Chapter 77
Seventy-Seven
Tobias
Callah had started something with the women.
She'd told me all about the incident in the infirmary, and how four of the elders had been livid.
So, when I'd been pulled aside the next day and told to discipline my wife?
I'd played my part. I'd grumbled and snarled as if I was truly angry with her, but the truth was I'd been struggling not to smile.
Since then, there was a new feel in the air. When the women went to get their meals, they were offered a fair portion. When a man pushed a girl aside, wives chided him with the words of God, reminding him of his place. Sadly, that didn't stop the punishments.
Eventually their growing confidence was too much to ignore. A meeting was called for the men - or so I thought. But when I showed up at the meeting hall, the only men in the room were all hunters, and the ones sitting at the table in front? They were the ones I dreaded most.
Mr. Saunders had Gideon beside him. Mr. Peterson, who was in charge of all hunters, and Mr. Worthington, the man in charge of the ammunition stores, sat between Mr. Becker, Mr. White, and Mr. Morgan. So while this didn't seem to be a full meeting, it was clearly meant for all the hunters.
I chose a seat to the side but near the front. I no longer wanted to sit at the back, but I did miss Sylis at my side, so while the rest of the hunters made their way in, I allowed myself to wonder what he was doing now. Had he found a man who would want to kiss him back? Was he happy?
I had to believe he was, just like I had to believe Callah and I would join him one day. Hopefully soon, because I wasn't sure how much longer we could pretend to be the people we weren't.
Then Mr. Saunders began rapping his gavel on the wood. "Gentlemen, quiet down," he snapped, refusing to stand. "Someone close those doors!"
There was a pause as the large doors at the back of the room were secured with an ominous thud.
Like everyone else, I took the lull to check the room again, but it wasn't nearly as full as it should be.
For a moment, I wondered if this was only squad leaders and above, but no.
Jeshiah was over there, and I spotted Elijah with Timon on the other side.
Uriah, the final surviving member of my squad, was closer to the back, and none of them had been promoted to my knowledge.
"First," Mr. Saunders said, "I am officially announcing my chosen successor.
It's no secret that I'm not getting younger, and the next man of the Righteous to become an elder certainly will have a lot to learn.
That's why I'm choosing Gideon Kobrick to replace me when my time to retire from these duties finally comes. "
He paused for all of us to clap politely, and Gideon smiled proudly over at Mr. Saunders, but my guts sank. Of all the people, he'd picked Gideon? Then again, it did make sense. Gideon was exactly the sort of man who'd impress the elders. What shocked me was that he was so young.
Naturally, Mr. Saunders addressed that next. "As you know, we usually choose proven men in their forties to step up next. However, these are not normal times, gentlemen. As you've seen, the world above is far more dangerous than ever before."
Around the room, a few of the hunters were nodding, but was it? I'd been going out for a few years now - to gather, initially - and the only change up there was us. We'd become more aggressive. We'd threatened the Dragons, so they had protected themselves.
Then I saw Mr. Peterson glance at Gideon quickly.
Something about that look made me even more uneasy, which meant I needed to think about this like a woman.
I needed to consider more than just what was right in front of me and easy to handle.
The important parts were always the things that weren't said.
Like the gap between the elders. Mr. Saunders and Gideon sat on one side of the table, but the other five men were at the opposite side.
Both the leader of the hunters and the man in charge of our ammunition looked incredibly uncomfortable.
I could've said it was because a younger man was being promoted instead of them, but that one nervous glance made me think otherwise.
And the most obvious thing was something I couldn't see at all. Elders didn't leave the compound. Even the ones who had been a hunter or gatherer in their youth. It had been decades since they'd crossed the threshold to the world above.
That meant everything they knew came from our reports.
And those reports? They were all passed through Gideon.
As the Operations Leader, he had enough rank to actually sit at this table, but still left the compound.
He was young, strong, and yet I never really saw him in the middle of those fights.
The last time, he'd been completely unharmed, which meant he had risen far enough to ensure his own safety.
He didn't need to fight Dragons or wild men anymore.
But I had a feeling he told very good stories.
"And," Mr. Saunders continued, "Mr. Becker has brought a new problem to my attention. Gentlemen, many of the wives are out of control. It's likely the same evil that risks all of your lives on the outside has found its way into our sanctuary!"
"The wives have been touched by the Devil," Mr. Becker grumbled.
"Yes, they have," Gideon agreed. "My own wife was, and banished because of it!"
No. No, this couldn't be why we were having this meeting. What were they going to do? I didn't know, and I wasn't sure I wanted to find out, but I was stuck here now.
"The question is what we do now," Mr. Morgan said. "Without wives, there will be no Righteous in a generation, and yet we're all aware of the recent incidents. The woman I was supposed to marry turned on me - then attacked Mr. Saunders!"
"And now more women are showing signs of possession," Mr. Becker said, almost like he was begging someone to listen to him.
"Yes, they are," Gideon said. "And on the surface, it's even worse. Wild women fight beside their men. They have hellhounds with them that they turn on us! The children are missing, and every way we turn, there are demons ready to kill us for simply trying to survive!"
Slyly, I glanced back at the rest of the room, relieved to see the hunters weren't nodding along. Many of the men stared at the ordeal before them stone-faced, showing nothing at all. When I looked back at the table, Gideon's jaw was tight, as if he'd noticed the lack of reaction too.
And Mr. Saunders slapped his hand down on the wood. "We have to do something!"
"Sir?" Gideon asked. "I would be happy to share my idea."
Mr. Saunders waved him forward.
So Gideon stood, pacing between the table and those of us sitting in the audience.
