by L. M. Roth
Dag stared hard at him and shook his head slowly from side to side.
“No, she serves none that we know of.”
“What of her friends?” Marcus persisted. “Does she have any friends among the village women who serve them, and may have taught her their ways?”
Dag stopped walking abruptly and rubbed his chin, as though the gesture aided him in his thoughts. Then a light came into his eyes and he faced Marcus with a growing comprehension.
“Melisande does not have any true friends among the village women, except for Niamh,” he answered. “But not long before Brenus died he commented that Melisande had started visiting the village of Annick daily, and he was glad she was making friends.”
Dag suddenly turned pale and the look of helpless fear that swamped his face almost frightened Marcus in its intensity. He seemed, Marcus thought, like prey that was paralyzed at the sight of the hunter who stalked it stealthily and relentlessly and knows there is nowhere to hide…
“And in Annick lives the sister of Niamh, Enora, to whom she had not spoken for more than twenty years, not since we cast the Astra and the Tuadan out of Leith. Enora had been furious with her sister for turning her back on Eoghan whom they both served fervently. It was noted that Melisande was the one who brought them back together and said that sisters should not be estranged.”
The look of cold fury on his face chilled Marcus almost as much as his next words.
“That happened right before Spring Festival, when Niamh defied me by thanking Eoghan after I had expressly forbidden it.”
Marcus knew there was nothing further he could do to help Dag with the trouble that lay ahead for him in the days to come. For trouble there would be, of that Marcus had no doubt. But he had family affairs of his own to settle and must travel home quickly. There he would deal with his disobedient daughter and make her see the trouble she had caused for all concerned.
He knew that the quickest way to reach home was to take the land route from Eirinia into Valerium, and from there to travel by ship to Lycenium. He knew also that to do so was to invite danger if he was spotted, yet he was driven by an urgent sense that he was needed at home.
He decided to take his chances and risk the land journey from Eirinia to Valerium. There were no pubic conveyances in all of Eirinia, so he traveled on foot. It had been long since he had undertaken such an excursion, and he was surprised at how quickly he adapted to it. Surely he had grown lazy in the years since his estate had been restored and he was accustomed to having a carriage at his disposal to convey him wherever he wished!
As he rambled through the forests of Eirinia, he gradually became aware that the night terrors still roamed abroad. He recalled his flight through the country long ago, and sensed that the fear of those beings who walked by night was still on the land. It was not pleasant to lie under a tree at night and wonder whether some unseen eyes were watching him. He remembered the tales of those who walked at night to take back the land they once ruled, remembered also Judoc’s warning to keep to the path…
He collected his thoughts and chided himself. He was Marcus Maximus, a soldier of Alexandros, under the divine protection of Dominio, charged with spreading the Kingdom of Heaven, and if any of the Tuadan accosted him it would be a mistake they would regret for a long time to come!
After a journey of ten days, spent in the forests and the wild places of Eirinia, Marcus at last entered the borders of Valerium. To his astonishment he became emotional at the sight of the guards posted at the gates of the great wall that encompassed her boundaries. It was such vigilance that kept the Empire strong; nothing was left to chance, and her borders were guarded day and night by the strongest and most stalwart of her Army.
He would need to get past their constant vigilance if he were to enter Valerium without the Emperor’s knowledge. Marcus knew that despite the years of friendship he had enjoyed with Emperor Urbanus, he would not be exempt from the law forbidding the worship of Dominio within the environs of Valerium. The thought brought a bitter taste to his mouth; he had not realized how fond of the Emperor he had become during their long years of acquaintance. Yet there it was: he could do nothing about it.
He looked ahead to where the sentinels stood on patrol on the wall: how to get past them and enter was not going to be easy. They were stationed two abreast at intervals of about a quarter of a mile along the massive wall. The wall itself was approximately twenty feet tall; impossible for him to jump should he be so fortunate as to find an unguarded space. He puzzled over the dilemma and then cast his mind back to the lessons on warfare taught him by his father Valerius Maximus, the renowned Commander of the Imperial Army…
“When invading new territory always look for a breach in the wall,” Valerius had said. “Look for a space where the wall looks worn down, perhaps neglected and in need of repair. Keep looking for you will find it if you search: there is not an army in the world where a soldier does not grow weary of the long hours on the watch and grows careless in his vigilance.
“And the expense of maintaining the wall itself causes some to take shortcuts, delaying repairs and keeping only what is truly necessary intact. And it is best to try to breach under cover of darkness when the sentinels are weary and their eyes play tricks on them. In such a case a lone invader may be taken for an animal, or a figment of the imagination. In such cases success has been reaped to those who know the tactics of warfare.”
