The Jongurian Mission (46 page)

“So he helped with your arm at least,” Iago said between bites of apple.

“He did that much,” Pader replied. “I was finally able to convince him to sew up Fess’s leg as well, but he still insists that it won’t do any good. Says the blood loss is just too great, and I think Jurin agrees with him.”

“We should be grateful that he’s doing that much,” Halam said.
“It’s a great risk for him to aid us. This man Zhou that is after us doesn’t sound like the type to ignore something like that. If he learns about the help we received here, this man will be hunted down the same as us.”

“I have a feeling this man is more than he seems,” Willem said.
“A man his age living alone out here in an area that sees marauding rebels? I think he can take care of himself better than any of us think.”

“You got a good look at him inside that cottage, Pader” Iago said, “what does he look like?”

“Well, he’s an old man,” Pader replied. “But he moves quickly. There was no shake to his fingers when he stitched me up, as I’d expect from a man his age.” He paused for a second and looked up at the night sky. “I thought that I’d be able to tell more about him in the light, but I couldn’t. He looks old but seems young at the same time. There are no lines on his face as I’d expect from a man with hair as white as his, and yet his hands are gnarled with age, but also quite strong. While he walks and sits with a stoop in his shoulders, he bent down over Fess with no trouble at all.”

“So he’s more than he appears,” Rodden said.

Pader said nothing, just looked around at the rest of them and they were each left alone to puzzle out their thoughts as to the mysterious man that they
’d just met. After a while longer the light inside the cottage went out and Jurin came outside and sat down next to them on the grass.

“Fess will stay inside tonight, but I don’t think he’ll improve any.
He’s asleep now, but Wen doesn’t think he’ll wake up in the morning.” He looked around at them. “How are the rest of you holding up?”

“As good as can be expected, I suppose,” Rodden answered.

“Aye, it’s been a trying day, best to get some sleep. We’ll have a long trek ahead of us tomorrow.”

The men spread out and tried to find as comfortable a spot as they could.
Bryn took a spot next to Jurin.

“Who is this man Wen?” he asked when they lay down.

“I’ve asked myself that question many times over the years, lad,” Jurin answered. “I’ve known him for ten years now but he’s still as mysterious to me as he probably appears to you now.”

“How did you meet him?”

“That is a long story and would best be told after you’ve gotten some rest.”

“I’m not tired,” Bryn
lied, turning to lie on his side and face Jurin.

Seeing that the boy would
n’t take no for an answer, Jurin let out a deep breath and stared up at the stars for a few moments before speaking.

“After the peace was concluded, the soldiers at Bindao boarded ships for the voyage back to Adjuria.
Most were excited and couldn’t wait to get back, but I felt apprehensive about it. There was nothing for me to head back to. I had no family to speak of and no prospects. Most likely I’d trade the squalor of the battlements for the squalor of the city streets. So I decided to stay in Jonguria. In the confusion of the turnover it was easy to don a dirty cloak and blend in with the Jongurians spilling into the city. I hid out until most of the soldiers had departed, then I too left the city, although by the back gates, not the docks. I had no idea where I would go or what I would do, so I headed toward the forests and the hills.”

“Much of the countryside surrounding Bindao had been devastated by the war.
No attacks had taken place here, but the landscape was stripped of anything that could supply the armies camped around the city. Death and starvation were everywhere. To compound matters, the soldiers that had laid siege to the city decided for the most part not to go back to their homes and rebuild. This is when the various rebel groups began to form. They were small at first, just a few bands of formers soldiers who chose the easy life of plunder over the more rigorous task of farming. As they rode around terrorizing the land, their numbers swelled, primarily from the dispossessed that their actions, as well as the war, had created. When I first took to the wilderness after leaving Bindao I had plenty from hunting and fishing to keep me satisfied, and lived well for more than a year. With the swelling number of refugees from rebel raids, however, I soon found myself competing with peasants. The forests began to fill with wandering common folk. The emperor did nothing to help them; he was embroiled in his own struggles around the capital and couldn’t pull his attention away to focus on the problems in the south. It wasn’t long before my presence became known.”

