Where the Wind Takes Us
More Sadan Taram had caught up to them during the night. In addition to Balsa and Jiguro, there were twelve Sadan Taram: six men and six women. They ranged in age from five to fifty years old. The man who’d been wounded by an arrow was around thirty. A middle-aged man accepted his pack and would carry it for him until he was recovered.
Balsa and Jiguro sat close together, drinking tea with the leader of the Sadan Taram. “I must thank you again for your help. My name is Sari, and I am the Conductor of this band of Sadan Taram. Thanks to your efforts, many lives were saved. Thank you.” She brought her chin to her chest.
Jiguro shook his head. “You helped us after when you didn’t have to. I see no debt between us, but perhaps there will be a time when we can help one another again.” He cleared his throat. “We should introduce ourselves as well. My name is Jiguro, and this is my daughter, Balsa. We work as caravan guards and bodyguards. She’s only sixteen, but don’t let that fool you. She works as well and as hard as anyone twice her age.”
Sari smiled. “Indeed? I didn’t realize you were so young. That was quick thinking back in the swamp.”
Jiguro was smiling, too. Balsa stared into her tea, puzzled. Jiguro rarely ever smiled.
“You saved me today, too, though it was a one in a million shot of that working.” His smile grew wider.
Balsa shifted uncomfortably. Being praised by Sari and Jiguro in quick succession only increased her confusion. “What happened on that hill last night?” Balsa asked. “I couldn’t hear anything that was said, if anything. I got there and the other guards were already prepared to attack.”
Jiguro smiled. “The caravan leader called out that there were bandits. That’s what started the attack.”
Sari frowned. “Did the caravan leader mistake us for bandits?” she asked.
“No,” Jiguro said. “I told him right away that you were Sadan Taram, and not bandits. He ordered to attack anyway.”
“I think they were after you,” Balsa said. “When the attack started, the man next to me apologized, then tried to kill me. I think that setting up an ambush was their plain all along.”
Balsa looked to Jiguro, then to Sari. “Maybe they’re hiding something. Or they think we know something, and they wanted us to take those secrets to the grave.”
Balsa’s thoughts took a bitter turn as she remembered the feeling of the soldier’s collarbone breaking under her spear shaft and the sincere regret in his voice as he’d apologized to her. He hadn’t wanted to kill her. She wouldn’t have chosen to kill him, either. The emotion she felt when she thought of his death was complicated.
Jiguro faced Sari, then asked, “Is there any reason that man would have to attack you or your people? Do you know him?”
Sari shook her head. So did the Sadan Taram who were sitting nearby. “I’ve never seen those men before in my life,” she said. “Why would they attack us? We have no money and little of value. We’re just traveling musicians--what enemies could we possibly have?”
Jiguro scratched at his stubble. “The two of us joined up with a caravan not too long ago. They said they were heading to Toluan, but they turned north, giving some ridiculous excuse. We took the place of a man who was supposed to guide them. All the other caravan guards were soldiers that work for the lord of this province. Does that tell you anything?” he asked. He tapped his chin. “To me, it tells me that you were his true target.”
“Why do you say that?”
“He gave me a list of three locations when we turned aside from our previous route: Mahal Marsh, Kemiru Hill, and the Valley of the Forest King. If you hadn’t been here today, he would have rushed to the next location, looking for you. The timing he gave was very specific. He wanted to arrive at Mahal Marsh last night, in the darkness of a new moon. I’ve heard that that Sadan Taram visit battlefields and grave sites of the Tahsa people to lay restless spirits, and all three places qualify as significant spots for the Tahsa people.” He sniffed. “For what it’s worth, the caravan leader had a grudge against the Tahsa people. Supposedly some ancestor or another was killed by them.”
The Sadan Taram started speaking to one another in hushed voices. Sari gestured for silence. “It is true that we were on our way to Kemiru Hill from here, and that we visit Tahsa sites to give repose to the dead. Everyone, please share your thoughts.”
