Pursuit: Twenty-Two

“I’ll see you dead before you chain anyone else,” Sabit roared as she charged Baza, water flying from her strides like wings. With her spear point leveled at the slave-catcher’s chest, Sabit closed the distance in a matter of heartbeats. Baza kept his gaze locked on Sabit’s eyes. At the last moment, he shifted his … Read more

Pursuit: Twenty

Illi was the first one into the river, trudging forward into the ford. Behind the mountain of a man came a long line of slaves, bound by thick ropes. Nearly two dozen shambled in bondage toward the water, Allamu and Qaansoole further back in line. Between them staggered the bandit that had kicked Qaansoole last … Read more

Pursuit: Nineteen

The sun had set and the sky’s inky blackness had bloomed with the unconquerable light of a thousand stars when Baza called for a halt. Allamu, at the head of the line of captives, had given up on testing the ropes that bound his wrists and circled his throat. He had been walking since the … Read more

Pursuit: Seventeen

Baza the slave-catcher found himself at a dead end. The two large boulders that had offered him shelter from Qaansoole’s arrow leaned close together—too close for his muscular shoulders to fit through. Without a moment’s hesitation, he pushed against both boulders with al his might, pulling himself off the ground. Using the slightest textures in … Read more