The Nivaka Chronicles Boxed Set

by Leslie E Heath

  “Please, tell me how to help you,” he whispered, struggling to pick words out of the wind.

  He couldn’t distinguish a single word. The sound of weeping surrounded him, but he couldn’t make out an answer to his plea.

  Aibek sat in the stillness, hoping to hear something, anything, that could help him solve the problem and heal the trees, but nothing came. He heard only the chirps and chatters the small creatures of the forest made as they clambered through the trees. He listened and watched a pair of squirrels frolicking until the sun climbed above the trees and warmed his face. Standing and stretching, he sighed. The council had scheduled the meeting with the other mayors for the morning, so Aibek couldn't spend all day in his courtyard. Hopefully, Valasa had better luck and could tell the council how to proceed.

  Once he saw Serik off on the morning’s errands, Aibek strolled into the empty Meeting Hall. His footsteps echoed off the wooden ceiling as he made his way to the table at the front. Stacks of papers sat on the table, ready for the day’s meeting. He seated himself in the center chair and waited for his guests.

  Five of the six visiting mayors entered as a group, chatting and laughing like old friends, and the last trailed close behind. Aibek smiled. Hopefully, they’d still be friends at the end of this discussion.

  “Welcome. Please, make yourselves at home. There’s plenty of room for everyone.” He gestured to the empty chairs lining both sides of the long table.

  Still laughing, they chose their seats and settled in for the meeting. Aibek nodded to the fairies waiting to his left, and they rushed forward with cups and water for the new Grand Council members. A few curious villagers seated themselves around the Hall.

  Vayna sat next to Aibek, scooted his chair close to the table, and leaned over to where Aibek stood.

  “I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.” He winked, and Aibek couldn’t help but smile.

  “Thank you. I think I’ve learned my lesson: No more than one glass of fairy wine from now on.” He cleared his throat. “Welcome, friends. We have several items to discuss this morning, so let’s get started.”

  "The first order of business is to discuss some ground rules, both for this council and for any time a mayor is visiting another village. What kind of treatment can the visiting mayor expect, and what type of behavior should the host village anticipate from the visitor?"

  Aibek observed as the mayor who had trailed in last, and the one who had created the fuss that had nearly kept him from Faruz's wedding cocked his head and frowned.

  What’s his name? Kaskin? Yes, that sounds right.

  Kaskin frowned and his face flushed a brilliant red under the fringe of caramel-colored hair. “Why would we need rules for such things? It’s not as if there’s been any problems thus far.” The man’s nasal voice annoyed Aibek, but he tried to see the situation from his visitor’s perspective. This was the person who had tried to judge a Nivakan boy who had been caught stealing from his neighbor.

  "Well, actually, I think there have been some problems." A plump woman sat to the left of Kaskin, her back was straight, and she perched on the edge of her chair. She didn't raise her eyes as she spoke. "I believe our kind host is referring to the problem of visitors involving themselves in Nivaka's local affairs."

  Aibek wracked his brain for the woman's name but drew a blank. Her dark hair was cut short for a woman, barely falling past her chin, and it hung straight and heavy around her face.

  “Why would that be a problem?” Kaskin shoved his chair away from the table and jumped to his feet. “I did nothing more than fulfill my role as mayor.”

  Vayna stood and walked to the irate visitor. “But that’s just it. It’s not your role outside your village. We’re all mayors, but we only have authority with our own citizens.” He gestured to the gathered council.

  “Have a seat, both of ya, and we’ll find middle ground. Always a compromise to be found.” Another man spoke. He had long black hair pulled back over his right ear with a simple wooden comb. Aibek had met the young man, Bartel, before Nivaka’s battle the year before when his village had sent him with a group of warriors to help defeat Helak’s army.

  “I will not sit down! What is this? I am the leader. It is my responsibility to intervene when citizens need assistance.” Kaskin pounded his fist on the table, sloshing water from the drinks.

