The Gift

by Bryan M. Litfin

  The sun was well past its zenith when Ana awoke. Feebly she reached for the loaf and chewed a few bites, then drank more water. She was incredibly thirsty. Her forehead felt hot, but at the same time her body was clammy. She labored to raise her garments to inspect her wound. The fair skin of her thigh was inflamed with angry red streaks. Ana knew of herbs that would draw out the infection, but she didn’t have the strength to gather them.

  For the next several hours she dozed off and on. As evening approached, Ana heard a distant sound that made her cringe: a wolf’s howl, echoed by others in the pack. She crawled to the campfire and laid a few twigs in a pile, then lit a match with trembling hands on her fifth try. The twigs accepted the fire, and Ana nursed the flame until a few larger sticks could be added. Even in her semi-delirious state, she knew she didn’t have enough fuel to last the night.

  Ana slept again until a yipping among the trees woke her with a start. She shook her head and blinked, trying to clear the mental fog.

  The fire had burned low. Shadows darted around the campsite. The wolves were back.

  Please, Deu! Not another night of this!

  Ana bent to the campfire and blew on it. A movement caught her eye, and she glanced up. A gray wolf stared at her from the opening of the grotto, its lips curled back from its teeth. Ana swallowed and held still. There was nothing else she could do.

  Pounding hooves thundered into the clearing beyond the circle of rocks. The wolf squealed as a thick spear sent it tumbling across the ground. A man burst into the grotto and ran to the impaled wolf. Unexpectedly the creature’s head flashed around, catching the man’s shin in its teeth. The man yanked his leg away and thrust his sword into the wolf’s ribs, dispatching it without mercy. He turned and came to Ana’s side.

  “Ana, I’m here! It’s Teo! Can you hear me?”

  She nodded weakly.

  “I’m going to take care of you, okay? I’m going to get you through this!” He stroked her hair. Ana raised her hand and rested it on his shoulder.

  “I knew you’d come, Teo.”

  She passed out.

  CHAPTER

  2

  Lieutenant Celso, his two men-at-arms, and Teo stood outside the rock grotto considering their options. It was dawn. Ana was dozing after a fitful night, while Bard heated water to bathe her wound. He was better at that sort of thing than strategic planning.

  “It doesn’t look good,” the lieutenant said. “I’ve seen strong young men die from an infection like this.”

  Teo winced.

  “We could use herbs and stuff,” one of the soldiers suggested.

  “She’s a fighter,” the other added.

  Teo frowned. He didn’t like the idea of leaving Ana’s fate to whatever weeds might be growing nearby. “Do you have any medicines in your supplies?”

  “I know exactly what she needs for an infection like this, but unfortunately we don’t have any with us,” Lieutenant Celso said. “It’s costly and hard to come by.”

  “What is it?”

  “Bread-mold elixir.”

  “That doesn’t sound like something that would do any good.”

  “I know it sounds strange, but believe me, it works. It’s like a miracle. Our physicians make it with the help of the grappa distillers. They study the mold under special lenses and test it in dishes. It’s difficult and expensive to make, and it doesn’t keep long. But it has saved many a soldier’s life. I’m afraid it’s the only thing that can help Anastasia now.”

  “Deu is the one who will save Anastasia,” Teo countered, “though he might use the elixir to do it. We’re going to have to cut this mission short and return to your land. What’s the quickest way back to Ulmbartia?”

  Lieutenant Celso shot Teo a sharp look. “I’ll give the orders around here, soldier.”

  Anger born out of deep concern for Ana flared in Teo’s heart, but he remembered his place and swallowed the annoyed reply he wanted to make.

  “I apologize, Lieutenant. Is it your intent to seek the medicine Anastasia needs?”

  The other two men looked at Lieutenant Celso, and Teo could see they wanted him to say yes.

  The expedition leader gazed into the distance as he considered his decision. At last he said, “Yes, it is my intent to get the medicine.” The men breathed a collective sigh of relief. “But not in the way you might think,” Celso added. “We cannot return over the pass by which we came—at least not in enough time to do Anastasia any good. There’s only one way to help her. We must go forward.”

