Book 1: Chapter 8 | Alexander ad Litus

“And then there were three.”

Barbara was ahead by one. The Blemmiye covered the arena floor with their massive bodies, making it harder for the remaining blemmiye to even fight. One was eliminated after tripping on a fallen headless one. Only to be lanced by Alexander

It was also becoming a liability for Bucephalus. As Bucephalus tried to navigate the corpses,a the Blemmiye roared and was all but in reach of the horse. Bucephalus jumped and Alexander fell off his horse onto the pile of blemmiye. His torch fell into a dark puddle and extinguished.

Its our own recklessness that's going to get us killed.

Barbara forgot about the competition and grabbed some darts, and a torch. and moved into a better scare, his horse forcing him off. Alexander falls off but before the beast can strike him, he jabs it with the javelin, the creature steps back holding at its eye with its hands.

“Who blinded you beast?” Alexander shouted, then charged.

With the sword of Pompanianus he climbed onto the javelin and, once standing on top of the beast, drove the blade down into the beast. while it staggers. Alexander is struggling to control the creature's fall, shifting his body so as to ensure it doesn't collapse on his horse, who is still panicked and circling around the dead blemmiye.

Barbara comes to his aid by swooping down to the forest floor to calm his horse. The Blemmiye falls harmlessly a few feet away, with Alexander riding on top of it. Alexander pleads with her for a javelin as his sword is now stuck in the Creature.

"Sure but you now owe me two favors."

Barbara thinks to herself that she is already anticipating the end of this fight,

8 Blemmiye lie dead on the forest floor, but there was still the matter of capturing one alive.

They were still dangerous of course, and capturing one even more dangerous, but it was clear to her now their danger came from recklessness on the part of the hunters.

Hopefully we do not let our fathers down.

She took a look at Alexander in this regard, immediately leaping back onto his horse and lighting a torch from one of the ones dangling from the forest floor.

He turns to Barbara.

"Grab the anchors, those trees."

She grabs the pile of rope he throws on the ground, Alexander pats Bucephalus, and then charges again, as the Blemmyie is chased away by the flame. The Blemmiye was getting angrier trapped between walls of fire, agitated by tripping over dead blemmiye. It spots Barbara as she is tying one of the ropes to one of the trees.

It howls the moan of a dying man mixed with the squeal of a wild boar.

Its stumbling turns into a lunge towards her, Barbara freezes for a moment,

Help! Not like this! The overconfidence leaves her body, and she panics.

Alexander races and tosses the torch between the two The Blemmiye sees the fire and stumbles to stop itself, it howls as it sits on its massive burly hands.

No longer able to see Barbara past the flame, it howls and rages. It turns, sees Alexander, pants, and races again towards him.

Barbara finds her composure and finishes the ropes, and calls out to Alexander.

“Now!”

Alexander changes direction and grabs another torch from his saddle, lighting it up again, he leads the Blemmiye to the dangling torch which forces it again to turn around. The cries of the Blemmiye get more exasperated and he turns. The desperate Blemmiye now chases Alexander.

Alexander gallops towards the rope and jumps over the trip wire. The Blimmiye, with what brains it had already addled by fear and range trips over the line. The creature stumbles, the ropes twist themselves around the poor creature which struggles and falls. Its massive arms struggle to hold its lumbering weight as it tries to get back up.

“The Rings, Barbara.”

Each of them grab one of their rope rings and hook around the creature’s arms. Then tying to the hook on the back of Bucephalus’s saddle Bucephalus walks backwards. The creature’s arms were now suspended in front of it, and unable to pull itself up.

“How do you think Pliny discovered this?”

With the threat passed, Alexander and Barbara returned to banter.

The Creature was now trapped. Unable to move its arms as they used another rope to bound them together.

“I saw him do it.” Barbara explained.

“He cut one up and looked at its anatomy. Saw it was missing some muscles.”

“That’s it?”

“No, Then He set up several simple challenges for the Blemmiye: knock down the log, get the meat.”

They then moved towards its legs.

“Turns out they have half as much strength to pull as they do to push. Something about their Anatomy”

They adjusted the bounds of its legs. Barbara then turned to the old rail that was near the arean. There was already a cart ready for them.

Together with a network of ropes and fire they waddled the creature towards the cart, where they bound it. Then placed torches around the cart.

The creature panicked until they put a blanket over its eyes, calming the creature.

“Apparently, this method was used to calm falcons.” Barbara added.

Alexander nodded.

With the creature finally captured, Barbara and Alexander both took a moment to relax.

Alexander sat down leaning on a tree, while Barbara stood with her hands on her knees.There was a brief respite from the talking with only the groans of the Blemmiye audible.

“I was hoping” Barbar broke the silence. “To earn a favor from you, but it seems we are even.”

“Not at all.” Alexander smiles gracefully then stands up.

“You clearly killed more Blemmiye than I, and so as the victor of our challenge, I am in your debt.”

She smiles. “I think about it, then.”

They begin to clean up the sight, and Alexander takes a moment to look at the rust covered railway.

“Do you know what is amazing?”

Alexander asks while looking out.

Barbara turns to look at him, as he walks around the cart.

“This this ancient road with its steel beams.”

“The one your house refuses to let us scrap for more iron, while you complain about the lack of iron?” Barbara offered as a retort.

“The same” Alexander ignored her slight.

We have been studying it, following it. It connects all the way to the coast on both sides.”

“So?”

“So..Why did they build it? Just to connect one worthless part of the island to another.”

Barbara chastised herself for her lack of curiosity.

“Maybe there was a bridge once.”

“No, he turns back and calls his horse, who gallops towards her.

“I traveled to the edge, there is no trace of a bridge, The Rail goes into the sea.”

“Into the sea? Why?”

Alexander and Barbara hook bucephalus to the cart then both walk alongside of him. Alexander continues.

“Pliny thinks there wasn’t a sea there once, Pompanianus thinks it once connected to a great tunnel, or perhaps there wasn't always sea there.”

Barbara tries to change the topic. “So the sea huh, is that what the feast is about.”

Alexander won't let her. “Whatever the case, it's there now and the ocean strands us from our destiny.”

“You are being very serious about this, Your father always gives these feasts as a bribe, we are probably about to start a new construction project.”

He pauses for a moment and looks around.

“This feast is actually my idea, not Pompanianus'; I am trying to prove my idea will have support.”

“Your idea? What are you planning?”

“Something bold…bolder than what the elders are comfortable with.”

He turns to barbara, she looks at him, she could tell something was clicking in his eyes, gears were turning.

“I need your help.”

“You do?”

“Yes, I am going to make a proposal, and I need your support.”

“But why me?”

“Because the others respect you, you are practically one of them.”

She turned so he didn’t see her smile at the compliment.

“That’s why Im useful, not why you need me.”

“I know you feel the same way I do. I saw you when we learned about the tree. That resolution, the rage, the despair. I felt it too.”

Barbara saw Alexander’s face change it wasn’t the silly young man, there was a cool resolution to him. Almost wrath.

“I remember that the sense of fire that had once been driving us. But its fading.Soon the elves will pair off and settle down. All that drive will vanish, and we may never actually see the ancient city of our ancestors.”

“Alexander, what are you saying?”

“At the feast tonight I will make a proposal, I want you to listen to it. Seriously, and think about what we both want.”

“And what of my father, what does he say about your grand design?”

Alexander scoffs and he replies dryly

"He said it was feasible."