Battle Ahead

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Hur-Saĝ An-ta, a cliff at night

 

It was almost time to begin. The final rays from the sun gently kissed the lands with its orange-red lips.  The night would soon take over covering it all in darkness.  Eesal stood at the edge of a cliff overlooking a vast forest of thick trees. He heard footsteps approach from behind, nonexistent to human ears, recognizable to one of his kind and known by him.

   “It is too quiet,” his second in command and his best friend murmured coming to a halt beside him. He was Kassan, the one who had been with him every step of the way.  Eesal breathed in the silence, taking in the last piece of quiet before the battle.  It had taken them thousands of years to get to this point.  To be free from those who wished to suppress them.

   “Always,” Eesal said, turning towards Kassan to look the other man over.

Kassan would not physically be joining the fight, something he argued over till the last second. Instead, he would strategize from the sidelines relaying information between each squadron with Ul riders. 

   “Yes, well let us hope to continue the silence on the morrow.” 

Eesal smiled, they both knew this would be the last bit of peace, too much was at stake for both sides. Since they were boys, they were always causing trouble, a thousand years later was no different.  

   “If anything should happen to me...” Eesal started a slight smirk on his lips.

   “Nothing wi-” 

   “...you are too cry like the snivelling old lady you are.” Eesal looked at Kassan, his face stoic while Kassan blinked twice before laughing loud into the night.

Eesal smiled, it had been a long time since he had heard the sound of laughter from him, and if it weren’t for Kassan’s woman such a thing would not have happened.  It was the reason why he was not on the front lines.

   “As I recall, you were the one who cried the most when we were boys Ees,” Kassan turned away from the cliff, one of the riders had landed a few feet away.

   “Bárag,” he bowed his head to Eesal before turning to Kassan, “The enemy has been spotted in the skies twenty minutes away.”  The runner leapt into the air and vanished.

 

Two more runners appeared stating the enemy approached by land and sea, both vanishing back to their positions.

   “It seems the noise is about to begin,” Eesal gave a final look towards the cliff his wings spread wide as he walked off the cliff to hover for a second.

   “Kassan, when this is over, it will begin in earnest.  You are my brother, tell me…should I fail, will you do what is needed?” Eesal was no fool, there was always the possibility of losing, and he needed to know that Kassan would continue the fight.

   “No,” Kassan grinned, “You will not fail.”  He turned away before Eesal could respond.  Within seconds he was gone leaving Eesal to turn to the skies to lead his people.

 

A-aba Abzu, the depths of water

 

It’s too cold, she thought. Deep within the Ocean, where not even rocks lay, she swam. There was no sense of direction, just the need to get away from the wetness, away from the pressure that constantly threatened to close in on her. From the deep motionless silence where she had woken up from and the desire to let go, to drift to wherever the currents would take her. Since that was not an option, she fought her way out of the freezing watery depths that had become her sleeping place for however long it was. She was not sure how she came to be in such a place, but she had a theory.  Once she proved this theory of hers, someone would pay.

 

A-aba Bal-a-ri, along the depths of water

 

Meo-Jah pressed himself against a tree straining to hear anything other than the forest.  It wasn’t difficult for him, but he tended to double if not triple check his surroundings.  He could hear the distant sounds of battle, of men and women crying out in pain of defeat or grunts of success.  He was scared shitless.  He was no soldier, and he wished he hadn’t fooled himself into thinking he was.  Meo-Jah was too young to die. Sure it sounded glamorous, being the hardened battle warrior that women went crazy for, the one who saved the day.  He realized too little too late that it would never be him.  He stood along the water edge filled with hope that no one would see him.  However; it didn’t matter, it seemed the enemy had found them.

 

Meo-Jah heard the fallen cries of his comrades and sunk a little more in himself, he wanted to run out into the battle, weapon raised above his head a war cry on his lips.  A deep cold fear held him rooted to the tree he was currently hugging. Their pleas for help etched in his heart their pain, something he knew he would never forget.  When he risked a glance around the tree, it was directly into the eyes of an older boy.  He was crawling through the dirt, his body and face a bloody mess.  He was missing a leg and the arm he pulled himself with had a bone sticking out of it. His mouth opening in a soundless scream, his gaze boring into Meo-Jah, who in turn stood transfixed unable to breathe his terror was so thick. 