“Soon the rebels began to tire of just tormenting the peasants on their farms and turned on those that had fled into the forests and hills.
When it was learned that an Adjurian soldier had taken refuge in this same area, the rebels couldn’t hunt me down fast enough. The attack came one day while I was fishing along the Dongshui River. Out of nowhere I was struck in the back by an arrow, which had been delivered with such force that it punched all the way through my side before coming to a bloody rest on the ground before me. More began to rain down around me, so I fled. I was no match for the men on their horses though, and they soon ran me down. I knew little of the Jongurian tongue at that time, so whatever questions they asked of me I couldn’t understand. The leader of their small group ran me through with his sword and tossed my body into the river.”

“Somehow I managed to stay alive and after several miles of floating down the churning river was able to pull myself out onto the bank.
I had two holes completely through me at that point so I found a spot that seemed nice and lay down to die. It didn’t take long for my eyes to close and the darkness to take me. Much to my surprise I awoke to find a Jongurian crouching over me and tending to my wounds. The blood loss had been great enough that I passed out, but not enough to kill me. He spoke Adjurian and told me to lie back, which I did, passing out again. The next I awoke I was in a small cottage and heavily bandaged.”

“Right here,” Bryn said anxiously.

“Aye. The man that found me was Wen. He spent the next couple of weeks keeping a close eye on me as I recovered. If he’d not happened upon me on that riverbank when he did I’d surely have died of my wounds. I asked him many times why he chose to help me that day, but he has never yet given me a clear answer. When I was strong enough to head back to the forests, he urged me to go back home to Adjuria. ‘The country had become too dangerous since the war, even for its own citizens’, he told me, ‘and especially for a foreigner.’ I didn’t take his advice and was soon hunting and fishing in the same spots as before. It wasn’t long for roving bands of rebels to find me again. This time I was able to hear them coming. There were four of them armed with shortswords and bows, while all I had was a bow and a dagger. In all of the years that I was stationed at Bindao I saw little fighting, since that was the nature of a siege, and had no formal training before the war. Needless to say, those rebels made short work of me, slashing my throat after they had driven their swords into me several times.”

“So that is how you got that scar,” Bryn said, holding his hand up to his own throat.

“And many more besides it,” Jurin answered. The night was growing cool and the moon had moved quite a ways through the sky, but still Jurin continued his tale.

“Again I was left for dead
but somehow survived, and again Wen found me and nursed me back to health. He didn’t seem at all surprised or angry that the same fate had befallen me. I quickly found that Wen was a man of few words. Where he learned Adjurian, I still do not know, and even though he can communicate with a foreigner, he doesn’t do so very often.”

“When I was healed up for a second time and ready to depart, Wen stopped me.
He told me that I would be attacked again, if not in a week or a month then in a year, for as long as I continued to stay in this land. I wouldn't be so lucky to have him find me again, he made it clear. ‘Don’t worry, I can take care of myself,’ I assured him. ‘That’s what I’m afraid of,’ he replied. As I smiled and turned to walk away he blocked my path with a long stick. When I tried to walk around he brought it down on my other side. I chuckled, and turned to walk another way, but each way that I turned he was blocking my path with that stick. Growing tired of this childish game, I went to grab the stick, but faster than I thought it possible for a man his age to move he had brought the stick out of my reach and down on my back, knocking me to the ground. I angrily got up and lunged at him to take the stick, but he effortlessly blocked my feeble attempts with barely more than a flick of his wrist. As I was knocked down again I noticed bruises forming on my arms and legs, and some of my fresh wounds had come open, staining my shirt red. Wen told me that if I was so ready to die than I could leave now, but if I wanted to survive in this land than I needed to stay. That was the day that my training began.”

“What did he teach you,” Bryn said excitedly, barely able to wait for the story to continue.

“I think that’s enough for tonight, lad,” Jurin replied. “We’ve already been talking for far too long when what our bodies really need is sleep.”

“But I’m not tired,” Bryn argued as he stifled a yawn.

“You will be in the morning,” Jurin said as he rolled over on his side, ending the discussion.

Bryn lay down on his back looking up at the stars while in his mind he imagined the old man inside the cottage thrusting a stick back-and-forth at the Jongurians they fought earlier in the day, defeating all of them without so much as breaking a sweat.
He smiled and soon drifted off to sleep.

* * * * *

The sky was still dark when Bryn was shaken awake.

“Come on Bryn, wake up, it’s time to move out,” Halam was saying over him.

