The Princess of Q’fahr
By Melanie Brown
Copyright © 2006
Part 2
I don’t know how long I spent bouncing along on the
back of a N’eerat, the pack animal I was lashed to, as we hurried along at near
gallop. We went across a varied amount of terrain. From the sounds of the
animal’s feet I could tell when we were crossing sand or rock. Even though I
was blind folded, I could see a little bit of light where the blindfold didn’t
fit snug. And I could also feel the warmth of the sun on me to tell me that it
was daylight. I felt a sheet draped across me. I guessed it was to protect me
from the brutal sun.
One of the men tried to talk a few times, but was
ordered to silence by someone else. From their breathing, I could tell the
animals were being ridden pretty hard. Someone finally barked a command and we
all stopped. I was pulled from the pack animal and dumped to the ground. The
blindfold was removed and I blinked several times trying to get my eyes
adjusted to the bright sunlight. My hands and feet were still bound and I
still had a gag in my mouth.
I looked around at where I was and to examine my
kidnappers. There were three of them, all big, burley guys with brutish faces.
I looked around and all I saw were rocks and sand and some hills in the distance.
No trees or blades of grass. The small, blue-ish sun blazed high in the sky.
One of the men tossed a bag towards the man nearest me
and said, “Give the girl some water. If she dies, we’re as good as dead
ourselves.”
The gag was removed. It felt so good to have that
thing out of my mouth. The man then poured a couple of gulps down my throat.
I looked up at the man standing over me and said, “Who
are you guys? What are you going to do with me? What…” Whack!
The side of my face stung from the hard slap. The man
bellowed, “Who gave you permission to speak, girl?” He raised his hand again
and said, “I’ll teach y…Oof!” The big guy suddenly lurched backwards
and crunched on to the ground.
The guy who seemed to be in charge was suddenly standing
between me and guy lying on the ground who was now massaging his jaw. The guy
in charge barked, “Are you trying to get us all killed? If we damage the girl,
K’latus will have our heads!”
The guy in charge turned and looked at me and shook
his head. He said, “You are a rare find and I can see why Lord K’latus would
want you. But you are, still, just a woman. And by K’tahr’s ghost, I don’t
see how any woman is worth this much trouble!” He bent down and shoved
the gag back into my mouth, replaced the blindfold and tossed me back onto the N’eerat,
lashed me down and covered me again with a sheet.
* * *
I had thought in the back of my mind that K’latus was
somehow involved in this, considering the interest he showed earlier. I felt
sick knowing that several people died just so these thugs could sneak me out of
town.
We continued to ride all day, stopping infrequently
for water and rest. Every time we stopped, the terrain looked a bit
different. We seemed to be climbing in altitude a little bit. We stopped at
dusk to eat and for a couple of hours of sleep before moving on.
After eating, they left the gag out of my mouth if I
promised to keep my mouth shut. I was pretty sure if I said anything, the gag
would immediately be replaced. They retied my arms and legs so I could stretch
a little to get the blood circulating again. I could probably hobble away if I
wanted to try, but I knew I wouldn’t get far and I had no idea where I’d go
anyway.
I was sure we were heading for Q’latar since that’s where
K’latus would be. I never would have thought it would be so far away. Of
course, even two hundred miles over this rough terrain and riding these
animals, would be a long trip.
I stretched out my legs in the sand and leaned back
against a rock. We had no campfire since that would be like a homing beacon,
so there was very little to obscure my view of the sky. It’s an amazing sky.
It’s so bright and crammed full of stars. I couldn’t recognize any
constellations and if I had to guess, I think we’re closer to the galactic core
than Earth. I wondered if we’re even in the same galaxy at all.
The star light was bright enough to light up the
camp. I took a look around. Two of my ‘companions’ were asleep. The third
was standing watch. I thought briefly of locating a suitable rock to crush
some skulls with and make my get-a-way. But I just sighed instead. Even if I
could get one of them, I would never take all three. And, like I said, if I
did manage an escape, I had no idea where to go.
