Back On The Outside

Riki checked her horse's water for the third time, adjusted her saddle on its stand, twitched the harness so it hung a little straighter from the hook, and then scratched her horse's nose. None of these activities was necessary, just a way of putting off the impending encounter. Riki pouted, deriding herself. She had been in trouble enough times before and it never used to bother her. Why was she hesitant now? Had she lost her nerve? Or was it that Westernfort and Captain Coppelli were unknown entities?

Regardless, dawdling in the stable was a waste of time. She might as well get it over with. Maybe Captain Coppelli would have some amusing personal quirks that she could laugh about afterward. Most people did. It was just a question of learning how to set them off. After a final pat of her horse's neck, Riki shouldered her pack and marched into the bright afternoon sunlight.

At the doorway, she paused and considered the view. A soaring line of cliffs ran away east and west, fading into the distance. The only break in the sheer rock face was where the mouth of a hanging valley emerged midway down. This was the entrance to Westernfort. The only way in was a narrow path, cut into the cliff. The opening to the high valley was further protected by a stone wall along its bottom. A stream cascaded through a culvert at one side of the gate and fell in a single glittering drop to the plain below.

The disorderly collection of barns and animal shelters were clustered around the start of the pathway up. They were light structures that could be abandoned and rebuilt, should the Guards attack. Riki shifted the pack on her shoulder and set off, threading her way between the rough timber structures and avoiding spots where the ground had been churned to thick mud by countless hooves.

Westernfort lay five days north of Ginasberg, on the rim of the high escarpment overlooking the plains around a winding river. Like the other heretic stronghold, its location had been chosen for its defensive capabilities. In the case of Westernfort, these had already been tested. Thirteen years before, the Guards had attempted to storm the site. The cairn raised over the bodies of the fallen was the only reminder of the battle.

The ascending path, when Riki got to it, was a meter and a half in width, allowing no more than two women to walk side by side, and all the way, attackers would be exposed and vulnerable, at the mercy of archers above. As she climbed, Riki craned her neck, studying the wall hanging over her. The stone blocks continued the sheer line of the cliff, allowing no foothold for attackers. The open gate was solid, with insufficient room in front to maneuver a battering ram.

Rangers stood sentry on the wall. Riki could hear their voices. They would have marked her since her arrival at the stable. Riki spared a glance for the cairn on the valley floor and grimaced. She did not envy the Guards who had been sent to attack Westernfort.

From the top of the pathway, Riki had a clear view over the broad floodplain below. Herds of sheep and cows were grazing on the water meadows while pigs rutted through the mud. Loose pine groves crowned the tops of scattered tumuli. Sunlight sparkled on loops in the river. Several kilometers away, another parallel escarpment rose on the northern edge of the plain, and beyond it, the serried ranks of mountains faded into the distance. Spray from the waterfall misted past. Riki spent a moment longer, taking in the panorama, then she turned and marched through the gateway.

On the other side of the wall, Riki found herself at the entrance to a valley surrounded by mountains, a kilometer wide at its broadest and several kilometers long. This valley held forests and farmlands, and also the town of Westernfort itself. It was the older and larger of the heretic settlements, with close to a thousand inhabitants. Riki and her mother had lived there briefly after they fled the Homelands, but she had not been back since they moved to Ginasberg.

Faced with the unfamiliar layout, Riki hesitated, wondering where to go next. However, the sentries were not going to let an unrecognized face slip by unchallenged. A woman with a sergeant's badge on her sleeve trotted down a flight of stairs inside the wall.

"Do you need help?" Despite a frown at the sight of a stranger dressed in a Ranger uniform, the words were delivered in a friendly fashion.

"Ah, yes, ma'am. Leading Ranger Sadiq, from Ginasberg. I have a letter from Lieutenant O'Neil. Where can I find Captain Coppelli?"

The information sufficed and the frown changed to a welcoming smile. "She should be in the headquarters." The sergeant pointed to a group of brick buildings on the edge of the town. "If you go there, someone will escort you to her."

"Thank you, ma'am."

