The Thousand Mile Meadows

D

eserted. Miles and miles of deserted land dogged our march and more stretched before us. A strange and unsettling thing it was to behold…the absence of life. Of human and animal presence there were none. Abodes and communities once crawling with life lay vacant and desolated. The company had gone silent over the last half mile, our voices lost in the oppressive and eerie stillness of the thousand mile meadows. We had planned to make camp on the second leg of our march but the Captain had had the order rescinded. A hundred other soldiers and I couldn’t help but agree with her decision. There was something terribly wrong about this place. The air hung too heavy, the fog too still. Tarr had once grunted that we walked through a painting, I agreed. Everything was too still. A group of our most talented magi had undertaken a questing to uncover the spell that held this place bound. They had returned ashen faced and a shade paler.  They could detect no malaise or sinister arfa at work but they had all felt something. Something so utterly alien they risked their sanity trying to uncover it. They all agreed however that it had no interest in us but rather than reassuring us, their comments served to buttress the strain on our frayed nerves. Mutiny was fast becoming an option entertained by some squads. I could see it in the eyes of the men, could hear it behind every footfall dropped harshly in our march. Supplies had depleted faster in our haste to leave the haunted meadows behind. I had to talk to the Captain before it became too late, but about what? We had covered half the distance already, turning back now was suicide. Our food reserves were already being rationed our only salvation lay in the camp of the main army that awaited us at the end of the meadow. Our only choice was to push forward through this nightmare reality. I still felt I had to let the Captain know something. I decided to pass on my concerns to the Lieutenant. She was in the best position to approach the captain seeing as I was but a mere grunt. Needless to say, I wouldn’t be doing myself any favors should things fall through with a mutiny and I was caught in the vicinity of the Captain’s tent. We were already in a precarious position because the Captain damn her pretty head, had played favorites with her squads.

I strolled warily down the flanks searching for my squad, hating myself for always straying away from them during the day marches. I found them soon enough. They were barely keeping up with the stragglers. The trio of the Dune brothers, Frost, Ned and Reki led the squad, Nep and Tarr came shortly behind, Nep was perched on the big Nords’ shoulders clutching a bottle of that foul smelling stuff he brewed. Leoni and the Lieutenant walked abreast of the Nord. The warmagus was unusually quiet but then again so was the whole army. I guess it had more to do more with what he had sensed than with the solemnity of the company. The Lieutenant on the other hand had her short blades out and was making a show of flicking them between her fingers with blurring speed. Deyija was unquestionably the most deadly blade holder I’d had the displeasure of meeting. Her sanity was possibly the only questionable aspect of her character but if anything she was a good team leader and also had a good nose for trouble.  Klaws and Ifae brought up the rear. Ifae was our newest addition to the squad since our last squad healer decided to bail on us and transfer to the fourth. The scarcity of healers among the squads was no new development. The healing arfa arts were extremely difficult to master and their services did not come cheap. The most talented of healers were often human-fae half breeds. Ifae had joined our squad on high recommendation from Efae Harvern, squad healer of the sixth.  They both had attended the same war college in the far northern region of Eurani situated on the outer provinces of Kharvina. Apart from that she was like every other halfae, golden haired and blue eyed with inhuman grace, strength and beauty. Frankly I was glad for the addition as the only other female in our squad was an unhinged psychopath with an unhealthy penchant for cutting things. The halfae was more than a welcome addition amongst the guys which said a lot.

I passed the Dune brothers who were engrossed in some inaudible argument no doubt about which of them had the bigger pee shooter. Nep threw his foul brew at me but his aim was horrible. The bottle smacked against Reki’s head and its contents spilled over the trio. Nep was shortly nowhere to be found. A few seconds of cursing and spitting passed then the brothers were hot on his elusive tail, the stench from the putrid brew parting crowds in their wake.

The Lieutenant watched them go, a bored expression on her face. She finally seemed to notice me waiting.

“What is it now Nhil? And this time it better be worth my time”

I was hurt; I didn’t think I was that much of a bother and certainly not to the Lieutenant. 

She played her signature mind reading trick, her face transforming to an expression of extreme sadness and worry..
“Aww did I hurt the little soldier’s feelings?” 

I didn’t give her the benefit “I’ve got some concerns regarding the march sir” 

Not waiting for her to prepare another verbal barb, I pressed on “Moral is in the pits and I think the Captain needs to do something about it. I have a strong feeling that Gedler’s second, Hienza’s fourth, Sedah’s fifth and that big Gite up at seventh are gearing up to make a move before sundown"

The Lieutenant cocked her head. I had mentally steeled myself for her notorius tongue lashing that I was near disappointed when it failed to come.

She replied in barely a whisper “You’re mostly right Nhil except on one thing, the second, fourth and seventh aren’t the only squads with turncoat ambitions”

For a second my heart stopped. Had I overlooked something? Could Deyija be planning on turning against the Captain herself? If so just how many in the squad would fight with her? Tarr, Nep, Ifae? The Dune brothers, Klaws, the magus Leoni? I had no answer. Any of them could have reasons for betraying the Captain. If so…I had already damned myself.  I stepped back, my hand reaching for my blade.