I wondered what Jimmy was doing. Did he guess that K’latus
was at the bottom of me being kidnapped? Was he going to round up a posse’ and
come riding to my rescue? The thought both amused and disturbed me and for the
same reason. It hadn’t dawned on me until now that I was your typical ‘damsel
in distress.’ I’m sure Jimmy was upset about this, not only because I’m his
‘girl’, and his ‘property’, but since he was the one that brought me here, I
was his responsibility as well.
Jimmy’s not dumb. I’d bet he has a good idea where
I’m heading. I’m sure his dilemma is the level of his response. Would he come
alone or with an army? Or maybe something in between? In this society, how
many men would be willing to risk their lives just to retrieve a girl? Would Q’fahr
go to war with Q’latar over me and would I even want them to? The thought of
more people dying because of me made me sick.
Tears suddenly welled up as the gravity of my
situation completely sunk in. I just wanted to get off this shit hole and go
back home. What kind of fate awaited me with K’latus? And I sure as hell
didn’t want to be female; not here or back home. Although, I think I could
handle being female back home compared to this place. Crying softly in my
self-pity, I drifted off to sleep.
* * *
I awoke to nearly choking as the gag was stuffed back into
my mouth and I was roughly seized and unceremoniously tossed onto the N’eerat.
It was still night and I doubted I had gotten more than two hours sleep.
They didn’t bother to blind fold me or cover me with a
cloth this time. While it was nice to be able to watch what scenery I could
see in the dark, it was a lot dustier trying to breath. The jostling around I
was getting while we ran at full gallop had long since gone beyond being annoying.
I was almost looking forward to arriving in Q’latar just so we could stop.
We rode for hours in the darkness. I kept expecting
to see the cavalry charging over a hill with Jimmy leading the troops. But of
course they never came.
The blue sun was just a few minutes from piercing the
horizon when we crested a small hill and the leader commanded everyone to
stop. I was facing towards the rear, but I struggled to see why we stopped. I
finally managed to maneuver myself around just enough to look forward. What I
saw took my breath away.
Below the hill and about a half mile or so across flat
plain from us stood a magnificent walled city, partly up against sheer cliffs.
Gold crested spires rose from the walls within. Battlements jutted from the walls
with watch towers at each corner of the wall. There appeared to be a large
dome shaped building near the center rear of the city. It was the city of Q’latar.
What surprised me the most about Q’latar were not the
towers and grand scale of the city, but the fact that it had a sea port. Jimmy
had told me that attempts to sail very far from land always failed.
In the center of the forward wall, was a large, gated
entrance. The gates must have been opened as a steady stream of people,
beasts, and carts freely entered and exited the great city.
I also noticed that in a ring around the wall, about two
hundred yards or so out from the wall, were what appeared to be tank traps.
Stone blocks, about two feet high dotted the plain in a staggered pattern. As
far as I know, all the capital cities are festooned by such an array, but it
sure looked out of place on this planet.
“Okay, we take it slow into the city,” barked the
leader. “K’oeth, put that cover back over our ‘cargo.’ I’m sure Q’fahr has
spies inside the city. Let’s don’t make this too easy for them.”
A sheet was suddenly tossed over me and my view of Q’latar
vanished. “Onward to Q’latar!” shouted the leader. The animal I was riding
lurched forward, but walked at a much gentler gait than before.
After about thirty minutes or so of riding across the
soft, flat, grassy plain, I could tell we had arrived at the entrance of the
city as we suddenly entered shadow and the voices of many people echoed from
nearby walls.
A moment later, we had passed through the gateway and were
in the city itself. I could hear all kinds of activities surrounding us, from
kids playing to street vendors peddling their wares.
The sounds of the city suddenly became muted as we
apparently turned down a side street or an alley. I had assumed we were headed
for the palace, but that didn’t seem to be the case. I heard a creaky wooden
door open and we rode inside a building. Where ever we were, it stank to high
heaven.
“K’oeth,” barked the leader. “Unload the girl and
dump her there. Leave the gag in.”