Bryn sat up and wearily rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He felt more tired than he had in days. Looking around he saw that he was not the only one moving sluggishly. Rodden and Trey were shuffling around while they tried to get everything they could into the four packs they had. Iago leaned against a nearby tree with his eyes closed, while Flint was kicking at Jal and Conn while entreating them to get up, without much result. A faint light could be seen in the sky above them, the sun dawning somewhere to the east. Bryn turned to see that a light was shining from the cottage, and a moment later Pader and Jurin stepped out, closing the door behind them. Pader walked up to Halam and they exchanged a few words, then Halam called for everyone’s attention.

“Fess died sometime in the night.
Wen did what he could to sew up the wound on his leg, but the blood loss was too great. That leaves only ten of us now since we came ashore three days ago.” He paused for a few moments to look around at the men. Most were not surprised that Fess had died, and probably expected that more of them would share the same fate during the coming days.

“After hearing that this rebel Zhou has wide support in Bindao, I think it is out of the question that we head further south.
Jurin has explained to me that we are now well north of the city and between the two main roads that run from Bindao to the cities of Xi’lao and Waigo. I think that our best chance lies in passing the westernmost road and meeting up with the Dongshui River. We can follow it to the base of the Xishan Mountains and from there make our way to Waigo, where we may find some help. The emperor still enjoys the support of that city, and our chances of finding an audience sympathetic to our plight is higher there than anywhere else. If that plan doesn’t work out, we’ll still be close to the Isthmus. If we can get over the mountains there is a good chance we can flag down a passing Adjurian fishing boat.” Halam paused, letting the words sink in. “I think this is our best chance to stay alive.”

No one said anything.
Perhaps it was because it was so early in the morning and so much had happened over the previous few days or that no one else had a better idea of what to do. Either way, no voices were raised in protest. Of the five men that had wanted to head to Bindao, one was dead and the other four kept their mouths shut.

Halam motioned toward Jurin who stood slightly behind him.
“Jurin has agreed to show us the way to the river, and may accompany us to Waigo as well. Our chances of running into Zhou’s men once we get to the river and head north will go down. They mainly stick to the areas around Bindao. So today will be critical and that is why we are starting so early. If we can get to that river before midday, then all of us may yet get back home.”

“What about the old man?” Conn asked, and a few of the others nodded their head.

“Wen has given us what help he can,” Jurin replied. “He’s loaded us up with enough food to see us to Waigo so that we won’t have to forage along the way and given us some medical supplies so that if there are more injuries like those that Fess had, they won’t prove fatal. This is all that we can ask of him.”

A few of the men grumbled, but otherwise kept quiet.
“Alright,” Halam said, “let’s gather up our things and get moving. We’ve got a long way to go today, and the chances of being spotted by Zhou’s men are high.”

They picked up their things, which weren’t much, and moved back through the trees the way they
’d come. The narrow canyons were very dark, but Jurin took the lead and they made good time. By the time the sun had risen enough so that they could see well in front of them they had left the steep canyon walls behind and entered an area more valleys than hills. Bryn’s feet were already tired and all he wanted to do was sit down and rest, but each time he felt that way he made himself think about the scar that ran the length of Jurin’s throat and his feet continued to step one after another.

It was midday when they came to the road.
They’d seen it from the last hill they came down, stretching as far as they could see both north and south. It looked just like the road from three days ago, all hard-packed dirt and well-worn. Bryn remembered all too clearly what had happened the last time they crossed a road, and hoped beyond reason that the same fate wouldn’t befall them this time. There were no trees running to within ten feet of the road as there were with the last one. After that final hill only grassy plains stretched on into the distance. If there were any of Zhou’s men, or any Jongurians for that matter, coming down the road, there would be nothing that the men could do to hide themselves.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Iago said when they began trudging down the hill.
“There’s no cover to speak of in all directions once we get down in those plains.”

“What, not so quick to pull that sword out again, Iago?” Rodden quipped.
“That’s all you talked about for the day before we were attacked.”

“Aye, and during that attack I found out my sword arm isn’t quite what it was ten years ago,” Iago replied.
“It is one thing to train soldiers from the safety of a yard and quite another to be in the thick of battle once again.”

“There’s nothing that we can do,” Halam interrupted, indicating the road.
“If any Jongurians come, then they come. We’ll deal with it as it happens.”

No Jongurians did come.
They came down the hill and walked across the grassland then all crossed the road at the same time. There was no point in doing it in groups or posting lookouts. If someone was around they would see them from a league off. But no one did come, and they were soon crossing the grassy plain on the other side of the road.