Hmmm, Marcus thought. Look for the breach. He did not waste time looking for a visible hole or space at the top of the wall: that would have been far too noticeable to those on duty, and mended at once. No, it was at ground level where he must cast his eyes…
He managed to stay out of sight of the sentinels by keeping a distance and utilizing some tools he had brought with him from Eirinia. Before he left, he had asked Dag for a spade and a large scythe. He knew that he would need to go through Valerium to get to a port and find a ship that would take him to Lycenium, but to do so he must remain undetected by the watchmen who guarded the borders into Valerium. He would need some disguise or a ruse to enter, and decided that some gardening tools might prove handy; it was possible he might be able to pass himself off as a gardener working near the wall.
With this intent in mind, he staked out a small plot of earth about fifty yards across from the wall. Noting that he had caught the attention of those posted on the wall, he hailed an innocent looking salute, and was hailed back. Then he fell to digging a hole in the ground. He took his time with the excavating, and glanced behind him at some maple trees that erected their leafy height about thirty feet over his head. He saw some weeds sprouting around their base and put the scythe to good use, whacking away at the offending invaders.
Marcus soon collected a heap of weeds and searched for some place to dump them. There was nowhere in the landscape around him, so he cast his eyes in the direction of the wall. And he noticed what had escaped his notice before. Just from the base of the wall where it curved around he saw a tuft of some plants. The rest of the wall was hidden from his immediate view, so he carried his burden of weeds with him and set out in the direction of the greenery he had spotted.
The guards continued their pacing on the wall, and now accustomed to his presence, disregarded him completely. Marcus casually strolled up close to the wall, still under the pretext of looking for a place to dump the weeds. He was now close enough to see what he was looking for. Thistle it was, large clumps of it; sprouting through the wall itself, a sure indicator of a hole that went through to the other side. He noted also that there was no sentinel stationed on this portion of the wall, which allowed the breach to occur in the first place.
Marcus glanced away and dumped his burden at the edge of the woods that grew wild on the perimeter of the border of Eirinia. He returned to the plot of earth and continued digging for about an hour, wiping his brow from the sweat of his labor, and acting weary from his exertions. At last he collected his tools, and with a backward glance and salute to th
e sentinels, strolled back into the woods from whence he came. When he had traveled about half a mile back into them and felt safe from detection, he stopped and decided to make camp and sleep until darkness came.
For when night fell he would put his plan of escape into execution.
Marcus donned a dark gray robe and wound a black bandeau around his head, bringing it down to just above his brow. He did not want any of the sentinels to recognize the gardener from the afternoon, should they be posted back on the wall. He gathered his pack and took with him the spade and the scythe, carefully wrapping them in his cloak so the gleam of metal would not betray him in the dark.
He crept back to the border, keeping as low to the ground as he could, stepping stealthily so that not even a blade of grass crunching beneath his feet should betray his presence. He was careful to breathe in slow and regulated breaths, and stifled the sound as best he could. When he reached the wall, he stayed under the shelter of the maple trees, his shadow blending into their shade, while he searched the wall for the watchmen posted at the top.
He counted six sentinels posted at the three nearest stations. He edged to the portion where he had spotted the thistle earlier, keeping to the shadow of the trees.
Curse his luck! There were now two sentinels pacing right above the section where the weeds sprouted through.
What to do now? He pondered for several minutes: he had not counted on a guard stationed right above where he planned to break through. His plan was to dig through the thistle to clear the hole and enter the wall at that spot. But that would not be possible with two sentinels pacing right overhead.
Could he create a diversion? Was it possible to draw their attention away from that spot long enough for him to dig through and breach the wall? Marcus pondered for a long time, racking his brain to recall all that his father had taught him of strategic warfare tactics. And then he thought of a new plan…
Quickly he scurried through the trees to the opposite wall where he saw the six sentinels posted at intervals earlier in the day. He scrambled back deeper into the cover of the woods, and hastily gathered some pebbles from the ground. After he had gathered an armful, he moved closer to the wall, keeping out of sight under the cover of the trees.
He took a deep breath to calm himself, and silently prayed to Dominio. Oh grant me success in this endeavor, great Dominio. Let my tactics fool the sentinels so I may enter Valerium and make my way home to my family.
A deep peace suddenly flooded his being, and he knew that Dominio was granting him the answer to his prayer. He watched the guards until he caught the rhythm of their pacing, and how long it took each one to cross his section of the wall.
At last he judged the time to be right. Marcus took one of the stones he held and took careful aim. He did not wish to kill any of the guards, so he aimed for the knee of the nearest one. When his stone met the guard’s knee with a whack! Marcus quickly aimed at his partner. Both of the guards doubled over, their exposed legs receiving the full impact of his flying missiles. He then took aim at their elbows to prevent them from loosing any arrows upon him.
He remained in that spot sending stone after stone raining on the hapless guards, aiming at their knees and elbows. They cried out in pain, and called for the guards along the rest of the wall to come to their aid. Marcus kept the stones flying until all of the guards had assembled in that spot. He then released one after the other in a rapid fire of missiles, hitting the knees and elbows of one guard after another, inflicting great pain on all of them.
