• • •
"If ye pardon me, ye have the look of a Wise Man," a woman said to Ashlord. "This is my daughter, Eldwyna. She gathers herbs and makes use of them as medicines for our people. I have taught her all I know, and her wisdom in those things now surpasses her teacher. Still, many plants were strange to us when we first came here, and some that we used in our old country cannot be found."
"Would ye share with us, sir, any wisdom ye may have of such things?" asked Eldwyna.
"Perhaps a better instructor would be Sheila, here," Ashlord suggested. "I have taught her some along those lines, and she has learned more from a wise countrywoman of her land. Sheila is more artful in such matters than I shall ever be."
Sheila blushed at the tribute, saying, "That is doubtful, but I would be glad, in the little time we have, to share what I can."
"So in addition to singing with a beautiful voice," the woman said, "yer also a healer!"
"I wouldn't say so. I do a little bit of everything I can, I suppose. But I am a master at nothing. Except perhaps the bow and arrow."
• • •
"Sos, ye see, these cows kept goin' through thar, boggin' down an' gettin' stuck an' such," Billy regaled a group of fascinated Nowhereans. "So what we did was build this broad bridge, sort of. A wide, high thing on piles that we drove down into the mud. Then, onto them piles we made a frame, just like buildin' a floor for a house, with joists an' such. Now, the cows go onto this thing an' they can get at them flowers an' bushes they love so much, ones what grew up along the edges an' in gaps we left in the floor. We didn't need to mind after 'em so much after then, an' our hands could do other things 'sides pullin' cows out of mud ever day er two.
"Now, ever'body knows how pigs like acorns, so I say ye just make the platform up high so they can get at the tree limbs growin' up thar, an' at them acorns what come out or fall on it. Build yer hoist first, real sturdy-like, with a heavy weight on the end like rocks in a basket or some such. Much like the gate on yer Toll Road. 'Cept higher an' stronger. Get it workin' real good, like, then use it for haulin' up yer timbers. Later, once yer all done with the buildin' of the thing, use it for haulin' up yer swine an' feed an' troughs an' such-like. An' water, too, an' such. It'd be a lotta work, but I reckon ye've done harder things. An' it ain't like buildin' fine houses, such as ye've done all through yer town. But it's gotta be strong enough for the pigs, an' dirt an' mud, too, for 'em to roll around in. An', of course, ye gotta put some fence around it to keep 'em from fallin' off. Yep, a lotta work. But, like I said, it ain't gotta be fancy. It's just gotta get the job done."
• • •
Robby, meanwhile, had returned to the caves with Millithorpe and Herbert to prepare for the distribution of those items from the Hoard that would be of use to the community, as well as to retrieve those things that might be wanted during the evening's celebrations, such as casks of wine and some of beer. So it was that while many of the Nowhereans prepared for an evening of feasting and celebration, the various members of Robby's company spent the afternoon separately, with Ashlord meeting with Esildre and many of the Elders. It was late afternoon, nigh upon sunset, before most of them were all assembled once more, except Robby and Millithorpe, still at the caves working. Ashlord, who pardoned himself to fetch Robby to the feast, smiled when he entered the caves and saw him bent over a ledger.
"Are you to work all evening, too?" Ashlord asked. "A fine feast is being prepared and awaits."
"Oh, no," Robby replied, smiling. "We are just finishing up."
"In that case, perhaps Millithorpe wouldn't mind letting the others know that we'll be along shortly?" Ashlord asked.
"Oh, why yes. Of, course, sir. That is, if..." Millithorpe looked from Ashlord to Robby.
"Oh, we're quite through here, I suppose," Robby said, wiping ink from a quill. "I'll just put away some of these ledgers and be right along."
"Very well, sir. Then I shall see you soon!"
Robby got up from his makeshift desk and put the stack of ledgers on the shelf behind him.
"I take it you want to have a word alone?" he asked as he pushed the book spines even with each other.
