The night wore on. The songs praising Sabit’s prowess diminished first to ribald lyrics praising her more feminine attributes, and then faded still further to drunken snores. The overseer stalked the halls, wary of champions wandering outside their sanctioned areas. Little else moved in the darkness—except a black-cloaked figure approaching Sabit. The spear woman lay … Read more
“Guards! Guards!” the Magistrate shouted as he tried to back out of his chair, instead falling to a quivering heap upon the floor. Before the guards could act, Sabit leaped over the Magistrate to the third row. There, Qaansoole had drawn her bow and was already raising it, an arrow half-nocked. Her patched cloak fluttered … Read more
Illi’s mallet was carved like the head of a great fish—curling tail giving rise to spikes on the back end, gaping jaws full of jagged teeth on the front. Sabit could see every carved scale upon its surface as the weapon whistled within a finger length of her face. Before the massive warrior could adjust … Read more
By the time the sun had reached its zenith, the forum of justice boasted a small crowd. Nearly a third of the spectators’ seats were filled with the hangers-on of the rival houses, various functionaries and officials of the Magistrate’s court, and a handful of local workers here more for the spectacle of bloody entertainment … Read more
On the fourth day after Sabit’s capture, the champions were ushered to the floor of the great forum itself. The fighting area itself was oblong, more than a hundred and twenty cubits from end to end, but barely fifty cubits wide. The surrounding walls of tan sandstone were eight cubits high—too tall for even the … Read more
With a few days’ training, Sabit had thoroughly familiarized herself with the workings of the Vertan forum of justice. While the central forum itself was strictly reserved for trials, the mammoth building housed two smaller courtyards for training. Nearly every type of weapon used throughout the world was on offer, and practiced by one of … Read more
A one-eyed man approached Sabit’s cell. He was shirtless, save a leather strap running from right shoulder to left hip. A short whip with many tails hung from his belt. His grey, frizzy hair testified to many years of life. The collection of pale scars against his tawny skin spoke to the hardship contained in … Read more
The needling pain of returning sensation in her arms and legs dragged Sabit back to consciousness. Her mouth dry, her throat tight, her head pounding, every part of Sabit ached. Her eyes felt like they were sealed with wax—she managed to force them open on the third attempt. There was precious little to greet her … Read more
Sabit picked her way around a mass of young fruit trees sprouting from the stony remains of what must once have been a warehouse. Pushing through the foliage, Sabit stumbled over a human skull, an ugly gash on its forehead indicating a bloody, violent death. It was not the first one she had seen in … Read more
The chase had taken Sabit further afield than she had realized. Walking the deserted streets, she struggled to find familiar sights. Every collapsed building seemed to bear some depiction of Verq, patroness of justice—either in a bas relief carving, or a fully-sculpted form, or a faded painting of her sacred balance. Had Sabit passed this … Read more