The Gift

by Bryan M. Litfin

  Anastasia was feeding leftover scraps to the expedition’s bloodhound. Though Trusty’s tracking ability hadn’t been needed so far, he made an excellent companion for the two guardians who were left to tend camp while the soldiers were out. The woman tossed the dog a last chunk of gristly meat, then glanced up.

  “Hello, Bard,” she said. Her accent wasn’t quite right, but she was doing her best to learn the Talyano speech.

  “Hello, Anastasia,” Bard replied. He held up the sack. “See what I have?”

  “In what the sack is?”

  Bard broke into a wide grin. “No,” he corrected, “you’re supposed to say, ‘What is in the sack?’”

  Ana’s cheeks flushed, and she shook her head with a shy smile. “I try, Bard, I try.”

  “I know. And you’re doing well. Talyano isn’t easy to speak. You’ve learned a lot over the past few weeks.”

  “Teofil is faster.”

  Bard pursed his lips and nodded. “He has a knack for languages like I’ve never seen. He’s almost to the point where we can converse back and forth.”

  “Me too. Very soon. Watch.” She pointed at the leather bag Bard was holding. “What is in the sack?”

  He burst into laughter. “There you go! You’re a fast learner, Anastasia of Chiveis.”

  At the mention of Anastasia’s homeland, her face fell, and Bard immediately regretted his words. Though the other men in the scouting party didn’t know it, he sometimes heard Ana crying when she thought she was alone. Sensitive by nature, Bard knew how much the beautiful young foreigner missed her home. He felt sorry for her. Unlike the macho soldiers who shunned him, the gentle woman with the sunny disposition treated him with acceptance. The pair had developed a friendship of necessity as they watched the camp while the three Ulmbartian soldiers and Teofil were on daytime patrol. Anastasia gave Bard dignified camaraderie, and he tutored her in Talyano. It was a good arrangement.

  Bard opened the sack, lifting a dripping carcass from the brine. Ana’s eyes lit up, and she nodded approvingly. Her hair shone golden-blonde as it caught the afternoon sun. “Good! I like ribbits,” she said.

  Ribbits, Bard thought to himself. That’s cute. Anastasia was learning his language as fast as she could.

  This time, he didn’t have the heart to correct her.

  With their bellies full, the men reclined around the campfire in the rocky grotto they had dubbed their “dining room.” Firelight flickered on their faces, and shadows danced on the walls behind them. Teo had come to enjoy the company of the three Ulmbartian soldiers, especially Lieutenant Celso, a wiry middle-aged man with a sharp tongue. The commander was a true warrior, and an excellent leader of men. Only the fourth Ulmbartian, the fair-haired tracker named Bard, remained a mystery to Teo. Bard seemed uncomfortable around the other rugged men.

  One of the soldiers belched, drawing guffaws from his companions. Teo frowned and kicked the offender with the toe of his boot. “There’s a lady in the camp,” he said.

  Ana’s meal had been exquisitely prepared. She had added wild onions, mushrooms, and juniper berries to the rabbit stew, simmering the meat until it was falling off the bone. She had also made a salad of dandelion leaves and chard with an oil dressing. All the men agreed they had never eaten so well on an expedition.

  Teo touched Ana lightly on her back. “Everything was delicious,” he said in Talyano.

  “Thanks.” She smiled at him, then held up a bottle of thick, golden liquid. “This is new to me. I like it. It’s good.”

  “There’s nothing like a fine olive oil,” Bard chimed in from across the fire. “It’s made by the Likurians. They’re always one step ahead of us.”

  Teo glanced up. “Who are the Likurians?”

  “A wealthy people we trade with,” Lieutenant Celso explained. “Their kingdom lies a few days south of ours. Likuria sits upon a vast sea whose water cannot be drunk.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s salty. It would kill you.”

  “I’ve read of that in books, though I’ve never seen it.”

  “You can read?” Lieutenant Celso was surprised. “Few in Ulmbartia can.”

  “In Chiveis, Teofil was a”—Ana sought the right word—“a teacher,” she finished. “Very smart.” She tapped her temple.

