The Actors: A Hwarhath Historical Romance h-8

by Eleanor Arnason

  "The captain sent us below for a reason," he replied. "Respect his knowledge; and remember how wet it is on deck. If you go up, your clothing will be soaked at once. It will cling to your body. The Taig men will know you're a woman."

  This was true. Ahl tilted her head in agreement. Above her the fish lamp swung back and forth, casting shadows that danced over the walls. Leweli and Cholkwa were still throwing up. Perig sat on the floor, arms clasped around his knees, in a pose of patient endurance. Seeking distraction, Ahl opened the wicker

  chest. The child Dapple slept quietly, as if in the witch's arbor. She laid a thick cloth over her legs for protection, then lifted the child out. How delicate the body between her hands! How soft the fur! How light the weight when she laid Dapple in her lap! Ahl watched the baby sleep, the tiny chest rising

  and falling gently. The eyes were not perfectly shut. Now and then, when the lantern's light shifted, a gleam shone between the gray lids. Hah! It made Ahl feel tender! As did the loosely curled hands, their nails uncut and curving over the fingertips like claws.

  It occurred to her that the potion's magic might work on full-grown people. At the moment Leweli and Cholkwa were both lying down. If they were making any noise, Ahl was not able to hear it over the sound of water rushing, the creak and groan of wood. But neither looked comfortable.

  So.

  Ahl laid Dapple in the chest, then filled the horn spoon with potion, bringing it to her cousin. Leweli glanced up, her expression despairing.

  "Try this," said Ahl, kneeling.

  Leweli hesitated. The ship made a sudden loud noise and shuddered around them.

  That was enough. Leweli took the potion.

  If that was the right dose for a child, then the mother needed more. Ahl went back to the jar.

  When she finished with Leweli, she took the jar to Perig and explained her idea, speaking loudly through the ship's noise. The actor smiled and carried the jar to his companion.

  Leweli and Cholkwa dozed, looking more comfortable than before. Perig sat as before. After a while Ahl began to feel queasy. The jar of potion was still mostly full. She ate a spoonful. The flavor was medicinal, sharp and herby. Soon she noticed her body was relaxing. Instead of fear and nausea, she felt a pleasant drowsiness. She lay down, one hand on the chest where Dapple slept, dreamt of Ki and woke to a banging noise.

  Was the ship breaking apart? No, it was the Taig captain, beating on their door.

  The storm was as bad as ever, he told them. All the sails were gone, pulled down or blown away. Still the ship drove east, far off course already. "Pray for us, if you think the Goddess will listen; and if you have charms or know any spells, use them now!"

  Then he was gone. The fish lamp swung back and forth. Looking across the cabin, Ahl saw Perig's mouth moving. "Are you reciting magic spells?"

  "Speeches out of the plays. Everything I can remember in praise of the Goddess, courage and luck."

  This didn't seem useful, but could hardly do harm. Ahl gave more potion to the invalids, the child and herself. Time passed. Now and then, among her dreams, she thought she heard Perig's voice, speaking of honor and fate.

  Finally -- was it on the third day or the fourth? -- the motion and noise decreased. Perig left the cabin, coming back to say, "The captain thinks we'll survive, though we're far east of the route he planned for us; and I have never seen an ocean like this one.'

  Ahl couldn't stay put. Pulling a vest over her tunic, she went on deck. The smooth planks shone with water. The air tasted of moisture and salt. Looking up, she saw the main mast still intact, though loose ropes flapped around it,holding pieces of broken spar like fish in a net.

  On every side waves rose like mountains capped with snow. What a sight it was!

  But the ship was moving like a ship, climbing the dark blue slopes, sliding down into deep blue valleys. Before this, when the storm was at its worst, the ship's motion had reminded her of an animal fighting as the butcher's helpers dragged it into the butcher's killing yard.

  They were going to live.

  The next day was cloudless. Ahl and Perig opened the cabin window and emptied the various pots. Nonetheless the cabin's air remained less than pleasant. The two of them spent most of the day on deck. The waves had decreased in size; and the Taig sailors put up a sail.

