A Creature of War, Book 6, CH07

The tent village was nothing like Kal’s camp.

He used military rules to set up the tents in rows, with lanes on each side for easy movements. Rain barrels were set up by each other tent for collection and so everyone had access to it. Everything kept in mind they had limited resources.

The tents here were set up randomly, creating lanes and alleys that turned around and made it impossible to see more than three or four of them ahead. Every tent they encountered had a rain barrel, some of which were in poor condition.

“Is it my imagination—” Finn looked around— “or are there a lot of lynxes here?”

The human took the news of Kal’s origin better than the lynx had expected. Better than Kamdy had. He’d nodded and had set back to his duties. None of Kamdy’s disbelief and incessant questions.

Even the idea that there had been cities with buildings that touched the clouds didn’t faze him, or that until the Celeste had appeared, people still talked about them. Wrote about them. Did what they could to preserve their history. Keepers had destroyed all of it, calling them corrupt, lies from demons.

That had made Finn angry, but he hadn’t doubted. When Kal asked his reply had been. “The world’s too big for me to know everything about it, so I have no reason to question that it used to be even bigger.”

Kal looked around at the lynxes bustling about. “They are.”

“Who are they?”

“They are wanderers,” Kal answered, “forced to never stay in one place for long because of who they are. The Keepers have be harassing lynxes for over two decades now. It makes it tough for them to settle down. And if the Keepers do it, then guards consider it acceptable to do it too, so even coming to cities to sell and buy what they need become problematic.”

“And what are they doing here?”

Kal smiled. “They’ve been promised payback.”

Fin nodded. “You’ve arranged for them to find out what’s happening.” He lowered his voice. “And do they know it’s your fault?”

“I might have forgotten to include that in the message,” Kal replied in a whisper. The odds of the people around them, humans and Furrians understood them were low, but possible.

“So why did you want them here?”

“Even with Wilma’s map there’s no way to infiltrate the city. They regulate the gates and check everyone. There’s never enough people going in or out to overwhelm the guards.”

Finn groaned. “They’re a distraction. Kal, they’re going to get massacred when the guards realize what’s going on. They aren’t soldiers.”

“They know the risk.”

“Really?” Finn indicated the children running around. “What are they doing here, then? You don’t bring kids if you think you’ll die.”

Kal stopped and faced the human. “They’re fighting for their freedom as much as we are. The message they got made the dangers clear. They still came. No one wants to be forced to wander the realms for all time.” He lowered his voice. “I know it’s in part my fault, but if I’m going to end it, I need help, and in this case, the army wasn’t enough. Once we destroyed the Celeste, everyone gets to have their lives back.”

“Those left alive,” Finn said darkly.

“Finn, this is war. Innocents have already died. I’m trying to end it. That comes at a price. I sort of remember a young man willing to sacrifice everyone and everything to avenge his brother and sister.”

“You said it, I was young. And stupid. I’m neither now.” He looked around. “If you expect them to fight, I won’t—”

“No, just provide confusion. We’ll take advantage of that and do the fighting.”

Finn wasn’t happy, but before he could voice it, an older lynx exited a tent exclaiming an accented greeting. “Honored leader is welcome to camp. Come come. Enter, be welcome.”

The tent was larger than those around it, with a low table in the middle and cushions on the floor. Everything was in bright colors and the space was cooler than outside.

The old male said something in a language Kal didn’t know and a bundle of fabric moved, revealing itself to be a young lynx. They replied in the same language and left through a small flap in the back of the tent.

“Sit,” the old lynx said, indicating the cushions around the table, before kneeling on one. “Food, drink, comes. Other leaders here soon.”

Kal knelt on one, and Finn followed his example. He tried a variety of the languages he knew, hoping they had one in common, even if it meant leaving Finn out of the conversation, but whatever the basis was for their language, it had evolved too much.

The young lynx returned with a tray holding goblets, a jug and plates with fruits. The beverage was orange and Kal was surprised it was orange juice, he hadn’t had that since before the war. Finn’s surprised reaction made everyone chuckle. It was his first time tasting it.

