Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Cerin

Night had fallen, a newly waxing moon hanging low in the sky, stars lighting up the rest of the heavens. It had been five nights since he had parted with Sam and Jared. After Jared had given him no other options other than to continue the hunt for the girl, he had acquired enough rations to last him ten days, if he was careful. According to Sam’s investigation, prior to his discovery of the kingsmen recall, no golden-haired girls had passed through town. Which meant she had entered the desert as soon as she could. He had to give her credit, she was as reckless as ever. Just as she had been the first time they had met. With this in mind, he had asked around town and found a merchant familiar with the desert. For a hefty price, the man had grudgingly parted with a quickly sketched copy of his map of the desert, including the locations of several natural springs, a few rocky rises that could pass as natural shelters, and the most recent location of the nearest Nahati Tribe settlement. If she was smart she would be at one of those locations. That is if she was still alive. But his gut told him she was. He couldn’t explain his certainty but he knew. Just as he had known every day since they had parted five years ago.

With no tracks to follow and only his instincts and reason to lead him, he figured she had to be in one of those locations. She couldn’t have lasted long without water, so those were his first destinations. Based on where they had lost her tracks, he had charted a course, traveling from spring to spring. He slept during the day under a makeshift tent constructed from his cloak and unstrung bow. At night he mounted his horse and they traveled quickly covering as much ground as possible. He was lucky to have such a sturdy beast for a companion.  

As luck might have it, the Nahati settlement was located almost dead ahead from where they had last seen the girls tracks, near one of the springs a few days ride into the desert. And after no sign of the girl at any of the previous locations he had checked, the settlement was his next stop. It sat a few dozen meters out in front of him. He lay on his stomach on the other side of a slight rise in the sand, studying the activity. His horse resting behind a larger hill a few meters back. 

After a hard ride, they had arrived a few hours after sunset. After darting to his current position under the temporary cover of a small cloud passing over the moon, he’d spent the last hour studying the settlement. He counted three dozen tents and two larger awnings. The larger of the two appeared to be gathering place, light, music, and laughter drifting from it. Meaning the smaller of the two was most likely the stables, where they kept their legendary horses. There was ample movement in the camp. Bodies moved in and out of his line of sight. The majority of the movement and sound emanated from the largest awning.

Somehow he knew she was in there. He didn’t know how, but just like he knew she was undeniably alive, he was certain she was in that camp. He’d been brainstorming how to get in there since he’d left the last spring, about a day’s ride from here. He could try to sneak in. A nearly impossible task. These were desert dwellers. They knew this land like he knew his. And more importantly, they knew how to move across the sand without detection. Well, nearly. 

There was little to no chance he could make it in there without detection. Especially with the size of this settlement. It was one of the largest, he was sure. And all of the men and women were trained. That was the way of the Nahati after all. All were equal and all were trained. No one was left defenseless. Making his mission that much harder. 

So if he couldn’t get in and out undetected, that left walking straight in. Upon the beginning of the current King of Dalgerstane’s rule, alliances had been formed - or at the very least mutual agreements - with almost all of the surrounding kingdoms and tribes. He had begun his rule with the declaration that all Heavenschildren be hunted down and executed. And in order to accomplish that goal, the king had negotiated with all the other ruling powers on the continent. The Nahati was no exception. While their dislike of the King was clear, they had agreed to stay out of his way in exchange for the same courtesy and open trade. While they hadn’t promised to capture or notify the King when they came across a heavenschild, they wouldn’t interfere with his mission. Not if they wanted to keep the fragile peace they now had with Dalgerstane. And if they did something like harbor a fugitive of Dalgerstane that peace shatter. Trade would cease and the King would hold no reservations about declaring war with the Nahati. 

So, his plan was simple. He would walk right in and take the girl. He watched the moving shadows for a minute more. What he wouldn’t give to be able to walk away right now. To leave these people to their music and laughter, to leave her to a happy life. But he couldn’t. and it killed him. 

He sighed before saying, “I mean no harm, I just want to speak with your leader.”

