The Nian Chronicles

“Zabor,” Nadia murmured from the nest furs.

Zabor turned right before reaching the hole leading up to the first level. “Yes, love?”

She smiled. “I like it when you call me that. Spy on the village and see what they're up to, especially Alaene. It’s been two weeks since her silly eagle came. Find out what they’ve been doing.”

Zabor nodded. “That’s a good idea. I’m curious also. I will bring you word later this afternoon.”

Zabor left the nest, not just curious about the village but about Alaene. He missed seeing her smile, he missed her dedication, and he missed her overall goodness. She had never manipulated him to get her way like Nadia.

The sun was just above the horizon but the heat was already oppressive. It seemed every day the world turned hotter. Dust devils skittered along the shores of the rocky stream, which had diminished to a mere trickle in some spots. Fish bones lay along the banks, picked clean by marauders. Not a breath of air stirred the trees, and they hung limp as if defeated by the weather also.

“Good day,” a group of Nians greeted cordially as they passed in a group.

Even the common males had knives at their belts and watched for predators as the females gathered water and the few berries they could find on the withered brambles. He continued past several other groups towards the caves, wanting to see what was happening.

He stopped at the forest edge and studied the piles of wood and random mechanics a few workers fussed over, then counted the Nia entering the caves with baskets of food and returning with baskets of dirt for the workers fashioning a brick wall around the cave opening.

“Hurry up on those bricks, we’re running out!” a foreman ordered.

“The sun only bakes them so fast,” was the irritated reply.

Archers practiced at a nearby range, and Dancers hovered over them all, eyes skimming the sky and forest for intruders. They passed over him as one of them, and he brushed his gold velvet tunic signifying his new duties in the colony. Did the villagers even recognize their separate sovereignty yet?

Determining to find out, he slipped away and headed towards the council clearing, knowing that the council had a meeting today. The commoners he passed smiled at him, but they also flew carefully, glancing above, below, and around as if they might be pounced on from all sides. Unusual silence hung over the forest, and Zabor paused to listen, wondering why.

Bees and insects droned, but birds were silent or only chirped in soft warning as if too afraid to draw attention to themselves. Zabor studied the closely cropped grass, the lack of understudy, and the stripped low-hanging branches. A doe saw him but continued to devour the soft grass she had found with her fawn as if it was the last patch in the entire forest.

“Looks different, doesn’t it?” Ramal asked behind him.

Zabor jerked around, earning him a smile from the sergeant. “A little.”

“Nice to see you again, Minister Zabor.”

Zabor noticed his narrowed eyes and his tense hand hovering near his sword.

“And you as well. Looks like everyone is busy around here.”

Ramal glanced at the forest as Nians slipped by not seeing their confrontation. “It’s almost time, you know.”

Zabor didn’t reply. He didn’t have time for an argument with the officer when the council could be starting any minute.

“Don’t forget what I told you last time.”

“I haven’t,” Zabor assured. “I just wanted to see the village again before . . .” he paused. Should he say anything? “Before we break off contact with everyone.”

Ramal nodded, his eyes still narrowed. “I see. I am sorry to hear that. We miss you, Zabor.”

“I have to do what I feel is right.”

“As do we.”

Zabor crossed his arms. “And what did that mean?”

Ramal gestured around him. “You know it is coming, regardless of your denial. We must prepare even if your people will not.”

Zabor shrugged. “We are not in denial, we just know the legends are only stories made up to frighten children into behaving.”

Ramal sighed. “As you wish, then.”

He flew away, and Zabor cringed with guilt. He did believe; he just didn’t want to believe.

A ringing of bells drew his attention and hurried his wings as he flew towards the council clearing, hoping to hear more interesting tidbits from the elders.

Alaene smiled as Linae improved daily in her tactical skills. Her confidence increased, making her more open and talkative. Alaene sighed in relief, glad her Youngling was not becoming a shadow of Nadia.

The new spear launcher had also developed quickly. Alaene held a finished spear in her hands and found it light and well balanced.

Sergeant Ramal grinned at her. “They can be used for hand combat as well, Commander!”

Alaene nodded. “That’s good! A versatile weapon. Now, how soon will they be ready to test?”

“A few days more and we should have the first launcher put together.”

Alaene looked at the ground where dozens of parts lay in organized piles. It represented so much work. She hoped it had not been in vain. “If these work as well as we hope, I want them placed on the forest perimeters and at the shelters. That way we can get the first strike!”

Ramal nodded. “That would help to repel them long enough for the villagers to get to safety.”

Alaene stared at the barren sky. It had not rained for several weeks. “What do you have to report today?”

