The wind blew from the north, swirling snow in its wake and piling it up against the fifteen foot wall made up of logs embedded into the now frozen ground side by side. The top of the logs had been shaved down into stakes to make it harder for invaders to climb over them into the village the wall surrounded. Beyond the wall of wood was a forest that the logs had been harvested from some three years before. The forest was deep and dark, the only light came from the moon, and the two lanterns that bobbed at the end of the poles carried by the two villagers that walked the outside perimeter of the wall.
Jim Ellison pulled his tattered makeshift fur shirt tighter around him as he followed behind one of those villagers. In one hand, the villager held the pole with its lantern, in the other he held the leather braided leash that was attached to the collar around Jim’s neck. Belted to the villager’s waist was a quiver of arrows and over his shoulder was a bow made from ash.
Jim was supposed to be using his heightened senses to determine if there was any danger to the village in the surrounding forest, but he didn’t care to bother. If an invading army attacked, Jim would have cheered them on.
He could have easily overpowered the villager that held his leash, and escaped into the forest that he had lived in for a year, but they had another sentinel that was walking with the other villager posing as a guard.
Mark was broken. Had been since Jim had been captured over four months ago. He would do as his captors told him, and track Jim for recapture. And Mark was a sentinel; all five senses heightened, and would easily track Jim no matter what Jim did to avoid recapture. And Jim didn’t want to think of the punishment the villagers would inflict on him for his escape attempt.
Instead, Jim followed Tim, the man who held his leash, and tried not to freeze to death. He also tried not to think at all.
However, thoughts flittered through his mind. He thought of his warm cave that he could be sleeping in at the moment had he not zoned on a trading trip four months gone. Having a sentinel already, the villagers had recognized the sign of a zone. They happily captured him while he was vulnerable, stripped him of his wares that he had spent months killing and tanning, collared him, and threw him into the kennel with Mark.
Ever since the bombs had fallen eight years ago, and the last world war had ended, most of the world had been thrown back into nearly the stone age. EMP pulses from bombs had destroyed all electronics, planes had crashed, cities had been destroyed, and the survivors were few and far between.
Jim had been a soldier during the war. When it ended, he had to make his way from the battlefront in South America to North America through hostile territory, using his senses to avoid radioactive areas.
That had been the reason more than anything that sentinels suddenly became valuable property to the survivors who were eking out a living in what was left of the world. Sentinels had always been around, free as any other American citizen before the wars. They had been cops, soldiers, firefighters, EMTs, doctors and forest rangers. Most citizens never thought twice about them because of their penchant for being the good guys rather than the so called bad guys.
With no one to control them, the citizenry had turned to anything that would help them survive, including a strange type of slavery. Jim had learned of it some three months after returning to the states. He had also learned of two armies being gathered together.
In the eastern United States and Canada, a neo nazis lunatic by the name of Garret Kincaid was building an army, and enslaving minorities as well as sentinels. In the west, an ex-cop named Simon Banks was also building an army. The difference was that Banks was no racists, and was from all reports building roads, encouraging trade between villages, and killing raiders and bandits. They were both the same in one instance. They continued the enslavement of sentinels for their purposes.
The people of the village were Jim was enslaved feared both armies. Which was why they set a guard each night using the sentinels. Which was why both Jim and Mark were outside the walls freezing their balls off.
Better than being inside the walls, Jim thought. He shuddered at that thought. The so called mayor of the village had a secret that he kept well hidden from even his wife. The mayor, Allen Freed, couldn’t get his dick up for women, or men. Instead, the man was into bestiality. Which was why he kept pigs, and goats even though his wife hated animals.
He had also discovered that his love of animals extended to those he believed to be animals. Sentinels. Mark was broken because of that very reason. The mayor had used Mark many times, and when Jim came along, he continued his perversities using Jim along with Mark. No one else in the village knew. No one would believe him if he told them. The villagers respected and trusted their mayor. They treated Jim and Mark like they were animals.
Shaking his head, Jim tried to dispel his memories that seemed to find a hold on dark cold nights. As he did, he accidentally turned up his hearing and caught the sound that brought him up short. The noise was specific and told Jim exactly what it meant.
“There’s an army out there.” Jim said quietly. Tim turned and looked at him.
“Are you sure?”
Jim nodded, “Their cutting wood for fires, and making camp. There’s horses and wagons moving about. Its not raiders, too many to be raiders. Its an army.” Jim felt elation at that thought. With an army in the wilderness, they wouldn’t send a hunting party out after him if he escaped.
“We need to tell the mayor.” Tim said as he headed at a jog for the door that led through the wall and into the village. Jim was forced to keep up. Waiting for them at the door was Harry and the other sentinel Mark.
Jim’s chance for that night was gone, but he knew from the sounds the army wasn’t planning on leaving just yet. He would have another chance to escape.
Tim quickly explained to Harry what Jim had told him. Mark couldn’t confirm it because his range wasn’t as strong as Jim’s and they knew it.
“I’ll go and tell the mayor. I’ll take Jimmy with me in case the mayor wants to questions him about it. Keep patrolling with Mark, see if he can get anything.” Tim told Harry who nodded.
Jim was forced to follow Tim through the sentry gate, and into the walled village. They hurried through the slushy snow to the mayor’s two story home. Tim pulled a bell rope near the door to wake the mayor.
Jim could hear the mayor grumbling at being woken at an ungodly hour, and could him stumbling around trying to get some clothes on and light a lantern using his stubby fingers.
Eventually the mayor tramped down his stairs, and went to the front door to admit Tim.
“Tim?” Allen Freed said puzzled, “Is something wrong?”
“I’m sorry to woke you Mayor, but Jim here reported an army in the woods. He says he could hear them making camp, and that it was to large a force t be raiders or bandits.” Tim told him.