The Sadan Taram took some time to think through who might have a reason to attack them, but no one could think of anyone specific. Kii spoke up, a little timid. “I don’t know who would attack us, either, but I have a question. How did that man know where we would be, and when? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“You’re thinking someone betrayed us or something?” a thirty-something woman asked in a severe tone.
“Don’t scare her, Sansa,” another woman said. “There was no need for anyone to betray us. Our movements aren’t secret, and our schedules are fairly regular, since we visit sites on a rotating basis. Rotans don’t pay too much attention to us these days, but it’s not like we go out of our way to keep our activities a secret.”
Sari nodded. “I don’t think we have time to sit with the problem. The most likely explanation is that we are being targeted; we can figure out why later. The most important thing to decide is what we do next.”
Jiguro shrugged. “My best guess is that they’ll regroup and try to ambush you at Kemiru Hill. You never change your visitation schedule, do you?”
The Sadan Taram looked dejectedly at the ground--all except Sari.
“We can’t,” Sari said quietly. “We lay spirits to rest, and transform them into something else. It’s delicate work and cannot be delayed.”
“If that’s the case, you’ll need to be prepared to fight them next time,” Jiguro said.
“Us, fight trained soldiers?” Sari asked, her eyes wide. “These are not ordinary bandits, or wolves. We are familiar with those threats. But these men attacked with the intent to kill. We’re not equal to such a task.”
“We could ask you guys to come along and save us,” Kii said, looking at Jiguro and Balsa.
“Don’t speak,” Sari commanded severely. “Caravan guards work for pay and accept contracts. They have no reason to help us. We’re lucky enough they stepped in to help this time.”
“Sorry.” Kii went pink.
“That said, hiring guards might not be a bad idea,” Sari said. “Can I ask for your rank badge?” she asked Jiguro.
Jiguro passed over his first-class rank badge. Sari frowned down at it. “Like I thought, you’re first-class. That’s well out of our price range… though I suppose I don’t know that for sure unless I ask.”
“My rate is three meals a day plus thirty copper coins. Balsa earns half the coins and all the meals.”
“First-class guards are certainly expensive.” There were murmurs of agreement among the Sadan Taram. Kii’s eyes went huge and round.
Jiguro chuckled. “Well, lives are expensive. But you helped us out as well. I’d be willing to work for half my usual rate.”
Sari shook her head. “You’ve already saved our lives; there’s no need to offer us a discount. Okuri!”
Okuri was a Sadan Taram man. He sat up straight when Sari called him. “Yes?”
“Can we pay forty-five copper coins per day?”
Okuri considered. “We would have to sell a few things--trinkets, food. And all of our earnings for the year would be wiped out if we made such a payment.”
“But we could?”
Okuri nodded.
Sari’s shoulders set in determination. “All right, then. What does everyone think? This year’s earnings to save our lives? I think that’s a fair enough trade.”
The Sadan Taram consulted among themselves. A woman chosen to speak from among the group said, “I agree that our lives are more important than money. But we would only be hiring two guards. Isn’t there a high risk of them being outnumbered and unable to defend us? There’s no point in throwing money away.”
Jiguro nodded in understanding. “As to that, I have a proposition. You’ll give us payment in full at the end of your journey, but you don’t need to pay anything up-front. We’ll still expect meals.”
Balsa’s eyes snapped wide open. “What the hell, dad?”
Jiguro looked at her.
“I don’t get it,” Balsa said. “We’re gambling with our livelihood, giving terms like that.”
Jiguro thought for a moment, then said, “We’re the only guards for miles around, and these people are still in danger. Is abandoning them a better option? They’ve helped us, too.”
Balsa felt a blush creeping into her cheeks. She could understand Jiguro’s reasoning. She didn’t know if she and Jiguro would be able to fight off all those soldiers to keep the Sadan Taram safe, but she did know that they would be attacked again, for certain. Abandoning people to die was never a good feeling. She still thought the terms he was proposing were crazy, though.
Jiguro looked at Sari. Sari looked at Jiguro. No one spoke.
Then Sari smiled. “I thank you for your consideration to us so far, and accept the terms of your employment. I would like to hire both of you.”
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