by Rinelle Grey
Smaller than his counterparts, he would be an easy target.
He didn’t see her coming, he was so busy bending over a body on the ground, rifling through its clothing. The brown robes caught Brianna’s eye. Ethean.
The troll picked up the book the old man had been so excited about earlier, sending rage flooding through Brianna. He would pay for this desecration.
“Glahhhh.”
The sound gave her just enough warning to turn, but not enough to move out of the way as another troll barrelled down on her right. She swung her sword in desperation, knowing the small weapon could not block his larger one.
The troll grunted, his body spasming as he twisted around, his hands trying to reach the three arrows that had sprouted from the centre of his back. Brianna didn’t pause, sidestepping his flailing arms, and thrusting her sword into his belly.
Almost before his bulk had hit the ground, she’d turned back to the pillaging troll. But he was gone.
Brianna looked around frantically. Several dark shapes ran back towards the pass, sacks over their shoulders.
With a cry of rage, Brianna raced after them, but she had no hope of catching them. She stopped, half way across the field, breathing heavily, as they disappeared into the shadowy crack in the looming ridge.
She dared not follow them any further.
Instead, she turned back to the village.
Destruction lay everywhere she looked. Benches had been overturned in villager’s haste to escape the trolls and the once green square had been churned up by heavy troll boots. But the worst was the dark shadows that slumped with alarming regularity on the ground.
Her mother was already out, counting the bodies, assisting with the wounded. She should go help her. But instead, she walked towards Ethean’s body, slumped near the wall and bent over him.
She felt for a pulse in his neck, even though she knew it was hopeless. The pallid look on his face and the stillness of his chest told her everything she needed to know.
Why?
He was a scholar, not a fighter. He was a gentle man who had never harmed a fly. He hadn’t deserved to die.
Her eyes filled with tears.
She looked around at the other villagers, already moving on, picking up the pieces as if this was a regular occurrence.
Which it was. The trolls raided the village twice a year, on average, always exacting a heavy toll in bodies. It was a wonder there was anyone left to fight.
Mianna bent over a body in the light of a torch. Brianna watched as she placed a hand on the man’s chest, then directed Terion to carry him to the village square, where the wounded were being laid out.
She saw the look they exchanged, the tiredness in both their eyes.
It was all so wrong. Life could be extinguished in an instant, as Ethean’s had. As Kylis’s had.
And yet, that was part of Eryvale’s strength. The people here lived with passion and strength. It was as if knowing that all they could be sure of was this moment, caused them to grasp each moment with both hands, and hang on to it tightly. For happiness was fleeting this close to the ridge.
That was exactly why Mianna and Terion needed to be together. They needed to have their chance, before one of them was killed. There were no guarantees of tomorrow, only today.
But how was she going to manage it?
Many possible plans chased each other around her head as she helped carry the wounded and dead to separate sides of the square. She quickly rejected the idea that she should agree to marry Terion so that her sister could, searching for other possibilities. She deserved her own chance at happiness, just as much as Mianna did. But how could both of them have what they wanted?
The twin law was written into the trade treaty that the different villages had agreed to centuries ago when they decided to remain independent after the last king had fallen. Changing it would involve gathering together the rulers of over fifty small villages and larger towns. It was impossible.
And even though twins were rare, the idea of getting two wives at once would sway many rulers to vote to keep the law.
Convincing her mother to override the law for their village was just as fruitless. Eryvale could only produce so much of the food and materials they needed, especially when the trolls raided with such regularity, they were dependent on trade to provide what they couldn’t produce.
She grasped the legs of the body in front of her as Corlin grasped his shoulders. It was the visitor, the one who had intended to go on a suicide mission over the ridge. Well, it looked like he got his wish, he’d died a hero.
“Anyone who’s not tending to the wounded, go home and get some sleep.” Her mother’s voice floated across the square. “There’s no need to guard the pass tonight, the trolls won’t be back so soon.”
And that was when the idea came to her, so perfect, she wondered why she hadn’t thought of it earlier. A smile spread across her face as she filled in the minor details of the plan. Yes, Mianna could marry Terion, and she would take the chance to do what she had always dreamt of doing.
In the early hours of the morning, when they’d done all they could to help the wounded, she and Mianna crawled into bed, exhausted.
Her twin was silent for a while, then her voice said in the darkness. “Bri? About Terion…” Mianna asked.
“You’re right, Mia, he’s very sweet,” Brianna interrupted.
“I don’t want to rush you, but…” Mianna’s voice trailed off.
It only hardened Brianna’s resolve. “You’re right. We can’t sit around waiting forever.”
“Are you sure?” Mianna asked doubtfully.
“We need to live, not sit around waiting to die in the next troll attack,” Brianna said, her voice harsher than she had intended. “You deserve to marry the man you love.”
“So do you.” Mianna’s voice was quiet.
“He’s dead. I won’t wait until Terion is too.”
The sun was high in the sky by the time Mianna woke the next morning. She wanted to turn and bury her head under the pillow to hide the images of last night that haunted her. So much pain.