Seconds later, the sheet was removed and I was untied
from the animal. I looked around and it looked like we were in a stable of
sorts. K’oeth dropped me in a stall onto something resembling hay.
“Tie her to that post. We’ve been instructed to leave
her here. I’m sure K’latus’ agents observed us as we entered the city, so he
knows we’re here. Let’s go!”
I watched as my abductors remounted their N’eerahs and
left me alone in the stables.
I sat there alone tied to a stall, sitting in the dry
grass wondering just what the hell was going to happen next. I looked around
the stable I was in. There was plenty of light coming in from several high
windows. Nowhere did I see a hint of something within arms reach that I could
use to escape. The smell made me want to hurl.
I jerked on the ropes a few times. The rope was
strong and expertly tied. I couldn’t move if my life depended on it. Which,
in a way, it did.
I was beginning to grow concerned that I was just going
to be abandoned and left here to rot, when there was a jiggling at the door. Momentarily
the jiggling stopped. Then the door slowly swung open.
Two men, obviously soldiers, entered moving quickly to
either side of the door and casting furtive glances around the room. A third
soldier entered at a slow easy walk and came directly towards me. A quick look
at me and a quick look around the stables, he grunted with satisfaction and
returned to the doorway. He said something through the door, then re-entered
the room and stood to one side.
A fourth man swaggered inside, face hidden in
shadow. His highly decorated breast plate, ornate helmet and leather
harnesses bespoke of high rank. He walked halfway towards me and stopped and
stared intently at me. Some stray light lit his face and I could plainly see
it was K’latus.
“Well, well, little one,” said K’latus. “I see you
made it here in one piece.” He took a few steps closer and stopped at my
feet. Looking down at me, he wrinkled up his nose and said, “Phew, girl. You
stink. It’s probably because of riding on one of those damned N’eerats. First
order of business is to get you to the royal bathhouse.”
He bent down and pulled the gag out of my mouth. God!
That felt wonderful to have that out of my mouth! I asked, “Why am I here?
What are you going to do with me? What’s the meaning of this? I demand to
know what’s going on!”
Whaaaap! K’latus
whacked me across the face with the back of his hand. “Insolent girl! Who
gave you permission to speak?” He bent down again and shoved the gag back in.
One of these days, maybe I’ll learn to keep my mouth shut.
Looking wistful, K’latus said, “In a way though, it’s
too bad the conditioning will take most of that fire out of you.” Turning and
motioning to the two soldiers, he snapped, “Untie her and escort her to the
coach.” He turned smartly on his heel and exited the stables.
The soldiers untied my hands and feet. That felt
really good too. I tried to stand, and almost stumbled because I’d been in a
cramped sitting position for quite a while. Neither soldier even tried to stop
me from falling. I rubbed my wrists as the soldiers walked me to the doorway
prodding me with swords. I left the gag in my mouth, just in case.
I was surprised to see an actual coach, even though it
was mostly a glorified wagon, waiting outside. It was mainly a wooden box on
wooden wagon wheels. The coach part was covered in stretched leather and
decorated in gold. The windows had curtains that could be drawn but otherwise
open. Inside were rich leather seats that had been dyed red. Also inside sat K’latus.
I just stood there a moment, but no one made a move to
open the coach’s door. The guards circled me, brandishing swords. As much as
I didn’t want to, I opened the door myself and climbed up inside and sat
opposite of K’latus. A moment later, the coach lurched forward.
I pulled myself up into a ball in one corner of the
coach, opposite K’latus, and glowered at him. I felt pretty lost and alone
without Jimmy around. We rode in silence for ten or fifteen minutes.
K’latus looked amused. “Please, relax little one.
You are in no danger. I won’t harm you.” He pulled the gag out of my mouth.
Angrily I said, “You kidnapped me! You stole me from
my man and you murdered five people while kidnapping me!”
With a grunt and a dismissive wave of his hand, K’latus
said, “They were of no consequence. Don’t concern yourself over them.”
I shivered. “You animal! Those were five human
beings!”
Looking annoyed and shaking his head, K’latus said,
“Insects. Mere insects. If any of them were in the same situation as you,
trust me, they wouldn’t be concerning themselves about any one else.
