The mists had gathered through the trees. Rapheth heard the call of stags and a hawk on occasion, without seeing them. Banners painted with animal sigils seemed to gleam even in the gloom. Most of these tribal men carried either the sigil of the wild boar, the bullbear or the kingberry. The rain began to fall. Its gentle patter was like a whispery song. The air was moist and sharp with pine and wet under bush, an explosion of dark green scents that the horses trampled underfoot. He drew himself deeper into his cloak. Rhajit somewhere let out a sneeze. He had time to think, if nothing else. He was so far away from home, a lost son who had allowed himself to be driven away. He remembered the days of light and light-heartedness. Of times when they disobeyed mothers and fathers and paid little heed to anything serious, such as visiting Marashiah's tavern or gambling with old Harech. The days of foolishness. A seeping, cold, gray feeling seemed to hang over him constantly now. He had never been in such a state. Lost, helpless, powerless and alone. He couldn't get rid of the feeling he had been deceived, lied to by those he loved most but this hurt his heart even more for he knew they believed in something he was beginning to distrust. They had weaved a spell and life was now breaking this enchantment Ilim and Zigal and others had weaved around him. There are other ways in the world, son. Other paths you might take. . . he heard a voice in his head. It was so soft. He almost did not hear it. Perhaps it was his own voice.
Stop! he thought fiercely.
Fine. Continue along this path you have been thrown on and it will end in your death. You will die out here. Alone. And those with you will die. Or betray you. The voice said again.
Please! If I am suppose to do something in this life, show me, for I am lost, Airend-Ur! Would he have to battle even his own mind?
"Are you well?" Asked one of the warriors, giving him a sidelong look. Rapheth, feeling embarrassed, was snapped out of his thoughts.
"Ah, yes, yes. Only thinking." The man nodded and Rapheth tried to concentrate on the present journey.
They traveled for nine days, at times passing towns, villages and a few hamlets but mostly through tangled, deep woods. Whenever they broke for camp for the evening some of the men would engage in sword practice. Rapheth, Rhajit and Ephron practiced as well. They learned very different fighting techniques from watching the Dyrlanders practicing with their broadswords and had difficulty in wielding them. Shukala had brought a self made long spear of black wood and practiced throwing his spear. When they had reached a town called Galefurn they met with another large company of chieftains and their men which enlarged the hosts. Finally, the sodden path widened to a paved road that widened out even more toward Aldeberg. The forest merely stopped and the land became less dotted with trees. Bush and farmland, hills and hamlets and lakes took over. The Black River continued eastward but the host eventually went north. They came to a wide old stone and wood bridge and crossed that, over the river. Once they had reached the city walls they could see that everyone's guard was up. The fog had become less dense but it had not fully dissipated. A castle he could glimpse ahead. It was massive and made of black rock, standing on the surrounding land and city like a mountain. They entered over a large moat over the drawbridge, hundreds of hooves clacking over the wood and iron. Beyond the castle gate was a flurry of activity and there were many men of arms about.
"They are on high alert. This business with these giants. But I sense something else is not right about this place." Muttered Parso.
"You are becoming like my father Ilim. What do you sense?" Asked Rapheth. But Parso frowned - a rare expression from him - and shook his head slowly. He kept his voice very low.
"I do not know. Just a feeling. The Thane had said as much back in Grunhold." Rapheth did not tell him of his own struggles of the mind.
Once they were inside the great courtyard they had entered a private royal world. Hundreds of horsemen, chieftains and their fighting men were either dismounting or having their mounts led away to the stables. The courtyard, elaborately paved ground of black and red rock, was buzzing with activity. Rapheth and his men followed Uwain closely as they entered the castle. No merchants or peasants would be able to see the king today.