Ramal scowled. “Scouts reported another bear north of the forest yesterday, but it went around the main village. I have other reports of a wolf pack moving through the area.”

Alaene had heard their mournful howls and it gave her shivers even still. “What else?”

“Guards have also reported sighting a red fox, a wolverine, small mammals, and herds of deer.”

“All coming south, all looking for food, and no doubt the Lizia are close behind,” Alaene muttered. “It’s been two weeks since I spoke with the eagle. I’m sure the Lizia will come any day.”

“What are my orders, Commander?” Ramal asked.

“Have the sentries relieved more often. I know it’s tiring to stare at the horizon all day. I want the horns sounded the minute the Lizia are spotted.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Alaene turned to Linae. “We need to talk with the dissenters today; but not right now. I have a meeting first, and you should come with. It’s about the weapon you found.”

Linae blushed. “I don’t know what benefit I would add to the meeting.”

Alaene shrugged. “You can just observe and listen then tell me how others are reacting.”

They set off for the council clearing. Guards were posted now, and council members now sat in the tree branches. Too many strange footprints had already trampled the ground. The council didn’t need to get caught in a stampede.

The council was about to start when Alaene arrived. "Greetings, Commander!” the councilor welcomed. “Please, have a seat with us, and your Youngling.”

The Dancers sat with arms clasped around their legs.

“Now, we were just about to discuss this new weapon. The entire village is buzzing about its capabilities. I’ve heard somewhat about it, but I want to know details.”

Alaene nodded. “A few weeks ago I requested that Linae dig through the Archives to find anything we could use to our advantage. She discovered the information on the spear launcher, and I immediately gave the plans to Sergeant Ramal. Work on the weapons began immediately.”

“Who developed it? Why was it put aside for so long if it has such beneficial use?”

“The spear launcher was developed by an inventor about two hundred years ago during peaceful times. The one who developed it apparently never made a prototype and never told anyone about his plans before he died, and the information had been set aside and never noticed before.”

“How soon will they be ready?” a council member asked.

“Today at the shelter caves the Dancers were just getting ready to assemble the first one. Sergeant Ramal assures me it will be workable in a few days. We’ll have a demonstration then, and you’re all welcome to come. It looks to be a very handy weapon, and the spears used in the launcher are even light enough for hand to hand combat should the need arise.”

The council members clapped enthusiastically. ”Wonderful!” the councilor praised. “And how many of these weapons will be made?”

“At least two dozen, sir,” Alaene assured. “We will use some at the shelters and some around the perimeters of the forest to hold the Lizia at bay in order to get the citizens to the shelters faster.”

The council nodded and whispered excitedly. Then one member stood up and faced Alaene; Linae’s father! “And what about the rebels? What are you doing about them?”

Alaene sighed. She should have known Dorik would ask. “I’m going to talk with them later today in one last attempt to convince them to return.”

“Talk!?” Dorik guffawed. “We’ve been talking for weeks! What good has it done? Take your Dancers and force them back! It’s their duty!”

Alaene stared at the man aghast. “No!” she yelled as a few others began to agree with him. “Don’t you see? That will just make it worse! The Lizia are almost upon us! If we start to fight among ourselves we’ll decrease our forces! We can’t afford that! We need everyone we have.”

“But we don’t have everyone!” Dorik screeched. “They took a third of our protection with them! We need them to stand with us!”

“Forcing them will not help!” Alaene argued. “If anything it will drive them farther away! They may leave altogether! At least they’re close at hand; and when the Lizia do come they’ll see their error and return. If they leave now and are miles away, we won’t be able to contact them in time!”

“Round them up and be done with it!” Dorik continued to challenge. “Put them in chains if need be! I will not let these miserable deserters abandon my child to the enemy!” he finished, pointing at Linae.

The councilor held up his hands for silence. “We all want the rebels to return, but I agree with Commander Alaene. Force will not mend the rift between us. I propose that we offer the new settlement participation in our council. Let them pick two Nia to sit on the council with us. That way we can work on solutions peacefully.”

Arguments broke out right and left about whether it was appropriate to have dissenters on the council or not and how much power their vote would have, and what good would it do, anyway? Dorik loudly objected to anything but his idea.

Alaene put her hands to her head. “Linae, do the Histories have something similar to this?”

Linae shook her head, her face tinged with pink. “There have been only three Abandonings, Commander. All of them left during peace times and set up the south and two east colonies. I’ve heard rumors that our rebels have talked about leaving also. I'm sorry about my father. He’s stubborn.”

