The Iron Sword

by J. M. Briggs

  “Do… do you think I was wrong to invite him to the war council?” Arto questioned, watching Gwenyvar’s expression. “It just sort of popped out.”

  “It seemed very sudden,” Gwenyvar agreed slowly, but quickly added, “but trust your instincts Arto. I’m sure that Luegáed is a fine young man and it might be a good idea to have the point of view of someone who hasn’t been in the thick of things. He might see something that you and the other have missed or have new ideas.”

  Arto couldn’t help but smile widely at Gwenyvar. Leaning down he kissed her quickly making her giggle.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome dear husband, but if you will excuse me, I have things to take care of. Don’t forget that your mother wanted to see you for the midday meal.”

  “I won’t,” Arto promised, watching his wife turn and walk down the path with her basket against her hip. He sighed happily and glanced towards the forges. Maybe some work in the forges before he saw his mother and the war council would clear his head.

  The morning passed in a rush, Arto losing himself in the crashing of hammers around him as he used his magic to pull forth the iron from a pile of stones. He could feel eyes lingering on him throughout the process but was becoming better at ignoring them with each passing day. When his hunger finally forced him to stop, Arto rinsed off his face and hands in the large basin of water kept in the nearby workshop roundhouse for that purpose and headed up the hill towards his mother’s roundhouse.

  Eigyr hadn’t been thrilled when he and Gwenyvar had moved into their own roundhouse but had eagerly accepted his marriage. Pulling back the animal hide door, Arto glanced around the circular room to see if anything had changed. The large set of shelves across from the door now held a delicate bottle of perfume amongst his mother’s necklaces and his father’s old beard decorations that were still on display.

  The fire pit in the center of the space had bright coals flickering gently with packets of leaf-wrapped food set at the edges. The roundhouse still had two beds, one on each side of the roundhouse which Arto doubted would ever change. Even when he’d lived here before his marriage he hadn’t slept in his father’s old bed, instead sleeping on a more temporary bed that had been taken apart and used for firewood when he was done with it.

  “Arto,” his mother called as she stood up from a short stool by the fire. A half woven basket in her hands was gently set to the side and she moved towards him with a warm smile.

  Eigyr greatly resembled her daughter with the same long brown locks that Morgana had, but hers had streaks of gray. Her features were softer than Morgana’s with wrinkles forming around her eyes and mouth and warm brown eyes.

  “Hello mother,” Arto greeted with a smile, grateful that it was easier to use that word now. When he’d first returned to the village it had been so difficult to connect with his parents. In truth, his father’s death was probably the only reason he’d managed to build a warm relationship with his mother. The reminder that she could be taken from him had been a powerful motivator.

  His mother’s thin arms wrapped around him a moment later and Arto gently returned the embrace, careful of his mother’s more fragile form. She stepped away from him after kissing his cheek fondly and gestured to another seat by the fire.

  “Sit down Arto, your meal is almost ready.”

  Doing as she said, Arto sat down on one of the small wooden stools that his mother kept near the fire and watched her move about to tidy things up. Judging from the materials scattered about she’d been weaving more fabric on her loom. His mother handed him a mug of water with a smile and declined his offer of help. There was a lightness in her step and a smile on her face that put him at ease.

  “How is Gwenyvar?” Eigyr asked despite the fact that Arto knew she’d seen Gwenyvar earlier that day.

  “She is well, Mother,” Arto assured her. “Gwenyvar and I are settling into our new roundhouse very well. Yesterday she completed a new blue blanket which adds a nice touch.”

  “That’s lovely dear; I’m so glad you two decided to marry. I know that your sister had some concerns, but it is just so nice to see you happy.”

  “Well… our marriage did help solidify my alliance with Cailean and prevented me from having to juggle various marriage offers.”

  “Oh, I remember when Uthyrn was sorting our Morgana’s marriage,” Eigyr remembered with a laugh. “She had to marry someone who would help keep the family mining authority in place, but your father was very particular about who he allowed to meet her. I think he was relieved when she chose Airril as he was the closest to her in age. Not that the others weren’t good men with good positions.”

  “I think I’m glad I was able to skip that,” Arto agreed quickly. “It doesn’t sound pleasant.”

  “Morgana and Airril turned out happy,” Eigyr reminded him gently. “Even with your sister leaving him behind for so many years.” Eigyr shook her head sadly and sighed loudly. “I just hope that being together now means that they will finally have some children. Morgana can be a little stern, but she’d make such a good mother and Airril is going to need an heir. Of course, it would be lovely if you and Gwenyvar had children soon as well. I’d love to have little children around again.”

  Arto remained silent and sipped the cool water; he wasn’t going to share his theory that Morgana and Airril couldn’t have children due to her Changeling half. His mother didn’t even know about Morgana’s Sídhe side and he wasn’t going to risk her reaction to the news. He also didn’t want his mother’s desire for grandchildren focused on him and Gwenyvar. While he certainly didn’t regret marrying her and sealing the alliance between the south and the north, he wasn’t in a hurry to have children.

