Glaide was astonished by how quickly the work was going. From far away, he could already make out what looked like some kind of central commons. Paving stones had been arranged there to form a circle, and around the circle, several buildings were under construction, with the largest of them already completed.
“That must be the home of their leader,” thought the young man. Further back from the commons, smaller homes – still under construction – dotted the plain, following anarchy more than a systematic city plan. Many of the buildings were still nothing more than wooden framework. From the way everything was arranged, it was evident that each inhabitant had simply begun building on whatever patch of land pleased them, without trying to construct the great, logical grids of smaller and larger roads that many cities, such as Shinozuka, featured. For the moment, there was no city wall, making it difficult to determine what the final size of the village would be. It would be easier, though, to wait until the rest of the construction was mostly finished, before they built their wall.
“Master, do you think they’ll already be able to provide us with provisions?”
“I think so, yes. Even if they have not yet begun cultivating their crops and such, they will have purchased food and materials in nearby villages. Perhaps they will have some surplus that they would be willing to sell to us. We’ll see, soon enough.” And with that, the man began to descend the hill, his disciple at his heels. The latter stumbled with each step, from the encumbrance of the sacks, but he followed his master without a word. The two individuals passed several houses under construction, without anyone noticing their presence; the villagers were far more occupied with their work. Suddenly, though, Glaide was surprised to hear two voices crying out his name. He turned, and spotted the two children who had led him to his master dashing towards him.
“Hey there, kiddoes. How are you?” began the adolescent with a smile.
“Glaide, you’re here!” cried the boy. He was about to add something, but then his gaze drifted over to Kezthrem, and his voice caught in his throat. The girl, though, had yet to make so much as a sound. The man smiled wryly, but the children seemed to be paralyzed. Glaide cleared his throat.
“Hmm... Right, so tell me, you two, do you know where I can find Gelden? You were traveling along with him when we met...”
The two children seemed to recover, perhaps in part because Kezthrem had turned to look away, and had moved a bit away from the trio.
“Of course,” replied the girl. “He lives in the big house, near the commons.”
“Thank you. I’ll head there to find him now. See you guys later!” With that, the young man moved over to join his master, then the two approached the home that the children had pointed out. They noticed on their way that the tavern was one of the already-finished buildings. It already seemed to be overrun with business. Since midday was approaching, the two visitors decided to stop there for a bite to eat, before continuing on their way. As they first entered the common room, no one seemed to pay them any attention. However, silence slowly settled over the place. It was not difficult to see that they recognized Kezthrem as the man that they had traded with before. However, when the eyes of the gypsies fell on the adolescent accompanying him, their eyes seemed to light up. A woman’s voice, that of the mother of the two children, who was evidently also the owner of the tavern, rose up from the group.
“Glaide, is that you? I remember you from when you travelled with us before.”
Glaide looked at her with a smile. In that moment, he felt proud to be greeted like this, standing beside his master, but with all eyes trained on him.
“Hello, everyone!” he said, with a wave to everyone. “I see that your work is progressing well.” His declaration was met with laughter, and as the master and his student headed for a table, everyone gathered around to recount their anecdotes about the construction of the village. At least half an hour passed before Glaide and Kezthrem were left to eat their lunch in peace.
“You certainly weren't exaggerating when you spoke of these people,” declared the latter. “These people remember you well, and seem to hold you in high esteem.”
“That’s true, although I don’t entirely know why. It is I who am in their debt for what they did: I found you thanks to them, and they gave me a good meal when I first met them. And more than that, they gave the inhabitants of Rackk a proper resting place. They are very good people.”
The man nodded slowly, with a slightly absent air.
The master and his disciple headed out to start their errands in the early afternoon. Kezthrem insisted that they start by tracking down Gelden. They found him walking about in the commons. When he saw them, his gaze first fell on Glaide, and a great big smile illuminated his face. Then, he turned towards the older man, and this time, his eyes seemed to light up. He headed slowly towards them.
“There you are,” exclaimed the adolescent. “We were looking for you. I’m glad to see that you’re well.”
“And I’m pleased to note that your quest has finally reached its end,” responded the man in a calm, even voice.
“This is Kezthrem, my master. He’s the same man that you traded with briefly, before we met. I remember that you wished to speak with him.”
The two men shook hands.
“It’s an honor to meet someone who once took care of my disciple,” declared Kezthrem.
“And as this young man said, I wished to meet with you. Would you have time to have a small chat with a poor, old man?”
“Of course,” responded the master of Iretane, bowing his head slightly. Glaide looked from the one man to the other. While he had expected his master to overwhelm the gypsy with his presence, strong gaze, and dominant bearing, he found that the two were actually quite evenly matched, each giving off a similar air, an imprint of wisdom and knowledge. The adolescent was proud to know both of them. The two began to head towards the biggest of the buildings. The boy moved to follow them, weighed down by the enormous sacks, but his master turned to him and spoke.
“There are things that need to be purchased, Glaide. I’ll meet you at the base of the hill that we came over at the end of the afternoon. Go see if you can procure everything we need. You’ll find a list in one of the sacks.”