  “That’s quite enough.” Aibek stood and faced the visitor. “You are a guest here, regardless of your standing at home. How do you want me to handle the same situation if I come to visit your village?”

  Flushing, Kaskin flopped back into his chair.

  “Well? Am I supposed to step in–since I am a mayor–or should I leave minor problems to the resident council and mayor to handle?” Aibek walked around the table and stopped in front of Kaskin. “I would like to come to an agreement so future visits can go smoothly.”

  “Well, in my village I’m the mayor, so I think I should be the one to moderate disputes among my citizens. But that has nothing to do with what happened here two days ago. I did what was right.”

  Aibek sighed. Was this man incapable of seeing another perspective, or was he being deliberately obtuse?

  “Let’s have a vote, shall we? Unless someone else has something to add?” Aibek glanced at the stunned faces of his guests.

  “I do.” Marah met his eyes, and he nodded for her to continue. “We should include some sort of wording that any mayor can intervene in any village if something truly dangerous is happening. I’d hate for someone to get hurt–or worse–because a visitor didn’t think they had the authority to do something.”

  With a smile, Aibek nodded. “That’s an excellent point, Marah. Thank you. We will include that in our written rules. Does anyone else have anything to add?”

  The mayors glanced around the table, but no one said a word.

  "All right. We'll have a show of hands," Aibek said. "Who thinks the visiting mayors should have the freedom to intercede as they see fit since their own citizens have given them the authority of the mayoralty?"

  When no hands went up, Aibek raised his eyebrows. “All right. Who thinks all local matters not risking lives should be referred to the resident mayor and council?”

  One by one, each mayor raised a hand, except for Kaskin.

  Shaking his head, Aibek barked out a laugh. “Great. That settles that. From now on, visitors will defer to local leaders unless lives are at risk. Now, the main reason we’re all here. We’ve all heard the rumors that Helak’s building his forces to retake the Tsari. What do we do about it?”

  “What are the options?” A short man regarded Aibek with his head cocked to the side.

  “Well, that’s for this council to decide… I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve been introduced. I’m Aibek.”

  “Iemes.” The man stared hard at the others as if waiting for something.

  "Oh, yes, of course." Aibek chuckled. "Let's all introduce ourselves. I think I know most of you, but of course, you don't all know each other. Please accept my apologies for not doing this sooner. We'll begin with you and move around to the left."

  Iemes nodded, and the others blurted out their names in turn.

  “Marah.”

  Aibek met her eyes, shame welling within him. He’d been too intoxicated to dance with her at the wedding. Would she give him another chance?

  “Iriz.” It was the plump woman who had spoken before. As soon as she said her name, Aibek remembered her.

  “Kaskin.”

  “Vayna.”

  “I’m Aibek.” He grinned.

  “Bartel.”

  "Great. Now that we all know each other let's continue." Aibek raised his eyebrows and glanced around the room. "What do we do about Helak? Any ideas?"

  "Oh Koviom, we all know we're going to have to fight him again," Iriz said as she dropped her eyes to the table.

  Aibek smiled at her exclamation. He hadn’t heard anyone mention the moons in such a way before.

  “Wh
at makes you say that?” Bartel sat with a guarded expression. “He may be more reasonable now that we’ve won back the forest. Maybe we can talk to him.”

  “Talk to Helak? Has anyone ever even seen Helak?” Iemes leaned forward across the table, glaring at each mayor in turn.

  The mayors all shook their heads, murmuring, “I haven’t, have you?”

  Iemes gave the mayors time to establish that none had seen their common enemy. “So how do we negotiate with someone we’ve never seen? How do we know he will negotiate?”

  Vayna slapped the table, making Aibek jump. "We send him a message, of course! We have him meet us someplace neutral, like Kainga and make him talk to us. I can't believe you want to give up and let him retake the forest!"

  “Now, I didn’t say all that. I just think we should wait him out–let him come to us.” Iemes pulled at his collar and fell silent.

