Sam Barone: Eskkar & Bracca

Zuma shook his head. “We must go, Iltani. Think of the children. Katha will kill us, but he’ll make slaves of them, if he lets them live.”

“Go if you want, Zuma. Take the others. But my children and I will stay.”

The determined line of her jaw told Eskkar that she meant her words. “Iltani, you can’t stay. Your children will need you. .”

“You once fought against many men when you were little more than a boy, Eskkar. Now you’re a man. Can’t you and your friend stand up to these murderers?”

Bracca moved beside Eskkar. “Zuma told us that ten, perhaps more, will be here by midmorning, Iltani. In a fight, anything can happen. He said that some of those coming will carry bows. We can’t risk our lives against those odds, not when you can simply leave. Eskkar and I will protect you until we reach the next village.”

“No! I will not leave my farm. Better to die here. When Katha rides up to my house, I will kill him myself.”

Even before she finished, Eskkar glanced at Bracca. He, too, had caught the words. “What do you mean, when he rides up? Does he have a horse?” As far as he and Bracca knew, there wasn’t a horse within fifty miles.

“Of course! Do you think the owner of the biggest farms in the land would ride a cow?”

“How many horses will they have?” Bracca’s gentle tone did nothing to calm down Iltani.

“What does it matter? You won’t be here.”

“How many, Zuma?” Eskkar, too, wanted to know.

“Katha rides a fine stallion,” Zuma said. “And each of his three sons also has a good horse.”

Bracca touched Eskkar’s arm. “We need to talk. Alone.”

Eskkar followed Bracca away from the house, walking until they were a good fifty paces from Iltani and her family.

“What do you think?” Eskkar wasted no time. “Four horses? Is it worth the risk?”

“I don’t want to spend six months working like some farm animal,” Bracca said, “trying to save enough coins to buy some miserable excuse for a horse. If we can’t steal horses from some clumsy farmer, we deserve to walk another hundred miles.”

“We could raid his farm tomorrow night,” Eskkar mused. “We get the family away, and let him take Iltani’s farm. By nightfall, he’ll be so happy we could slip in and steal the horses.”

“Maybe. But the horses will be guarded, and Katha will have farm dogs as well. And we’ll have to hide in the fields during the day. If we’re spotted, Takcanar will use his bowmen and run us down. Here, the horses will come to us, with halters, and ready to ride. All we need to do is kill this Katha and his sons. And from what Zuma says, no one will be eager to avenge their deaths. This is better than anything we’ll find up north.”

“It might work,” Eskkar said. “They won’t be expecting trouble.” He took a deep breath. “We’ll have to kill Takcanar, and probably the bowmen. The rest will run.”

“We’ll need to get them off the horses somehow,” Bracca said. “If they see us waiting for them. . can’t let them just ride away at the first sign of trouble.”

“How are we going to do that? They won’t dismount if there’s a hint of danger. They’ll just gallop away.”

Bracca rubbed his jaw, as he thought the problem over. “What’s the one thing that will get every man off his horse?”

Eskkar glanced back toward the main house, where the little group waited in silence, all eyes on the two strangers. “Mmm, that might work. We’d need some luck. But we’ve got time to prepare, and I’m sure Iltani will do whatever we ask.” He turned his gaze back to Bracca. “Are you willing to risk it? Ten against two?”

“A quick fight or a long walk? If we can’t capture at least two horses, we deserve to be killed on some miserable farm. Besides, you’ll be helping your woman, who will no doubt be appreciative afterwards.”

“Iltani will help,” Eskkar said. “And perhaps Zuma, too. It might be their best chance to keep their farm, and for us to get some horses.”

“Then it’s settled.” Bracca took a deep breath. “Friend Eskkar, if you’re willing to fight for your woman, then I’m ready to stand at your side. Or behind you, since that’s usually safer.” He clapped Eskkar on the shoulder. “Let’s give Iltani the good news.”

“And we better start thinking how to do this, friend Bracca,” Eskkar said. “It’s not going to be easy.”

“When a man loves a woman, nothing is ever easy.”

Eskkar jabbed his fist at Bracca’s arm, but the laughing Sumerian had already stepped out of reach.

Eskkar, Bracca, Iltani, and Zuma worked until it grew too dark to see anything outside. By then, Eskkar and Bracca had sketched out a plan, and made their preparation. Zuma and Iltani would play a role, as would the other woman, whose name was Tiba. She didn’t have Iltani’s quick wits, but she seemed determined enough, though she refused to take orders from anyone but Iltani.

Bracca and Zuma had fashioned two spears from some straight branches. Zuma produced two dull copper knives, and Bracca sharpened their tips, then removed the blades from their handles. Zuma carved a deep groove on the end of each shaft, then wedged in the blade. Strips of tightly wound linen then fastened the blades securely.

As weapons, they wouldn’t last long, but a thrust or two might be all that was needed. At least the spears would give Zuma and Iltani a chance to hold off anyone armed with a sword for a few moments.

Iltani and Eskkar pulled some of the wooden staves from the ceiling of one of the huts. Then they created two crude shields by binding the narrow wooden staves against two crosspieces, tying everything together with the small length of rope that Iltani supplied. More linen strips, cut from her dead husband’s tunic, helped hold each shield together.

Again, the flimsy shields didn’t need to last, as long as they could stop an arrow or two. If they had to withstand more, like a stroke from a sword, Eskkar and Bracca would be in trouble. Even so, they had formed simple thrusting weapons and shields before, so both men moved with efficiency.

Devising weapons and preparing themselves for battle were tasks that didn’t take either man long. They had readied themselves for a fight so often that they instinctively knew how to seek out the best locations and come up with the best tactics. As for being outnumbered, only Takcanar looked like a serious fighter. Katha and his sons might have some fighting skills, but likely had little or no experience using them.

Bracca and Eskkar went over the plan with Iltani. They showed her where to stand, told her what to say, and when to run. She and Zuma would have to do their share. To Eskkar’s surprise, Iltani seemed almost eager to confront Katha and his men. Zuma, too, now preferred to fight rather than run. Aside from being their home, a rich farmstead like this was worth defending.

Eskkar and Zuma circled the farm, studying the approaches. Katha’s men would come from the east, not from Norvel and the south. Eskkar wanted to see what they would see, and how they would guide their horses to the farm. Finally he grunted in satisfaction. He and Bracca would be outnumbered, but that disadvantage could be reduced by the element of surprise, and the speed and savagery of their attack. Yes, he decided, the plan might work, though they were still going to need some luck.

At last they completed their preparations. The cooking fires had burned for some time, and the old woman had butchered four chickens, cut them up, and made a hearty stew for everyone. A real feast, considering that they all might be dead soon. Afterward, Eskkar took his ease, his belly comfortably full for the first time in many days. The night remained warm, a perfect night to sleep underneath the stars.