff in front of her. And I could see, Malora looked uncertain. This was as I had predicted: Parlomith came with a staff instead of a sword, and Malora hadn't much practice in fighting swords against staff.

Parlomith
circled to the left, widely, traveling around the other side of the whipping post. Malora watched her, waiting carefully.  Parlomith stepped closer.

"What's the matter, Malora?" she asked. "Did you expect to fight your two swords to my one? You look nervous. When's the last time you fought against a staff?"

Malora didn't answer, but I could have. Two days ago.

She stepped further left, coming closer to where I was standing, Malora watching her intently. Then
Parlomith released her right hand from the staff, holding it to the side in her left, and pulled the whip from her belt. She shook it out, nowhere near as gracefully as Nori usually did, and then she sent it back and then forward.

Malora was ready for it, poised to trap the whip, but it wasn't aimed at her.

It was aimed at me.

I turned my face just in time, and she missed my eye, but she left a gouge in my cheek, and I cried out, my hand flying to my face.

"Maya!" Malora screamed.

"I'm okay!" I yelled. "She has no honor."

Parlomith tried it again, but Ping, holding my staff, was waiting, and she stepped in the way, taking the stroke before it could reach me, interrupting it before it could land with force, and it was only a thud against her. Then she spun my staff, wrapping it around the whip several times, and hung on tightly.

Malora, both swords raised, raced sideways and struck the taut whip with both swords, severing it in the middle.

"Interference!" Parlomith cried.

"See me after the fight!" Ping yelled. "You can lodge a complaint and we'll settle it immediately."

Then Ping stepped back, but she moved between Ralla and me, protecting me.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"Malora is going to kick her ass."

I never took my eyes from
my queen. Malora advanced towards her opponent. Parlomith tossed the whip aside and then spun the staff in front of her, all show. With a scream, she launched herself at Malora.

Malora deflected the swi
ng, once, twice. They were wild swings, full of anger, but Parlomith remained centered at the same time, recovering quickly from her swings and using the greater length of the staff to keep Malora at a distance.

Malora edged backwards, and
Parlomith followed. Then she thrust with her staff, catching Malora firmly in the chest, and Malora went flying backwards, tumbling over her head and landing on her feet in a crouch. She held her chest for a moment, rasping her breath, then she stood up.

I stood, my hand over my mouth, trying not to cry out. My heart was thundering in my chest.

"Nori."

"Quiet," she said. "Trust her."

Parlomith barely paused, and then she was after Malora, swinging, and Malora danced away at the last moment, Parlomith's staff banging into the ground loudly. Parlomith swung and swung, grunting with the effort, and Malora retreated.

Then
Parlomith swung again, and Malora stepped backwards, right past the training post. The staff thudded loudly into the post, but Malora wasn't there. She appeared on the other side, a sword lashing out to strike Parlomith across the face.

Malora danced past her, avoiding a return swing of the staff, and when
Parlomith turned, I saw Malora had barely missed her eye, a jagged cut across her forehead, blood flowing freely.

Parlomith
brushed at her face, trying to push the blood out of her eye, and Malora danced forward, thrusting with a sword. Parlomith took a small cut on the back of her hand before she pulled away, swinging with her staff. Malora ducked under it then slipped past her, slashing with a sword and scoring a cut in Parlomith's arm.

All around, the Amazons stood quietly, frozen. My heart was in my throat. I glanced at Nori. Her expression was grim, intent, but I saw no fear.

But I reached over and clasped her hand. She squeezed mine for a moment then released it.

"Don't distract her," she whispered, and I nodded.

The two fought, spinning, Parlomith landed a glancing blow to Malora's hip, which slowed her down for a moment, but Malora got several more cuts on Parlomith's arm.

And then Malora made a mistake, dancing forward in a lunge just as
Parlomith swung the staff. It connected firmly against Malora's side, and I knew the ribs were cracked.

I screamed.

They both stood there, neither moving, then Malora jerked, stepping forward, and then stepping forward again. Her left sword was by her side; I couldn't see the right sword.

And then she spun in a circle, holding just the left sword, and as she spun, she lifted the left sword parallel to the ground, right a
t neck height, and Parlomith never moved as the sword slashed across her throat.