"Yes. About Esildre."
"Oh?"
"Yes," Ashlord sat on a low stool and laid his stick across his legs. "There are many rumors, legends, and tales surrounding her."
"So you implied earlier. What kind of tales?"
"Many are the kind that, now that I have met her for myself, I do not believe, calling her a sorceress and a witch. Other tales, ones that I have had on good authority to be true, are almost beyond belief. Let me sum them up by saying that she is despised and shunned in Duinnor, and her estrangement from her father is real."
"Why? I mean, why despised?"
"She was, for a time, consort to Secundur."
"No! Truly?"
"Yes. And though she managed to escape Secundur's clutches, it is said that he spited her with curses, and still has his claws in her."
"What do you mean?"
"As I just said, I do not believe everything that is told about her. How she escaped Shatuum is a mystery, but she has suffered from the experience ever since. I know more, but will wait until we are away before telling you. Meanwhile, more than any of us, you should guard your words with her. And, for goodness sakes, until we depart, do not let yourself be alone with her. You have a friendly nature, and she may delve more from you than you might intend. Mind you, I have no reason to distrust her. I only wish us to be cautious, just as we must be with everyone we meet along the way."
Ashlord stood. "Agreed?"
"I'll be careful," Robby answered.
"Good. Then let us make haste for supper!"
• • •
By the time they arrived, a long table had been made for them with Esildre at the head at one end, with Ashlord and Robby to sit on either side, and the others, except Ullin, had places along the table with an Elder in between each. It was after sunset when Ullin at last returned from a partial tour of the boundaries, and he took the place saved for him across from Sheila. He told his friends that since he had already seen the Toll Road as well as a good portion of the western border along the gorge, he felt he needed to inspect other areas of Nowhere. So he, Makewine, and a few others, had hiked with Ullin around the north and eastern sides of the lands.
"This little valley is surrounded on all sides by hills, many falling away into treacherous ravines to the north and northeast and into the gorge on the west," he reported to the table. "There are only a few places where a man, with much determination and strength, may pass. And those places are easily watched. The greater problem is to the south and east, along the Toll Road area."
The square around their table had been transformed for the festivities with lamps and a main table of food for the crowds, a sort of potluck, with everyone sharing whatever was ready at hand. And people came from their houses gaily dressed and with these food offerings in pots and trays and jugs. A number of musical groups played and sang songs, some of them newly learned from Sheila and Ibin. Many of the Elders sitting at the table with Robby's company bounced children on their knees, some still in swaddling. There was a constant coming and going of people desiring to introduce themselves or some member of their family, so that conversation was difficult to carry on at any length. Ullin, particularly, seemed amused and humbled that so many wanted to greet him. The day fell into night, the chill that normally descended with it came only mildly, and the stars twinkled bright and giddy overhead.
Later, some of the musicians strummed up a slow tune, joined by low pipes, and Eldwin said to Robby, "This song is about how we came here."
The tables grew quiet as the piper and strummers moved through the opening strains. Then a young man and girl stepped forward and sang together, tenor and soprano, and told of the trials of their people, taken from their homes and marched off as slaves. They sang of their hardships and of the battlefields they passed through, of the viciousness of the Dra
gon soldiers who drove them with their whips and clubs. The young man sang the words of the dying soldier that Eldwin had found, and the girl sang of the locket that hung about his neck and of the likeness within. The tenor then sang the words of Eldwin,
"Though I am but a slave, this locket I will take from thee,
Though the drum of thy heart is still, oh soldier young and brave,
This promise I will make to thee:
If ever my chains are broken and freedom comes my way
I will this locket take and go to Glareth Bay.
And there to find your lover and say these words for you:
That ever were you brave, and ever were you true."