The mayor’s eyes widened, “An army. Could only mean…” He looked sharply at Jim, “Which one, do you know.”
Jim shrugged, “I didn’t hear anything to indicate which,” was all he said. He knew it was a better than even chance that the army belonged to Banks.
“Tim, I need you to go and wake the councilors. Tell them we need to have an emergency meeting. When you’ve woken all of them, then go to the meeting house, and get it set up for us to meet there. No need for us all to freeze while we discuss this. When you are done with that, then come get Jim here and replace Harry out there. I want more information. Make sure I get some.” The mayor ordered.
“Yes sir.” Tim said. “Uh, does that mean you want me to leave Jimmy here?”
“Yes. If there is an army out there its quite possible that the first thing they will do is send assassins into the town. Which is also why I want you to tell Harry to take the other sentinel to the meeting house to guard the councilors.”
“Oh I see, sir. Jimmy can warn you if anyone comes into the house. The mayor would be the first person they would try to assassinate.” Tim said. He then went and tied the end of the leash to a ring in the fireplace. After that, he left the mayor’s house to wake the councilors.
“So they were making camp were they?” The mayor said to Jim when Tim left.
He’s figured it out, Jim thought.
“I know you’re range. You should have heard them coming long before they made camp. If that army attacks, you will pay even more than you are going to pay tonight. And if you wake my wife, you will regret it.”
Jim shuddered as the mayor came closer.
“Remove them.” The mayor ordered.
Jim obeyed stripping off the ragged clothes he wore. The mayor took up a riding crop from the mantel and when Jim was nude he began to rein blows down on Jim’s bare buttocks, lower back, and upper thighs. Jim bit his lip to keep from crying out so as not to wake the mayor’s wife.
When the mayor was done whipping Jim, the man dropped his riding crop, then dropped his pants.
Jim tasted blood from his lip as he felt the mayor’s penis force its way inside him. His senses told him he had been torn yet again, and the pain was sharp. With each stroke, the pain increased, and a few more tears were formed. Eventually, the sick bastard came, his seed spilling into Jim’s ass, and the mayor pulled out his dick, and then pulled up his pants. He headed for the stairs to clean up and finish dressing for the meeting.
Jim needed no orders to redress himself. He did so carefully, making sure that certain rags were placed strategically to catch any blood that leaked from his torn anus so that no one would see any proof of what had occurred. His body ached from the whipping and by the time he had dressed completely the mayor had come downstairs fully dressed. The bell rang, and Tim came inside to collect Jim telling the mayor that council had been woke, and that the fireplaces in the hall were blazing. Tim’s wife, Mary, was there cooking some breakfast for the councilors and the mayor. The mayor thanked Tim, and left.
Tim untied the sentinel, and led him out of the mayor’s home. As they headed for the sentry gate, they passed by the kennel.
Jim looked at it. It was a dog kennel with wire mesh on all sides including the top and bottom. There was a large doghouse inside. Large for a dog, but it barely fit the two men that had to share it.
At the sentry gate, Tim waited for Harry to complete his circuit. Jim opened up his hearing, found Harry and Mark to be far enough away. He also listened for anyone else that might be close. When he was sure that no one would hear, Jim quickly and without warning attacked Tim.
He didn’t kill the man, but did knock him unconscious without the man making any sound. Then he stood the man against the wall and waited.
Harry wasn’t very bright nor was his eyesight good. He didn’t notice anything wrong with Tim until it was too late. Jim took Harry out as well. Mark dropped to the ground, huddled in on himself as Jim fought Harry.
Harry made no sound either except the slight thud as he hit the snow covered ground.
Jim quickly stripped both Harry and Tim of their weapons, pouches and anything else that might be useful. Then he knelt beside Mark.
“Do you want to come with me?” He asked the other sentinel.
“Where?” Mark asked.
“Into the mountains. I have a home up there.”
“I I can’t, I’m too scared, I can’t survive the wilderness. I’m not like you Jim.”
“I’ll take care of you, Mark. I don’t want to leave you here for the mayor and the others to punish for my escaping.”
“I’m sorry, Jim. I can’t but you go. I just hope they don’t use me to track you.”
“They won’t leave this place while that army is out there. They are too scared. And if that army is Banks, you might be better off after they take over.”
“Maybe. Be careful, Jim.”
“You, too, Mark. I wish you would go with me.”
“Don’t..I just can’t, I’m too scared. More scared than I am of him. Go, before they come.”
Jim hated to leave Mark, but he would not force the sentinel to do anything. Mark was unsuited to wilderness survival, and the wilderness frightened him. He clasped Mark’s shoulder, nodded to the other sentinel, then turned and ran into the surrounding woods.
Once in the wilderness, Jim opened up all his senses and relished the feeling and sense of freedom that washed over him. He laughed as the rush made him a bit giddy, and he stumbled a bit before righting himself and increasing his pace. The cold bite of the wind, and the wetness of the snow falling on his face felt good. He moved through the wilderness as easily as a wild animal, retracing his tracks, making false trails with almost no real thought about it. His training and instincts took over and Jim made his way further and further from his place of captivity.
It was still night time. The air was cold, and Jim had only bare rags for protection. He knew he needed to get as far as he could, but even as he moved, his eyes kept scanning the area looking for some type of shelter he could use.
Eventually, he felt as if he was far enough into the woods, and found a depression in some rocks that would act as a cave. The depression was dry and held off the icy wind. It was also fortuitous that he found some branches and leaves that had been blown into the depression some time ago. Unlike everything outside, the branches there were dry. He used the leaves as tender, and built a small fire from the branches. He brought more branches inside and sat them near the fire to dry. From one of the pouches he had stolen, Jim pulled out some dried fruit and some jerky. He nibbled on them as he waited for the fire to get hot enough to be able to catch the other wood on fire.
