SCARLETS DOMAIN

Seizing her wrists I pulled her to safety as volleys
of arrows flew from over the ravine.

We stumbled towards the woods, taking shelter from the
trunk of a sturdy oak as Amazon arrows clattered into
the branches.

"We will come for you!" came the cry. "The Amazon
nation will have its revenge!"

I glanced over the ravine to see row upon row of
Amazon warriors. Far more than were ever in the patrol
we'd disturbed.

The revenge of the entire nation? For what? It was
just like them, though, or at least how I remembered
them; they would overreact at the most trivial of
sleights. Even so, however much I despised the
Amazons, I felt nervous. For one thing, I didn't
doubt them in their resolve.

I pushed my prisoner through the undergrowth, holding
her arm painfully behind her back. Ahead of me, Gudrun
and Omphale were making their way to a point out of
range of the screaming arrows.

Finally in a safe clearing I pushed my captive to the
ground. She rolled, and with amazing rapidity she was
on her feet - sword drawn.

I cursed myself for not disarming her, and had my own
half out of it's scabbard when she dropped to her
knees, offering her sword to me hilt first.

"My life is yours to dispose of as you wish, brave
warrior," she said in that bastard Scyt tongue
characteristic of the Amazon race.

I took the sword, watching her closely. I recognised
her as the warrior who had hung back, suspecting our
hiding place back in her homeland, when her comrades
had pressed on blindly. She had also been the only one
to make it across the bridge, albeit instantly
becoming a captive as a result. I began to suspect
that this was no ordinary Amazon warrior.

She got to her feet unbidden, and I bristled at the
insubordination shown by one who has just declared her
life forfeit. Then removing her fur-lined Amazon
helmet, she flung it as hard as she could into the
undergrowth. When she turned back to look at me, a
broad grin split her face.

"But now, I am free of those bitches!" she cried, "and
whatever you decide my fate to be, I ask of you one
thing." She approached me, walking with the easy grace
that tall women of her kind often possess, until her
face was inches from mine.

"I want you to let me have a man, so that I might
enjoy the pleasures of the flesh before I die!"

I tried to keep a stern countenance, but there was
something about the smile that seemed not far from
this woman's lips that was disarming. For some reason
I felt I could trust her - even call her a friend. I
smiled, and clapped my hand on her shoulder.

"What is your name. Amazon?" I asked.

"Molpadia," she said smiling, "but call me Molly, all
my friends do, and I count those who don't kill me
when they have cause to, as friends."

"Molly," I said, "we will find you a man - or several
men - before you die!"

I caught Gudrun's eye, and remembered why I had saved
Molly from plunging to her doom in the first place.
The only reason she was still alive was so that we
could trade her soul with Streeth, for that of
Karelia.

"There is no time to lose," said Molly seriously,
"they will cross the ravine by whatever means
available, sending a scouting party ahead to track our
movements and report back, while the main force
forms."

"Is it true? They would send an army after us?" said
Gudrun.

"You have killed many of their number... Oh, should I
say our number!" Molly grinned, "they will do whatever
needs to be done to pay the blood debt. You've stirred
a proper wasps nest there!"

"We'd better move then," I said binding Omphale's
wrists once more.

As we travelled, I formed a closer bond with Molly,
and even Gudrun, though reticent, couldn't help but
smile at her jokes. For a while we were able to put
our mission behind us, but as we neared the forbidding
lands wherein lay the witch cave, it became obvious
that the problem could not be ignored.

It was when we were only a day away from our
destination that I decided to tell Molly what our
mission was. She listened in silence as I told her of
Karelia's wound, and how Gudrun's cure had started
rotting her soul. I told her how Omphale had directed
us to Streeth, and the terrible deal we had struck to
find a virgin warrior to take Karelia's place.

For a moment she didn't seem to realise the
implication. Her face remained expressionless, as she
stared into the distance. Then she looked at me. It
was only a glance, but it told me everything. She
stood and walked off into the wood.

"Now what?" hissed Gudrun. "Karelia will surely die
without her blood!"

I felt salt tears stinging my eyes. I hadn't known
Molly for long, but in that time she had touched me -
touched all of us. Even the scowling Omphale seemed
lighter for her presence. Strange, I thought, how
superficially Molly was similar to Karelia, but they
were totally different people.

I slept fitfully during Gudrun's watch that night. It
seemed we had lost Karelia for good, and that we might
as well die in trying to save her by force, however
futile that might be. It was as I dozed that I felt a
hand clamp itself on my mouth suddenly, and my arm
pinned to my back.

"Shhh, it's me!"

My heart skipped. It was Molly's voice. But what did
she want? Was she going to slit our throats in
revenge? Perhaps she had made contact with her Amazon
comrades who were waiting to hack our helpless bodies
to pieces?

"I have a plan!" she said.

And so we found ourselves back in Streeth's cave. Both
Molly, the virgin Amazon captive, and Omphale,
Streeth's companion, were bound and gagged. Molly had
been stripped of her Amazon armour and wore a simple
shift, as did Omphale.

At first, Streeth did not appear, and as our eyes
adjusted to the light, we were able to see Karelia,
bound naked to the stone slab. My heart skipped a
beat. Was she all right? Had Streeth grown tire of
waiting and exacted her revenge? I glanced at Gudrun,
seeing the same concern written on her face.

"So, you return at last with your offering? I had
quite given up hope!"

Streeth voice grated behind us, and we reeled, backing
towards the rear of the cave.

"Here is your sacrifice!" I said, pushing Molly
towards her.

Molly whimpered, eyes full of fear as Streeth drew
close. She turned her head away from the stench of her
breath on her cheek. That whimpering turned to muffled
cries of fear as Streeth's hand snaked under her
shift.

"It is true," she breathed, "she has known only the
pleasure of horseback!"

Her eyes flashed red, and I recognised the danger
signals!

"Stay!" I shouted, "or my comrade kills your
companion!"

Streeth hissed in anger, but backed away.

"We have a deal. You use the virgins blood to heal
Karelia, not for your own pleasure!"

Will continue in chapter 14...