“What about you?” She asked, “Why are you here? Seems a bit far from the from the Greenlands.” Then, Sally jerked her head to the rest of the Marshen’s companions. “And with a group of Merkahni soldiers at that?”

  The woman smiled broadly at that, humor self-evident.

  “Why, we’re the First Hunters of Green Providence, of course.”

  19. Lake Majestic – August 16, Year 216

  Green Providence. Apparently, it was the name of a new settlement, one located on the southern coast of Lake Majestic. Or the name for a new state of the Merkahn Republic, that part wasn’t quite clear yet.

  Attempts to settle Lake Majestic wasn’t a new idea, not in the slightest. The lake itself was the largest freshwater body in the entirety of the Circuit, its waters clean and drinkable after bringing it to a boil. It had always been the premier location for an enterprising group of people to try and form a new community. Inevitably, all ended in tragedy.

  Even people from the Villas once tried to settle it. Sally recalled an old legend about a Villa whose name had long since been forgotten from memory who made the attempt, only to end up drowning when trying to drink from it. It was a moralistic one about greed, but the attempt itself was likely factual.

  The Anteeri had tried to settle it as well, as did one of the earlier versions of Southwall and even the then-isolated city of Keringa, in a time when trade with the Merkahni had yet to blossom, had sent out an expedition to claim its waters.

  But those days were long gone by now. The last attempt, if what Sally’d been told was true, had been well over a century ago, and by then settling Lake Majestic was already considered a form of large-scale collective suicide.

  Truth is, there was simply no good place on its coast to build a city, and even settling a bit further off couldn’t be done. It was too close to cannibal lands, the lake itself lied within what Sally now understood to be the Hilaynite’s boundaries, and building within the salted marsh of the Greenlands was impossible even without the ire of the Marshen bearing down on those attempting to do so.

  Furthermore, settlements attracted demons, both True ones and the more common varieties. All over the Grand Circuit settlements have been built and subsequently abandoned or destroyed due to attacks. The ones around today were simply the few that made it, the sole survivor among a thousand corpses.

  Then there was the fact that, besides the more directly hostile ones, the threat of starvation was at least as high. While the water was easily made drinkable, the land around it was unsuitable for agriculture; Lake Majestic was surrounded by sands, not plants for a reason. What that reason was, no one knew for sure, but if the lake water wasn’t at fault, it stood to reason the red sands of the Wastes had something to do with it.

  But never before in the history of the Circuits had an outside force attempted to build a city inside its borders, let alone on a piece of land deemed uninhabitable by its locals. And why would they? If the locals couldn’t do it, what made the Merkahni believe they could?

  In the course of their journey towards the new settlement, Sally posed this very question to Sanan, the Marshen shaman.

  “They’ve got support from all-over,” the shaman replied. “The Bite, Keringa, the Marshen houses, all are in on it. Honestly, it’s more a collective effort than a Merkahni one, even if they paid for most of it.”

  “Why now, though?” Sally asked.

  “They’ve been making inroads with the cities and my people since a decade ago at least, if not longer,” Sanan answered. “Now’s as good a time as any.”

  To hear it went back that long… Sally hadn’t heard about any of this, not even when she and her mentor went to investigate the Merkahni presence years back. They’d merely figured it was a trade delegation or something.

  “So, what? They want to, like, take over the Circuits or something?” Sally was surprised to say the least. Outsiders have been travelling these parts since long, long ago, before even her great-grandparents were born. Long before the formation of the states east, south and west of the Grand Circuit, people traveled these lands to get from one side to the other, for profit, or to find a new lease on life. Of course, since their formation, most came either to trade or go to one of the others, few lingering for long.

  But a conquest? People didn’t come to the Circuits because they enjoyed it, but because they had to.

  “They’ve practically absorbed Keringa already, and the Marshen too ever since the alliance – well, most of them at least, some are just too stubborn to see where the currents are heading. It’s why Green Providence might become the name of a new state in their Republic, everyone in the Green’s practically a subject already.” Then, the woman shrugged. “Not sure about all that, though. I let my house-head deal with the politicking, I’m just along for the ride.”

  Sally desperately wanted to ask Lucy if she knew anything about this, but while her friend’s condition had improved somewhat under the care of the Hunters, it wasn’t to the point of becoming alert.

  Currently, Lucy was strapped on the back of the Merkahni pack-animal – a magically altered semi-demon much like the Leagueran mariandrake, albeit with a more conventional horse-like appearance, even if its near-hairlessness made it look odd – and had dozed off once more, swaying softly back and forth with the movements of the cordilla.

