Path of the Whisper Woman

Once I told Ingrasia that I wanted to stop the horde within three days but no one had truly thought it was possible. Now we were well on our way to completing it. A cordon of tribesfolk started from where the whisper women had their dam and worked their way to the defensive line, trapping any leftover fish in the delta between them. It took everyone who had been working on turning the pines red with blood and those that should have been resting to fill out both lines, but no one wanted the waste the opportunity we had. The Heartsong Festival only lasted for three days and we were determined to make every moment the fish couldn't hide count.

I joined the attacking line. While I wasn't a weak fighter, I could admit to myself that I wasn't as skilled as the tribesfolk who had generations worth of experience refining their techniques. They were used to the added weight and change in balance tying a rope to their spear brought and most, if not all, had a quick eye to catch any little change of movement in the water. So I did what I could to adjust by watching the others and it wasn't long before they noticed and started offering tips.

It was a surreal experience threading my way down the delta while everything glowed with festival light and the tribesfolk didn't treat me like a thing apart. I realized that while they had been more accepting of me from the beginning since I worked with their efforts to fight the fish, I had still mostly interacted with Juniper's mother and her advisers. Out of habit and lack of need, I had kept myself separate from the regular tribesfolk and they, in turn, couldn't forget I was a whisper woman. But now we were all fighting on the same level, for the same goal, and they saw I wasn't so stupid as to ignore the locals way of doing things just because I was used to something different.

So when the person on my left told me to adjust my stance and the person on my right corrected my aim, I listened. They praised me for it and I wasn't sure how to react to that so I focused on killing the fish that came into my range. Unfortunately, they liked that even more and they insisted on pulling me into their call out-and-response songs, their competitions, their stories of their best hunt and worst—and I had nowhere to escape to. I couldn't even truly glare at them because these were Juniper's people and I liked hearing the stories.

They didn't bother to be quiet. The fish couldn't hide even if they could hear us coming and the only place they could flee to were into the spears of the defending line. Some fish did try to hide under the walkways and behind knotted tree roots, but we had knife dancers down below, trawling along the waterways for that reason, and even if the fish could resist such a tempting target, which they typically couldn't, they were still easy to spot from the different vantage points we had set up.

Flushing out every single fish was an all night and all day affair, but no one complained. The work was certainly quicker than it would've been if we had to dredge the waterways with nets or swim them to make sure there weren't any lingering fish. We had previously gone with the more haphazard method of sending out patrolling teams and using the birds and their riders to scan for fish, because of the high likelihood of missing errant fish even with using the cordon line. It had been better to make progress on all fronts, but the tribesfolk had shifted well to changing priorities to focus on the fish. In fact, there was a level of levity I hadn't previously experienced with them as they freed the delta from its invaders one attack at a time.

When both lines met at the shore a primal cry of victory ripped from the throats of the tribesfolk and those defending redoubled their efforts to keep the rest of the horde out in the ocean. Most everyone was tired from the extended period of fighting, but most didn't seem able to settle. A good chunk of the attacking line went to reinforce the defense while others turned right around and raced off to mark trees.

I was hesitant to add my blood to the trees in case it bound me to this place in a way I couldn't take back later, so I joined those that went to help the defensive line. The fighting here was more packed and fierce, but once again there was no denying the tribesfolk's experience. They netted and speared and sliced their way through the horde with brutal efficiency. It made it absolutely clear that the only reason why Tribe Master Toniva had to ask for help in the first place was due to the unending nature of the horde pressing at the banks. Not even the strongest Peacekeeper could fight without reprieve for days and months on end. The Swirling Waters tribe got as close as anyone could to endlessly fighting the fish but even they needed the reprieve the cold season usually brought them.

We fought.

Heaving breaths filled the air around me as we hurled our spears down into the water, splashes sounded as our weapons struck home and the line went tight with tension. I had to brace myself against the walkway's railing as I pulled my spear back in. The fish I got hadn't slipped off as I pulled it from the water nor was it fully dead. I sliced it across the throat with my knife while it scrabbled at me and then the thing finally went limp. I cut the wound my spear made in its chest wider so I could pull my spear free from where it was caught and the fish splashed down into the water below. Then it was time do it all again.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

The bodies of fish piled up, but the tribesfolk didn't seem to mind. Instead, they used the bodies to form blockades in the water and help divert the fish into spots where it was easier to kill them. The tribesfolk were careful, however, to make sure that none of the piles ever went high enough to help the fish climb up onto the walkways. The horde still climbed over each to reach us, like they had on the sandbar, but the defensive line was better able to hold back now that the fighting wasn't a last minute slapdash effort.