  Teo was startled. “Forward? Where?”

  Lieutenant Celso caught the eyes of his men and silently called for courage. “Up the trail we found yesterday. It’s a gamble, I know. We don’t know what’s beyond the new camp. There’s a chance we’re exploring a dead-end instead of the route we seek. However, if we’re on the right track—and I think we are this time—then the pass into Ulmbartia should be a few leagues up the valley. The military outpost on the other side will have some medicine. It’s the only place close enough to try.”

  “But, sir,” one of the soldiers said, “we might wander around those high peaks for a long time while Anastasia weakens. By the time someone finds the pass, then rides down to the fort, then manages to get all the way back here, she’ll be d—” He stopped and stared at his feet.

  Teo looked at the faces of his new companions, so earnest and willing to help. He took charge again. “You’re exactly right,” he said, nodding. “She’ll die if we leave her here. That’s why we’re taking her over the pass to the fort—and may Deu give us strength!”

  Lieutenant Celso straightened his shoulders. “I concur. It’s the only possible way. Pack up quickly, men. Don’t take anything but food and necessities. Leave one horse unburdened. Teofil can ride double with our wounded friend, and they can switch horses along the way. Now move out.”

  The soldiers obeyed immediately, but Teo could sense their apprehension. They had ridden hard the day before, climbing high into the mountains to establish the forward camp. Now instead of enjoying a few days of rest, they were being asked to turn around and ascend the mountains again. Although no one complained, the atmosphere was tense. Only Bard seemed unbothered by the prospect of the arduous climb. The slender blond man bustled around, packing up food and discarding nonessentials. Although he carried himself in an effeminate way, Teo could see he was a capable soldier. Bard didn’t deserve the constant teasing his comrades gave him.

  In the rock grotto, Ana was quiet but alert. Teo knelt beside her. “What’s happening?” she asked.

  “We’re taking you to an Ulmbartian fort to get some medicine for your wound. It won’t be an easy ride, but I’ll be with you the whole way. The sun is up, and it’s time to go.”

  Ana nodded and started to stir, but Teo put his hand on her shoulder. He slid his arms under her back and knees, lifting her gently as she clung to his neck. He carried her to the horse and helped her up. Ana winced and held her leg straight but made no sound. Teo climbed into the saddle behind her, and she reclined against him.

  “Been here before,” she said wryly.

  Teo chuckled, recalling the many times they had ridden together to escape danger. “Someday I’m going to get us a nice wagon that won’t be so crowded.” Ana laughed at the remark.

  The expedition set out, following the big river that ran westward through the wild valley. On the right, across the mountains to the north, lay Chiveis. To the south was Ulmbartia—but it too was blocked by mountains, and only the undiscovered pass would give entrance to it.

  The river valley was sunny and full of wild grapes, far more than could be grown in Chiveis. The vines clustered in large patches on sun-exposed slopes. Teo assumed the valley must have contained many vineyards in the time of the Ancients. The remains of those long-lost people were everywhere: thick pillars that once supported elevated roads, crumbling houses peeking through the ivy, towers of metal lattice draped with limp wires, and occasionally a steel carriage r
usting in the overgrowth. Teo studied a large building with the word Migros marked on it in orange letters. He didn’t know what it meant.

  Lieutenant Celso followed the landmarks until the party arrived at the tributary stream that signaled the turnoff to the south. The place had an odd feel to Teo, one he had often observed in the wilds. It seemed to be a blank spot where the remains of the Ancients were scarce or nonexistent. Teo pulled his horse alongside Lieutenant Celso. “Why do you suppose there are no ancient structures here?” he asked.

  Lieutenant Celso’s eyes remained fixed on the landscape. “Our lore tells us the Ancients knew how to make powerful fires that could destroy everything for many leagues around. I can’t imagine such a thing.”

  Leaning against Teo, Ana whispered to him, “Astrebril’s fire.” The term referred to an evil powder dedicated to a Chiveisian god. Teo had learned the secret of making it. In fact, he had unintentionally brought a book of instructions with him into exile, stuffed into a pocket of his rucksack. He said nothing further about the deadly concoction.

