CHAPTER THREE
SEARCHERS

Sushua, like the wind, rushed down the scree-fall by the Emperor’s Thumb with a great clatter, and out onto the plateau, trampling grass and scattering the petals of aging wildflowers fluttering in submission. Kati bent low over Sushua’s neck, reins held lightly, knees squeezing rhythmically with the beat of the gallop. Cold air seared her face, but she was warmed by Tengri-Khan directly overhead, and the thick tunic of wool over her leathers.

Her boldness in riding had come in one great leap with the gift of a saddle from her parents on her sixth birthday, when they saw that her legs were suddenly longer, while Sushua had ceased to grow. The short, stubby saddle horn was enough for Kati to grab with a short jump, and mount with a push off from the stirrup. Now standing in those stirrups, it seemed she floated above the back of the little horse, yet they were one.

She held the charge for a kilometer on the level plateau, until they came to the westward trail and slowed. They climbed a hanging canyon to a rock peak that was really four pinnacles almost symmetrically spaced to enclose a small pasture with rich grass and the little flowers Sushua had been named after. The place commanded a fine view in all directions, including the Emperor’s domed city and Edi’s great ocean to the west.

Abaka had shown her the place only weeks before, when she’d first dared to ride with the older boys. The boys’ conversation had been muffled, with some laughter at private secrets they shared, but Kati could see their memories of adventures they’d had with certain girls in the soft grass, and she’d held her tongue. Now she was here alone for the first time, and there were no thoughts to distract her, other than her own.

Kati dismounted, and rubbed Sushua down with a rough cloth until the horse groaned with pleasure. She combed out her mane and tail, tied ribbons to the long, black hair, then admired her work as Sushua looked back at her with a mouthful of grass and flowers. The wind moaned between the rock spires around her, and Kati was suddenly at peace with herself.

Ma had asked her out of the ger when the arguments among the men had become loud with accusations and denials. Two of the men had traveled far to deny knowledge of raids on the Emperor’s new barley fields. They were liars, for Kati saw the images of two boys involved, even their horses, and knew that the boys were the men’s’ own sons. Da had even seen their lies, threatened to go to Manlee, and then the cursing had begun.

Now she was away from all of that. Now she was away from thoughts she should tell Da, but couldn’t, because it was evil to do so. After that confrontation with Ma at festival, she’d hoped the thoughts would go away, but they hadn’t. They’d just kept getting stronger, more numerous, and the green eyes that drove them away seemed to have abandoned her after that last night at festival.

There were no thoughts from Ma, her mind a carefully guarded thing since the day they’d returned from festival to have that one, brief conversation without words. Ma was wary in her presence, yet loved her still, with much touching: warm hugs at bedtime, bathing, the combing and braiding of her hair. She even let Kati sit with her at meditation before the little stone altar in their ger on those occasions when Da was outside and Baber asleep.

The altar was a flat slab of stone. On it was a bowl of grain, a cup of fresh tea, a bundle of dried, sweet grass and a candle. Ma would light a few stems of grass, which gave off a delicious odor, then the candle. She would stare at the flickering candle for several moments, then close her eyes and go deep within herself. There were no prayers, or thoughts, but when Ma emerged from those quiet moments, she seemed refreshed and serene, as if the troubles of her day had been washed from her. Kati had tried it several times, and twice fell sound asleep. And the green eyes had not been returned by her efforts.

But here, in her high place, Kati looked out towards the great sea, and felt a quiet peace within herself. She fingered her pendants: Tengri’s Eye, Edi’s colorful shell. She thought of Edi, and wished that she could live by the sea.

A flyer passed by to the south, turned, and came back across the plateau at an altitude lower than hers. The flyers were out four or five times a day now, and mounted patrols had come by their ordu several times this month alone. ‘Just showing their presence,’ Da had said. But that presence was on the increase, and the people resented it. In their thoughts, they cursed that presence, and the Emperor of Shanji.

Kati waited until the flyer had dropped into the valley of the Emperor’s city, then mounted Sushua, and they picked their way carefully back down the canyon to the trail and the grassy plateau below. They walked the trail back to the ordu, arriving in time to see two men mounting their horses in front of Kati’s ger. Da and Ma had come outside to see them off. Da’s face was grim, Ma’s eyes tinged red in warning as Kati came near.

"I cannot control the young hotheads in every ordu," said one man. "I can only talk to the parents, and remind them of their responsibilities in controlling older children, Temujin."

