Zebrican Warlord

by Arelak

Chapter 30: The Long Way Down

Dana passed through the old, ruined gate that marked the entrance to the once grand library of Alzamard. This walled in area that included the temple and former university were all sealed behind what used to be a colorful and decorative wall. Now it was mostly gone, collapsed in most placed. The temple was in ruins and the university had been all but shut down two decades ago.

In fact there were only two left who even taught anymore and she was one of them, the other was her assistant. Anyone with wealth or power had long ago withdrawn their support of such places declaring that those of not gentile birth had no need for education, in fact it would be a burden to their simple minds.

So now they hid behind their great wall, protected by legions of guards and mercenaries with their own private cadre of private tutors, scholars, alchemists and scribes. And where did they come from? No longer from the city but brought in via ship from foreign lands. Why would they hire a local who can read and write just as well? No, it is better to hire a foreigner because everyone knew they were superior in training and quality.

What a load of crap. They demanded more, were arrogant, stuck up and utterly full of themselves. The children were sung the praises of foreign history while their own past was treated as if it were poison or a mark of barbarity, all they could hope to learn from their ancestors was an utter lack of civility or guilt.

Not one bit of which was true, she knew because the records were stored here.

All of them.

And it scared them.

Here, in her decrepit library, resided the entire history of the region, painstakingly collected over the course of centuries and written in great detail. A point of pride for the city once long ago but now many sought to see it burn because what was written did not match their "new and improved" version of events. Nothing written here supported any noble's claim nor did it match let alone agree with what foals were being taught by their illustrious foreign tutors.

Herein lay the unwanted history: the grim truth that supported no one but damned them all to hell for the roles they had played.

To make matters even worse Fareed was the biggest supporter of having the place burned but not because he agreed with them. He was too smart for that, he knew the truth all too well. No, this place was to be burned because it was an eyesore, one that had bitten him in the flank several times. Removing this place and what adjoined would remove the ability of others to challenge him.

Dana's walk down the ancient path was longer than usual today, crumbled tiles lay scattered about randomly, the once grand garden was a bed of weeds or converted into a vegetable garden. A few homeless could be seen here or there tending the plants, there could only be a few less Fareed use her sheltering them as just one more excuse.

Entering the library made her heart sink as she looked around at the chipped and cracked plaster, murals were faded and nearly invisible now from centuries of neglect. Former librarians had all tried but the cost of restoration was quite high and as things grew worse it took a back seat to simply trying to save the records and feeding themselves. This was the same situation she now found herself in.

Everything around her was a slow, painful erosion, long ago this region was viciously fought over for its riches by invading armies. They all lost from arrogance, cost and time in the end but not before leaving their mark, this complex being one of them. As centuries flowed ever onward people forgot, no longer cared or were so busy scrounging to stay alive they had no time for learning.

Thus Fareed decreed a few years ago that the complex would be torn down to make room for new mercenary barracks and other "public works." It hit a snag though, the last surviving priest had been so vocal about it that Fareed chafed. Like all things though one needs supporters and a lone priest is hardly a threat save his constant public declarations though ultimately there was a catch.

No one listened to him though, slowly people had given up their faith in favor of coin. The almighty coin was the new god and since the spirits or whatever existed did not provide them with mansions why should they care? Gold was god. A belief that cost them everything within a century.

Now no one knew what to believe and no one answered. There was no gold, no gods, no spirits, nothing, they were utterly alone and it was all their own doing. That did not stop one ancient priest from trying though.

Dana let out a frustrated sigh as she entered her little office and sat on the floor, the chairs had to be sold in order to make enough copper to eat or used as material for repairing holes. A waking nightmare was her life as everything she cared for was burned, stripped or sold off piece by piece. The old priest had been the only one she could confide in but with his death things got worse and what a death it was.

Fareed had finally grown intolerant of the stallion and sent a large group of guards with torches, picks and rope to rip the temple down in the dead of night. It was better that way, no one would be around to call down the villains for their destruction of history nor the last standing temple in the city. Indeed when his father had tried during the day the people had massed and a riot nearly ensued, while most had lost their faith they still clung desperately to the icon.

She had not been there to see it but the guards came and left just as quickly, there were no witnesses willing to talk about what happened but the deafening clap of thunder and lightning that shook the grounds brought a throng of onlookers.

All that remained was ash, molten metal and the flank end of guards running for their lives with a very old priest passed out on the ground. He was just too old for this he had said and come the morrow he had passed on. But not before giving her a parting gift: control over the temple, its grounds and all its holdings.

What had happened to the guards though... She still wondered to this day and had many a strong suspicion if the records were anything to go by. Whoever survived the incident though was sent off quickly within less than a day to some far forgotten corner of the sultanate and come the next war, there were no survivors left to tell the tale.

They had been silenced. Permanently.