But hiding from it had never helped anyone in Eryvale. Hiding was too close to giving up, and if you gave up, you were dead. So Mianna made herself sit up in bed.
The bed next to hers was empty. Not an unusual occurrence, for Brianna often woke before her to ride or practice with her sword. This morning, she was probably helping dig graves. Well, Mianna could at least do something to help her twin, she thought, as she looked at the bed, sheets flung back. Bri hated housework with a passion, but usually put up with her twin’s insistence on keeping their room neat. She was excused this morning.
Rising, Mianna made her own bed before crossing the room to make Brianna’s. Unease settled over her when she found a note on the pillow in her sister’s neat, no nonsense print. She skimmed the words and the unease blossomed into panic.
Dearest Mia,
I wish you much happiness with Terion. He’s a good man, and I hope he will give you the life you want. In fact, I’m sure he will.
But that life isn’t for me. I still cannot forget Kylis and even if I could, I just don’t feel the same way about Terion that you do. But it’s not fair that you should have to give up your dreams for me. Life is too short.
Don’t grieve for me sister, for I am also doing what I want. I have long wanted to do something to avenge Kylis, and though I can stand no hope of prevailing, at least the weight that has been on my chest since his death will be gone.
I love you. Be happy enough for both of us.
Bri.
“NO!” Mianna’s scream echoed around the room, bringing her mother running.
Unable to speak, Mianna thrust the note at her, and her mother skimmed it with the same rapidity that Mianna had. Then she read it again more carefully.
“When did she leave?” she asked.
“I have no idea.” How could she have been so deeply asleep that she didn’t hear Brianna leave
? Had it been early this morning? The events of the previous night, and Brianna’s suspicious change of heart began to feel heavy in her chest. Had Brianna planned this, even then? How could she not have noticed?
Turning on her heels, her mother left the room. Mianna pulled on her dressing gown as she raced after her mother, running to keep up with her long strides. Down the stairs, out the back door, to stare across the open, blood stained fields, to the ridge.
There was no sign of Brianna.
“Surely the guards at the pass will have stopped her?” Mianna’s voice was high and panicked.
“I told them to take the night off. We’d lost so many men, and we’ve never had two attacks in quick succession.” Her mother’s voice was haunted.
Mianna collapsed onto the grass, unable to believe that her sister was gone.
No one ever came back once they crossed the ridge.
Every man, woman and child in the village trained to fight the trolls from the day they could hold a sword, but none were stupid enough to cross the ridge. They trained for the times when the trolls would make forays into the village, for who knew what reason. They managed to hold them back, just, but they always paid the price in the lives of those they cared about.
Only those who wanted to die actually willingly crossed the ridge. And now Brianna had joined them.
In an instant, Mianna understood why Brianna hadn’t cried when Kylis had died. The whole world faded around her. Numbness invaded her body, seeping from her heart into every part of her. Something like this just couldn’t happen without any warning. It couldn’t be true.
But it was. Brianna was gone. A fact that only became more apparent as the day wore on. It seemed so strange, that life continued when she felt so much pain. People gathered around her mother’s home, offering sympathy and food, but all Mianna wanted was to be alone.
She fled up to her room, but even more memories of her twin haunted her there. She kept turning around, expecting Bri to be standing beside her. Her heart ached.
Time, seeming totally irrelevant, passed without her being aware of it. She felt like she was just living in a trance, not willing to pull herself out of it. If she did, it would begin to hurt for real.
The soft knock on the door disturbed her hard won detachment. Ignoring the intrusion, she tried to regain the disconnection, but Terion’s soft voice asking, “Mianna, are you all right?” shattered it.
Sobs overtook her, her whole body shaking with them until she could barely breathe. Somehow, Terion was holding her, rocking her, lending her his strength by his silence. He made no attempt to say anything, for what was there to say? Nothing could make this right. Nothing could undo what had been done.
If only she hadn’t tried to convince Brianna to move on from Kylis. If she hadn’t mentioned her growing feelings for Terion, maybe Brianna would still be here.
She pushed him away. She couldn’t do it. How could she be with Terion, knowing their feelings for each other were what had sent Bri to her death? She would never be able to look at him again without seeing the loss of her twin.
“Mianna? What’s wrong?” Terion asked, confused.
“It’s all our fault. If it weren’t for… us, she’d still be here,” she choked out.
He said nothing to that, and she looked up to see a stricken expression on his face. “It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I should never have told you how I felt about you. I knew Brianna didn’t like me, so I should have kept quiet.”
Mianna shook her head. “It’s not anyone’s fault. It just is. And now we have to live with it.”
But how could she live without her twin?
She’d never expected to have to. They were supposed to live long, happy lives, then die together, surrounded by their children and grandchildren. Neither of them was supposed to ever have to live without the other.
In fact, according to legend, a twin was not supposed to survive the death of her other half. The emotional connection between them should cause her to want to simply give up on life.
Yet, though she felt devastated, she didn’t feel like giving up.
She took a moment to reach out to Brianna, to really search for her. As a child, she’d always been able to find her twin when they played hide and seek, and she’d always known when Bri was in any kind of trouble.