  Lieutenant Celso turned toward Ana. “I think we’ve pushed you hard enough today, Anastasia. It’s late now. Let’s get some rest. Tomorrow it’ll be time to start climbing.”

  After making Ana comfortable on a bed of soft boughs, Teo helped her rinse her wound with water. The skin around the cut was a garish red. Teo applied a poultice of crushed garlic to draw out the infection, then read the Sacred Writing to Ana before she fell asleep.

  By midafternoon the next day, the party reached the forward camp they had established three days earlier. The site was near the tree line, with bare, stony peaks reaching for the sky in every direction. A gray overcast had settled in, threatening rain. Though it was summertime, snow patches still clung to the highest summits. The soldiers knew they were at a very high elevation and were headed even higher. Their faces betrayed the sense of intimidation men feel when the scale of nature expands beyond them, reminding them of their fragility.

  Lieutenant Celso gathered his party and pointed at the dim track leading toward the heights. “There it is, men! After six seasons of exploring, we’ve come down to this. We have to believe this is the pass we’ve been looking for. Today we’re going to cross it and become Ulmbartian heroes! What do you say?”

  The commander’s pep talk was greeted by awkward silence. Although Teo was still struggling to catch all the words in Talyano, he understood enough to know the speech had been intended as motivational, but the men were too daunted right now to appreciate it.

  Bard spoke up. “We’ll do it for Anastasia!” he cried.

  “For Anastasia!” the other men answered.

  From her place in the saddle with Teo, she smiled weakly and raised her hand. “Thank you . . . brave men.”

  Lieutenant Celso turned his horse toward Teo. “I think a moment like this calls for prayer to a deity who reigns over everything. Ask your god for his favor, Teofil.”

  With the men circled around him and Ana in his arms, Teo raised his voice to the sky and invoked Deu’s protection and healing. As soon as he finished praying, a light rain began to fall—not the answer he had hoped for. Teo kicked his heels against the horse’s flank and led the way up the mountain slope.

  The Ancients had built a road here. Its paving had long since been destroyed by the harsh elements, but Teo could barely pick out—often with the help of Bard’s observant eye—a path that could still be followed. At one point they passed a metal sign whose letters were partially visible.

  “Can you read it?” Lieutenant Celso asked.

  “It’s a lost language of the Ancients. In my homeland we called it the Fluid Tongue.” He studied the sign until he could make out some of the letters: COL DU GD ST. Teo broke into a smile. “It says ‘pass of’ something,” he announced. The men cheered.

  Emboldened by the sign’s encouragement, the expedition pushed upward through the constant wind and spitting rain. They reached the top just before nightfall. An oblong lake lay in the foreground, and more mountains stretched away to the south. Just beyond the lake was a gap in the peaks, leading down. Near the gap was a sturdy stone building that had survived from ancient times.

  Teo whispered into Ana’s ear, “We made it,” but she was asleep in the saddle and did not reply. Her head lolled to the side. She was very pale. Teo held her close, his arms around her waist. The journey had taken a heavy toll on her. With sudden understanding, Teo realized that more travel would be her end.

  Lightning flashed in the distant, ominous clouds. Teo turned to Lieutenant Celso. “She can go no farther.”

  “I think not,” he answered gravely. “We will shelter in that stone building.”

  “I will descend to the outpost at first light. Send one of the soldiers with me.”

  Celso glanced toward the ground. Teo followed his eyes. Hoofprints were pressed into the mud. Rover tracks, less than two days old.

  “If we’re attacked, we can’t defend the building with fewer than four men,” Celso said.

  “Ana will die if she doesn’t get the medicine.”

  “And she will die if the Rovers take us.”

  “She has to have the elixir!”

  Lieutenant Celso looked Teo in the eye. “I need four men to defend the building. I am responsible for this expedition. I will not risk my soldiers’ lives by sending them into the wilds.” He paused, then gave Teo a sly grin. “You, however, are a hired mercenary. In my commander’s eyes you are dispensable, if you get my meaning.”

