Galen Vesa
Out of the forest the road brought us to a stone paved, circular plaza, connecting a mansion of black rock with the outside world. Our carriage rolled to a stop amidst the wailing of rained in beasts, joining the ranks of other similar vehicles parked there. Smartly dressed servants guided guests of even more extravagant fashion, up wide and brightly lit stairs of the main entrance.
And at the bottom, he waited for us. First sign the gods of calamity sent me. Or so moaned the dragon stuck in my head or wherever she was.
Tall, handsome and sure of himself. Even with the heels I wore, Victor von Ferreha dwarfed our entire party. Black hair. Black eyes. Black fur of a toothy beast wrapped around his shoulders. In contrast to that, his white and gold uniform, instantly focused all attention so hardly anyone noticed the sea of servants that stood behind him.
“Lady Altina Hishgrew. A pleasure to meet you at last. “
He called and offered his hand. The wolf took it without batting an eye and descended from our carriage. Her tuxedo did not necessitate any help, but I think she enjoyed the gesture.
“The pleasure is all mine, your grace. Allow me to once more express our joy to be here. It is an honor…”
Altina made a kind of military salute, slamming her fist against her chest and bowed deeply. It fit with the way she dressed and carried herself but behind her back girls gossiped she prefer dresses and would wear one had it not look ridiculous on her.
The prince raised his arm and stopped her.
“My deepest apologies guild master. By my selfish desire I have put you through this vast inconvenience and yet, here you are with the gift I could only dream of.”
I felt his gaze on me. Whatever he expected.
“A debt I shall repay gladly. We will talk more of it but not today. Today we celebrate.”
Altina bowed once more while the prince returned her gesture with a polite nod and in one swift step got into the carriage.
“My Diva,”
It took me a precious second to realize he addressed me when our eyes met.
“Lady Vittoria, if you allow me?”
Not waiting for response, he took the container out of Vi's arms then, holding her hand, slowly eased her out of the carriage while the folds of her dress spilled out sideways.
“Your Grace.”
Free of the burden and back on the solid ground, Vittoria made a perfect curtsey. Something she tried to teach me. Altina decided against it when it became apparent my new dress would make the gesture, inappropriate. Lack of underwear and semi-transparent dress made many things inappropriate.
“I have heard many great praises of your skill. I cannot wait to see the result of your work.”
Either taken aback or short of breath due to her corset, Vittoria bowed again but said nothing in response to this well-deserved praise. That unfortunately brought the attention back to me.
While I expected the same ritual to happen as I got up to climb out of the carriage, nobody offered me a hand. Instead, I came face to face with a woman of crimson eyes and flaming hair. And little else to cover her except loosely draped fur of a black beast, matching the one the prince had, and purple paint zigzagging in curious patterns all over her reddish skin.
“You are my gift then?”
She spoke and mimicking the prince gesture offered me her hand. I pinched my dress around my knees, like they told me, and pulled, exposing my feet up to my ankles. Possibly flashing this or that in random directions, I accepted her help and descended from the carriage. With both feet firmly on the ground I bowed my head and greet her. A habit I picked up while welcoming customers at the hall. One I came to regret later.
“It seems that I am.”
Silence.
Instant and terrifying. I could hear the flickering flame in the nearby torches. Lights reflected off my eyes made them sparkle and shine, adding to the unnatural glow my eyes have.
“You can speak? Child of wood?”
The crimson eyed beauty became the first to recover but what kind of question was that? Her grip tightened around my palm.
*Dolt, language. *
Oh. Her voice did sound different. Well, there goes the “don’t stand out” plan. What now? We run?
That child is mine.
A voice of fire burned in my mind.
Greet her as I command you.
“I am no child of wood, Feria the unchallenged. Be praised daughter of fire. I have come to witness your courage.”
I've repeated what the spirit told me. Whatever good that would do.
