Maia

by Richard Adams

  "Hate them?" answered Meris. "Hate the Leopards? O Shakkarn, if only you'd seen Latto.hanging upside-down by the road! You couldn't even see his wounds for the flies!" She clenched her fists. "And Yunsaymis-she was in Sencho's household, you know. He had her whipped, like me-he sold her-he-"

  "All right, I've got it: you don't like them," said Zirek. "Well, now's your chance; and a better one than working for Sencho in Chalcon, I'd say. Him? When you weren't useful any more, he'd simply get rid of you. He certainly wouldn't free you, whatever he may have promised."

  "But how's it to be done?" asked Meris. "If only I thought there was a chance-"

  "Why, there's a fair enough chance," answered he. "In a day or two it'll be the New Year festival. There'll be crowds coming into Bekla from all over the provinces, and if only you can walk the distance in two days, we can be in the thick of them. I've got my pedlar's pass into the upper city. Durakkon'U be giving a feast by the Barb that night."

  "Well?" said Meris tensely.

  "I'm not saying any more," replied the pedlar. "Those who don't know can't tell. But I work to Santil's orders and I trust him. He wouldn't send me there without we had a fair chance."

  "But how can we expect to get out of the upper city?

  There isn't any way out, except through the Peacock Gate."

  "And that I'm not telling, either. But you can believe me when I say I believe we shall get out. Else I wouldn't be going." Putting his hands on her shoulders, he turned her to face him. "If you don't fancy it-and I shan't blame you if you don't-say so now. It'll certainly be safer for you at Hirdo, with my friend."

  Rising to her feet, Meris stood looking down at him. At length she said, "You mean I could really help to kill him, myself? I could actually see the bastard die-see the shit pouring out all over his filthy belly? Hear him choking in his blood-"

  She stopped, panting and biting on her fingers.

  "Steady, now, steady!" said Zirek, grinning. "Well, perhaps there might not be quite enough time for all that. Once it's done we'll have to be off sharp, you know-no fond farewells like you seem to have in mind. But since you're feeling so enthusiastic-"

  "Do you remember," cried Meris, "do you remember what I offered you in Sencho's house, the day you gave that pottery cat to the black girl?"

  "I wouldn't be likely to forget it," answered Zirek.

  "Well, you needn't give me a flask of kepris today," said Meris. "Arid we don't have to be all that quick about it, either."

  As he took her in his arms, she felt for the fastening at the neck of her robe, but his hand had reached it before hers.

  "I'll come with you," she whispered, as they sank down together on the cloak. "Oh, yes, I'll come with you! Ah! Ah! Ready, weren't you?"

  Afterwards, stretched at ease, she asked, "D'you remember how Occula prevented us, that day? I could have killed her. I wanted you then; much as I've ever wanted a man; more."

  "I remember," said Zirek. "Well, whatever you may think of her, everything depends on Occula now, I'll tell you that."

  "I was afraid of her," said Meris. "She was-well, like a witch, sort of."

  "Just so," said the pedlar. "That's what she is. There's some sort of strange power in Occula: that's why she's there. But now; it's a shame to put clothes back on a body like yours, but we have to get to Hirdo tonight, my lass,

  and if we want a comfortable bed we'd better be off, for there'll be travelers enough now the rains are over."

  "One thing more," he added, as she helped him on with his pack and eased the straps over his shoulders. "What's mine's yours now. I won't come out of Bekla without you- that I promise. You be straight with me and you'll find me straight enough with you."

  The party, when Maia and Milvushina arrived at the Barons' Palace on the evening after Occula's strange turn, proved in fact to be given not by Elvair-ka-Virrion-though he and several of his friends were present-but by U-Sarget, a wealthy wine-merchant who stood well with the younger Leopards and was said to have lent money to several of them. Whatever the truth of such rumors, he evidently intended on this occasion to leave no one in doubt that he was a man of means. One of the smaller halls of the palace had been entirely re-hung with new, woven fabrics dyed in contrasting shades of green. At this early time of year few flowers were yet in bloom, but Sarget had procured banks of ferns, overhung with trailing creepers, and thesei-continually sprinkled with water by pretty little girls dressed as different kinds of birds-gave off a scent of herbage and moisture among the tables. Each guest, upon greeting Sarget, was presented with a bronze wine-cup of Gelt workmanship, which was filled then and there from a cask of Yeldashay, so that he or she might drink the host's health. When all the guests had arrived, a choir of boys and girls sang a song of welcome to the returning spring, composed for the occasion by Sarget himself. This anthem having been warmly applauded (it proved, in fact, a lasting favorite, often performed in after-years) the choir left the hall. The musicians, however, remained, and continued to play throughout supper. These were the best in Bekla, for Sarget, money-lender and place-seeker though he might be, was a wholehearted lover of music and himself a good hinnari player-an accomplishment for which he was sometimes sneered at, behind his back, by people who considered such skills appropriate only to slaves or hired professionals.

