by Matthew Ilseman
in Issue 147, April 2024
The corpse hung limply in the tree. A large branch impaled it through the chest. Blood covered the branch and fell in droplets on the forest floor.
Aleron the warrior-priest stared up at it. He pulled his crimson cloak around himself. A sword and a seax knife hung in scabbards on his side. Beside him stood his companion in arms, Krya. Her skin was gold. Her hair as red as flame. A bow and quiver were strapped to her back. An axe hung from her side.
They were sell-swords. Back in Freetown, they had been hired to find out who had been killing loggers off one by one. They had just arrived at the camp when the corpse had been discovered.
“Darg,” said Menos, the chief of the loggers. He was a large man with a long beard. He looked as if he wanted to cry. “It has to be the green Shrinya. They did this.”
He stared at Krya. She was a Shrinya. It did not matter that she was of the golden skin Shrinya of the plains who were the hereditary enemies of the green skin ones of the Great Forest. There had always been tension between the human settlers of the Eastern Frontier and the native Shrinya. Neither side was loath to blame the other for anything.
“We don’t know that,” said Aleron.
“Who else could it be?” said Menos angrily. “We had a treaty with them, but they broke it!”
“Yes,” said Krya sarcastically. “Humans never break their treaties.”
Menos and Krya stared at each other.
“Right now it doesn’t matter. We just need to get the body down from the tree,” said Aleron, hoping to prevent a fight.
Menos grumbled something and waved to his second-in-command, Larn. Together they spryly climbed the tree. Once up, they tied a rope around the corpse. They then eased it off the bloody branch and lowered it to the ground.
“How on earth could this happen?” asked Aleron as the two climbed down.
“The Shrinya must have killed him and hung from the tree,” said Menos.
“No,” said Aleron. “It’s almost as if the tree came alive and impaled him.”
Krya crouched and stared intently at the ground.
“Aleron,” she asked. “What do you think this means?”
“What means? I just see dirt. Oh, there are tracks.”
“Yes, human tracks. There are no Shrinya tracks except mine. The forest Shrinya have claws on their feet. They use them for climbing. Because of that their tracks are different.”
“Perhaps they waited in the trees to ambush him and pulled him off the ground. They’ve been known to do that,” Aleron said.
“Aleron,” said Krya. “There are no claw marks on that tree..”
“Perhaps, they were in another tree…No wait, none of the other branches look sturdy enough to hold them.”
“Aleron, we are dealing with something strange here.”
They took the corpse back to the camp. There it was laid on a funeral pyre. Though he had long been exiled from his order, Aleron blessed the torch that lit the pyre.
As they watched the flame consume the body, Aleron went over to Menos.
“Darg was like a brother to me,” said Menos. “I knew him back in my home village. We came East together.”
“I’m sorry,” said Aleron. “I know this must be hard, but I have questions for you.”
“What questions?” Menos said. “We know who did this. We should go and wipe out the greenies’ village.”
“All of the village? Including the women and children?”
“Shrinya women fight alongside the men. You know that. Your partner is one of their women warriors.”
“Then what about the children. They, at least, are innocent and helpless.”
Menos was quiet for a moment.
“Yes, you are right,” he admitted. “Still we must punish them for what they did.”
“I’m afraid I am not sure they killed Darg.”
“What do you mean?”
Aleron told him what Krya said.
“Are you sure you can trust her? She is one of them.”
“I trust her with my life,” replied Aleron. “Besides, it was the green Shrinya that killed her husband.”
“What did she do?”
“I killed the one who had killed my husband,” said Krya, coming up behind them. “At first, they did not retaliate. My tribe was too strong, but they waited. Eventually, plague came. Most of us died. The rest they slaughtered. I alone survived.”
“You see,” said Aleron. “If we are not careful all we may do is start another bloody feud.”
Menos scratched his beard.
“You have reason to hate them,” he said to Krya. “What do you think?”
“I would be glad to kill their warriors, but I don’t like the idea of killing children. Besides, I’m not certain it was them. These woods are haunted by many strange creatures. Aleron and I once encountered this spider creature…”
“We need to find out for certain if it was them,” interrupted Aleron. “That means we need to scout out their village.”
“Or rather you need me to scout them out,” said Krya. “You humans make too much noise. They will hear you coming.”
***
Krya stalked swiftly but stealthily through the forest. She did her best to avoid stepping on the branches on the ground. Her senses were attuned to the forest around her. She trusted her hearing and sense of smell as much, if not more, than her sight.