Though the words were simple and had little to do with the Nowhereans, there was hardly a dry eye amongst the listeners. The ballad went on, describing the terrible scene of Tulith Attis and the flight from there, laden with loot and laboring under the whips of Bailorg's drivers. When they came to the part about the curses and the tenor sang the part of Bailorg and of Navis, terrible in their wrath, the girl sang the part of Esildre with the note of hope and promise, and together they added,
"Oh Lady come again, it's been so long from now to then!
May it be soon, and the tally made,
The Hoard made equal to the redemption paid.
Oh Lady come again, it's been so long from now to then."
There was a hearty round of applause, and the singers took each other's hand and bowed together. And Esildre stood and bowed very low to the singers, which elicited even more clapping and a few hurrahs. A livelier jig followed and many began to dance, Ibin among them, having coaxed Sheila out with him, while Billy, with another tankard in hand, held forth with one of his tall tales before a crowd of enraptured little folk. Ullin moved down the table to sit nearer to Ashlord, Esildre, and Robby, and they discussed further the situation in the south and east. During a lull in the conversation, Robby turned to Esildre.
"If you pardon me asking, you are one of the First Ones, are you not?"
Esildre, who was watching Sheila dance, turned to Robby and said, "Yes."
"Yet you have a father and a mother?"
"Yes. I see your confusion. How am I a First One when there were others before me?"
"Just so."
"There was a time before the days were counted. The Time Before Time, it is now called. The world was different, then, as it may never be again. The spirit of Beras moved across the face of the earth, which he created, and his spirit brought forth the trees and the mountains, the mighty and the lowly, and made rivers to flow and the seas to rise to the shore. It was then that those things he first created gave birth to new creatures by dint of their spirit, born as their voices sang the praise of Beras and reveled in their existence under the sun and moon and stars. These were the Firstborn. Among those that came into being, some were born of the trees and forest, and some of the wind and water, some of starlight and moonlight, and some of sunlight, as Aperion himself was. These came into being with the birds and the creatures of the forest and the denizens of the sea, and all spoke to one another with the First Tongue, there being no difference among them except manifested form. These, the Faerekind, rejoiced in one another, and it is of the union of two such Faerekind that I was born in those days before days, and I remember when I had wings."
"How long was it, then, after that time of the creation until when the wings were taken from you and your kindred?"
"How long? How long is a mountain's rise and fall? How long does a falling star twinkle? Time was not heavy upon us, and not even the seasons of the year changed. All was as a golden summer. How long? A million millennia. A single heartbeat."
"Your father is in Duinnor, as you told us," Ullin said. "What of your mother?"
"My mother is with Aperion," she said bluntly. "She refused to take up against the Dragonkind and begged my father not to honor his pledge to fight them. I, my sister Atlana, and Navis, my brother, all remained in the world with my father. I because I thought I was in love with another of our kind and would not be parted from him. That was my mistake, for it was not love, as I came to learn. Atlana likewise could not be parted from her lover, and they lived happily for many years and had children who are still living. She died where your father did, at Gory Gulch. Navis remained in the world because he was ever loyal to his father and hated the Dragonkind. But he, too, is long dead."
Sadness lowered Esildre's voice, and the lamplight created deep shadows across her face. Robby glanced at Ullin, who had an expression of regret.
"I beg your pardon," Ullin said, "for arousing sad memories."
"Do not fret. But if you will excuse me," she said, rising gracefully and smiling kindly, "I wish to walk privately. I will see you off tomorrow." She nodded at Robby and turned to Ashlord. "Thank you for your news. I wish I could offer some in return, but little has changed in the west, other than what I have told you."
"Where do you and your two escorts go from here?" asked Robby.
"That is on my mind, and I will soon decide. Perhaps to Glareth, as I had planned. Or maybe to Tallinvale. Perhaps even to Janhaven. Perhaps I will know by sunrise. I do not know."
The members of the table rose and bowed as she departed along the lane northward toward the woodland groves, her great-nephews following at a respectful distance.
"If she goes to Janhaven," Robby said, "I should like to ask her to carry a note to my mother. Billy! Billy!"