The Lieutenant chuckled, “don’t be so hard on yourself Nhil. You have little to fear from us. You know as well as any that we swear absolute fealty to the Captain” 

She turned to Leoni and nodded. The Magus made arcane gestures and I felt the air around our squad grow heavy. My ears popped, this was war grade conceal arfa. 

The Lieutenant spoke freely “We have little time; I already sent the Dunes ahead to strengthen the first squad and…” 

I was interrupted “But you just saw them… they left now, trying to get back at Nep for throwing his…oh…I see” 

How could I miss it? Nep could be a little eccentric with his pranks but they never involved throwing away his precious brew. He loved the foul poison like a child. It had been a ruse to keep potential watchers off their real aim. I couldn’t help but be saddened, if the company had become this dangerous, there was nothing the Captain could do to hold it together again short of offering her head and even then blood would still be spilled before dusk and not a drop of it would belong to the enemy.

The Lieutenant let me run through my thoughts then continued “As it stands, the Captain just has the first, we the ninth and parts of the Nhoner’s sixth.  However, it would be impossible for the third, eight and tenth to remain neutral once the fighting starts”

Klaws snorted and spat, his face twisted in disgust “I say she cut them off right now, the thought of bleeding someone always excites me but I’ve shared many a campfire with many a soldier from other squads”

Deyija nodded “As have many of us, cutting them off would have been best but there’s the problem of location and supply. We are more or less in the last half of the thousand mile meadows. By my guess,going forward we have roughly five hundred miles between us and the next supply depot. Even more miles lay behind us in land empty of water or food. We cannot forage of the land for there is nothing of it, it is no secret that the meadows are bereft of all that should supports life” pausing she tossed a short blade into the earth. It sank to its hilt. 

Leoni spoke, his tone as if quoting from a tome long ancient "barren, the land lies dry of moisture yet the plants thrive but not on water...never on water" 

I fought back a shiver

The Lieutenant continued, but even she couldn't hide well the edge that crept into her voice “The only way they can survive if the Captain cuts them off is if they take a substantial part of our supplies with them and we both know that would doom us long before we arrive at the ressuply depot”

The Lieutenant had uncharacteristically spoken at length and she wasn’t one known for her brevity, I guess she was as badly shaken as we were. None of us signed up to kill our brothers and we had no illusions how the day was going to end up.

A quirky voice broke the silence that stretched after the Lieutenant had spoken.
“Well, glad to see everyone’s hale and hearty, almost expected to find you lot as crow fodder” 

We all turned to watch Nep make his was towards us, he carried a large bag and grunted from its weight. Grudgingly, Tarr helped him ease the load off his back. I stood aside to give the Lieutenant room as she made her to the mystery bag.

“Took you long enough” said the Lieutenant as she reached down and proceeded to open the bag.

Curiosity got the better of me and I edged closer for a look. Within lay a king’s ransom of jewels and gold.

“By the sweet tits of the godess Galloran!” I swore softly, a low whistle emanated from Tarr and even the usually stoic warmagus had his jaw betray him. The Lieutenant seemed satisfied. She closed the bag and frowned when she saw disappointment in our eyes. 

“This here is to buy the services of the fence sitters, the third, the eight and the tenth respectively. Courtesy of the Captain herself” 

I disagreed “There’s no guarantee that they won’t take the gold and still attack us”

The Lieutenant sounded pleased “That’s the idea, Nhil dearest. They take the gold and whatever happens next happens” 

Ifae long silent seemed to understand the Lieutenant’s train of thought. She smiled, shaking her head softly, she mused “The Captain is a very scary person”. 

She and the Lieutenant shared a smile and chuckled.
I couldn’t help but think that the scary ones were right in front of me.

The Lieutenant paused. Cocked an ear as if listening for something “Shit! it’s starting! Nhil and Tarr take vanguard, Klaws you form a wall for the warmagus, Leoni you do what you do best but don’t hurt them too bad, we once called these men brothers. Ifae and I will cover the rear. Nep get this loot to the appropriate hands before it’s too late then meet us at our predetermined location like we discussed”

Nep nodded, Tarr helped him with the bag and he vanished into thin air. One could trace his movements through soft footfalls and the dust he kicked up as he scuttled away.

Tarr took point, his twin broad great swords leading like metal appendages. 

I followed in his wake with my single edged tapered long sword. Its weight was finely balanced and rested comfortably in my grip. Leoni walked behind us, the air around him hummed with barely contained power and his eyes glowed a haunting shade of scarlet. I hate to admit it but he was one of the major reasons I wasn’t abandoning my post at vanguard. 

Apart from the ninth only one other squad in the whole company had an apostate of the supreme order and that was the third. Last I heard, they were still neutral, I prayed the remained so. Havinar Do’rathi put the fear of magi in the heart of the talentless. Leoni Vartrasi was her polar opposite, the young warmagus was mostly daydreaming when he wasn’t conjuring fire imps to wrestle each other for his entertainment.  Although new, everyone in the squad had quickly warmed up to him. Presently he did not look anything like the calm aloof warmagus we had come to know and taunt. I preferred him this way, all doom bringing and death dealing. Klaws strode along his flank occasionally switching position from his right side to his left. Ifae and Deyija brought up the rear which was fortunate. If they had picked vanguard, our eyes no doubt would have assaulted their jiggling rears until we were blindsided.   

Together we set out, members of the ninth. The light of day was almost gone but our journey into darkness had yet to begin.