Chapter XIII
Qouni
As he reached his bedroom door, Nishga took off her cloak and stepped inside with him. Already waiting there were Nicholas and Andreas who had been quietly discussing their journey.
“I thought you might follow me, well what do you think?” said Achil, taking Nishga‘s cloak from her and placing it on the bed.
“If you mean can these people be trusted, then I think as long as our interests match theirs they’ll be as helpful as they can be. But as soon as we deviate from what they want, I think they will prove to be less than cooperative and all treaties will be off. Assassins, brothels, these are the worst kind of unscrupulous cut throats you could probably ever wish to meet, which means they’re perfect for what we want to do. After that though…” said Nishga her voice trailing off.
“Understood, after that we’re on our own.” replied Achil tightly. “Not only that they’re the type of people that’d sell their own mothers for a profit, which means we need a better plan than the one we’ve got.”
“Where do we go from here? Andreas thinks we should head across the lands of Quinn using that canal route of theirs.” said Nicholas leaning forward in his chair and staring across at Achil his eyes narrowed uncomfortably.
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible. We’ve been informed that the Shadow Warriors maybe hot on our trail; apparently they’re particularly unwholesome individuals that are currently checking the canals and carriage lines for rebels and spies. Reason being and this is a real kick in the teeth, they are looking for clues as to who killed Ventrigar, Telallamain informed me he was working for Jin.”
Andreas and Nicholas started out of their chairs.
“What! Do you believe that?” cried Andreas.
Achil gestured for the two of them to calm while he took out his map and explained what had happened.
“It was Telallamain who had him killed; apparently he did this so he could not spy on us. And as for these Shadow Warriors, they are out in force because they suspect that one of the rebel factions that were recently put down here in Quinn killed him, as a prelude to further rebellious activities such as disrupting the affairs of state. So the route we’re going to have to take is one through these Wilderness lands.”
”I may be mistaken but that picture of a dragon with a strange looking beast by the side of it. That doesn’t mean what I think it means does it?” asked Andreas with more than a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
“It means exactly what you think it means,” replied Achil.
“Oh that’s just brilliant, so what you're saying is that it's out of the fire and straight into the mouth of the Dragon?” said Andreas, his finger pointing accusingly at the symbols on the map.
“Something like that, just look on the bright side,” Achil began rolling the map up again.
“Oh! So there is a bright side?” said Andreas indignantly, with his hands now resting firmly on his hips in both an annoyed and resigned manner.
“At least we’ve dealt with Dragons before, and we haven‘t been eaten once,” replied Achil throwing the map into his holdall and lying back on the pillow with his arms tucked beneath his head.
“You know if this mission doesn’t kill us, your sense of humour will,” said Nicholas, quietly as he sat back in his chair once more.
“Now there’s a cheery thought for you,” said Nishga, giving Achil a sideways glance; he merely smiled and closed his eyes.
Andreas and Nicholas decided that enough had been said and went back to their rooms. While Nishga curled up on one of the chairs and stared into the fire, the flames coiled their way up the hearth.
Nishga rose from the chair and lay back on her bed.
“It could be a trap you know,” she spoke softly as if to herself, “going into these wilderness lands.”
“I don’t think so,” replied Achil quietly. “They’ll be no traps until we’ve served our purpose.”
Her eyes began to slowly close, the room fell silent but for the gentle murmur of slow breathing. The fire slowly began to calm before the flames fully receded into whitened, withered logs that had lost all potency to sustain themselves. The window was slightly ajar letting cool air filter through the room. Nishga stirred quietly stretching out her legs into a more comfortable position. Achil turned over muttering something inaudible in his sleep, before his eyes started open, he rolled over on his side staring out of the open doors of the veranda; the moon seemed to stare back at him, its tranquil light reminding him not for the last time of home.
A dark shape furtively stared up at their balcony. A figure came up unseen behind it, hands reached out; there was a struggle, then one of the shadows seemed to drop limply to the ground. It was dragged over to the canal, a boulder was taken from a rockery and firmly tied to the body's feet, and it was then cast into the wash with only a gentle ripple. The figure looked furtively about to make sure he had not been heard, or seen; but with all the lights out along the canal, there were no witnesses to the act of murder except for that of the softly veiled moon. The dark silhouetted figure then disappeared back into the shadows.