A shift of sand confirmed what his instincts had been warning him of. This was indeed a well-protected camp and these people were indeed formidable in their element. It had taken all of thirty minutes before a scout had found him. The only indication of their presence was his instincts. He hadn’t heard them or seen them, but he could feel the watching him. And that all they had done. They had merely watched him, waiting. He was certain that news had reached their leader of his presence and now that he had studied their camp fully, he was ready. 

“How may I help you?” a rich female voice filled the air. Ok, that had been unexpected. He hadn’t expected her to come out here to meet him. This wasn’t playing out quite as he’d hoped. He had been relying on them bringing him into the camp so that he could pinpoint the girl's exact location.

Slowly he stood, poise relaxed but ready as he turned to meet the Nahati. A group of seven faced him all covered from head to toe in loose sand colored clothing that cinched at the ankles and wrists. Tight enough to stay out of the way in a fight, loose enough to stay comfortable and cool in the desert heat, colored perfectly for optimal stealth in a land with no cover. Headscarves covered all but their eyes. Six of them stood like statues in a semi-circle with one standing directly before him, between him and the others. In the meager light of the waxing moon, if he normal and hadn’t been trained as a kingsman, he might have mistaken them for seven odd rocks. Although that was unlikely - even if he hadn’t been trained as a kingsman - given that he was a heavenschild, and more specifically a child of the moon. Because of his ancestors, he had the best night vision of all the Kingsmen, a trait his father loathed for its origins and exploited for its usefulness. What his father didn’t know was that he had inherited more from his mother than just his impeccable night vision.

“And you are?” he asked dryly. 

“The (leader) of this tribe,” the figure in front of him replied coolly.

“Oh? and what are you doing out here, and not in there?” he prompted, sweeping his hand back to indicate the settlement watching to any reaction. No one moved. He commended them for their control. 

“I could ask you the same thing. Why are you here, Kingsman?” 

Smart woman, although his cloak was a dead give away, he admitted. 

“I'm looking for a girl,” he said nonchalantly.

“We have many girls,” she said. despite his inability to see the majority of her face he could hear the smirk behind her words. “And I don’t think you could handle any of them.”

He chuckled, wondering about that. He wasn’t some random man, after all. Even without his heritage, he was a kingsman, and a Second Kingsman at that. But then again, these were Nahati, some of the most feared people on the continent. 

“I have no doubt,” he agreed, “but it isn’t just any girl I seek. I'm here for a Heavenschild, a daughter of the sun.”

There was slight movement of the warrior just beyond her right shoulder, almost imperceptible. He stared at the figure hard. They were the right height and weight… but why would she be here directly in front of him? What was going on?

“A heavenschild,” the (leader) purred, “I haven’t seen one of them in ages.” His gaze lingered on the figure behind her, watching for any more movement, but there was none. He flicked his eyes back to the woman in front of him. 

“You know rules of the treaty, (leader),” he said in a low serious tone, “and I’m not one for beating around the bush. I know she’s here. And if you refuse to hand her over, I don’t need to tell you what will happen then.” He had never been good at negotiation, that had always been Jared’s strong suit. And he was becoming tired of this.

Tension thickened the air. No one had moved but he could feel them all tensing, preparing for a fight. He really hoped it didn’t come to that. He didn’t want to hurt any of them. He had never been a fan of needless violence. But if he needed to he would try to incapacitate them, rather than kill them. This is why you’re weak he could hear his fathers voice in his head. He disagreed. He didn’t want to be the kind of strong that killed. He wanted to be the kind of strong that could incapacitate without killing. But it was hard to keep his conviction when all he heard is you’re weak. 

The figure behind the leader's right shoulder shifted, gliding to her side. She shifted slightly as the figure whispered in her ear, quiet enough that he could only make out a faint murmur. Her irritation was clear, despite her best efforts to conceal it. After a long silent pause, she nodded. The figure next to her tensed as if offended by the approval. He fought to smother his amusement. This figure was clearly unaccustomed to orders or needing anyone else’s approval before acting. Swiftly the figure turned to face him, deftly unfastening her head wrap. As the fabric fell to rest on her shoulders, fierce, wild eyes captured his. Her hair was pulled back, and in under the light of the moon everything was monochrome, but he recognized those eyes. He’d never forget them, or the anguish he’d last seen in them. They were no longer empty like they were then. They were filled, with rage and determination. 