  Bartel cleared his throat. “Come to us? Isn’t he reported to be building the largest army he’s ever had? I don’t know that we should wait until he brings that force to our doorsteps. I think I like Vayna’s suggestion better.”

  With a loud scraping sound as he threw the chair backward, Kaskin stood. “Well, I think we should wait it out. That’s my final word on the subject. Now, what’s next on the agenda?”

  Aibek couldn’t believe his ears, but he struggled to maintain a neutral expression. “We’ll have a vote soon enough, but there are a few others we haven’t heard from yet. Iriz, what do you think of the rumors?”

  Before she could answer, Kaskin slammed his fists down on the table. “I’m in charge here. I said we’re waiting it out, and that’s that.”

  “I’m sorry sir, you’re no more in charge here than any other person at this table.” Aibek’s voice was barely above a whisper. He would not stoop to this man’s habit of shouting to get his way. “We are all mayors, and each vote counts equally. Iriz?”

  The young woman flipped her dark hair away from her face. “I’m not sure which is the correct action. With all due respect, I only just heard–”

  “I said I’m in charge here!”

  Kaskin’s face turned an alarming shade of purple, and Aibek frowned. He didn’t know anything about Kaskin or his health. With coloring like that, the man might have an apoplexy.

  Vayna stood tall, towering over the angry Kaskin.

  "Sir, I believe you should sit down. We'll vote in a few minutes as Aibek said."

  “Excuse me, gentlemen,” Marah interrupted. “Would it be possible to wait and vote once we’ve had a chance to confer with our home councils? This seems like a big decision for us to make without their input.”

  Bartel nodded toward Marah. “What a great idea. We should definitely put this problem to our individual councils before we commit to anything one way or the other. Why don’t we meet again in the city, Kainga?”

  "That's a wonderful suggestion, Bartel." Aibek smiled, relieved to have an excuse to end the meeting. "Let's have a show of hands. Who thinks we should postpone this discussion as suggested and meet again to discuss the problem of Helak's army when the moons are all full again?"

  Every hand went up except for Kaskin’s.

  Meeting Kaskin's eyes, Aibek asked, "And who thinks we should decide today?"

  Kaskin raised his hand. “I’ve already told you my decision. We will wait for Helak to make the first move.”

  Vayna rolled his eyes. “Yes, we know your opinion, now didn’t Ayja promise us some luncheon? I’m famished.”

  Before he’d finished speaking, he stood and headed for the main door. The others followed quietly, leaving Aibek alone at the table.

  What a disaster. He propped his elbows on the table, buried his face in his hands and took a deep breath.

  When he stood, Valasa waited at the door. “I heard it didn’t go smoothly.”

  “Ha! That’s putting it mildly.” He pressed his fingers to his temples and closed his eyes. “I don’t know how to get them to work together. I thought Vayna and Kaskin were going to come to blows.”

  “Well, you’ll just have to try again. Did I hear you’re meeting again in a month? In Kainga?”

  “Yes, that’s the plan.”

  Aibek stepped out onto the sunlit boardwalk. He wasn’t in the mood to socialize over cold leftover fish but let Valasa lead him toward the Pavilion anyway.

  4

  Visitors

  The afternoon dragged as Aibek sat across from Valasa in the Pavilion. Flustered from the confrontations with Kaskin, he ate the cold fish and vegetables as quickly as he could–washing the leftovers down with water this time–and stood to leave. Valasa slipped out of the Pavilion a dozen paces ahead of him, and he chased after the Gadonu. He caught up with his friend at the east entrance, where Valasa descended the stairs.

  “What do you think I should do?”

  Valasa startled, turned to Aibek. “About the mayors?”

  “Well, that too, but I’m more worried about the forest...and Helak. Do you think he’ll come back?”

  "He likely will. You'll need to have a plan in place to deal with him when he does. He wants this forest badly, or he wouldn't have risked so much trying to capture it in the first place, or trying to retake it last year."