Eventually, he was able to add the rest of the wood, and bank the fire to keep it from going out. Then he curled up in a ball to keep in warmth, and fell asleep.
General Simon Banks gently guided his mount toward the gates of the walled village. Behind him were three of his men also mounted on sturdy horses; all were armed with bows and swords, and one carried Bank’s banner. The sun shone down on all of them, and the snow had stopped.
Beside him on a sorrel mare was Dr. Blair Sandburg, Bank’s personal physician, friend, and counselor.
“Any bets on what they’ll do?” Blair asked.
“Not really. This community is a little far from our planned route. So it doesn’t really matter to me if they sign or not.” Simon said.
“If they do sign..”
“Then we’ll change our plans. I would never go back on my word.”
“No doubt. That will delay the road crews, though. I hope this town has something to offer besides trees. I don’t even see any farms.”
“I just hope they aren’t any trouble.” Simon answered.
They stopped at speaking distance from the wall.
The man with the banner rode up a few more paces, and shouted. “General Simon Banks requests council with your leaders!”
“And if we don’t?” An answer came.
“Then we will ride away, and never come back. And you will lose an opportunity that you will regret later.”
“How do we know you will not attack us?”
“You do not. You have only our word that we won’t.”
There was a moment of silence, then the man on the wall answered. “Alright. Come in through the sentry gate.”
A door on the wall opened and two armed men stepped out. The bannerman rode over the position to check it out. When he felt it was safe he waved to General Banks.
“Here we go.” Banks whispered only to Blair then nudged his horse into a walk.
Once inside the gates, they were directed by those men toward what they called the council house. As they rode toward it they passed a kennel made from wire mesh where a young man huddled in a corner wearing only rags and a collar. Blair and Simon knew him to be a sentinel. They both stared at the kennel disapprovingly. They made no comment and continued on toward the house.
Once there, Simon and Blair dismounted, the other three stayed on their horses. Blair handed one of the men the reins to his and Simon’s horse, and then he followed Simon up the wooden steps taking with a him a leather satchel.
Several men stepped out of the house.
“I am mayor Alan Freed, and this is our council.” A large man said.
“I am General Simon Banks, and this is Dr. Blair Sandburg.”
“Come inside, and we will discuss what it is you wish to talk about.”
Once inside the house, the council members and the mayor seated themselves behind a horseshoe shaped table.
“I have come with a proposition of an alliance of sort. By signing the documents that my colleague has, you would be placing yourself under the protection of my empire. From that protection you will be required to pay taxes, obey laws I have set up, and allow my men free access to your village. In return you would receive many benefits including protection from raiders, bandits, and other armies.”
“Taxes. There is no currency.” One of the councilors said.
“You are correct. The tax is a percentage, about ten percent of your goods that you produce. I noticed as we came in that there are no farms or ranches.”
“Its to dangerous. Raiders would destroy the farms, and kill the people. We each plant only what we need to eat.”
“If you accept my authority and sign the contract, my men would scour the wilderness around us killing any raiders or bandits they find. You would be safe to begin farming outside your walls. Everything is in the papers.” He nodded to Blair.
Blair opened the satchel and set down a stack of papers on the table in front of the mayor.
“The papers have everything in them. The laws are there, and are required to be posted should you sign them. The benefits you would receive, and also your obligations. I will give you three days if you need them. Should you decide to sign them, then you must open your gates to my men so that they may begin construction on the barracks, homes, and offices that my men will need to station themselves here.”
“We will look over your offer, General Banks and give you are decision in three days.” The mayor said.
“Good enough. “ Banks said.
“There is another matter I wish to tell you.” The mayor said.
“And that is..”
“Our sentinel escaped into the forest this past night.”
“You had two sentinels?” Blair asked
“Yes.” The mayor answered.
“I am sorry, but I will not hunt down sentinels, even escaped ones. And I suggest very strongly that you look at the guidelines for keeping a sentinel that are in those papers. Good day.” And with that Simon turned and left the building. Blair followed.
Outside they mounted up on their horses and began the trek out of the walled village. People came out of their homes to stare at them.
“What do you wanna bet that the council doesn’t even discuss any of this with the populace.” Blair said.
“Probably not. Oh well. They elected those men, I’m sure.”
They passed the kennel again, and Blair stared at it. “Two sentinels. That kennel can’t even hold one comfortably, and look at that doghouse. Horrible.”
“Yes it is. If nothing else, I would hope for this sentinel’s sake that they do sign the papers.”
Blair nodded in agreement.
They rode back to their camp in a forest clearing that was at the moment being cleared even more. Some of the soldiers were using axes to chop down some trees for wood, and to clear more room. Teams of heavy horses were being used to pull out the stumps.
All the tents were set up, and several fires were going. Some were being used to cook, while others were used for boiling laundry. Soldiers were practicing arms, while others busied themselves with the usual camp chores. The few prisoners who were working off their time with the army were digging the latrines, and washing clothing under the eyes of armed jailors. Poles with lanterns had been set up for nighttime, and the horses were picketed among the tree line, and were being fed hay and alfalfa. The soldiers were all men or women above the age of eighteen. Simon refused to accept anyone younger as a soldier. Younger children however could be among the camp workers who did the menial tasks until they reached the age to join the army, but only with parental permission. They served the same purpose as pages, and were extremely useful.
One of the young pages came and took Simon’s horse when he dismounted while others took the horses of Blair and the soldiers. They saluted the general who saluted them back, then took the horses to the picket lines.
Once inside his tent, Simon sat down on his folding chair behind the folding table where papers sat waiting to be looked over. Blair had entered the tent as well, and seated himself on another chair.
Simon sighed, and then reached for the newest reports.
