Missed
me? I know you didn't. heh. I was surfing around and I realized I hadn't even uploaded
everything I had written yet (much less written anything new in six months). Maybe this will get me inspired again.
Author's Note:
This fanfic is set in the distant past, Tortall. Some content belongs to Tamora Pierce, and other content I have taken liberties with. If you are concerned with what belongs to me and what belongs to Tamora Pierce, please email me at cyclepinsetter@yahoo.com
Eight
Ellie.
The
voice was all too familiar. Her
voice rang out in the night like a clarion call. She spoke calmly, but to him she was screaming. The soft memories that had lapped at
his heels before now enveloped him strongly and without warning. He looked up from his downcast gaze at
the undergrowth and—
He was
met with the cool gaze of a stranger. Ellie was speaking, but Yoric's ears were hearing only his own
thoughts. Who was the young man
standing next to her? Ellie,
what have you brought us?
"Yoric?" There was concern in her voice. He could barely detect it above the
rushing in his ears. He would not
pass out however. He was beyond
that. He forced himself to meet
her eyes. When he met her gaze in
the torchlight the pain was evident to her, but she said nothing.
"Ellie…"
But he was at a loss for words. Not even a distance and practiced response escaped his lips. So much for appearing cool.
There
was concern in her eyes. She spoke
to her companion, but Yoric did not register the words. Their lips were moving. Yoric struggled with coherence once
again, and finally made it to the surface of consciousness.
"The
camp is this way." He barely had
the strength to lift his arm to point in camp's direction. "If you wish, I will lead you
there." He bowed his head.
"Yoric…"
Ellie furrowed her brow. "There's
something wrong?" In the dim light
her eyes flickered over.
As
long as our people remain islands unto themselves, you will never die in peace.
Yoric's
eyes were suddenly clear. His
chin, which was falling earthward, snapped up to meet Ellie's eyes again. "We are being attacked from the north." His voice rang out clear in the cool
night air. "Our troops are weary
from constant battling. We cannot
fight by ourselves anymore."
Ellie
and her companion listened solemnly. A soldier broke ranks behind them and pushed pass the two, coming
forward to address Yoric.
"We are
here to help you. We can
help you." The girl's striking
dark eyes shone defiantly as she stared directly into Yoric's eyes. She was carrying a simple spear, but
she but she wielded it with a grip fit for a broad axe. The girl's eyes shifted to Ellie and
her companion. "Tell him,
Instructor Conte. We are yours to
command and we are ready to fight until the enemy is no longer." She spoke these words fiercely, without
a tinge of mercy in her voice. It
was at this moment Ellie's army was revealed. Five hundred soldiers stood behind them, all women, clothed
in armor that was traditionally adorned by men, and wielding spears, swords,
axes, and bows with equal strength and agility.
Ellie
spoke a few words to her companion and nodded, turning a steady gaze to Yoric.
"Then,
General Yoric. We are yours to
command."
* * *
Ethan's
knees almost gave way as he gazed the horde of 500 soldiers rushing over the
Southern ridge and into the valley. The Conte forces were no match for 500 hundred more fresh men. No! He would never stop fighting! Ethan violently defended himself from a blow from a
broadsword and viciously knocked the offender to the ground, running him
through. He wouldn't die until the
last breath had gone from his body, until the last ounce of blood had escaped him.
A
shimmer of red hovered over the approaching band of soldiers. Red and Gold. Could it be? red and Gold were Conte's own colors. And he could bet that Yoric was commanding the force. But where did he find the extra troops…?
A swift
blow from an axe almost decapitated him, but Ethan anticipated the blow and
leaped out of the way in a split second, tumbling to the ground. He managed to avoid the blade again,
sending its wielder to the ground to wrestle with Ethan. After a short struggle, Ethan furtively
found his dagger and jabbed blindly as a mixture of mud and blood filled his
eyes. At last his assailant fell
limp and Ethan staggered to his feet. Yoric's fleet was now upon the battlefield. Ethan wiped his eyes as his ears rang with a sharp battle
cry. Ellie.
Yoric
was suddenly before him, stumbling forward. The sounds of thundering blades filled his ears anew. He could faintly hear Yoric calling his
name.
"Ethan! Quickly!" Yoric was unwrapping a linen bundle in his hands. He shoved it into Ethan's empty
hands. Ethan beheld an amethyst
sparkle amongst the white folds. The new soldiers surrounded him, forming a protective circle.
"What…what
is this?" Ethan screamed in
question, studying the purple object. For a moment it seemed like Yoric had been lost in the confusion.
"A gift
from the Gods." Yoric was beside
him once more. "To unite the
kingdom and bring peace and prosperity." A challenging cry rose up from the Northern attackers. Ethan's circle surged ahead.
"How…how
do I use it?"