The adolescent’s jaw dropped. He turned towards the older man for help, but Gelden didn’t even pause in his step. Kezthrem followed him, and the two disappeared behind the door.
Chapter 23
GLAIDE felt anger welling up inside of him. He’d wanted to be a part of the conversation; he’d hoped he might learn something. Everything these two men had to discuss was bound to be interesting.
“I should have known he’d do something like that,” he grumbled through gritted teeth. With a resigned sigh, he dug through the sacks for the list. It was so long that he found it with little effort. After looking it over briefly, he noted that most of the things on it likely wouldn’t be terribly hard to find, assuming the inhabitants had set up a few market stalls or the like. His first priority was to take the clothing to a laundry. Then, he’d be able to collect them again by the end of the day. As he wandered through the tiny lanes that were in the process of gradually being constructed, he realized that there were far more people here already than just the one small clan he had encountered before. He remembered that they had said they were split into several groups, all wandering the Known Lands, looking for a suitable location for their town. A majority of those groups must already have come to join them here. Since the young man had no idea where to go, he decided to ask for help. He spotted a group of young people, about his age, and walked up to them.
“Umm... excuse me.” The group, made up of five or six young people, turned towards him, as one body.
“Hey,” exclaimed a blond boy. “You’re the guy we saw arrive this morning, with that man.”
“It’s possible, yes...”
“You must be that guy our parents are always talking about. You were the one who showed them this place.
”
“Yes, well, not exactly, no...” Glaide was at a loss. “I mean, they found it before they met me, but I asked if they would let me travel with them, and in the end, they decided to st...”
A girl cut him off, saying, “Everyone has been talking about how you were searching for someone... Is it the man that came with you? Who is he?”
“Yes, he’s the one. He’s my master, but...” Here, Glaide paused, because the group had suddenly fallen into an abrupt silence, and looked at him with wide eyes.
“And... what school do you study?” asked a young woman timidly.
“Iretane.”
This time, he could hear their murmurs of admiration. Glaide savoured the moment; he felt somehow superior in front of them. He had to remind himself not to let his head get too big.
“Listen, I was just looking to see if you have a laundry or something like that. Can you help me?”
“With pleasure,” exclaimed the blond. “My parents run the laundry. If you continue straight ahead until you come to the big house, then turn right at the end of the road, you’ll find it.”
“Thank you.” With that, Glaide turned in the direction the boy had pointed. As he walked away, he heard a voice call out towards him.
“Hey, are you really a protector?”
The young man smiled, and without turning around, replied, “Yep!” He shifted his cape so that it floated up a bit in the breeze, conscious of the eyes that were following him. “Ah, the little things in life,” he said, unable to prevent a smile. “It’s amazing, though, how much importance we place on what others think of us...” As he thought about that, he forced himself to keep a level head.
He found the laundry without difficulty, and left the clothing there. They assured him it would be ready before it was time for him to leave. He paid, then took a better look at the list. At first glance, it seemed endless, but the adolescent quickly realized that there weren’t so many different kinds of things on the list: there was a section of food, a few new pieces of clothing, and a few more unusual objects, such as sharpening stones, flints, and some more wooden sabers.
As his master had expected, Glaide quickly discovered that the only merchandise available for sale at the moment was the surplus of what the inhabitants had purchased from the nearby villages. He located all of the food that he needed, though, and so filled one of the sacks. The clothing was also easy to buy, since the first few shops were already set up to sell them. However, the more specific items on the list were harder to find. There was no armory yet, and no shop selling traveling supplies, specifically. By the end of the day, Glaide had only been able to find the sharpening stones, which he’d exchanged for a few shakuhachis, without really knowing if it was a good trade or not. He remembered to collect the laundry, then headed for the rendezvous point just as the shadows on the ground began to lengthen.
At the last minute, he decided to make a detour through the commons, which was lucky, as he spotted his master there, just leaving Gelden’s house. He waved from the stoop where he stood. The young man hurried to join him as quickly as the sacks, heavy and cumbersome, allowed. He quickly mentioned what he’d been able to find and what he couldn’t procure, but the man, in return, said nothing about his own afternoon. He didn’t appear concerned about the missing items, and rather seemed very relaxed and tranquil.
“Their conversation must have gone well,” thought Glaide.
As the two walked away, the adolescent suddenly realized that many of the inhabitants of the village were watching them go. Feeling a new wave of pride wash over him, the boy puffed up his chest, and tried to hold the bags as if they weren’t heavy, though they certainly were. The admiration that he felt radiating towards him went to his head, so that he never even saw it coming. Kezthrem stood a few yards ahead, as if he was waiting for his disciple. He’d bent down to pick up a stick, and was looking at it as though it was unimportant. But when the young man reached him, he turned the bit of wood quickly, striking it against the legs of his disciple, who fell, accompanied by the laughter of the passersby. Before he had a chance to say anything, Kezthrem spoke with a loud voice, audible to everyone.
“You could have prevented that. Is that how you intend to fight your enemies?”