  The Sídhe preferred capturing children, humans that they could train and mold to be obedient and accepting of the horrible things that the Sídhe did to them. Arto couldn’t take the idea of his own children being targets and he knew Queen Scáthbás who had tormented and trained his sister for years would not hesitate to use his children to get to him. No, for the time being, it was better than he and Gwenyvar remain childless, but in time after the Sídhe were defeated then maybe they could have a real proper family.

  His mother called his name, pulling Arto out of his thoughts of the future. Shaking his head, he smiled and apologized to his mother who sighed softly and handed him his lunch. Arto did his best to focus on his mother and answer the questions she asked, reminding himself that there was still a long way to go before the war was over. Starting with the war council and the many details of building a true opposition to the Sídhe.

  4

  Lunch with an Old Friend

  The warm sun was shining overhead as Alex strolled towards Michaels Hall across the neatly trimmed green lawn. Many of her fellow students were out lounging on towels and tossing footballs around. She supposed it was wise of them since autumn would be here soon enough and then winter would hit. Alex kicked lightly at the sidewalk as her stomach grumbled. She and Nicki really needed to properly stock the fridge in their place and Alex needed to make sure that her roommate understood that bread, peanut butter, and grape jelly were necessities, not strawberry jelly. Of course, Nicki had been apologetic, not realizing that she was allergic to strawberries, but it had never come up before.

  Walking into Michaels Hall, Alex was hit with a wave of noise and the smell of food which made her stomach rumble more adamantly. Alex handed her student card over to the cashier for a moment and then stepped forward upon its return. Grabbing a tray, she headed straight for the smell of burgers. Once there she placed her order and moved off to the side, waiting impatiently for her food.

  Alex sighed softly as she drummed her fingers on the underside of her tray and glanced around. There was a crowd of students working their way through the large Michaels Cafeteria around her. The multiple sections of different kinds of food were all noisy and the smells of burgers, oriental, tacos and desserts were mixing together. School had only been back in sessi
on for a few days and already everything seemed to be settling back into the old routine.

  “Burger and onion rings, number 22,” a monotone voice announced.

  Stepping forward, Alex scooped up the small plate with a burger and onion rings on it. She moved away from the booth quickly to let the next set of students step up. Alex glanced around to see if she recognized anyone in the cafeteria. Normally her fellow mages and Arthur would join her for lunch, but everyone had somewhere else they needed to be today. Nicki was having lunch with her grandmother, Bran had a doctor’s appointment, Arthur was having lunch with the football team as some kind of bonding in preparation for the coming Saturday game and Aiden was at his family’s bookstore so his parents could have lunch together.

  A flash of long wavy dark hair teamed with a blue sleeveless shirt made Alex turn her head quickly. She caught a brief glimpse of the profile and inhaled sharply. It was Jenny. Alex was frozen in the middle of the room near the drink machines. Her chest felt tight and a wave of guilt crashed over her, making her knees shake.

  Someone bumped her shoulder and Alex snapped back to reality as she instinctively balanced her tray. Alex moved forward quickly towards the carpeted half of the room where rows and rows of tables were laid out, all different sizes. Sunlight streamed in from the large windows on the far side of the cafeteria and Alex stopped and looked around. It took her only a moment to spot Jenny seated alone at a small table near the far wall, hidden back in the shadows.

  Swallowing, Alex started to walk towards her former roommate before she could change her mind. Without meaning to she drummed her fingers nervously on the edges of her tray, threatening to spill her soda. The noise level dropped a little as Alex moved past the larger and more crowded tables near the food booths. To Alex’s displeasure, she could see that Jenny was mostly just moving the lettuce around on her plate.

  “Hello Jenny,” Alex greeted nervously as she stepped up next to the small table.

  Her former roommate looked up at her sharply, waving black strands of hair falling into her face. Jenny looked tired and stressed with dark circles under her eyes. She lacked the normal vibrancy that Alex had grown used to when they lived together even if she still looked beautiful. Alex suppressed a twitch of envy that Jenny still looked so lovely even when clearly so distressed. She gave Jenny a sheepish smile.

  “How are you?” Alex asked softly, trying not to fidget.

  “Fine,” Jenny replied and Alex noted with relief that she sounded just as nervous. Jenny glanced around and then gestured at the chair across from her. “You’d better sit down.”

  Nodding, Alex slid down into the seat across from Jenny and carefully set down her tray of food. For a moment neither of them spoke and Alex mustered up all her courage.

  “How are classes going?” Alex asked, pushing a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

  “They’re fine,” Jenny replied softly, picking up her iced tea and taking a sip. “It is nice to be taking more advanced classes. Last year… got a bit boring,” Jenny said, her body tensing with her last words.

  “It’s the same for me I suppose,” Alex told her quickly with a forced smile. “I’m finishing my science credits with astronomy this year. Nicki’s in that class with me. I have the first lab class tomorrow and I’m not sure what that is going to be like yet.”

  “Do you have many classes with your friends?” Jenny asked, her voice tight and sad.