  If Sarget had spent heavily, he had certainly achieved his object-a striking display of taste and style-and in addition had proved lucky in his choice of the day. It was

  now virtually certain that the rains were over. At noon Durakkon himself, speaking, in accordance with custom, from the Bronze Scales in the Caravan Market, had proclaimed that the Sacred Queen's ritual congress with the god would take place in two days' time, and be celebrated with the customary festivities throughout the upper and lower cities. Already a spirit of approaching carnival was abroad, even among slaves and beggars, and the guests, as they assembled, were in good humor and wholeheartedly disposed to enjoy themselves. At the outset Sarget, a shrewd judge of what was likely to go down well, improved upon the occasion by personally reconciling, in front of the company, two young men who were known to have been at daggers drawn over a girl, and whom he now begged to honor him by drinking a health to each other before everyone sat down to supper. Amid cheers and acclamation they complied, after which both, having been crowned with flowers, held tapers to either end of a flat, dry reed, on which had been painted the words "Rains" and "Discord."

  Maia, laughing and applauding with the rest, looked round to find Nennaunir standing beside her. Smiling rather timidly, she was surprised to be clasped by the shearna in a warm embrace.

  "You here as well, you pretty little thing?" whispered Nennaunir in her ear. Then, releasing her and holding her at arm's length by the shoulders, "Not so darned little, either! And you're glad enough to get away from that filthy brute for once, I dare say?"

  For a few minutes they chatted, strolling across the room. Maia felt that Nennaunir, like Sessendris, had decided that, slave-girl or no, she had evidently acquired some kind of standing among the Leopards, and that accordingly nothing was to be lost by being pleasant to her. She took the opportunity to introduce Milvushina arid was amused to see that the shearna, with professional shrewdness, at once grasped-and was puzzled to grasp-that this was a young lady of birth. Looking round, she recognized by sight several other shearnas and guessed that in all probability she and Milvushina were the only slave-girls in the company.

  Elvair-ka-Virrion had been standing with Sarget at the further end of the hall, but now both he and the wine-merchant-who was wearing a crimson robe magnificently

  embroidered with a hunting scene in silver-deliberately made their way to where the three girls were talking together. Nennaunir. of course, was already acquainted with Sarget, and at once began congratulating him on his generosity and on the decoration of the hall. Sarget, having replied appropriately, drew Maia into the conversation by admiring her dress. It was one of three or four which Terebinthia had bought i
n anticipation of the spring festival: close-clinging silk, of a soft, cherry color, the bodice glittering with minute crystals. As soon as he learned that she came from Lake Serrelind, Sarget began telling her about a hunting expedition he had once made to the Ton-ildan Forest. Maia, who had never in her life been even as far east as the Thettit-Kabin road, and knew no more of the Tonildan Forest than she did of the Deelguy Desert, nodded and smiled and opened her eyes wide; and soon felt in no doubt that Sarget thought her as charming a girl as Elvair-ka-Virrion had no doubt told him she was.

  She had some little difficulty, however, in concentrating on this conversation, being distracted by her realization that Elvair-ka-Virrion was deep in talk with Milvushina. Milvushina's voice was always low, and Maia could hear nothing of whatever she might be saying. From time to time, however, she caught a phrase or a few words from Elvair-ka-Virrion. "In Chalcon?" "I'd never have believed…" and at length, with emphasis, "… assure you my father knew nothing whatever about it."

  If Terebinthia, thought Maia, had in truth cautioned Milvushina as she herself had been cautioned, it was evidently having very little effect. She could not help feeling some anxiety on her behalf.