“The road crews are a ahead of schedule. They will reach the marker early tomorrow rather than the day after tomorrow. I’ve already told Raymond to stop at the marker until he hears from me. Should give the prisoners more resting time, and they’ll need it. If that town signs on, they’ll be working longer than expected.” Simon commented.
“As will we. I am guessing this forest is swarming with bandits. Our presence has them cautious at the moment, but that may change.” Blair added.
“If they attack us, I’m going to have this forest cleared whether that town signs on or not. A bandit would be a fool or desperate to attack us.”
Simon shifted through more of the reports. “Cascade’s finished their harvest. Whitespray, and Gull’s Town are nearly done. They’ve already begun the trade fair. Darryl says hi, by the way.” Simon continued.
Simon’s eldest son, Darryl, was running everything back in Cascade, Simon’s capital. The areas up north were prosperous, and civilized thanks to Simon and his army.
“Are you going to do anything about that sentinel? You know that there are three towns on the waiting list.” Blair said.
Simon sighed, “I know. I just don’t understand why they think they need a sentinel. My army does perfectly well without one. If only I could change that, but I would lose the support of half my army, and most of the towns if I changed the law about sentinels.”
“Its part of the new world, Simon. I hate it myself. I remember when Sentinels were respected and free, but a lot has changed. The world we knew is gone. The survivors had no real advantage. They had forgotten how to live without technology. Sentinel were a link to the ancestral past where survival was more important than money. By controlling that, they felt they controlled their survival. Not everyone treated their sentinels so poorly. And with your sentinel laws, they can’t treat them poorly. “
:”You’ve explained this before, I think. It still makes no sense to me, but I’ll take your word for it. But I really don’t care about any waiting list. I have no intentions of sending men out to look for a runaway sentinel. If the townspeople catch him, fine. But I am going to tell my troops that if they run across him to just leave him alone.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Blair agreed.
In the surrounding forest, Jim woke from his sleep inside his shelter. The sun was already up, and it was about midday. Jim had spent most of the night running and patrolling, so sleeping late did not surprise him. Once awake, Jim added a few pieces of wood to the banked fire, then ate some more jerky and dried fruit from the pouches while he soaked in the warmth of the fire. When he was done eating and drinking, Jim put out the fire piling dirt on top of it, then left the shelter to begin his trek to the cave that he had spent a year living in before he had been captured by the villagers.
He found his cave before night fell, and went inside. His senses told him it was unoccupied, but had had visitors while he had been away. Fortunately nothing was totally destroyed. He was able to clean up the cave, and repair what had been torn. His bedding had to be cleaned, and he took them to the nearby spring to do so.
The spring was a large crystal clear pool where a natural spring continuously fed the pool from below. The pool had a small stream that ran from it that eventually fed a river miles downstream. Jim used the soaproot that grew around the spring to clean his bedding, and his clothes that he had in the cave. He scrubbed them good, and rinsed them in the spring then took the wet furs and leather back to the cave where he hung them on a line inside the cave to dry. He started a fire in the hole dug just for that. The ceiling was high enough that the smoke caused no trouble as it exited the cave through a natural smoke hole. He used what firewood he had in his cave to stoke the fire, and then went to his pit to see about his food supply.
Most of the meat had gone bad, and had to be buried far from the cave. Some of the plants were old and moldy, but a few had survived thanks to the cold of the pit. With some plants and a bit of meat, Jim made himself a meal while he waited for his clothes to dry. Outside night fell.
He stayed up and kept the fire going. Using a kettle he had made from stretched hides and wood, he heated some water placing hot stones inside the cooking container. He stripped out of the worn rags, and cleaned himself using the warm water. He was angry when after he had cleaned between his butt cheeks he came away with blood on the wet cloth. When he finished cleaning himself, he found dug through his meager supplies and found an ointment he had made from plants he knew to be healing. Using his finger he smeared the ointment inside himself, and felt the small tears in his rectum as he did so. When he removed his finger, there was blood mixed with the ointment. He cleaned his finger then found some soft fox fur strips that he strategically placed over his anus to catch the blood, then redress his own now dry clothes. A pair of leather pants made from buckskin, a doeskin sleeveless jerkin, and some leather and fur boots.
Jim then took the container out and dumped its red and muddy contents. Back inside the cave, Jim took down his now dry bedding, and laid it down on the newly swept granite floor of the cave. He wrapped himself in his blankets and slept.
The next morning, Jim woke and went outside to use the facilities. He checked himself, and noticed the bleeding had stopped, and he added more of the ointment to his himself. After that, Jim got the bow he taken from the townsmen, and the quiver of arrows, and went hunting. He had a winter to get prepared for.
His sentinel senses helped in his hunting. It allowed him to scent animals like a hound, and track them in that manner. Within the first few hours he found and killed an elk. As he spent the time skinning and dressing the carcass he used his senses to check out his surroundings. Animals that should not live naturally on the continent were busy readying themselves for winter. Animals that were descendents of escaped zoo animals were now a part of the North American ecosystem. And the low number of humans who had survived and were eeking out an existence had helped to strengthen the number of animals. Natural predators kept the prey animals populations from over feeding areas, and all in all it made for a rich land.
Jim took the elk carcass back to his cave, and cut up the meat. Rather than use the pit which was no longer viable, Jim set up a smoking tent that he had made a long time ago. He used the tent to began smoking the elk meat while he scraped and cleaned the elk hide. Placing the hide on a frame to dry, Jim went back to hunting taking a leather pouch to hold any edible plants roots or berries that he found.
He killed a Big Horn sheep, two mule deer, and a cougar that had thought to make a meal of Jim’s recently killed deer. He got all of the meat back to the cave, and had even filled his pouch with some edible roots that tasted like turnips, and some wild carrots.
All the meat went to the smoking tent except a bit of the venison, which he cooked with the roots and carrots for his meal. While he waited for the food to cook, Jim repaired his nets that he used to fish.
