Fourth Vector Ch. 07

"Over this way!" yelled the king, pointing off to the horizon for the entire group. They had almost crested the hill, and Jack noticed there was some smoke in the direction of his pointing. Jack quickly caught up to the main group with Vera just behind him. Together, they sprinted across a large open field to their right, which led to the crest of the very hill they were climbing. It was tough work for the horses going up such a steep slope, but Heron led the way, stopping once they reached the crest.

Jack was the second to last to reach the top and took his first view of the interior lands of Sorella from the heights of the hill. The countryside opened up greatly, and he could see clearly the solitary Mount Tarpeious just off to the northwest. Between them and the mountain laid a mixture of foothills, villages, and forests, with no clear and easy path to get to the top of the mountain. Yet, what laid just beneath them was the smoke that had initially caught Heron's attention.

Jack looked down to find the smoking ruins of a wagon. The wagon had been pulled aside in a small clearing that hugged the side of the hill, taking shelter in a rock formation that surrounded it on three sides. There were the remains of a small firepit that had long since ceased smoking. The wagon however, had been lit more recently and produced all the visible smoke.

"Let's get down there and check it out," said Heron. "Something about this doesn't seem right."

The rest of the group followed the king's lead. To get down to the small hillside overlook, they had to descend the hill they just climbed and follow the road around the formation until they found the small path that led to the clearing. It took about another twenty minutes to cross the distance, but soon enough, Heron hopped off his horse once they reached the burning wagon.

It seemed the king's suspicion was correct. This wagon had been the result of foul play. The first thing they noticed was the bodies. Two men and a woman were found not far from the wagon. Based upon the way the men were fully clothed and how the woman wasn't, it wasn't hard to figure out what happened.

"Whoever did this deserves to rot in a prison cell for the rest of their life," said Heron maliciously while pulling a blanket from the traveler's packs and giving the dead woman some modesty.

"Who could have done this, Heron?" asked Jack. "Could it have been Daimanos' soldiers?"

"It could be," said the king with a nod of the head. "It's the same scene that's been playing out all throughout the island. Defenseless people killed for no reason other than sport."

"This would have happened just last night based on the state of the bodies and the fire," said Jack. "Daimanos has been dead for a week now. Why is the killing still going on?"

"Some of these men only know one thing, Jack," said Heron. "Killing to them comes as easily as breathing does for you or me. Just because the war is over doesn't mean they'll stop doing what they've done for close to a year."

The group spent the next half hour properly disposing of the bodies in a respectful way as well as searching around the nearby area in case the perpetrators chose to stick around. It was Elektra who noticed something unusual about the possessions of the dead people.

"I see clothing here as well as supplies, but they are noticeably short of two things in general," said the redheaded princess. "There's no food here at all or any kind of money."

"This is hard country to be traveling through without either," said Greg. "It kind of points to one thing."

"Perhaps this had more to do with a robbery than just Daimanos' thugs up to their usual hobbies," said Jack. "Has this part of the country suffered from any reporting of thievery?"

Heron shrugged. "I have no idea but perhaps Nikias knows."

Nikias stepped forward. "There had been some reports of thievery in this part of the country in the weeks before you came, Jack. More so than usual that is. With a war, there's always segments of the population who look to take advantage of the chaos. Yet things have been so hectic in the last few weeks that it's hard to get an accurate picture of the countryside without being here."

"Still," said Jack. "We should keep an eye out for this kind of thing as we move forward from here. We can't have local gangs of thieves undoing all of our efforts to put the country back together again."

"Agreed, Jack," said Heron with an approving nod.

The group left the scene shortly after arranging a pyre to burn the bodies in Sorellan fashion. The group took whatever provisions that could be useful and soon emerged back on the main road leading into the interior. From what Jack could see, the road took a turn for the west in the next few leagues, finally leading them away from the ocean. It was the first time in a long while that he'd not been within sight of the great, blue expanse. Once they dropped into a valley and the ocean finally disappeared from sight for good, it became quite the surreal experience for the naval commander to be so far from the comfort of the waves.