  "We can steer now," the Taig captain said. "Though not well. We have to put in for repairs. I'm at the eastern edge of my knowledge, beyond all certain ports; and we can't turn back and sail across this wind until the repairs are made."

  "Is that so?" said Perig in his usual tone of friendly interest.

  "What then?" asked Ahl.

  "There are islands out here," the captain answered. "I've heard other captains describe them, and they're marked on my maps, though this far out the maps are unreliable. Some are uninhabited, which would be fine. Others are inhabited by

  honest fishing people, which would be even better. What I'm worried about is pirates. Also monsters, though I'm not sure the monsters are real. There's no question about the pirates."

  The day after, they spotted land. A sailor climbed the main mast. Coming down, he reported no signs of habitation. But there were plenty of trees and a broken coastline that might provide a harbor.

  "We'll try it," said the captain.

  At sunset they anchored in a little bay edged by sand. Beyond the sand were ledges of rough-looking, dark-brown rock. Trees grew atop the ledges, their

  foliage the color of weathered bronze. The place made Ahl uneasy, though the harbor water was still and clear, the sky bright and almost cloudless.

  They would spend the night on board, the Taig captain said. Was he simply being cautious, or did he feel -- as Ahl did -- that the island brooded and held secrets? Being the captain, he did not have to explain himself.

  In the morning men went ashore. They returned midway through the afternoon, having gone around the island. It was empty of people, though there were plenty of birds. The sailors brought back firewood and fresh water from a spring. Hah!

  It was sweet to drink!

  "I don't imagine you'll be any help in repairing the ship," the Taig captain said to Perig and Ahl. "But you can work on shore. We'll need more wood, more water, and if any of you know how to hunt or fish -- "

  "Lew --" Ahl said and paused, then continued. "Lewekh is a fine hunter, though what he knows best is marshes."

  "Cholkwa and I have lived off the land," said Perig.

  "Do what you can," said the captain.

  Cholkwa had no problem with this idea. But Leweli refused. "I can't leave the child alone. What if she wakes and begins to cry? What if she becomes ill? Men can't take care of children."

  "The child is healthy as a tsin and sleeps like a rock," said Ahl.

  "Usually," said Leweli. "But I will not leave her."

  In the morning the three of them set off. It was another bright day. Small clouds dotted the sky. A mild wind blew, stirring the bronze-brown forest, making spots of sunlight dance over the ground. There were no trails. Obviously, no large animals lived on the island, though -- as the sailors had said – birds were plentiful. So were edible plants, and Perig turned out to be excellent at finding these. Soon he had a basketful. Ahl knew most, though he was especially happy with something she hadn't seen before. "Tsin ears," he called the plant.

  It was fleshy and looked like its name, except for its color, which was a reddish-purple. The plant grew on tree trunks, so it looked as if the trees had ears and were listening: an eerie sight. Perig cut them off, using a knife. The cut ends did not bleed, a relief to Ahl.

  On the far side of the island was a moor, covered with low vegetation. The birds there were large and heavy, like the halpa which people raise on many parts of our home planet. Like halpa, they flew when startled, but only for a short distance. Then they dropped down and tried to run.

  "This can't be called a sport," said Cholkwa and shot one.

  Seen close, it was covered with glossy brown
feathers, except for its legs and feet, which were naked and bright blue. There were areas of bare skin on the head, circling the animal's round yellow eyes, so it seemed to wear spectacles, though this image would not have occurred to Ahl. In her age spectacles were rare, and it's likely that she never saw a pair.

  "What do you think?" asked Cholkwa.

  "It looks like a halpa," said Perig. "Except for the blue skin. Maybe it's a relative. If so, it ought to be tasty, especially in a stew with my ears."

  They spent the midday killing birds. All had the same areas of blue skin. So it wasn't a disease, a thought which had occurred to Ahl. When they had enough, Perig found a long straight branch. They fastened the birds to it by their bright blue feet and carried them back this way, Cholkwa at one end of the stick, Ahl at the other. The wind had died. Ahead of them a trail of smoke rose into the cloudless sky.