  Teo nodded to the lieutenant. “Thank you, sir.” He turned his horse. Ana was like a rag doll in his arms. He tightened his grip on her. “I will leave at dawn. You can be certain I will return.”

  Bard wrung out the cold compress and laid it on Anastasia’s forehead. She moaned a little in her sleep but otherwise lay still.

  The room was small and wood-paneled. Bard rose and peered out the window at the dreary, early-morning rain. The Ancients had built this squat, sturdy building of gray stone next to the lake to serve as an inn for travelers crossing the pass. The lower floors had a bar, restaurant, kitchen, and common room, while the upstairs rooms housed the guests. All the windows had been boarded shut. Of course, several hundred winters had taken their toll, so that today most of the boards were missing, and the once-comfortable inn was filled with rotted furniture and natural debris. Picking their way through the mess, the Ulmbartian soldiers had discovered one guest room that still had its door closed and its windowpanes intact behind the boards. These had protected the room from the elements. While the pink-tiled bathroom attached to the chamber no longer supplied running water to the clever Ancients, Bard had decided that guest room 15 would still make a decent place to house a lovely guest from a much later era. He grimaced and turned to look at the feverish Anastasia. A guest who is dying from an infected wolf bite, he reminded himself. Bard returned to her bedside and wiped her cheeks with the wet cloth.

  There was a knock at the door, then Lieutenant Celso entered. “How is the lady?”

  “Not good,” Bard answered. “Restless and running a fever.”

  “The wound?”

  Bard folded back Teofil’s bearskin cloak, which served as Anastasia’s covering. A slit had been cut in her leather jerkin and linen shift to provide access to her wound while preserving modesty. Removing the bandage, he wiped away some pus from the inflamed gash. He had already numbed it with a tincture of poppies and closed it with stitches.

  Lieutenant Celso winced. “Hmm. That’s ugly.”

  “It’s worse than it was,” Bard agreed.

  “Can she hear us?”

  “I doubt it.”

  “I think she’s going to die,” Celso whispered.

  Bard ignored the comment. Retrieving a fresh bandage, he smeared it with poultice and laid it against Anastasia’s septic wound. She flinched, and her eyes fluttered open.

  “Whe . . . where . . .” She closed her eyes again. “Teo?” she asked weakly.

  Bar
d leaned close and spoke gently. “Just rest now, Anastasia. Teofil is fine. He’s gone to get you some medicine. It’s not far, and it’s quite safe, and he won’t be much longer.” Her expression relaxed as she slipped into a doze again. Bard looked up and met Celso’s eyes. The men exchanged glances, then turned and left the room together.

  “You know that’s not true,” Celso said in the hallway.

  “Of course I know it, sir. But she needs hope. She’s bound to Teofil. Everything now rests on him.”

  “Well then, I hope his god has the power to help him.”

  Bard frowned as he nodded. “I guess we’ll find out.”

  Teo’s horse was tired. He had pushed it hard all day, covering close to forty leagues down the steep pass and along the wild river valley. Now, as night began to fall, the animal’s head hung low with exhaustion. Water dripped from its flanks, and from Teo’s cloak too, although for the moment the clouds were holding back their rain.

  Ahead, on top of a rocky promontory, stood a castle. Teo had seen it from a distance and recognized it as the one Lieutenant Celso had described. It was the kind of fortress built by the Ancients long before their Great War of Destruction wiped them out. For centuries the castle had lain abandoned in the wilderness, but now it was no longer uninhabited. The thin line of smoke rising from a chimney indicated that a squad of Ulmbartian soldiers had claimed the castle as their own frontier outpost.

  As Teo rode along, a dull ache throbbed in his shin where he had been bitten by the wolf that tried to attack Ana. It occurred to Teo that the wound might be getting infected like hers, but since he had no time for an infected leg on a mission of such urgency, he decided he would simply ignore it. Maybe it wasn’t infected anyway. Maybe it just hurt a little as it was healing.