Ordinarily, I’d doubt your wonderful K’tahnah would care anything about you
aside from having his property stolen. But you, of course, are a special
case.”
Frowning, I asked, “What do you mean by that?”
Leaning back with a sly grin, K’latus said, “I’m sure
your master feels some responsibility for your situation, since he brought you here.”
“Why would you think that?”
Looking impatient, K’latus said, “It’s no secret that
you two are ‘new comers’ here.” Stretching, he continued, “New comers, while
rare, still do pop in from time to time and are pretty easy to spot.”
I sat up straighter and asked, “You mean K’tahnah and
I aren’t the only non-natives here?”
The carriage abruptly stopped as we arrived at the
palace.
Laughing, K’latus said, “Oh, no little one. There are
others. They all seem to come from Earth. Including me.”
* * *
I walked up the steps to the palace in silence behind K’latus,
having been slapped rather hard for daring to speak after he had exited the
carriage. I hate this damned place.
I was shocked that K’latus was from Earth. I was
aware that people did pop in every once in a while; I really didn’t think there
were any others besides Jimmy and me at the moment. I also couldn’t believe
that someone from Earth could be so callous towards women. Well, I didn’t know
where on Earth he was from. There are still places on Earth that
consider women beneath farm animals.
As we proceeded, various official looking people lined
our path to stop and bow to K’latus. It didn’t help my already stressed and
frayed nerves to see these people smiling nervously and cowering before him.
From the manner in which I was kidnapped I already knew the man was ruthless.
I was growing worried about just how ruthless he really was.
We finally entered the palace itself. It was a place
of incredible beauty. With the exception of Sanctuary, just about everywhere
I’ve been on this world has been rather Spartan. The foyer had high vaulted
ceilings with intricate paintings depicting feats of daring-do. Massive
columns held up the massive ceiling. Wall hangings covered most of the wall
space with breathtaking images woven into the fabric. And even though I was
filled with fear and anxiety, I couldn’t help but stare with mouth-open awe at
the spender surrounding me.
We finally made it to K’latus’ inner chambers. I was
surprised when he dismissed the guards and we were left alone. I just stood
there, afraid to so much as blink.
K’latus gestured with one hand towards a plush seat. “Please,
make yourself at home. We’re all Earth people here.” He laughed humorlessly.
“Besides, tomorrow you’ll go back to the Convent and in a few days, you’ll be
little more than a mindless servant girl.”
“Gee thanks.” I said sarcastically as I plopped down
into the chair. The chair felt wonderful and it was the first time in days I’d
been able to relax.
K’latus walked over to what appeared to be a bar and
picked up a bottle of something and poured some into a cup, while saying, “But
at least you’ll be a princess. You’ll have better quarters, better clothes, eat
better food than the other girls in the whole country! You won’t even have to
prepare any meals!” Oh, bonus!
He took a slow drink of whatever he had poured into
his cup. He walked back towards me and continued saying, “And, after you
become queen, you’ll have even more privileges.”
I stood up quickly, bumping K’latus’ arm, spilling
some of his drink. “Excuse me?! Did you just say ‘queen’? Just what the hell
is that supposed to mean?”
K’latus calmly brushed some of the drink from his
sleeve and without bothering to even look at me he said, “Well, it is customary
for the woman who marries a king to become a queen isn’t it?” He walked
towards a doorway, slid it open revealing a closet full of clothes.
The thought of marrying some guy, king or not, made be
extremely ill. I said, “I don’t want to marry some wrinkly, old sick dude.”
K’latus held up his hand and examined it. “I don’t
think I’m all that wrinkly and I’ve never been healthier.”
Scowling, I said, “I’m not talking about you. I’m
talking about your king.”
K’latus smiled and walked towards me. He said, “I…am
the king. The previous king died in his sleep while you were on your way
here. Most tragic.”
Outraged, I said, “Well, I’m not marrying you,
either! And, why aren’t you in some kind of national mourning instead of
kidnapping girls?”
