The moment the man on the left picked up speed, Kaye shouted.

  “Aien!”

  He started, turning to her before following her gaze. Udar was almost upon him then, lowering his spear for an attack, Cozo two steps behind.

  Half of Aien’s sword was out of the sheath in time to parry the spear. Kaye caught a gnce of Uruoro stumbling back before she had to make a decision.

  Unsheathing her long dagger, she stepped in Cozo’s way, vaguely aware of Loho’s slowed reaction as he was just now standing up — distracted, or too hurt to fight?

  The bde that fshed her way was almost too fast. The first attack, and she barely managed to raise her dagger to block it. The strength of the ssh brought her arm down.

  A second bde came from the side, catching her below the shoulder even as she stepped back to move out of range.

  Cozo didn’t even flinch as Loho approached, swinging his sword. He retreated away from the first ssh’s range, then resumed his attack, forcing Loho to block.

  Kaye tried to approach him again, but Cozo was aware of her and slowed his attacks down, keeping an eye out for her.

  My bow—too far away and unstrung-—the others—all engaged with Udar, who kept them away with his spear. Kaye couldn’t see Gima, she must be somewhere behind her.

  Loho thrusted, the bde sliding in between Cozo’s torso and one arm. If it left a wound, then it was too superficial to warrant a reaction.

  Seeing the opportunity, Kaye ducked. As Loho pulled his sword back, Cozo’s attention turned to her, but she was already swinging down and up in a long arc, pushing herself closer with one foot.

  One of the twin bdes rose in a desperate parry the instant before her own could reach his neck.

  Kaye jumped back, moving out of his range.

  It was a mistake. Cozo immediately turned his attention towards Loho, who was already heaving with exertion. Twin bdes drawing arcs in the air, Cozo started a relentless attack, sending blood trailing in the air.

  Gima practically threw herself forward, swinging her own sword down in an attack that might have killed but was easily dodged. She recovered her stance and sshed horizontally, forcing Cozo to step back.

  Someone was to his side.

  Fast, too fast, almost as if expecting it, Cozo and Udar switched positions. Kaye hadn’t even noticed they were this close to one another.

  Udar thrusted forward with his spear, drawing blood from Gima’s arm. Loho weaved around her, grunting as he swung, but the spear was pulled back and away from range, leaving him momentarily exposed.

  A stone smacked at his face — Uruoro, she guessed, though the other fight was still going — distracting Udar just long enough for him to miss the opportunity to deliver a fatal blow to Loho’s side.

  Kaye tried to approach and the spearhead fshed in her view, keeping her away. She ran around him — close enough to run for the bow now, though she wouldn’t have time to string it — and Udar pulled the spear shaft back, the butt-end smming against her stomach.

  She doubled down with the pain, feet sliding but somehow managing to fall to her knees instead of on her back.

  Kaye anticipated that a spear was going to be run through her before she managed to look up, but when she raised her face, it was in time to see Gima reeling from another attack.

  Then Hogog was there, sliding forward, low against the ground in a move to made Kaye catch her breath — what little she could pull. Hogog’s reckless approach managed to pass below the spear and he swung his machete.

  The ssh hit, but there wasn’t enough momentum to deliver a fatal wound. He scored against a thigh, but the next instant Udar was retreating, wincing from the pain but still standing.

  Finally managing to push herself to stand, Kaye saw with her peripheral vision that Loho had joined the fight with Aien against Cozo. Uruoro turned away from them, leaving their two best fighters to deal with that Headhunter. He was clutching Hogog’s unstrung bow as if it was a staff, approaching Udar with unsure steps.

  Everyone was wounded, but no one was dead. Kaye gnced toward Gima, who was out of the fight, but didn’t seem to be in lethal danger.

  We can do this, she thought. They’re rested and fed but they didn’t manage to kill anyone yet, and they are both wounded as well.

  Kaye pushed herself to move forward, aware that she was still reeling from the attack. Udar immediately gave back what space he had gained on Hogog as her and Uruoro approached. Her uncle heaved so much with each breath he seemed to be about to colpse every time he exhaled.

  A man screamed somewhere to the left — towards the other fight — and Kaye had to resist the urge to look, for a spear was coming her way.

  It took all the strength in her body to twist and ssh, but she only managed to bat it aside, not pin it down as she was pnning to do.

  The bow fell within her view, behind Hogog.