Guided by scent, she found the village of the forest Shrinya. She approached it cautiously and hid behind a tree to watch.
The village was made up of giant trees that reached toward the sky. Still living, they had been hollowed out for the tribe to live in. The villagers went about unaware that they were being watched. Their skin was as green as the leaves on the trees they lived in. Their hair was black green. Unlike Krya, who wore deerskin, their clothing was made from tree bark.
Krya remained completely still as she watched them. If the wind shifted they would catch her scent. If that happened she would flee.
She counted the warriors. She took for granted that all the men of the tribe were warriors. The only exception would be their shaman. She also counted the women who carried weapons with them. Their number was roughly equal to the number of men. There were also the women who were not warriors. They watched children, gathered food, and talked by a fire.
There was a sense of familiarity to the scene before her. Memories rose up in Krya’s mind. Memories of her own time with her tribe. Of her husband, of her child, and her sister. Then the memories of war and plague came.
She struggled to think of something else.
It was not to be. Out one of the trees came a woman whose face Krya remembered. Her green black hair was in two long braids. The bark that made up her clothing was thicker than normal to serve as armor. She carried a war club in her hands. A bow and quiver were strung on her back.
Krya did not know her name, but knew who she was. She was the warrior-wife of the one who had killed her husband. A deep hatred swelled up inside of her.
Krya took her bow from her back and pulled an arrow from her quiver. She took aim at the warrior-woman.
Her prey walked over to another woman and said something. Then she kissed her on the forehead. She was presumably her husband’s other wife.
Krya aimed the arrow at the warrior-wife. She took a deep breath and held it. Once she was certain, she would let fly.
Before she could, a small girl child ran up to her prey. She hugged the warrior woman who bent and kissed her on the forehead. Krya knew instinctively that this was her daughter.
Krya lowered the bow.
She hid behind the tree and watched until another child came running into the village crying. He screamed over and over, “He’s dead!”
One of the men placed his hand over the crying child’s mouth. It was a harsh reality that children of the tribe were taught to be as silent as possible. A child making noise at the wrong time could bring enemies down upon them. During war, entire tribes had been wiped out due to screaming children.
When the child had calmed himself, the man removed his hand.
“My father’s dead,” said the child. “I found his body.”
“Take me to him,” said the man. The two of them left the village. Krya stalked after them.
The Shrinya’s corpse was hung high in the trees. It was not impaled on a limb though. It was hung by the neck from vines. Krya knew from the way that the head lay limp that the neck had been broken. She could not guess how this happened.
The other villagers soon gathered at the base of the tree. They stared up at the corpse. Krya remained motionless behind a tree hoping no one sensed her.
“Another one,” said one of the men. “This is the third.”
The warrior woman Krya had seen earlier went up to a large man. He dressed like the rest the tribe, but Krya could tell from a necklace he wore that he was the tribe’s war chief. The woman said, “Konar, we should attack the humans. They are behind this.”
“No, Xonara,” replied Konar. “We do not know that. Besides, I gave my word not to attack them and I am the war chief. I say no.”
Xonara cursed and walked off. Krya knew that this was not the end of it. The Shrinya had no real rulers the way humans do. The war chief and the village elders could only advise not command.
Krya watched as they took down the body. Then it was taken back to the village. Xonara and the other villagers followed. Krya knew that they would go through the mourning ritual. Konar alone stayed behind.
When they were gone, he said, “You can come out now.”
Krya came out. Her hand rested on her axe. She said, “You knew that I was watching.”
“Yes,” said Konar. “You gold skins make more noise in the woods than you like to admit.”
“Perhaps,” said Krya. “But you green skins could not survive on the open plains.”
“Why are you here?”
“I am a spy,” she replied. “What else would I be?”
“Do the gold skins plan to attack?”
“No. Since there is no reason to lie, I am working for the loggers. A number of them have been killed and their bodies displayed in a similar way. We may have a common enemy.”
“Perhaps.”
“Listen, you need to meet with a friend of mine. A human. He was hired like me to guard the camp.”
“I don’t trust humans or gold skins.”
Krya shrugged, “I don’t trust you green skins, but I am telling the truth. Whatever we are facing, it is something supernatural.”
Konar thought on this and then said, “Very well. I will come tonight after the mourning ritual.”
***
Night fell. The stars shone. The loggers huddled around a blazing fire. Aleron who was deep in prayer stared into the flames. They danced furiously.