As Riki marched along the road, an unexpected feeling of tension in her stomach grew. Whatever O'Neil had written about in the letter was unlikely to be flattering, and Riki was not looking forward to the forthcoming meeting. Would Captain Coppelli really give her a clean start, rather than decide that further disciplinary action was needed?

Riki slapped her leg with the palm of her hand. Did it matter? Riki knew that she would not keep out of trouble for long. Nor did she want to. Life was too short to waste, busting your ass about senseless regulations. Yet with each new incident, Riki was finding it harder to shrug off the ensuing reprimand and punishment. Was it because she was older? Or was it just that she no longer deliberately sought the notoriety? Now the notoriety came hunting her.

Within minutes of reaching the buildings, Riki had found an orderly and passed on her request to meet Captain Coppelli. She also handed over the sealed letter from O'Neil. On balance, Riki felt she would rather not be present when it was read.

The orderly nodded, took the letter, and directed Riki to a stool in a corner. Riki sat down to wait, reminding herself of all the reasons why she did not care about how the meeting went.

 

Captain Coppelli was in her early fifties. Her hair was cropped short, soldier style, and graying at the temples. She had a solid, muscular build. Her eyes were sharp, radiating a fierce intelligence. Laughter lines creased around her mouth, although no trace of a smile was currently visible. She tossed O'Neil's letter onto the desk and fixed a withering gaze on Riki. "That is the most dismal report I've ever read about any Ranger. You're a disgrace to your uniform. Are you proud of your record?"

Riki stood to attention a few feet away. "No, ma'am."

"You're lucky I trust Lieutenant O'Neil's judgment better than I trust my own. Because if it was my call, you'd be on a trip back to the Homelands, with a warning that if ever you were seen west of the Blackstone Mountains again, you'd be shot on sight. We've got enough problems with the Sisterhood and the Guards. We don't need shitheads like you stirring up trouble in our midst."

Coppelli paced to within an arm's length of Riki. She jerked her thumb back over her shoulder, indicating the desk. "That's not the first report I've read about you. You've been nothing but trouble since the day you arrived. Is it five or six times you've been found guilty of theft?"

"Five times, ma'am." Riki knew there was no point adding that the last time had been three years ago, when she had taken a bag of apples from the stores and used them for target practice.

"Yet for some reason, O'Neil thinks you should get one more chance. So okay. You get your chance. But if you step a millimeter out of line, you'll be out of the Rangers, out of Westernfort, and lucky if you've still got your skin intact. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Coppelli marched to the door of her office. She called to the orderly outside, "Can you tell Geraldine Baptiste I want to see her. I've got a new recruit for her patrol." She returned her attention to Riki. "You'll be in 2B Patrol. Sergeant Baptiste is short of a woman. If you cause her trouble, you'll regret it. And while we're waiting for her to get here..."

Captain Coppelli went behind her desk and removed the trail knife from the service belt hanging there, then came to Riki's side. With the tip of the knife she unpicked the stitching that attached the badge of rank to Riki's jacket sleeve. Once the corner was loose enough to provide a grip, she ripped it off and then went to Riki's other arm.

Riki stood stock still, outwardly impassive, although her guts were churning. The demotion was expected. She had thought she was prepared for it. She was wrong. The rank of leading ranger had been hers for less than two months. Getting there had taken so long, and already she was busted to private again. Riki pressed her lips together tightly, summoning anger as a defense. She was used to everyone thinking of her as bad. That she could live with. Incompetent was another matter.

It was unfair. If she had stayed at her post and Beth had been killed, would they still have found some way to make it her fault? Who were they going to blame for everything back in Ginasberg, now that she was gone? Was it worth suggesting that Coppelli invent a new rank for her of squadron scapegoat? Perhaps the badge should be an ass with a target on it and the words "Kick here."

Coppelli dropped the two badges, with their single bar, on top of O'Neil's letter. "When Sergeant Baptiste has finished showing you around, your first task is to get some new blank badges and sew them on your uniform, Private Sadiq."

"Yes, ma'am."

A knock sounded on the door.

"Enter," Coppelli called out.