  “I have a history class on the Enlightenment with Nicki, Bran, and Aiden; it’s one of Professor Cornwall’s classes. It’s just me in Introduction to English Studies, it’s a bit boring, but I have to take it for my major. Arthur and I are in the same Spanish class and…” Alex trailed off uncomfortably.

  “Let me guess,” Jenny sighed softly, “You’re all in that Story of King Arthur class aren’t you?”

  “Guilty,” Alex admitted with a grimace. “Mer- Professor Yates is teaching it so it seemed like a good idea.”

  “I suppose so.”

  “How about you? Any interesting classes?”

  “Well I’m taking French for my language requirements and I’m also taking astronomy.” Jenny shifted a little nervously. “What time is your lab tomorrow?”

  “3:30 to 5:20 with Professor Clarke.”

  “Oh then I guess we’re in the same astronomy lab,” Jenny replied with a small shrug. “I uh... changed some of my classes over the summer.”

  “Why?” Alex flinched at her own question. “I see, you’re… uh.”

  “Avoiding Lance is the phrase you’re looking for,” Jenny muttered as she roughly speared several leaves of lettuce. “Then I’ve got Macroeconomics class and a broadcasting and digital media class.”

  “Nice,” Alex replied with a nod and a forced smile, mentally noting that Jenny wasn’t talking to Lance either. “So where are you living this year?” Alex asked as she picked up one of her onion rings.

  “I’m in Upham Hall, I’ve got a single room which is nice. My neighbor, a junior named Maria and I share a connecting bathroom.” There was a small smile on Jenny’s face. “I like it, I’ve set up the spare bed as a sort of sofa and the two wardrobes are really nice, I haven’t had to use under the bed storage rollers for my clothes. And I get to keep my stuff in the bathroom instead of carrying it down the hall all the time.”

  “I know what you mean, Nicki and I are in a small suite together in Gallagher so we have our own bathroom. We’ve had to add some storage space, but it is nice not having to sort what I want each time I go to the bathroom. I don’t miss having to wear flip-flops either.”

  “So you and Nicki are living together,” Jenny observed with a slightly surprised expression. “Don’t you worry that…”

  “No, I don’t worry about people thinking we’re together. Sure Nicki’s gay, but she’s a really good friend and besides if people were going to think that then they would have thought it last May when I moved in with her. Thinking that now when we’ve got two bedrooms and I have a-” Alex stopped herself and then added with a nervous laugh, “Well it would be silly and besides, I think I’d be rather flattered by the assumption.”

  “Really?”

  “Well Nicki is very attractive, smart and athletic, but between us she prefers brunettes. Of the two of us, you’re more her type.”

  “Oh,” Jenny replied with slightly wide eyes. She shook her head and laughed softly before taking a bite of her salad.

  For a few moments, they ate in silence, both of them glancing at each other every now and again. Alex’s stomach was twisting around on itself, making eating feel like a serious chore which was a shame since the burger was pretty good. Wiping her hands off on a napkin, Alex cleared her throat to get Jenny’s attention and swallowed nervously.

  “Jenny… look I feel that I should let you know that Arthur and I have started to see each other. As boyfriend and girlfriend. My responsibilities as a mage mean that I won’t be around him with the football team too often, but I will be around and with you on the Spirit Squad-”

  “Look, Alex,” Jenny sighed uncomfortably, cutting Alex off. “If it’s my blessing you want then you’ve got it. You were a good friend to Arthur, you clearly liked him and I’m not so petty as to think that you were always thinking of how to steal him from me. After what happened I’m glad that he has your support.”

  “Jenny I’m so sorry-”

  “But understand that I’m not ready to be friends,” Jenny said sharply cutting Alex off again. “All summer I was left rethinking almost everything I’ve done in my whole life. I’ve been trying to remember what started my relationship with Arthur and if I really ever wanted Lance. If I really ever wanted either of them or if it was always just some…. echo from another woman.” Jenny inhaled deeply even as she trembled. Her eyes dropped to her plate. “So I’m not ready to act like I can play nice and put it all behind me, not yet.”

  “Okay,” Alex agreed gently. “We’re not friends, okay. But please Jenny if you ever need anything then ma
ybe you can think of me as someone who feels they wronged you in the past and feels an obligation to help you.”

  “That might just be worse,” Jenny grumbled, but she lifted her head and managed a small smile. “But alright, I’ll give that a try.”

  Jenny’s phone chirped at her making both of them jump in their seats. Pulling it out, Jenny hit a button on the phone and began to stand up. “I’ve got to go,” Jenny apologized. “Take care, Alex.”

  “You too,” Alex said biting back the urge to add for her to get some sleep. It wasn’t her place anymore.

  Jenny turned and began to walk away, but stopped and turned back to Alex with an odd expression. She took two steps to come back to the table and moved closer to Alex. Straightening up, Alex tried not to look surprised and seem friendly.

  “One more thing, a friendly warning I suppose,” Jenny remarked with a sad chuckle. “You’re dating Arthur now and the distance will help protect you, but watch out for his mother.”