“They are here,” said Krya.
Aleron looked up. At first he saw no one but then a shadow moved. Three Shrinya came out of the dark forest. It was Konar, Xonara, and one other. He was a male Shrinya taller than Konar. Along with the traditional bark clothing, he wore a variety of talismans.
“Do you know who that is?” Aleron whispered to Krya.
“It must be their shaman.”
Aleron stood up. The loggers stared at the three. Most of them gripped their axes. The Shrinya stared back their hands near their weapons. The air was thick with tension.
“Greetings, come near the fire,” said Aleron.
“Thank you,” said Konar. “This is Xonara, my warrior-wife, and Maln, our shaman.”
Aleron nodded to each.
They came to the fire. Xonara stopped. She stared at Krya.
“You!” she said, recognizing her. “You killed my first husband.”
She raised her war club. Krya picked up her axe. Before either could attack, Konar stepped between him.
“We are not here for feuding,” he said. “We are here to discuss something that threatens us all.”
For a moment, both warrior women stared at each other. Xonara lowered her war club.
“If she swears on the moon that she will not attack neither will I…at this time,” she said.
Krya stood there gripping her axe. Aleron nudged her.
“I so swear…for now.”
Aleron let out a deep breath. He said, “We need to talk. Something has been killing both your people and mine.”
“That is why I brought Maln,” said Konar. “We face dark magic. He will know what to do.”
“All right,” said Aleron skeptically. He was a strong believer in his own faith but not in any other. “Does he know what is going on?”
“It is the curse,” said Maln. “You have brought it down upon us.”
“How?” said Menos.
“You and your rapacious kind have cut down the trees of the Tangar.”
“The what?” asked Aleron.
“The Tangar, the first people of the forest. They were a race of monsters that lived in the forest before the coming of our people. Our ancestors fought battle after battle with them until their blood soaked into the roots of the forest. Their evil stained the land and brought about the curse.”
“Have you heard of this, Krya?” whispered Aleron.
“Something like it,” she replied.
“You have awakened the curse by cutting down their trees.”
“How do we break the curse?” asked Menos.
“There is a ritual that must be performed at the roots of the great tree in the center of the curse. Once this is done we will be free from this evil. I alone know this ritual.”
“Where is this great tree?”
“Deep into the forest to the East. We will have to travel there. It will be dangerous, but I will go with you.”
“I will go too,” said Konar. “I will have Xonara pick a group of warriors.”
He turned to Menos. “You pick a group of men from your camp. Together we may break this evil once and for all.”
“Konar,” said Maln. “You do not have to go. Let the humans go. It is their greed that brought this upon us. I, of course, will go to perform the ritual, but we need not risk the lives of our tribesmen.”
“This threatens us all,” said Konar. “I am honor bound to go.”
“We also may need as many warriors as we can bring,” said Aleron. “It does not matter who is to blame. Only that the curse is broken.”
Maln stared at Aleron for a moment. A shiver went down Aleron’s spine. His hand slowly went to his sword. Then Maln said, “Very well. So be it.”
***
They set out in three days’ time. Aside from Krya and Aleron it was a group of ten humans and ten Shrinya. They traveled eastward down paths known only to the Shrinya. Sometimes the forest was so thick that they had to hack their way through.
They took turns in the lead. Sometimes it was two of the Shrinya. Sometimes it was two loggers. The two groups were on the same journey, but they kept separate from one another.
This worried Aleron. He believed that any schism between the two could ruin their chances. More worrying was Krya. She would stare at Xonara with unmitigated hatred. Xonara for her part pretended Krya was not there, yet Aleron sensed hostility from her.
When it was their turn to take the lead, Aleron asked Krya about it.
“She was on the raid that killed off the remaining members of my tribe. She killed my sister, Xya.”
“So that’s it.”
“Xya was both my sister and my husband’s other wife. Xya was not a warrior like me. She was very gentle. So when my husband and I would go hunting and raiding, she would watch my child.”
“When the attack came she tried to take the tribe’s children to safety. Xonara shot her down and scalped her. Then they fell upon the children.”
Krya fell silent.
Aleron did not respond. Among the Kingdoms of the West where he had been raised, killing women and children was considered dishonorable. Not that it did not happen, but it was seen as atrocious. Among Shrinya it was common.
“Krya,” he said. “On the raids you and your husband participated in, did you kill any children?”
