Chương 11: Confusion

It was getting late in the evening, not quite sunset, on a hilltop close enough to see the smoke from the cooking hut. Twisting a fresh braid to replace a broken piece, I wait patiently for more little people to come visit. At some point I noticed a second and third stream of smoke join the first. With the way the Nasha and the Nel reacted to the dark, I don't believe I will be visited today. As I begin adding sticks to my fire I hear a scream and some shouting from the distance. I pause confused.

Never heard screaming before given the likelihood it would attract death in many forms back at home hole. Curious I decide to just walk to the village and see what's going on. I should be able to get there before dark and getting back to this hill doesn't look difficult at all. Things only got louder on my trip to the village and I slowed down worrying that I wouldn't be welcome at whatever they had happening.

Reminded that I'm just here to look, I climb a tree when I'm close and stare in confused horror at the scene.

Terran knew exactly why someone was screaming even before he made it out of the cook hut. Some of his fellow conscripts were bad news. And if he was able to just wonder into the village unmolested, then so were they. Peeking out of the hut he couldn't see much. There was some screaming from men and women coming from another side of the camp. And it was traveling rapidly from the far side towards the army camp. Realization came quickly.

How dangerous was his location if a fight broke out between the camp and the village? He's deep in the village and isn't even a fighter. As soon as he heard the first blades cross and screams of pain he turned and ran away from the battle he couldn't even see. He passed several huts that had kids and women peaking out with fearful eyes and they all hid from him as he ran. Thinking to himself he creates a plan. Into the woods, just far enough to be out of site.

Then wait for the commotion to end and circle back to the army camp. It's not cowardice, it's a tactical retreat!

Spilling out of the young woman's hut clutching his chest, one of the five wondering men rolls trying to find his footing to get to a healer.

"Fucking bitch stabbed me!" She seemed so innocent when he cornered her in the hut. He never saw the blade she had under her hide dress. Women who live out in the wilderness are hard. They work the land and clean the hunts alongside the men. These women are not the pampered and oppressed women the kingdoms care for. Kept from harm and given shiny bobbles and gossip to keep them happy. Those women can be forced. Those women are fearful of violence. These women are not the same.

When this buffoon of a man entered her hut while she was sleeping and forced himself on her while holding a hand over her mouth, she did what she thought necessary. She pulled her skinning knife, still with bits of fish scales on it, and stuck him with it. She didn't expect his reaction to be to punch her so hard she saw stars and collapsed. As she stumbled back upright holding the knife in the direction of the blurry silhouette she knew was him, he decided running was probably a better way to survive.

As soon as he stumbled out of the hut she decided to warn others of this threat. She screamed for help as loud as she could while stumbling herself to the exit of her small humble home. Two steps away from the hut he heard her scream. He turned fast and drew his sword to silence her before everyone in the village was on him. One swing. She wasn't a fighter. His full sized sword cleaved through her upraised arm and stuck in the side of her neck. With a gurgling cough her scream abruptly stopped.

And as she stumbled grasping at the sword he kicked her back through the hide door covering they both just came from. Then he sheathed his sword and ran. That will buy him some time to disappear into the camp of soldiers while the villagers investigate. He would get away. While he didn't get what he wanted, at least he wouldn't be executed for trying. He was entirely unaware that a hole in the lung would kill him faster than he could run.

Collapsing in between two huts he took deep gulping breaths until they got smaller. Then smaller. By the time villagers searched enough to stumble onto him gasping he was beyond their means to save. Not that they would. Nobody knew what was going on. His leathers hid the gash in his chest. He was just an armored stranger lying on his back gasping like a fish. What could they do for him? Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Minutes.

It only took minutes for people to find the source of the scream. Those who found the man gasping for air were not the same who found the woman dead in her hut. The pieces of this puzzle had not been put together. But hearing the scream being cut off from not far away the four other men knew their chance at fun was over and they needed to get back to camp and play dumb.

Stepping out of the hut a girl was dead in, one hunter was running to tell another when between huts he saw several armored strangers with swords sprinting away. Assuming they were attacking villagers he quickly threw his spear catching one in the thigh and dropping him. Then he pulled his bow from his back and chased the rest. All the while screaming for help. No single person had all the information. Chaos breads more chaos.

Before long soldiers were defending soldiers and hunters were fighting their presumed attackers. Everyone felt they were being attacked and were defending themselves.

Having left the elders hut with said elder right behind him Rictor yelled for a ceasefire.

"HOLD DAMNIT HOLD!! BACK OFF! EVERYONE HOLD!" The elder taking in the scene, raised his spear with old shaky hands. Believing his family and friends were being murdered by this army while the leadership distracted him. He shoved forward. Feeble from the years, his thrust didn't pierce the captains armor and glanced off. This was enough for the lieutenant watching and he drew his sword to defend his captain. Which led to the other older guards drawing weapons and a swift melee started.

Feeling the shove of a spear scraping his back plate Rictor spun on his heal and swung a hand at his attacker. Not knowing who it was he forced mana along the edge of his extended fingers and sliced while jumping away for better positioning. His slice caught the elders hand, severing it. And at the same time Lieutenant Jones swing, that would have ended the elder, was deflected by another spear from the side. Seeing the crazed melee beginning Rictor did the first thing he could think would stop everyone.

He grabbed the old man who was clutching his wrist to stop the flow of blood.

"I SAID HHHOOOOOLLLDDD!!!!" Everyone froze nearby in a steady ripple as people fighting further away processed the fighting was stopping. Holding the elder in front of him as a token to negotiate with he began demanding everyone drop their weapons. Even his own men. The soldiers fell back on following orders and the villagers fell back because they were heavily outnumbered.

A tense standoff held for what seemed like forever as Rictor, the elder, and several others yelled back and forth to figure out what was happening. Having no reason to believe the soldiers the hunters kept their guard raised. Knowing they wouldn't start a battle without the elders explicitly saying so they knew it had to be an attack. But they also knew if the army company wanted to end them it could.

Knowing they did not give any orders of attack, the captain and his team retreated with guard raised to asses the situation.

From the tree top, I could not understand what was happening. There were a lot of little people. But not so little I suppose. Maybe those two that found me in the wood were smaller than usual? Wait were they children? The realization came with force and I huff in annoyance. What I really did not understand was the bodies. Several dead and many more crawling around injured and bleeding. why would these people hurt their kin? Back in home hole we only went to visit others once since my litter was birthed.

Seeing five other people at once was the most I had ever experienced. Kept separate, numbers low, and stay quiet. These are the facts of life. I didn't really know what predators the adults in home hole always feared, but the possibility kept us in hiding. Families came together rarely in controlled numbers to exchange things and help each other. They dug the water hole away from everyone's hide hole too. So rarely we would see another single person coming or going to it. Never more than two.

This was so many people. I don't have a number for how many. Different coverings, some with clear critter skins and some with armor covers. No idea what that means as my kin don't wear much aside from armors and hides we craft for a purpose. Lots of sharp looking weapons too. Having never held a weapon other than father's big stick I don't really know what these are called. But they seem to work because several people are dead or dying in the dirt here.

Seeing movement by one hut, I swing my head to watch as an armored person swings his shinny weapon catching the others pointy stick and batting it aside to spin and punch the stick weilder in the head. Tilting my head to the side I wonder what these people would be fighting to the death over. Unaware and unattached to these people I continue to watch. What difference does it make to me if these people fight.

Deciding to keep this spot and watch for the time being, I pull out some berries from my sack and pop them in my mouth.