The woman who came in was about thirty-five, square-faced and square-shouldered. She snapped to attention. "You wanted to see me, ma'am."

"Bad news, I'm afraid, Sergeant Baptiste. I've got a new recruit for your patrol."

Out of the corner of her eye, Riki saw the sergeant's expression shift to confusion.

"Ma'am?"

"I know you're short-handed, but I don't think Private Sadiq is going to be an asset to your patrol. I'm sorry, but someone has to have her. She's been sent here from Ginasberg because Lieutenant O'Neil is sick of the sight of her. I'd tell you to keep a strict eye on her, but I think you need to keep two, and maybe a guard dog as well. At the first sign of trouble, let me know, because I'm just itching for an excuse to kick her out of Westernfort."

Sergeant Baptiste drew in a sharp breath. "Yes, ma'am."

Captain Coppelli stood in front of Riki one more time. "Okay, Sadiq. You've heard the briefing I've given your sergeant. No secrets. No excuses. You know where you stand. And if you want to keep standing in the Rangers, you get your ass into line."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Dismissed." Coppelli turned away. "And sorry again, Gerry."

 

Dusk was falling as they left the headquarters building. A chill wind gusted between the houses. Across Westernfort, lanterns were being lit. Laurel, the smaller of the two moons, was three-quarters full over the mountains to the east of town. Baptiste led the way around the outskirts of Westernfort in silence, but several times Riki caught the sergeant sending unfavorable scowls in her direction.

So much for the clean start. The words slunk bitterly through Riki's head. However, it was not quite as bad as Ginasberg. She would not be liked or trusted, but nobody would have any real personal hatred toward her. And it might take as long as three days before they all get to feel that way about me.

Riki knew that the Rangers at Westernfort were formed into six patrols, each with eight women. These would include a sergeant and a corporal. She also thought that the patrols were divided into two rotations, so presumably 2B was the middle patrol in the second rotation. She could ask Baptiste, although she doubted if a display of enthusiasm for the job would be the slightest help in counteracting Captain Coppelli's introduction.

Their route ended at a long building that had the unmistakable air of a barrack block. When Baptiste opened the door, light and heat spilled out. Riki took a second to gather herself and then followed the sergeant in to meet her new patrol comrades. How would Baptiste portray her arrival? Not that it mattered much. Everyone would see the cut stitching on her shoulders, learn her rank was private, and work out for themselves that she was recently demoted.

The room Riki entered had the traditional barracks layout. In three corners were double bunks; in the fourth was a single bunk for the corporal. The door at one end would lead to the sergeant's room. Lockers took up the remaining wall space. The building would be as much a spiritual home for the women as anything. Many would also have a family home in town, with parents or partner. However, the barrack room symbolized the tight bonding of the patrol. In a crisis, the women would literally depend on each other for their lives.

Currently, all the remaining patrol members were there. Four sat playing cards on the corporal's bunk, while two more were chatting by the iron stove.

"We've got a new patrol member." Baptiste claimed everyone's attention. "She's transferred here from Ginasberg. She's Private Sadiq.

Private..." She turned to Riki, clearly wanting her first name.

"Rikako Sadiq. Riki." She tacked on the shortened version of her name for good measure, although her mother was the only one who ever used it now.

"Right. Well, it's too late to sort out everything tonight. Dinner's soon. We'll get you settled in tomorrow." Baptiste pointed to the lower bunk opposite the card players. "That's the free bed. And the second locker from the right is yours. I'll just introduce you to everyone."

The card players scrambled off the bed and formed an uneven line, joined by the two from the stove. Riki ran her eyes along the row. The women of the patrol looked to be a fairly typical cross section of Rangers, until Riki got to the last in the line.

She was of average height, lightly built, in her early twenties; certainly no more than a couple of years older than Riki. Her face was finely formed, with firm lips, a small nose, and large eyes—a face that would have earned a second look from anyone. However, what caught Riki's attention was the badge on her shoulder, which held the twin bars of a corporal.

How did anyone get to be corporal so young? Riki turned her head slightly so that she could just catch sight of a trailing thread where her leading ranger badge had been ripped off. Not only was she back at private, but she was going to be saying, "Yes, ma'am. No, ma'am," to someone the same age as herself.