  After some minutes the guests began moving towards the tables, and at this moment Maia, in the middle of telling Sarget about the fish-charming songs of fishermen in Meerzat, suddenly stopped in amazement, hearing a sound she instantly recognized for what it could only be, even though she had never heard it before. She looked round. Milvushina, walking across the hall beside Elvair-ka-Virrion, had burst into laughter.

  "And do they really believe in the magical power of these songs?" asked Sarget with interest.

  "What? Oh, ah; yes, they reckon a whole lot to them," answered Maia. She glanced round again, but this time could catch no more than a glimpse of Elvair-ka-Virrion's

  silver-tasselled shoulders disappearing beyond a tall, fair-haired shearna who rather reminded her of Sessendris.

  "I wish you'd sing one of them for us later on," said Sarget, taking her arm to lead her to her place. "We seldom hear country music in Bekla, you know, and when we do it never really sounds genuine-not as it would on Lake Serrelind, I'm sure."

  "Oh, but I've no voice, U-Sarget," answered Maia smilingly. " 'Sides, I don't know as I could just remember any of those old songs now; though I dare say if I was swimming in the lake they'd come back easy enough."

  "Then we must get you swimming in the lake-or a lake," said Sarget. "The Barb, perhaps-"

  "Good evening, Maia," said a voice behind them.

  It was Bayub-Otal. Maia had not noticed him among the guests, and it had certainly not occurred to her that he might be a friend of Sarget. However, from the obvious pleasure with which Sarget now greeted him, this was evidently the case. He was wearing a plain, gray robe, without ornament, and round his neck a heavy, silver chain of striking workmanship, the individual links fashioned to resemble reed-clusters, rippling pools, willows, fish, waterfowl and the like. Sarget, smiling, raised a finger to touch it.

  "I'm one person who's glad to see you're not afraid to wear a chain like that in Bekla."

  "There is no chain like that," replied Bayub-Otal, returning his smile.

  "I don't doubt it," said Sarget. "It's an heirloom, I suppose?

  "My father had it made for my mother."

  "I never had the luck to see her, but I've often heard tell of her. Well," went on Sarget, "here's the young lady you asked us to make sure of. Elvair-ka-Virrion can usually get what he wants if he puts his mind to it."

  "I'm indebted to him-and to you. By the way, your spring hymn was really excellent-too good for the audience, perhaps. You should keep work like that for your friends in private. But we're delaying the others, aren't we?" And indeed those round them were clearly waiting only for their host to take his place. Sarget, bowing to Maia as though she had been a baron's wife, turned and went to his seat, leaving her with Bayub-Otal.

  Here was a nice damned state of basting affairs! she

  thought angrily. Terebinthia had told her that Elvair-ka-Virrion had asked for her and Milvushina to go to a party. She had said nothing about Bayub-Otal. But then, she thought, in all probability Terebinthia had not known herself. Elvair-ka-Virrion would not have said anything. In the ordinary way Occula might have guessed at the likely truth of the situation and pointed it out, but then she, of course, had not been herself last night.

  Maia strove to control her disappointment. She had been simple enough to suppose that Elvair-ka-Virrion must want her again for himself. She might have realized that what was in fact going to be required of her was to continue her work on Bayub-Otal. And Nennaunir had remarked that she must be glad to get away from the High Counselor for a while! If only Nennaunir knew! she thought. She would actually have preferred Sencho, restored to his normal appetites and ready for the attentions of his favorite, than an evening with this cold, embittered Urtan who seemed- perhaps because no Beklan ladies of birth would consort with him-only to want to treat her as something she was not. Still, if she wanted to go on making progress in Kem-bri's good graces she had better get down to her job.

  "You asked for me to come here tonight, my lord?" she said, leaning back on her arm and smiling up into his face.

  "I hope you're not sorry," he answered. "Between ourselves, it's not the kind of occasion I care for much, but Sarget's one of the few people in Bekla whom I regard as a friend. I didn't want to refuse, and I thought if anyone could help me to enjoy it, it would be you."

  "I'm going to see to it as you do, my lord."

