Sunset in Silvana (Da'ark Nocturne Book 1) (20 page)

The tension grew as they waited for Iain to return.  It seemed like an age, but it must have been less than an hour after Tanya got back when Bartes, who’d been watching out for him, turned and said, “He’s coming.”

Tanya breathed a sigh of relief, but as Iain pushed aside the camouflage net and entered their refuge carrying a couple of bottles of vodka, her fears for him turned into anger.  “What the hell took you so long?” she asked.

“Whoa!”  He raised his hands defensively.  “Who rattled your cage?”

“I’m sorry,” she said, her anger dissipating.  “I was so worried about you.  What were you doing down there?”

He grinned.  “Oh, just having a friendly drink with the locals.”

Anoushka gasped.  “You took an awful risk,” she said.

“Not really – there’s no love lost between them and the Zelynans.  They believed my story about being a logger, but I’m pretty sure that they wouldn’t have given me away even if they’d known the truth.  And I even persuaded their security sergeant to given me these.”  He flourished his newly-acquired identity papers.

“You must be quite an actor,” Bartes said.  “I wish I’d been there to see it.”

“Opera – theatre – all forms of performance at your command.”  Iain gave a florid bow.

Still tired from his exertions the previous night, RD lay down for a nap while the rest of them settled down to wait out the day.  Tanya had almost dozed off herself when something occurred to her: their captive.  “We’d better deal with Peter,” she said quietly to Bartes.

“OK,” he replied.  “I’ll wake RD.”

Tanya shook her head.  “I’d rather we did it without his interference.”  They made their way to the back of their purloined vehicle, where the boy had been dumped.  He was still bound and gagged, though he was now awake.  “Help me sit him up,” Tanya whispered to Bartes, “and then go get Anoushka, Iain and Joseph.”

They sat the boy against the side of the vehicle and, when they’d all gathered, Tanya crouched down in front of him and took out her knife.  She laid it down between them and said, “I’m going to remove your gag now.  If you make a single sound without me telling you to, you’ll never make another.  Nod if you understand me.”  The boy inclined his head in assent, so she freed his mouth.  “Now, who are you really?”

“My - my name really is Peter, but my surname’s Ackermann. I am the son of David Ackermann, the leader of the Silvanan Free Army.”  The boy paused.  “Are you going to kill me?”

“Why should we do that?”

“For spying on you,” he said glumly.  “I’m not sure I want to live, anyway.”  He looked down, and tears formed in the corner of his eyes.

“Why ever not?”

“They’ll kill her now, or worse…”

“Who?”

“My sister, Karla.  Those damned Zelynans are holding her against my good behaviour, and now we’ve escaped...”  He paused.

“Look, tell me all about it, and we’ll see if we can help.”

He snorted.  “Why would you even want to?  You’re aliens, and you’ve got no real interest in us or our affairs.”

“We’re none too happy with what the Comrade President and his people have done to us,” Bartes interjected.  “We might be inclined to help you – if only to get up their noses.”

“Well…”  The boy took a deep breath.  “My father was the Chief Sanitation Engineer for Restavic City when the Zelynans marched in.  We thought our government would fight, but they just collapsed.  My father said they were spineless idiots.  He took all the maps of the city sewers, and told us that we were a resistance movement.

“He called us the Silvanan Free Army, but we weren’t much of an army to start with – just Father and some of his friends – and Karla and me.  But people soon got to know about us, and some of them joined up with us.  We used to come out of the sewers after dark, like rats, and attack those bastards.  We could do it from almost anywhere, and they couldn’t catch us.

“Food was the trickiest thing.  You don’t want to eat the sort of stuff that comes down into the sewers.  There were plenty of people on the surface who didn’t want to join us, but they hated the Zelynans and were happy to give us food.  The problem was that we had to get it below without the security forces finding out.

“That’s where me and Karla came in.  The blackshirts didn’t bother about kids, mostly – it was the grown-ups they kept their eyes on.  I told Father we could do the job right under their noses.  He didn’t like it, of course – after Mother died, we were all he had left – but after we managed two or three missions without any real difficulty, he realised it made sense.

“But in the end our luck ran out.   We were making one of our regular runs on the west side of the city, and a friend of Karla’s recognised her.  Bloody idiot rushed over to us shouting Karla’s name.  Karla tried to shut her up, but it was too late.  There was a security officer on the other side of the street, and he recognised us.  He drew his gun and shouted for us to stop.  We ran, but he radioed for help and two guards cornered us in a dead-end alley.  I didn’t have the strength to raise the only manhole cover I could find, so they caught us.

