Richard Tuttle - Web of Deceit

Mulando shouted orders to his men, but they hesitated in obeying the command. Marak made a signal over his head and a score of arrows whistled through the night air. Some of the slavers screamed; others merely gasped. Thankfully, none of them moved. The arrows thudded into the ground and made a ring around the slavers at their feet.

“I will not ask again,” shouted Lord Marak. “Get in the cage.”

The slavers rushed toward the wagon, pushing and shoving to make sure they reached the safety of the cage. Lord Marak withdrew his sword from Mulando’s shoulder and shoved him towards the cage, while Rejji gathered the former captives and led them away from the wagon. Mulando entered the cage and Marak shoved the door closed. Rejji rushed over and locked the cage while Botal’s men walked into the campsite.

“Now we have one more requirement of you,” declared Lord Marak as Botal’s men surrounded the wagon. “You will carefully toss out of the wagon all of your gold and weapons. Listen carefully because I do not intend to repeat these instructions. When you have tossed out all of your gold and weapons, I want you to check your neighbor to make sure he did as well as you did. I will be extremely disappointed if I should happen to find even the smallest knife left on one of you. As an incentive to get this right, I will promise not to back this wagon over the campfire if you obey this command properly. So if you happen to know of a favorite boot knife that one of your friends has, make sure he properly disposes of it, because his mistake will mean the end of your life.”

Pouches and knives were tossed through the bars to land on the dirt. Shouting rose from within the cage, but within a few moments Marak felt assured that no weapons remained on the slavers.

“Rejji, gather their belongings,” Lord Marak said. “Botal, get the key from Rejji and free the other prisoners.”

“What are we to do now?” asked one of the men that Rejji had released.

“You are free to do what you wish,” answered Marak.

“What were you doing before?” asked Rejji.

“Well our village was destroyed by bandits,” the man answered. “My friend and I were just traveling. We don’t know what to do now. Our homes are gone and we have nothing.”

“Do you enjoy traveling?” Rejji asked as he picked up the last of the pouches.

“Actually, it was thrilling before we were captured,” answered the man. “We had never been out of the village before. I guess I would like to see more of the world before I settle down again.”

“Then I have a business proposition for you,” smiled Rejji as he piled all of the confiscated pouches on the ground.

“What is it?” asked the man. “Does it involve traveling? Does it pay?”

“It involves a great deal of traveling and it pays well,” grinned Rejji. “All of these pouches that are piled here will be your wages.”

“That is most generous,” beamed the man. “What must we do?”

“I want you to drive this wagon into Khadora,” chuckled Rejji. “Pick any estate you want and leave the wagon with a note I will give you. You may then take the horses attached to the wagon and go spend your money.”

“What will happen to them?” asked the man as he pointed to the slavers.

“They will become slaves,” explained Rejji, “just as they had planned to do to you. I know because I have ridden in that wagon before. It is fitting that they learn the fate of those they prey upon.”

The man eagerly scooped up the pouches and beamed, “It will be a great pleasure to complete this task. You have my eternal thanks for rescuing us from this terrible fate.”

“You have my thanks as well,” nodded Rejji. “If you decide to return, the town of Ghala to the east of here will welcome you.”

“Rejji!” exclaimed one of the prisoners released by Botal. “I never thought I would see you again.”

Rejji peered into the dark and scanned the faces that were lit only by the dancing flames. He located the voice as the man continued to call to him, but he could not make out the face.

“It is me, Wyant,” called the man with the bruised face.

Rejji tightened his grip on his staff. Lord Marak detected the unease in Rejji and snapped his fingers. Halman and Gunta moved swiftly through the crowd and seized Wyant by each of his arms. They dragged Wyant over to Lord Marak and Rejji as the man with the pouches faded away.

“You know this man?” Marak asked Rejji.

“Yes,” spat Rejji. “He used to lead the Zaldoni, but now he works for Grulak.”

“That is a lie,” protested Wyant. “I would never bow to the Jiadin.”

“No,” Rejji shook his head, “then where are the rest of the Zaldoni? You expect me to believe that they still ride separate from the Jiadin?”

“No,” sighed Wyant. “They have joined with Grulak, but I did not lead them there. I would never work under such a tyrant.”

“You are the Zaldoni,” Rejji hissed. “They would never go to Grulak unless you led them there. I should pack you in the cage going to Khadora. They kill you there for not telling the truth.”

“I am telling the truth,” pleaded Wyant. “Klavin and Brakas led the Zaldoni to Grulak.”

“Nice try, Wyant,” Rejji shook his head, “but I have seen Brakas recently and he explained your cowardly submission to the Jiadin. Your men would never choose Klavin or Brakas over you.”

“Cowardly?” bristled Wyant. “You can call me many things, including that of being a trusting fool, but nobody has ever called me a coward. If you want to see an act of cowardice, look at my back.”

Marak nodded and Gunta spun Wyant around and raised his tunic. Two large scars disfigured Wyant’s back.

“What caused those?” asked Rejji.

“Not what, but who,” Wyant spat as Gunta released the tunic and spun Wyant around to face Rejji again. “Brakas advocated joining the Jiadin. I told him that if he wanted to serve a lunatic then he should go, but the Zaldoni would stand against Grulak as a free tribe. The wounds are the result of Brakas and Klavin knifing me and leaving me for dead. I heard them explaining to the men that I had gone on ahead to join the Jiadin and they were to follow. I tried calling out to them, but nobody heard me. An old woman discovered me two days later or I would not be here now.”

“But why would Brakas lie?” quizzed Rejji. “And why is he trying to get the free tribes to join against Grulak?”

“He isn’t,” declared Wyant. “He is seeking the free tribes for Grulak. He located the Chadang before I did. Now they exist no longer. The Jiadin killed every last one of them.”

“Before you did?” queried Rejji. “Why are you searching for them?”

“I am no longer searching for them,” answered Wyant. I know where they are. Now I shadow Brakas so that I can warn the tribes when he gets close. Why do you think he has not been able to locate another of the tribes? When he gets close, I alert the tribe to move to another location.”

“Release him,” order Rejji. “Sit Wyant. I need to know the truth of what is going on. How did you end up with the slavers?”

Halman and Gunta looked to Marak who nodded and they released Wyant. Wyant sat next to the fire and looked at Rejji.

“I followed Brakas to a new town called Ghala,” Wyant began. “There are rumors all over the east about this town and its abundant supply of food and adequate work for all. Still the town abuts the sea, so I dared not enter it for fear that Brakas would spot me. I hid outside the town and waited for Brakas to reappear. He came back out the next morning and I started following him again.”

“So he was only there the one night?” interrupted Rejji.

“Yes, one day and one night,” nodded Wyant. “He rode west all day and met up with a Jiadin army heading north. I think it is part of General Winus’s command, but I am not sure. Anyway, the Jiadin army changed their path to go due east, back towards Ghala. I continued following Brakas. He normally rode in the open and I would shadow him from the forests. He never was very good at observing things about him. That was when I stumbled upon these fellows. I was moving fairly fast through the woods and the next thing I knew, my horse had gone out from under me and I was sprawled face down in the dirt. I should have been more cautious, but I could not let Brakas get out of my sight. I made a mistake and now I am paying for it.”