They woke early to find that horses had been provided for them courtesy of someone by the name of Belroth, a local merchant, Achil knew him as Tella of the Black Marketeers. They took the horses and rode out of Quinn. The roads were somewhat empty as people had yet to recover from the previous days festivities. Once out in the open they had another look at the map, and made their way toward the border. There were two towns that they would have to pass close too before getting to the Wilderness lands, one was Qouni the other was Shushy. They took to the wilds rather than remain on the roads. Like the Canals and Carriage lines there were guards posted along the road ways that would have made for an uncomfortable passage. After travelling for most of that day along a lush green sea of grass and hemlock flowers, they finally came to rest by a disused well, which was nothing more than a hole in the ground with a stone slab over it. In the distance could be seen some large rocky outcrops, the evening sun bouncing off there reddish hue making it appear that they were on fire. There was a small wooded area that afforded them some cover close by; otherwise the uneven shallow lush land of long grasses and thick unkempt hedgerows seemed to slope up and down for many miles. They built themselves a small fire, and let the horses graze close by this was as good a place as any to rest up for the night. As they sat round eating what food stuffs they had; there attention turned back to the meeting with the Black Marketeers.
“Achil tell us did this Telallamain mention anything else about these Shadow warriors?” asked Andreas, passing him his water bottle.
“To be honest Andreas,” said Achil. “I really don’t know what can or cannot be believed. Don’t get me wrong, I do not doubt that such a warrior cast exists in the Imperium, but whether he‘s telling the truth about them is a different matter. Also I find it strange that he did not mention the Orb. Unless of course he doesn‘t know we‘ve got it, and we all know what that means.”
Nicholas raised his hand, “Ur, I don’t.”
“It means that in our game of intrigue there is another player,” said Achil calmly. “Were you not listening when we spoke of this?”
“Actually no, I’m afraid by the time you’d arrived back last night, I was half asleep. Sorry.” said Nicholas sheepishly.
“Don’t any of you listen to anything I say?" asked Achil.
All three replied at once and in the same tone, "No."
Achil shook his head despairingly and lay back to sleep. Andreas and Nishga smiled to themselves and did like wise.
The next day they approached Qouni by midmorning. The city about half the size of Quinn was being rebuilt. It had been one of the rebellious cities that had revolted against the Mandrake Imperium. There were row upon row of large wooden stakes leading up to the city. To which thousands of people had been hung from. Every occupant of the city had a family member taken as punishment. There was a garrison of Mandrake Warriors outside t
he city. It was ironic that these were the only ones that had greeted Achil and the others with any kind of amity. One of the Guards stopped them to ask what business they had there. When Achil showed him his papers and told him he was a merchant just passing through. The guard merely laughed saying he was not surprised as there was nothing left to see. The man's cold laughter sent a chill down their spines. When the strangers entered the city they were greeted by unwelcome eyes and burnt out streets. They could not recognise anyone that resembled what might have been a Shadow Warrior. Not surprising as any rebellious undertones had been severely put down already. The city in effect had been completely subjugated, though the people clearly had not. At the moment the people were picking up the pieces of their broken lives. Achil noticed a woman on a corner with her two children stopping some soldiers and asking them for some food for her and her children, in return she took one of the men into the burnt out remains of her house leaving her children outside. Achil imperceptibly shook his head; he did not want to think about the desperate means she had to employ, to pay for her food.
The only buildings that had not been too badly damaged were all the Imperial public ones and the temples. The Imperium was very deliberate in its punishments. All the homes that had needed to be rebuilt did not have to be funded by the Empire. A man came out to greet them he was a short balding stocky sort of a fellow with grey eyes. Wearing a long silk cloak and a brightly coloured tunic, his boots were pristine; the man seemed a sharp contrast to the very grey smouldering streets that surrounded them. He asked Achil if he wanted to buy some slaves. Achil politely declined, he then enquired whether they were looking for a place where they could dine in some comfort. Achil regarded the man a moment, looked at the others who indiscernibly nodded; and turning back to the man asked if he knew of any where. The man then pointed out to them a place where they could go for some refreshment. They followed the road down to a junction where there were burnt out carriages probably once used as barricades. From there they took the turning into a park area. It was a little over grown and untended. Once through the park they came to a long wide avenue where there were broken, up ended statues. The one of Jin had been pulled down and smashed. At the end of the Avenue they came to the large Praetors Hall, with some ornate municipal buildings on either side, once passed that, they reached a rather large red brick building that had survived the devastation of the city, there was a sign outside ‘In Service to the Imperium. Food served all day.’ They had found where those that had collaborated with the Imperium spent their days. They went inside where there were a couple of locals eating in a corner. Their voices dropped to a hush when they entered. Furtive eyes darted toward the strangers immediately before returning to a more hushed conversation, their faces were aged, worn, and tired looking. They both had grey streaks running down their hair, which lay comfortably on their backs. They were well dressed for the most part, wearing white shirts beneath dark coloured jackets that had tassels running down the arms; their breeches looked heavy and slightly weathered. Their heavy boots were caked in mud. Further over was someone seated on his own? He had dark brown eyes soft features and short cropped black hair. He wore a light leather jerkin, and brown leather breeches tucked into his worn boots. His stare was impassive, stoic, steely, unforgiving.