Parlomith
fell, landing on her side, and that was when I saw Malora's sword sticking out from her stomach, aimed up into the ribcage.

She was probably already dead before the second sword slashed across her throat.

I screamed and broke free of the warriors, running to Malora. She stepped away and turned to me.

"Careful!" she said. And I threw my arms around her, but I was careful about her ribs.

"Are you okay?"

"Cracked ribs and some bruises. That's all. I need a bath though."

She was splattered with blood.

I hugged her gingerly, and then Nori was there, retrieving the swords and cleaning them on the corpse's clothes.

"This isn't over," Malora said. "Go to Ping. No questions."

I didn't argue. I stepped away and returned to Ping, who was waiting for me. She handed my staff to me. "This might turn ugly," Ping whispered,
"but it won't last long."

Malora stepped forward, facing
Parlomith's supporters.

"Challenge completed," Malora said. "The challenger is dead. You all saw. I have two or three cracked ribs. You'll never have a better chance. Anyone who wishes to challenge me may do so.
The fights will be this afternoon."

She looked amongst them, but no one stepped forward.

"Last chance," she said. "I will accept no challenges from any of you for three years after this. Furthermore, I see two village chiefs, and I am taking your villages from you. You will never be chiefs again as long as I am queen."

"You can't do that!" Darda said, stepping forward. She was chief of a village to the north.

"If you disagree with my judgment, you may challenge me. Otherwise you will step down, and you will find another village to take you."

Darda didn't challenge Malora. None of them did.

"From now on, as long as I am Queen, all village chiefs must be approved by me. If you do not accept my judgment, challenge me now!"

No one spoke up.

"Very well," she said, stepping back. "There is the issue of a number of other challenges today." She moved to her own supporters. "I believe all my challengers are here. I believe I also offered to let you withdraw your challenge at any time. Those who wish to uphold their challenges, please step in the ring so we can see who you are."

No one moved, and then Vorine stepped forward. "I withdraw my challenge."

One by one, most of the warriors of Queen's Town formally withdrew their challenges. Nori, Ralla and Balorie remained quiet.

"What about the rest of you?" Malora said. "Do
you withdraw your challenges? If so, speak up now."

They thundered at her, "With withdraw our challenges, Queen Malora!" There was a cheer.

Malora turned to her closest allies, Loren, Valan.

"Do you withdraw your challenges?" she asked them. "Now's the time."

Loren laughed. "Withdrawn, Queen Malora," and Valan nodded. "You remain our queen until you choose to retire."

N
ori, Ralla and Balorie then sighed dramatically together. "I suppose we should withdraw ours as well."

Malora turned around to face
Parlomith's supporters. "If someone ever steps forward who can lead the Amazons well, she shall have a good challenge match. If ever I feel I cannot lead the Amazons well, I will step aside. But if any of you think to take the Amazons on a path such as that miserable excuse of an Amazon would choose," she pointed to the corpse, "understand this. There were 72 additional challengers waiting, with the next match in..." she looked at the sky. "Five minutes from now. I may have been slated to die today, but Parlomith would not have seen sundown. I will not pass leadership of the Amazons into the hands of someone who would abuse the weak and the helpless."

"All hail Queen Malora!" Loren yelled, and the Amazons erupted into cheers.

Amidst the cheering, Malora crossed the grounds to me. "I'll deal with your misbehavior later."

I nodded.

She turned to Vorine. "Grab another warrior and your companions and go get your sister and her companion."

Vorine nodded. "Lidi and Neela, care for a ride?" she asked.

"We'd love one," Lidi answered immediately. "I believe our horses are already saddled and provisioned."

"Careen?" she called out.

"Here," she said. "Our horses are ready to go."

I grabbed Vorine and hugged her. "Thank you."

She hugged me quickly. "I've got to go or I won't be back for two weeks."

And then they ran for the stables.

Malora turned to Loren and Valen. They spoke before she could say a thing. "We'll get rid of them."

"Find homes for the chiefs, and find someone to take over their villages, someone I'd approve."

"We'll deal with it," Loren said.