Inside Aldeberg certain rooms were paneled with dark wood and thick, luxurious tapestries upon the walls displayed various battle scenes and in every great room Rapheth saw a massive hearth. The castle here was starkly different in luxury, where in Hybron palaces were covered in gold, precious stones and silver, here the great houses were made of rock, stone and wood and these materials were polished and showcased in such a way to emphasize their simple, natural beauty. There were furnishings of polished black wood or lady redwood and covered with thick furs and precious gems were inlaid in the furniture. In the castle the tables, chairs and couches were of dark wood, strong, wide and highly polished, inlaid with gold or silver or pearls and the wood carved in intricate patterns, some of these carvings painted brightly. Everywhere there were iron braziers burning with fire and incense of cloves, mace or frankincense. The windows were shuttered closed and barred with iron but iron candelebras lit every room besides lanterns and large candles on vertical spikes, illuminating the castle and giving it the aura of a sacred space. The great hall, far greater than even Uwain's own hall, was flanked by stone pillars and long wooden trundle tables and benches lined the hall's length. A raised dais with two great chairs under white canopies sat at the head of the hall. The floors were strewn with fresh herbs. One thing that Rapheth found fascinating and odd were mysterious little faces he saw carved into the ceiling and in the eaves, peering down at them. They gave him a disquieted feeling.
A great crowd had already gathered once they'd arrived in the waiting chamber. They stood in the waiting chamber and then after some time were conducted into the king's audience chamber where many chieftains were already gathered. They were all milling around the long wood tables and at the end stood the king's place, a great chair carved of wood and elk horn, inlaid with yaryebu ivory and canopied in white. The sentries announced the king's entry and the king strode into the chamber as all men stood to attention.
King Baldric was a tall man, slim but muscular, an older man but unbent with hard, watchful gray eyes with long, snow white hair and beard. He wore a large golden medallion studded with rubies around his neck and wore a thick and luxurious gray bullbear fur-lined cloak. Upon his head was the iron crown studded with black gems around its circumference. He held in his hand a small golden chain with a golden pendent hanging from it. Behind his throne hung a massive, illuminated tapestry spanning the entire wall behind him. It was one of the most magnificent things Rapheth had ever seen and reminded him of a terrestrial version of the star maps. It was a tableau of victorious battles fought with the Dachs, the giants, the Pallinonians and the Icythians. As the light changed the figures seemed to glow and even shift. But there was important business at hand and Rapheth finally tore his eyes away from it. The king sat upon his throne and then all the other men seated themselves.
"Your Grace!" Said Uwain bowing before the king. The king raised his hand, showing a great ring of gold with a black gem.
"My Lord Thane of Grunhold, Uwain of the Eostur. You are late. But it is good of you to come. I hear you are courageous in your fight against these evil ones."
"I will not give up the fight, Your Grace. If I have arrived late I do apologize for my offense, Your Grace." The king seemed to ignore his last words. His cold eyes, which seemed to miss nothing, slid over the visitors.
"Who are these men with you?"
"These men are from Hybron, Your Grace. Here is Omun, whom I told you before has a secret in his alchemical skill that may defeat the giants, and this one, Lord Rapheth who is of the House of Dahlan and of the tribe of the Karig who is in exile. . ."
Exile. Hearing it hit Rapheth like a stone staff. The king's eyes lit up at hearing about Omun. To Rapheth he merely gave a courteous nod.
"You brought the alchemist swordsmith? Excellent. You have news of the Ohdrufrid and thei
r activities in the south, as you have said numerous times before. Tell me now, the whole of it." There was a murmur of laughter from the northerners but not all found this amusing. Certainly not the men from the south. Many of them remained grim-faced and stern. Uwain went on to tell of his findings of the doings near his town and the surrounding towns and villages.