As they ate the fruits; lemons, apples, dates, men, and women joined them and more trays came.

By the time they were all kneeling around the table, it sounded like a gathering of old friends, laughing and exchanging stories. Twenty-two people, plus him and Fin. Sixteen lynxes, three humans, a tiger, a boar, and a cow.

She was the one to address Kal. “We’re all here.” She spoke without an accent, and the others quieted. “Will you tell us what your grand plan is now?” the others translated in soft whispers. Kal missed the days when no matter what other language someone spoke, you could count on them knowing English.

“I plan on destroying the Celeste.”

She waved it aside. “You said that already. Come help me destroy the Celeste, your message said. Come regain your freedom.”

“The Celeste can not be killed,” one of the lynxes said. “Gods cannot die.”

“I don’t think anyone here believes the Celeste is real,” Kal said. “You wouldn’t be here if you did. The Celeste is just a creation of people who want to control us.”

“Yes, yes,” The cow said. “And how do you plan on stopping them?”

“By killing the Celeste’s Voice. He’s—”

“Or her,” the cow said with a smile.

“Or her,” Kal agreed, “is the one person controlling everything. With them dead and this temple destroyed, it will shatter their beliefs.”

“What is to stop someone else from rallying them?” a young man said after listening to the tiger whisper to him. “There is always someone willing to step into the shoes of a tyrant.”

“Look, I can’t control what the next tyrant will do. That’s on everyone to deal with. I’m arranging for the destruction of this tyrant, this church. After this, my army will go and destroy every other temple still standing. By the time they’re done, the only thing left of the Celeste will be a memory.”

A human man slammed a hand on the table and spoke in what Kal thought might have been German at one time. He could get a sense of the word’s cadence, but not their meaning.

“This is Madness,” the man standing at his shoulder translated, putting the same angry inflection in the words. “The Celeste can not be killed. He is a divine being.”

Kal snorted. “How do you know?” once the man translated, and all Kal received was a confused expression, he added. “I can crack the ground under us open. Has anyone seen the Celeste do that? I can burn everyone in this camp without moving, without there being even one fire. Has the Celeste done that? I can call lightning from—”

“I think you might want to stop there,” Finn said with a chuckle.

Kal looked away from the man he was cowing. Everyone at the table was staring at him, fear on their face.

“Right. My point is that even if the Celeste is someone, that’s all he is, someone. I don’t believe that, but that is the worse we’re dealing with. Divinity is just a word used to scare people.”

The man found his voice and spoke. The translator spoke with him until the man pointed at Kal and said harsh sounding words. “You—he says you’re wrong, the divine is real.”

Kal shrugged. “If you believe that, why are you here? You knew what we were going to do. If you think we can’t win, why did you answer my call?”

The man spoke, the translator looked exasperated as he converse with him. “Because Harral demands it.”

As others translated a mix of nods and eye rolls answered the pronouncement.

“Who’s Harral,” Kal asked after looking around.

The translator sighed. “It’s the divine being they believe in.”

Kal closed his eyes. “You have got to be kidding me. Just how many idiots out there believe in those kinds of things.” He snapped his eyes opened. “Don’t translate that!”

The translator and others smiled.

“Are they here because they think their god will step in?”

The translator spoke, then shook his head. “No. Harrak only demands that the impostor be removed. People will find their way to Harral of their own accord once their sight is no longer clouded.”

“Is he serious?” Kal asked, and the translator almost translated it.

“He sounds like it. It’s the first time I’ve heard of this Harral. The city I’m from never heard of it.”

“Do we really want another god after this one?” Finn asked.

Kal shrugged. He thought having something else waiting in the wings for people to believe in was going to be bad, but was that his problem? This Harral hadn’t done anything to him, or anything to be known outside of where ever that man was from. And regardless, that was a problem for the future. Right now, he had his mission.