"Everything is handled," Nori said. "Let's get you patched up."

"Serra!" Malora yelled.

"Here, Queen Malora!"

"Feast tonight. But can we have a picnic by the river for lunch?"

"I'll need help."

"I need my companion;
use whoever else you need."

"I'll handle it."

Malora turned to Ping. "Thank you."

Ping nodded.

Then she turned to me. "Let me see."

I stepped forward for inspection. She held me, looking at my face.

"It hurts."

"You're going to have a scar. We're going to
have to sew it up. I'm sorry." She raised her voice. "Nori, we'll need you!"

"Let's do it by the river," Nori suggested. "Bea!
we're going to need you."

And so Malora and I found
ourselves down by the river. Ralla helped Malora out of her clothes and wrapped her ribs. Bea looked at my eye then said, "Are you going to be able to hold still?"

"I don't know."

"Try."

She washed the wound, which stung badly, and then Nori handed her a needle already threaded. I stared at it.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"Just do it."

Nori presented a cloth in front of my mouth, and I opened. She stuffed it into place, and I nodded thanks.

I was screaming into the rag and crying by the time Bea was done. She spent the entire time apologizing, but her hands were steady, and I had several people supporting me while she worked.

"There," she said. "As neat as I can, but you're going to have a scar. I'm sorry."

I brought my breathing under control then spat the cloth out.

"Thank you," I told her, my voice raw. I raised my hand to feel it, but Bea intercepted it. "Clean first, and look in a mirror. I don't recommend touching it."

I moved into the river, cleaning up and floating in the water for a while. A few warriors joined me, spirits high.

Nori came up behind me.

"Doing okay?"

"Yeah. Malora?"

"She'll be fine. She'll be foolishly training long before she should. You'll need to be careful of her ribs for a while."

"She has to punish me. What will it be?"

"You know it's going to be bad, Maya."

"Will she have to whip me?"

"She doesn't want to."

I nodded. "I'll forgive her. I did the right thing."

She frowned. "Possibly," she said
. "It didn't change the outcome of the fight. But it made it possible for Malora to enact those changes. Parlomith had no support by the time you were done talking."

"I always did fight with words."

"I remember. It was a joy to see you applying them in the right direction for a change."

"Ha, ha," I said. "I have always applied them in the right direction."

She paused. "Yes, I suppose you have."

"So. Have you forgiven yourself?"

"I don't know if I can. I hurt you."

"I want to ask you something, and I want the truth. Did you do it because you wanted me complacent for Malora, or did you do it so I'd be so angry she couldn't accept me?"

She didn't answer right away, and I turned to look at her. She didn't meet my eyes. "I don't know," she said finally.

"Is that why you can't forgive yourself?"

"I don't know. Maybe." She looked away. "Normally a companion soothes us only when she wants to offer comfort, but you were soothing me while holding you, even as angry as you were. When I tied you, I had intended it only long enough to knock some of that fight out of you."

"Which, I will point out, you never did."

"No. And if I untied you, then there was no reason you had to ride on my horse with me."

I stared. "That simple?"

"I think so. I'm so sorry."

"Well, I've long forgiven you, and while what you did was wrong, there perhaps was even less malice behind it than I thought at the time." I paused. "But I'm not taking back any of the things I said to you."

She laughed. "I didn't think you were going to."

"Well, except the times I called you honorless, and the times I vowed to kill you. I take both of those back."

She smiled. "Thank you." She looked away.

"Come to me later, Nori. You look stressed out."

"She nodded."

"Am I excused from training this afternoon?"

She narrowed her eyes. "One little cut and you think I'm going to go easy on you?"

"Yes."

She smiled. "No training until we get rid of all our guests. They're eating us out of house and home. Ralla, Balorie and I are going hunting this afternoon."

"Please make sure our unwanted guests are well gone before we leave Malora undefended."

She nodded.

"I'm clean. I'm going to go collapse. It was a long night."

Malora and I cuddled together on the rocks, and when lunch arrived, the companions served both of us. I could tell Malora's ribs hurt, but her spirits were good.

"I'm so proud of you," I told her. "Thank you for being such a good queen."

She laughed, then grimaced. "Don't make me laugh."