"Remind them also that any reprisals will come first to the ordu designated by Manlee to keep watch on the Emperor. And if they think they’re safe from harm, they should remember that a flyer can reach them in two hours, and destroy all they possess in minutes. Tell them that, Bao," said Da.

"I will do what I can," said the man. Both men slapped their horses’ flanks and rode away as Kati dismounted Sushua and tethered her.

Da stalked back inside the ger. Ma took Kati’s hand, and whispered, "be careful with your father. This day has been very bad for him."

"I will be quiet," said Kati.

Bread and cheese had been put out on their low table in the center of the ger. Da sat cross-legged by it, and he was drinking ayrog very early in the day. Kati sat down beside him, Ma opposite them. Baber was missing, but Kati didn’t ask why.

Da turned to Kati, and touched her cheek. "And where did you go to while all of us were yelling at each other today?"

Kati looked up at him, and smiled as sweetly as she could. "Sushua and I rode the plateau by The Thumb, and we went very fast."

Da smoothed her hair gently with his hand. "My little warrior. How quickly you’ve become such a fine rider. In a few years, only a horse like Kaidu will be good enough for you."

He took a long sip of ayrog, and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. "If the Emperor doesn’t burn us out first, that is."

"Temujin!" said Ma.

Da sighed. "I’m sorry. But the other ordus are too far removed to understand how uncertain our safety is here. They make fun of the Emperor, and forget his power. Toregene, I can wait no longer. I must go to Manlee right away. I know she doesn’t approve of what’s going on, and she has influence with the women. The men see her as an old woman making promises that haven’t been kept, but they will bend to the will of their wives."

Ma looked at him calmly. "I understand. When will you leave?"

"Tomorrow morning, early. I will ride through the night."

"Alone?"

"No. Kuchlug will ride with me, and—and I’d like to take Baber along, too."

"It will be difficult for him," said Ma quietly.

"I have a reason for taking him," said Da, smiling. He turned to Kati. "Now, this is a secret. Do not say anything to your brother."

Kati looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Festival is over two years away, and Baber is more than ready for riding. I will find a pony for him on the coast, and he can ride it home. We should be back in six or seven days."

Kati gasped, and whispered, "Baber will get his first horse! Oh, Ma! We can ride together!"

Ma smiled. "I’m outnumbered at this table. Very well, take Baber with you, but remember to feed him."

And at dinner that evening, after Baber had returned from playing with friends, Kati could barely restrain herself from giving away the secret, or from laughing when her brother made a mess of himself while eating his soup.

Da and Baber had already left by the time Kati was fully awake the following morning. She vaguely remembered the touch of Da’s hand on her forehead when it was still dark, the sound of his soft voice in her ear. "May Tengri care for my little Empress," he’d said, and then he was gone.

Kati missed them both within hours, and wished she could be there to see Baber’s face when he was given his horse. But in a few days, they would be riding together, and she would be his teacher.

In the meantime, there were chores to do. She milked three goats, swept out the ger, and carried feed for the sheep in the holding pen. There were only three animals, but within a week the pen would be full, for there was now a bite in the morning air, and winter was only weeks away. Kati did not like winter, with cold that froze her nostrils shut in minutes and burned her face. The only good day in winter was her birthday.

By noon her chores were finished, and Kati was bored. So when Abaka came by and asked Ma if Kati would like to join him and four other boys in chasing down strays, she was immediately excited and pleading with Ma to let her go. Ma relented, for Abaka had become fond of Kati, and with two younger brothers in his family treated her like the little sister he would never have. So Kati rushed to saddle Sushua, and caught up to them by the time they’d reached the Emperor’s Thumb.

In two hours they found one group of four stray sheep, herded them back to the holding pen near the Thumb, then went out again, this time searching the many hanging canyons and gullies dropping down from the pinnacles. There was nothing to find, and Kati was suddenly bored again. She traversed a slope, saw the boys below her, heading down, but Abaka had remained on a ridge not far from her. He had a hand up to shade his eyes, and was looking south towards the Emperor’s valley. She rode up to him, and he turned, startled.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Nothing. I thought I saw some riders down there, near the trees. Probably another one of the Emperor’s patrols. They’re all over the place, now. I wish they’d leave us alone." He turned his horse. "We’d better go. There are no more strays, and your mother will worry if we’re late."

Abaka started down the slope, Kati right behind him. But Sushua’s nose banged into the rump of Abaka’s horse when he suddenly stopped and pointed below. Five mounted troopers had suddenly come from nowhere, and were surrounding the boys waiting on the trail below. They trotted quickly down the slope to join them, and Kati saw that one of the troopers was a Searcher.