“Look,” he addressed the assembled people, “I get the feeling we all have our individual reasons to want the Celeste gone.” He looked at the lynxes. “For some it’s because you’re directly persecuted, for others it could be less or more self-centered. I don’t think it matters so long as we’re willing to work together to deal with this problem. After that, well, that up to all of you.”

Finn shook his head, displeased at the comment, but the others nodded their approvals.

They quieted, and the cow looked at Kal. “What do you need from us?”

“When we’re ready to go in, I’m going to need you to cause disruptions at all the city gates. We’re going to slip in during that.”

The discussion erupted with ideas on how to accomplish that, and Kal spent the rest of the day mostly listening to what they would do.

*

“You can’t seriously intend to let them do anything they want,” Finn said as they walked back to their camp. “All they’re going to do is set up some other ruler, maybe that Harral, or one of them will decide they need to rule. Nothing’s going to change.”

Kal shrugged. “They won’t go after Powered, that’ll be different.”

“And that’s enough? I thought we were doing this to protect people. You heard them, they were planning how to take over the rule of the Celeste in front of you, like they didn’t care that you knew. So they won’t persecute Powered, they’ll still end up crushing someone else under their heel.”

Kal stopped and grabbed Finn’s arm, forcing him to do the same. “When did this stop being personal for you?”

“I told you, when I stopped being young and stupid.”

Kal nodded and did his best to control his temper. “Well, it hasn’t for me. You talk of protecting people, but the only thing I care about is destroying this thing that killed my son. The world can go and burn after that, I don’t care. I have spent my time protecting people. I spent centuries doing that, do you know what it got me? Between each battle, I was back at the lab to be studied again. Those people I protected never, ever, saw me as a person.”

He closed his mouth and reined in his temper. He looked at the starry sky. “Finn, you want to take charge when this is done, you do it. Take this army and make it something you’ll be proud of, that people will look up to. Maybe you’ll be remembered that way. I know I won’t.”

“You’re talking like you expect to die. I thought you couldn’t die.”

The lynx smiled sadly. “Oh, I can die. I’ve lost enough of my family to know that.”

Finn put his hand on his shoulder. “Kal, I have your back. I won’t let anything happen to you. When this is over you can do all that.”

Kal forced a smile. “We’ll see. Come on, we need sleep because starting tomorrow, things are going to be hectic.”

*

Kal didn’t know how they did it, but from the time between them leaving the tent village to the next morning, it was replaced with carts. Not one tent left standing.

He arrived with two of his units. The others were divided among the other groups, to would undergo a similar process. Armor was covered up with colorful clothing, fabrics, loose pants. By the time they were all dressed no one looked like they were part of an army. They couldn’t move rapidly, unless they wanted the sound of their armor to give them away, but now they looked as if they were part of this community.

“I look stupid,” Finn grumbled as they walked next to the cart.

“It’s what it takes to get in,” Kal answered. A third of the carts were from his army, but made up to fit, to take in the excess people, but also to carry the weapons they couldn’t carry on them, hidden in the frame. The only weapon any of them had on, was the knife that was considered standard accouterment among travelers.

More families and units joined their as they approached the city, enough they took over the entire road, forcing those traveling in the opposite direction to move to the grass to let them pass.

The city knew they were coming. The large number of guards at the gate made that clear, but Kal had never intended to hide his approach. What they were incapable of knowing was which of the gates would be dealing with soldiers and which were a distraction. That they were all both would only serve to confuse them more.

Unless the guards were willing to kill everyone approaching the gate, Kal’s soldiers would get in, and if they did kill anyone getting close, Kal would count on the stories to make their way through the realms and outrage to do the work his army couldn’t, but he would get in. He didn’t care about anything else.

The first carts reached the gate, and the expected pandemonium exploded. Guards tried to stop them, yelled orders for them to turn around. Multiple languages were spoken, but none of it helped. People dropped out of the cats and began arguing, pushing their way forward. In places fighting erupted.

Kal used the distractions and his ability to get by the few soldiers not drawn into the chaos and enter the city. He didn’t wait or even pay attention if anyone made it in with him. Each unit had their targets, he wasn’t needed to execute the plan, he’d build it this way, explaining that if he was taken out, it needed to continue.