Alaene shrugged. “I think others will realize that. Where would the new colonists possibly go?”

Linae shrugged. “Perhaps they’ll join the other colonies; but the land east is already inhabited by other Nians, and we can only go so far south before running into the ocean. Nian settlements need land for food, and what little land is left to the east and south doesn’t leave much room for setting up a colony so close to the others.”

Alaene’s parents had taken her south to see that ocean, an expanse of water so large she had been terrified. “That would be a bad move on their part. They may start a territory war."

Linae nodded. "They have citizens going with to reproduce and continue whatever colony they create, but that's no guarantee of providing enough future Dancers to protect them.”

Alaene noticed a flash of gold and black disappearing through the trees to her left. Was that Zabor just leaving? She couldn’t tell from this distance. Had he been here and heard the cacophony of arguments? Would he tell the colonists about it? She wanted to follow to see if it was him, but duty held her at the meeting.

“And furthermore,” the councilor challenged. “Any talk of force is strictly forbidden! That is not the way to unity!”

Alaene frowned, hoping she had not missed too much.

“Commander,” the councilor requested. “I would very much appreciate your wisdom here.”

Alaene stared at the council members watching. She rose to her feet then took to her wings to hover in front of them. “When Talek was still alive, I had a similar conversation with him and Sergeant Ramal—how do we keep the dissenters from abandoning us? These are the words he told us.”

Every council member hunched forward to hear.

“He told me we can’t. They have to find out for themselves. Maybe some won’t survive; some of the villagers may not—though I will do everything in my power to keep you safe!—and he also said that enough of our population always survived to keep the village going.

“Forcing the dissenters will get us nowhere. Let them live where they will, do as they will, be as they will, until the time comes to fight the Lizia. If they return, so much the better—if not, well, the village will still survive, even if we are fewer than before.

“The new weapons will help! We will survive this crisis, and we will become an example for future generations. Stand at the ready; and the Dancers still here will stand to defend you with our lives.”

The council was pacified by her words, even though Alaene thought it was because she had mentioned Talek. They voted to leave the dissenters alone and to let Alaene talk with them again. If her attempt failed, it failed.

“Do we go there now?” Linae asked.

Alaene hesitated. Should she take the girl? Would she be poisoned by their fear? Or would it be good for the deserters to see the Younglings taking their place? “I want a few of the best new recruits to go with us,” she finally said.

With that they returned to the practice clearing to collect them. Two boys volunteered, Linae’s friends who were both taller than Alaene--twins even!--both a shocking shade of turquoise and white, symmetrically opposite of each other in their swirl patterns. Twin Dancers were so rare Alaene had never seen any before. Was it another omen, perhaps? Their names, Marat and Taram, were backwards of each other, also!

“Wow,” Alaene breathed. “So many things are happening in my lifetime!”

The twins grinned at her. “We can finish--” Marat began.

“Each other’s sentences, too,” Taram ended.

Linae giggled. “You are too funny!”

The twins readily agreed to accompany her to the new community. She warned them not to heed anything they heard and to let her do the talking. Once they agreed, the four set off for the eastern edge of the forest to find the rebels.

Much had changed since the last time she had come. At least a hundred Nests had been raised, she’d been told. She hoped she could find Zabor in that entire conglomeration. Where would he most likely be?

Zabor slid through the air in the shadows, leaving the raucous fighting back in the council clearing. His jaw clenched and his fists followed suit, wishing he could silence with a good punch that council member calling for force. How dare the council threaten to ‘round them up’? They had just as much right to leave as any other colony had. Maybe it was time to leave the forest completely and find their own place farther away.

Nadia waited for him back at her own clearing, sitting on a rock resembling a throne, making her more like a queen than a governor. Nadia didn’t allow debates. She heard petitions and either granted or refused them according to how they fit into her schemes.

“Well? I see you’re angry. What happened?”

Zabor shook his head. “They sound like warmongers,” he muttered. “We may be invaded soon. They are arguing about coming here to round everyone up and put them into chains.”

Nadia rose up. “All of them?”

Zabor hesitated. “Some of them. I couldn’t tell for sure how many because they were all shouting so much. I was so upset I had to leave or I might have hit someone.”

Nadia’s left brow rose. “You, Zabor? Hit someone? It was that bad, then?”

Zabor paced in front of her throne. It might as well have been a throne the way she settled into it with absolute certainty of her own power, both over him and their people. “Alaene told them about a new weapon they have. Some kind of spear launcher. I don’t know how long she’s going to keep up this facade that the Lizia are coming.”

