The Duelist 6, page 9
After that, it was back to riding along with the mostly-silent Captain as he led our caravan down the winding access roads toward the bottom.
About halfway down and two hours in, Tharfin finally loosened up enough to actually try and strike up a conversation.
Well, conversation-slash-inquisition.
“You are of Outsider persuasion,” he opened with. “My son tells me you are Nata Isle’s Ambassador.”
“It’s true my home is on Nata, but I’m actually not from there,” I said, and I watched him cock his head to the right a little. “I’m what they call a Traveler.”
“I see,” the captain said as he steered the caravan down to another level along a razor-sharp ledge. “There has not been one of those through these regions for many seasons.”
“You’ve heard of Travelers, then?” I questioned. “I assumed there were not a lot of you that would have.”
“There was a man who walked among us who was able to change his face,” he said. “He was a treacherous sort who deceived many people. Before he had a chance to answer for his crimes, however, he disappeared without a trace.”
“Not all of us are like that, I swear,” I added when the captain eyed me askance.
“Do all Travelers come from the same place?” Tharfin asked instead, and I breathed a little easier since I was basically given a pass.
“I’m not exactly sure,” I answered. “I’ve never actually met another Traveler, myself. So, I guess I should be asking you. Was the other Traveler similar to me?”
“Not in the slightest, but I think that is simply because the Traveler who was among my people was a shape-shifter,” he said. “Since then, I have come to know Travelers are equipped with supernatural abilities. Is this true for you as well?”
I hesitated a moment at this. Sure, it wasn’t exactly a secret that I had abilities and skills outside of what was considered normal even on this magical chain of islands where one in six people could make their eyes glow. But I’d never really explained my Traveler abilities to someone who straight-up asked before.
My eyes slid to Sskern as I wondered what he would say given how he already wanted me to keep some things close to my chest. But I also didn’t want to leave the captain hanging, so I decided not to worry so much about it. I’d always done well by being honest and direct in my dealings with people in the past, and I wasn’t about to start shaking things up now.
“I admit, I do have a special skill I am able to call on from time to time, especially if I’m in a tight situation,” I admitted and watched as the captain’s eyebrows quirked slightly in interest. “Sometimes, in the heat of an intense battle or fight, I am able to manipulate the world around me to slow down time around me fractionally so I may have the upper-hand.”
“That is truly fascinating,” Tharfin said, and even though his tone was as expressionless as ever, the way his scaled eyebrows sat perched halfway up his domed head told a different story. “Does everyone have these abilities at birth, or can they be taught?”
“Actually, I have no idea.” I rubbed the back of my neck with a shrug. “To be honest, before I came here, I thought I was completely ordinary. To my limited knowledge, something changes Travelers when they arrive here. Aventoll changes us.”
“You’re inferring you never had your abilities until you arrived,” he stated.
“That’s true,” I confirmed. “Back where I’m from, abilities like that are impossible.”
“Do you desire to return to your home?” he asked me.
“Nah…” I said and sat back comfortably in my seat. “I don’t know how I came to Aventoll, but I’m grateful for the fact. Back there-- It never felt like home. But here? Everything’s different. A hell of a lot harder sometimes, but so much better than I could have ever imagined for myself back on Earth.”
“It sounds like you have everything back on Nata,” Tharfin pointed out. “Why leave and become an ambassador for a people you know nothing about?”
“Well, some of it is a favor to Sskern,” I admitted. “He’s fought beside me many times in battle, and I’ve considered him a good friend for some time now. I’ve never met someone so hell-bent on changing things for his people. He truly wants the best for all Terrans-- both Upper and Lower.”
“Hmm,” the captain hummed skeptically. “That remains to be seen.”
“Why don’t you trust him, by the way?” I threw out there, and by the brief look I got from the man, I knew I was bordering on insolence. I made sure to check my tone, but I honestly wanted an answer. “No offense, but since I’ve been on this rock, I haven’t met another person so convinced there was a shot at unity other than Sskern.”
“Sskern is naive,” he scoffed. “They already oppress us mercilessly from afar, imagine how it will be once the Up-ish have even greater access to my people if they are only a stone’s toss away. Our distance has kept us at least partially autonomous from their tyranny, but we will lose that if we Ascend.”
“I know you think that, but trust me, there’s no chance in all the darkhells I would even be welcome on this island if that were the case,” I reasoned, and the captain turned his domed head in my direction. Then I sighed and glanced once more at Sskern as his warning rolled over in my mind.
I knew he wanted me to play it a little more on the down-low, but something niggling inside me said this wasn’t the right way to go about things, so I took a breath and decided I was going to handle this my way or no way at all.
“Captain…” I ventured after a beat. “Why do you think you and your people have not heard from the Upper Echelon regarding ore for over half a season?”
“Well, I--” I stood by while I watched Tharfin try to come up with an explanation and fail. “I don’t know actually.”
“Think about it,” I nudged. “The mine-folk have gone half a season without mining proper ore in order to keep up with Terr’s export demands. And yet, no one is coming after you. If the Up-ish were in shape to exert their force over you and your people, wouldn’t they have done it by now?”