  The Hunters had divided the load it carried amongst themselves. Sally had offered to take up part of the load, but she’d been refused, citing they couldn’t let ‘a guest shoulder their burden’, especially after such a ‘harrowing experience’. Sally could’ve objected, but decided to just take the offer without comment.

  “And the Hunters, why are they here? To occupy their new lands?” Sally asked probingly.

  “As guards for the new settlement of course, though who knows what purpose lay behind that? Probably as part of their imperial project or whatever they call their presence here. A ‘frontier garrison’? An expeditionary force, more like,” the woman said the words casually, but they were certainly inflammatory and Sally caught the undercurrent of resentment hidden within. It didn’t come as a surprise, though, considering the Marshen reputation of violence against outsiders, exaggerated though they might be.

  Maliah, the frontwoman who’d approached Sally the day prior and the highest-ranking member of their group of six, had been listening in on their conversation since the beginning. By now, she was practically vibrating with the desire to jump in and answer Sally’s questions.

  Sally had deliberately tried and shut the woman out, ignoring the evident desire of the officer to represent the Merkahni point of view. Sally didn’t do it out of pettiness or a dislike of the group’s leader or anything, but simply because she felt more kinship to the Marshen than the Merkahni. Sally expected a more honest answer from someone who’d inhabited the Circuits for her entire life like Sally had, even if under entirely different circumstances, than from an officer of what for all intents and purposes could’ve been an invading army.

  Now, however, the ranking Hunter couldn’t contain herself and pushed through the gap in their conversation with a raised voice, belying not a little frustration at Sanan’s accusation.

  “We’re not here to conquer the Circuits or something as base as that – the Hunters aren’t even part of the army! You, of all people, should know about that,” Maliah said, a recriminatory glare pointed at Sanan.

  The Marshen conceded the point with a nod. “That part’s true at least,” she said, then turned back to Sally. “For a long time, we had our own Demon to deal with. It wasn’t quite intelligent – not like the Merkahni one, if the stories as they tell it are true – but it had a strange effect on some of my people and on other animals and demons within the Greenlands. They,” Sanan gestured at the group of Merkahni, though likely meaning the Hunters in general than them in particular, “helped deal with our problem.”

  Sally was surprised to hear that. There were always rumors of hidden demons floating around, be they great or small, True or not, in the Red, Green or Gold. The Greenlands were, of course, no exception. But to hear it confirmed, and had for all intents and purposes been at war with a True Demon?

  “For how long? And why not reach out to others in the Circuits?” Sally asked.

  Sanan scoffed. “We didn’t make ourselves very beloved with Keringa, let alone The Bite or other Anteeri. Besides, what force is there to spare in the Circuits, especially for such a doomed mission?” The shaman shook her head. “No, only the Merkahni Hunters were insane enough to try.”

  Maliah’s chest puffed up at the backhanded compliment. “‘Wherever so wanders the Demon, thereover goeth the Hunter’,” the leader of the Green Hunters said, clearly quoting some sort of proverb or motto.

  “As for how long, who knows?” The Marshen continued, ignoring Maliah. “The Demon was there before I was born, and even before my parents and grandparents were. Hell, my people are still struggling to understand how much the Demon is to blame for our actions, how much it influenced our history, our culture. Even our very appearance is up to debate now,” Sanan said, pulling at the skin of her arm in demonstration. “Ever since that revelation, every Marshen house has been struggling with how to deal with it. Though some more than others,” the woman murmured the last part.

  Sally tried to imagine what it would be like if it were suddenly revealed that the Villas were part of some grand Demonic plot, but she couldn’t. She just couldn’t.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  “If its influence was that strong, how did you even find out about it?” Sally asked.

  “Some were immune, either from birth or later on in life. Many were pushed away as heretics or outright killed, but the survivors eventually numbered enough to form some kind of resistance. Then, someone got wind of the history of the Merkahni and the Hunters in particular, and a woman named Nadifa made it her responsibility to seek them out. And now here we are,” Sanan finished.

  Maliah picked up the thread and told their side of the story. “The Hunters are important and old. Like, pre-Republic, pre-Revolt old,” the officer boasted. “We fight our Demonic overlord and his allies since as far back as anyone can remember. When our leadership heard of the Marshen’s plight, we all but badgered the Diet into supporting a Hunt! They had no choice but to agree or risk the people’s wrath!” Again, pride was self-evident in the woman’s demeanor. Though it was clear that Sanan had distinctly mixed feelings about the Hunter’s proclamation.

