Read Online The Blood-stained Belt by Brian H Jones - Free Book Online
Authors: Brian H Jones
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and not a best mate. And I agree with you
when you say that he should have left your sheep alone. That’s the
closest that I ever came to having anything to do with the
matter.’
Sharma replied
calmly, ‘Thank you for telling me, commander.’
Zaliek jerked
his thumb and said, ‘All right. Now you know. Get back to the
ranks!’ He braced himself and bellowed, ‘Squad! Form up!’ We got to
our feet, dusted ourselves, and swung our swords across our backs.
Zaliek pointed to someone and asked brusquely, ‘You – what have you
learned today?’
‘I learned to
fight dirty, commander.’
‘Fight dirty?
Is that all you learned? Ha! Any mangy street-dog knows how to
fight dirty.’ He pointed to another member of the squad and roared,
‘You – what did you learn?’
‘I learned not
to do what the enemy expects, commander.’
‘Yes. That’s
better! And what else did you learn?’
‘I learned that
we should keep our minds focused, commander.’
‘Yes. That’s
good.’ Zaliek swung his sword across his back and shouted, ‘Right,
you lot! Let’s get back to camp. Keep formation all the way. No
stragglers! Understand?’
‘Yes,
commander!’ We set off at a jogging pace and reached camp just
before sunset.
The camp was
next to the town of Koraina where Vaxili set up a temporary
capital. Koraina was strategically situated close to the border
between Upper and Lower Keirine, protected by hills while offering
easy access to the open, rolling country to the south, which was
the sector that the Dornites favoured for their incursions into
Keirine. Before Vaxili and his court arrived, Koraina was just a
quiet rural town about the size of Osicedi. Now it was a boom town
with facilities and services expanding to provide for both the
regular and irregular needs of the court and the army camp.
At Koraina
regularly I attended devotions at the temple just in case Zabrazal
still had his eye on me. I had felt that way ever since Sharma and
I underwent the cleansing ceremony in Osicedi when I sensed an
active, omnipresent intelligence that scrutinised me sceptically
while chalking up pluses and minuses on the divine scoreboard. I
didn’t want to provide a reason for more minuses to be chalked
up.
At the time
that I joined the army, I wasn’t sure whether the pluses or minuses
predominated on my score sheet. I hadn’t done much wrong but, on
the other hand I wasn’t sure that I had satisfied the priests’
demands of absolute devotion to Zabrazal either. I had given alms
to the poor, performed the annual sacrifice, tried to be truthful,
and stayed away from married women – actually, stayed away from
women altogether, in deed if not in thought – so I should have
toted up a host of pluses. But Zabrazal was unpredictable. The
priests told us that Zabrazal could look into your thoughts and
take offence at even the most fleeting hints of deviance or
disloyalty. In fact, Zabrazal could get steamed up about a whole
number of things that mere mortals wouldn’t think were worth a
second thought. In short, I understood that dealing with Zabrazal
was like walking through a swamp on a dark night knowing that there
were hazards everywhere and wondering when, almost inevitably, you
would blunder into the next muddy hole or even flounder
despairingly in a patch of quicksand.
My regular
visits to the temple had one definitely positive result and she was
named Dana. Although I noticed her right away during my first visit
to the temple, initially she meant nothing more to me than any
other young woman who was attractive enough to be worth two or more
glances. Then, one day, I happened to sit behind her. While the
congregation was reciting the creed, she glanced at her companion
from time to time. I became intrigued by the luminous secret that
her eyes suggested. Like a shock going through my frame, it struck
me that I wanted to meet her. In fact, I wanted to meet her so
badly that the need was like a twisted knot in my stomach.
when you say that he should have left your sheep alone. That’s the
closest that I ever came to having anything to do with the
matter.’
Sharma replied
calmly, ‘Thank you for telling me, commander.’
Zaliek jerked
his thumb and said, ‘All right. Now you know. Get back to the
ranks!’ He braced himself and bellowed, ‘Squad! Form up!’ We got to
our feet, dusted ourselves, and swung our swords across our backs.
Zaliek pointed to someone and asked brusquely, ‘You – what have you
learned today?’
‘I learned to
fight dirty, commander.’
‘Fight dirty?
Is that all you learned? Ha! Any mangy street-dog knows how to
fight dirty.’ He pointed to another member of the squad and roared,
‘You – what did you learn?’
‘I learned not
to do what the enemy expects, commander.’
‘Yes. That’s
better! And what else did you learn?’
‘I learned that
we should keep our minds focused, commander.’
‘Yes. That’s
good.’ Zaliek swung his sword across his back and shouted, ‘Right,
you lot! Let’s get back to camp. Keep formation all the way. No
stragglers! Understand?’
‘Yes,
commander!’ We set off at a jogging pace and reached camp just
before sunset.
The camp was
next to the town of Koraina where Vaxili set up a temporary
capital. Koraina was strategically situated close to the border
between Upper and Lower Keirine, protected by hills while offering
easy access to the open, rolling country to the south, which was
the sector that the Dornites favoured for their incursions into
Keirine. Before Vaxili and his court arrived, Koraina was just a
quiet rural town about the size of Osicedi. Now it was a boom town
with facilities and services expanding to provide for both the
regular and irregular needs of the court and the army camp.
At Koraina
regularly I attended devotions at the temple just in case Zabrazal
still had his eye on me. I had felt that way ever since Sharma and
I underwent the cleansing ceremony in Osicedi when I sensed an
active, omnipresent intelligence that scrutinised me sceptically
while chalking up pluses and minuses on the divine scoreboard. I
didn’t want to provide a reason for more minuses to be chalked
up.
At the time
that I joined the army, I wasn’t sure whether the pluses or minuses
predominated on my score sheet. I hadn’t done much wrong but, on
the other hand I wasn’t sure that I had satisfied the priests’
demands of absolute devotion to Zabrazal either. I had given alms
to the poor, performed the annual sacrifice, tried to be truthful,
and stayed away from married women – actually, stayed away from
women altogether, in deed if not in thought – so I should have
toted up a host of pluses. But Zabrazal was unpredictable. The
priests told us that Zabrazal could look into your thoughts and
take offence at even the most fleeting hints of deviance or
disloyalty. In fact, Zabrazal could get steamed up about a whole
number of things that mere mortals wouldn’t think were worth a
second thought. In short, I understood that dealing with Zabrazal
was like walking through a swamp on a dark night knowing that there
were hazards everywhere and wondering when, almost inevitably, you
would blunder into the next muddy hole or even flounder
despairingly in a patch of quicksand.
My regular
visits to the temple had one definitely positive result and she was
named Dana. Although I noticed her right away during my first visit
to the temple, initially she meant nothing more to me than any
other young woman who was attractive enough to be worth two or more
glances. Then, one day, I happened to sit behind her. While the
congregation was reciting the creed, she glanced at her companion
from time to time. I became intrigued by the luminous secret that
her eyes suggested. Like a shock going through my frame, it struck
me that I wanted to meet her. In fact, I wanted to meet her so
badly that the need was like a twisted knot in my stomach.
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