Sergeant Baptiste worked her way down the line, naming each Ranger in turn. She reached the end of the row. "And this is Corporal Tanya Coppelli."

Riki fought to control her expression as she muttered a quick "ma'am," but now it all made sense. That was how you got promoted so quickly.

"Right. Dinnertime. We don't want to be late at the mess." Baptiste addressed the room.

With the sergeant in the lead, the patrol filed out of the barrack room. Riki opened the door of the locker she had been told was hers, threw her pack in, and then hurried to catch up. She ended up at the rear, walking beside a woman whose name she thought she remembered.

"It was Stevenson, right? Loke Stevenson?"

The woman looked down at Riki. Something about her expression made it clear that this was not just a question of height. She must have been in her early thirties, tall and thin, with a gaunt face. Her hair was longer than normal for a Ranger, enough to reveal a tendency to frizz. Eventually she condescended to give a half nod of acknowledgement

"Yes, Leading Ranger Stevenson. And Loke. Short for Lokelani."

"Right."

They walked in silence for a few more steps. Then Riki indicated the woman in front and dropped her voice so she would not be overheard. "The corporal. Tanya Coppelli. She has to be some relation of the captain's."

"Her daughter."

"Oh."

Riki chewed her lip and glanced again at Loke. The leading ranger had to be at least ten years older than Tanya Coppelli. Surely it must rankle to be overstepped like that, with such blatant favoritism.

"Easy to get promoted when your mother's the captain." Riki made her voice a conspiratorial whisper.

"Chip Coppelli would never be biased."

"Oh, I'm sure." Riki made no attempt to keep the scorn from her voice.

The only response was a sharp glare.

Riki rolled her eyes. Judging by Loke's reaction, the captain had her absolute trust and loyalty. Loke also felt enough affection to refer to her commanding officer by nickname. However, Riki could not stop herself from saying derisively, "And you reckon Tanya deserves to be corporal? It's not that someone wanted to please her mom? Her name didn't help just a little bit?"

"You don't—" Loke broke off sharply and increased her pace. She slowed only when she had drawn level with the woman in question. Riki saw Loke duck her head and whisper something to Tanya, who glanced back, offended anger plain on her face. Clearly Loke had just repeated the doubts cast on her fitness for her rank.

Riki could not believe it. Just my luck. I pick the patrol ass kisser to talk to.

Tanya opened her mouth as if she was about to speak, but then turned away and continued walking beside Loke. Riki tagged on alone at the rear, considering their backs and wondering which of the two she disliked the more.

 

"Private Sadiq." Baptiste summoned Riki straight after breakfast the next morning.

The sergeant was standing by the door to the barrack room. Riki hastened to join her. "Yes, ma'am?"

"I want you assessed to see what you're good at." If anything. Baptiste's tone and expression made the last two words as clear as if they had been spoken. "We've got two new applicants for the Rangers. Corporal Coppelli is going to be testing them today to see if they're up to standard. I've told her to check you out at the same time. Get your full kit and meet her by the gates in ten minutes."

"Yes, ma'am."

Riki hurried away, making sure her face revealed no dissent, but alone in the barrack room she stood, hands on hips, glaring at the door to her locker. She was being treated worse than a raw recruit—put on a par with a couple of wide-eyed kids. Demeaning did not begin to describe it. And just how competent was Tanya-frigging-Coppelli to judge her abilities anyway?

Riki grabbed her equipment, then slammed the locker door to vent some of her indignation and stomped out of the room. She was prepared to bet that she knew far more about being a Ranger than the captain's damned daughter.

 

Two sets of hoofprints scuffed through the leaf litter, becoming clearer atop a slight mound where the wind had blown the loose covering away. The sandy soil held the clear imprint of the animals' feet.

Tanya called the small group to gather round. "Right. What can you tell me from these tracks?"

"They're spadehorns," one of the sixteen-year-old applicants piped up.