“They took us to the Blockhouse – Security Headquarters – and separated us.  They interrogated me...  I don’t want to think about it.  We heard a fair amount about the techniques they used – Father’s friends talked about it enough times... persuasion first, then drugs... and no sleep... and no food... and when those didn’t get enough information out of people, the pain... needles under the nails – I don’t want to remember it...

“Anyway, I didn’t tell them much, but to be honest, that was because I didn’t
know
very much.  I wish I could say they got nothing out of me…”  He looked down and shook his head slowly.  “… but that Major Valentine came and just sat looking at me for a while.  Somehow, he pulled information out of my head, like where our headquarters were, as well as the other bolt-holes I knew about.

“I kept asking about Karla. I thought perhaps they’d killed her. I wished they’d kill me.  It would’ve been better...

“Soon Captain Reynard came to see me.  I don’t know how long I’d been in the Blockhouse – you sort of lose track of time, you know.  She had my sister with her.  Karla looked – thin.  Empty.  But she knew me.  She tried to run to me, but there was a guard.  He grabbed her and twisted her arm behind her back.  I couldn’t reach her – there were two guards holding onto me.

“The Captain asked if I’d do a job for her, and I said, ‘No – not in a million years.’  She nodded to Karla’s guard.  He wrenched her arm again.  She screamed...  I think I was yelling too.  I don’t know –

“The bloody swine...  She ordered the guard to take Karla outside, and told my own guards to let go of me.  ‘You do realise that I can make your life more comfortable?’ she said, ‘and even let you share a room with Karla?  It wouldn’t be a problem.  You’d only have to perform a small task for me – really easy.  If you don’t...  Well, is Karla a virgin?’

“‘She’s only eight years old,’ I told her.  ‘What do you think?’ 

“‘Well, isn’t that sweet,’ she said.  ‘What a dear little girl.  If you don’t do what I tell you, I’ll get my men to make sure Karla isn’t a virgin, before they cut her throat.’

It was a minute or two before the boy could continue.  “What could I do?  I agreed – for Karla’s sake.  That bitch had us moved into a cell together.  It had beds with real, soft mattresses, and a proper bathroom.  And we had food – real food.  Two days later, the Captain came and told me about my assignment.  She promised me I wouldn’t be asked to do anything that would harm my friends.  She simply wanted me to spy on ‘a group of aliens who think they’re Heroes of the Republic’.  She wanted me to get close to you all, and to Joseph in particular, and warn her about anything odd you said or did.”

Tanya exchanged glances with Bartes.  “That explains a lot.  But what happened at the Opera House?”

“Well, my father knew that I’d been seen with you people, so he was looking for a way to rescue me.  When he heard we were going to appear at the Opera House, he took his chance.  My cousin Marta stole a maid’s uniform and told me a van was waiting for me downstairs.  With Karla still at the Blockhouse, I didn’t really want to go, but I didn’t have a choice.  Then everything went wrong.”

“Bartes and I saw,” Tanya said sympathetically.  “Captain Reynard must have got wind of the attempt – or been well-prepared.”

“M-Marta was killed – and her boyfriend Carl.  She used to babysit me and Karla, you know.  She had a lovely voice.  I can still remember the lullabies she used to sing us…”  The boy bit his lip.

“Anyway, the rest of us got away, and I was taken to meet my father.  He hugged me and asked where Karla was.  I had to tell him what happened, and that I had to go back, for Karla’s sake.  He frowned, and told me to get some rest while he talked to ‘a friend’.

When he came back, he seemed different.  He told me you’d met up with some of our people in the mountains, and that you weren’t our enemies.  He told me to stick close to you while his friend did something about Karla.”

Tanya sighed.  “Now, what are we going to do with you?” she said.

The boy shrugged.  “Put me out of my misery.  I won’t struggle.  Just…  I’d be grateful if you’d do it relatively painlessly.”

“Don’t be stupid.  I can tell that you’re telling the truth, and my people only kill when it’s absolutely necessary – and perhaps...”  Tanya had a thought and looked over at Slimmest, who had also been ‘listening’ to the boy’s tale.  :
Could your mistress help?
:

The cat’s eyes unfocussed momentarily.  :
She’s a bit busy right at this moment, as you’ll hopefully see later, but she tells me that she’s already been working on freeing the girl.  Who did you think the ‘friend’ the boy’s father mentioned is?
:

Turning back to the boy, Tanya said, “Peter, your father’s friend is also a friend of mine, and I know that she’ll free your sister if anyone can.  Now, if you’ll give me your word of honour that you won’t try to escape or raise an alarm, I’ll untie you.”  She looked around for confirmation: Anoushka and Bartes nodded agreement, Iain shrugged, but Joseph pointedly turned and looked away from his once-friend.

