When Fort master Edfu’s guards burst into his bedchamber carrying the dark skinned woman between them that cold winter morning he was completely surprised. He sprang upright in his bed, pulling the thick woolen sheets up to his neck to cover his grey hair covered sagging chest. The chamber slave sharing his bed squealed more from shock than discovery. Edfu’s preference for his help was well known in the keep, even to his wife, which was why they maintained separate bedrooms. Still, the intrusion angered him.
“What is the meaning of this?” he yelled.
The intruders, two of his senior rampart guards, nodded respectfully. They held the arms of the woman as she sagged between them. Blood dripped from her mouth, her clothes torn and soiled. Whoever she was she apparently put a grand struggle. The guards showed signs of damage themselves. The tall man’s right eye was badly bruised and barely opened while the shorter, thicker man grimaced from some unseen wound. They leaned on their pikes, their chests heaving.
“Sir, we’re sorry to intrude,” the tall one said. “But you ordered us to come to you immediately if we found one of them lurking about.”
Edfu’s eyes widen and he shivered. The blanket fell from his hands and he jumped from his bed naked. The rumors began three years ago after the fall of Menu Kash and had grown more numerous every year. Shaall fortress was one of forty citadels established by Ras Wolde’ab to enforce the boundaries between the Haisetti highlands realm and the volatile Kashite kingdom. The fortified cities recently took on more importance when rumors of a strange cult began to sift west. This cult, the Joka Watu, seemed focused on conquering Ki Khanga and forcing its inhabitants to follow its practices. The Ras scoffed at the rumors until the refugees began arriving. Initially they were allowed entry, for there were lands in the kingdom that needed the labor these unfortunate folks provided. Eventually the flow became too much and the ras attempted to stem the flow without success. With more refugees came more rumors of the invaders. They called themselves joka watu and they rode beasts that flew like the fabled eagles of Targa but were much larger. Wolde’ab assured his people they had nothing to fear; their kingdom was stronger than any threat the Kashites’ conquerors could raise; their plateaus stood strong liked that of the Creators . And as far as flying beasts were concerned, Ras Wolde’ab laughed. He would not be frightened by children’s tales.
“Show me,” Edfu ordered. The tall man grabbed the woman’s head and tilted it to the side. She moaned as the other man dug through her hair just above her right ear.
“Here it is,” he said. He pushed the hair back, revealing a small horn curled tight against the woman’s scalp.
“Take her to the tower!” Edfu said too quickly. “Once you secure her send a message to Folasa to meet me immediately. Go!”
The guards bowed and dragged the woman from the chamber. Edfu hurried to his closet, the chambermaid following to perform her official duty. She selected his clothing and began dressing him. Edfu hoped she hadn’t witness what he’d been shown.
“She’s a joka watu, isn’t she,” the woman asked.
Edfu gritted his teeth. “You saw nothing, Carva, you hear me? If I hear any word of this outside these walls I’ll throw you in the tower beside her, understand?”
The chambermaid dropped his shirt then quickly retrieved it.
“Yes, ras,” she stammered.
Edfu fidgeted as Carva finished dressing him. He stepped into his pants then tapped his foot as she buttoned his shirt, tucked it into his pants and fastened his belt.
“Now get out of my way!” Carva scrambled and cowered against the wall. Edfu stormed out of the opulent room and into the wide hall decorated with the portraits of his family lineage. Edfu’s father answered the Ras’s call among the nobles for the building of the fortresses. It was an opportunity for their minor house to rise in the ranks and he took to the task, sending most of the family inheritance to construct Shaall. The result was a citadel that rivaled the Ras’s palace at Haiset. When the Immaculate Potentate inspected his borderlands he chose Shaall as his temporary residence. The visit brought honor and danger to the family. The Shaalls were now the envy of the minor and major houses; Keep Shaall was the mightiest fortress on the border which would make it the target for any attempt of invasion.
