The Seekers: Soul Ties. Anton Anderson
retaliate that far!»
Sabiri met her gaze but said nothing. Her eyes kept searching for something, her crossed hands kept squeezing her arms, her facial expression kept on shifting slightly, but she couldn’t say a word.
«I don’t want any blood,» Star finally answered. «But first of all, I need to secure our future. You know we cannot just pack up and leave. A population this size needs much more food and protection that we can secure fast enough. And we cannot stay in this seclusion. Jaesa refused all the options I’ve offered lately, so all we have left is force.»
«So, is it a blockade or a siege?»
«Siege,» Sabiri answered. «Blockading them would take too much time and would be too dangerous. If too many soldiers would take part, our villages would be unprotected. And if too few soldiers were to surround Drowners, they would try to counterattack.»
Her words made sense, but Iskrila didn’t feel any better about it. In fact, she felt even worse, for her imagination started painting the most unfortunate turns of events.
«Wait,» Iskrila asked, «what «villages’?»
«All of them.» Star joined them at the window. «Vapors and Scarlets really want this to end.»
«And you think Drowners would attack such an armada?»
«I don’t care.» Sabiri shook her head. «The possibility is there, so I cannot risk it. Besides, just a few of them need to escape. With the amount of money they could’ve gathered in their raids, they could afford mercenaries. What would they attack then? Our flanks? Our homes? Why would I risk it? It’s way safer to gather as many soldiers as possible from all the villages, quickly beat Drowners into submission, then return to guard our own walls ASAP.»
Iskrila tried to remember those numbers on the map. That would be about half a thousand soldiers on the field. She knew for a fact that it would be nothing, that the attackers needed three times as many people than the defenders. But Sabiri must’ve known that as well!
«We still won’t have enough people for a siege,» Iskrila voiced her concern. «We would need at least twice as many soldiers as you’ve scribed on the map!»
«Only if we were to climb the walls.»
«But you said siege!»
«We believe it’s possible to destroy the wall. Without it, Drowners would be at a disadvantage. Hopefully, they would realize that and just surrender.»
«And how would we destroy it?»
«This is where you come in.» Sabiri smiled. «Flaming arrows are certainly beautiful during festivities, but they are also destructive.»
Iskrila’s jaw dropped when she heard that. Sabiri was joking, she thought. No, not joking, but mistaken. That would never work! The logs that built the wall were too thick to set aflame with pesky little arrows!
Star smiled too, seeing Iskrila’s confused face. «We know what you’re thinking. It could work. A hundred thousand arrows, raining at the wall constantly, should be enough to heat it up. Even if it doesn’t catch ablaze, there would still be smoke. We could manage to scare Drowners enough to evacuate, especially if enough smoke appeared.»
More and more questions popped up in Iskrila’s head, but most of them she immediately answered herself. It didn’t bring her any closure or comfort, but what other option should she offer? What was safer? What was faster? What was at least as good? A minute passed, and Iskrila still didn’t have the answer.
«It’ll take a while to get ready, and a lot of work. Drowners could see something, could hear something,» Iskrila said.
Star reassured her. «The moment Drowners learn it, we would also know. It’s not ideal, and it is hard to pull off, but it wouldn’t be the first time we fought with a quill and some ink.»
Iskrila made another heavy sigh, but she didn’t have a better plan.
«Alright,» Iskrila said. «Let’s do it.»
Vigilance and prudence
Ouch! Why do those stupid bushes have thorns on them? Sabiri licked a drop of blood from her finger. Paranoid, she checked once again that her horns were nicely hidden behind the bush, then carefully moved the branches just enough to see through. Today should be their last reconnaissance mission before the attack, so she’d better be careful.
«Two guards in front of the gates, four are patrolling on the wall…» Sabiri counted. «All as usual. I hardly ever see their people patrolling outside.»
Greta, Poinistan’s war mistress, pushed her aside to take a look. «Well, it’s easier for us, then! No surprises mean minimal casualties. Hopefully.»
Sabiri made another opening for herself. The distance to the village was considerable. Aside from a few bushes scattered around, there was no cover.
«I can’t hear them. So, hopefully our arrival should come unnoticed,» Sabiri said.
Shai, Imbralestan’s war mistress, sat down nearby and examined the view. «I’m a bit worried about our boats. Once they come close enough to the pier, the wall would hide them from sight. We wouldn’t see the situation there.»
Greta sighed. «Yeah, that sucks, but it should also be the easiest part of the assault.»
Shai answered something, but Sabiri wasn’t listening. A wagon appeared from the forest ahead of them. Instead of going straight, it turned on the crossroad towards Imbrergoso. Then it stopped. Did they miss their turn? Apparently so, for the wagon turned back and went around the village.
«Greta, you think that wagon aimed to reach your tribe?» Sabiri asked.
«Fucking idiots!» Greta shook her fist at the wagon. «No way they haven’t heard the news! Why did we dispatch additional warnings everywhere we could? So everyone ignored them? Look at those Drowners!»
The Drowners guarding the wall had already gathered together and were now watching the wagon slowly leaving their lands, creaking without enough oil on its axis.
Shai whispered, «It’s almost teasing them! I guess we should be glad they don’t constantly seek prey and sometimes just relax behind their walls.»
Sabiri wrinkled her long nose in a grimace. «Don’t you remind me about that shit! Those… those… Well, at least this will be over soon.»
Shai stood up and looked around, though she couldn’t see much in the middle of all these plants and vegetation.
«Where will the command be located? I can barely see what’s twenty meters ahead of me,» she asked.
«There’s a place; it’s almost an elevation…» Sabiri started to speak.
Shai interrupted her. «Almost? Well, great!»
«At least it’s right in front of the gates! We’ll manage,» Sabiri finished.
Greta laughed. «We can climb a tree or something. Come on, it’ll be a good enough view if it’s in front of the gates.»
Trying not to leave too many hoofprints on the soft soil, the group returned to the scouts who were standing back as lookouts.
«I heard you saw some animal traps nearby?» Sabiri asked one of them.
«Yes, mistress, I can show you,» said an Imbralestan scout.
The procession followed her. There was a little opening between the trees. Too many fallen leaves in that spot, and they definitely weren’t from the trees nearby. The scout came closer and carefully revealed the trap beneath its disguise. It was definitely intended for someone big.
«You’ve marked the spots on the map, I trust?» Sabiri asked as she knelt down to take a better look.
«Of course she did!» Shai said. «She’s one of our best scouts!»
«Have you found