After his meal, Jim took the net to the river. He threw the net out and then hauled in several pounds of fish. He killed, de-scaled, and cleaned each one, then went back to the cave. The fish meat was placed in the smoking tent, and the fire was built up some more. Taking a sling, and a pouch of stones, along with his collecting bags, Jim went gathering.
His senses told him if an unfamiliar plant was edible, or poisonous. He senses also helped him to find hard to find plants. He used a digging stick to dig up the edible and medicinal roots, and a knife to scrape off bark from willow trees and cherry trees. Wild onions, carrots, and berries were also collected, until eventually all his gathering bags were full.
A quickly slung stone killed a rabbit, and the dressed carcass hung on his belt as he made his way back to his cave.
The rabbit’s meat was stuffed with carrots, roots, onions, and spitted over the fire for his dinner. While that cooked, Jim filled his empty leather containers with edible plants, and placed some of the medicinal herbs on drying racks. The containers were small, made of hardened leather and wood, and were stored in the back of the cave. The dyed color marks on the containers told Jim which ones held which items.
After he devoured his meal of rabbit and vegetables, Jim cleaned up at the spring, added more ointment to his rectum, and went to sleep after banking the fire for the night.
Blair sat in the chair in Simon’s tent eating a bowl of oat porridge with sugar and milk. On the other side of the table, Simon also ate his porridge while going over some papers absently.
It had been nearly two days since they had given their proposition to the nearby village, and so far they had not yet heard an answer. Simon was getting impatient. He hated waiting.
“How long does it take for them to make up their mind.” Simon growled to no one in particular.
Blair only shrugged.
“Maybe if they could see what we eat for breakfast they’ll come around.” Bryan Rafe said.
Rafe was captain of the specialists, the ones who did the bandit hunting in the wilderness. They were mounted on sturdy mountain ponies, and used horsebows, and swords to cut down raiders. They could track, hide their own trails, and live off the wilderness for several days. At the moment they were sitting around the camp waiting word on whether or not they would be searching for raiders and bandits in the surrounding wilderness.
“You don’t think they eat this good in the village?” Blair asked.
“I’ve gotten a good look at the place. I never saw any farms, just small gardens inside. They don’t have a mill, and not a lot of farm animals. I bet they haven’t seen sugar since the Ending, or any bead. I’m not sure exactly what they would have to offer for trade.”
“Wood is about the only thing so far. Once the bandits are cleared away, then they also will have land that can be farmed or used for grazing herds. This forest probably has good hunting as well which means furs. They won’t have anything for awhile, but given a season they should have enough to pay their taxes.” Simon answered.
At that moment, a messenger showed up. “General Banks, the village has opened its gates. A man came on horseback to inform us that their council has accepted the proposal.”
“Good. Have mine and Blair’s horses saddled, and have contingent of five men along with my bannerman and my page ready to ride within twenty minutes.” Simon ordered.
“Yes, sir.” The messenger went to relay the orders.
Simon, Blair and Rafe finished their breakfast, and then exited the tent leaving on of the servants to clean up.
“If you don’t mind, General, I will ready my men.” Rafe said.
Simon nodded, and with salute Rafe left them to gather his men. Simon had returned the salute and then he and Blair walked over to where their horses waited surrounded by five men on horseback, a bannerman holding Bank’s banner, and a young page sitting in the saddle of a sturdy gray pony.
Simon and Blair mounted up and they made their way to the village that had decided to accept Bank’s offer.
They rode into the village through the open gates. All the townspeople were gathered around the council house, and the town council and its mayor where waiting on the porch of the council house.
The riders stopped short of the crowd. Simon, Blair and the page dismounted. The page held the reins of the riderless horses while Simon and Blair went up the steps passed thru crowd to the village council.
“We have read over your accords, General Banks, and we find them agreeable.” The mayor said.
“Good, then we can oversee the signing, and get to work.” Simon said.
The mayor led them into the council room. Simon watched as each council member and the mayor signed the accords. Once the ink was dry, Simon took the signed page, and placed it in a leather satchel.
“Now,” Simon said leaning back in his chair. “While my men work, I am available to answer questions.”
Blair had taken the satchel outside, and placed it in the saddlebags of Simon’s horse. He had then told two of the soldiers to head back and bring the rest of the encamped army into the village to begin building and also to tell Captain Rafe to begin his excursions into the mountains. The two soldiers saluted, and left.
Another of the soldiers dismounted and followed Blair, who now had the responsibility of seeing to the health of the town’s sentinel, and finding the location for the hospital.
Inside the council room the questions began. “I don’t think we understood the part about the sentinel?” The mayor asked.
“It is simple. The sentinel is to be housed in an appropriate kennel. The one you have is not sufficient. The kennels dimensions are on the accords, and the kennel must have a large, warm, dry and adequate shelter. If these aren’t met, or if any abuse is discovered, the sentinel will be confiscated y the military, a fine will be levied by the judge, and any other sentence he deems appropriate.”
The council and mayor said nothing, only nodded. Another councilor asked about trade. Simon explained that the road crews would be headed in the direction of the village. Once established, the road led to all villages and cities within the empire, and that trade was encouraged, and was open. Some cities made things other cities didn’t, and villages had more raw goods than cities. There was even trade in Cascade coming from Hawaii. The survivors in Hawaii had built trading ships, and had sought the mainland for trading purposes. They found Cascade and its docks. The Hawaiians brought sugar, pineapples, and other trade goods.
Another asked about the judge. Simon explained about the law school that was established in Cascade. There were no lawyers. A person was still innocent till proven guilty but there was no attorneys to play with the facts of a case. The judge weighed the truth of the evidence, and the witnesses and delivered the verdict and sentence himself. And the judges could not be bribed. If anyone tried, and the judge was tempted by the bribe all the judge had to do was tell Simon what it was that was offered and Simon would give it to him if it was at all possible. Simple times made simple methods possible.