  And did the Merkahni leadership twist an honest desire to help into an expansionist drive, or were they both in on it? Sally questioned, but did not voice it out loud. Diplomacy might not be her strong suit, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t spot a sensitive subject when so blatantly confronted with it.

  X

  It didn’t take long to reach Green Providence. Sally’s many hours of trudging with Lucy on her back had apparently been more fruitful than she’d initially thought, so they arrived at the settlement before the end of the afternoon.

  Calling Green Providence a settlement was more aspirational than factual. It was more of a large campsite than a true settlement, and even then, its appearance made clear it was only a recent and hastily constructed one.

  It reminded Sally somewhat of the Grandie station at the former Guha Villa, except in an earlier stage of development, with less planning and without the remains of the Guha to further them along. There were neither farms nor any animals besides a scant few beasts of burden wandering about, most of them cordillas. As for the layout, the buildings mostly consisted of tents surrounded by a large wooden fence covered with sheets of corrugated iron, with barbed wire out in front of that for added protection.

  All in all, it looked cobbled together in a hurry, less professional and clearly unfinished. Unlike Station Guha, however, behind the wooden fence lay what Sally imagined was to be the base for a sandstone wall, encircling the settlement from coast to coast. It wasn’t high – the current foundations only barely reached her ankles – but the attempt indicated plans for a larger, more permanent form of settlement compared to the Grandie’s forward base.

  But it was what lay behind the settlement that really caught Sally’s eye: Lake Majestic.

  Its name implied much, but Sally had always figured its name had more to do with its nature rather than its appearance. In her mind, it was majestic not because of its beauty, but because of its promise: an endless font of drinkable water, able to cleanse the poisonous flow from the Redwater into something potable, and thus beautiful. It promised a future that never arrived, that could never arrive due to its hostile surroundings. It simply wasn’t the nature of the Grand Circuit to allow something to flourish, not without a proportional cost.

  But it seemed she’d made a mistake and taken what was meant literal for a metaphor.

  Lake Majestic was completely still on its own, an unmoving blanket of water spreading on and on. Not even at the mouth of the Redwater nor the lake’s exit into the Braxel did the water seem to move. It reflected the sky perfectly, as if it was a hole in the ground revealing that what lied below wasn’t more earth but another layer of sky, sun and all.

  And then, a slight breeze flew across the water, causing a cascade of ripples. Gone was the illusion of a heaven on earth, but in its place came an equally wondrous view. The tiny waves, infinite in number, caught the light of the sun and collected it, transforming the lake into a field of glittering gemstones, a sparkling sea of light surrounded by the bloodthirsty red of the Wastes.

  The view burrowed itself into her both physically and mentally, burning into her retinas and etched forever onto her memory.

  Sally looked at Lucy, seated as the woman was atop the eerie, horse-like cordilla, but the pilgrim seemed to still be out of it. She wished they could’ve shared this moment, but alas, it only reminded her of where her priority should be.

  They were ushered through Green Providence’s rudimentary gates and were guided toward a tent near the lake. There, Sally helped with unseating Lucy from the cordilla and helped carry her into the tent. A doctor came to meet them in front and the man spoke quickly with Maliah about the situation.

  The tent seemed to serve as some kind of makeshift hospital, and while not filled to the brim with patients, it wasn’t empty either. There were seven others in total, all soldiers lying in individual cots strewn about the place. Bandages colored red with old blood were wrapped around arms and legs, two of them even had parts of their head wrapped.

  It seemed that, in their duties to protect the burgeoning settlement, injuries were to be expected. But the fact they were here at all also meant that they survived, which in turn meant that the cannibals hadn’t – they were unlikely to leave even corpses behind, after all, let alone the freshly wounded.

  The conversation between the doctor and Maliah wrapped up and the man guided them through. Together, they placed Lucy in one of the empty cots and the doctor began his examinations.

  “Hmm, the leg’s position is good,” the doctor placed her hand on “And if Maliah is to be believed, the fever’s gone down, though not disappeared.” The doctor than stared at Sally. “From when was the injury?”

  “Yesterday evening,” Sally replied.

  “A remarkably quick infection… a cannibal?” The man asked, and Sally nodded in response and the doctor’s gaze darkened. “How was the injury inflicted?” The doctor asked.

  “A stomp from above, on the back of the knee,” Sally answered, fearing what the doctor thought.