As we fought, the delta behind us turned more and more red. Now that the blood markers had less to fear from being ambushed by a fish they made faster progress as they went from tree to tree. Everything from the smallest sapling to the tallest twisted pine was marked with blood.

A thrill of shock went through me every time I glanced back and the swathe of red lit up among the festival lights that still curled above and below. It looked like a scene out of some myth, one full of music and joy, though there were those things too among the fighting. It was just…fighting tooth and nail against the horde, feeling the strain in my body from killing fish after fish, that all didn't fit well with the mystical scene at my back. But perhaps I shouldn't have been surprised about the amount of blood involved since myths that included the goddess were more often bloody than not.

I know at some point I fell asleep on some net in a tree, ate food, took a break, but the fighting felt endless. I only caught glimpses of the others. Juniper and Cascade were forever traveling up and down the shore, decimating any spots that were about to get overwhelmed, while I heard Ingrasia and her group were holding down on section of the defensive line while Esie and the rest held down another part. Tufani and her riders also swept up and down the line providing support from the air where they could.

This was the final push and everyone knew it. Either we met the Beloved's demands now or we'd break from the strain and not recover.

So no effort could be spared. Everything we had done had been building to this moment. Ambervale had been judged. The fish pushed back with the flood waters and held with the defensive line. Every last one in the delta killed. The tribesfolk were ready to have their delta back and time to recover. I was ready to return to more familiar terrain and stop fighting fish. I wasn't a Peacekeeper and I was fine with letting them do their job.

But for now I threw my spear and pulled it back in more times that I cared to count while pine tree after pine tree turned red. The sky was lightening towards the final dawn of the Heartsong Festival when it finally happened.

There was no outward sign that we had met all the requirements. The ground didn't shake, no root wall rose up to block off the horde, the shadows didn't open to my senses. But a whisper brushed past my ear carrying a voice I kept wishing I wouldn't hear.

Others might think having the Beloved's attention to be a boon, but so far I was learning that it might be best to have her eye as little as the goddess's.

"Come through the tree. Bring the other girl, and her snake and mother."

Apparently, Juniper, Cascade, and Tribe Master Toniva would get to be…blessed by the Beloved's presence as well. It was unprecedented. I couldn't remember a time when the Beloved met with another seedling or someone from the tribes. I could only hope that this meeting went better than the last.

It wasn't long before Cascade came streaking through the water with Juniper riding on her head. The moment I saw her face I knew she'd gotten a whisper from the Beloved too. We didn't speak. I jumped from the walkway to Cascade's head and then hung on in a white knuckled grip as she went racing to where Juniper's mother was still coordinating the battle behind us.

Tribe Master Toniva couldn't hear whispers on the wind, but she saw the urgency on our faces all the same when Cascade stopped by the new base camp. She broke off whatever she was saying to Ana and rushed over.

"Did part of the line break?" Tribe Master Toniva demanded as soon as she reached us.

Juniper slowly shook her head while I kept myself still in the background. I was more than happy to let Juniper take the lead on this conversation.

"No." Juniper shook her head again like she was still trying to come to terms with what she was about to say. "The Beloved requested our presence."

Her mother opened her mouth to speak but no sound came out as she processed what Juniper had just said. It was the first time I had seen her truly off kilter. Behind her Ana was staring at us all like we had gone mad.

Juniper drew in a deep breath and repeated, "We completed the tasks she gave Gimley. Now she wants to see all three of us." Cascade shifted beneath us and Juniper quickly added, "And Cascade."

"But—" Toniva gestured a little hopelessly to the various people still rushing about, helping with the defensive battle.

"Mother, we can't say no."

I doubted Tribe Master Toniva wanted to refuse the Beloved either, but it was one thing to be told to complete tasks the Beloved set out and another thing entirely to suddenly go meet her. Someone more legend than real, especially to someone who had only stepped int he Seedling Palace once and likely hadn't even expected to do that. It also didn't help that she was supposed to ride to the occasion on the head of what had been her tribe's guardian that had somehow become a living, magical snake.

"Mother, we need to go."

I saw the moment the tribe master hardened her resolve. She turned back to Ana and her other advisers. "Take care of things here."

Then she leapt over the railing and held onto Cascade's frond, though she still looked conflicted about that last part. As soon as we were off again, I was sure she was glad that she hadn't let ceremony stand in the way of having a hand hold. Cascade was getting better but she still wasn't entirely used to carrying people; between that, the way her head swayed, and her speed, all of it could make you lose your feet if you weren't paying attention. Luckily, no one took any unfortunate spills so they'd show up seeing the Beloved soaking wet.