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Chapter 34

Cost of Salvation

“And you did this without asking for a reward?” Gamilla asked. “How STUPID are you?”

“My husband is pretty dense between the ears.”

“Yeah, Rhishi. This isn’t a fairy tale.”

“Yes, that’s why we’re going with a hold full of livestock.” I said.

.....

“Boss, I gotta go with Gamilla on this one. You do something for someone, you get something from someone.”

“Gamilla, how have your applications for Neonen trading permits gone?”

“Too early to tell. We just... oh.”

“Yes, we have to keep from getting on his bad side. On anyone’s bad side. We’re not here to conquer the place. We’re here to set things up to help conquer other places.”

“Why?” asked Kismet.

“Because Rakkal wants us to help in this manner.” I said.

“No, I mean why conquer other places? It’s not like he can conquer the whole world.”

I had to take a deep breath. “It’s something he wants. I don’t know why.”

Narces shrugged. “Other folks with the Axe have done the same.”

Oh, THAT set off an argument that doesn’t belong here. Suffice to say it was still going on as we boarded the ship (The Stallion Rampant, a tiny one-master without a cook or sea-witch, if it matters.) and quite a bit into the morning.

I took to trying to break waves, without success. Any time I did anything related to my mana, or faith, or even psi points, the darkness inside me just...

I wanted to tear out my liver and kidneys. Wait, could that work? It wouldn’t destroy the taint, but it should remove it from me...

No. What area deserved two points of taint? Maybe... I needed to spend some time mulling that over.

How would I go about replacing various organs, if they were lost? Oh, my. THAT was a long read. Say what I wanted about lack of System information, me getting wounded seemed to be something it was VERY informed on.

And I did begin that read. It looked easy enough, to grow new organs and discard the old ones. Guess what it required? More biomass than I could spare.

It seems to me that I’m constantly running up against the same lacks in my life. Not enough of this, too little of that. Divisors limiting all manner of things.

And always, always, never enough time.

“Moment of your time?” Kismet asked.

“I don’t know why you feel the need to ask.”

“Look. I think Rakkal is evil.”

“A point we disagree on. There are far worse people than him in the world.”

She took a nibble of a fried fish. No clue where she’d gotten that. As I said, there was no kitchen or cook on our caravel. “We can agree there are worse people. Where do you draw the line between evil and good, Rhishi?”

“The people who hurt others for their own enjoyment. I think that’s where my line of evil is.”

She paused. “That’s a lot of evil people, Rhishi.”

I smiled. “Including myself, depending how you view Madonna.”

#

“Well, yeah, she’s definitely evil. And she’s happy about it. So... yeah, not happy with her drawing breath.”

“But?”

“No, the only butt here is you for thinking you need to put up with her. She’s evil, and I want her dead.”

“And you want Rakkal dead? Should I be worried about you attacking me? Am I evil?”

“Are you?”

“I don’t think so. When I hurt Madonna... She ASKS for it, practically demands it.”

“Rhishi, is the Red Tide evil?”

“As evil as any other nation-state. A lot of it is just the politics of different races.”

“Minotaurs are EVIL. They EAT PEOPLE.”

“Not that I’ve seen.” I said. Actually, had I seen Rakkal eat?

“Minotaurs EAT PEOPLE.”

“Minotaurs ARE people. Calling an entire breed or race of people evil is just a label applied to excuse other people’s hostility. And yes, deliberately eating people is evil.”

“Deliberately? Rhishi, how would someone eat people accidentally?”

“Do you ALWAYS check to make sure the meat you’re eating wasn’t Aware?”

“That’s different. Most animals aren’t. Most people ARE.”

“Ah, then Makura are people.”

“Rhishi. Makura don’t talk.”

“They use mind-speech, Kismet. That’s not something you can use without a mind.”

“But it is something you can use without a soul.”

What? When did Kismet gain any semblance of religion?

She hit me on the bridge of my nose. “Don’t look at me like that! I know you have a soul.”

“I know people have souls. I think folk have souls. I suspect anything with a serenity meter has a soul.”

“You really think so?”

“I think having a soul may be a prerequisite to having emotions.”

“Do you? Have emotions?”

“I’m assured by one of one Kismets that I have emotions.” What emotion... “Do you need a hug, Kismet?”

She needed a hug. I needed a hug, too. So, we ignored the comments of the crew and shared a good, long hug.

Not like we could understand their language, anyway.

“Okay. I want you to stay not-evil, Rhishi.”

“I am attempting to remain myself. I have no intention of becoming evil.”

“You remember that if you do, I get to stab you with a letter opener.”

“In this eye.” I said, tapping near my left eye.

She nodded, and left me to fail the rest of my mystic and psychic regimens.

It was three days of rapid sailing to get to Makura Bay. We had applied our re-stained flag to the bottom of the longboat.

“Gods...” I said.

“What, boss?”

“The village.” I said. A very few people were mulling about the rebuilt huts.

“Evil.” Kismet said.

“They were attacked first. Husband, tell her.”

“This ... goes beyond. This is ...”

“This is war.” Narces said. “It’s not pretty, but it happens.”

“This is rampage.” I said, finally recognizing it. “Once the sailors were gone, they still wanted humans to suffer.”

Filled with misgivings, we boarded the longboat with such chickens as would fit.

#

the Makura nudged the bottom of our longboat with one of his claws.

from beneath. Then, faintly,

.....

I sent them an image.

We threw the poultry overboard, and made haste.

The hut was further into the jungle than I remember, but there was no mistaking it. A woman in poorly mended clothing worked at grinding herbs between two stones.

“Hello.” I said, in Neonen. She exploded into words. I doubt that even someone proficient in the language could have told what she was saying.

She latched on to Narces, tearfully spouting out words.

“Go ahead, get her to the boat.” I said.

“You got it, boss.”

I took a knee, to be closer to his tracks. Nature avoided my request to Commune.

“Oh, look at you, pretending you can track.” Madonna said.

“It’s not magic. This way.”

The idiot crossed into the jaguar’s domain.

“Everyone wait here. This is a jaguar’s hunting grounds.”

“I’m good with animals. I’m coming.” Kismet said.

“Jaguars burn. I’m coming.” Madonna said.

“Stealth. Class.” Gamilla said.

Ugh. “Fine, everyone is coming. Just... don’t start anything.”

I sent out a mental call every so often, and eventually he made his presence known.

He snarled at me.

And I did so.

He licked his lips.

“Madonna, I need you to take this knife.”

“I’m not fighting something of that size with this puny knife!”

“Madonna, this is something only you can do.” I lay down near the stream.

I described what I needed Madonna to do while setting my system to deal with the severe injuries that would result.

“Rhishi, Rhishi, no! That’s INSANE!”

“That’s the price of the young lord’s safety.” I said. “I need you and Gamilla to go retrieve him.”

Gamilla shrugged. “Let’s see if your screams draw him here.”

“Okay, Madonna. Now cut...”

I screamed. And screamed, and somewhere through the second kidney, blessedly passed out.

Incidentally, don’t do it that way. About the only thing worse is to throw your pancreas and urinary bladder into the deal. Obviously, I survived, but just... just DON’T. That’s too much of your excretory system to get rid of in one go.

You’d be surprised how quickly your body goes into toxic shock and shuts down.

#