The woman’s eyes opened wide, but surprise quickly gave way to understanding. She unclasped the fur and cast it around my shoulders then wrapped it in a fashion similar to the way she wore it before kneeling in front of me.
“I am ready.”
She spoke to me as she got up then in what sounded like broken imperial tongue, funny that now I could tell the difference, she addressed the prince.
“Your gift pleases me greatly. Much doubt clouded my mind ever since your words stole my soul. Tonight, my path is set. We live or die free of fear. My mind, body and heart are yours.”
I saw light of mana gathering in her palm. She traced a symbol on the prince's check, marking him with a purple sign.
“I shall await you at the summit.”
She left, disappearing inside the forest beside the mansion.
Now I did it. Get the charms ready. Please.
Altina stared at me openly. Whatever thoughts boiled behind her beastly eyes I never learned. The prince himself came to my defense before I opened my mouth.
“Guild master, whatever price you may quote for your services it does not begin to cover what you brought me. How am I to match this?”
His gaze fixed on the forest, his marked cheek glowing with faint light.
“But a word is law and by law we live. I will repay this gift. please follow my servants and enjoy yourselves for I must tend to other guests. Guild master, my lady, my Diva.”
He gave us a parting bow, deeper and more polite than our standing dictated and we climbed the stairs up to the front door where servants ushered us in through the hall and into a grand and open space. Lit by countless shining crystals held by dozens of enormous candelabras and flush with scents of blooming flowers, the ballroom felt more like a forest illuminated by moonlight than a room full of people staring at us. Staring at me.
I closed my eyes and inhaled the fragrance, recalling the quite meadow of the elven forest. I spent there so many days I learned to recognize the different kinds of moss by its smell and texture.
A much better place to be, away from their eyes. Shame complained yet again, hiding somewhere amidst other voices.
“Merciful Shamu...”
The wolf let out a sight. With their voices drowned by the subtle music a band played near the entrance, people stared and whispered. All highborn. Very highborn if I were to risk a guess by the level of distaste oozing from their faces. Not even Altina’s lineage could match any of those gathered here.
“Honored guests,”
Our rescue came in the form and shape of a maiden whose skin shared the reddish hue of the one we met earlier but this one had perhaps a better sense of fashion. Her light pink dress made her resemble one of the flowers gathered in this room.
She made a perfect curtsey, one Vi would approve of.
“I am Voice of the treaty. “
She paused and studied our group, taking a long and careful look at the pelt draped around me. For a moment I thought I saw scorn pass through her face, but gentle smile wiped it away in an instant. An impressive feat I’d say. Most of the time when humans saw me one of three things happened. They got angry. They looked as if they were about to vomit or they just stared at my pillows. The last one being the easiest to handle.
“I speak for the Blood and of the Blood. There is still time before the ground can be set. Would you allow me the pleasure of guiding you through the Blood’s history and the meaning of tonight?”
She explained while a servant brought us wine.
“We’ll be delighted.”
Altina returned a polite bow and under myriads of angry and envious stares we followed our guide around the room. Did someone important singled us out of the sea of overgrown egos?
Our first stop took us near a tapestry of, elves?
“Before we were of Blood, we lived and died with the forest. Even though we were not of the wood, the wood provided us with all our needs, and we cared for the wood.”
“Then came the children of wood. With their madness they poisoned our creeks, destroyed our settlements and even went far beyond the wood to anger the men of iron.”
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Amongst the scenes, portraying the story she told, my eyes fell upon a depiction of a knight in armor being torn apart by the limbs. The artist put a lot of effort in picturing the spilt guts and the faces of elves, full of repulsive pleasure.
“The men of iron were enraged. They set fire to the wood. And we burn alongside the wood.”
We moved to another tapestry, this one of a maiden standing still within the flames.
“With flames on one side and mad wood dwellers on the other, we were meant to perish, encircled by flames and poisoned arrows. “
“When all hope seemed but lost, Vessira cast her own body into the flames to open a path for others by a selfless sacrifice. Engulfed by flames, she cleared the way while her body burned.”