"Sorry."

"You're welcome. Thank you for standing by me."

We lay together for a while, touching, enjoying the sun.

"I need to ask you. Tying me up. Was that just so I wouldn't realize what you were doing last night?"

"Yes."

"So you didn't enjoy it?"

"I never said that." She looked over, grinning. "Did you like it?"

"No comment."

"You did."

"No comment."

She turned back to face the sky, and we were quiet for a minute or two, then she said, "I did, too."

"Good."

Several more minutes passed before I said, "I want to know what my punishment is for disobeying you. I know it's going to be bad. If you have to whip me, I'll forgive you afterwards."

She didn't answer.

"Of course, technically, I wasn't an Amazon anymore. You released me."

"I did." She sounded relieved. "You came back. That would be trespassing."

"You invited me."

"Oh. So I did. I guess there's no punishment."

"Malora, you don't really think I'm going to hide behind that, do you?"

She looked over. "I sort of hoped you would. It's going to be bad, honey."

"I know. But I'd do it again. However, don't you ever do that
again. I won't forgive you a second time."

"You won't forgive me sending you away, or you won't forgive the punishment you're going to take for coming back?"

"Both."

"I have to punish Omie and Beria, too," she said.

"They're not Amazons, either."

"We'll see if they're any faster to hide behind that than you are," she said.

"I escaped. While they slept. You didn't tie me very well."

She looked into my eyes for a moment. "Don't lie to your queen."

"You could let it slide," I suggested. "I might be more willing to let you off the hook for tricking me and sending me away if you do."

"I would, but people asked where you were. Everyone knew I'd sent you away."

"You could say it was subterfuge so I could make a dramatic entrance."

"That would be lying to my closest allies."

I sighed. "You could decide this scar I'm going to have is sufficient punishment."

I watched as she considered it but then she only said, "I'm sorry."

"For the scar?"

"The scar is your own fault," she said. "I'm sorry that it's not enough for so severely disobeying an order from your queen."

I nodded. "I ask again: what will my punishment be?"

"I'm sorry. I don't know yet."

* * * *

Vorine didn't return with Omie and Beria that night, and I decided they must have move
d on to Gallen's Cove. If that were the case, I wouldn't see them for a couple of weeks. I wondered if I could absorb any punishment Malora needed to dish out, and they could return without backlash.

Loren and Valen got everyone cleared out, our
remaining allies leaving in the morning. Malora and I saw them off with a promise from Malora that we would be by to visit in the near future.

Balorie sent our patrol out, and we were suddenly short-handed.
"We'll make do with three-person patrols. We do it all the time. We have good companions to help us."

Nori told Malora
she should engage in no significant activity for at least two weeks, and a month would be better. So instead of going to morning training, I took her fishing. "Took her fishing" means we sat down next to the river and cuddled, talking quietly.

I was so in love, and so was she.

That's where we were when I heard a shout. "Maya!"

I turned, and there was my sister. "Beria!" She ran towards me, Omie following her, and then I pulled her into a hug. She squished me for a moment
. When had she gotten so strong? Then she stepped away and set a gentle hand on my cheek.

"I heard. Does it hurt?"

"I've had worse," I said. I hadn't had worse cuts, but I'd hurt worse.

Omie app
roached, holding out the letter I'd given her. "We won't be needing this."

I took
it from her. "Thank you. I keep this in my chest. In case, ah, you know."

She nodded.

Malora hadn't gotten up, which told me a lot about the condition of her ribs.

"Queen Malora," Omie said, "we submit ourselves for judgment."

"Damn it," Malora said. "Why can't any of you hide behind those papers I gave you?"

"We are Amazons," Beria said. "When we disobey our queen, we take our lumps."

Malora sighed. "You're going to have to wait a day or two then." She shook her head. "I told you to keep her gagged!"

"It fell out," Beria said. "After that, we were helpless to her siren song."

"And you just happened to have her Amazon clothing with you. And her staff."

"We were well-prepared," Omie said.

"Right."

* * * *

Things settled down. My cheek healed, and Malora's ribs healed, less quickly, and still we hadn't been punished.

She announced a new tour, to leave in a week.