  "They must be heating pitch," said Perig. "The ship was taking on water, the captain said."

  "How could it not ?" asked Cholkwa. "If I had known what kind of trip this was going to be --"

  "We couldn't stay in Sorg," said Perig. "Nor return to the north; and we have survived the journey."

  "Wait till we've reached our destination before you say that," replied Cholkwa.

  They reached the inlet in late afternoon. The ship's cook, a burly man with gray-brown fur, descended on them and seized their birds. Perig followed with his ,sin ears.

  Dinner was roast bird. The cook would use the ears tomorrow, Perig said. "The men are hungry. A stew takes time; and tsin ears require special preparation. I have to say the birds taste fine roasted. I'm almost certain they're related to halpa."

  "How did they get here?" asked Cholkwa. "They could hardly fly."

  "Maybe they've been here all along," Perig said. "Placed by the Goddess when she made the world."

  "Or maybe people left them," said Ahl, licking her fingers.

  "That's possible," Perig admitted.

  Most of the sailors stayed on shore that night, as did Perig andCholkwa. Ahl suspected the two men were interested in sex, now that they were safe and could get away from their female companions. Nothing could be done in the cabin. No self-respecting male would do anything so intimate in a room containing women.

  But on a dark beach, surrounded by other men -- She envied them and went back to the ship.

  The next day the Taig captain said, "I'm tired of your comrade's laziness. What is his excuse today? Sickness? An unlucky omen?"

  "He still hasn't recovered from the storm," said Ahl.

  "Nonsense," said the captain. "He will go on shore. You said he's a good hunter.

  We need food, and he clearly needs exercise and fresh air."

  Argument was impossible. Leweli went with Ahl and the actors, though she looked unhappy and began complaining as soon as they were in the forest.

  "Merhit is a good witch," said Ahl. "I'm confident her magic will keep the child safe. We have no choice, cousin. A captain must be obeyed."

  THIS TIME the birds were harder to find, but at noon they came on a flock, all grouped together in an open space on the moor, scratching with large blue feet and pecking. It was easy to kill as many as they were able to carry. Laden with their prey, they returned to the beach.

  The pitch pot was turned over, and a black pool of pitch lay next to it. Bodies, the Taig sailors almost certainly, lay scattered on the sand.

  "Bad luck!" said Perig.

  Could they flee? Ahl glanced around. The forest was close, but not close enough.

  Ragged strangers moved toward them, holding bloody swords.

  Perig stretched his arms out to the side. His hands were open and empty.

  "Obviously we can't fight you. But I ought to mention if you kill us, you will be killing a pair of women."

  "What do you mean?" asked one of the men. His accent was thick, but Ahl could understand him.

  Perig gestured. "Those two are women."

  The man frowned. "They don't look it."

  "Ahl, pull off your tunic," Perig said.

  She did as he asked, dropping the tunic and unfastening the band that held her upper breasts. The moment she was bare, the men looked down. This was encouraging. In spite of being pirates, they had not lost all sense of right behavior.

  "Put on your tunic," said one of the men in a stifled voice.

  She picked up the tunic and pulled it on.

  "There is a baby on the ship," Perig continued in his usual pleasant voice. "The other woman, the one holding the stick with birds, is the mother. I assume you're planning to kill us or maroon us. But you can hardly kill women or maroon them with unrelated men."

  "How do you know what we can do?" asked the man who had spoken previously. Most likely he was the leader.

  The men around him looked uneasy. One said, "Jehan," in a nervous tone.

  "And why are these women traveling in disguise with men who aren't relatives?"

  added the man named Jehan. "I know foreigners lack self-respect, but this seems worse than usual."

  "Why don't you disarm us, which is the obvious next step, and then we can talk,"

  said Perig. "If you've left the Taig cook alive, you might give the birds to him."

  Jehan swung his sword. Perig fell.