Glaide felt his face redden; his master had decided to teach him a lesson, as was his wont, this time here, before the entire village. The man spoke again, softly this time, for only his student’s ears. “Do not think that you are superior to these people, Glaide. Strength has nothing to do with knowing how to fight. Without them, you would have nothing to eat, and don’t forget that.” With that, he walked away, his steps rapid.
The adolescent got up painfully and collected the sacks. He was embarrassed, even more because of what his master had divined than because of the laughter that, after all, was not intended maliciously. Kezthrem had been right, once again: these villagers provided them with their means of survival. He had no right to feel superior to them, just because he didn’t work in a menial way, or because he was a protector, or because he was studying at a prestigious and unusual school. As he distanced himself from the commons, he moved much more humbly, as he ought to, letting the heavy sacks weigh him down. His master had disappeared in the distance, and he knew he wouldn’t catch up to him before they reached the dojo. He stopped regularly to catch his breath, and while it had taken a half an hour to reach the town, the trip back took at least double that.
The adolescent arrived just as night fell, covered in sweat and exhausted, but happy that his burden had let him pay the piper, so to speak, and make up for his earlier faults. He entered the silent house. After setting down the sacks, he went to look for his master. As he expected, Kezthrem stood in the garden, gazing at the stars, and Glaide moved to join him. He waited for Kezthrem to mention what had happened in the village, and to ask what lesson he had learned, but the words of the man were along a different vein entirely.
“It’s been a month now, since we first met, Glaide,” he began in a deep voice. “Already, you have learned much. But many things remain. Baras becomes more powerful every day, and every day, many lives are lost, and many souls are plunged into despair and doubt.”
The young man said nothing. The pain that he noticed in his master’s voice robbed him of his own.
“It has been a long time now since anyone has travelled between the worlds, and you and your three friends have arrived in a very dark time. Starting today, things are going to change. Listen well, Glaide. We all know that you have to get used to this world and everything around you, and one lifetime would probably not be enough for all of that. But we also have to consider why you are here, or at least for why we believe you are here.” Those few lines were enough for Glaide to understand: the reason that the tedious training had lasted for so long had been to give him time to adapt. In that moment, he knew what Kezthrem and the old gypsy had discussed: his origins, and he himself.
“Master, I...” Glaide couldn’t speak; with all of the emotion he was experiencing, it was as though there were a frog in his throat. He cleared his throat, then continued, “I consider this world mine, and what I’m experiencing is my life... If I can help others, I want to. When we met the king for the first time, he counseled us not to hurry, and to take the time to find our place here... But now I feel ready. I still often feel as though I can’t believe what is passing before my eyes, as though I don’t really understand what I’m experiencing, but I know that the inhabitants of Rackk are gone, and I understand what that means... I want to be able to be of use, and to find a reason for my life here, even if I don’t really need one, because the sole fact that I’m here now is enough for me...” With that, the eyes of the master and his student lifted again to the immensity of the celestial dome, and its inky darkness.
“Perhaps you are the Destroyer, and perhaps you are not,” murmured Kezthrem. “There are forces in this world that are beyond us. Powers, creatures of another age that no one can control. Most of our legend
s are nothing if not truthful, and perhaps we are in the middle of writing yours...”
“Today, no matter what is to come, I know one thing. I’m here, living...”
With that, silence installed itself in that space, and the two silhouettes stood motionless, lost in vague thoughts and doubts, their minds as far away as the stars that filled the sky. Two silhouettes, marked by a rare certainty and force of will that was in its own right just as resplendent as the stars that gleamed in their eyes.
Chapter 24
GLAIDE could hardly believe what he saw when he arrived in the dojo the next day, but he wasn’t dreaming; everything he had hoped for was finally coming true! That day, on entering the dojo, he found his master in the middle of his own training session. He stopped immediately, led Glaide in warm-ups, then handed a wooden sword to his disciple. After that, he faced him and began to explain the art of combat.
“Never forget that whenever you fight, the possibility exists that you may meet death. I say that not to frighten you or prevent you from accomplishing what you feel you need to, but instead to make you reflect on the usefulness of every battle that you decide to step into. It is also never unusual to become injured, and even if your magg is nearby, that is never a desirable outcome.”
The young man thought back to the wound an ork had inflicted on him before the eyes of the guardian, back when he and his friends had first arrived on Galadria, and he nodded his head in remembrance of the pain that he had gone through.
“Above all,” continued Kezthrem, “you should never – for any reason – underestimate an adversary; any ork or goblin can kill you if he just manages to pass his sword through your body. Every one of them is a mortal enemy. So then, when you engage in combat, you should always fight to the absolute best of your abilities. Naturally, you must know how to conserve your energy, and not to wear yourself out pointlessly, but you should also not try to get away with the least effort necessary. Whatever enemy you face, it is better to crush him in victory because he is weak, and because you have used all of your knowledge against him, than to fall in defeat because you didn’t try to put in more than a minimum of effort. That is the mindset that you should have every time you step into combat. It will permit you to increase your chances of survival right from the start.”
Chronicles of Galadria II - Encounters Page 17