We waste our time. There is no problem here.

A thought clear and loud, in her head. Kati pulled up beside Abaka and gazed at the Searcher, a young man with the characteristic, lightly veined bulge on his forehead, the finely arched nose.

"Ah," said the man, "there are more of you. I’m told you search for strays before winter arrives."

"That is true," said Abaka.

"We found four," said Kati, brightly.

The Searcher smiled faintly at her, then looked at Abaka. "You have seen something from the ridge. Some riders, down near the valley, correct?"

Abaka swallowed hard. "Yes."

"How many?"

"I didn’t have time to count. They disappeared in the trees."

The Searcher paused. "Also correct. You would be wise to return home now. We’re searching for some troublemakers, and you wouldn’t want to be mistaken for them."

We just want to be left alone. The troublemakers come from the west, not our ordu.

The Searchers eyes widened, darted from person to person, but Kati just sat there, a passive look on her face.

How useful. Reveal yourself, and I will thank you personally.

Kati felt his mental probe sweep over her, but she was alone, in the darkness of a cave.

No.

The Searcher chuckled, turned to his comrades. "There is nothing here. We ride west." He turned his horse, and the rest of the troopers followed him away without a word. Kati and the boys followed the troopers for several minutes before the men turned off onto another trail heading along a ridge towards the west, and then they quickened their pace.

When they reached the ordu, Abaka told Ma about seeing the riders, and then the questioning by the troopers. "There could be more trouble soon," said Ma. "Go to your gerts, and stay there. And tether your horses where they can be seen from the air. Kati, get inside."

Kati helped her mother make the barley cakes, and swept the floor while Ma cooked. They ate in silence, Ma deep within herself, and Kati could see nothing there. And their meal was only half finished when there was a commotion outside: the trampling of horses’ hooves, and a shout.

"Hello! We need help here!"

Ma got up from table, pulled the door flap aside, and peered cautiously outside. "What do you want?" she said.

"We’ve lost a horse, and have a long ride ahead. Do you have an animal we could borrow? I’ll sign a note for it."

A boy’s voice. Kati went to the doorway, peered out around her mother. There were six boys, Tumatsin, all around Abaka’s age, and they looked frightened. Two of them were doubled up on one horse. All the animals were glistening with sweat, their breath great puffs of fog. They looked exhausted.

"What is your ordu?" asked Ma.

"We come from the coast," said the oldest boy, thin faced, with hard eyes.

"I asked the name of your ordu," said Ma.

"It’s enough that we’re Tumatsin," the boy said angrily. "You are a living presence of our Empress, and our parents honor you. Do you refuse to aid us? Please, we have little time to wait."

He is from the Merkit ordu, and the boys have done mischief to the Emperor’s machines. They flee from his troopers.

Ma sucked in her breath, and cast a glance at Kati, who looked at her calmly. "Never mind," she said. "Your ordu has been revealed to me, and we have no horse for you. Now leave us, before the Emperor’s troopers come and think we are responsible for your thoughtless actions. Go!"

The older boy looked at her with wide eyes, frightened by her knowledge. He said nothing, but jerked hard on the reins to turn his horse, and galloped away, the others close behind him.

Faces appeared from the doorway flaps of other gerts. "Stay inside!" shouted Ma. "Troopers will be coming!"

Ma brushed past Kati and went inside. Kati followed her, and they sat down again at the table. Ma’s eyes were suddenly red. "I fear I’ve sent them to their deaths," she said. "The children of my own people." She looked at Kati, and tears were in her eyes. "Your powers have grown."

"Yes," said Kati. "But I have learned how to hide it. I even talked to the Searcher on the trail today, but he didn’t know it was me. They don’t expect such a thing from a little girl. Why am I different, Ma? Why is it I can do things even you cannot do?"

Ma reached across the table, and clutched Kati’s hand. "There are so many things I want to tell you, but I cannot. Perhaps when you are older. The blood of our Empress is in you, and your life must be preserved at any cost. I fear for you. I fear for us all, because we are now in great danger. If troopers come, I want you to remain inside. Do not show yourself to them. And do not think you are clever in the presence of a Searcher. They see deeper than you think, and being a child will not fool them. Please, Kati, believe what I say!"

"I do, Ma. I promise I’ll be careful."

Ma sighed. "I wish your father were here, but maybe it’s best he isn’t. He should have reached Manlee by now."

They were startled by the sound of many screaming turbines. The ger walls shook as several flyers passed overhead at low altitude, heading west. Ma looked at Kati with eyes blazing red.