  It did not, in fact, prove such very hard work. The excellent dinner and wine, the luxurious surroundings, the friendly amiability of Nennaunir and others, Maia's confidence in her own beauty and the desire she obviously excited in everyone, it would seem, except Bayub-Otal: these were more than enough to enable her to feel not unkindly towards him. She'd got the measure of him now, she thought, well enough. He didn't know what to do with a girl, but none the less-poor, disappointed loser-like anyone else he wanted to be able to show one to the world: and even apart from her own interests with Kembri, her easiest course was to try to get on with him as well as she could. Irritation might come easily to Maia, but her natural good nature did not readily admit of sustained dislike.

  From time to time her eyes wandered to the next table, where Elvair-ka-Virrion was sitting near Sarget. Milvu-shina was beside him, and it was clear enough that he was enjoying her company. The Chalcon girl had resumed her habitual, grave demeanor and appeared to be doing little more than reply courteously to his remarks and questions. Maia could not help thinking that her somber self-possession became her very well; Elvair-ka-Virrion obviously thought so too, for he continued talking to her almost exclusively, apparently making every effort to suit his manner to her own. Once or twice-half-reluctantly, as it seemed-she smiled in response.

  S'pose she reckons she's back among her own sort, thought Maia; and for a time, jealousy and resentment overcame her. Yet soon these, like her earlier annoyance, were at least to some extent dispelled by simple enjoyment and absorption in her surroundings.

  The truth was that this evening Maia was beginning for the first time to grasp something of the difference between style and the mere show of opulence. This, not surprisingly, was a matter to which she had never previously given thought, since neither one nor the other had been exactly plentiful along the shores of Lake Serrelind. Now, she unexpectedly found herself contrasting the hall about her with the rooms in Sencho's house. Upon her arrival she had been surprised to see so few obviously precious things displayed. Sencho's two halls, as well as the garden-room, were full of hangings, furniture, statues and ornaments-many from the houses of enemies and victims-the costliness of which was plain enough. It suddenly occurred to Maia to wonder whether he would notice if some of them were stolen; and whether Terebinthia might in fact have sold a few without his knowledge. Be that as it might, it crossed her mind (in the act of gnawing a roast duck leg
) that clearly someone-presumably Sarget himself-must have given careful thought to the appearance of this hall as a whole, and that his aim had been a display less of wealth than of restrained and congruent beauty and harmony. Restraint, she now realized, was not necessarily a sign of indigence. The purpose and effect of the moist ferns and varied green wall-hangings-however much or little they might have cost-were simply to provide a relatively unobtrusive yet appropriate setting for the guests' own magnificence-for Elvair-ka-Virrion's black-and-crimson,

  silver-tasselled abshay, Nennaunir's night-blue robe and Bayub-Otal's unique silver chain.

  Even more strongly than the decoration of the hall, however, the music made Maia aware of a difference in quality between Sencho's pleasures and those of Sarget and his friends. The very notion of music was so alien to the atmosphere of the High Counselor's household that it had never before even entered Maia's head to think of it as a deficiency. She would as readily have thought of missing the stars from a cellar. Yet it now struck her that obviously Sencho, if he wished, could well afford musicians as good as.these; and thereupon she realized also, not only that he did not want them-that music meant nothing to him- but also that this insensitivity could not really be attributed solely to the poverty and hardship of his origins; for Thar-rin, if he were somehow or other to become rich, would certainly take pleasure in having his own musicians: so, probably, would Zuno. She began to perceive more clearly why so many of these people despised Sencho even while they feared him and perforce afforded him the show of respect.

  Smiling and conversing with Bayub-Otal, teasingly or otherwise as the mood took her (for Maia's conversational style knew little of reserve or convention), she was nevertheless almost continuously aware of the softly plangent, bitter-sweet tone of the hinnaris interweaving, darting here and there like swallows, back and forth in a patterned harmony above the dark water of the drums. In her fancy the intermittent flutes became gleams of light, the soft crescendos of the zerda and derlanzel a distant rustling of leaves. The minor, repeated phrases of the Paltesthi rogan which they were playing seemed infinitely vivid and compelling, moving her almost to tears. Bayub-Otal, she sensed, felt this also, and was aware that she felt it too; for gradually his conversation ceased and he sat unspeaking, gazing into his wine-cup and silently-almost imperceptibly-following the rhythm of the drums with his finger-tips. Once, turning his head, he caught Maia's eye with a half-smile and she, her task of pleasing him become that much easier, smiled back and for an instant rubbed her shoulder against his.