As it turned out, the giants had come back from many years of silence and began killing and pillaging and carrying off villagers, never to be seen again. Centuries ago these attacks were over blood feuds. But now entire towns and villages were vanishing. When all the southern chieftains had told of their knowledge and experiences it was shown that there seemed to be a systematic wiping out of the outer towns, villages and tribes by the giants. Why, no one knew, other than that they seemed to be trying to drive the people to come back to the gods of the past. Those that still remained firmly wedded to the older gods, those people were allies of the giants, lived in two towns on the edge of the black forest near Fog Head and no decent man would have dealings with them. As far as the southern chieftains were concerned these attacks were not random nor were they limited to just pillaging and killing out of vengeance or blood debts as the old wars were about. A different pattern had emerged. And the battle had turned under Uwain. Omun's trial and error in working with a powerful, new alloy and working with the smiths in Grunhold found out how best to build the most powerful swords the world had ever seen. These swords sliced through flesh and bone like knives slicing through cheese. Men could cut down these fearsome giants, cut them in half in some cases and in the most recent battle a year ago the giants were slaughtered to the great relief and joy of the people. Feelings in Aldeberg were running high when news had traveled of this development. There was hope. But there was also something else. The king listened intently to all these voices.
"I have heard enough. Of course, you must know that as my thanes and chieftains, I expect you to hold the south against the Ohdrufrid and their kin. The north, Aldeberg, is preparing for battle with the Merov clan. They are moving against me again."
"Your Grace, I have not heard of them making trouble for some time. I had no inkling they have come up against Dyrland again," said one of the southern chieftains. The king nodded solemnly.
"They are ever a thorn in our side and I need men at my side to deal with them in the coming months. In the mean time, I shall send men with you to deal with these giants once and for all. However, this man of yours Uwain, Omun, you say? I would very much like to speak with him. Not only can he help deliver this land from the hand of the Ohdrufrid but against the Dachian aggression as well."
In fact, the king required Omun to stay and work with his own blade-smiths. All the men in the land need such blades, so Omun was pressed into the service with the king's smiths in town, to Uwain's dismay and the others in his company. The king invited them to feast with him in the meantime.
Down in their sleeping quarters after the merriment, Uwain told what was truly on his mind. He was sitting with one of his trusted men, Vondar, a large, tall fighting man of flaming red hair and beard who wore the bone and ivory jewelry of a great chieftain and the sigil of his house, the bullbear. Rapheth, Parso and Baudolino sat with them near the fire with a small clay jug of dark ale from the king's reserve. Rapheth sipped his ale slowly, listening to all. The men spoke quietly.
"He has said this-and-that but I have heard nothing from the northern chieftains of these threats from Dach." Muttered Vondar.
"I do not doubt it wholly. Most likely the skirmishes between them have started again. The king has always been one to reveal nothing through a truth." Said Uwain. "But a skirmish is not a war."
"What do you think is wrong?"
"I do not know," Uwain's voice grew quieter and they all hunched closer to hear. "but something is black in Dyrland. And it starts with the royal seat. Here is what I know. Queen Cimbri had borne the king seven children, none of whom made it through childhood. Several were stillborn, some died of illness. The last two, a son first, then a daughter were the strongest and looked to make it out of infancy and they did. But the boy at nine died in a riding accident and the daughter, three, died of the bloody flux. These last two deaths broke the queen and she was never the same afterward. She shut herself up. She sees no one now except her own ladies. What I heard some years ago around the castle and in the courtyard is this. A few years ago a strange woman came to court along with this Man In Black. She was supposedly the man's daughter. This man rose rapidly in power at court and came to be a confidant of the king. It was right before the time that Queen Cimbri became pregnant with their last child. The king and queen had recently lost their son and were hoping for another. When she gave birth to this last child it was a girl, which angered the king but eventually she and the king reconciled. However, it came to the ears of some that this new woman had become the king's mistress during the queen's pregnancy and she was placed as one of the queen's ladies. She was the opposite to the queen in her form and look; dark where the queen was fair-haired, sultry and mysterious where the queen was sunny and ebullient. Some whispered that this woman and her father were behind the deaths of the last two children. After the death of the princess the queen was distraught and inconsolable. She had aged so much it frightened the court. She had aged twenty years almost overnight! People thought she had been cursed by this dark woman!"