Nadia frowned and preened her wings with shaking hands. “As if a spear launcher would help even if these legends were real. What else?”

“They’re training Younglings to replace us.”

Nadia jerked up. “Younglings? They’re training children, now? That’s abominable! Even we were too young to start!”

Zabor paced again, thinking about Nadia’s comment. She had been the youngest of her group, bust still old enough. H had been the oldest of his and Alaene’s group. Why was she so concerned by what age the Dancers started? The Younglings would have started training in a few years, anyway.

“Even so, they have,” he replied to show unity with her.

Nadia twisted in her seat, her beautiful face lined by worry. “Do you think they’re serious in carrying out this threat against us?”

Zabor shrugged. “It sounded like they hadn’t made a decision when I left, but neither the councilor nor Alaene were stopping the argument.”

“Well,” Nadia huffed. “If they try, we'll show them they’re wasting their time. Have Commander Soren prepare his troops for an attack. And if they come, escort them directly to me.”

Zabor frowned at her. “Are you sure? They may attack you first. With you in control, they’ll have leverage against us.”

Nadia snapped her wings behind her. “I’m not afraid of Alaene or Ramal. Bring them as I ordered.”

Zabor bowed slightly. “As you say, my love.”

Nadia smiled and narrowed her eyes. “Good. I will show these bullies I won’t be pushed around.”

Zabor left to find Saren, thinking Nadia had become the very bully she accused Alaene of being.

Saren frowned up at him from sharpening his sword as Zabor stepped into their makeshift fight arena. “You look put out.”

Zabor shrugged. “I’ve recently found out we may have company soon and not pleasant. The village council may be deciding to force us back to the village, even in chains if necessary. Governor Nadia wants your forces to be on guard and to bring any intruders directly to her.”

Saren sheathed his sword with a snap. “As you say, but . . . shouldn’t she stay out of the fighting?”

They both knew but couldn’t say that Nadia was a poor fighter.

“Order guards around her. I'll be close at hand.”

Saren nodded. “I’ll feel better about that.”

Zabor watched his friend leave, wondering how they had come to the verge of war. He turned north, not seeing anything different about the sky or horizon, but it had been two weeks. Either the Lizia were not real and not coming, or they had been delayed if they were real.

He struggled against his former duty screaming to stand in his rightful place to protect the village; but he was protecting it in his own way, and at Nadia’s command.

Wasn’t he?

He looked back at the colonists going about their usual activities, wondering if they could hear the warning sirens this far away from the village. And if they couldn’t, what would they do if the Lizia really did attack? The colony was more visible on the forest fringe than the village deeper in the trees.

He returned to Nadia, who smiled as he approached. “I forgot to tell you, Alaene warned that attacking the colony might send us running but that leaving us alone would keep up closer at hand, and that we’d rejoin them to fight when the Lizia come.”

Zabor watched the amusement turn to anger across her face. “Oh, did she? I wouldn’t help her even if that eagle came back. Maybe we should just leave anyway! I’m tired of her meddling in our colony. I told her clearly that we wanted no part in the village affairs.”

“Not even to have some of us sit on the council? They discussed that, also.”

Nadia sneered. “Why do we need to sit on their council? I'm the Governor. I make the laws and decisions for the colony.”

Zabor nodded. “Exactly what I thought you would say.”

Nadia narrowed her eyes. “How soon could we pack up and go? If we wanted to leave?”

Zabor stared at her. “Well, if everyone carried their own supplies and only brought food and basic travel necessities, I would say preparations would take at least a week.”

Nadia crossed her ankles. “I’m tired of getting harassed.”

Zabor waited, seeing by the way she tapped her fingers that she was debating the idea. “We could go south or east and join the other colonies.”

Nadia shook her head. “No. They'd expect us to submit to their councils or whatever governments they had. We have to find somewhere unoccupied to make a new colony. I will be governor, and we will make our own rules. ”

Zabor considered his long past History lessons. “I don’t think anyone has gone west.”

Nadia looked to the western horizon. “What's out there?”

“More forests, I think, and a lake. Maybe a river.”

“A river,” Nadia mused. “Plenty of fresh water, then. And probably food.”

“Yes, I’m sure of it.”

“Good! We’ll go west, then. Order everyone to be ready in a few days.”

“And if they complain?”

“Warn them the villagers are coming to put us in chains.”

“We don’t know that, yet.”

“Tell them anyway, because they might be. I want to be ready to go before then.”

Zabor backed away and strode to find Ardena, wishing he had kept his mouth shut. He didn’t really want to abandon the village to their doom. Or imaginary doom.

But what if it was real?