"Hunters, we are the ones tasked with braving the outside world.
When a woman is banished, it is our task to set them as a sacrifice.
Once, we thought it was the Righteous thing to do.
We would give evil back to its maker, but now that maker is turning it on us again, making it a stronger, more dangerous weapon! "
He paused, clasping his hands behind him.
"Each of us has seen the horrors the Wyvern or the Phoenix can cause.
Our fellow hunters have died at their hands, but how?
How can evil defeat good?" He looked around, his eyes landing on man after man until they found me. "Because that evil has infiltrated us!"
I didn't let him see the fear clawing at my belly. I simply nodded once as if agreeing. That was the story I'd been telling. I wanted to destroy them so my own wife would never turn against me. And while I wasn't sure if this was a test or his hope that I'd agree, I would still play my part.
"The Righteous need bloodlines," Gideon continued. "We cannot save the world without our children to make the next generation, and theirs to make the one after. But there are women out there, born into that evil, desperate for a chance to be redeemed. We are the ones who can give them that chance!"
"Is that why we captured those wild women?" someone asked.
Gideon pointed at him. "Exactly. But with the Devil's influence creeping into this compound, we must make hard decisions. It does us no good to redeem the heathens if our own women are spreading the rot among us, now does it?"
"No," a few murmured.
Gideon nodded as if relieved to finally be getting the response he expected. "And Mr. Becker has made us all aware of how many of these women show signs of the Devil's taint. As husbands, we must beat that evil out of them, but if they cannot be saved?"
"Banishment," Mr. Morgan guessed.
"But the Devil is taking our sacrifices and making them weapons to be turned against us," Gideon said. "That means we must trust in God. We must truly sacrifice these women while their souls can still be saved. We must send them to God while they have a chance!"
No. No, no, no. By the angels on high, this man could not be saying what I thought he was.
"We will banish them, and then we will make sure the Devil cannot take them and corrupt them any worse!" And he slashed his hand down. "God asks many things of us, and this? I am brave enough to do his will. I'd like to think my hunters are as well."
"Oh, they are," Mr. Saunders assured him. "We will give these women every opportunity to repent, but if they cannot? They will be chained to the tree, then anointed with fire. They will burn so their evil can be released, and there will be no more Phoenixes!"
That caused a murmur to flow. Unfortunately, I couldn't tell if it was worry or excitement. All around me men whispered, but I'd placed myself away from them all, which meant I couldn't judge their reactions!
"The Righteous will not approve of murder," Mr. Peterson said, finally speaking up.
"Which is why only the hunters are here," Mr. Saunders said.
"These men know the reality we face. Times are hard, and there's no reason to worry our community when we've already suffered so much.
Let the Righteous focus on the tasks at hand.
Mr. Kobrick will make sure these possessed women do not become a bigger problem. "
"Now," Gideon said, "go prepare yourselves.
We leave again in a day. Our elders will handle the problems inside the compound.
Men, we need to find a way around the forces of evil that are trying to box us in.
Tell your wives to mind their tongues and watch their manners, because all of you will be gone for days.
Squad leaders, organize your teams. I will be sending out small groups in all directions, so assemble in the hunter's lounge and be ready to leave at a moment's notice. "
With that, the elders all relaxed, but Gideon started giving orders.
We had a day. One day, and then we'd all be sent out until our ammunition was gone.
From there, we'd come back, eat, rearm, and head out again.
He wanted us to plan for days of this. Days where we'd either sleep in the field or in the hunter's area, ready to move out.
Then we were released to prepare. I hurried back to my suite, hoping Callah would actually be there.
One day wasn't much time, and I had to tell her everything.
I needed to make sure she told the other women.
I had to know she wouldn't do anything foolish while I was gone, because I did not want to return to find her charred body on that tree!
I burst through my door hard enough to make her yelp. A plate clattered from her hands, banging onto the floor, but she didn't bend to get it. Instead, my beautiful wife looked at me with large eyes.
"Tobias?" she finally asked.
"It's bad," I told her. "Callah, Gideon is Mr. Saunder's successor."
"To be an elder?" She shook her head, confused. "But he's not even thirty!"
"And cruel enough to twist all the reports to make him look good," I said. "Never mind that Mr. Saunders is old, Callah. Maybe too old to know when he's being deceived?"
"I mean, that's possible," she agreed.
"But it gets worse." I moved closer, catching her shoulders in my hands.
She was so small, so delicate, and so thin. This beautiful and amazing woman had no chance of breaking free from my grip, let alone a pair of men if they hauled her out. She wouldn't be able to run. She had no chance of saving herself without me.
"Callah, they're going to start sacrificing women again."
And a smile began to grow on her face. "So then I can get out and you can foll-"
"No." I cut her off. "They intend to chain them on the tree, then burn the Devil from them. Burn, Callah. To death."
"No..."
I nodded slowly. "And I'm going to be hunting. Gideon has made it clear we'll be heading out, coming back to reload, and then going out again. This isn't to hunt. It's war."
She shifted closer and reached an arm between us. Gently, she pressed her palm against my cheek. "Do not die, Tobias. Don't you dare let them kill you, because if you do, I will make sure I'm hung on that tree, do you hear me?"
"Please don't?"
"There's only one way I can get out of here," she told me, sliding her thumb along my cheek. "And I need you to promise you'll get me out, okay?"
"I swear it," I whispered, leaning into her touch.
"Then I will be a wonderfully obedient wife," she assured me. "Meek, quiet, and even submissive - until you return."
And I bent, pressing my brow to hers. "Thank you, Callah. That's all I need. You..." I paused, leaning back enough to see her pale green eyes. "You're the only thing I have to live for."