Now that whatever had scared them away was gone Fareed had once more decided to try his luck albeit with a great deal of caution. First the university would be torn down, why allow others to learn and become smart enough to challenge his rule? She had long refused to tow the line and teach what was approved thus sealing the universities fate. As for the rest... It to would be torn down, one piece at a time.

Fareed was going to peck her to death. Slowly, on purpose. An example was being made.

"Caught another one trying to tear the library apart."

Dana looked up at the fellow librarian and nodded before waving him off, about every other day now this had become the new routine. Some noble be it adult or child, maybe one of the foreigners would come, slip in through the various doors, windows or holes. Always with flint and steel in hand.

So far their arson had destroyed only a handful of documents, all of which turned out to be of little to no value compared to the grand scale of things. Others tried to find the special collection she kept, the records that proved everyone wrong. None had found it yet but they kept trying and when caught always spouted off the same nonsense about denial of the truth, what was socially acceptable and so on.

To her though, a book was a book. Within its pages lay information be it right or wrong but only through study could one discern the truth, but never by throwing it away because one did not agree with the contents. Who were they to decide what was permissible and true?

A lesson the nobility did not care to learn, they were right, she was wrong. The end.

They had fun with them too when captured, one they had shaven another covered in tar, it was a waste of much needed tar but it was funny. It made the nobles furious and they demanded all the louder to have her locked up for it but two advisors always bailed her out.

"If they are unwilling to face punishment then they should not have committed the crime," that is what Zahir had said. He was quite eloquent about how it was a crime to deface and destroy someone elses property and the punishment had even been taken care of. It saved Fareed the time of having them punished, after all the law was still the law...

Those three play a most dangerous game.

Dana worried about them, indeed two had been whipped so far but Fareed kept them around just so he could toy with them. Perhaps he kept them around so he knew what his enemies thought, that was an even graver consideration.

Well, whatever the newest captive was up to the others would take care of punishment. A handful of volunteers kept things clean, tidy and loosely organized as per her instructions. Everything was organized chaos as more areas had to be abandoned and the documents moved to safety, it also meant it was much easier to catch infiltrators.

Running her library was like running a military camp, always on the lookout for enemies who planned to slip inside and burn them out.

Dana stopped to look around, without thinking she had left her office and wandered across the entirety of the compound and entered the temple through a small side entrance. It was not unusual though as being here brought her a degree of solace and always had. Ever since she was a filly and when her parents had run the library she grew up with the old priest always puttering around doing something.

Being able to just sit in the grand chamber was something that brought her great relief but lately had brought grief. Try as she might there was only so much she could do in order to maintain the shrine and its idols. Thieves dared not enter this place or at least they were not allowed too, she had caught several of them here but never stealing but always praying.

It was a dark day when even the thieves came to a holy place to ask for help. The world had gone mad and she sat in the center of it.

Moving to the altar she moved her hands as she had been taught by the priest and knelt down closing her eyes. Many a time she had done this before and a part of her believed strongly that something had to be watching over her or at least this place if nothing else.

How many times had she nearly been put to death by order of Fareed? How many times had the order to destroy the complex been given and rescinded? Somehow no matter how bad it got there was always that last minute change, that one single coin that put them just over the top. Not that their "donation diet" was anything to smile about, the small staff were scrawny, bony... But alive. Somehow.

Something protected this place and by association her along with it. She thought, she hoped and she prayed for it to be so. Everyone else had lost their faith but she still clung to it while the raging ocean tried desperately to rip her away and drown her in despair like the rest.

"Many times have I prayed and still believe you answered. Most ask for too much or for things that do not matter, but if you exist I beg of you to listen. There is nothing left, our backs are to the wall and Fareed decreed he will try and destroy this place again starting with the university and library. He will tear this place apart one stone at a time till he gets his way, you must know this. You have to. I ask for nothing save that you do something to stop this, this is the only place left and if it is destroyed then he has won along with whatever devils sent him."

Dana stared up at the idols, her emerald eyes were fogging over with tears as she pleaded with them as if they were living. If no one answered it would be the end, she knew this truth all to well.

"Please, few may pray to you in earnest but if this place falls so do we, damned to our fate and to suffer. There is only so much we can do and take before breaking. If something does not happen then we shall vanish and only those such as Fareed shall be able to dictate what people believe. Should that happen you will be entirely forgotten and us along with you. We have tried. No matter if you listen or not I will die trying and be it my fate to stand alone at the gate with a knife an die fighting the guards to protect this place I will. Please, help us."

As Dana continued to pray a silent thought drifted through unseen consciousness: How does one weigh the price of action against that of inaction? At what point does remaining idle become an act of evil even when only a handful are worth saving? All of life is one owns doing and all the evil that one sows one must reap, be those seeds planted by ones own hands or by encouraging another. But most of all, for every action one takes, there is an equal and opposite reaction somewhere else for all the strings of fate are interwoven; tug on one and the tapestry unravels.

But when is it time to tear the tapestry apart and start over?