“Ill go with you,” she declared, “but you have to promise to leave these people alone.” This was too easy. What the hell was she doing? Why would she return willingly, after all her efforts to escape them? Something was wrong.

“Oh really? And why would you do that?” He asked not breaking eye contact. Despite the fact that his hood was up and his face was undoubtedly hidden in shadows, she seemed to know exactly where his eyes were, steadily peering defiantly at him.

“What do you care?” she growled, taking a step forward. “I'm surrendering,” she spit the word like it was acid on her tongue.

He stood his ground, contemplating her words. She wouldn’t surrender, not without a plan. And she knew he was coming, so why hadn’t she kept running… None of this made sense. But he didn’t have time to think too deeply on the matter. He had a deadline, and they would barely make it to the cabin as it was. He was lucky he didn’t have to keep chasing her… or so he told himself, hoping to quiet the uneasiness in his gut. 

Leader (aadyani) stepped forward and placed a hand on the sunchilds shoulder. “Come, we’ve prepared Ranhita for your departure.”

“Im only here for her,” he nodded to the sunchild, “No one else is to accompany us.”

The looked back at him, the sun child rolling her eyes dramatically.

“What? Afraid they’ll help me escape from you again?” she smirked. He didn’t dain to respond. She scoffed “Just so you know, I don’t need anyone's help evading or escaping you.” He merely raised an eyebrow from beneath his hood. He could feel his silence was getting to her, the air was heating up around them. He smirked.

“Ranhita is a horse,” the leader said flatly. 

All of his gusto evaporated, he thanked the moon his face was hidden beneath a hood. “I see,” replied, gesturing for her to show the way. He didn’t take so much as a step after the women before a hulk of a man blocked his path. 

“I'm not letting her out of my sight.” 

The women turned back to him and he could see the satisfaction on the sunchilds face. “Oh chill Kingsboy. I promise to come back.”

Like hell he trusted her, or these people. quick as an adder he crouched and whipped his leg out, catching the man behind the knees and toppling him to the sand. In a second, he straddled the man, pinning his arms to his sides with his knees and placing a knife against the man's throat. He stilled at the unmistakable creek of wood. He had no doubt an arrow was pointed at his heart. He also had no doubt that this man was strong, strong enough to break is grip, with some effort. But with his knife pressed to the man's throat he doubted he would try to break free. 

“Arron, I'm disappointed. did you really have to let him capture you so easily?”

Cerin pulled the knife far enough back that the man could respond.

“Sorry, leader. He was faster than I anticipated.”

“Never underestimate an enemy.”

Cerin leaned in to whisper in the man's ear, “especially a Kingsman.” Unfortunately, that had been a mistake.

“The man bucked his hips throwing Cerin over his head. He rolled into a crouch, knife poised and ready. The man, Arron, was already on his feet. A dark patch of blood spreading from the shallow cut on the side of his neck. 

“Or a Nahati, little boy,” he replied coolly. 

The girls snickered, turning again toward the camp. He rose, prepared to dash past the man to the women, the creek of wood stopped him dead in his tracks. A glance told him two of the figures surrounding him had arrow trained on his heart. He relaxed, relenting. The girl had seemed sincere about surrendering despite her clear disgust at the actions. Besides, he didn’t come this far to get himself killed. Although he could probably take two or three of the four/five figures down and then escape, he didn’t want to kill them. And that's what it would take. As he had just learned. These men were prepared to kill and be killed. He couldn’t fight them without the same resolve, or he would surely lose. And he didn’t want to kill any of them, he'd never liked killing. So he stood stalk still, prepared to move at any moment, as he watched the women disappear over a sand dune toward the settlement.