His strongest units would attack the temple and try to get in, while the rest would go after the barracks, the weaponsmiths, the treasury. When he was deep enough, he shed his colorful clothing.

“Are we waiting for the others?” Finn asked.

Kal was surprised to see him there, as well as six others. He kept his cursing to himself. “They aren’t coming here, they’re joining up at the agreed-upon meeting points. Which is where we should be going.”

When they all shed their colors and were in gray and brown they waited, looking at Kal. “What are you waiting for? Get moving, split up so you don’t attract attention.” All but Finn left. “You should go too.”

“I’m not abandoning you. I said I’d have your back.”

Kal wanted to argue. He didn’t need, or want, Finn here. He’d made his decision during the night, while waiting for sleep to come.

Finn locked eyes with him, waiting. If he’d lost his animosity over the years, the human had lost none of his stubbornness. With a silent curse, Kal turned and got moving.

When he reached the main thoroughfare, he joined the crowd. Not enough of the soldiers had made it in yet for the alarm to be sounded. He sighted the temple, its spires visible from anywhere in the city and followed them until he reached the market square. He found the alley he’d located on Wilma’s map as a guard yelled after him. Of course he’d attract attention, all lynxes were suspect. He ran for the alley, Finn at his heel and the guard not far behind him. When he stopped, subduing the guard was simple.

“He’s about your size,” Finn pointed out.

“I’m not sure anyone would believe a lynx was one of the guards.”

“The armor looks to be better quality, if nothing else.”

“When you take in all the money from the faithful, you can afford to buy more expensive armor for your guards.”

Finn nodded. “Put it on.”

“Finn, I told you, no one’s going to believe—”

“It’s better armor than what you’re wearing. The better armored your are the better your chances of surviving this.”

“I don’t need better armor, what I have is fine.”

“Kal, we’re not moving from here until you’re wearing that armor. You want to keep arguing, that’s fine with me, but you’re going to end up sitting out this deciding battle of yours if you do.”

Kal considered dropping Finn right here, but he could hear the market, and someone had seen the guard run after them. Finn would be in danger if anyone came to investigate.

Cursing the entire time, he changed armor. He handed the sword to Finn, who looked about to protest.

“I have powers, you don’t,” Kal stated. “Put that on.” Now, at least when they went their separate ways, Finn would have something to defend himself with.

Once he had the belt secured, they were running again. When they had to cross another street, they attracted attention and three guards tried to stop them. Everyone else kept their distance; more fighting could be heard above the city sounds. The guards didn’t last long against him and Finn, and they were running again.

Kal entered the alley he wanted and counted the intersections until the right one, then the next. When it opened into a wider street, he ducked his head and walked along the hurrying traffic. The temple was much closer now. He located the cobbler’s shop and entered the alley next to it.

“Kal,” Finn whispered.

Kal hurried forward until Finn grabbed his arm.

“Kal, where are you going, they were right there.”

Lies ran through Kal’s mind. Things he could tell Finn to explain why he wasn’t joining the soldiers, who were waiting for more before starting the assault. He sighed. What was the point?

“You go join them.”

“I told you, I’m sticking with you.”

“You can’t.”

“Kal, I told you, I’m not—” he choked on the missing air.

Kal grabbed his arm and pulled him deeper in. “I’m sorry Finn, you don’t deserve this.” The human pulled out of his grasp and staggered. He looked at Kal angrily. “I’m doing this alone. I need you to survive this so you can take my army and use it to protect people. That’s what an army is supposed to do, not what I’ve been using it for.”

Finn tried to protest, but he could barely stand.

“Finn. I’m not surviving this. When I bring the temple down I’m burying myself with it. I’ve been around too long. This world isn’t for me anymore. You’re going to be pissed at me, and that’s fine.” Kal lowered Finn to the ground. “I won’t hold it against you. Just make something good of this. Make something better. I’m counting on you.”

Finn didn’t answer him; he was unconscious.