Simon ended up explaining that hanging was only for murderers, bandits and raiders, child molesters, and two time rapists. The punishments were medieval, but they worked. A rapist was castrated for the first offence and hung for the second. Very few rapists were ever hung. If culprit was a woman, she was sentenced to hard labor for five years, unless the victim was a child. People who molested or raped children were hung, and Simon had no mercy for them.
While Simon answered questions, Blair met the army as it came through the gates with the loaded wagons. Also with the wagons were the hard labor workers who had been sentenced for their crimes. They would be building the hospital, the barracks and the offices. They would also build the homes for the judge, the doctor assigned, and the nurses. Already Captain Taggert was taking his men who guarded the laborers out into the forest to cut the wood for the building. The laborers all wore warm clothing, and had ankle chains to keep them from trying to run off. The rest of the army, and the servants were busy pitching the tents on the open ground, and starting the cooking fires. By the time the road crew made it to the village, everything else should be done, and Simon and the army that would not be staying in the village would be ready to leave.
Blair made sure to send messengers out to Cascade so that the assigned judge, doctor and nurses could make the trip.
Once that was done, Blair and his guard went to look at the sentinel.
It wasn’t long after seeing the sentinel that Blair knew the poor man was broken. Which only served to make Blair angry. He had the guard bring the sentinel to Blair’s tent, so that he could examine the man for injuries, or any signs of abuse.
Blair was in the tent when the guard entered with the sentinel on a leash. The guard told him that the sentinel’s name was apparently Mark.
“Its alright, Mark. I’m a doctor. I won’t hurt you, I promise.” Blair tried to reassure the frightened man. But the sentinel flinched visibly at the word doctor.
“Have someone find some warmer, and cleaner clothes for Mark. Also have one of the servants bring me a tub, and get some water heated so he can be bathed.” Blair told the guard.
The guard nodded, handed the leash to Blair and went to follow orders.
“Come on and sit down, Mark. We’ll wait for the clothes and the bath before we get started. But first is there anything you want to tell me?” Blair felt that there was, but Mark just shook his head, his eyes full of fear.
The servant brought the clothes and the tub. A few more servants filled it with hot water, and some cold water so that the water in the tub would be warm, not scalding. Blair nodded to the table in the tent, and the servant laid the clean clothes there. The guard had returned.
Once the servants were done they left, and Blair told the guard to stand outside and see to it that no one entered the tent. The patient might be a sentinel, but Blair felt the man deserved as much privacy as any citizen.
At Blair’s order, the sentinel stripped out of the rags that he was wearing, and stepped into the tub. Blair was gentle and methodical as he cleaned the sentinel using a soap made especially for sentinels in Cascade. The sentinel shook, afraid and Blair was careful. He talked soothingly as he bathed Mark, and then helped him out of the tub. Blair used a soft towel to dry the sentinel off, and then had Mark sit down on the folding table that Blair used as an examining table. The thing was sturdy enough to hold up to five hundred pounds.
Blair used his instruments from his back to check Mark’s ears, eyes and mouth. The sentinel’s teeth were loose and his gums were receding. He also had a few rotted teeth that Blair would have to pull. Blair found lice in the sentinel’s hair despite the bath, and found flea bites on most of Mark’s body. He found old bruises, and a riding crop or a switch on the sentinel’s back, upper thighs and buttocks made marks Blair suspected.
However it was the rectal exam that Blair made sure all sentinel got for the very reason Blair discovered that made Blair even angrier. The exam showed old and new tears that spoke of recent and past rapes. The sentinel had cried when Blair did the exam, and Blair did his best to be quick and as painless as he could.
The rectal exam also revealed a strange rash inside the sentinel’s rectum that Blair couldn’t identify. He took swabs of the rash, and placed them in glass vials with cork stoppers to be sent to Cascade. Cascade had labs, while not as sophisticated as those before the Turning, was still good. They were the ones creating the drugs that Blair and the other doctors used to treat their patients. They should be able to find out what was causing the rash and how to treat it.
When he was done, he let the sentinel get dressed, then told him to stay in the tent. Blair went out of the tent and told the guard to keep anyone from going in and the sentinel from leaving. He then went in search of Simon.
Jim became aware of the soldiers searching through the wilderness rather quickly. He had been out hunting when his senses first tagged on them. He followed sound and scent, and watched them from a hidden position. They rode good sturdy ponies, and were armed. They wore clothes that blended well with the scenery, and could track well. He watched them find the their first bandits nest, and wipe out the lot. The few captives they rescued, though the women were too much in shock to know what was going on. A small contingent was sent back to their main camp to take the women to safety.
After that Jim mostly stayed away from them, and continued his hunting and gathering preparing himself for the winter. Once he came across their makeshift camp, and watched them as they ate. He could smell the bread, and the oatmeal along with butter and jam, and his stomach rumbled. He wondered if he could sneak into their camp when night fell and steal some food.
He waited and when it was full night with only the stars light to see by, Jim watched the pattern of their sentries. They were good, but Jim was an ex-Army Ranger as well as a sentinel, and he managed to sneak into their camp. He found their supplies, and took bread, a couple handfuls of oats, and a jar of jam and a jar of butter. He snuck out again bypassing the sentries, and made sure not to leave a trail for them to follow.
At his cave, Jim heated the bread over his fire, and added butter and jam before biting into it. The taste was heaven, and made his mouth water and his stomach grumble. He ate all the bread he had stolen which had only been half a loaf. After so long without, the bread was better than anything, and Jim wished he dared steal more. He made his mind up though not to try again. They would be more alert for a thief, and Jim definitely didn’t want to be caught. They wouldn’t hang him for a thief, but capture him as a sentinel for which Jim thought was a lot worse.