“Seeing that, consumed by madness, children of the woods sent spirits and cursed magic after us, and their power killed and twisted the land.”
“Yet, Vessira did not yield. She took the magic upon herself while her body burned. She endured while the others run. She held the flames and the twisted magic by the power of her will alone. All that lived through that day were saved by her.”
“Why you won’t burn? Enticed by a curious sight the queen of flames danced around Vessira, feeding the flames.”
“Your skin has charred, your blood boiled off. Why, why do you persist? The spirit demanded while the flames roared. “
“Spare my people and I shall tell you. She said to the spirit and the spirit agreed, curious of the answer. But Vessira did not speak again. The moment the last of the people escaped, her body collapsed into pile of ash.”
“Feeling cheated, the spirit grabbed the fleeting soul and mixed it with the ash left by the flames. You shall serve me from now on. My flames will burn in your veins, your skin shall bear my mark and fire shall not harm you without my permission. Forever your people shall serve me. Reborn in fire and ash Vessira became the first of Blood. She bowed deeply to the mother of flames and went to gather our Blood. Together we marched through flames and the flames burned us no more.”
To reaffirm her words, the Voice picked up a burning coal from a censer set before the tapestry. She closed the ember in her fist and flames surrounded her hand. But like she said, no harm came to her. A murmur of doubt spread throughout the room as we were not the only ones that listened. She let the coal burn out in her palm then shook off the ash.
“A childish trick…”
The crowd muttered.
But I felt no spell from her, nor did my eyes register any mana. Just the annoying feel of the fire queen presence at the edge of my mind.
The woman smiled and moved on.
“We lived through fire and we walked through ash. From ash, the wood regrew, and we regrew with it. People of Blood.”
“Under the eyes of flickering flame, we honed our strength. The spirit finding pleasure in Vessira's company. Strength she adores.”
“But one's life is no more than a fleeting moment in the eyes of the ageless. Vessira passed under the strain of countless winters. She passed without an heir.”
“And the spirit wailed.”
I did not! How dare you…
You are breaching our agreement. Do not make a scene.
I thought back at the flame. Her anger burned within me.
You dare order me human?
Yes. You have bound yourself to me.
Fire in the censer behind me soared but her presence vanished. The Voice looked at me as if I did something unimaginable and I pretended not to notice.
“The Blood gathered and spoke of law. Vessira was our law. Now we had none. It is not good for a man to live without the law. “
“We begged and the spirit gave us new law. One to receive her blessings.”
“The law became anew with Cefarne. Lived through her daughter Sill, gave wisdom to Danerio. Strength to Hamveri. From that day on, law lived through many names, yet all were unchallenged. All remain unchallenged.”
“Zyr, Neana, Jovere, Herina, Agge, Naasn, Loona, Gnyr, Tamana, Ensla, Oora, Takka, Fyrga, Durr, Hasserin, Feh, Ulnera, Dool and Feria. The unchallenged. The Law.”
She paused her tale after these words and bowed towards the opened balcony and someone or something that awaited there.
“We praise the Law.”
She spoke again after a moment of contemplation and continued her walk around the room.
“Many springs have passed of the rule of Law while the Blood prospered. Then the mad returned and with them again men of iron clashed. Their war came to our wood but this time we stood as Blood. We spared no one. “
A great battle raged on the wall. Armies of men, elves, haggu and Blood faced each other. If Dante’s vision of hell would be placed in a world such as this, the image I saw should do it justice.
“We won the battle but at such heavy cost… up to this day the crimson forest feeds on the bodies of those that fell.”
“Then a man of iron came. He held no weapons and his body bore no iron sheath they treasured so much. He held an animal skin, painted over with scribbles and shapes. He spoke but we knew not how to listen.”
“Strange, strange man. We pushed him, he fell and got up. We cut him and he did not fight back.”
