The House of Pacsol

House of Pacsol Deming Chapter One: Ambush “Whoa, Yellow,” Sundown said reining in his horse. “What now, Cousin?” his companion asked. “Listen. Somebody’s been down this trail.” “Me ninety times already. My horse knows the way.” “Mine, too, Falcon,” a third dusty man said behind the pair. “Come ride with Sundown and we’ll have all kinds of fun. My wife was right. Nothing but talk.” “She’s the meanest woman in Cobel, Wolf, and you deserve each other,” Falcon said. “Shut up,” Sundown snapped watching the wind in the scrub brush. “Thank you, Cousin. I know. I know. Wolf, take the high bank. I’ll go through the mud. Again. They’s patrolling and then they’s wasting a good day’s ride.” Falcon eased his patient gray horse down the rocky river bed. He reached to reassure his mount with a pat on the neck only to find an arrow buried to the feathers. In the hail of arrows that followed Falcon’s horse reared and fell back on him. Wolf died before he hit the ground and the ambushers never slowed as they charged Sundown. Arrows hit him and fell away with no effect. “La ust, Dimeas!” Sundown yelled killing an attacker. “Pasot!” “Yes to Shundown you,” Dimeas returned, wheeling his horse around Sundown to throw a black and gold headband at him. “Stop this!” a rider screamed. “He’s magic!” “On the right side, Ranfa. He will die!” Dimeas said. His second arrow slid in Sundown’s rib cage just under the first. A third knocked Sundown off Yellow’s back. “Carild’s dead,” Ranfa said. “No!” Sundown shouted. “Fight me!” “Do we have her son?” Dimeas asked. “Yes, but there are fifty more of these demons over the ridge. Move now, Dimeas!” Without looking back the ambushers rode due north to join their accomplices carrying a dark haired little boy. “You and you. Take Hunter to the pass. Nothing stops you,” Ranfa ordered as the young men barely slowed. “Dimeas, go like we planned. He’ll follow our horses. One of ours. If we distract him for a day we will win.” Behind the huddled men lightning traced through the clear blue sky. “Even magic dies, Dimeas. Her love will never leave Hunter. She’ll live on in her son. You and I give our lives for that love. Remember that. Get back to where Sachem must think you are and never speak of this again. This never happened.” Both young men watched dust storms spring up across the prairie. Those storms combined and magnified a hundred times. “Carild put herself in front of the knife to save Hunter. How can we do less?” Ranfa said trying to hold his terrified horse steady. “In the name of the River King,” Dimeas said charging northeast. # # # Sundown’s right arm hung from the shoulder and his breath whistled out his riddled chest. Try as he might he could not make his legs hold him any longer. In the midst of his agony, he heard his name. “Who’s calling me?” “You know me. I have always been with you.” His blood pooled at his knees. The voice wrapped her arms around him, soothing the torture, echoing in all the places his strength had always been. “Rest,” Death murmured in his ear, her cold hands brushing his face. “No time. Get away.” “Walk with me, Sundown. Let go of this world.” “Not yet,” Sundown insisted pushing her away. Pain washed through him dripping like his blood. “Sleep,” she whispered reaching to close his eyes. “Yes.” # # # “Buzzards don’t eat falcons,” Falcon told the circling birds overhead. They didn’t attempt landing in the gathering storm. Looking down at his dead horse pinning his right leg to the sharp rocks, Falcon said, “You are in a world of trouble.” He summoned his resolution to feel along his left leg. Black shafted arrows secured his thigh and calf to his horse. “Can’t catch a break.” When he was awake again he wiped blood and ants out of his face. “Well, hell, give it a try. Gods in Heaven, this is Falcon, your favorite boy. Hate to bother you guys but I could use a little luck just about now. You know how I always try to mind my own fire.” His easy smile faded as thunder assaulted the wash where he lay. “Keeps getting better and better, don’t it?” he told his horse. “I ain’t never learned to swim and we’re about to get mighty wet. As I told that pretty girl, gotta do it sooner or later.” He took hold of the end of the shaft in his thigh and bent it until it shattered, the sound ricocheting off the rocks around him. Trembling, he reached the second arrow and broke it without hesitation. Falcon lay back and cursed until he couldn’t think of anything else to say. “No!” Sundown shouted somewhere over the ridge above. “That’s my boy,” Falcon said grinning from ear to ear. “And you was worried. Down here, Cousin. Bring a live horse with you. A dead one I got.” Sundown’s response was negated by tremendous thunder. “That ain’t good, Cousin. Grandma’s slow but she’s old. Sachem’s men ain’t never had trouble hearing.” Death smiled. “So much pain. Let go, Sundown. Come with me.” Struggling to stand, Sundown ignored the figure beside him. One step forward and he fell and fell again. On his hands and knees he tried once more. “Peace. All your fire and fight will wait for the next time.” Blood sizzled on his body and splattered on the white-hot rocks around him as he crawled. Green grass smoked and flared. In the wall of fire sweeping across the trail, bodies burned to ashes scattering in the wind. The fire roared over Falcon to dissipate in the wind. Lightning traced the black clouds and nervously touched the dirt around Sundown. He could not have seen it through eyes turned black. “Blood,” he whispered. “Blood of the Earth.” Falcon saw the stroke of lightning descending in front of him. One by one, oval-headed figures detached from the rope of light to walk in the dirt. “Well, I’ll be go to hell,” Falcon whispered. “Honest to gods Star Travelers.” The leader pointed to Falcon. “Doakes and Murphy here. You come with me to the patient up here.” “One minute gone, Doctor Barnes,” the man beside him said. “Move,” Barnes ordered striding up the riverbank. “Don’t waste time. Decontaminate, Corporal Ritsonberger. Oh, my.” “Take him up with us, Doc. We can’t help him here.” “Yes, we will. Mr. Sundown, listen. I know you hear me. Captain Smith saved your life today. These inserts will take time to work on your injuries. You’ll need bed rest. Many days of limited motion. I’m going to make it impossible for you to raise your right arm during that period. When the fixation disintegrates, take things slowly. If you tear this cement, you might not live through the hemorrhaging.” “Eight minutes, Doctor.” “Move his cousin closer,” Barnes said working quickly. “Sir, Captain Smith’s having a fit now. Ten minutes is over our limit, sir.” “That’s all then. He’s healthy and young in a world of substances we can only hope stay down here. Mr. Sundown, we’ll be watching. Corporal Doakes, our other patient?” “He talked through it all, Doctor Barnes, sir. The hardest part was getting the horse off of him. We did the best we could, sir.” “Every opportunity to treat an individual is a learning situation. You did well, Corporal,” Barnes said inspecting Falcon’s injuries. “Time’s up. We gotta go. Now, Doc,” Ritsonberger said pulling at Barnes’ black uniform. The squad gathered to grab the rope of light to be lifted to the heavens. “Now don’t that beat all, Cousin Sundown?” Falcon asked as the storm disappeared around him. “You see them Star Travelers? They fixed me good and you too? Sundown, talk to me. Say something.” “Blood of the Earth,” Sundown whispered to the ground. His prayer stirred the life flowing below him. “Rianna.” That name began a search: a rush to be next to and be protected in Rianna’s graces. Sundown awoke Earth’s oldest force and its most powerful substance. Rianna would be found and comforted. Her black hair floated in the stream as her rich, red