“No.”
“What about the others of your tribe?”
“Yes, of course. I know what you are going to say. That one side was not any better than the other. Perhaps, but my tribe was my tribe. Should I have abandoned them because they were not perfect?”
“Perhaps not,” replied Aleron. “But you know why I was exiled from my order. I slew my brothers because they had slaughtered a whole village.”
“I know, but that’s different, Aleron,” she said. “Your order has rules on how it fights. There are none among my people.”
“Krya, right and wrong do not change because of who you are among.”
“You say that and you may be right, but it’s never simple.”
As they were having this discussion, they had been hacking through the growth of the forest. Suddenly, there was a cracking sound. A tree fell crashing down. Krya and Aleron leapt out of the way. It narrowly missed them.
They looked down at the fallen tree. Krya said, “We need to focus. We can’t have any more distractions.”
“You are right,” said Aleron. He crouched near the tree.
“Krya, look at this,” he said. “The tree was relatively young. It should not have fallen.”
“Something must be eating away with it.”
“Perhaps,” said Aleron. “Or maybe it is the curse.”
***
That night around the dancing flames of the campfire, Aleron asked Konar a question, “Did you know about the curse?”
“I heard the legends,” Konar replied. “But they were always set somewhere far off to the East. I had no idea that the curse reached to my village.”
“When did your tribesmen start dying from it?”
“When the humans came and began cutting down trees. Maln is right, you have brought it upon both of us.”
“Perhaps,” said Aleron. “Who negotiated the treaty with the loggers? You or Maln?”
“I did, but Maln advised.”
“Was it Maln that specified that the camp be eastward of your village?”
“Yes, what are you getting at?”
Aleron shrugged. “Probably nothing.”
Menos came up to the fire. He had replaced Aleron and Krya who had taken the first watch. Now it was Larn’s turn.
“I am surprised you are still awake,” Menos said.
“When I was being raised by the order, I would stay up to read late in the night. It was often the only time I got to do what I wanted. Most of my childhood was spent training in arms and theology which is an admittedly strange pairing.”
“If I may ask, why did you come East?”
“Well, after I was exiled from my order, I became a sellsword. There is more work here. Besides, the Frontier has always fascinated me. We don’t know much about what’s out there. I think I came to discover that as much as anything. Anyway this is where I met Krya. She found me wounded on a battlefield and nursed me back to health. We have been together ever since.”
Konar asked, “Are there Shrinya in the West?”
“Only some wanderers. Krya’s been there though she doesn’t think much of it. I have to admit, part of me prefers it here too.”
“Aye,” said Menos. “I came out here to make my fortune. I haven’t yet, but I found something more important: Freedom. Darg, God rest his soul, and I were low born peasants, but here no one cares what I was born as. They care what I can do.”
“If only the whole world understood that,” said Aleron, yawning. “I think I will retire.”
He got up and went to where Krya lay. He lay down next to her. There was no physical intimacy between them, but they were often assumed to be lovers. If not for his vows of celibacy from when he joined his order they probably would have been.
“Aleron?” she murmured, opening her eyes.
“Yes.”
“You are thinking of something. What is it?”
“I don’t trust Maln.”
“Of course not,” she replied. “He is a rival of yours in a way. Your church has its teachings and our shamans have theirs.”
“You don’t worship anything.”
“No, not since the death of my tribe,” she said.
“I don’t think it’s our religious differences that make me distrust him,” said Aleron. “Something is wrong with him.”
“I don’t know,” she replied. “I only really trust you. That’s enough. We may need him to break the curse, though.”
“Yes,” said Aleron. Then he added, “Since when do you believe in curses or anything supernatural for that matter?”
“I used not to, but in my travels with you I’ve seen things that have changed my mind. I now believe there is something more. I don’t know if it’s your God or the spirits of the wind my tribe worshiped. I’m not sure I care.”
“Yes, but God cares about you.”
“Perhaps,” she said. “If so, he has to wait till morning. I need to sleep and so do you.”
She closed her eyes. Aleron looked up at the night sky. A trillion stars shone. He felt the same awe he always felt when he saw them. He closed his eyes, but did not go to sleep immediately. Something in the back of his mind told him there was something else going on. Eventually he drifted off.
***
Aleron woke in the middle of the night. He opened his eyes and saw the stars through the overhanging branches. He sensed something wrong.
Something swiftly wrapped itself around his neck. It choked him. He tried to breathe but could not. He tried to pull it away from his neck but could not. He felt his lungs burn.