  “They can both read,” Bard said to the men around the fire. “Haven’t you heard Teofil reading his holy book at night? Apparently their civilization is advanced.”

  “Are you a priest, Teofil?” one of the soldiers asked. “In our land it’s usually the religious who can read.”

  “I’m not a priest, but I am a follower of the true God. His name is Deu.”

  “Ah, the high god of the Chiveisi.”

  “No.” Ana shook her head. “The Creator of all. The God of everyone.” The men murmured at this.

  “Where did you get your holy book?” Bard asked.

  Teo and Ana glanced at each other, exchanging knowing smiles. He knew what Ana was thinking: The telling of that story would take all night!

  “From those big grins, it must be a good tale,” Bard said. “Come on, Teofil, tell us the story.”

  Teo stirred the fire with a stick, wondering where he should begin. Should he start with the first time he met Ana—when a bear attacked him and Ana’s archery saved his life? Should he describe how he invited Ana to be his escort at a party in the woods, only to find she was repelled by its debauchery? She’d fled into the forest, where evil raiders captured her. That wasn’t a good memory for Teo.

  Ana spoke into the silence. “Captain Teofil is a hero like no other man. Enemies took me away, carried me from Chiveis. I was lost. Teofil came to me.” The campfire crackled and sent up a shower of sparks. “Tell the whole story, Teo,” she whispered to him in Chiveisian speech. All eyes were transfixed on him. He took a deep breath and began to narrate.

  “As you can see, Anastasia is very beautiful. Outsiders from beyond our realm took her to be a queen. I alone went after her.”

  Teo could see from the men’s faces that the story had already arrested their attention. In the best Talyano he could muster, Teo described the epic adventure he and Ana had shared. He followed Ana for four days, tracking her kidnappers to their home village. As Ana was being taunted in a feasting hall on the night of her “wedding,” Teo disguised himself as a jester. The ruse enabled him to mingle among the men until he could extinguish the hearthfire, plunging the hall into darkness. In the confusion he whisked Ana away, and they escaped on horseback. But their enemies gave pursuit. Chasing the fugitives through a dense forest, they soon caught up with Teo and Ana. The enemy warriors spurred their horses and attacked. Teo did battle with four men at once, yet defeated them all. As he recounted the story to the Ulmbartian soldiers, he stood up and acted it out. The men around the campfire listened in silence, their eyes glued to him.

  “The leader was a cruel man named Rothgar,” Teo said. “He held me against a tree, then drew his knife.” Teo demonstrated how he fought against Rothgar but couldn’t stop the knife that was about to plunge into his belly. Slowly Teo drew back his arm to imitate the killing blow.

  “What happened next?” Lieutenant Celso’s mouth hung open, and his eyes were wide.

  Teo glanced at Ana, who was staring into the fire. All the men looked at her.

  “Do you want to tell it?” he asked. She shook her head.

  Teo made the motions of an archer drawing a bow. “Just as my enemy was about to kill me, Anastasia shot him with an arrow. His body fell to the ground. And do you know what she said?” Teo paused dramatically. The men waited in hushed expectation.

  “She said, ‘You chose the wrong woman, Rothgar!’”

  Everyone around the campfire burst into cheers. One of the soldiers clapped Ana on the back, and Lieutenant Celso raised his mug of ale to her.

  Ana motioned to Teo with the back of her hand. “Get to the part about the Sacred Writing,” she said.

  When the clamor among the men died do
wn, Teo resumed his story. He described how he and Ana had discovered a lost city built centuries ago by the Ancients.

  “We know of the Ancients,” Lieutenant Celso said. “The remains of their society can be found in Ulmbartia as well.”

  “I’ve never seen anything like what we discovered there.”

  “A temple,” Ana said. “The house of Deu. Beautiful and holy.”

  “A man of the ancient times had hidden a book in the temple. He left . . . how would you say it? He left tracks for us.”

  “Clues,” Bard corrected.

  “Right, clues,” Teo said. “The clues led us to the Sacred Writing of Deu. Only the first part had survived the centuries. The last pages were destroyed. So we don’t know the whole story of our God.”