  “Hmm, nasty, and must’ve been quite some force to shatter it like that. Still, it shouldn’t have caused this kind of internal damage to appear so quickly.” The doctor prodded lightly at the injury. Lucy twitched in response, but remained unconscious.

  “I was told she performed some kind of healing spell on herself?” He asked, not taking his eyes off the leg.

  Sally nodded. “If it helps, she’s a priest. Got the spell directly from Lake Prior, though she said it wasn’t strong enough to heal, just cleanse and prevent, well, this.” Sally gestured at the leg.

  The doctor continued his examinations for a moment before offering his reply. “Well, that explains it. The cannibal must’ve inflicted some kind of fast-acting rot-curse. The nature of your friend’s spell countered it before it could spread fully.”

  Spiteful bastard, Sally thought. The curse wouldn’t have made an impact on the battle despite its supposed ‘fast-acting’ nature, but it’d been enough for a stab at post-mortem revenge. Sally hadn’t expected such foresight from a man-eater mid-battle, especially considering the cannibal’s otherwise self-assured demeanor.

  Must’ve been hedging his bets. The thought only made her angrier.

  “Unfortunately,” the doctor continued, snapping Sally out of her thoughts, “while it stopped the curse, the internal sepsis remains.” Again, the doctor remained silent for a moment before turning to Sally. There was a look of pity in his eyes.

  “To be honest, it’s a miracle she survived even this far – the spell must’ve been more potent than she thought, or more suited to the effects of the curse,” the doctor mused softly, but his eyes remained firmly fixed on hers. “It’s better to amputate her leg as soon as possible, before it spreads fully.”

  Sally froze in shock. Amputate her leg? What?

  “Is there no other option? A-a medicine to halt the infection or something?” Sally asked, stumbling over her words to get them out.

  The doctor shook his head. “The First Green has already given her antibiotics, but the source doesn’t seem to be fully bacterial. I’m sorry, but given the timescale we’re working with, I’m afraid there is no other option.”

  The doctor remained silent, waiting for Sally’s agreement, but she remained quiet.

  Her thoughts were racing, rushing in panic to find a solution. The urge to start pacing in contemplation was strong, but counteracted by the simultaneous urge to flail about, resulting in her freezing in place. Her mouth opened and closed, a stutter without words.

  Then, she remembered something Lucy had said during their discussion on where to go next.

  “Can you wake her up?” Sally asked, heart beating wildly as hope manifested.

  The doctor hesitated. “I… would not advise it. We’d have to do so chemically, which would no doubt worsen her condition. If it is for the sake of permission-”

  Sally cut him off. “When she healed her wound, she said we should continue to Lake Majestic, that there was something she could do there to fix it.”

  The doctor looked contemplative for a second. “Could she have meant this place?”

  Sally shook her head. “I don’t think so. She would’ve mentioned it if she knew this place existed. She probably meant something more religious – no offense. But as I said, she’s a priest, and a very skilled one at that.”

  “And do you know if she could do something about this?” The man asked. His skepticism was clear, but thankfully he remained willing to take her words seriously. Perhaps he was a Dekantist?

  “No,” Sally replied, “but she did.” She toward Lucy’s ailing form, the sight sanding a pang of heart through her heart. “She’s always certain what to do next, guided as she is.”

  “Guided?” The doctor asked in surprise. “Guided how?”

  “She’s on a pilgrimage, something she had to do before she could take her Seventh Sip,” Sally replied, putting extra emphasis on the last two words.

  Sally gauged the reaction in the room. The Marshen shaman’s and the doctor’s eyebrows went up in surprise, their gaze instantly going to Lucy. Meanwhile, the Hunters looked mostly confused by their reaction.

  As it did other times in the course of their journey, this seemed to do the trick. The doctor gave a nod, fixing her eyes on Sally again. “Alright, let’s try it. But!” He said, holding up a finger. “If this fails, I’ll need to perform the surgery immediately. Understood?” There was a steel in his voice, a command that brooked no argument.

  Sally gave a nod in response.

  They carried Lucy with bed and all to the edge of the lake, the doctor taking a large bag of tools with him. They dug and stamped on a patch of ground near the water to make it as flat as possible, then laid down a couple of planks and placed the bed on top of them. A solid, stable foundation was needed – when the doctor said he had to perform the surgery immediately, he really did mean immediately.

  They’d begun to attract somewhat of a crowd – it wasn’t every day that the doctor would perform what seemed to be an open-air surgery – but the Hunters familiar to Sally held them at bay.