Krya awoke. She said, “Aleron, what is it?”
He could not reply. Something blocked out the stars. Dimly, he recognized Krya’s form. She raised her axe and brought it down swiftly.
The pressure on his throat ceased. He was able to pull the thing off. Gasping for air, he said, “Thank you. That snake was choking me.”
Krya was silent for a moment. She said, “Aleron, there was no snake. That was a vine.”
“How could I choke on a vine? There were none near.”
“I don’t know.”
Aleron laid his head down. He looked at the stars between the branches. Something was still wrong.
“The branches on the trees. They’ve moved. It’s like the trees are reaching down to grab me.”
“What?”
“Krya,” he said. “Let’s move closer to the fire.”
They did so.
***
The next morning, they found two of Menos’s men strung up by their necks on tree vines. Fear spread like a plague through the camp.
“You are saying that the tree tried to strangle you?” Menos asked Aleron.
“I can think of no other explanation,” replied the priest.
“Kor and Davos were on night watch at the edge of the camp,” said Menos.
“It’s more than that,” replied Aleron. “I think the trees are what have been attacking us.”
“That sounds unbelievable,” said Menos. “The Shrinya camped under the trees and none of them were killed.”
“True, but that might mean nothing.”
Menos shrugged and said, “I’m not mocking you or your idea, but I have never seen a tree move on its own volition.”
“I know,” said Aleron. “I may be wrong. Still, we should sleep out in the open as much as possible.”
“That may be hard. The forest only gets denser from here.”
“I know.”
Menos sighed. “I will tell my men. I will also double the night watch. I’m not sure I can say anything to the Shrinya. They only listen to Konar.”
“Yes,” replied Aleron. “I’ll talk to Konar. He might listen to me.”
Aleron left Menos and headed into the forest. As he walked between the trees, he feared that a vine would lash out and strangle him. He kept his hand on the hilt of his knife.
Aleron was eyed with hostility when he came to the Shrinya camp. It was in a small clearing. Even so, branches overhung it letting in strands of sunlight.
He found Konar and told him what he thought. The Shrinya was quicker to believe than Menos.
“There are legends that the trees once moved about like people. They say that the Tangar would ride them. That they commanded them. Still, no one from my group was killed last night.”
“Yes, that puzzles me.”
“I don’t know if we should camp together. If a conflict arises I may not be able to control my tribe. Menos may not be able to control his. To be honest, I don’t trust you myself.”
“I want to break the curse as much as you do.”
“I know,” said Konar. “But you, that is to say the humans, have lied to us before. You enter our land and take it for your own. The gold skins, at least, keep to the plains. I believe you yourself may be honorable, but I can trust neither gold skins nor humans.”
“We will have to trust each other if there is to be an end to the bloodletting.”
“Then we have to be all trustworthy and I don’t believe even my own tribe is always that least of all anyone else’s.”
Aleron sighed. “Whatever you decide, at least keep your eyes open.”
“I will.”
Aleron turned to leave. He noticed something on the ground. They were small stones scattered about. Strange sigils were marked on them.
“Do you know where these came from?” asked Aleron.
“No,” said Konar.
“Interesting,” said Aleron, picking up the stone. He slipped it into his pouch and walked off.
***
For three days, they travel through the great forest. Down ancient and overgrown paths they went, sometimes having to hack their way through. The closer they got to their destination the thicker the forest grew.
Tension was high among the group. The loggers and the Shrinya did not trust each other. Krya and Xonara stayed away from each other, but when they did interact it was with hatred in their eyes. Aleron for his part spoke little; instead he just seemed to watch.
One night over a campfire it came to a head. They had been running low on supplies and so a party of hunters had been sent out. Among them was Xonara who had struck down a deer with an arrow. It was when they returned to camp that a conflict arose.
It was customary among the Shrinya that whoever felled the prey would get their choice of meat. Menos declared that the meat should be shared equally.
“It is my kill,” said Xonara. “I will take what I want. It is bad enough that I have to share with you weak humans.”
Krya, despite her upbringing, had grown use to sharing equally. She murmured something about greedy green skins. This, of course, angered Xonara.
“I do not have to take that from a human’s harlot,” she said.
“What did you call me?” said Krya. She lifted her axe. “I will have your head.”
“Krya, stay calm,” Aleron interceded. “We all have to work together.”
