That line of reasoning made her uncomfortable. She wanted to believe that she had remained with the Etari because she felt some connection with them. That they had become her true family.
But now that her family was being tested, she wondered if she hadn’t remained with them because it was the easiest path to take.
Hadn’t she learned at all?
If her overwhelming desire to turn her horse around and ride for the organized armies of the empire was any indication, the answer was no.
While her thoughts ran to escape, she knew they would remain as thoughts alone. Tempting as the idea of running was, she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t betray the family that had risked so much for her, and even if she did, it was likely they would track her down before she got too far. The Etari were a secretive people. They couldn’t allow their secrets to spread to the empire.
For the moment, her course was set.
She returned her gaze forward. From a distance, the sight of the camps didn’t fill her with hope. As was usual when different clans came together, large open areas sat between the different clans’ tents.
Such was tradition, but it also didn’t bode well for the Etari. Reports claimed the invasion force numbered in the hundreds. To defeat them, the Etari would need to work together, a task which didn’t come naturally to any of the clans. Within the families, coordination was excellent. But Alena had never seen multiple families fight together.
Which led to another thought. “Who is in charge?” she asked Azaleth.
“Of everything?” The question confused him.
“Who will lead the battle between the Etari and the invaders?”
Azaleth thought for a moment. “Rotger, most likely.”
Alena raised an eyebrow. She remembered Rotger, not just from her arrival in Etar, but from a few meetings after. He had always been kind to her, which was more than she could say for many clan leaders. “Why?”
“He’s been leading the northern defense of the Etari lands against the empire for years. He possesses the most relevant experience.”
They reached the camp by early afternoon, and the family settled in at once, putting up their own shelters. Sooni’s family was the only one of their clan present, so they set up a hundred paces away from the next nearest tents.
Alena wasn’t entirely clear why their family was here. Their clan was a merchant clan, tasked with traveling vast distances to run supplies and to trade with the empire. The task of defending the land fell to others. And Sooni’s family wasn’t large. As Alena met more families, she realized Sooni’s was one of the smallest. Also, the rest of their clan hadn’t come, so it had to be something about Sooni’s family in particular that brought them here.
That evening, around their family campfire, Rotger visited them. Alena thought he looked tired. They made space for him as he settled among them.
He sighed. “Thank you for coming, Sooni.”
It was nothing, she signed.
“Not if you succeed. What do you need?”
So, Alena’s guess had been correct. Sooni’s family had been selected for a reason. One that hadn’t been shared with her. Judging from the reactions around the campfire, it hadn’t been shared with anyone. But the others took the news with a calm acceptance Alena couldn’t match.
“A day, maybe two, to scout. That is all for now. Possibly goods to trade.”
That is fine, Rotger signed. “A day I can offer you with no problem. A second might be challenging. They move quickly.”
I understand, Sooni signed.
Alena wished she felt the same. Rotger, his task concluded, stood up and left the circle. The others waited for Sooni to speak. She sat alone with her thoughts for a while. Then she looked up and met the gaze of her family. “Rotger has asked that we treat with the invaders.”
Alena almost asked why, until she answered the question herself. Sooni was one of the best negotiators Alena had ever seen, and she kept calm under all circumstances. Offhand, Alena couldn’t think of a better candidate. If the Etari wanted to avoid war, Sooni was a superb choice, just as Rotger was an excellent choice to lead the clans if battle was unavoidable.
Still, she noticed the tremble in her fingertips as she lay down to sleep that night. A smart person would ride the other way. Though they were only going to scout tomorrow, the risk was real. Given the sounds of coupling she heard in the surrounding tents, she wasn’t alone in her thoughts. The lovemaking had an uncommon intensity.
Azaleth had offered himself, but she denied him. He’d taken his desires elsewhere, giving her the privacy she wished for.
The next morning, Sooni found her well before they were set to ride. “I need your help today, Alena.”
Alena didn’t want to be singled out. Not today, of all days. But she swallowed her concern. “How?”
“I need to see with your eyes today. You see both as an imperial and an Etari.”
Other days, the claim might have hurt. But hurtful or not, Sooni spoke the truth. “And?” Alena couldn’t quite keep the bitterness out of her voice.
Sooni noted her tone but ignored it. “Many of the rest of us will observe the same things today. We’ve been trained to look at the world a certain way. You’ve learned much of our ways, but you still see the world differently. Our success might hinge on your insight.”
The repeated references to their separateness stung at her like angry bees, but she understood Sooni meant well. Okay, she signed.
Thank you.
Sooni’s family was saddled and riding before the sun even broke the horizon, on a track to the northwest, where the invaders had last been seen.
They made no attempt at stealth. Sooni’s family was far smaller than the invading force, and if Sooni’s ultimate goal was to speak with the