Billy looked his way, and Robby motioned for him to come over.
"Pardon me, gents," he said as he bowed. Then he swaggered over to Robby.
"Billy, there's a chance that Lady Esildre may be able to take letters to Janhaven. Do you want to write to your mother?"
"Aye! That I would!"
"Then let's go back to the caves and do so."
"I should appreciate it if I could borrow paper and ink, too," Ullin said. "For if she goes to Glareth, perhaps she'll carry a missive to my own mother."
• • •
Ullin's letter was a short one, and he finished more quickly than Robby, who wrote several pages, and Billy, who struggled over every word and had hardly written half of a page. But Ullin knew that his own mother's sight was failing and that she would likely turn to her housekeeper of many years to read his letter to her, so, just as his companions were, he was cautious about what he wrote. They all agreed to say, however, that they were writing from the middle of nowhere, and Robby added to his line a parenthetical, "Ask Mr. Furaman." Indeed, none of them said a great deal to their mothers, not knowing how much to trust the couriers, but each saying how healthy and hale he was, and that they were making progress toward their goal, though at a slower pace than wished.
Ullin folded his letter, sealed it with wax, and excused himself from the others to "walk off the wine," and left them still scratching away. Outside, he let his eyes adjust to the night and then walked along the side path that led along the floor of the cliffs, passing other caves, winding its way up and down and among the boulders and trees until it brought him to the waterfall and the place where Robby and Eldwyna had met, the so-called Pool of Desire. The water danced down the sheer face of the cliff above before making a little jump over a ledge just above Ullin's height, and then it splashed into the broad shallow pool below. The night air was turning cooler, and a slight breeze shook the overhanging boughs that swung like dark boats in the air, floating at their moorings between his gaze and the bright stars above. Here the pathway ended, and he waded through the pool, little more than ankle deep, and to the other side where the brook lapped over rocks and trickled away downward and through the woods. He followed it just a yard or so down and then sat on a mossy stone and was lost to time and to his thoughts for a long while, his cloak pulled close about him, not so much for warmth as out of habit. Later, Lady Moon strolled over the hilltops, rising into the sky with half her face hidden and sending her beams floating through the trees. At some point Ullin noticed this and looked up at her, pull
ing in a long take of air and heaving a great sigh.
"What I would not give to have you appear before me now," he muttered softly as he fingered the locket about his neck. "Might you now be looking upon the Queen of Night as I do? Does she remind you, as she does me, of our time together under her cool evening gaze? Why must a mere thing as leagues hinder us when so much else does? Why did I ever leave?"
Ullin was not one for making speeches or unnecessary talk. He was not unfriendly in his attitude or manner; indeed, when in the society of others he was good company. He contributed to conversation, asked meaningful questions, made thoughtful observations, and related interesting stories and anecdotes as the occasion might suggest. Naturally reticent, he never showed it. But there was much he never talked about, and only the most observant company might sense when he skillfully guided conversation to other topics. Even with Ashlord, with whom he was most open among his travel companions, Ullin held back. Only when asked would Ullin speak of his years in the desert, the battles he had witnessed and fought, and the harsh living that his previous duties required. Never did he speak of the special assignments that took him deep into the Dragonlands, or what he saw and did there. Ashlord knew more than any about those experiences, and he always seemed satisfied with Ullin's abridged versions. Perhaps Ashlord had other sources, Ullin mused, and had little need to delve too much into the Kingsman's past. But those experiences taught Ullin to think for himself, to quickly size up any situation, and to take unhesitating action. Survival depended on it. It was what made him a good soldier, filling the gaps in his orders with keen judgment, taking advantage of chance when it favored. And his other skills, at weapons and tactics, at handling men, and at reading his own peculiar warning senses, made him an ideal scout, officer, and patrol leader.
The Nature of a Curse (Volume 2 of the Year of the Red Door) Page 52