 

The Ím who stood above the older boy finally noticed Meo-Jah and noticed that he was physically untouched from the carnage around them. The Ím dismissed the older boy who was now motioning to Meo-Jah to get away, even as dismembered and broken he still tried to protect Meo-Jah. Something in the older boy's eyes made Meo-Jah snap, if he could still fight while close to death then Meo-Jah could try as well. Without another thought Meo-Jah ran screaming towards The Ím, who jerked in surprise a second before raising its club, jagged nails protruding from it.  Meo-Jah stopped, once again his body frozen from fear, his eyes glued as The Ím raised its club.  Squeezing his eyes shut preferring to not see his own end, he waited with his body tense.  He heard the sound of flesh hitting flesh, assuming it was the blow before his death, he cried out.  When there was no pain and still firmly planted on his feet, he opened one eye. When he saw The Ím sprawled across the floor, its head missing, he promptly threw up what little he had managed to eat beforehand.

   “Meo-Jah…run…” came the broken whisper from the older boy, who had managed to grab onto the club that lay beside The Ím.

There stood a woman, wet and barely clothed.  Her head cocked to the side, she studied both of them, her face serene, eyes unblinking.

   “This is no place for a child,” she said to Meo-Jah, the first thing he noticed was that her mouth didn’t move when she spoke.

   “Run!” the older boy shouted this taking a feeble swing at the woman, she simply cocked her head to the other side, her attention now on him.

   “You are too injured,” she took a step toward him and plucked the club from his one hand tossing it over her shoulder.

   “Don’t touch him!” Meo-Jah yelled, jumping at her with his arms around her legs to keep her from moving.  When the feel and smell of her registered, Meo-Jah leaped back gasping for breath.

   “You try sleeping at the bottom of the Ocean and see how you fare.”

The older boy coughed up again, spitting blood from his lungs drawing her attention.  In the blink of the eye, she was by his side gently laying him on the sand.

   “You’re not gonna hurt him…right?” Meo-Jah asked his fear and distrust long forgotten.

The woman looked at him and smiled, she shook her head. “He has lost a lot of blood…and an arm and leg…I think it was eaten…”

Meo-Jah looked at her now that he was able to, her skin had that wrinkled appearance he got when he stayed in the water too long.  It smelled like old cold water, a pond untouched by sun or air for a very long time. She was almost naked, but her hair was long enough to cover the important parts, he couldn’t tell the colour of her eyes. When the older boy coughed again, Meo-Jah jerked out of his observation of the woman.

   “Maybe we should give him those ones?” she gestured to The Ím who seemed to twitch every few seconds.

   “You want to give him limbs from the fallen Ím?” Meo-Jah questioned his gaze darting between the older boy and her.

   “What!” the older boy shouted trying to sit up, the woman pushed him back down. “Who is this woman?”

Meo-Jah looked at her waiting for a response, she looked back at him, her body unmoving. “Who are you?”

   “I am me.” 

   “I am Enkara of the Ur-Ur.”

They spoke at the same time, the woman had her hand gently on the chest of the older boy as he struggled to get away. Meo-Jah moved closer to them to crouch opposite her over Enkara who started to shiver from a cold only he felt.

   “Uh…‘I am me’ is a strange name”

   “I said Enkara…” 

  “Not you, she said ‘I am me’ not her name”

Enkara coughed again gasping for breath, his eyes beginning to glaze over, “She has not spoken.”

   “He will not last much longer, I believe we should use the limbs of the fallen” again she gestured toThe Ím. Meo-Jah realized that he was right and that her mouth didn’t move when she spoke, he also realized that Enkara wasn’t aware of what she said.

   “Am I the only one who can hear you?” he asked, maybe it was too dark for him to see her mouth move.

   “Yes.”

   “Why?”

   “I do not think my mouth works. Shall I let him die?”

Meo-Jah looked at Enkara, “Enkara, she said if we don’t use the limbs from the Ím you will die.” Enkara jerked visibly forcing himself to focus.

   “Then leave me to die.”

   “As you wish.” The woman moved to stand up.

   “No!” this time it was Meo-Jah who shouted, Enkara who would not give up on protecting him wanted to forfeit his life.

   “Meo-Jah…” the older boy whispered.

The woman looked between the two wondering if she was interrupting something, she started to turn away when Enkara grabbed onto her wrist with surprising strength. “Get Meo-Jah out of here,”

   “What about you?” Meo-Jah couldn’t help feeling responsible, if he hadn’t hidden before maybe he could have helped Enkara in defeating The Ím.

   “It’s too late for me…Meo-Jah…” he passed out, making Meo-Jah cry out in fear.