K’latus walked over to a window and peered out over
the city. “Oh, we don’t concern ourselves much with the dead here, Little
One.” His voice trailed off for a moment as he stared out the window. He then
slowly turned back towards me and smiled. That smile made me ill. He said,
“And, you will marry me. Like I said, in a few days, you’ll be just another
vacuous girl, happy to do whatever your master asks of you.”
I knew I wouldn’t have the chance later, so I verbally
lashed out at him. I shouted, “Why? Why do you do this to your women? Why
would you want a brainless slave?” K’latus didn’t respond so I continued. “You
have no idea what it’s like to be a woman on this shit hole planet!”
K’latus looked thoughtful for a moment while swirled
what remained of his drink around in his cup. Then he quickly knocked back the
last swallow and then fingered the cup. “No. No, I don’t know what it’s like
to be a woman here. But, I know exactly what it’s like to be a woman back on
Earth.”
“Are you saying that…”
Before I could finish my question, K’latus said,
“Yes. Back on Earth I was a woman.”
* * *
I sat down on one of the thickly padded chairs and
exclaimed, “You were what?!”
K’latus laughed and said, “You heard me. Back on
Earth, I was a woman.”
I was shocked and said, “I don’t get it. How can you
treat women this way, then?”
He shrugged and said, “Because I’m not a woman here.
I just go with the flow. Other than bringing children into the world, women
have no value in this society. Don’t look at me that way. I didn’t set things
up.”
“But you have the power to change it. You’re the
king.”
K’latus’ expression changed to suggest I just said
something insane. He said, “There’s no way I’m touching that. It’s too deeply
rooted in this society. The men like it, of course and actually, the women
enjoy the social life they have inside the Convent and Sanctuary. Your
boyfriend did nothing to change the lot of women the last time he was here,
either.”
I bristled and said, “He’s not my ‘boyfriend’. He’s
just a friend.” I hesitated a second, wondering if I should say this or not,
then decided it wouldn’t make a difference anyway. “On Earth, I was a guy.”
K’latus sat down in a chair opposite me and laughed
richly. “I bet you hate that! You could have had all the women you could have
afforded and all would have been loyal to you. But instead, you come here as a
guy’s play thing. That’s funny!”
I felt my face redden as I said, “No, it’s definitely
not! And, I would have still have found this society offensive as a guy.”
Looking down his nose at me, K’latus said, “Oh, would
you really? Be honest. And, whether you want to believe it or not, K’tahnah
is your boyfriend…or rather he used to be. Since he tagged you as a princess, it’s
obvious he intended to marry you if he had taken you with him to Q’fahr.”
Horrified at the idea, I sputtered, “No way! I
wouldn’t marry him!”
K’latus nodded and said, “I’m sure that was his plan
the moment he saw you arrived here as a girl. In his mind, I’m sure he saw it
as a way to protect you, since wives do hold a special status over women who
are just merely owned. But, no matter. Like I said, you’re marrying me now.”
“I don’t want to marry you, or anyone else! I just
want off this fucking planet!” I shouted.
“There must be a way, since K’tahnah has done so. But
I certainly don’t know how,” he said honestly. “But I need a queen. And I
can’t think of a better one than a girl as beautiful as you and a virgin to
boot.”
I just sat there and stewed a minute. I felt like I
was going to throw up. Despair welled up inside me as the utter hopelessness
of my situation became apparent. I didn’t want to be a wife, either K’latus’
or Jimmy’s.
K’latus let out a short laugh. Staring out the window,
but eyes unfocused, he said, “You know, when I first arrived here, I hated it
too. I arrived as a thirteen year old boy. Imagine my shock! Just moments
before, I was a forty-four year old woman. At first, since I still had my
female point of view, I was appalled by this place and was desperate to return.
“But return was impossible as far as I knew and so I
adapted to survive. This society over all is so backward and simple that it
became obvious that anyone with a brain could move up fairly quickly. It
didn’t take long to be thankful I was male.
“Back on Earth, I was a chemical engineer, unmarried,
and something of a feminist. Hm…how attitudes change, eh? Anyway, I was
pretty pissed that I made less money than my male co-workers with less seniority.
