The Fall of Vaasar

Chapter 3

The noises of children screaming, men shouting, and fire eating at wood, grew louder as they passed through the gate and ran back towards the palace, taking a short cut through the bushes that surrounded the Great Fields.

As they burst through the undergrowth and out into the open, they ran straight into a group of horsemen. These men had black skin, far darker than the brown of the average Vaasarian. Small dark eyes, broad noses and thick lips. Their black faces had been daubed with white paint in diamonds, swirls and dots. They looked cat like. On their heads, were gruesome headdresses. Wrapped cloth with bones, horns and teeth hanging from it, that clattered and clacked as they moved. They wore a sand-coloured woven overcoat to the knees, tied with cord around their waist, and baggy trousers in the same fabric, that were tucked into fur lined, knee-high boots.

On their chest and back, over the coat, they had two solid squares, made from a substance Tamza had never seen before. These squares were roped together over shoulders and under their armpits. The same solid substance was around their wrists, like a large cuff. Tied from the cord around their waists hung long leaf shaped objects that had a cross grip at the top and ended in a sharp point. They each had an axe, similar to those the farmers used, but with the same strange substance instead of stone. Smaller leaf shaped, pointed objects were tied to each bicep. The men stank.

The horses were small and squat, the men's feet almost skimming the ground. This explained why they could fit under the low arches that criss-crossed the town's alleyways. The men with the painted faces rode them bareback.

"Archers," Sumear whispered to Tamza. "They have bow and arrow like my father used when he hunted. But his arrow point was stone. I do not know what this dark substance is."

There was shouting and they were surrounded by men on foot, with the leaf objects in their hands.

"Warriors, take there." A man on top of a horse commanded and pointed to the centre of the fields.

Tamza and her father raised eyebrows at each other. They understood. Tamza had inherited the ability to speak with animals from her father, as he had inherited the ability from his, but neither were aware they could understand other human tongues. They had only ever heard, and spoken, the language of their country, Drome.

The sharp object was poked at Tamza's father and he yelped.

"We go," Tamza said quickly in the ugly, stilted language of these men. "Don't hurt."

The man on the horse stared at her in disbelief, which soon turned to suspicion. "You speak Xayy warrior?"

"Speak all languages," Tamza replied, her voice shaking, cowering from the dark eyes and clinging to her father's arm.

The Xayy warrior grunted and gestured to the warriors on foot. They shoved her and Sumear towards the centre of the field. Gathered there were the scribes, as well as a number of townspeople. The Vizier and his executives were all huddled together. The entire field was surrounded by the warriors on their small horses, aiming arrows at the crowd. In flowed more and more Vaasarians, herded by warriors on foot with the sharp leaf objects.

The Great Fields were larger than the grand square and marketplace, and soon it became clear that they were rounding up the town's residents and bringing them here.

"What's going on?" Tamza whispered to her father.

"I have no idea who these people are and what they want. Can you see Yaseena and the boys?"

Tamza stood on tiptoes and searched the faces around her. "No."

He took her hand and they weaved through the crowd, looking, towards where the Vizier stood, which was higher ground.