Riki kept her eyes on her feet, working to hide her grin. Not that the girl was wrong, but she sounded so pleased with herself. What other animal could have made the huge tracks? An adult spadehorn was two meters high at the shoulder and nearly four meters long.

"What else can you tell me?" Tanya asked.

"One's bigger than the other, and the only time you get spadehorns together are mothers and their babies. So this must be what these are." The youngster sounded less sure of herself.

"Timing? Any idea of when these were made?"

"Um...they're fairly fresh, but we haven't seen the animals." The girl looked around to emphasize her point. "So they probably came through yesterday sometime."

"Anything else?"

The teenagers exchanged nervous looks. Both were clearly desperate to impress. Riki could almost see the cogs going round in their heads as they tried to think of anything intelligent to say. She yawned and looked back to Westernfort several kilometers away. The appraisal was proving every bit as tedious as she had feared, and Tanya was being decidedly patronizing. Admittedly, anyone might have a hard time taking the two applicants seriously, but Tanya was making it plain that she considered Riki to be no different.

"Private Sadiq. What should you do if there's a mother spadehorn around, with offspring?" Tanya asked, possibly noticing Riki's wandering attention.

"If?" Riki said it as a question. "You should go very carefully and make sure you don't end up between them. Spadehorns are normally no problem, but the mothers get very protective. One of them charging you is nasty."

"Very good. Right. We'll move on." Tanya's tone and smile were reminiscent of someone talking to a baby making slow progress at potty training.

"Before we go, ma'am," Riki spoke up. She'd had enough of being treated like an idiot. "I wonder if you can tell us what you'd make of the tracks. Just for reference."

Tanya shot a quizzical glance at her and then frowned at the ground. "Like Jackson said. A mother spadehorn with offspring. I'd put the time at a few hours ago, around dawn."

"Really?" Riki let a pointed edge creep into her tone and she received a sharper stare from Tanya in response.

"Is there something you want to add?"

Riki pursed her lips and shook her head with blatant insincerity. "No, ma'am."

"Come on, Private Sadiq. Let's have your thoughts." Tanya's tone was now challenging.

Riki shrugged, crouched by the tracks, and pointed. "It's not a mother and offspring. Look here. The bigger animal. The front hoof marks are deeper than the back. It's got a lot of weight on its shoulders. That's a sign of a male. The prints are more even for the other one." Riki estimated the size with her fist. "I'd say it was a young female. Three years old. Probably coming into season for the first time this spring."

She took a pinch of soil from the edge of one hoofprint and rubbed it between finger and thumb. "The dew has soaked in, so the female came through well before dawn, and the edges are starting to crumble, so the time was about yesterday sunset. The male was a short while after. Its tracks are always on top. It's following, and I can guess what it has on its mind. It would only be dangerous if you were another male spadehorn."

Riki stood up and brushed the soil off her hands. "At least, ma'am, that's what I'd have made of it. But you're the corporal, and I'm sure you were right."

While Riki had been speaking, Tanya's expression had shifted between surprise and awkwardness, but with the final gibe it changed again to anger. The silence was broken by a faint snigger from one of the teenagers, quickly smothered. A noticeable flush darkened Tanya's cheeks and her eyes narrowed. Riki fought to keep any trace of smugness from her face, but it felt good to have shown up the captain's daughter.

Tanya's lips compressed in a thin line and she drew a sharp breath. "So. You're a wilderness expert?"

"Not really. But my gene mother was a fur trapper." Riki shrugged. "I picked up a few things from her."

 

The arrow thudded into the straw target, no more that a hand's span from the center. Riki lowered her bow, smiling. She could not have picked a better time to turn in one of her best displays at archery. The score was close to her all-time record, and far better than anything the teenagers had managed.

Tanya stood to one side, marking down the results. Her face showed neither approval nor surprise. "Okay, Private Sadiq. That will do. We're finished here. Go and collect the arrows."

Riki felt a flare of anger. Do?

"What was my score, ma'am?" Riki knew the answer, but wanted to hear Tanya confirm it.

"Four hundred and six. It's acceptable." Tanya's tone was neutral. She started to walk away.