  Lieutenant Celso arched his eyebrows and held out his hands. “But surely you had records of this religion in the annals of your land?”

  “No. The High Priestess of Chiveis suppressed it, on pain of death.”

  “So you practiced your religion in secret?”

  “For a while. But Deu is a God for everyone. Eventually the time came to proclaim his name in the open.”

  “Then how are you still alive?” one of the soldiers inquired.

  Teo didn’t answer. He sat down next to Ana, whose expression was disconsolate.

  Bard slapped the soldier on the shoulder. “Don’t you see? They’re exiles. That’s why they’re here. They’ve lost their homeland.”

  Teo regarded Ana as she sat beside him on a log. The velvety fabric of her gown shimmered in the firelight. Her hair, honey-blonde in the daytime, now carried a reddish tint. Twin pinpoints from the campfire shone in her eyes. As the warm glow caressed her high cheekbones, Teo found himself stunned by the overpowering beauty of the woman who had left her beloved home rather than deny Deu.

  “Someday,” Ana vowed as she stared into the flames, “we’ll discover the rest of Deu’s story.” She looked up at Teo. “And then our kingdom will come to believe it.”

  He met her eyes and nodded. She reached for his hand, intertwining her fingers in his.

  “Let it be so,” Teo said.

  Ana awakened to the sound of an owl hooting. The moon had risen above the trees. Its pale light shone through the vents of the tent.

  Ana’s mind went to the story Teo had recounted around the campfire a few hours earlier. He had made her seem so brave and heroic. But now, in the dead of night, Ana didn’t feel very brave. She dreaded her uncertain future.

  “Teo,” she whispered, “are you awake?”

  His breathing was steady.

  Ana sat up on one elbow and looked at Teo, noticing little details she had never observed before, like his angular jawline and the way his earlobes did not hang free. He wore no shirt, and his covers were pushed down. The moonlight illumined the contours of his body like a carved statue. Ana marveled at his powerful physique: broad shoulders, lean waist, muscular arms and chest. He was shaped just like a man should be.

  In the secret corners of her heart, Ana had found it unexpectedly pleasant to sleep next to Teo in the tent. Having him close at night wasn’t entirely new to her, because in the aftermath of her kidnapping she had camped with him as they made their way back to Chiveis. Although they had often been alone on those nights, with no other people around for many leagues, not once had anything sexual occurred. However, sleeping inside the privacy of a tent seemed more intimate to Ana than sleeping under the stars. Lately her nighttime thoughts had been wandering. She wasn’t sure why.

  The tent had originally been Bard’s, and his alone, for the other three Ulmbartians preferred not to bunk with the suspiciously effeminate tracker. When Teo and Ana arrived, the tent was handed over to them. Ana knew the men thought she and Teo were sexually involved. Whenever it was time to turn in for the night, the soldiers made crude gestures to Teo with their fingers or gave him knowing winks and elbow nudges. At first Teo would protest, but now he just shook his head at their immaturity. All things considered, though, Ana was glad for their suspicions. Being viewed as Teo’s woman shielded her from unwanted advances.

  What if I were Teo’s woman?

  The thought startled her. Though Ana couldn’t help but notice Teo’s rugged good looks, she had always told herself he was her protector, companion, and friend—not her lover. At times she had wondered if something like that might develop, but neither of them had ever expressed such feelings. In this strange new land, however, Ana felt open to it. But what if Teo doesn’t feel the same way? She sighed and flopped back on her bedroll.

  “You alright?” Teo asked.

  “Oh! I thought you were sleeping.”

  “Just woke up. Everything okay?”

  “I’m feeling a little lonely, I guess.”

  “Missing home?”

  “Mm-hm. It’s really hard. I miss . . . Mother and Father.” Her voice caught.

  Teo rolled onto his stomach. The movement brought him nearer to her. “What can I do to help?” His voice was gentle.

  Ana took a deep breath. “I’m scared, Teo. I need you to be with me in whatever lies ahead.”

  “We’re both going to need each other, I think.”

  “Maybe. But I especially need you.”