"They have seen the boys. They will kill them," she said.

And just before dusk, Kati saw their bodies.

A line of troopers came down the trail from the Emperor’s Thumb and into the ordu. At the end of the line were three horses led by a trooper, and draped across the saddle of each horse were two bodies blackened beyond recognition. The leader of the troopers was an older man with grey streaks in his hair, and on the horse next to his was a Searcher. They stopped before Kati’s ger, and the leader called out so all could hear.

"Come out here, all of you! I want you to see what treachery can bring to you! Everyone out! NOW!"

Ma went outside with the others, while Kati peeped through a slit between tent flap and wall. At the sight of the blackened bodies, some of the women began sobbing. The horses carrying the bodies were brought before Kati’s ger, so all could see, and she could smell the stench of burned meat.

"These young boys have committed sabotage against property of the Emperor. They have paid for it with their lives! Our Emperor grieves with you, for he knows personally the hurt of losing a child. But your people have left him no choice. Sabotage, and destruction of property, is an act the Emperor does not tolerate among his own people. Hansui criminals are executed for such acts, and though you are not the Emperor’s people, you are not exempt from his justice!"

"The boys are not from our ordu," said Ma. "They are from the west, and when they came here to obtain a new horse we refused them. We are not responsible for what they’ve done."

"We are aware of that," said the Emperor’s soldier. "But your presence here encourages their foolishness, or else they would not have come to you for help. I will be blunt with you, woman. There is talk that the Emperor does not desire your presence here, that he would have you move to the west with the rest of your kind. Why do you remain here? The weather is harsh, and life would be more comfortable for you by the sea. Do you remain here to spy on the Emperor’s city and lands?

"NO!" cried Ma. "This is our home! We have been here for generations! The land on which you grow your barley was once ours!"

Kati was watching the young Searcher. He was frowning, his hands clenching hard on the reins of his horse. Now he looked at Ma. "But there was a time when you did spy on what was happening in the valley."

Ma was suddenly rigid. "Yes, but that was years ago, when the land was being taken from us. We are resigned to that loss, now, and we want no trouble. My husband is meeting at this moment with our leader Manlee and others from the western ordus to stop the troublemakers. We can do no more than that."

Kati had felt nothing. The Searcher must be concentrating on Ma, and she was opening herself to him.

"She speaks the truth, Quan," said the Searcher.

"I sympathize," said the soldier, "but we follow the Emperor’s will, and this latest incident may very well trigger a final judgment regarding this ordu. You would be well advised to begin packing your things, and to be ready to move quickly."

"But we are innocent!" cried Ma.

"I will speak to that innocence with my superiors," said the Searcher. "They have some influence with the Emperor." He looked directly at Ma, and she stiffened.

"I understand," she said. "Thank you."

Something was going on between Ma and the Searcher. But Kati could hear nothing passing between them. Perhaps it was drowned out by the hostile feelings of the Emperor’s soldier, who now glanced darkly at the Searcher, then looked back at Ma.

"Influence, or not, I know what I’ve heard, and I’m generous to give you this warning. Pack your things, and be prepared to move. The Emperor has had enough with this trouble."

"We will follow your advice," said Ma, "and we do appreciate the warning." Her voice was calm, and she pleaded no further. The Searcher had told her something, and Kati had not sensed it. How could that be, when the soldier’s desire to burn down her ordu was so clear in her head? For only one instant, she had felt something pass through her without dwelling there. And she had been concentrating so hard!

Ma shouted to the other people gathered near the doorways to their gerts. "You’ve heard the warning! Now saddle your horses, and pack only what you need for travel. We need to be ready to leave at a moment’s notice."

Some of the women broke into open sobbing. Ma looked back at the soldier, and said, "Though we are innocent of wrongdoing, we will await final judgment of the Emperor, and have trust in his wisdom."

The soldier put his hand on his hip, and struck an arrogant pose. "You are wise, woman. I, myself, will speak to your likely innocence, and also your cooperative nature. This could go well for your ordu. But even if you remain here, remember what you’ve seen today, and tell it to all your people. Tell them that opposition to the Emperor is futile, and that they live on their lands only by his grace. He is the ruler over all the lands, the mountains, the sea, and beyond the sea. He is the ruler of Shanji!"

The soldier waved his hand, and the column of men moved out, leading the three horses with their horrible burden. As soon as they were out of sight, the people came over to Ma and clustered around her, the women crying, the men cursing and mouthing useless threats against the soldiers.