"Aye. I remember it. I was at court at the time to pay tribute to the king." Said Vondar. "Who by the way, had become pregnant shortly after the child's death and unwisely was putting on airs as if she were queen of Dyrland. That sat well with no one. The court and the people of Aldeberg were in such an uproar over the matter that the king was forced to hide his mistress. She was put away and eventually her father fled the court. But the king, like the queen, has never been the same after all that business. He has changed for ill, I think."
"We do not know if this alchemist truly fled the court or if he was sent away for some other purpose. You see, The kings of Dyrland not only have had troubles on their northern border but from the chieftains of the south of Dyrland as well. There has always been tension. Some of us believe he wants to rid the land of native south Dyrlanders and bring in Brytlanders."
"But why do you think he would do such a thing?" Asked Parso.
"It is only a thought. I really do not know. But I think it is because this king has Brytlander blood in him going back generations. Many Dyrland kings are Brytlander by blood. They tend to take Dyrlander women as their queens as a sop to the Dyrlander chieftains, else we would not accept them as kings. But the kings mostly have been Brytlanders, who are really Dachian by blood, generations ago. Dach cannot control us the way they want to, is my belief. They never could."
"So what do you think the purpose of the alchemist was?" Asked Baudolino.
"I believe that he had come to help encourage the king to exterminate the south peoples," said Uwain.
"I take it that you men in the south are a fiercer, more independent people than the northerners," said Parso. Uwain and Vondar agreed that this was so.
"I would further add that it is my belief that this Man In Black was sent by the Merov family as their agent to destroy the men in the south and to eventually find a way to create a way for the Merov clan to step into the royal seat of Aldeberg. Long have they wanted to take over this land and rule it. But the people here are strong, especially in the south, and are not cowed easily. We do not suffer empire-builders. They want to get rid of the south chieftains. But, like I have said, it is only a speculation." He said. Uwain nodded.
"Sometimes I wonder if these royal families are all mixed in this together against the rest of us."
"And why do you suppose they would attack their own blood, if, as you say, this Merov family is Dachian?" asked Baudolino.
"I think this last king had become too Dyrlandish for their tastes. For many years he was a good king and supportive of the Dyrlander people and of our sovereignty. It was he who raised me up after I'
d come back. But now it almost seems as if the soul peering out at you behind his eyes is not the king but someone or something else."
"No, he is not the same man any longer." Said Vondar.
"Do you think he is possessed?" Asked Baudolino.
"I do not know what to think. I live in Grunhold. I do not see what goes on here, day to day. Anyway, it is mostly rumor and one never really knows what to believe with that. Still, something is not right here. We are on our own. The king is not with us."
"And now he has taken Omun from us." Said Parso unhappily.
"Yes. Unfortunate." Said Uwain, equally unhappy about this turn of events. So was Rapheth. He was desperately hoping he could get Omun to travel back to his homeland, where Omun belonged. That hope was dashed. Rapheth looked around the dark room. Even in this private chamber of the castle he wondered who could hear. It occurred to him as he caught a shadowed glimpse of one of the cryptic, wooden carved faces peeking out from the eaves that perhaps they were not alone. But the conversation turned to wives, children and goings-on at home and thankfully Rapheth, intrigued and worried by what he heard, could relax a bit into his ale and ponder in silence for the rest of the night.
They reached Grunhold in as many days as it took to get to Aldeberg and this time with more warriors. However, the amount given to them as reinforcements was a pittance and the southern chieftains and thanes had come back greatly insulted and angry with the king. There were even murmurs of revolt against Aldeberg but Uwain quieted the more rash, younger warriors. A few days later they held council once again in Uwain's hall and chieftains from nearly every southern village and town were crowded in. The elders all sat around the great wooden and iron table while everyone else stood. By the time Uwain had called for this council he had a plan. He called for the lady of the house. Idwil came out with an armful of long, gray cloaks. She placed them carefully upon the table and when she was sure she had everyone's attention she spoke.
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