The Vietnam War was raging and it bothered me that I worked in the
Industrial-Military Complex.”
I interrupted saying, “Did you say Vietnam? That
was longer ago than you’ve been here!”
Annoyed at having his reminiscing interrupted, K’latus
said, “There doesn’t seem to be any relationship between time on Earth and time
here. Anyway, as I was saying, to help me find myself, I turned toward a lot
of whacked religions. That’s when I discovered a chant I thought was supposed
to bring inner peace. It brought me here instead.”
I walked up to K’latus and with contempt in my voice
said, “Well, I truly wish it hadn’t.”
K’latus just smiled. Amused he said, “No doubt.”
“You are truly despicable. Look at the lives you are
ruining and the misery you are causing. K’tahnah fears you are trying to start
a war with us. Why? Doesn’t life here suck enough as it is? You could use
your power to make people’s lives better. Why do you have to be such a
dumb-fuck asshole!?”
All amusement left his face as he suddenly clasped his
large hand around my throat and began to squeeze. “Such insolence! You’re
lucky I’m in a good mood and feel a kinship with another person from Earth. I
could easily crush your scrawny neck in a heartbeat little girl.”
His face was almost against mine. I couldn’t breathe
and I was scared out of my mind.
Relaxing his grip on my neck slightly, K’latus
continued, “To be honest, Little One, it wouldn’t matter who took the throne
after the other king died. He was weak and stupid. The commoners loved him
because he was kind and benevolent. The military hated him because he was
soft. The next king would rise from the military. If not me, then someone
else.
“War is inevitable. Q’fahr is too rich, too powerful
and too big. It must be brought down before it devours the rest of us. Q’tarl
in the East fears Q’fahr because they think Q’fahr wants their superior natural
resources. And us? We hate Q’fahr because they have humiliated us twice.
When they took this city, they should have killed us to the last man. Instead,
your K’tahnah let us live. In shame!”
Even though I was still having trouble breathing, I
managed to gasp, “You’re pissed at K’tahnah because he showed you compassion?”
K’latus’ grip tightened around my neck again. I’ve
got to learn to keep my mouth shut around here. “It is not compassion to let a
warrior live when you defeat him in battle! It is humiliation!” He searched
deep into my eyes, then released my neck and shook his head. “I don’t expect a
woman to understand.”
Coughing and rubbing my neck I quickly put some
distance between K’latus and myself. I said, “You really know how to charm the
ladies.”
He sniffed the air a few times and said, “I don’t need
charm. But, Little One, you definitely need a bath.
* * *
I awoke to the loud sound of the door to my room
slamming against the wall. K’latus was locking me up at night instead of
letting me sleep with the rest of his little harem. I guess he was afraid I’d
push a knife through his ribs while he slept. And he’d be right.
“Good morning, Little One,” boomed K’latus’ voice from
the open doorway. “Before you are escorted to the Convent, I wanted to show
you around.” I couldn’t tell what it was, but he had something in his hand.
“Gee, that’s very kind of you,” I said sarcastically.
“Despite what you may think, Q’latar is really an
excellent city.”
“I’ve heard this speech before,” I said as I walked
out of my cell…I mean room. “If you have to keep telling people that despite
appearances, our little city or planet is really a great place, then it
probably isn’t.”
K’latus frowned. The guard standing next to him said,
“Would you like me to beat the woman, my lord?”
“No,” said K’latus. “That pleasure is reserved only
for me. I am the one who is to touch this woman, understood?” To me he said,
“Well, in a week or so it won’t matter to you any more.”
Directing with his sword, the guard indicated that I
walk down a stone hallway, and then up a circular stairwell. As soon as we
reached the top, the guard opened a doorway and sunlight spilled into the room.
K’latus said, “I usually take a morning walk to check
on things. I ultimately wanted to show you why your boyfriend is going to die
when he comes to rescue you. Of course, when he does die, you’re not going to
care any more anyway.”