  “True.” Aibek hesitated, not wanting to sound foolish. “I’ve been thinking… I know the Shadow trees can reposition themselves when it suits them. I’ve noticed small movements before. Do you think they’d be willing to help us? They could form a barrier around the perimeter of the forest and help keep Helak’s men from getting in.”

  Valasa sighed and started down the stairs as soon as they locked into place. “Perhaps. You would have to request help from the Bokinna, the spirit at the Heart of the Forest, and that’s a difficult journey. Still, it may be worth the effort.”

  “And what should we do about the forest? Something’s very wrong. When I tried to commune with the trees this morning, I only heard weeping.”

  “That’s all I heard this morning, too. I fear this may not be a simple cure, but I’m working to figure it out.”

  Aibek followed Valasa into the forest, but paused at the base of an ancient tree covered in the sickly green patches. He pressed his hand to the trunk, and it shocked him when it slid around the side. Frowning, he looked at the slimy residue on his hand. "What is this stuff?"

  “I’m not sure. It’s unlike anything I’ve seen before.” Valasa leaned close and sniffed the spot where Aibek had rubbed the slime off the tree trunk. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to spend some time with the forest. Maybe they’ll talk to me if I’m on the ground with them.”

  “Of course.” Aibek nodded and turned back toward the stairs. He paused. “If you learn anything, will you let me know?”

  Valasa nodded absently but said nothing more, and Aibek returned to the village above, strolling through the boardwalks on his way home. He needed some time alone to think.

  At the Square, he detoured around to the back of the house and came in through the servants' entrance. Stepping to avoid his guests' detection, he snuck through the back halls and servants' passages to the meditation room. Maybe his father would see a way to fix this mess. Though his parents had been dead for two decades, he had learned how to communicate with their spirits the year before and had met with them often since then. Without their help, winning the battle would have been impossible, and the enemy would have killed all the villagers.

  Inside the meditation room, Aibek lit the lamp on the mantle and dropped into the red chair in front of the fireplace. He waited, listening to the plaintive song of a bird outside the window and glancing around the room. “Father? Are you there?” He asked the shadows in the corner, willing them to materialize into his parents.

  Nothing happened. His mother and father had been distracted lately and had not been hanging around the village quite as much as usual. Still, Aibek wasn't worried.

  They're already dead, right? What could happen to them?

  The bird finished its song and
flew away, and Aibek gave up and went in search of Serik. Perhaps the servant would have some information that would be useful. He had been a surprising source of ideas and solutions in the past year.

  He found Serik on his favorite bench in the Mayor's courtyard, facing out into the forest. Aibek sat beside his mentor and cleared his throat.

  Serik turned. “How was the meeting?”

  Aibek laughed. “Terrible. We didn’t accomplish anything at all. Actually, I was hoping you might be able to help me–”

  “With what? I’m always willing to do what I can.” The elderly servant cocked his head, his white hair flailing with the movement.

  “Well, I was thinking of going to Kasanto, and the king and queen like you. They’re always more cooperative when you’re there.”

  “Why do you need to go there?”

  “The elves have ancient knowledge of this forest, right?” He waited until Serik nodded. “Well, maybe they’ve seen this disease before and have some idea how to treat it. And even if they haven’t seen this exact illness, maybe they’ve seen something similar. Perhaps they can give us a place to start.”

  “That’s not a bad idea. When do you plan to go?” Serik kept his eyes on the trees as they spoke, something Aibek had almost gotten used to in the time they’d been there.

  “It’s too late in the day to go now, so why not tomorrow? We could leave at daybreak.”

  "All right. I'll go. We'll bring food and water. The King and Queen never offer any, and it is a long walk."

  He nodded in Aibek’s direction, turned back to the trees, and closed his eyes.

  Lost, Aibek wandered back into the house.

  What now?

  As he walked through the halls, Vayna’s laugh echoed off the walls, mingling with Kai’s laugh. He smiled. He’d spend the afternoon with his guests and friends. The mayors would be leaving for their own homes within the next few days.