Tilly kept her word and warmed my bed that night. The experience was as pleasurable as I had imagined although our lovemaking didn’t help to soften her feelings toward me. I remained hopeful that she would eventually come around and begin to care for me. Her presence at night put a skip in my step and an uncommon ditty on my tongue for days. Warriors began giving me knowing looks but they didn’t dare say a word. My status is revered and my reputation in dealing with disrespect is swift and cruel.
A few days after Tilly’s shift in accommodations, the Tonrar appeared, late in the afternoon. A dark ominous cloud was spotted mid-day by the warrior on guard in the ship’s High Lookout Platform. Waves of dread flowed toward me long before the Tonrar actually appeared, their oppressive heaviness preceding them with long-taloned panic.
Well before the dark shape-shifting wraiths settled down on the deck, every cheerful whistle stilled and the air grew heavy and thick so that it was difficult to take a good breath without inducing chest pain. I felt mixed emotion with their arrival. I was eager for their assistance in transporting us to the southern farrins with greater speed. My goal was to get the job done in the land masses and have the Tonrar leave as soon as possible.
Life is more bearable without their presence and yet they still serve a prime purpose in Casimer’s regime. The Tonrar are enforcers of Casimer’s rule, as we, the Apolake Warriors, are. We tolerate them and they tolerate us, but we have little appreciation for their oppressive leverage.
Tilly came out to me soon after they arrived, looking spooked and nervous. Standing next to me, her sleeve brushing mine, she said, “They’ve come.”
“Yes. But they won’t harm you. You’re one of us now.”
“It’s hard to breath and my chest pains me.” She placed a hand above her bosom.
I gazed at her hand and what lay directly south of it, my desire soaring once more.
She looked up at me and shook her head. “At a time like this?”
I lifted my gaze and met her eyes. “Just stay close to me. I’ll protect you.” With the nights we’d enjoyed together, I felt that she was truly mine, a woman I was covering in every way.
She nodded and stayed close as I headed to the center of my ship. When I drew near to the dark cloud of malevolent wraiths, Tilly held back and hid herself behind a barrel.
The shifting Tonrar gradually took shape, a hulking mass, the leader of the group, grew clear in front of me. He was massive, his head that of a wolf, his body man-like and his torso and two legs those of a bull. He stood before me like a man but his size and overweening wicked aura made it feel like he surrounded me on every side. His terrorizing quality brought on the sensation of his wickedness devouring me whole.
The other members of the Tonrar gang also grew clear and their hateful superiority flowed like smoke from a smoldering fire to encompass every soul within reach. Their shapes took on the form they desired, what would intimidate us the most, each one massive, their eyes glowing red, their teeth long and razor sharp, and some growling gutturally in their hate.
My ship crew was scattered throughout the vessel. Many had disappeared below deck when they sensed the Tonrar on the approach. The few Apolake Warriors who were brave enough to back me on the deck stood at a safe distance, their weapons ready, the men positioned close to exits that would lead them down below if necessary. Each of them was travel weary from days battling the furious seas but now they stood in high alert with the Tonrar’s arrival.
The shifting wraiths rarely enter enclosed spaces, preferring areas where their nefarious aura can flow freely. I was convinced that their own evil overwhelms them and they need space for what emanates from within their vile beings. Perhaps they too are overtaken by the hideous oppression that makes them who they are. Open spaces are more to their liking and they are not known to enter below deck.
I swallowed hard, willing myself not to show terror and demanded, “Where were you? I expected you days ago.”
The lead wraith sneered. “We came when we did.”
“Take us to the southeastern farrins now.”
Hate oozed from the Tonrar. I knew they had to obey me. This was a rule Casimer made for the journeys to the land masses. The ship captain was in charge and the Tonrar were present to assist only. Any rebellion on their part would result in swift reprisal from The Lord Ruler. Casimer is known for teaching the Tonrar lessons they never forget.
“What are you willing to pay for this service?” the large wolf-apparition asked.
“Nothing. It is your duty.”
“You will pay!” he growled.
“You have much to lose if you resist me.”
They were goading in their typical fashion, them threatening and me standing my ground as the leader of the mission. The Tonrar wolf-man glared at me in fury. He knew I was right.
There are stories of some Tonrar breaking protocol and attacking a ship captain, ripping him to shreds while his crew looks on in horror. Those wraiths are quickly dealt with by Casimer’s regime. They are confined in deep dungeons below the Royal Palace. It is said that if one wanders too far through the tunnels below the palace, the imprisoned Tonrar’s screams are enough to disembowel a man, so horrible are the screeching yowls.
The wraith creature bared his teeth and snarled, a last ditch attempt to intimidate me. I refused to succumb to his corrupt manipulations.
“You will do this now!” I reiterated.
I heard one of my Apolake warriors scream before I noticed what had befallen the man. I turned my head slightly to take in what was happening. Writhing in pain, he had fallen to the deck, smoke rising from his legs.
I whipped my head back to face the wolf-man apparition. “If he dies, you will be made to pay recompense!” I yelled, stepping closer.
He chuckled as though he was in charge.
In fury, I turned to the bridge and yelled, “Turn the ship around. Back to Dwarkaa. Now!”