If the group had expected any better after leaving the sight of the robbery/massacre, they would soon be disappointed. The further they got from Daimanos' capitol, the worse the signs of war became. Happening upon destroyed or burnt out wagons or country homes became the norm, and rarely did they go much more than a league without seeing some sort of destruction wrought by war. Even the villages they passed seemed no better, bleak and empty affairs showing a mixture of devastation and woe.

One thing Jack noticed in particular was that each village they seemed to pass through seemed to be built too large for the number of inhabitants. There seemed to be twice as many buildings for the people, a real dearth of humanity that didn't escape anyone's notice. Even those that were left seemed to be only the old or the young as all those in the prime of their lives had been swept away by the long conflict.

Heron took the opportunity to act like the king he was. His arrival caused sparks of celebration in each village they passed, recognizing their true king from before the usurping of Daimanos. The common people always gathered around him, showering him with praise and offering all they had left for his good fortune. It was enlightening to see some spark of humanity set against the backdrop of devastation, no matter how tiny the crowds of people left.

After a full day of riding and getting about halfway to the foothills leading into the interior, the group decided to make camp for the night. A small clearing some distance from the main road was found that offered enough seclusion and shelter for them to bed down for the night. After the horses were tied up, Vera made good on her promise to take care of them, offering to make them all a meal from their supplies. The young blonde soon had steaming bowls of oatmeal for all of them, and they ate quietly as the sun went down.

Only an hour or two after nightfall, most of the group began to climb into their own sleeping bags to get their rest for the next morning. It was determined that someone would always be on watch throughout the night, making sure there was a degree of safety for everyone while they slept.

"Does anyone feel strongly about taking the first watch?" asked Heron while looking around at the group.

Elektra volunteered by raising her hand. "I don't mind. I can watch until midnight and then pass it off to someone else."

Greg rose his hand next. "I'll take a watch as well. I can go after Elektra."

Heron nodded. "That sounds fine. Just remember to stay vigilant. If you feel like you're falling asleep, please stand up and walk around a little. This is no country to let our guard down."

Both Elektra and Greg nodded their understanding, and all but the princess headed for bed while she attended to the fire. Finding a log that had fallen a short distance away, she perched herself on the end as everyone else drifted off to sleep.

All except one that is. It wasn't much more than an hour into the watch when Elektra heard the subtle stirring of a sleeping bag when Nikias gave her a sleepy smile and sat down on the log right next to her.

"Couldn't sleep?" she asked while moving across the log to make room for him.

"You can say that," he said gently. "Being on the ground doesn't really compare with being in a really soft bed."

"Perhaps you've been in a soft bed too long," said Elektra with a grin. "Maybe it's made you a little soft."

"You might be right about that," he said while chuckling. "Has it been quiet so far? Heard anything? Seen anything?"

Elektra shook her head. "Nothing but the sound of crickets. It's pretty calm out tonight. I've been looking up at the stars to pass the time."

Nikias glanced up at the sky as well. "There are many of them out there tonight, aren't there? We typically don't see so many when we're in the cities."

Elektra smiled. "It's what I miss about being in the army. So many nights spent just like this under the stars and with only your fellow soldiers to keep you company. It's so peaceful."

"Sounds like it could get a little lonely too," added Nikias.

She gave him a look that was half-confirmation and half-reservation. Saying nothing, she looked back up at the sky and sighed.

"You know if you want to get some rest, I'll take over the watch," he offered after hearing her sigh. "I don't mind. It's been a hard day of riding after all."

"No, that's okay. I wasn't sighing about the watch, I promise," she said with a small smile. "Besides, you really should get your sleep. Just because you don't have a watch tonight doesn't mean you won't have one tomorrow. You don't want to be too tired that you fall asleep by accident. Especially in my regiment."

"Why's that?" asked Nikias. "What happens then?"

Elektra shivered. "The penalty for falling asleep during watch is to be thrown out of the army."

"I didn't realize it was that serious."