He saved the oats for a breakfast adding the jam to it for taste, and used the butter on some meat and vegetables for dinner.
He stayed away from the camps, and continued his hunting and gathering. Three days after he had stolen the food he came across a bandit camp. The bandits were well hidden in a sheltered grove. From a hiding place he watched them, and saw that they had many captives, women, men and children. He counted their numbers and marked their location in his mind. Then he went looking for the soldiers.
He found them a few miles from the bandit camp. They had set up camp for the night. The moon was full, which made it dangerous for Jim. On a rock, Jim used a burned stick to draw a map of where the bandits’ camp was, then wrote down the number of bandits, and captives and told them he was sorry for stealing their food. He signed it sentinel so that they would know he wasn’t a bandit. The bandits wouldn’t know there was a sentinel loose in the wilderness. If they did they would be trying their best to find him. Or her. Jim then started a fire that the sentries could spot easily, and left the area quickly.
He stayed close enough that with his senses he was able to watch as the sentries found the map and the note, and reported to their captain. Jim listened.
“Well, well, so that’s who took the food. No matter, this makes up for it.” The captain said.
“Sir, what if he’s lying?” One of the men said. “This might be a trick.”
“I doubt it. Simon did say a sentinel had escaped from the village. Where else would he be except here in this wilderness? And only a sentinel could have passed by the sentries in the dark. No, it’s no trick. In the morning, we will deal with these bandits our sentinel found for us.” The captain memorized the map, and then erased it. He sent his men back to the camp, and followed.
Jim didn’t like being referred to as their sentinel, but he ignored that, and went on back to his cave. He heated some leftovers, and went to sleep.
In the morning, Jim found his way to the bandit camp, and found that the soldiers had beaten him there. He watched from a good hiding spot as all the surviving bandits were hanged and the captives were cared for. Satisfied that the captain had done what was needed, Jim left the area and continued his hunting.
Blair had talked to Simon, and told him what he had found, and Simon agreed to take the sentinel from the village. The mayor and the village council were not happy, but Simon reminded them that they had agreed to the laws stated in the accords. And one of those laws was that the military, the medical personnel or the judge had the right to take the village sentinel if he or she believed the sentinel was being abused. Their grumbling didn’t stop but at least they didn’t protest openly.
The sentinel stayed in the military camp. Blair didn’t tie him up or secure him because he felt the sentinel wouldn’t try to run away. Mark had told him that Jim, the other sentinel, had offered to let Mark go with him when Jim escaped, but Mark had refused.
Mark stayed in a tent that had a guard, not to keep him in, but to keep everyone else out. When asked who abused him, Mark would not answer, even when Simon asked. He was too terrified to talk, and did not yet know that he was safe.
“If Mark was sexually assaulted, then it almost a given that the other one was too.” Blair told Simon.
“Most likely. Don’t blame him for running away. Should I change the order, do you think Blair? If he’s been assaulted, he might be more willing to tell us who did it than Mark. My men could bring him in if you think its necessary.” Simon said.
“No. There’s no need. I don’t like the idea of capturing him, and if you do, then you can’t let him go. Your own laws forbid it. No, best if we just investigate as we normally would. Maybe given enough time Mark will feel he is safe enough to talk.”
Blair was kept busy when the first rescued captives were brought to him. He did what he could for them. All the women had been sexually assaulted numerous times, and their minds were in shock. He treated their wounds, then found women among the villagers who were more than willing to take the poor girls into their homes and help them as best they could.
Blair had been angered by the sight of the captive women, and had been glad that the bandits had been stopped for good, but he was enraged when he saw that the next set of captives included children. Again he did what he could to heal their wounds, and found people to take them in. The hospital was being built, but it would take some time before it was up and operational. Until then, the kindness of the villagers was all that the captives had for beds and shelter.
After he had taken care of the last rescued captive, a small boy, Blair left the medical tent and went to Simon’s.
He entered to find Simon speaking to one of the soldiers who had brought the rescued captives to the village.
“Blair you are not going to believe this, but then again you might.” Simon told him as Blair entered.
“What’s that?” Blair asked as he seated himself.
“Apparently they had a strange run in with the runaway sentinel. Apparently, he crept into their camp and stole some food one night. Then last night he left them a message telling them where to find the latest bandit nest, and apologizing for stealing the food.” Simon explained.
“That is strange. So no one really saw him.”
“No, but Rafe believes it to be the runaway sentinel. Who else could sneak into one of Rafe’s camps without being caught.”
“You are probably right. I can’t think of anyone. I wonder why he did that? Led them to the bandits.”
“Probably saw those captives, especially those kids, and decided he had to do something. As I remember it, sentinels had a strong sense of right and wrong.” Simon conjectured.
“Yes, they did. And still do despite everything. “
Jim continued to help Rafe’s band as he could. He did not deviate from his own hunting to prepare himself for the coming winter, but when he ran across a bandit camp in his hunting, he informed Captain Rafe via a map on a nearby stone.
The second time he left a message, he found waiting for him a message from Captain Rafe along with two small bags of oats about five pounds each, a three pound bag of sugar, and a large loaf of bread. The message said that the food was a thank you for helping make their job easier. Jim left his message, took the supplies, and left a thank you.
Captain Rafe studied the newest map left by their sentinel. It showed a bandit lair some six miles from their camp. The two men with him stood quietly holding the torches so Rafe could read it. When he was sure that he could find the camp, Rafe used a leather cloth to rub out the messages on the rock, then turned on his heels toward his camp.
Simon had authorized Rafe to give the sentinel the food supplies in payment and gratitude for his help. Rafe would have done it anyway. They always had plenty of food, and the men had felt it to be only right. They were starting to think of the sentinel as a good luck charm, referring to him as their sentinel rather than a sentinel. Yet no one wanted to capture him, and in fact Rafe pitied the fool who decided to try and catch the sentinel while Rafe’s men were around.