Khada stormed into the Sebanwi encampment shouting names as he went, everyone either stepped aside as the chief passed or looked away hoping they would not draw his attention. Those called rushed to his campsite and waited as he paced, features distorted with anger and a paper clutched in his hand.

Nyah and the others waited patiently for him to calm down, but once he had and began speaking they quickly learned why Khada was so agitated. Their king Sibusiso had sent a messenger along to gather his chiefs together, he had drawn up a new plan that only a madman could dream up.

"Sibusiso have new plan for Sebanwi, Tebasi and other tribes that not bring in enough from pillaging... We not go home, we stay. Not under Halim, he send us to raid as far north as Sawan River, deep in land of Fareed. Say we not prove ourselves useful enough, now we make up for it."

"Khada, we not choose area to attack-"

Cutting the stallion off quickly with a wave of the hand he growled, they all knew the truth and there was no need to repeat it.

"He no care, demand we pay more than we got to appease him, Halim appeased but not Sibusiso. He say we not loyal enough and must pay part of loot to him to prove, we not have enough. Less we pay in bodies."

Nyah let out a cough and spoke up, "we are not "loyal" anyway, everyone know, even Halim. Why he care now?"

"Not know, maybe rebellion, maybe he not have enough to pay army or... To many maybe's. Maybe he just want to see us killed so send us on this... Campaign."

There was general agreement that such a plan would be ill advised, they would be cut off completely and have nowhere to go. Being completely surrounded by enemies would mean whatever they took must be able to run or be carried on their person. It was pure madness, going so far north would leave them horribly exposed.

As they stared at each other Khada uncrumpled the paper he held and laid it on the ground for them to see, it was a simple map with an area marked clearly. Looking it over they realized just how far away they would be from home and also how dead they would all be if their enemies cut them off.

Even with their great speed and mobility they would be pressed and as Khada explained the plan things looked even grimmer. The Sebanwi would be sent on their own to raid over the western portion while the Tebasi would go east. Both would raid an area far too large for them to handle without getting bogged down from the loot they carried away. Neither could depend on each other for support either as they were on opposite sides of the Sawan River.

Two other tribes were going as well, ones that happened to be very loyal to Sibusiso. They would follow them north and handle anything they captured. Not one of them believed it though, they knew the real truth: the Sebanwi and Tebasi were being punished and expended before they became a problem. Either they would bow their heads and accept their fate or die though it would be their families who paid the price first.

For far and beyond their reach the various villages and hamlets that made up their tribal areas were under the watchful gaze of loyalists and should they refuse this order...

"How many? All? Half?"

Nyah stared at the paper as everyone shook their heads, the odds were heavily against them and going so deep into enemy territory was insanity. Even with a full wagon train which was required for pillaging they would need an army to protect it, something they now knew was never going to materialize. No, the other tribes would pack off whatever they could and leave them to squirm when the enemy lashed out. They would be running for their lives before they even got halfway there.

And again if they refused their families would be dead long before they had half a chance to even turn around. Even going right now and fleeing for their lives was hopeless, Sibusiso had sent them here on purpose. Not because Halim needed the extra forces but because another plan was already in motion long before this and only now had the opportunity arrisen.

"All."

"What Halim say?"

"Waste of time, pointless, better to save strength and attack something of value. Like Bwani or raid around Enuba."

None of them cared for Halim but by comparison to their current leader he was logical and cared little for pettiness. Unless it had some greater value than doing it for the sake of it then why bother, he did share something in common with Sibusiso however: being ruthless. A trait they understood but there was something about Halim they just did not like nor trust, there was something under that hide of his that made them worry.

"If thousand go then how we supply selves? Wrong time of year."

"Sibusiso know, we not attack now but during next harvest, he think sultan far North have army elsewhere and not concern himself with small raid like this. We not attacking just him but others as well, not draw as much attention."

"It still draw attention."

Khada glared at the map before eyeing his daughter carefully, "yes but not draw army, we fight garrison's and patrols though."

"That still be doom of us, locals fight us and not let us just take. Make things harder. Thousand Sebanwi draw army anyway!"

"Which is why he is hoping few of us return alive. No sane stallion make plan like this and expect success."

"So we go in few months then. We always slip away."

"Tribe be exterminated before we get home, too far away. He set this up carefully."

"Most warriors still in Sebanwi lands."

"They not take on whole army, river mean we trapped on wrong side, you know Sibusiso even say we not allowed to live on this side of river. Tribe trapped."

Nyah stared at the map again then squinted and leaned in, this was a quick, crude copy of another map no doubt that had better details. Even the writing was sloppy, one more indication that they were not expected to live very long.

"What this say?"

Khada squatted down and looked at where she was pointing, a line had been drawn through the location marking the farthest they could or would go. After some debate over those four letters they finally were in agreement as to the name of the last place on the list to attack, a small village along the river and therefor expected to be of value: Wete.