  Teo rested on his elbow and leaned toward her. “Why?”

  “Because I can’t make it in this new land without you. I’m overwhelmed! I just want to go home, but I can’t.” She sniffed, wiping her eyes. “Will you stay with me? I feel so . . . so completely vulnerable.”

  Even in the pale moonlight, Ana could see Teo’s expression change. He drew back, nodding as he stared into space.

  Apprehension seized her. I said the wrong thing! I misunderstood what he thinks! She had no words to fill the silence.

  Teo drew the covers of his bedroll around him. “You can count on me, Ana. I’ll make a safe space around you. You can rest there and figure out what your future will look like. Take as long as you need.”

  She paused. “You’re good to me, Teo.”

  He flashed her his usual cocky smile. “Of course I am. That’s what friends are for.”

  Ana breathed a sigh of relief.

  I can live with that.

  Dawn came none too soon for Ana. Nights in this wilderness were scary. She was glad Lieutenant Celso had ordered the men to be ready at first light. They were leaving the base camp for an exploration mission. Teo was sitting up in his bedroll getting dressed.

  “I’m going to miss having you around,” Ana said to him.

  He turned and looked at her. “Oh, sorry. I was hoping I wouldn’t wake you.” Teo finished lacing up his first boot, then grabbed the second. “We should only be gone one night. Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

  “Like I said, I’ll miss you, but I’ll be fine.”

  “I don’t feel good about leaving you. Part of me says not to. The other part of me, the rational part, says there’s no reason to worry. There aren’t any Rover tracks around here. Still, I have reservations.”

  “Do you have to go?”

  “I’m a man under orders now. The food we’re eating is earned by my service to the Ulmbartian army. We could run into some Rovers in the valley where we’re going. My sword might be needed.”

  Ana sighed. “At least I’ll have Trusty to keep me company. With that nose of his, he can smell danger a long way off.”

  “He’s a good watchdog. And remember, it’ll just be one night. Two at the most. We hope to establish a forward camp along a trail that climbs up the mountains. Lieutenant Celso thinks it might be the trail we’ve been searching for.”

  “Where does it lead?”

  “Hopefully over a high pass that leads south into Ulmbartia—a different pass than the one they used to get here. The military has an outpost on the other side. If we can locate the pass from the wilderness, then go down and make the connection to the outpost, it would complete a big loop and tighten up the kingdom’s borders. The Ulmbartians would know a lot more about the routes i
nto their land. It’s an important assignment.”

  “Daring exploits are your gift, Teo. Go find the pass, and don’t worry about me.”

  He grinned. “Actually, I’ll probably do both.”

  Ana shook her head with a tsk. She knew she could take care of herself, and she didn’t want Teo to worry about her, though secretly she was glad he did.

  “If you find the pass, then what?” she asked.

  “Then the mission is over and we can go to Ulmbartia.”

  “I guess what I’m asking is, what’s our plan? What’s our . . . ?”

  “Future?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Here’s what I’m thinking. We have to find a way to support ourselves. I’m a soldier, and the Ulmbartian army seems happy to have me. So I can earn a living by my sword, and we’ll find a place to live.”

  “Together?”

  “Well, at least near each other.”

  “And I could probably earn money spinning wool or something. Once we’ve gotten settled, we can start thinking about the bigger reason we came.”

  “You mean to tell people about Deu?”

  “Right. And to find the rest of his book. The New Testament.”

  “You know about that?”

  “You said it’s in the table of contents of the Sacred Writing. It must be important. We should search for it in Ulmbartia.”

  “There’s no guarantee we can locate it in this new land.”

  Ana sat up in her bedroll. “Maybe not. But there’s one thing I am sure of.”

  “What?”

  “If anyone in the world can find it, it’s you.”

  Teo puffed his cheeks and blew out a breath. “I don’t know about that. But with Deu’s help, it could happen. For now, though, I’m more worried about finding the pass and keeping the Rovers off my back.” He reached over and patted Ana’s arm. “I have to get going. I’ll see you tomorrow night, okay? Maybe you can fall back asleep now.”