Tau didn’t know his queen a tenth as well as he knew Hadith, but he didn’t need to, to know that she was furious beyond reasonable measure, and for some strange reason, seeing her that way made him calmer. It was as if he could sense that having the two of them in a state of pique would not end well.
“Apologize to us, General Otobong,” the queen said, her voice as even and sharp as a newly made blade.
“Beg pardon?” the general asked.
“Apologize before you no longer have a choice in the matter,” she said.
“With respect, my queen,” Otobong said, “I wish to speak as honestly as I’m able before it’s too late for any words to make a difference. You’re too young to see the patterns in this, where it’ll drag us.” He looked down at Tau. “This person you want me to call a champion should be hung for even showing his blade in my presence, and if nothing is done about the affront, then we move in a direction that will eventually overturn the natural order. My queen,” he said, “as perilous as the battles we face are to us, if we let the binds of civility and society slip, then, before long, we’ll unravel everything it means to be Omehi, and when that happens, whether it’s by our enemy’s hands or our own, we cease to exist.”
Tsiora said nothing and the room was silent.
Otobong pointed to Hadith. “And what of the whispers coming from this other Lesser’s forked tongue?” He faced Mirembe and the rest of her ruling council. “Our queen is surrounded by base wretchedness. How can that not have a corrupting influence?” he asked, taking another step away from Tau and moving out of his reach as one of the eleven Indlovu came to stand between them. “My queen,” he continued, “it worries me that you seem so ready to abandon the advice of your generals, councillors, and even your own sworn words of peace.”
The queen’s look was a hard one. “Are you finished, General?”
Otobong ground his teeth but held his tongue.
“The Xiddeen shul and several hundred thousand lost their lives in a torrent of dragon fire,” Queen Tsiora said. “Peace died then, burned away in flames the traitor Abasi Odili fanned.”
Otobong touched at his bleeding neck again and turned to the chairwoman of the Ruling Council. “I tried, Mirembe,” he said. “The Goddess knows I did, but I can’t be part of what she wants.”
“You wish to be relieved of your duties, then?” Nyah asked him.
“Oh, it’s far too late for that to be enough,” the queen said.
Otobong’s eyes widened at that.
“I understand, General,” Mirembe said, “and, after hearing everything here tonight, I’m inclined to agree.” She made a show of glancing to her left and right at the women sitting on either side of her. “The Ruling Council also agrees.”
Tau wasn’t sure what was happening, but he saw Tsiora’s pupils shrink to pinpricks and he made himself ready.
CHAPTER TWO
PLANS
Tau saw the hedena’s face, reliving the moment he killed her. In his dreams, she did not die silent. She screamed, deafening him, crushing him with her hate. He woke near midday, unsure he’d slept at all.
“You’ll feel raw,” his father said, stoking their hut’s cook fire. “During a fight your blood’s up and your body does everything it can to keep going. When the danger passes, it shuts down.” He offered Tau the vegetables he’d boiled. Tau waved them off.
“Eat,” Aren said. “You’ll be training today.”
Tau didn’t feel like training and thought that if he never touched a sword again it would signal a life lived well.
Aren must have seen something in his face, because he looked away from Tau and stared into the pot’s murk. “I wish I could give you more,” he said. “I wish…” His voice broke, and he rubbed the back of his hand against his mouth, clearing grime that wasn’t there. “Tau… you need to know I’m going to push you. You test for the Ihashe soon, and that’s what I thought I was preparing you for, a test. I’d forgotten how bad things can get. I’d forgotten how little of this has to do with sword forms, exercises, or techniques.”
Aren reached out, coming close to putting a hand on Tau’s shoulder. He let it fall short, making a fist.
“I’m teaching you how to kill,” he said. “And I need to teach you how to be good enough at it to survive.”
Tau nodded. It was what his father wanted.
“It’ll be twice the training sessions from now until the testing. We’ll add mornings to our normal afternoons. I have my duties, so your mornings will be with Nkiru and some of the other men, the ones with a good head for sword work.” Aren stood, reminded Tau to eat, and left.
Tau didn’t eat. He was supposed to meet Jabari and went to buckle on his sword belt and sword. Aren had made him clean his gear before letting him sleep, but Tau could still see it on the bronze. He could still see all the places the blood had been.
When he arrived for his afternoon training, Jabari was already in the fighting circle. “Tau!” he said.
“Well met, nkosi.”
“I feel like a mountain fell on me. Could hardly get out of bed. I’ve pain in places I didn’t know were there.” The Petty Noble smiled. “I nearly didn’t have to worry about any of that, though. I had to face my mother this morning. I thought she’d kill me.”
“Guess not?” Tau said, earning a laugh.
“She’d heard Aren’s report before seeing me. She was angry, very angry, but proud. You should have seen Lekan! He had to stand next to Mother, listening to her praise me. He looked like he’d be sick.” Jabari’s eyes glittered. “I could get used to this hero thing. Jabari Onai and Tau Tafari, the Chosen’s most feared warriors!”
“From your lips to the Goddess’s ears,” Tau told him as he lifted his practice sword and stepped into the fighting circle.
Jabari smiled. “May we always be pleasing in Her eyes,” he intoned. “At you!” he said, attacking.
No one came to instruct them. Aren and his men would have a busy few days as they and the rest of the fief recovered from the raid. Aren always said the toughest part of a battle was afterward.
Part of his duty as inkokeli was to travel to the homes of the men who’d gone to the Goddess. Tau didn’t want to think about him visiting Tendaji’s family. He couldn’t imagine having to tell Tendaji’s wife she’d never see her husband again.
“What whirls in that head?” Jabari asked.
They were sitting and sweating on the edge of the fighting circle. Jabari had gotten the better of Tau. That was normal. The ease with which he had done it was not.
“I can’t get past last night,” Tau said.
“Of course not.”
“Did you sleep?” Tau asked.
“Barely,” Jabari said. “The rush hadn’t left me. I actually considered waking Lekan to talk to him about the battle. Can you believe that? Lekan!”
Tau slumped. “Not sure he would have appreciated it.”
Jabari laughed again. “As you say! Well, I’m not sure I could swing a blade of grass. I’m for the keep. Father suggested to Mother that Lekan and I should help the rebuilding effort at Daba. She agreed and I need to figure out when works best.”