Peter thought for a few seconds.  “Very well – I promise on Karla’s life not to betray you.”

“Fair enough.”

As Tanya cut his bonds, RD strode up, his eyes blazing.  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Freeing an ally.”

“He’s a spy.”

“He
was
– very unwillingly.  Now he wants to help us escape, don’t you, Peter.”

“Yes.”  The boy stretched his cramped limbs and groaned.  “Ow!  My arms and legs hurt.”

“It’s just the circulation being restored,” Tanya told him.  “Don’t worry, they’ll be OK in a minute.”  Turning to RD she said, “I trust him.”

RD grunted.  “Your gullibility will get us all killed someday.”

Bartes looked at him levelly.  “I’ll be keeping an eye on the boy,” he said.

“So will I,” RD added, ominously fingering the knife in his belt.

Bartes frowned in thought.  “Peter…” he began.

“Yes, sir?”

“First of all, call me Bartes.”  The boy nodded.  “And second, do you know anything about how we could reach Telphania?”

“Yes…”  It was the boy’s turn to look thoughtful.  “If you’ll trust me that is…”

“We’ve little choice,” Tanya said, “but for what it’s worth, I’m willing to give it a try.”

The boy gave a grateful smile.  “You could travel south-east till the mountains end and turn north-east – but you’d have to cross nearly 200 miles of settled land to reach the border, which is pretty well-patrolled.”

Bartes sighed.  “I thought it wouldn’t be that easy.”

“But there’s an alternative.  It could take a bit longer, but your chances of escape would be better.  You could make your way through the forest to the southern mountains and cross them by a pass I know of.  Telphania is just the other side, and the border isn’t well guarded, because getting a large force through the mountains is nigh impossible.  I could guide you.”

“We’ll have a go,” Bartes said.  “We’ve nothing better to try.”

The rest of the day passed peaceably enough, though military jets flew over the area at a low level a couple of times.  During the afternoon, Tanya and Bartes explored the cave, which extended some way back into the hillside, and found an alcove at the far end of it where they could safely light a larger fire and roast the boar meat.  Some of it made a good meal for them that evening, and the rest they packed away as trail rations.

The sun finally crawled below the horizon.  They desperately wanted to move on, but didn’t dare start out while anyone was awake down in the village.  The bar Iain had visited did a roaring trade, and it was after midnight by the time all the lights were out and the village was quiet enough that they felt they could start the next leg of their journey.  Guided by Iain, RD carefully backed the ATV out of the cave, while the rest of them tried to hide all traces of their occupation.  They boarded the vehicle and coasted as quietly as they could down into the village, coming to a halt by the yard containing the fuel tank.  It seemed that this was a general parking area, as several vehicles, including the security sergeant’s jeep, lined the sides.

“Right,” RD said quietly, “Bartes – you and Dr Miller check for signs of life, and warn us if you detect any.  Iain – you and I will replenish our fuel supplies.”

Tanya and Bartes cautiously felt around psionically for signs of wakefulness, but found none, apart from the local wildlife.  Slimmest found a friend, though: a large ginger tomcat, who was initially hostile to the newcomer, but was soon rubbing cheeks with her.  Tanya stifled a laugh, and when Bartes raised an eyebrow, she murmured, “It’s nothing much.  Slimmest was just commenting on the ease with which males can be manipulated.  ‘Poor, sweet, simple creatures’ was approximately the thought she sent.”

Fully refuelled, they cruised further down the valley until they felt it safe to start the engine.  On Peter’s advice, they spent most of the rest the night travelling roughly south-west along the bank of the river.

“Aren’t we going the wrong direction?” RD asked him suspiciously.

“We can move faster by following the river,” the boy said, “and the deeper we get into the woods, the less likely we are to be discovered.”

Shortly before dawn, the course of the torrent swung round to the west, but they continued away from it, heading into the forest, seeking somewhere to hide during the daylight hours.  They found a place where they could conceal their vehicle at least partially among the trees.  RD guided the ATV into it, and they spread the camouflage net over the top and settled down for another day of nervous waiting.

For the first time in several days, Tanya saw the sun rise and found herself humming the melody she’d come to think of as her morning hymn.

Anoushka looked up from the peg she’d just hammered into the ground.  “What
is
that tune, Tanya?”

“I really don’t know.  It’s deep in my psyche, though – from well before we were brainwashed.  I hoped I’d have remembered by now, but I still don’t know where I learned it.  What I
do
know is that it lifts my soul and makes me want to dance.  I know – once everything is set up, let’s exercise together.  We haven’t done it for the last few days – too much has been happening – and I don’t want to get out of the habit.”