"I
dunno…just…" The crowds carried Yoric away again.
Ethan
held the jewel in his hands and felt nothing. It was slightly warm from Yoric's body heat but it carried
no heat of its own. Ethan took a
deep breath and closed his eyes.
There
was only darkness. He opened his
eyes again.
"This
is my kingdom." He said
aloud. "I was born to rule these
lands and that is what I shall do. And I shall see it that no man, woman or child feels the effects of
poverty, or war, or hunger ever again. The lands will be green once more, farms will produce bushels upon
bushels of goods, and the land will thrive." He thought he felt a bit of heat emanating from the jewel.
He
closed his eyes once again, and there was a pinprick of light in the vast
darkness. Ethan focused his mind
on that tiny point of light, trusting his outside environment to the
surrounding troops.
This
light is hope in our world. At the
beginning it was only a spot, a tiny fleck of light in the darkness. When my father was killed, that pinprick
almost faded out completely, but when Yoric and I took command of Conte's
troops, the light became a torch, illuminating our little force and bringing
light to our tiny corner of the world. As the battle raged, the light would flicker and grow, but the victories
outnumbered the defeats and the light prevailed. Ellie's troops illuminated the battlefield, but we still
cannot see beyond the hills. This
jewel is meant to bring the world into light. With light there is knowledge. With knowledge there is a greater hope for peace.
And as
these thoughts coursed through Ethan's mind, the picture grew behind his closed
eyes. He saw that last day on the
mountaintop, his last day as a carefree boy, hanging on Yoric's every word, and
tagging along at his boot heels. He saw beyond the mountain, into the valley, no longer dulled by the
aftermath of battle, but green and full of exuberant life. The light was spreading rapidly now,
uncovering forgotten lakes and rivers, stretching north to the highest peaks
where it was said that the Gods reside, south, across the vast burnout desert,
the heat of which could burn up an entire army. The light extended west, to the green coastal hills, and to
the white sandy beaches of the ocean, and west, across the plains, winding through
rivers and coursing through the deepest of lakes into hill country. As far as his mind's eye could see, the
land glowed with rich light. But
his vision was not at an end. Next
came the animals. First the
rodents and the reptiles, creeping and scurrying through the tall grasses and
the damp riverbeds, and then came the fish, filling the waters. The air was alive with birds and
insects, fluttering around. Foxes
and wolves prowled the forests as deer flitted by. Last came the humans. Wide-eyed and beaming, the humans looked up to the sky and thanked their
Gods. Ethan's last vision was that
of a great city, on the banks of a river, surrounded by a forest on one side,
and a great structure of stone perched on a hill. There was a man dressed in velvet with a crown of gold on
his head. Ethan squinted at the
man's face…
But the
vision became too overpowering, and the light that was welcoming before
strained his eye and overloaded his visual synapses. His eyes opened and he blinked. The vision was gone. In its place was the ruin of the battle-scarred landscape. But the fighting had stopped. Ethan looked down at the stone in his
hand, now unremarkably dull in his bloodstained hands.
"Ethan…"
That was Ellie's voice he heard. He turned numbly.
But she
was hugging him, and he could not hold back his emotion no matter how tired he
was.
"Happy
to see me?" Her voice sounded
sickeningly cheery. He couldn't
see her face, but he could guess she was grinning like an idiot.
An
idiot who had just helped win a war for him.
"That's
an understatement." He hugged her
tightly and drew back. She was
smiling, and the corners of his mouth twitched up disobediently and soon he was
smiling as well. Soon they were
laughing and jesting like old times, but under the surface there was much to be
discussed.
Yoric
appeared over a hill, conversing with a dark haired young man with a limp.
"Who's
that?" Ethan said wearily. Ellie grinned. "You don't recognize Yorrie?" Ethan elbowed her.
"Actually,
I probably wouldn't have recognized him." She spoke slowly, with a tinge of sadness. She shook her head and returned to her smiling self. "That's Connor. He's helped me with training the girls."
"Girls?" Ethan furrowed his brow. "I thought you would have started
making sense by now Ellie."
Ellie
snorted. "Your heros? The ones that saved you?"
"The
soldiers? What about them?"
"We
call ourselves Warrior Maidens. You would do well to remember that, right Connor?" Connor and Yoric were within hearing
range.
Connor
grinned. "Yes, whatever
Instructor." He cleared his
throat. "Five hundred Warrior
Maidens and one crippled camp straggler."
"We
couldn't have done anything without the crippled camp straggler." Ellie hugged him tightly. "Are the settlers from Naxen safe? No problems?" She didn't let go of him. Connor nodded.
"Didn't
even catch a glimpse of battle. They've set up camp on the banks of the river. Looks like the ideal place for a new settlement."
Ethan listened to these words carefully, nodding. "That's not such a bad idea."