But she felt no sense of trouble surrounding her twin now. And…
She sat up, and wiped away her tears. “She isn’t dead.”
“Mianna?” Terion’s brow furrowed.
“I’m not crazy,” she assured him. “But she’s my twin, if she were dead, I’d know it. She’s not.”
“But… but she wouldn’t stand a chance against the trolls.”
“She didn’t go that way,” Mianna said with certainty. “She’s at the ferry pier.”
Terion jumped up. “We’ll go find her and bring her back.”
Mianna put out a hand. “We can’t Ter,” she said sadly.
“Why not?”
She hesitated, searching for the right words. “It’s not right for either of us, Terion. I can’t ask Brianna to marry you, but I can’t give you up either. And anyway, Bri’s the happiest I have felt her in a long time. She needs this. She needs to get away, to see the rest of the world. We always talked about doing it with Kylis. It’s fitting that she’s going to go now.”
Indecision warred on Terion’s face. “So what do we do then?”
Mianna took a deep breath. “We mourn. Then we get married, and live our lives.”
Terion’s eyebrows shot up. “But what about Brianna? Will she come back?”
“I don’t know. I hope so.”
*****
Brianna sat on the end of the pier, waiting for the weekly ferry to arrive. For a while, when she had sensed Mianna’s distress, she’d regretted her decision. She’d almost given up and gone home. But when Mia cheered up, she knew she’d worked it out. They’d shared a moment’s wordless communication, and she knew her twin would be all right.
Leaving her with no regrets, only anticipation of what was to come.
Bymere. The big city. The unknown and exciting.
What would she find there?
She passed the hour’s wait pleasantly in the warm sun, thinking of all the possibilities ahead of her. When she sighted the ferry coming down the river from its final port of call at a mining village, she jumped up and waved frantically, lest the ferryman miss her. Though the ferry passed her village every few days, it only infrequently stopped here.
Seeing her, the man waved and pulled up to the end of the pier, tying up the ferry before extending a narrow board to bridge the distance. Brianna balanced her way across with little fear and only took the ferryman’s hand to jump to the deck out of politeness.
Even the trip on the ferry was a new experience to Brianna She’d never gone further afield than the next village, half a day’s ride. As the ferry sailed down the river, they passed other villages, stopping at some to take on or deliver goods. Sometimes children ran alongside the ferry, waving excitedly.
It wasn’t until the ferryman unpacked his lunch box and the smell wafted over to her, that she realised she had neglected to pack her own food. She looked longingly at his home packed sandwiches, then pretended to look out over the railing when he glanced up.
“Did you bring lunch?” he asked her.
She shook her head. “I was so excited, I forgot,” she admitted. “I’m fine though, I’ll get something when we get to the city.”
“Well, my wife packed more than I can eat. She always does. Why don’t you help me eat it so I don't have to throw it over the side and waste good food,” he offered.
Brianna opened her mouth to politely decline, but her stomach rumbling interrupted her. She hadn’t eaten any breakfast either, since she had snuck out before dawn, so she was hungry enough already.
“Thanks,” she sat down next to him and took the offered sandwich.
“So, what are you hoping to find in Bymere?”
the ferryman asked.
What was she hoping to find? She couldn’t really say, she wasn’t searching for anything but rather avoiding something. “I don’t know,” she shrugged. “Just thought I’d see what it was like. You know, before I settled down and all that stuff.”
The man smiled. “Do you have any friends there?”
Brianna shook her head, trying to look nonchalant. But inside, doubts began to rear their ugly heads. “I guess I’ll find an inn or something.”
The ferryman hesitated for a moment, then offered, “My brother has an inn at the harbour. I can take you there if you like and introduce you. If you have nothing else to do, he’s always looking for some help in the kitchen.”
It seemed almost too good to be true. “Why are you offering to help me?” Brianna asked suspiciously.
“Because you remind me of my daughter. And I would hope someone would offer her the same help if she were in a strange town far from home.”
Brianna relaxed, and smiled sheepishly. “In that case, then yes, that would be wonderful, thanks.”
Lyall stamped the mud off his boots and slipped back the hood of his cloak as he walked into the inn. The warmth inside was a welcome change from the rain splattered streets and for a moment, he allowed himself to let his guard down. He’d stayed in this inn each time he visited the city. He felt as safe here as he could anywhere this far from home.
Little had changed since his last visit, nearly twelve months ago. It was a Tuesday night and the common room was relatively quiet, only a few patrons enjoying a late dinner, and one lone bard playing a ballad half-heartedly on the dais.
A kitchen maid came over to him, looking bored and tired. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, dinner and an ale please,” Lyall asked, ever polite.
The woman nodded and headed back towards the kitchen doors.
Lyall’s attention was arrested by a sudden scent, so unexpected here that it took him a moment to process it. The scent of power. Instead of slamming him with spices as his father’s magic did, or the scent of roses that characterised his mother, this scent was fragile, yet fresh, with a hint of sweetness, vanilla maybe?