“No, Aleron we don’t,” said Krya. “I challenge her to a duel.”
“Fine then. I will smash your skull in,” said Xonara.
“We don’t need this,” said Aleron.
“Maybe it is better to settle it this way,” said Menos. “Dueling is a custom among both our races. Better to get it over with than let it boil over.”
So it was decided that the next morning Krya and Xonara would fight to the death.
***
Neither Krya nor Xonara slept that night. Krya spent the time sharpening her axe. Xonara just stared at the fire. Aleron had tried to get them to forgo the duel to no avail.
As dawn broke out over the trees, a clearing was made in the forest. Krya stood on one side; Xonara on the other. Aleron again attempted to persuade them.
“This is pointless,” he said. “We need to work together to survive.”
Konar stepped up to him. “It will not help. Xonara is a stubborn woman.”
“So is Krya,” said Aleron. “I’ve been watching them. They are a lot alike.”
“Enemies often are,” said Konar.
The duel began once the sun rose over the trees. Krya and Xonara circled each other, weapons in hand. The whole party watched in silence.
Krya struck first. She went for the neck with a swing of her axe. Xonara stepped outside of its reach and brought up her war club. Then swiftly she stepped forward and struck down at Krya’s head. Krya dodged to the side.
“I will kill you for what you did to my husband,” said Xonara.
“Your husband killed mine,” said Krya. “He deserved to die. So do you.”
Krya struck again this time aiming to cleave open Xonara’s head. Again Xonara stepped out of its reach and struck. The blow landed hard on Krya’s shoulder. She dropped her axe and fell to one knee. Xonara lifted her war club to finish her off.
Before she could do so Krya scooped up a clump of dirt and flung it in Xonara’s eyes. This stunned Xonara and gave Krya enough time to tackle Xonara.
Then they were on each other like wild beasts. They clawed at each other as they grappled on the ground. Everyone stood in silence and watched.
It was then that death fell upon the party. It fell first on Larn who was on the outer edge of the clearing. A branch from a nearby tree suddenly swung out and struck him in the head. He fell down with his skull cracked open.
“Stop!” shouted Aleron. “We are under attack.”
As he shouted, the trees around them began to move. Roots were pulled from the earth. Great branches swung with tremendous force. Skulls were cracked open. Others impaled their victims through the chest. Vines moving on their own accord strangled men.
Both duelists stopped and stared in shock. Aleron reached in his pouch and pulled out the stone he had found. He held it up, sigil forward, at the nearest tree. It stopped.
Aleron shouted at Maln. “Use your stones or we all die.”
Maln reached into a pouch and pulled out a stone. A tree near him stopped. However, other trees came forward slaughtering the party.
“Get in the clearing,” commanded Aleron. “Maln make a circle around us with those stones.”
Menos and Konar joined them in the middle of the clearing. The last survivor attempted to as well, but two branches reached out and picked him up by the arms. Then he was torn apart.
Maln finished his circle of stones. Inside it were Aleron, Krya, Xonara, Menos, Konar, and Maln. All others were dead or dying.
For a while no one said anything. They just stood there and watched as the trees moved about. None could breach the circle of stones.
Eventually, Konar said, “Why did you not use the stones before?”
Maln did not respond.
Aleron said, “He did. He secretly laid them down when you and the other Shrinya were sleeping. That’s what kept you safe during the night.”
“Why did you not tell me?” asked Konar.
Maln replied, “I wanted to protect our people. I cared not for the humans. They can die for all I care.”
“I have no love for them either, but we need each other if we are to break the curse,” said Konar.
“It’s worse than that,” said Aleron. “Is it not, Maln?”
“I do not know what you mean,” said the shaman.
Aleron said to him, “You know more about the curse than anyone. You planned to use it for your own purposes, didn’t you?”
“You lie,” said Maln.
“No,” said Aleron. “You do. Konar, you said that Maln advised you on the treaty. Was it him who came up with the location where the logger’s camp would be?”
“Yes,” said Konar. “What does that…?”
“Maln wanted them where he knew that the curse would reach them. He wanted it to kill off the loggers.”
Konar turned to Maln. “Is this true?”
Maln did not say anything for a breath, but then he spoke, “So what if it is? They should not be here. They deserve to die. What do you care? You hate them too.”
“I care because I gave my word when we made the treaty. You have made a mockery of that. Worse, the curse has killed some of your own tribe.”