  "Goddess!" cried Cholkwa, falling to his knees beside his lover. Ahl was certain now. She heard love in the young man's anguished voice.

  Perig sat up, feeling his head.

  "I used the flat," said Jehan. "But if he keeps talking, I'll use the edge."

  "He'll be quiet," said Cholkwa and stood, helping Perig up. His hands, on the older man, seemed as careful as if he were holding a fragile treasure: something made of glass and gold.

  "Now," said Jehan. "Give us your weapons."

  They went down the beach, still carrying their birds, surrounded by pirates. Now Ahl could see beyond the Taig ship. There was another ship, somewhat smaller, outside the harbor entrance, blocking escape. Obviously it belonged to the pirates. Squinting against the glare of sunset, she tried to make out details, but couldn't tell if there were pirates on the Taig ship.

  Clearly they held the beach and the remaining sailors on shore: a group of seven, two injured, one badly. The Taig cook was wrapping an already-bloody bandage around his chest. Guards stood around the prisoners, holding weapons that had belonged-- Ahl was almost certain-- to the Taig.

  "Are the rest dead?" asked Ahl.

  "Some," said the cook in an angry voice. "Most were on the ship, repairing the rigging. They are still there, guarding it against capture."

  One of the guards said, "My cousin Jehan thought it would be a good idea to attack from the land. That's where you seemed to be, if your smoke was any indication. If we came sailing in from the west, you'd see us and make preparations. Better to circle to the south -- the island would hide us – and land a party in the little southern harbor, then come through the forest and take you by surprise."

  "It worked," said Jehan stubbornly.

  "We don't have their ship," said the guard.

  "We'll get it," Jehan said. "In the meantime, we have dinner."

  "And two women," said one of the other pirates.

  "What?" asked the guard. He was a stocky man with dark fur going silver over his shoulders. In Ahl's opinion, he looked sensible, not a trait she associated with

  piracy.

  "I'm a woman," said Ahl. "And so is she."

  "This is turning into a perplexing mess," the guard said. "What are two women doing on a Taig ship, disguised as men? Taig women don't travel, and why would any woman disguise herself as a man? Surely you know how dangerous it is! We could have killed you by mistake."

  "Can I speak?" asked Perig.

  "If you want to," said the guard. "And have something useful to say."

  "He's one for chattering," said Jehan in a warning tone.

  "Let him chatter," said the guard. "I want information."

  "These two women needed to get south in a hurry an
d went in disguise, because they couldn't find a women's ship."

  "Are you related to them? You don't look similar."

  Perig hesitated briefly, then tilted his head in assent. "The women in our lineage are tall and have an authority we men lack."

  "Which lineage?" the guard asked.

  "Tesati," said Perig.

  "Not one I know."

  "It's to the north," said Perig. "At the edge of the Great Central Plain. Or rather it was there. The Unraveling has destroyed much. Another family overwhelmed ours. The men are dead, except for us."

  "Why are you alive?" asked Jehan.

  "We weren't home when the end came. Cholkwa and I are actors and often travel."

  "Actors!" said the guard, looking interested.

  "When we did come home, we found --" Perig smiled briefly. "No home. Our male kin were dead. The family that killed them, the Chaitin, had gathered in our female relatives and the children. We should have killed ourselves. It would have been the decent thing to do. But we found these two hiding out, along with Leweli's baby. They didn't want to be Chaitin. There are women who hold this kind of grudge."

  Everyone was listening intently, of course. It was a good story, told excellently. But now Ahl saw a look of confusion on the Taig cook's face, followed by a look of horror. The cook was remembering the night before, she thought. Perig and Cholkwa had made love on the beach. The Taig sailors had noticed and been undisturbed. Traveling companions often give each other this

  kind of comfort, provided they are the same sex and not related. But if the two actors belonged to the same family, the act was incest. The cook opened his mouth, then closed it and glanced down, going back to work on his injured comrade.

  A near thing! And not over. The cook might still decide to denounce the actors.