“A morning walk? Makes things easy for an assassin
doesn’t it?” I asked.
“I vary my route every day,” said K’latus. “And, only
the military is allowed weapons here and the military loves me.”
I turned to exit the room. As soon as my back was to
him, something was brought over my head and I was halted by something coming
around my neck. I reached up and felt and found that I now had a leather
collar around my neck! “What the Hell…?” I said aloud.
“Until the conditioning sets in,” said K’latus. “This
is a little insurance you won’t try to run off into the crowd.”
“You’re going to pull me around on a leash?” I asked,
incredulous.
“Of course!” K’latus said brightly. “One can’t be too
careful, you know.”
“I promise that I won’t try to run away.”
K’latus jerked on the leash. “Nice try, but no.”
It was humiliating, being led around with a leash. At
least it really wasn’t much of a walk. We walked across the palace grounds to
his coach. From there we rode through the streets with an armed, mounted
escort. The streets were already full of activity and it took us almost half
an hour to reach our first destination.
I watched the people milling about in the streets, and
none of the women I could see had collars.
K’latus sat up when the coach started to slow to a
stop as it passed through a gated archway. “Ah, here’s the marina, Little
One. We’ll get out here for a short while.”
“I have a name, you know,” I said as he jerked my
leash.
K’latus placed his face right up close to mine and
whispered harshly, “My dear, I’d really hate to put a muzzle on that beautiful
face of yours, but I will if you don’t keep your mouth closed.”
After he exited the coach, before I could get out the
door, K’latus jerked on the leash causing me to almost tumble out on to the
ground.
It really wasn’t much of a marina. There were four
piers, mostly empty. A few tall ships resembling the sailing vessels of old
Earth were tied up at each pier. A couple of dozen smaller boats were tied up
as well.
The small sea port had obviously been added after the
main city wall had been built. An extension to the wall had been added to
completely surround the port with the wall extending a short distance into the
water.
Despite the warnings, I asked, “Do you actually have
anyone to do any trading with these ships?”
K’latus didn’t seem to mind when it gave him a chance
to brag. “Of course! There are a few small islands west of here that we have
small colonies on. The sea is relatively calm to the islands, and then
navigation becomes impossible because of the perpetual storms and rough seas.
Several small towns both in and outside of this country north of us have small
ports and one of the major northern cities has a port.
“As you can see, we have a distinct advantage over
most potential invaders,” boasted K’latus. “Especially an invading army from Q’fahr.
It’s not much, I admit, but we have two warships, equipped with crossbows. Our
port is protected from an army laying siege against us. We can launch our
ships under cover of darkness, sail a league or two up the coast and land
soldiers behind enemy lines. We can bring in supplies during a siege.”
I wondered if Jimmy realized this. I’m sure he had
spies here. But would they really know what they were looking at?
K’latus continued the tour of the city. I had to
admit that I was impressed. Q’latar was definitely loaded for bear. There
were huge underground cisterns of fresh water. The outside walls were double
walls with passageways inside with storage rooms for grain and to allow men and
supplies to move easily the full length of the walls.
What I wasn’t ready for was what K’latus showed me
before he took me to the Convent.
The coach stopped near what appeared to be a long,
narrow court yard that was walled off from the rest of the city. As we exited
the coach, an officer came hurrying through the gate of the courtyard.
“My lord! You are just in time to witness another
test. We’re confident of being more successful this time.” The young officer
didn’t look confident at all.
“Come, Little One,” K’latus said as he jerked my
leash. My neck was getting raw from the chaffing of the collar. “Here we are
working on the means of your boyfriend’s destruction. We’re working out the
bugs, but this is my contribution to this world.”
Immediately after walking through the small gate, I
stopped suddenly, dismayed at what I saw. K’latus didn’t stop and jerked the
leash hard. I stumbled closer to what for all the world looked like a crude
cannon! Along one of the walls were stacked what must have been previous
efforts. Warped and bent pieces of metal, tubes with exploded ends or cracked
sides were strewn along the wall. Along the other wall, an outside wall, there
was what appeared to be a large blacksmith shop.