Achil nudged Andreas, “I think we’ve had warmer welcomes. Perhaps coming here wasn't such a good idea."
Andreas nodded looking round at the strangers and thinking how ironic it was that they would be thought of with suspicion for completely the wrong reasons. There were many long tables in the centre of the Inn with long benches running down on either side. Next to the walls were smaller tables for parties of only four to six persons. A large hearth was built into the wall where a small pig was on a spit roasting. It was being slowly turned by a small boy. There were large windows to the front which let light fall onto the grimy wooden floor that was being hand scrubbed by a serving maid. Her hair was reddish down to her shoulders, her skin was pale. Her eyes were blue and had regarded them on entry before returning to her duties. She had a young looking face, and an athletic figure. When the four of them had sat down the woman got up off the floor, put her bucket to one side and came over to them.
“What can I get for you,” she said coldly.
“Well we’d like something hot to eat. So what have you got?” asked Andreas.
“You can have some bacon and eggs if you’d like. With a jug of beer.” she said in a detached manner, barely making eye contact with them.
“The bacon and eggs is fine, but it’s a bit early for beer, have you anything else?” replied Andreas trying to catch her eye as he spoke.
She looked at him for the first time.
“If you're looking for something else we have some pressed oranges or apples,” there was no pretence of a smile in her reply, or any form of happy greeting you would expect from someone in her profession.
“Just Orange juice would be fine thank you,” said Andreas, looking back at the others.
When she had left the four of them on their own, they began for the first time whispering excitedly at what they had seen of the city. Leaning forward trying and trying hard not to be overheard Nicholas carefully looked around before entertaining the question of what had happened there.
“I wonder how long ago the rebellion took place?” asked Nicholas.
“Well I think by all the damage that’s been done and the fact that there are still a few reminders on the streets as to what happened, some burnt out wagons, broken statues. I would say only a few months ago,” said Andreas.
“Yes, the locals still look like they’re holding a bit of a grudge don’t you think.” said Nishga, lowering her voice to such an extent that the others had to lean forward more closely to hear what she was saying.
Achil glanced casually round the room; he noticed that their furtive behaviour had caught the eye of the man sitting in the corner. He tugged on Nishga’s tunic pulling her upright on the bench. Nicholas and Andreas took it as a signal for them to change the subject.
“So anyway we’ll eat and then I think we should be on our way out of here,” said Achil, loud enough for him to be overheard. The serving woman came up to them with their bacon and eggs and their freshly squeezed orange juice. They ate their meal silently, listening to the murmurings of the two men in the background. When the door to the Inn opened and in walked six burly Marauders, in full gear. Achil’s hand dropped to the hilt of his sword as did Andreas’s and Nicholas‘s. Even Nishga took hold of her dagger. The man that had been eyeing them, got up and walked over to the men who had just entered the tavern, whispered something to one of them and then walked out of the Inn. The six men instantly drew their swords. Achil signalled to Andreas and Nicholas to ready themselves. One of the marauders approached where they were sitting, fortunately walked passed them, and on to the other two men who had been sitting near to the hearth. The other five Marauders came over also. There was a sharp exchange, the word sedition was used. The two men were roughly hauled to their feet and dragged away. The four of them watched the incident unfold not saying a word. Afterward the maid came up to them to clear away their platters. This time she could not contain her anger.