“That was not intended,” exclaimed Maln. “I did not realize that the curse reached that far. It seems to be growing. It always was but it seems to be faster now. That’s not my fault.”
“Actually it may be,” said Aleron. “I think the curse may gain power from the lives it takes, causing it to spread faster.”
“I do not believe that,” replied Maln.
“It does not matter,” said Konar. “When we get back I will hold a tribal council. I will call for your banishment.”
“No, you can’t,” said Maln. Aleron recalled that banishment was considered worse than death among the Shrinya. “I will not break the curse then.”
“You are going to need to if you want to stay alive,” said Konar.
“That may be but I did everything for my tribe and this is how I am repaid.”
With that Maln took stepped outside the circle of stones. Trees closed in around him so he could not be seen. There was a scream.
For a time no one said anything. Then Krya asked, “What do we do now?”
Konar turned to Aleron, “You are a shaman. Can you break the curse?”
Aleron shook his head. “I was of the Order of Kersaises. We are warrior-priests not exorcists. If I was Order of Aslien it would be different.”
“Maybe we should go back,” said Menos stroking his black beard. “Then find someone else. Another Shrinya shaman or perhaps an exorcist.”
“If we can get back,” said Aleron. “The curse is getting more powerful.”
“Then dark days are coming for everyone,” said Konar.
“Wait,” said Aleron as a thought struck him. “I may not know much about exorcisms, but there may still be something I can do.”
“What?” asked Krya.
“We can burn the tree at the center of this. If I bless the flames that might break the curse,” he replied.
“You think that will do it?” said Menos.
“It might,” said Aleron. “As I said, I am not an exorcist. We still have to find the great tree.”
“From what Maln told me it is to the east,” said Konar. “It is supposed to be gigantic. The way Maln talked we will not miss it.”
“We still have to get through the cursed woods,” said Menos.
“Then we take the rocks with us,” replied Krya.
***
So the five of them set off through the great forest. They held onto the rocks. The trees made way before them. Still, they had to stay alert. The trees swayed back and forth. The branches would sometimes reach out like hands. Once a vine coiled like a snake around Xonara’s leg. Aleron cut it with his knife.
“Did you have to help her?” asked Krya.
“Yes,” he replied. “Krya, what do you hope this feud will achieve?”
“What do you mean?”
“There is no end to this bloodletting. If you kill Xonara, one of her tribe will try to kill you.”
“I have cause.”
“So does she.”
Krya did not reply. They marched on in silence. The forest was thick and the branches only let in a few rays of the sun. They would move about and everyone watched them with fear.
“We need to climb a tree,” said Xonara suddenly.
“What are you talking about?” said Konar. “The trees will kill you.”
“We need to see where we are going,” she replied. “If the tree at the center of this is as big as Maln said, we should be able to see it now. We could end up walking in circles.”
“I hate to say it,” replied Krya. “But she is right. How do we decide who goes and how do we keep the tree from killing them?”
“It’s my idea,” said Xonara. “I’ll go.”
“Yes, but the only things keeping the trees from killing us are the stones,” said Aleron
“I will take the risk.”
They had kept the stones in their hands to ward off the trees. The only exception had been when they rested inside a circle of the stones. Now, Xonara did something which none had dared to do. She placed her stone in a leather pouch.
Immediately, the nearest tree made a movement toward her.
“Let it,” she said.
Once it was near, it swung its largest branch to crush her skull. Xonara ducked it. Then she leapt upon the tree. Her claws dug the bark and for a moment she hung there. Then she scrambled fast to the top. The tree bucked like a bull, but Xonara hung on. It contorted in weird ways. Still, she climbed.
“I see it!” she shouted as she got to the top. “The great tree, it is to the east! Follow the path and you will get to it.”
Then the tree completely uprooted itself and crashed into the trees behind it. With astonishing speed, it ran through the forest with Xonara still clinging to it. The other trees enclosed to form a wall behind it.
***
There was nothing to do but continue eastward. A day and a night they walked. Konar led the way now. Menos followed. Aleron and Krya walked side by side. The trees continued to move of their own accord, swaying back and forth, and occasionally attempting to attack the party.
“Aleron,” said Krya. “I’ve been thinking. I can not help thinking it was a brave thing Xonara did.”
“It was,” replied the warrior-priest.
“I still wish for vengeance but I cannot fault her courage.”
“No.”
Konar halted. They had come to a clearing. In its center stood a great tree. It was the largest Aleron had ever seen. It reached to the sky. Its roots were humongous and tore open the earth.