“You couldn’t if you tried, my dear – those exercises are as much a part of you as your arms or legs.  I may be a bit rusty – you’ll have to go easy on me.”

About midday, Anoushka shared out a cold lunch of cold roast boar, cheese & bread.  Tanya noticed that Peter had taken his away and was sat on his own.  She walked over to him and asked, “Do you mind if I join you?”

“No,” he said.  “If you don’t mind sitting next to a spy, that is.”

“I’ve been with worse – damn it, I’m pretty sure I’ve
been
worse,” she said.  “Are these the crystal woods we’ve heard about?  They’re certainly unusual.”

“Yes – they’re what makes Silvana so rich – and why those blasted Zelynans annexed us.  You used to be able to make a good living as a logger around these parts.  My grandfather spent sixteen years on the tractors, starting as a gopher –”

“Gopher?”  Tanya looked puzzled.

“You know – whenever one of the loggers wants something, you gopher it.  Anyway, he became a logger himself, then a foreman, and had saved enough to buy his own tractor. And then he met my grandma, and sunk the money into a small farm.  I’ve spent a couple of summers working out here myself – that’s how I heard about the alternative route to Telphania.  Since the invasion, though, all the tractors belong to the government.”  Peter spat vehemently.  “And they tax every log you gather.”

“Let’s get this straight,” Tanya said.  “Earlier, you called the annexation of Silvana an invasion, and Iain’s experiences yesterday back your story up.  We haven’t any memories of it ourselves, but the line we’ve been fed is that it was requested by the Silvanans.”

The boy snorted.  “Propaganda.  Zelyna’s a poor country that envied our assets, so their President claimed that we asked for their help dealing with internal struggles – struggles that they themselves had been fomenting.  They walked in, and our so-called government just rolled over and played dead.  And because Telphania is a federation of free states, there was nothing much the rest of the country could do about it without a full-scale war.”

They lapsed into silence for a while.  Tanya said, “Tell me about the crystal woods.”

“They’re unique to Silvana, but our scientists can’t explain how they came to be.  The best we can come up with is that they were genetically engineered by one of the elder races.   Their sap, when it solidifies, forms translucent crystal structures which are both very strong and very beautiful.  As you can see, the trees themselves grow straight and vertical, and their branches are also very straight, and very regular.  What’s more, the sulphur in our soil gives the wood a deep, golden glow.”

It was at this point that Slimmest wandered up.  :
Have you any news?
: Tanya asked.

The cat took up a classic pose – front legs together and tail wrapped round her – and closed her eyes in meditation.  :
My mistress has located the boy’s sister,
: she sent after a few seconds.  :
She’s still being treated well, and my mistress wants to leave her where she is until we’re ready to abstract her.  Littlest is hiding in her cell and has made friends with her.  She’ll warn us if there are any problems.
:

“Peter,” Tanya said, “I’ve been informed that our friend has found your sister.  She’s still being treated well – for the moment.  And we’ve managed to get one of our agents close to her, ready to help if anything goes wrong.”

He snorted.  “Look, please don’t try this on me – you can’t
possibly
know that out here.  I can understand that you’re trying to get me on your side, but I’m not as much of a child as I look – you grow up fast in the Resistance.  Can’t you just accept my promise not to betray you?”

“Don’t be so quick to condemn us,” Tanya told him as she communed with Slimmest, asking for details.  “They’ve given her new clothes,” she continued, “but she refuses to put them on.  She insists on wearing an old red cotton dress that’s torn quite badly at the hem.”

Peter’s eyes filled with tears.  “She’s always loved that dress.  It’s really too small for her now, but Mother gave it to her before…”  He took a deep breath.  “It was torn when we were captured.  I don’t know how you can have found that out, but it’s enough – I believe you now.”  He paused and looked up at her.  “Could you do something for me?” he asked.  “Could you talk to Joseph and tell him that I’m sorry?  He’s ignored me since I told you who I really am, and I miss his company.”

“I’ll do my best,” she said.

As he turned away, shuffling into a corner to be alone with his thoughts, Tanya moved over to where Joseph was sitting.  “You know, Joseph,” she said, “Peter’s feeling very lonely and lost at the moment.  He needs a friend, and he’d really appreciate it if you’d forgive him.  You used to get on so well.”

Joseph’s lips tightened and he looked away.  “That slime
pretended
to be my friend.  Why should I be sympathetic towards him – he never really cared about me.”