“I hope you enjoyed the show. That’s another two carted off to die in this wonderfully fair Empire of ours. What was their crime, that’s it sedition. They use that one all the time. It practically covers everything. They were probably disgruntled by the way the council of elders were running things. By eliciting and extorting money from the people, and of course it's all legal, another tax to fill their coffers with. It's a new 'council serving charge' that we all have to pay to the elders. They're all self-serving corrupt officials that under normal circumstances would be laughed out of office. But the more corrupt they are, the more loyal they are to the empire. Jin has made it like that on purpose. Corrupt officials have such a vested interest in the Empire that they know if it falls they fall. So their loyalty is assured. You have to be c
orrupt in this world of ours, if you're not then you are criminalised.” Her voice rose with the anger and frustration of what she had just seen.
A man came out from the kitchen on hearing her.
“Malarean that’s enough, that’s enough. Excuse me sirs please ignore her she recently lost her mother and brother not long ago, and has been out of sorts ever since. Malarean get back in the kitchen, now.”
When she had left, the man finished clearing the plates from their table.
“Please don’t report us sirs, she is my daughter and she is all I have left. The empire has already taken my son who died in the campaigns in the west and my wife, who died from grief of it. I will not charge you for the meal. But as I say please do not report us.” He backed away bowing as he did so.
Achil looked at the man with sympathy. “We will pay for the meal. As for your daughter, I wasn’t even listening to what was being said, so I have nothing to report anyway.”
The man looked at them and smiled as Achil handed him the money for the meal. He nodded his thanks and hurriedly left.
"Let's leave this madhouse before we're reported for not reporting them," Achil motioned to the others for them to leave.
As they exited the Inn, they walked out into the glaring sun. They noticed that the man who had been eyeing them inside, was leaning back on a bench across the road smoking a pipe. He watched as they stepped out into the sun, tapped his pipe on its wooden frame, and placed it slowly in a side pocket. The four of them calmly got on their hoses and slowly rode away without looking back. It did not take them long to leave that city. Once out in the open they took the road to Shushy. The days passed wearily and eventually they came across a small stone by the side of the road indicating how far away the next city was, the name of another place Shanty had been scratched out. It was another day before they came across the city of Shanty, unlike Qouni it had been raised to the ground; all that was left were the foundations. This city had to have been vast; Achil felt that it must have been the size of Quinn and was probably the main source of resistance against the empire. The cobbled road and flat mosaic and stone floors were all that was left. After eating their in silence they passed through in sober contemplation. All were thinking, that could have been their homes and families lost.
“Strange isn’t it. How the city has been left to its ghosts and its past,” said Achil sorrowfully.
“It reminds me of those ancient ruins we ran into in the forest of Wormwood. The big difference being that this happened only recently,” said Andreas, his voice was quiet so as not to disturb the sad silence that pervaded the town.
“You know,” said Nicholas. “What's worse is that there are no bodies, usually there are some remains of people punished by the Mandrake Imperium. Here there's nothing, it truly is a barren waste.”
The Mandrake Imperium had past through there like a raging storm that had simply blown the town away. Everything of value had been uprooted and taken. At its heart was a large stone plinth that read: ‘Here once stood the town of Shanty that fought against the Mandrake. It stands no more.’
“Ominous words, but effective, I wonder if there are any alive to remember the town of Shanty,” said Achil.
"May the words themselves be a reminder and a memorial to a place that is desolate to look upon and filled with despair," murmured Nishga.
The day decidedly felt a lot colder from that moment on. The town was not only devoid of all human life it appeared that the scorched earth policy of the Imperium left not even the vegetation. They rode out of Shanty making their way to Shushy. The road was a long one as Shushy bordered the wilderness lands. They spent most of the next few days on the road stopping at various small settlements along route. The people were less subversive and for the most part were well pleased with their lot. There were farmers tending crops, taking cattle or sheep to market. If they did not know better, and if it was not for the banners of the Imperium flying everywhere, they could have been back at home in Osgaroth or Findolin. There were also reminders as to the discipline and totality of Imperial rule, people hung from poles with signs round their heads such as thief, runaway slave or rabble-rouser. The province of Quinn certainly had the best and the worst of what the empire could offer. People greeted them politely, some even saluted as they passed. Some walked heads bowed as though trying not to draw attention to themselves.