"It's very serious. That's how whole units can be wiped out just because one sentry didn't get enough rest the night before."

Nikias chuckled. "Well, I promise I won't fall asleep on my watch. But I just felt like you might want some company."

"Company?" she asked while furrowing her brow. "Why would you want to spend time in my company?"

Nikias was glad for the darkness around them so she wouldn't be able to see the red in his cheeks. "No reason. I just thought it could be lonely."

She took a few moments to respond before finally agreeing. "Yes. It can be."

"So I can stay with you? Talk to you for a bit," he offered. "Make this time less lonely."

She eyed him wearily. "Are you sure about that?"

"Of course," he answered. "I don't mind."

She studied him for a moment longer before finally nodding her head. "I suppose I don't mind then. Your company would be nice. As long as you're not doing it because my father asked you to?"

Nikias started to laugh, knowing that would be a sensitive topic for the princess. "Not at all. I can swear to you he didn't ask me to keep an eye on you."

Elektra visibly relaxed. "I'm glad to hear that. I think sometimes he forgets that I'm not a little girl anymore, and that I can do things without being watched or supervised."

"I know that he knows that," said Nikias. "It's just hard for him. You're all he has left so he's going to be a bit more protective."

Elektra ran her fingers along the barrel of her gun. "I can take care of myself."

"You don't need to tell me that," he said with a chuckle. "But I'm sure it's hard for him to look at you and not remember what it was like when you were little." Nikias gulped after saying the words, knowing that it had been a long time since Elektra looked "little." She had the stunning body of a woman now, and despite her deadly exterior as a soldier, she still carried the soft curves of femininity quite well.

"He wasn't always so protective like this," said Elektra finally. "When Hera was still around, she took the bulk of it."

"Maybe Hera needed more protection," offered Nikias. "She didn't have your training or your toughness."

Elektra nodded. "She was meant to be queen someday. I would have been her general just like Sorellan custom. I think after Theo died, father just embraced that idea for our roles. But seeing as Hera had no mind for warfare, I think he always felt more protective over her."

"And then this whole war happened," said Nikias quietly. "And it changed everything."

Elektra didn't respond and for several moments, he wondered if he shouldn't have even brought up the war or its effects. He cursed himself silently for being so blasé about the conflict and knowing the state of her personal loss from it. When he finally hazarded a glance in her direction, he was surprised to find her already looking back at him.

"Do you think we'll ever be able to actually rebuild, Nikias? Do you think that our society can recover from his war?"

Nikias cleared his throat and gave the easy answer to the question. "Of course. Once we finish this journey and recover the treasury, we'll set the pieces back in place and rebuild Sorella the best we know how."

Elektra shook her head. "How do we rebuild when we're missing so many pieces though?"

His brow crinkled in confusion. "I don't follow."

"There's so many dead," she said quietly. "They're like missing pieces of the same puzzle. How do you remake a puzzle with so many missing pieces?"

He nodded to show his understanding. "We'll find a way. We have to. Too many have suffered for us to finally end the fighting and not attempt to honor their sacrifices."

"Sacrifices," muttered Elektra under her breath. "Is that what we call all those who died so tragically? All of those who were crucified by my uncle in his prisoner camps for no other crime than for not recognizing him as king? How can we even begin to put the country back together after so much tragedy?"

"We do it by being better than Daimanos and his thugs," said Nikias quietly. "We do it because it's the right thing to do. If we don't, then they would've suffered for nothing."

Elektra nodded quickly. "I used to think that war was just like one of our training games back in the army. Two sides faced off against each other and one side clearly won, the other lost, and that was it. It was over and everyone moved on. War is nothing like that. You can't train for it. You can't begin to imagine the consequences of what can and will happen when you destabilize the lives of everyone on our island."

"I don't think anyone expected the kind of war that Daimanos would unleash either," said Nikias. "It was much more brutal than anyone thought it would be."

"Except those who had met my uncle," said Elektra with a sniffle. "I remember him from before father banished him. He was a cruel man even then. I remembered how he looked at me and Hera after Theo died. Like we were tiny obstacles to his taking of power, fruit to be swept away at the right moment. It was terrible."

