Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The clear water of the stream cooled Roka’s shins as she stood holding her sword in a relaxed grip over her head. Her eyes closed and her breathing steady, she waited. A breeze dried the sweat on her brow. The sun warmed her shoulders through her wrappings. Her internal rhythm told her she had been standing still in the stream for an hour. A wooden bucket full of water and nothing else sat on the shore nearby. It was just her and the virtues of the earth.

It would be a long time before she had another chance to be so alone again.

A splash disturbed the water to her right. She pivoted and cut down with her sword, slicing into the stream and across the trunk of a servalfish that had just snatched an insect out of the air. The fish lost its head and Roka opened her eyes, snagging her catch out of the water before it could wash away.

Fish in hand, Roka trudged to the shore, where she dropped it in the bucket and then dried her sword with a small towel. The sun was growing stronger. Morning would quickly become early afternoon, and Roka’s master would soon be finished with his business in town. She sheathed her sword, picked up her bucket, and set off toward town.

Her fishing spot was a mile from the inn she and her master had rented for the night. It was a pleasant walk. Her sandals kept her feet cool and, once she was out of the trees, the wind grew only slightly stronger. It ruffled her loose brown wrappings and cooled her neck. Her hair stayed in place, wrapped in two tight buns.

The land around her was flat except for a handful of short buildings in the near distance. Fields of growing maize and millet surrounded her. On her way into town, she passed a few of the farmers hunched among their crops, pulling out weeds or checking for parasites. They all stood up from their work to wave at her, recognizing the wrappings that clothed her and the security her presence exuded. Roka waved back, trying not to spill her fish. She passed a few slaves as well and stopped to check on them, making sure their masters were not overstepping the bounds of the law.

The wind only became oppressive as she entered town, and then it was mostly blocked by homes and workshops. A few of the townspeople were out and about, well-entrenched into the day and going about errands. Most stopped to greet Roka, nodding or bowing their heads, but never engaging in conversation. Those who got close enough to make out the details of her face were hasty in following their greetings with a departure. Some even seemed fearful as they quickly walked away, but Roka did not mind.

She took note of the few new houses that had been abandoned. Perhaps half of the buildings in the town were not in use. They remained in good repair thanks to the work of the maintenance guild, but their looming emptiness left a gloomy scar on the face of the town.

As Roka approached the inn, a young girl came running out of the adjoining stables. Jagged azure lines ran vertically above and below her eyes. Similar markings streaked across the skin of her forearms. The coloration, almost like thin tattooing, confirmed she had contracted and survived the Ensign’s Pox. Roka had similar markings above her eyes like featherless wings. They didn’t show on her arms but ran down the sides of her legs instead.

The girl stopped in front of her with a smile that was missing a front baby tooth.

“Da-Roka!” she said. “Did you catch a lot of fish?”

“Good morning, Imasa,” Roka said, kneeling down. “I only caught the one. Would you like to see?”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

She set the bucket down in front of Imasa. The water sloshed an inch up the side of the wood and the fish bobbed up and down. The little girl giggled, crouching down to get a closer look.

“Big!” Imasa exclaimed. “Did you catch it in the air?”

“Not this time,” Roka said. “I wasn’t fast enough. Do you think your mother will preserve him for me?” Roka asked. She and her master had one more long day on the road ahead of them, and the fish would make for a nice addition to that night’s supper.

“Let me do it,” Imasa demanded. “I can prepare fish too!”

“Okay, you can do it. Just make sure your mother watches you.” Roka looked up at the front of the inn. “Is Master Yusubru inside?”

“Ugu-Yusu left a little while ago,” Imasa said. She paused and looked up from the fish. “I don’t know where.”

Roka frowned. She had thought her master would be waiting for her. They needed to depart soon, or the cart hired to carry them to the capital would leave without them. The hairs on her arms stood up ever so slightly. Her master’s business should have kept him inside the inn. He had just needed to settle an account with Imasa’s mother, the innkeeper. Roka didn’t like it when he wandered off without telling her.

“Can you take him inside?” Roka asked, picking up the bucket and handing it to Imasa.

The girl nodded vigorously and clutched the bucket handle with both hands. She waddled back toward the inn and Roka stood up.

She scanned the wooden buildings around her, trying to determine where her master might have gone. The inn was at the center of a three-way intersection, almost at the heart of the town. Once Imasa was inside, Roka picked a direction and started walking.

As she walked, she peered into windows and listened for noises that weren’t likely to be a part of a normal early afternoon in the town. She stopped a few of the townspeople to ask if they had seen her master. They were initially put off by her approach but quickly warmed up to her and said they hadn’t seen any sign of Master Yusubru.

She reached the edge of the town again and found the open-topped cart she and her master had engaged to carry them to the capital for the Breaking Fast festival. The cart owner sat in the driver's seat, reins in hand. The horse at the front of the cart looked content to stand in place, but the owner was more anxious. Merchants were usually more comfortable on the road, and this one had his azure pox mark at the sides of his eyes, making them look wider and more uncomfortable in their expressiveness.

“You’re here,” he said. “Where’s the other one?”

“Have you seen my master this morning?” Roka asked.

The merchant shook his head. “Just you.”

“Apologies. We will be ready for departure soon.”

She had picked the wrong street. She started back in the direction she had come, getting more nervous that her master was up to something he shouldn’t be. It was hard to find trouble in a small town this close to the capital, but he would certainly be able to ferret it out.

Halfway back to the intersection with the inn, she stopped in the middle of the street. There was a commotion in one of the houses that fronted the street. It grew louder as pots and plates crashed somewhere just inside the front door. Roka watched and waited, hoping she was just hearing a simple kitchen accident but dreading something worse.

The front door burst open and a man she did not know came running out. His feet were bare, and blood ran down the crown of his head, obscuring a pox mark that shaded the upper lids of his eyes. It made him appear to be looking down when he was staring straight ahead. He stopped on the front step to lock eyes with Roka and then he ran around the side of the house. Roka let him go.

A few seconds later, Master Yusubru jumped through the door. He had his sword in his hand and his eyes were alight with anger. Thin pox marks striated his cheeks like running tears. He checked left and right, his long gray hair swinging in his face. His eyes landed on Roka.

“Where did he go?”

Roka pointed in the direction the man had gone. “Behind the house and to the right.”

“And you didn’t pursue?”

“What has he done?”

“Never mind that. I’ll follow him. You cut him off.”

Master Yusubru went running after the man, careless to see if Roka moved to follow his orders. She sighed and looked back in the direction where the cart waited for them. It would probably leave without them now. No matter, they could walk, and whoever this man was, he probably needed to be caught. At the very least, he needed to be saved from her master.