“What are you getting at, Ambassador?” The captain’s voice rose in volume slightly, and I darted my gaze over to see Sskern was listening in as avidly as he could to the conversation.
Welp.
In for a penny, in for a pound, as the saying goes.
“I’m telling you, Captain, that the Upper Echelon is in dire straits, just as much as the rest of Terr,” I said point-blank. “What I’m saying is, if anything, it is them who are at your mercy.”
Chapter 8
Sskern’s sharp inhale told me all I needed to know.
The raptor-man had pretty much overheard me telling Captain Tharfin basically everything he asked me not to, but I honestly couldn’t see any way around it.
Which sounded like a way lamer excuse than it actually was, and it made me seem like someone who didn’t understand the concept of withholding information.
But the simple fact was, all three of these peoples, the snooty Up-ish, the hardworking villagers of Snake Tree, and the soul-weary mine-folk, had loads to benefit from if they would just come together already.
And the only way I figured would work was if people of influence like Zerr and Tharfin made the steps. All I could supply was the facts as I knew them so an informed decision could be met all around.
That was my hope anyway, but after I said what I did to the Captain, I apparently stunned the man back into his usual stony silence.
I wasn’t sure if this was a good thing or not, but I was loath to break the peace, especially when Tharfin seemed to have lapsed into a contemplative headspace.
I made sure not to disturb him the rest of the way, and even when we reached the bottom of the open pit to start setting up camp, I kept my distance and jumped in wherever I could help.
This also had the added benefit of allowing me to avoid Sskern as much as I wanted to, which was a plus because part of me now felt a bit like I’d betrayed the Regent by going against what he’d requested of me.
But I’d only followed my intuition on the matter, and a much bigger part of me couldn’t shake the feeling that I’d acted correctly regardless of Sskern’s feelings.
It was still a shitty place to be stuck between, though.
Finally, camp was all set up, and I knew my avoiding the matter was about to come to a close.
Surprisingly, however, it was Captain Tharfin who broke the silence when we were all around the fire a little later, and this time, it wasn’t me he was addressing.
“Regent Sskern,” the captain started as he scrutinized the raptor-man across from the fire. “The Ambassador here has been telling me all sorts of fascinating things.”
Oh, boy, here we go.
“He has, has he?” Sskern commented as he shot me a brief glare, but I simply shrugged at him and tore off a chunk of dried jerky I’d brought as provisions. “What has he told you?”
“It sounds as if the Upper Echelon is in just as bad of shape as we Low-ish are,” he said, and as much as it put me on the spot, I appreciated the man’s way of not mincing his words. “If this is true, what are your plans in order to save your people?”
Sskern spluttered as if he couldn’t quite comprehend what he was hearing, and after a good moment where he did a confused codfish impression, he cleared his throat.
“It… is as you say, Captain,” Sskern said after I nodded to him in encouragement. “The truth is, the Up-ish have been flailing for quite some time, and are not in the position to oppress anyone. The Red Sky Events have taken their toll on the Up-ish militant forces, which are dwindling severely.”
“Why don’t your people fight?” Tharfin questioned bluntly. “After all, aren’t they Blessed by the Goddess as Ashers?”
“They have forgotten how,” the Regent said with a sad shrug. “Whatever Alex has told you is the truth. The Upper Echelon is dying, but the nobles are too stubborn to realize. That is why I have been striving for a united Terr.”
“And how do you propose that’s even possible?” the captain challenged. “You just said your lot are too stubborn to budge.”
“Eventually, they will need to face the truth,” Sskern said. “Each Red Sky brings the Upper Echelon that much closer to extinction. When the time comes where true change is imminent, they will have no choice but to move aside.”
“So, we show up on the palace steps and demand the Lowers live alongside the Uppers, and your plan is to ‘hope’ they let us,” Tharfin sneered.
“It’s not hope,” I chimed in. “It’s a fact.”
“Explain,” he said as he pinned me with his orange eyes.
“What Terr really needs is to form stronger bonds with allies outside of her walls,” I began and was ready for the scowl this would inspire. “Hear me out. I know Terrans hate Outsiders, but have you ever wondered why? Where did the notion that Outsiders were bad even come from? Is it based in fact, or was it a way of thinking passed down through the generations?”
“But the Traveler I told you about--” the captain said.
“Yeah, he was shit,” I conceded. “But I’m an Outsider, too, and haven’t I proved I am nothing like that guy?”
“You have.” He nodded his smooth head.
“So, the logic ‘all Outsiders are bad’ is flawed,” I posited. “Which means, if an Outsider like me can be decent and fair, it stands to reason others like me will do the same. Actually, I have it on good authority the man you ran across was actually the exception to this instead of the standard.”
“Your reasoning does make sense,” he allowed. “But what would uniting with Outsiders even entail?”
“For one, it would be about boosting trade,” I added.
“More steel,” he gritted his teeth.
“Not necessarily,” I tried to assuage him. “The Regent and I have been working on possible commodities that could replace the need for your people to have to harvest the sickening material.”
“We wouldn’t have to mine for the ore?” Tharfin’s eyes went just a fraction wider, but other than that, there was no indication he was intrigued.