"Daimanos treated just about everyone that way," said Nikias. "You should have sat in one of his councilor meetings. If you thought you were no good then, you should have seen the way he treated the ministers. Like they weren't any better than the dirt on his boots."

Elektra looked over at him. "I don't know how you did it. You've worked for father long enough that making the transition to Daimanos must have been hard."

Nikias swallowed hard. "It was extremely hard to adjust between the two of them. The two men couldn't be further apart in their mannerisms and ways of thinking. Heron always valued each human life and remained kind, even during times of hardship. Daimanos never really had a soul to begin with. I'm sure even Vera could testify to that," he said while pointing back to the young Galician woman's sleeping bag.

"Yet even my uncle has a way of reaching out from beyond death to affect us," said Elektra. "As we sit here on the chase of one of his men. At least it's a minister and not Daimanos himself. That shouldn't make this as bad."

Nikias shook his head. "Barak was just Daimanos' minister but he didn't get that position because he was useless. Barak can be calculating and cunning when he needs to be. He learned quickly how to play the fool at court, and that's why Daimanos kept him around for so long. His real talent was being the brains behind the government and learning how to implant his own ideas in Daimanos' head and making him think they were his own from the beginning."

Elektra shivered. "So what you're saying is this man is worse than Daimanos? How is that possible?"

"I don't know if I'd say worse, but he's not any less dangerous, that's for sure," said Nikias. "I have a feeling it was Barak who discovered my infiltration and set Daimanos against me."

"Why is that? Did he not care for you? Did he discover anything about you?" asked Elektra.

"Barak doesn't care for anyone besides Barak. He made no effort to get to know anyone. He was the silent schemer, always up to something. It's for that reason that I feel like this task is just as important as killing Daimanos."

Elektra nodded and then sighed, looking back up to the stars. She went quiet for several minutes and switched between gazing upward and tending the small fire in front of them. Nikias kept glancing over to her, watching her expressions change as her mind pondered different matters.

"You've gone quiet on me," he said finally, watching her with a small smile.

"I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I was just thinking about Hera."

"What about? Anything in particular?"

Elektra smiled sadly. "Her birthday was coming up. Next month. She would have been twenty-three. I miss her greatly."

"From what I remember about her, she would have made a fine queen," said Nikias.

"That she would have. I remember when we were but mere children, even before Theo died," said Elektra while leaning back on the log. "Hera was always preparing for a life at the court. She used to always get into mother's wardrobe and take out all kinds of jewelry and fine clothing, symbols of courtly life as she used to call it."

"I imagine you were the exact opposite, right?" asked Nikias.

Elektra giggled. "Of course. I was happy to play with tears in my tunic and mud on my feet. But then again, I never thought I'd be a queen someday. Not with Theo and Hera ahead of me in succession."

"Some things in life we just can't prepare for," said Nikias. "Even the best made plans will go awry when you least expect it. And of course, no one could have predicted this."

"You know what the worst part about losing Hera was? Did you know she was already betrothed before she died?" asked Elektra. "She was set to marry but even that went horribly wrong."

Nikias rubbed his temple. "I remember her being engaged to marry but what happened?"

"It was while you were with Daimanos," said Elektra. "She was engaged to the youngest son of the Soras family of nobles. Constantino?"

Nikias nodded quickly, remembering the well-bred young man and his fascination for the princess. Heron had been the one to suggest the match between the two, and despite Hera's initial objections, they quickly evaporated once she spent time with the boy. Constantino had been a good officer in the army, loyal to the royal house, and above all, a good man.

Elektra wiped a tear from her cheek. "We got word not long after you left that Constantino fell in battle with Daimanos' forces. It was when he was closing in for his final strike on the capitol. Constantino's position was just overwhelmed, and he died on his feet trying to fight them off. Hera was devastated."

"I can't imagine her pain," said Nikias quietly. "I remember the young officer. He was one of the best that Sorella had to offer."