Barry Longyear: Enemy Papers

The old master looked away, then let its pained gaze fall upon the red clouds above the mountains. "l am the chief of Aakva’s servants. Why did not the God of the Day Light choose me to receive its new Law of War?"

Uhe stood and looked down at Iyjiia "The Law of War tastes foul to Aakva’s mouth, Iyjiia The god would choose a less worthy servant to receive the law."

The chief of Aakva’s servants again became quiet, and Uhe remained at the old master’s side until Daes’s healer reported and began to treat Iyjiia Uhe turned toward the Akkujah Mountains to assume command of the Denvedah.

As Uhe walked, it looked at the sky and addressed the light of the red clouds. "Aakva, if you exist, and if you are a God, and if you truly love us, why do you play with your creatures so?"

As Uhe came among its warriors, all cheered the demonstration of the truth of Uhe’s vision of the Law of War. It was then that Uhe asked the metal workers to fashion for it a long knife of black metal.

With the last of their strength, the warriors of the Mavedah climbed to the crest of the Akkujah. Once there, though, the sight of an immense valley, fat and green, could be seen between the peaks. Herds of darghat moved through the gentle foothills, stopping to drink at the ponds and streams. In the sky flew game birds, and in the valley below were fields of white grain and melons. And between the warriors and the fat of this valley there was only a hastily gathered army of farmers.

To ease its conscience somewhat, Uhe thought upon talking to the masters of the Irrvedah, begging them to allow the Mavedah to share their prosperity. There would be many who would object and who would be bitter at the encroachment, but there would be no more murders to add to Uhe’s debt.

In the valley below, though, the clan masters and the servants of Aakva were enraged at the violation of the most sacred tabu of the God of the Day Light.

"The Mavedah has violated the tabus."

"Aakva is with us!"

"Drive the invaders from the Irrvedah!"

"In the name of Aakva!"

"Kill the Mavedah!"

The Irrvedah attacked first, and their effort involved little more than bellows and cries. Conseh and Nuvvea waited until the farmers were close, and then drove through them, the Irrvedah melting before the Tsien Denvedah. Conseh’s Denve moved forward and hacked into the astonished farmers until their arms ached. As the First rested, Nuvvea moved the Second Denve through. Before the day was done, the Irrvedah in the valley who were not dead or wounded had surrendered.

Tocchah ruled the Irrvedah When runners brought the news of the invasion to Tocchah’s fire, the masters of the Irrvedah bellowed their rage. Runners were sent to all of the clans, from the Yellow Sea to the Great Cut, with messages to meet the invaders and throw them back into the Madah. Tocchah and its clan began that night to move west, knowing they fought in the name of Aakva. Before they reached the valley before the Akkujah, though, Tocchah and its clan met Conseh and the First Denve of the Tsien Denvedah on the Sunset Road at the edge of Darker Wood.

Conseh sent forward to Tocchah two captured Irrvedah, Liku and Ahli. They were brought before Tocchah. "Great Tocchah," began Liku, "I come from the First Warmaster of the Mavedah. Conseh asks that you surrender the clans you have assembled here. If you do not surrender, Conseh says that you will be destroyed."

Ahli stood next to Liku and said, "The Mavedah have fierce warriors, terrible weapons, and new ways of fighting." It gestured toward Liku. "Aakva has given a new Law of War to Uhe, chief of the Mavedah. Our clans were annihilated in not much more time than it takes to tell the tale, Great Tocchah. We beg you to acknowledge the new law and surrender."

The chief of the Irrvedah studied the two messengers and then nodded toward the master of its household. "Call a meeting of the clan masters. We will attack now while this Uhe expects us to discuss this blasphemy." Tocchah faced the messengers. "Before you do that, behead and burn these two traitors."

Once the household guards removed the messengers, Tocchah looked upon its chief of servants. "Yatim, the messengers said that a new Law of War has come from the God of the Day Light. When Aakva speaks to you does the god talk of this new law?"

Yatim held its hands before its face. "Great Tocchah, for more generations than our oldest has the mind to recall, the Irrvedah has followed Aakva’s laws. As consequence the Irrvedah has had peace and plenty. Now comes this plunderer and murderer, Uhe, who comes to take from us what Aakva has denied the Madah for their wrongs. There is no new Law of War, Tocchah. There is only the will of this predator, Uhe. Aakva will protect the Irrvedah as we destroy those who have broken the god’s Law of Peace."

Tocchah, then, stood and held its hands out toward the masters of the Irrvedah. "Go to your clans and have them arm themselves. We shall meet three days hence at the crossing of the Western Road with the Great Cut Road on the Plain of the Gods. From there we will march west until we meet this Uhe and its band of robbers. There we will remove this blight on the Law of Peace."

On the evening of the third day, as the scouts reported the approach of Tocchah’s army, the workers of metal presented Uhe with its black knife. Uhe took the knife, tested its edge, and proclaimed it adequate. Juka Li, the chief of the metal workers, said, "Uhe, I pray that all your enemies will fall before your new knife."

Uhe studied the blade, wrapped the knife with hide, and thrust it behind its sash. "I have no doubt, Juka Li, that I will find it useful." Uhe dismissed the metal workers, then joined Conseh deep within the Darker Wood to wait for the attack. Long after Aakva hid its face behind the western mountains, they looked through the trees and saw Tocchah’s army approaching on the Western Road. "Our murders mount, Uhe," said the first warmaster.

The chief of the Mavedah said, "Then, Conseh, have your denve close on Tocchah and take its clans down. Perhaps if we spill enough blood this night, the ones we challenge in the future will be less eager to throw themselves into harm. Leave only enough of them alive to bring the story of the horror to the rest of the Irrvedah and to the Diruvedah. Make certain they understand that Tocchah was first offered the opportunity to surrender, that the blood that will soak the Western Road is not my price but Tocchah’s."

Conseh studied Uhe’s face and said, "You see them before you now: the blood, the bodies?"

"I see them now, Conseh. I never see anything else. Go now and fulfill my vision."

Conseh moved with its undermasters to the edge of the wood where the First Denve was already concealed. The first warmaster waited until Tocchah’s tribe was compressed to only six abreast by the narrowing path through the trees. When most of Tocchah’s people were in the narrows, Conseh bellowed its command, "To battle! Death to Tocchah!"

The First Denve hurled its spears from the north edge of the wood. Nuvvea’s Second Denve, from its concealment along the edge of the southern wood, threw its spears at the same instant. With spears thrown, both denve raised their axes and closed with those left on the road.

After the axes were done, there were a few of the Irrvedah left. They were taken over the Western Road from one end of the narrows to the other and back again. As they walked among the bodies, torches would shed their light upon a face, and then another. Once all of the faces had been seen, Uhe knew that Tocchah’s face was not among them. The leader of the Irrvedah had escaped.

After they had walked the bloody trail and had seen the dead, the surviving Irrvedan soldiers were set free to carry the story of Uhe to the world.