Riki looked at her feet while composing her features. Two hundred and fifty was the standard for archery in the Rangers. Anything over four hundred should count as excellent, and even on a bad day, Riki scored well above average. Early training in hunting had given her that.

Riki lifted her head and addressed Tanya's back. "I'm sure it's nowhere close to what you could do, ma'am."

Tanya looked back sharply. For a moment she met Riki's eyes, acknowledging the challenge, but then merely tilted her head, as if agreeing. "Maybe. But my archery skills aren't what we're here to assess."

"Well, before we go, perhaps you'd like to give us a display, ma'am. Just so we know what sort of level is expected."

Tanya's eyes narrowed in anger. "Two hundred and fifty is the regulation standard. Which you should know. You've passed. You don't need a display from me."

"But it would be nice, ma'am. Since I know you could do so much better than me." Riki kept her tone innocent.

Off to one side, the teenagers stood uneasily, clearly sensing the confrontation underlying the words. Tanya made as if to walk away again and Riki felt a glow of triumph. The overrated corporal could not match her score and knew it. But then, Tanya turned back abruptly and held out her hand for Riki's bow.

"Let me borrow that."

Caught by surprise, Riki was slow to respond. Tanya all but snatched the bow from Riki's hands, then pulled six arrows from a quiver on the rack, stuck them through her belt and went to stand at the mark.

Once her surprise had faded, Riki stood back, arms crossed. She was delighted to have drawn Tanya into a direct contest and eager to see how well she would do. And Tanya would have to do very well indeed to justify the dismissal of a four hundred plus score as merely acceptable.

Tanya's back was toward Riki, her face visible only in oblique profile. The archer's pose emphasized her slim, well-balanced build.

Riki's gaze ran over her in appraisal. There was no denying that the packaging was nicely put together, but looks were not at issue. The grin on Riki's face widened.

Without bothering to fit a bracer to her arm, Tanya nocked the first arrow and raised the bow. In rapid succession, she put all six arrows into the center of the target. Riki felt the smile freeze on her face. Her best shooting had been made to look feeble.

Tanya lowered the bow but remained in position for a few seconds, staring at the target, then she turned and dropped the bow back in Riki's hands.

Tanya's eyes again met Riki's, but this time with a sardonic glint. "My gene mother is the best archer in Westernfort. I've picked up a few things from her."

 

Riki pushed open the tavern door and strolled in, happy to leave the miserable rain outside. The atmosphere in the taproom was lively. A fire burned in the hearth, adding to the lantern light. The twin scents of beer and wood smoke filled the room. Voices made a constant hubbub, overlain by the occasional laugh. Riki made her way to the bar and ordered beer.

With her drink in her hand, Riki faced the room and looked for somewhere to sit. The tavern was busy, but there were still plenty of options. After four days in Westernfort, Riki was starting to recognize faces, but there was no one she could call a friend. Then she saw three of her patrol comrades around a busy table at the side of the room.

Riki took a half step before spotting Tanya there as well. Of course, she would be with them, Riki derided herself. She had already discovered that Tanya was well liked and an essential part of any social gathering.

Riki slunk off to a space in a dark corner. As she crossed the room she caught snatches of a dozen conversations, some flippant, some intense, reflecting the daily patterns in the lives of the townsfolk. The tavern was the heart of the community.

Once settled, with her tankard on the table before her, Riki stared at the group Tanya was with. Apart from Rangers, several other women were present. The smiles told of friendly gossip and good humor, a band of friends relaxing after work and enjoying each other's company.

Riki's gaze shifted away and fixed on her drink. She'd had no friends in Ginasberg. Few children her age had lived there, and most wanted nothing to do with the town's bad girl. The few who were not scared off by her reputation had been forbidden to associate with her by their parents, especially after Beth's arm had been broken.

Westernfort had been her chance to make a new start, to put it all behind her. Riki's lips tightened in a line. As if that could be possible with her unerring instinct for a foul up. Again she looked at Tanya, who was laughing and chatting. Tanya was good looking, and easy in company. She had a wide circle of friends, a loving family, and her mother was captain. She was clearly the center of attention. And Riki was back on the outside again.