“I don’t think that’s true.  Anyway, it’s not his fault – you heard his story.”

“And why should I believe it?  It could be a pack of lies, with no more truth than he told us last time.”

“He’s telling the truth this time – Sophie’s cat has confirmed it.  And he’s all alone now, caught up in things beyond his control,” she added.  “He really needs a companion – or at least someone to talk to.”

“Then he can talk to you.”

It’s no good,
thought Tanya.
I can’t get through to him.
  Turning away, she saw Anoushka dozing on her bedroll.  “Anoushka?”

“Hmm…”  Anoushka blinked sleepily.  “Yes, Tanya?”

“I’ve been talking to Peter, and he’s rather lost and alone at the moment.  Joseph won’t have anything to do with him, and I can only do so much.  Could you spare some time to befriend him?”

“Why not?  It’s not as if I can do much to help with our escape.  It’d be nice not to feel like a fifth wheel for a change.”

Later that afternoon, Tanya and Bartes were dozing when Slimmest suddenly called them psionically.  :
I think you might like to see this,
: she sent.  They joined the cat, who was sitting in the cab of the vehicle.  The video screen was on and she was watching the screen intently.

It was showing a live outside broadcast: the Comrade President was standing on a podium in front of a large cheering crowd.  He was accompanied by two other official-looking types that the subtitles identified as the Interior Minister (who was responsible for the security forces) and the Minister of War.  A caption also identified the location as the State Tractor Works at Kije, and indeed an array of gleaming new forestry vehicles behind the dais testified to its truth.  At the edge of the arena were two of the grav tanks seen on film during the night at the opera, and four armoured personnel carriers

Gradually the rest of the team realised what they were doing and joined them out of curiosity.  Everyone had gathered by the time the President began his speech.

“Comrades,” he announced, “we are here to laud the collective might and will of the Silvanan people.”  There was a loud cheer, and it was a while before he could continue.  “But before I begin my inspection of this magnificent testimony to the ability and dedication of our newest comrades, I have a surprise for you.”  A buzz of puzzled expectation came over the audio channel, as he paused for effect.  “There have been scurrilous rumours spread by reactionary malcontents,” he went on, “that Silvana Zelyna has neither the will nor ability to resist the warmongering Telphanians and their off-world supporters.  I would like to demonstrate today, for both you and the watching public, some new forms of protection provided by our allies that will aid us all in our struggle with the forces of our enemy.  You can see the grav tanks we now have –” (he gestured dramatically) “– but on a more personal note –”

He gestured again, and there was a collective gasp as a dozen security guards armed with rifles lined up in front of the platform and took aim directly at him.  He waved his hands in front of him and, accompanied by a quiet hum, some type of energy barrier formed around the party on the dais that was detectable only by the minor visual distortion it caused.  The guards fired their weapons, but the bullets failed to penetrate the shield.  They could be seen to lose their momentum and fall to the ground.

The cheers were deafening, but after some seconds, they began to fade as the crowd seemed to be gripped by some form of unease. A ripple of silence spread out from a point at the back.  The view on the screen changed to show the assembled multitude before locating and centring on the source of the disquiet. The throng parted to show Sophie, no longer dressed in white, but in a serious-looking black uniform with the sigil of Mercy on its shoulder and left breast.  The guards in front of the dais – and all the others surrounding the area – turned towards her.

“I’m not here to hurt anyone – unless I’m forced to,” Sophie announced in a voice that cut through the silence.  “I just want to talk to your President.”

The view changed again to show the podium, where the President stood in a state of agitation.  “Kill her!” he shouted.  “What are you waiting for?”

:
Shouldn’t you be there to help her?
: Tanya asked Slimmest.

:
They can cope without me,
: she replied, apparently unconcerned.

The camera swung with the soldiers’ weapons onto their target, who sighed and shook her head sadly.

The tanks and APCs all began to train their heavy weapons on the lone, slender figure.  Tanya held her breath, fearing the worst, but before any of them could fire, a piercing actinic blue beam stabbed out from a bluff overlooking the tractor works.  In quick succession, the barrels of each heavy weapon glowed cherry-red and drooped under the influence of gravity.  One of the tanks, its crew oblivious to the damage, tried to fire.  Its turret exploded in a gout of flame.

Sophie addressed the remaining troopers.  “Those of you who want to live, drop your weapons.”  Most of them presumably felt that the risk of court martial was preferable to certain death, and complied.  She blurred, and those who didn’t respond fell in quick succession from single accurate shots to the head.  A few soldiers managed to fire shots of their own before they died, but all missed their fast-moving target, one or two bullets hitting members of the crowd.