"The most important thing is our lives. And I tell you we are in great danger here. Be ready to move! We cannot fight if we are dead. Now get to your packing, and get your horses saddled and tethered by your gerts."

Ma turned, and Kati saw her eyes were blazing red, and in her mouth were the sharp, pointed teeth of a shizi. No wonder the people had moved so quickly, though they were grumbling. Ma brushed past her into the ger. "You heard?" she growled.

"No. I heard nothing, but I was trying very hard. I think the Searcher was talking to you without words."

"He was," said Ma. She began stuffing travel woolins into a bag. "I don’t know why, but he seems to be a friend. He said the Emperor wishes us destroyed, but the Searchers who advise him say we should be moved instead. They say no Tumatsin life should be taken, but now the flyers have done it, and it will be easy for them to do it again. He seemed fearful for us, and I have no idea why. The Searchers are certainly not our friends. Kati, pack your little bag with extra shirt and socks, and your tunic with the hood. You can take one doll, but no more."

"Where will we go?"

Ma worked furiously, filling one bag, and opening another. "We will go to Manlee in the Dorvodt ordu. It sits on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea, and there are many children your age there. Your father was going there first, and Manlee will know where to find him. We must be prepared to ride through the night."

Kati opened her little bag, and began to pack it. "Maybe I can find Edi again, and we can hunt for shells on the beach. I would like to live by the sea, Ma."

"I know. Life is hard here, with the cold. We have only stayed because our people needed an outpost for watching the Emperor, and we have served that purpose. But I think the Emperor’s next step will be to drive us into the sea. If our Empress Mandughai is watching, then she’d better do something soon. We have waited for a thousand years, and our time is running out."

"The lady with the green eyes," said Kati, looking at the tapestry over her bed. "When I was at festival I saw green eyes, and they made the thoughts go away for awhile, but then the eyes were gone, and haven’t come back. I think it was all my imagination."

Ma dropped the bag she was stuffing, and rushed to Kati, kneeling down in front of her and grasping her arms. "No!" she said. "It was not your imagination! It was a sign! A sign of recognition by the Empress. She watches you from afar, even now. She watches your powers grow, powers that no other Tumatsin woman has. You are different, Kati, something new. I wish I could tell you why you are this way, but I cannot do this until you are a woman. You will be able to understand it then."

Ma’s face was still fierce, with the sharp teeth and blazing eyes, a sight Kati hadn’t seen since festival. Kati touched her mother’s teeth with a finger, and scowled. "I don’t want to be different. I want to be like you."

Ma hugged her. "You will be like me, and much more. But you must grow to womanhood, and be safe. Kati, it’s not just the Empress who has seen you, but the Searchers themselves. They know about you. They want you safe. The last thing the Searcher said to me without words was ‘whatever happens here, you must do all within your power to protect the child. She must not be harmed.’ The child is you, Kati, and he didn’t even see you. But he knew you were there. For reasons I do not understand, the Searchers want you safe. It’s the main reason I have for moving, and fast! Get your bag packed quickly, now, and see to Sushua while I fix us something to eat.

Kati did as she was told. She topped off her bag with a single doll, a warrior mounted on a black horse like Kaidu, then went outside and brushed down Sushua, combed her tail and mane while the little horse nuzzled, then ate the treat of flowers she’d hidden in the pocket of her tunic. Sushua nickered when Kati moved away, so she came back and gave her a hug before going inside to eat.

That night, long after it was dark and she was in her bed, her thoughts whirled with confusion. She was different from Ma, because she could hear everyone’s thoughts, not just Searchers’. Was that why the Searchers were interested in her? Because she was like them? And why was she like them, and not other Tumatsin women? Ma said she would tell her when she was older. Why couldn’t she tell her now?

When Ma had been telling her about what the Searcher had said, she’d seemed excited, almost happy, and yet they were in danger. The green eyes were a sign of the Empress watching her, but Kati hadn’t seen those eyes in nearly three years. Had Ma left something out, something else the Searcher had said without words?

It’s all imagination: the eyes, the Empress coming, that cave at festival that is nothing but a fire burning deep within a hole in the ground. Nobody is watching us except the Emperor, and he doesn’t want us here.

Ma came over to her bed when Kati’s eyes were already heavy, and pulled up the wool blanket to her chin. She leaned over to kiss her cheek, and put a cool hand on her forehead. "Sleep well, my little Empress. I love you with all my heart, and I will watch over you as long as there is life in me."

Da had called her his little Empress many times.

But it was the first time that Ma had called her that.