Next to the cannon was a stack of metal balls. At the
end of the courtyard was a wooden target. The target was unblemished.
“Carry on,” K’latus said to the officer. The young
man nodded and scurried away to the cannon where he barked a few commands to
the gun crew.
K’latus jerked on my leash and said, “Let’s step back
behind this low wall, just in case.”
As we knelt behind the low wall, the gun crew packed
the cannon’s muzzle with powder, wadding and rolled one of the balls into it. K’latus
said to me, “I know K’tahnah’s famous uncle had the knowledge to bring
gunpowder to this world but refused to do so. I think it’s too much of a good
tool not to use. And with my knowledge of chemistry, I think we can get a
pretty good wallop out of these cannons.”
The officer touched a torch to the fuse on the
cannon. The gun crew ran off in different directions. The officer merely
stepped back a couple of paces and off to one side.
The fuse took a long time to burn and after it
disappeared inside the hole on the top of the cannon, I thought for sure it had
gone out. Then suddenly there was a loud explosion and the recoil sent the
cannon rolling backwards several feet before one of the crude wooden wheels
fell off. The cannon ball only flew out about twenty feet. When it landed it
sputtered sparks and smoke which caused it to slowly roll around. The officer
dived to the ground. K’latus ducked down too and pulled my head down below the
edge of the short wall.
Another explosion sent a rooster tail of dirt into the
air and shards of flying metal smashed into the wall in front of us as well as
behind us. There was a brief scream as one of the gun crew took some shrapnel
through his skull. I took one look and felt I was going to throw up. I sat
back down behind the wall, covered my eyes and began to cry.
“Good test today,” said K’latus. “I think the balls
are just a bit too small for the bore. It’s not building enough pressure. But, I
think we’re very close. Carry on.” K’latus turned and tugged on the leash to
indicate I should stand. I just sat there and glared at him.
“You monster!” I said. “This planet has never seen
artillery. Even if you have to resort to catapults to launch your bombs
instead of your cannons, you’re going to just butcher Q’fahr’s army.”
I felt my neck pop as he jerked hard on my leash. I
staggered to my feet. He said, “That’s the idea. And, thanks for the idea of
using a catapult for delivering these cannon balls. Sometimes I suffer from
tunnel vision. My cannons should be perfected by the time they arrive though.”
Before we left, I took a quick mental note of the
courtyard. There was a cloth covering part of the storage area inside the
outer wall, but I could see dozens of barrels. A couple had spilled over,
showing black powder. I don’t know how, but I had to find some way to warn
Jimmy about this threat.
There was a stairway leading to the top of the wall. K’latus
lead me up the stairs. From the top of the wall, you could see well past the
low hills we crossed on our way here.
“I can put six thousand archers anywhere along this
wall. Sixty thousand men to defend the walls and gates. With our sea port, we
can defend against a siege indefinitely of an army of almost any size.” I
could tell that K’latus wanted war just for the hell of it. It had nothing to
do with getting even for past humiliations, etc. That was just a handy excuse
to fire up the people.
“I’m curious.” I said. “Just what are those things
that look like tank traps that surround the city?”
K’latus smiled. “Those, Little One, are there to foil
the use of the siege tower, which your boyfriend introduced in the last war.
They are just inside the range of our archers, but because of elevation, keep
their archers outside of their range. If they try to dig up a barrier, we’ll
take them out with our archers.”
Lovely. Now I found myself hoping that Jimmy doesn’t
try to rescue me. He’ll just get himself and a lot of others killed.
K’latus then handed my leash to one of the nearby guards.
“Take this girl to the Convent. Make sure she gets inside, and then you may
return to your duties.”
I said nothing to K’latus. I just turned and followed
the guard as he left the area. I was completely depressed. K’latus was using
me to try to lead Jimmy to his death. And the deaths of who knows how many
others.
I thought briefly of attacking the guard and giving
him an excuse to kill me. But then Jimmy would just continue his attack to
avenge me. There was no winning here. I felt utterly alone.
* * *
End of Part 2
since 4/10/06