  The plan was simple. The doctor would inject a needle filled with some chemical Sally didn’t know about into Lucy’s veins. If she woke up and could take care of the infection herself, no problems there. If she woke up and couldn’t, the doctor would begin the surgery immediately after anesthetization. If Lucy didn’t wake up, then he would have to make do without anesthetization, saying he could not risk the anesthetics. If she woke up during it, she and the First Green would have to hold her down while he continued.

  Sally really hoped the final scenario wouldn’t happen.

  With everything set up, the doctor spared each of them a glance in askance, getting nods from each in return. He took a syringe in one hand, a small bottle in the other and began to extract the fluid from it with the syringe. Then, he pushed the needle into Lucy’s left arm, and pushed the plunger down.

  They waited for one, two, three seconds.

  Lucy’s eyes shot wide open, followed by a sharp inhale. She looked around, dismissing the people around her before spotting Sally. Their eyes lingered for a moment before Lucy turned her head, looking straight at the lake.

  “Miss-” The doctor began, but Lucy waved him off. The pilgrim twisted in her bed, using both hands to carry her broken off the side and sat up, taking position on the edge of the bed. For a split second, she remained still, staring at the lake.

  “Sally,” Lucy said without looking at her. She simply held out her arm, indicating Sally to come and help her.

  Sally obliged and, figuring what she wanted, went to Lucy’s right, the side of her shattered knee. Lucy threw her arm around Sally’s neck and shoulder and, using her as a crutch, foisted herself up and out of the bed.

  Others moved to help, but Lucy interrupted them with a sharp “No!” They froze, not expecting the rebuke. “Nobody else.”

  Even if she didn’t understand the why of it, Sally could not help but feel her heart warm at the thought only she was allowed to help.

  Lucy began moving toward the lake, each step all but throwing her body against Sally’s. Thankfully, the walk was short and Sally could take it. Without stopping, they entered into its waters, uncaring if their clothes and shoes got drenched in the process. Deeper and deeper they went until the water came all the way up to their waists, before they stopped.

  For a moment, they stood still, and Sally watched Lucy take a deep breath and gaze out over the lake.

  “It’s beautiful…” Lucy whispered. As she said it, a breeze rippled across the lake, scattering the reflection and transforming the lake in a sea of glittering diamonds. Sally heard Lucy take a shallow breath in appreciation of the sight. “A promise unfulfilled…”

  Sally turned her head from the scene and looked at Lucy. Her green eyes shone with wonder, her smile bright and full, without a trace of the pain she no doubt felt.

  “This was supposed to be the future, you know? The idea of what Lake Prior could’ve been, should’ve been,” Lucy said, afterward turning her head and looking directly into Sally’s eyes. “Could still become.” A zeal burned within them.

  Sally felt warring emotions, uncomfortable by the expectation laid bare in her friend’s eyes and words. A feeling of dread ate at her mind, wondering where those expectations came from and how Sally was supposed to fulfil them. But simultaneously, she felt undeniably flattered at Lucy’s clear trust, chest feeling with pride at the unshakeable confidence had in Sally.

  The moment lasted for seconds, but felt like hours as they bathed in sun and water. Then, when it became too much to bear, Sally broke eye contact and turned toward the lake.

  “So, what now?” Sally asked, throat unexpectedly dry.

  Lucy didn’t comment on the moment. “When I stop speaking, I’ll fall backwards into the lake. All you need to do is keep my head above water, and the rest of me submerged,” Lucy said.

  “That’s all?” Sally asked.

  “That’s all,” Lucy confirmed.

  Sally changed position in order to stand behind Lucy on her left side, right arm wrapping around her friend’s waist.

  “Ready?” Lucy asked.

  “Ready,” Sally replied.

  “Oh, vision unmoored!” Lucy chanted, arms high in the air, capturing the sun within it.

  “Oh, past unmourned!

  Oh, lake of the future yet to be,

  In the name of thy maker, hear my plea:

  in thy mercy, share with me and with thy chord,

  a future made manifest; a future reforged!”

  As predicted, Lucy fell backwards. Sally took the woman into her one-armed embrace and slowly lowered both of them down into the water, making sure to keep Lucy’s head above the water as she sat down on the lakebed. The pilgrim’s eyes had closed, although they seemed to be rapidly moving behind their lids, causing her lashes to flutter ever so slightly.

  There was no great flash of light, no colors swirling about in the air or suffusing the water, nor anything visible coursing through Lucy’s body, leg or knee. There was simply serenity, a calm undisturbed by neither breeze nor wave nor sound.

  Sally simply sat in silence, Lucy at rest in her arm.