“This has to be it,” Aleron said.
“Yes,” replied Konar. “Can you burn something that large?”
“We will see.”
They began to gather fallen branches. When they had enough they were placed next to the tree. Aleron took out his flint and steel. He struck it, igniting the branches.
When the fire grew large enough he stared into the flames. He thought for a moment and then he began the Blessing of Kersaises. It was the strongest he knew.
“Kersaises, who went into the fire and was not burnt, protect us,” he said at the end. “God dwells in flame.”
“He does not,” said a voice behind him.
Aleron turned and saw Maln come out of the woods. He was not as Aleron knew him. At first it looked as if he wore a wooded mask over half his face. Then Aleron realized the wood was not covering his face but was part of it.
“I thought you were dead.” said Aleron.
“I would be,” replied Maln. “If the Tangar did not still need me.”
Aleron then saw that most of Maln’s entire right side was wood.
“The Tangar are dead,” said Konar.
“Yes,” replied Maln. “But their souls are in that tree. That is why I cannot allow you to burn it.”
As he stepped forward into the clearing, the trees around them closed in. Each of the party held up their stones to ward them off. The trees halted. Maln laughed. He said a word and there was a cracking sound. The tree began to move again. The stones were now useless.
Aleron glanced briefly at the fire. It had caught on the tree. If the fire consumed enough of the tree they may survive.
Aleron drew his sword. The rest, their axes.
“Your sword cannot stop the trees,” said Maln.
“No, but it can kill you,” replied Aleron who rushed forward sword in hand.
He meant to kill Maln as soon as possible, but a tree moved in front of the shaman. It reached out with its branches. It picked up Aleron with ease.
“Crush him!” said Maln with a laugh. “Kill the others.”
As the life was slowly being crushed out of Aleron, the other trees attacked the rest of the party. They chopped away futilely with their axes.
One of the trees impaled Menos. As it hoisted him in the air, he screamed then gurgled and quickly died.
A branch swung at Krya and Konar. Krya dodged aside, but it hit Konar in the chest knocking him to the ground. He did not get up.
For Aleron the pain was excruciating. He could not breathe. He prayed to his God Kersaises. He expected to meet him shortly. Eventually, everything went black.
***
He awoke. He saw Krya, Xonara and Konar staring down on him. Aleron at first thought they were in the afterlife. Then he felt pain.
He groaned. He realized that he was still alive. He made to rise.
“Easy Aleron,” said Krya. She was cradling his head. “I almost lost you.”
There were tears on her cheek. This shocked Aleron who had never known Krya to weep. He lay still and just breathed.
“I’m alive,” he said. “You don’t have to worry.”
“Who said I was worried,” she said, wiping them. Then she smiled at him.
“How is Xonara alive?” he asked.
“I rode the tree until I fell off,” replied Xonar. “Then I made my way here. The rock kept me safe. When I saw Maln I shot him with an arrow.”
“She saved our lives,” said Krya. “The trees began to move in all directions when he died. Then when your holy fire burnt enough of the great tree they stopped.”
“Are you still going to kill her?” asked Aleron.
“No,” said Krya. “She saved your life. I owe her for that.”
Then she looked at Xonara. “Unless you come after me.”
“Not today,” said Xonara. “There has been too much blood.”
“Agreed,” said Aleron. “This whole thing started with atrocity.”
“What do you mean?” asked Konar.
“When the Tangar were slaughtered it was a dark deed.”
“They were monsters!” said Konar.
“Perhaps,” replied Aleron. “Or perhaps they were just people. Who knows? Either way this was their revenge.”
Aleron stood up and looked about. The great tree was a burnt hulk. Maln’s corpse lay on the ground scalped. He then notice that the shaman’s scalp hung from Xonara’s belt.
Then he saw Menos’s corpse which shocked him. He had not realized he had been killed. He felt a hole in the pit of his stomach.
“As Xonara said there has been too much blood. Perhaps though there might be less of it in the future. This land is stained enough with blood as it is.”
“What now?” said Konar. “Xonara and I will return to our tribe. What will you do?”
“Take Menos’s body back,” said Krya. “And then to Freetown to see if we can get our pay.”
“And then?”
“Then,” said Aleron. “We rest.”
©April 2024, Matthew Ilseman
Matthew Ilseman was born in Texas and lives in Colorado. His work has appeared previously in Swords & Sorcery.