“We should be at the Dongshui River in less than an hour,” Jurin told them.
“It’s a very wide river, and I wouldn’t want to attempt crossing it this time of year. Although the Xishan Mountains don’t get much snow, they get enough to still produce a powerful runoff.”

It was actually less than an hour that they came to the river.
Traversing such flat ground, they saw it well before they came to it. As Jurin said, it was wide, fast-moving, and loud. After filling their water skins and splashing the cool water on their faces, the men began to follow it north.

“Why is it called the Dongshui River,” Bryn asked Jurin as they walked.

“It’s Jongurian,” Jurin replied. “It means east river.”

“And Xishan Mountains, what does that mean,” Bryn asked.

“’Xi’ means west, and ‘shan’ means mountain,” Jurin answered.

“So west mountain,” Bryn replied.

“Or western mountains,” Jurin said. “Jongurian is not too difficult to learn when you get some of the basics. It is the pronunciation that still plagues me to this day, not that I have many opportunities to practice it on anyone, mind you.”

“Did Wen teach you?” Bryn asked.

“Yes. I picked up some basic words and phrases during my time at Bindao, but nothing substantial. While Wen taught me weapons and the martial arts during the day, he was adamant that I train my mind at night.”

“Martial arts?” Bryn asked confusedly.

“Yes, the art of using your body as a weapon. The fists and feet can be more powerful and much faster than any weapon.”

“Can you teach me?” Bryn said excitedly.

Jurin laughed.
“Perhaps when we stop tonight I can show you some basics.”

The river stretched north just the same as the road did.
They were far enough away from it to not be seen, but the land was flat and so they were cautious just the same.

“Wouldn’t it be easier to just keep heading west until we reach the sea, then skirt the coast to the mountains?” Pader asked.
“Surely the mountains are easier to cross where they approach the sea and flatten out, and that way we could avoid Waigo altogether.”

“You were so adamant about going to Bindao,” Rodden said, “now you want to avoid cities altogether?”

“I’m just not sure how well received we will be in the city is all,” Pader replied.

“The mountains stretch right down to the water,” Jurin said.
“They’ll be impossible to cross there. There is a natural passage at Waigo that would be much easier, if we need to go that route.”

“So you are going to accompany us then,” Willem said.

“Aye, I’ll see that you make it safely to Waigo. After that I can’t make any guarantees. While Wen thinks the city will be receptive to your plight, I have my doubts.”

“Why?” Halam asked.

“While it is true that the emperor’s grasp remains firm on the city, especially at the higher levels, there are still those that support the various rebel factions.”

“So there is a possibility that Zhou’s men will be able to find us there,” Pader said.

“If they don’t find us before,” Jurin grimly replied.

Gradually the river began to bend slightly to the west while the road continued on.
The sun began to go down, blanketing the land in twilight.

“We’ll keep following the river,” Jurin said when the road was out of sight.
“Less chance we’ll run into anybody that way.”

“We’d best find a spot to make camp for the night,” Willem suggested.

They continued on until they came to a spot along the river that had a few trees. Jurin wouldn’t allow a fire. They hadn’t seen the road for some time, but he said that the risk was too great. Jal and Conn parceled out the last of the apples they had received from Wen, as well as some more of the same dry salt pork they’d been eating for several days. Halam said that he wanted them to get an early start before the sun was up, so most of the men lay down right after eating. Sleep came quickly after the long day of walking.

TWENTY-SIX

“What do you mean they killed five of you?” Leisu asked the man angrily.
For the second day in a row now he was hearing bad news concerning the Adjurians. Just the day before word had gotten to him that two of the Adjurians had been captured by a group of riders while coming out of the forest and onto the road north of Bindao. It was late enough it the day that the men had decided to make camp instead of coming immediately back to the city. Sometime during the night the other Adjurians had managed to free the two men, killing one of their captors, but also losing one of their own in the process. What should have been a quick, easy task was instead turning into a serious headache that was taking up in inordinate amount of Leisu’s time; time that should have been spent seeing to Zhou’s consolidation of power throughout Jonguria. Why did Grandon have to get off of that ship, he asked himself again for what seemed the hundredth time. Now Hui, who was normally an able military commander, was in front of him saying that these Adjurians, twice the ages of the men sent to hunt them, had prevailed. It was not what he wanted to hear.