At the camp, Rafe discussed his plan with his men, and they all nodded. They would be ready to break camp when morning came to deal with the bandits.
A few days later after Blair had taken care of the latest captives rescued from bandits, Blair was saddling his horse with Simon beside him talking.
“I’m not sure its safe, Blair?” Simon said in a worried tone. “I could send a couple of soldiers with you.”
“And have them trample all over my pharmaceuticals. No thanks. I’ll be fine. I have my bow with me and you know I can shoot as well as any of your men. And I need these plants.” Blair said. The laboratory in Cascade had sent back the results, which had been very puzzling. The rash was a rash normally found in and around the vaginal area of a sow. The plants Blair would be searching for would help with the healing of the rash along with the ointment that the laboratory had sent back with the messenger who had brought Blair the results.
“If this rash is what they say it is, then that means whoever raped that sentinel is even more of a sick bastard than we originally thought.” Simon said. “But how do we figure out who it is?”
“Short of testing every male villager over the age of fifteen, I don’t see how.” Blair said. “Though this villager should be worried. The rash causes impotency as it slowly kills the tissue cells. Eventually, the rash will spread throughout his whole genitalia, and they would have to be surgically removed or it would poison his whole body. Maybe when his cock turns black he’ll come running to the hospital for help, and then we’ll have him. I’m surprised he hasn’t come for help yet.”
Simon shuddered at the thought of one’s cock turning black and maybe falling off.
“And besides, if Mark has this rash, it’s a good bet the other does as well, and I’m going to get this ointment to Rafe, and have him get it to Jim.” Blair continued.
“Alright, just be careful.” Simon said.
“No worries.” Blair laughed as he mounted up into the saddle.
Some hours later found him in the wilderness searching for a certain plant. He was careful to guide his horse so that the animal’s hooves didn’t crush the very plant he searched for.
Finally in a hollow of trees Blair found what he was looking for. Stopping his horse, Blair dismounted and tied the animal where it could get at the clover growing beneath a Digger pine. He drew his knife and walked over to the leafy plant. Kneeling down, he was careful not to touch the leaves as he cut at the thick stalks.
“That’s poisonous.” A voice said, and Blair jerked in surprises and fell down on his butt. He looked up to see a man standing on the lip of the hollow between two trees. The man was tall with blue eyes. He wore clothing made of deerskins and furs. And he was grinning at Blair.
“Only the leaves, “ Blair answered. “The fluid in the stems is medicinal.”
Jim frowned, “Never heard of that. What’s it used for?”
Blair didn’t answer though as he realized who he was talking to. “You’re Jim.” He said matter of factly.
“How do you know my name? I don’t the villagers told you.”
“Mark told me. He told me about the night you escaped, and how he wouldn’t go with you.”
“I wish he had.”
“Because he was being sexually assaulted?” Blair asked.
Jim gave him a hard look.
“I’m a doctor. When the village signed the accords they agreed to live under Simon’s laws. One of those laws says that the doctor has the right to take the sentinel away from a village’s custody if he believes the sentinel is being abused in any way. I examined Mark and found the evidence. He is no longer in any danger from the one who raped him, but he won’t tell us the man’s name.”
“What good would the name do, Chief. Mark’s just a sentinel, surely he can’t testify.”
“No, but a name would give us someone to investigate, and we have the perfect proof.”
“How so?”
“The reason I’m getting this plant’s juice is because it along with an ointment helps to cure the rash that Mark has. This rash is only found in the vaginal passage of sows.”
“Disgusting bastard.” Jim growled. “Not you Chief.” He added when he saw Blair look startled.
He hesitated, “What if I give you the name, will that help?”
“Yes, it will.”
“The mayor. It was the mayor.”
“He won’t get the punishment that is normally given for rape, I’m sorry to say. The most he’ll get is two years of labor. But if its any consolation, the rash has probably made him impotent and he will be lucky if he doesn’t lose his genitals because of the rash.”
“This rash is that bad?” Jim asked.
Blair stood up, and wiped off his clothes with his hands, then looked at Jim. “I have some of the ointment in my saddlebags. I was going to give it to Captain Rafe so he could get it to you, but now I can give it to you.”
Jim nodded giving Blair permission to go to his horse. Jim knew there was no one else around.
Blair took the large skin of the ointment from his saddlebags along with the applicators.
“Along with this you should drink a tea made from the juice of that plant or you will suffer side effects you don’t want. Each night you should fill the applicator with the ointment, and insert it into your rectum and…”
“I get the picture.” Jim interrupted taking the ointment filled skin and applicators.
“You should also do it every morning. With each application drink at least a cup of the tea with at least two teaspoons of the plant’s juice. It will taste bad, but you can add sugar to cut the taste. Continue until you run out of ointment.”
Jim placed the items in a bag at his belt. “Thanks, Chief.”
“Hey, your welcome. And if you have any problems just leave a message with Rafe that you need to see me, and I’ll make a house call.” Blair laughed at that.
Jim laughed with him. “I’ll do that. I’m glad that no one’s tried to catch me.”
“Standing order from Simon. No one, not even the villagers are allowed to try and capture you. If they do, Simon will just hand him over to Rafe’s men. They wouldn’t take kindly to their scout being hassled.”
Jim was glad that Blair didn’t say sentinel. He nodded to the young doctor, then turned and left. The doctor knew that Jim had been assaulted just as Mark had been. Now they had a name, they could investigate. Jim didn’t think the mayor’s friends and his wife would appreciate finding out that the mayor had carnal knowledge with animals. That in itself was punishment, and the fact he would have to do actual labor would shock the mayor into a heart attack. Jim laughed at the thought as he made his way to his cave.