 

The woman cringed, she was never good at such things and he was increasing in sound by the second.  She had enough energy in her to conceal their presence, but not the noise of a child, at least not yet.  Awkwardly she patted his head as he just cried, the gut-wrenching sobs stabbing at her ears.

   “I will save him,” when he didn’t stop crying, she cleared her throat and tried again.

   “How?” he wiped at his eyes, taking deep breaths.

   “I’m not sure, but you must stop this noise first.”  Immediately he stopped crying his eyes wide staring at her. 

   “How are you going to save him?” he questioned again, she began to panic, her mind was drawing a blank. If she couldn’t find his old limbs and couldn’t attach someone else then he would have to regrow them.  Something she knew he wasn’t capable of doing.  She started to look around, noticing the other bodies of the fallen.

   “What about those?” she asked pointing to another fallen body.

Meo-Jah looked to where she was pointing, at least it wasn’t an Ím, “Well if it would save him…”

She released the breath she didn’t know she was holding, standing she got to work.

 

Dam-ha-ra Gána, warzone

 

Tam panted as The Ím fell in a lump at her feet, stepping over its body she readied herself for the next one who licked its lips at her.

   “Disgusting,” she muttered before blocking a blow with her right arm and twisting her body to the left. Never had she watched so many Íms together in one place, something she hoped to never again see in her long existence. As she had turned away, Tam raised her foot planting it into the back of The Ím who charged at her, making it stumble.  It was enough of an opening for a fellow soldier to run his blade through The Ím cleaving it in half.  Tam offered him a grunt of approval before moving off, she had to get to the clearing before Eesal if not at the same time.  It was where the two territories met, Eesal’s and The Íms.

 

Tam started running and dodging The Ím as they lunged at her, leaving them for her comrades to take care of.  Every few seconds she would look to the skies and see Eesal, she would know his distinct way of flying anywhere. Right now as he flew to the clearing, she weaved her way through the trees and around the enemy her leg muscles beginning to clench at the constant pace she kept. She was only a few feet away when she heard it, that awful whistling sound of wind passing too quickly through feathers. Heart in her throat Tam moved faster, the thought that it could be Eesal motivated her to get creative with her weakening muscles. Using the trees as launching pads, Tam jumped from trunk to trunk, the action putting much less strain on her. She reached the clearing in less time than planned and watched with a sinking heart the winged creature still falling.  Another followed in close pursuit, a hand stretched out grasping at feet. Tam let go of the breath she was holding when she realized it was Eesal that was in pursuit, that he was okay, then her breath caught when she saw whom he raced gravity for.

 

It was one of the younger An-pa, the ones of the sky. Eesal caught him within seconds of impact and laid him in the arms of another who rushed off the battlefield.  For a split second their eyes met, a slight nod exchanged between them and Tam was running again. This time towards Eesal.  He didn’t have enough room to come to a complete stop and instead flew close to the ground coming in fast straight towards her, he grabbed onto her arms taking off into the sky once again using the momentum to launch her into the air. Tam swung her body in a somersault, remembering to keep herself taut from all the practice tries and flipped herself over.  She landed on the back of a Keavan, a powerful beast that lived in the air.  

   “Took you long enough,” Eesal smirked as he said this slowing his speed to match the Keavan. She knew he was trying to stay light of the situation, to make it seem better than what it was.  If they failed, every life would be forfeit, none would survive. 

   “Better late than never,” Tam winked at him then took off for a higher altitude, this was just the first part of their plan.  Together they cut down the enemy as their true opponent drew near. Tam could smell the cloying scent of The Ím, could feel its power leaden her limbs.  It was the effect The Ím had on humans, something she despised deep in her bones.  It was almost time for the next part of their plan.

 

Valouse watched the battle unfold before him. He watched as the human lover of Eesal landed on the back of the Keavan and thanks to the mole within their lines, he knew they were about to begin the second phase of their plans.  Valouse breathed heavily through his nose, he had his orders and he did not agree.  He was to let them win this battle and to retreat when the time came.  It was why he was with an army of Ím and very few of his own men. He was to let them think that they had the upper hand. Eesal flew towards him stopping an arms length away “Valouse stop this, there is no need to fight.”

   “Yes, I believe there is.” Valouse threw himself into Eesal, he just had to survive this long enough for Eesal to move onto phase two.

 

Tam watched from above as Eesal fought with Valouse, her heart in her throat at how brutal it looked. She shook her head to clear it, watching them in battle and worrying about Eesal was not what she should be doing right now. Tam dug her heels into the Keavan taking a higher flight into the skies where the rest of the Keavan riding warriors waited.