  Uruoro swung the bow-staff, more to threaten than to attack.

  Kaye dashed for her bow unimpeded, letting go of the dagger to bend the shaft with an arm and beneath a leg. She felt as if something was about to snap, then the string slid into pce.

  She reached for the nearest arrow.

  “No! They fell!” Gima screamed.

  Kaye shot towards Udar, too fast, the arrow wobbling in the air, but his expression changed, eyes wide.

  Hogog and Uruoro were both stepping back, staggering, though she couldn’t be sure if they had been seriously wounded in the meantime.

  “Your ally fell!” Aien shouted. When Kaye wasn’t looking, he had made his way closer, sword still in hand but pointing down.

  Where’s Loho?

  Kaye stood up, bow in hand and an arrow nocked against the string, ready to be aimed.

  “Stand back and I’ll let you live,” she said, only because she wasn’t sure if she could aim properly, and if the first arrow didn’t kill him, she wouldn’t manage a second before he could reach either Uruoro or Hogog.

  Udar’s face was nothing but rage now. He was young, she realized, now that she could take a good look at him.

  “You don’t have to die as well. I can put an arrow through you before you take two steps.”

  “Didn’t seem like that,” Udar answered, poison in his tongue.

  “It was a warning.”

  He smiled. “In the middle of a fight?”

  “Have you been paying attention? I said you don’t have to die as well. You lost the right of bloodshed.”

  “He’s a backstabber!” Udar excimed.

  Kaye chanced a gnce to the left. No one was standing by the cliff.

  “He’s dead. You got what you came for.”

  “I can confirm that myself. You can barely stand now.”

  “Think about it!” Kaye demanded, the indignation seeping through her voice. “Is there anyone waiting for you? What do you think they would rather have? You’ve broken the Headhunter honor already, there’s nothing there for you. You’re a liar already.”

  “We’re far from Neru-Aran.”

  “He’s fucking dead!” Behind Kaye, Gima was crying. “You will be too! No honor and no mask, and dead, whoever’s waiting for you… if there is anyone waiting for you, do you think that will mean something to them? They won’t even know, won’t even care, they’ll spend the rest of their lives wondering what happened.”

  Don’t make me kill someone’s child again.

  Udar shifted his weight to another leg, then stopped.

  Whether it had been her words or the threat of her bow, Udar slowly stood up straight, lowering his spear. As they spoke, Hogog and Uruoro had taken a few steps back, clearing up her line of fire.

  Which meant that if Udar dashed, and if he somehow managed to reach someone with his st stride, she would be the closest target.

  He turned, and left.

  They watched until he was far enough away.

  Aien and Gima ran for the road where they could round the cliff and look for the bodies.

  The caravan had stopped farther down the road, watching from a long distance, weapons in hand, waiting to see if trouble would come their way. They only moved to help when Kaye shouted for a healer.

  There was no such thing as a Headhunter burial. Most died in battle, often in situations where there wasn’t enough time after the sughter to deal with the bodies, since the preferred method of attack of the cns were raids. The few who were indeed buried were id to rest still wearing their jade mask, which Loho was missing.

  Kaye felt nothing. The anxiety-filled days, followed by the relief of a reunion and the sudden attack had sent her into some kind of numb shock — if such a thing even existed —, an exhaustion of body and mind that she cked the strength to break out of.

  Loho had fallen farther down the escarpment than Cozo and, when Gima was making her way up, she stopped to frantically kick the tter’s body. Kaye was watching when Hogog took a step forward, raising a hand as if to stop her, then seemed to rethink it and lowered his arm.

  Kaye had to basically drag Gima the rest of the way up.

  “Not here,” she said, when they reached the spot where the fight had begun.

  Hogog and Aien, who were carrying Loho’s body and looked very tired, only nodded in acknowledgment.

  Uruoro trekked ahead in the direction of the st caravan went, east. Soon after he found a spot just by the roadside.

  “Here… here is fine,” Gima said.

  Uruoro was the first to take his shift digging with the only small shovel they had, all others sitting down to rest. Without anyone saying a word, Kaye understood that they wouldn’t get any closer to Tohohon for the rest of the day.

  Gima seemed to have put all the anger out while exerting herself. Now, even her crying was ceasing, reduced to a mere tremble. She pushed Kaye’s hands away with some roughness, then fell deathly silent, hiding her face in a mask of her own hands.

  The scraping sounds of digging continued.