THE REALM

Chapter Three

  Add becoming a thief to the list of crimes I had begun to accumulate in greater volume in my life. First, I had been nothing but a humble farming boy, who then turned murderer and now I was stealing food. I didn't know if I could hope to have the God of Shamayim honor any mission of mine, for what I was exhibiting, to my chagrin, was the actions of an unbeliever.

  I had not bowed the knee to a false god though. That I would not do. El Elyon help me, that I would not do.

  I would eat tonight, but the weight of the sack of stolen provisions nestling against my knee on the horse seemed to be a great burden to not only me, but the horse I rode. I'd needed the food so I'd taken some. What was the crime in that?

  There was no answer to my thoughts, other than that the subconscious weight I was under seemed to deepen in some new level of angst. Figuratively, I pushed the weight of stolen provisions away and focused instead on the trail ahead of me, which I was hoping was a shortcut to the passageway into the Wastelands and not some Robian's Homestead.

  The trail swerved to the left and my horse, without direction by me, picked its way along the path. All of a sudden the horse began to balk at some unknown disturbance and I came to full alertness as I glanced around, hoping to ascertain what was disturbing the horse so much.

  I saw nothing, but I felt it. The vibration of hard running horses coming down the path behind me!

  I was such a fool! I should rather have suffered through some days of starvation than risk bringing down the judgmental Robian tribesmen upon me, who, from the sounds of it, were hard-pressed in their eagerness to catch me.

  I understood the level of revenging emotion that was being exhibited, even over the few provisions that I had taken. People had so little in this part of the world that to lose even a little could mean the loss of all.

  I lifted the heavy burden of guilt from off the saddle horn and hooked it on a tree branch beside the path before I kneed my horse forward. My act of letting go of stolen goods wouldn't help me against the vengefulness of my pursuers, but I felt better for it. Like I was free of an invisible weight.

  The branches of trees off to the sides of the path tore my old homespun shirt as I descended down the trail at a rate of speed that far exceeded what was smart to do. At any moment I was sure I was going to experience my mount tumble from a broken leg, only for my own young life to then be extinguished moments later, as my head was cleaved off my shoulders by a Robian saber.

  Miraculously my horse kept its footing and we put the steep downgrade of the hill behind us as we streaked out over the uneven terrain before us. The Masag River couldn't be far.

  Glancing back as I crested a rise in the terrain I beheld a terrible sight. It wasn't Robian tribesmen behind me. They would have been bad enough, but the sight of the royal blue and yellow colors of Rollanic Knights meant far worse implications for me.

  It was known that I had killed a man. Apparently a man of Rollanic origin. Was my father even now chasing me to my death?

  There would be no quick death for me if I let myself get caught. Death would be slow in the coming and I would no doubt wish for it a thousand times over before it came.
It was a chase, but I kept the distance between me and my pursuers to a healthy gap. I had to, Rollanic horsemen were known for their prowess with archery from horseback.

  The shrubby growth of my surroundings had gradually given way to larger shade trees. The river couldn't be far. An arrow whizzed past me, then another and another.

  The direness of our imminent arrival at the river and my possible escape into the Wastelands had brought an extra urgency to my pursuers. My horse neighed loudly and a quick glance revealed an arrow lodged deep into his rump. He began to stumble forward painfully at only half speed. I wasn't going to make it!
More arrows came whizzing by all around me and I made a quick decision. I bailed out of the saddle and hit the ground running. Moments later the horse fell heavily off to the right of me with an arrow protruding from its neck.

  I was unmindful of the stones beneath my bare feet as I ran headlong toward the river. I got my first glimpse of the river that was now the sum total of my only form of salvation.

  I swept down the high walled muddy banks of the river's sides until I was splashing forward into the shallows. The river got deeper than this, didn't it?
I saw a faster moving current ahead and I waded for it as arrows started plunking into the water all around me. I inhaled deeply and dived forward into the fast current. I almost lost my breath as the strong current of the river slammed into me and dragged me downriver.

  I didn't dare come to the surface. My life depended on it, but it was hard to justify as my burning lungs felt as if I was about to die at any moment if I didn't take a breath.

  I couldn't stand it any longer and I tried to come to the surface, but there was a problem with that as well. I couldn't swim.

  Instead of rising I sank further. In desperation I sank to the bottom and pushed off mightily. I vaulted toward the surface and gasped in much-needed air, but then, far too quickly, I sank below again. Again I struggled to get to the air above, only to sink.

  I gave up and prepared to push off the bottom of the river again. My drawn up feet came down and I pushed with all my might, but I didn't go up. In panic I glanced down in the murky water, but I could see nothing of my feet.

  I didn't need to see though to realize that my feet were stuck fast in the mud at the bottom of the river. I panicked in earnest then, but it did me no good. I was stuck fast.

  My lungs were burning and in my delirious need for air I saw something move. Whatever it was, it was coming fast and it had teeth!

  I fell over backward as teeth from the wide flaring jaws of a crocodile swiped at where I had just been standing upright. The green scaled beast started to beat its way past me to no doubt circle back to bite at me again.

  In a desperate act of insanity I reached up and latched onto it as it swam overhead. My hands clasped onto the plate-like armor of the river predator's back. Exerting all my strength I held on.

  What was I doing?!!!

  I was getting free! That was what I was doing!

  Thinking was difficult, because my need for air was so vital, but the realization that I was no longer stuck fast to the river bottom gave me hope. The crocodile was performing somersaults and barrel rolls in its desperation to be rid of me.

  In the struggle we crested the surface of the river and I let go and grabbed hold of a dead tree branch. Out of breath, but driven by fear, I hauled myself up out of the water onto the dead tree that had been uprooted by erosion along the shoreline.

  There wasn't much of a perch for my feet but I was out of the water and breathing. The unwelcome sight of the long snout coming clear of the water, along with its deep throated hiss, had me scrambling up the trunk of the fallen tree as fast as I could go.

  Finally, I reached the bank of the river only to see my uncaring savior from a watery grave surge free of the water and head for me at a surprisingly quick pace. I scrambled up the deeply cut-in bank of the river. I slipped, but my foot found purchase on an old root. Shoving off, I muscled myself up and over the riverbank's edge.

  Glancing down I surveyed my disappointed savior, who grumpily turned tail and headed back to slip beneath the surface of the water. Quickly I glanced around for the riders from Rollanic, but they were nowhere to be seen.

  I could see tracks along the far shore that headed off downriver. I'd given them the slip.

  Shaking from a mixture of fatigue and excitement I got to my feet and turned to see my first ever glimpse of the Wastelands. A chill swept through me as I looked out into the desolate landscape before me.

  Resolutely, I stepped forward towards some nearby sand dunes, whose shifting sands whispered ominously. Not even mounted Rollanic Knights would follow me into the Wastelands.