All the members of the Tonrar protested in unison. “No!”
I pointed to the man still writhing on the deck. “Get that off him now!”
As quickly as the attack came, it left, but the man would likely sport scars from the encounter. I hoped the warrior would still be able to walk. I needed every available man on this mission.
The Tonrar leader sullenly asked, “When?”
“Tonight, when night falls.”
Then the mist forms began to disintegrate, their shapes melding into smoke and thick darkness until all that remained was the familiar oppressive heaviness that clung to everything. I knew we’d have to endure their presence until they transported us to the southern farrins.
Later that night, retiring to my room, I was grateful to see Tilly waiting for me. As we sat across from each other at the table, she still looked spooked and hardly touched her food.
I reached over with my eating utensil and kept it poised above her plate. “May I?”
Tilly pushed her plate in my direction. “I’m not hungry.”
“I noticed.”
“Is it always this way, this heavy?”
“What? The voyage?”
She nodded. “With the Tonrar so close?”
“Yes.”
“Remind me never to request a journey again.”
“Is it that bad?”
“Did you see that man, the smoke rising from his legs?”
I didn’t answer. She had watched the whole thing, heard what I said, the way I defended the warrior and stood up to the Tonrar.
“Will he ever walk again?”
“Yes. I think he’ll be okay. They are surface wounds. He will heal.”
“You checked on him?”
“Yes. I did.”
Silence settled between us. Tilly stole glances at me and finally said, “You’re a good leader.”
I basked in her praise. Her respect felt like a balm to my past failed relationship with a woman.
“When will they leave?”
“I suspect they’ll leave as soon as they’ve transported us south. By tomorrow noon they should likely depart.”
“Good.”
“But they’ll keep reappearing as we make landfall at the various farrins.”
“Are you sure?” she asked.
Curiosity nagged me and I asked, “How long has it been since the Tonrar were part of an Apolake Warrior visit to Akoni?”
Tilly grew pensive. “I don’t remember. It’s been a long time, probably a few years since they’ve been anywhere close to Akoni. I’ve forgotten how heavy the air becomes with their presence.”
“Years?” Her answer shocked me.
She nodded.
“Why do they stay away? They are commanded by Casimer to assist the Apolake Warriors.”
“Things have changed on Akoni.”
“Tell me.”
“I’ve already told you.”
“Is it because of Tarmon Farrin? They are involved with the Akoni Clan in some way?”
“Any Dwarkaa Ship Captain and his crew that visits Akoni Farrin place their lives in danger.” Tilly said it with a lift of her chin, as though she were challenging me to refute her bold claim.
I forced myself to grin condescendingly. “You are oblivious to what we are commanded to do once reaching Akoni.”
“Who has commanded it?”
“Who do you think commanded it?”
“Casimer is a fool if he thinks he can subdue Akoni Farrin.”
Rage immediately engulfed my mind. I stood as though poked with a red-hot branding tool, strode to her side of the table with one step, wrapped my large hand around her delicate throat and lifted her to her feet. I could have killed her in an instant if I so chose. I was furious that she spoke of Casimer this way, especially with the Tonrar so close. She started choking immediately, her hands rose to grab hold of mine and I was surprised at her strength as she pried my fingers free. I didn’t anticipate her knee rising to connect with my privates. Pain shot through me and my hold loosened around her neck momentarily. The lapse on my part allowed Tilly to bring her fist around with lightening speed and connect with my cheek. My teeth tore through the inside of my mouth, drawing blood.
I reached for a knife at my waist but Tilly was faster. I still can’t fathom where her weapon appeared from so quickly or where she hid it within her frock. She jumped like a rabbit, catching me off guard, spun to my side, grabbed my hair in a vise grip, brought her one arm around to lock around my throat and pressed her knife to my jugular with nefarious intent.
Never have I known a woman to move the way Tilly does. I knew then that if I tried anything, she’d kill me. She held me that way, breathing heavily, with her knife at my throat for a few minutes. Finally she said, “If you swear never to choke me again, I’ll let you live.”
I had a hunch she’d let me live either way. Her life depended on it. If my crew found me dead they’d have their way with her, kill her and throw her overboard.
“I swear.”
She waited a few minutes more, then moved away slowly, her knife still at the ready, in preparation to attack again should I show aggression.
We stood facing each other, knives in both our hands, neither one with any sliver of trust for the other.
I finally broke the stalemate. “You must swear that you will not speak negatively about Casimer again.”
“I will never promise such a thing.”
“You want us both killed?”
She looked defiant but she was thinking it over.
“The Tonrar would be delighted to report such dissension to Casimer and his guards. You must promise me this.”
Understanding lit her eyes. She saw my fear and I hated her for it. I couldn’t understand how she could possess so little respect of the Lord Ruler. Perhaps years without the Tonrar’s visits had brought down her defenses regarding the cruelty of Casimer’s Rule.
“All right. I promise not to speak against Casimer. But you must never try to kill me again. The next time you try, you will lie dead in your own blood.”
I nodded. “It’s a deal.” I stuck out my hand and lowered my knife. She did the same and we shook on it.
I pitied her in that moment. She seemed so naive about what was coming for Akoni Farrin. If she knew, she would hate and distrust me further.