They finally arrived on the outskirts of Shushy, one of the wealthiest and largest cities in Quinn bigger even than Quinn. It looked more cosmopolitan than the other cities they had been to. Here lived every type of race of the Imperium, a bustling metropolis. It was a city of Guild Merchants. Shushy was built atop a large plateau. It was one of the few cities allowed to have walls, and with good reason too, being one of the most opulent and wealthiest cities of the Imperium. Due to its importance Jin had settled an entire garrison of Wrath just a few leagues outside the town. Tall burly men wearing thick dark tunics beneath which gleamed heavy armour, with a long mane of heavy hair stretching down their backs and long swords at their sides, stalked the city streets. Their faces were stern to look at. Their eyes were icy blue, and impassive. These were the people that were meant to keep the creatures of the Wilderness out and protect the City at all costs. The Dragons, the Wild Roar Bears which were taller than most houses, Giant Wolves and other nasty beasts lived beyond the great wall that separated the city from the Wilderness, which also meant that the city could only be attacked from one side. The warriors here were the elite of the elite. Shushy unbeknown to Achil and the others was also the stronghold of the Shadow Warriors. Fortunately no one in there right mind, who had any kind of ill intent toward the empire would dare venture into that place.
To the other end of Shushy just outside was the Mega-wall that stretched the length of the entire border with the wilderness. The wall snaked along the rolling hills disappearing off into the distance. There were small stone bridges connecting that wall to the city wall. Further over from the bridge was a gate house which in turn was built like a keep, guarding two impressive iron clad wooden gates that could be opened onto the wilderness. Beyond those walls there was some cleared land of about a league, and then came the mightiest of forests. In the distance above the forest could be seen Mountains. The lands of the Panthurians were not the only ones to be sealed off. The city was made up of large stony halls and some wooden billets for the legionaries that were allowed to reside within it. Some of the buildings seemed excessively ostentatious. To one side of the city was the commercial quarter. There was a vast open Agora, an Amphitheatre, a large Gymnasium, a University, a care centre and a colossal hippodrome which was a circular arena that stood taller than all other structures, it had in every alcove a stone statue of some deity. To the front of this mighty edifice was a giant marble statue of Jin. In another quarter of the city next to the centre of commerce were all the municipal buildings of state. There was a large Merchants registry office. The Hall of Scrolls and Patents, a grand palace for when Jin visited, there was no flag on the tallest turret which meant Jin was not in residence. It was built on a large manmade hill that overlooked the city. The palace was also walled off. Marauders patrolled its high walls. In another part of the city was the communal area where most of the workers dwelt. The streets here were cramped, there were four to five storey apartment buildings that on the outside looked quite suffocating, but internally were quite spacious. Beneath the city ran a sewage system that was supplied with fresh running water which came from the aqueducts that ran down from the mountains of the Wilderness, right into the heart of the city keeping it free from the outbreak of pestilence. Every morning a system of sluice gates would open that would flush out the sewers into a network of pipes that ran all the way to the large distant inland sea know as the Northern Approaches. When the drainage system had been built it had been a marvellous technological achievement only surpassed by the network of Canals and new Carriage Lines that stopped just outside the city walls. There were park areas througho
ut that kept the city smelling surprisingly fresh and were filled with beautifully crafted marble fountains. Finally there was the affluent quarter made up of Merchants with its wide open avenues, parks and libraries and Manor Houses. There was one particularly grand residence that belonged to the Praetor. It was also walled off, as they passed it by, they could see through the large metal gates to the other side. There was an open area of land the size of a small park, with a path dissecting it. The vast lawn was made up of trees bushes and mounds covered in mustard coloured flowers. At the other end of which was a large residence, it had black columns to the front beneath the Architrave. It was made up of blocks of large stone that in the distance made it seem reddish in appearance. They rode slowly passed its imposing impressive presence, and onto a large local Inn, similar to the one they had stayed at in Quinn. There was a small reception area, with a raised platform to one side, where people could sit in comfort round an open hearth. They paid for rooms for the night. The intention was to eat and get some rest, and then just before dawn; to make their way into the wilderness lands. They were taken to the elevator where a pageboy used the small crank to take them to the correct floor; he then directed them to their rooms.
Andreas and Nicholas took the opportunity to wash before going downstairs to eat. Achil and Nishga arrived at their room, from the veranda they looked over the park grounds, outside they could see and hear the gentle rushing of water from the fountain beneath them. They turned to each other and smiled Jinopolis was surely now within reach.