Once he had wounded each one of them, he silently scrambled through the trees and headed for the opposite wall, now left exposed and unguarded. He bent himself over and ran for the spot where the thistle grew. Hastily he removed his scythe and cut through the weeds. In minutes he had cleared a hole just large enough to squeeze through. He glanced upward, but did not see any sign of the sentinels. Indeed, he heard the cries of the wounded from the opposite wall where they were all assembled, looking for signs of the invaders who had assaulted them.
Marcus made haste to scramble through the hole, then pushed the thistle back through to disguise his entry from immediate detection. He crept silently along the wall away from the soldiers’ encampment until he was well out of range of the sight of the sentinels, who were still distracted on the opposite wall. He moved with the stealth of a cat away from the vicinity, not even glancing back to see if he had been detected.
Only when he was half a mile clear of the wall did he break into a run until he was well out of the area of the sentries posted on duty.
Dominio be praised, he exulted! He gave a silent thanks to His Heavenly Father who had brought him safely through the midst of his enemies, and to his earthly father who had taught him the tactics of warfare so patiently so long ago.
Chapter XXII
Land of Eternal Bliss
Tullia soon realized why Lucerna was a land where few who entered it returned. For it was a land where one could be entirely content with life. If one was happy where one was, what need to ever leave it?
The secret, she thought, was in the beauty of the land and the inhabitants. Lucerna was quite simply the loveliest place she had ever seen, and it appeared that the people were happy and pleased with life. All of its citizens seemed to be in the best of health, and unusually beautiful. Tullia had never seen any place where there was not a sick or crippled person begging in the city streets, nor where everyone was pleasing in appearance. It was as though the word ‘ugly’ was one that was forbidden to enter this land’s domain.
Lucius was soon taken with the young ladies of the village, and had difficulty deciding which he found the most pleasing in appearance. Tullia reminded him that they came to search for Logos, and he had better keep his mind on the task at hand. He merely smiled at her indulgently, with the air of one who must keep a child appeased. She knew that he might do much harm among the maidens of Lucerna, were he given a chance. He would not have any such opportunity, if she had her say about it!
They set about finding a residence where the ruling authority would dwell. For Tullia knew that Decimus would not abase himself by keeping company with the ordinary citizenry. Only the dwelling of the ruler of Lucerna would suit his pride.
They did not detect any such abode. For all of the houses were attractive, and none were more imposing than another. Such a factor made Tullia’s task more difficult; how could she find Decimus if she could not depend on his usual habits?
She was at a loss, and made discreet inquiries among the village people. Who led them, she asked, and where did they dwell? She was not prepared for the answer they gave her.
No one led them, they answered, surprised at such a question. It was true that they were under the dominion of the Valeriun Empire, but they merely sent a tribute to the Emperor and paid the requisite taxes, and obeyed the laws. But within their borders among their own people, no one led them, for each was free to do as they wished.
Such a way of life, they informed her, worked very well for them, and each of their people found contentment and bliss. Indeed, their own name for Lucerna, Faranaza, meant Land of Eternal Bliss. Where that name originated, they said in response to her question, they could not say. It had always been called such, and would be until the end of days.
Tullia puzzled over this, but finding Decimus was her first priority. She asked the villagers where a man of the name of Hadrianus lived. This question produced only blank stares. She repeated her inquiry, thinking they had not understood.
She was met with more blank stares. No one with the name Hadrianus had ever lived within the borders of their land. Not now, not ever.
She did not think she could bear one more disappointment. Where was Decimus? And where had he taken Logos? She cried out her despair to the air around her, but only silence greeted her cries.
Lucius could not bear to think of his mother’s despair. He knew it was entirely his fault. Had he not taken Logos from the safety of his father’s hiding place the
Sword would not have been stolen.
They decided to stay in Lucerna for a couple of days to give the horses and Cyriacus a chance to rest. They found a small inn that suited their needs and, to Tullia’s own surprise, she was soon ensconced in a bed where she sank at once into a deep sleep. She was, Lucius felt, utterly exhausted with travel and anxiety. The rest would be good for her, and he would not mind exploring the small village and seeing the sights it had to offer.
He roamed the streets of the village aimlessly, pausing only to admire some comely maiden who met his wandering eye. He had never seen so many lovely young ladies in one place before, not even in Lycenium which all of the aristocratic young ladies of the Empire visited for a season of polishing before their debut into society. He would regret the day when it was time to depart for territory that was all too familiar!
One in particular continued to catch his eye, the one who peddled at the fruit stall. She was small and petite, with skin as smooth as a babe’s, and a high-pitched voice as light as a girl who had not yet left childhood. Her general appearance was like that of a doll; her tiny frame and petite features combined to make her look not quite real somehow, as though she were made of stuff rarer than flesh and blood.
Her name was Roshana, and she took the stall in turns with her father Zorash. Her mother had died many years ago, and she was all that her father had in the world. Lucius was careful to patronize the stall when he knew she would be stationed at it.
This morning he sauntered over to her casually, noting how her dark eyes brightened at the sight of him. She dropped her gaze and smiled demurely without catching his eye. Her modesty was producing in Lucius an emotion he had never felt before.