This made me think he was trying to be so stoic in order to smother his interest, and I set myself up for mentally reeling him in.
If I wanted to persuade him, I needed to tread lightly and keep in mind that the captain suffered from some strong paranoia.
“I’ve been doing some research about you and your people,” I continued. “And the fact is, Terr has a lot to offer the global market. The screecher population, for one. It’s completely out of control in the Upper Echelon. If it were possible to round them up and train them in various ways, I can guarantee Aventoll would trade with Terr.”
“So we just give the other islands screechers?” The captain arched an eyebrow before he took a swig from his wine skein.
“No, you give them screechers that know how to carry messages long distances to the other isles, and then keep the secret of how to train them to yourselves,” I countered. “That’s how you keep them coming back. You could also do this with the squallers, too. To my knowledge, the only way to travel anywhere long distance is by ship. Imagine what it would do to Aventoll as a whole if the distance between the isles could be shortened. Terr herself could be the one to bring about a new age of communication.”
“But why stop there?” Sskern added with an excited expression on his lizard-like face. “Our land has other magnificent beasts the isles could benefit from. Alem could benefit from a trainbeast, and the rock quarries on Om could probably make good use of the drillers.”
“They will not be ready for hatching for some time,” Tharfin reminded us.
“Trust me, the Om-folk don’t mind waiting,” I remarked as I thought back to my trusty chef and friend, Arvid.
If there was ever something I was sure of, a race of half-sloth men was probably the most patient of all the people in the world and wouldn’t even blink at the fact it took the drillbeasts at least sixteen years to mature.
“I am starting to see the logic in your plan,” Tharfin said after he took a beat to mull this over. “And with the Up-ish supposedly out of commission, a lot of their deciding power is limited.”
“Exactly,” Sskern said. “My uncle is now the acting Asher Lord, and he has wanted this change for a long time.”
“And what of Councilman Hess?” the captain queried. “I am of the opinion he is the one most resistant to change in the Upper region. What of him?”
“Don’t you see?” I asked instead. “Because of the condition of the Uppers, when you and your people show up, you’ll be holding all the cards. Meaning, you and your Low-ish folk will have all the power. They’ve grown complacent and lazy and can’t even feed themselves without the constant supply from Snake Tree. The reality is, they need you more than you’ve ever needed them.”
“The Councilman is delusional, and he will not give up his power without a fight,” Tharfin said, but it seemed to be more of a token protest instead of a true counterargument, and after that he lapsed into a pensive silence as the rest of us resumed eating our meager dinners of whatever dried foods we had on hand.
When it came time for all of us in the hunting party to hunker down for the night, I figured the discussion was tabled for now and decided to let the issue lie. The only thing that gave me confidence our conversation had any sort of impact was the way the captain’s face seemed fixed in a frown that looked as if the gears in his head were grinding away.
At least the man was giving what we said some thought, which was all we could do for now.
“Hey, Sskern?” I whispered a little later when we were all situated in our bedrolls. “You awake?”
The raptor-man turned over onto his shoulder. “Hm?”
“I just wanted to apologize for earlier,” I said. “I know you asked me to keep things quiet, and I blew that one out of the water.”
“It is alright, Alex.” Sskern gave me an understanding smile. “I think the mistake was attempting to hide the issue for as long as we did. I am starting to wonder what Terr would have looked like if the Upper Echelon reached out toward the Lower Echelon for help a long time ago. My feeling is her people would be thriving to their fullest, not languishing on the brink of extinction like we are. Leader Zerr made it sound as if the Lowers combined had the manpower to cause an uprising. My Uncle and I only ever wanted to prevent a senseless loss of life.”
“It makes sense why Zerr would lie, though, he was using a smokescreen just like you and Griss to protect his people,” I pointed out. “The heart of the issue is both sides have been afraid of what the other could do for so long they’ve isolated themselves from one another. No wonder the island is sick and dying.”
“Indeed,” Sskern said as my words washed over him, and after that we drifted into silence until sleep finally rose up and claimed us all.
It should be said, however, that sleep most definitely wasn’t synonymous with rest, and I didn’t know if it was the fact I was camping on the cold hard ground, or the disastrous lack of meditation I was unable to do, but when Sskern shook me awake, I felt like a corpse with rigor mortis and morning breath to match.
“Ugh,” I groaned and wished I could manifest a piping hot cup of kolee straight into my hands.
Or a genie to grant me three wishes, all of them kolee, because f-uuuck mornings.
“How are you doing, my friend?” the Regent asked me with a weary smile of his own.
“Terrible,” I couldn’t help but snap.
“That’s to be expected,” he said with a nod as he rubbed his eyes. “Being so close to the heart of the island interferes with Aventoll’s voice. It is hard to tune in and can be a strain on an Asher’s mind. It might be difficult, but there is a way for you to push through the static and meditate.”
“I don’t think so, Sskern,” I murmured and then swished some water around my foul-tasting mouth so I could spit it back on the ground. “I haven’t been able to meditate since Senna.”
The raptor-man’s eyes went wide at this, and his expression grew concerned. “That was quite some time ago, Alex.”