A hum of distaste spread through the crowd that now openly followed us.
“Who will go live with the iron people? Who will learn the man’s words? The Law spoke before Blood. I will! Cina, youngest daughter of Gean lifted her spear amongst silent faces.”
“Then go and return when you can. Learn what the world of man wants of us. Fearless, Cina hand over her spear and left the wood. As she went, she swore that beyond the wood she would speak the words of the man or she would not speak at all.”
“Six moons she lived in the land of iron. Six moons she knew nothing but the harsh words of the strangers. On the seventh moon she returned speaking of world and the raging war.”
“Hammelel Von Ferreha, Law of men of iron of the time, sought alliance with the Blood. Our wood stood on the path to his lands. Would the Blood close the gate on that path, he could move his power to destroy those that troubled him from other sides. Do that and my house shall always come to your aid in times of need. He spoke. I will protect your wood as a land of mine, your Blood as if part of mine.”
The very same words were on display before us, written on a tanned hide. Beneath, next to the signature and seal of Hammelel, a bloody hand print burned into the hide. The mark of the Law of that time. The Blood accepted this treaty and so the clans were bound.
The Voice came and place her hand against the mark.
“This is my birthright for I am the Voice of the treaty. I speak for the Blood and I speak for the men of iron. The treaty is my clan. The treaty is my life.”
She spoke with pride.
“Law of Blood knew that a day would come when alone we would not survive. Law of men saw a force to be used to their advantage. They wrought the treaty through the Voice and signed with blood. ”
“Together we stood against madness. Together we fought. Together we loved.”
“Since ancient times, before the Law, Wood taught us to seek union with outsiders to preserve our strength. To send those that wished to go and to accept others that came of the wood. Yet never men of iron made claims on the daughters of wood. Never had their women sought the affection of warriors of Blood. But a time came when they did. ”
“Any outsider that wishes to take from the Blood must first prove its worth. So said the Law. The one shall be marked and trialed before all so they would witness their worth.”
We stopped beneath a picture of a pair. A man and a woman amidst a circle of flame. Both locked in what appeared to be a loving embrace. Just the fact that each skewered the other with a piece of iron, did not bode well for our future negotiations.
“What kind of trials must they pass?”
A young woman, perhaps even a child, asked. Her cheeks colored by the wine she drank.
“If one wants to take, one shall best the one who must give, or they would lose all. They face each other, steel against steel. To make the fight fair, we of Blood drink nambu juice that sets the heart on fire and cools the mind.”
A reverberating sound of midnight bell silenced any further questions.
“Let us go. The summit is set.”
And we went. Out through the balcony and into the woods. Following a path of torches held by masked men, we sunk in the darkness. Noble ladies chirping excited of what was to come.
*To your left, something is there. *
A woman. With a spear. Crouching within deep shadows. My eyes did not show her in colors but the paint and the mask she wore made her one of Blood.
Soon, one more joined her. Then another. Sure of their cover provided by the cloak of night, they observed us intently.
“My Diva, is something the matter?”
The Voice of the treaty stopped, and people around me paused as well. Some looking into the forest, others looking at me. Altina gave me a troubled look. Her ears might have picked up something, but I don’t think her eyes could see it.
“No. There are people in the forest, but they are of Blood, so I do not think that anything is amiss. Is there?”
At this hour and in this darkness, my eyes were glowing anyway. A trait difficult to hide so I didn’t bother. The Guild already had people like Chuko with perfect night vision so this gift of mine had been easily accepted.
The Voice examined the forest then gazed back at me. Suddenly she whistled like the evening bird and almost instantly, the answer came. When it did, she bowed her head towards me.
“My Diva, please forgive this unworthy servant. Now I understand Law and my doubts are nil. You have the eyes of Whispering Death. It is only fitting for you to wear its skin. “
*Well Dolt, you sure have a gift with those people. Ever thought of starting a cult? *
With regular sacrifices, black robes and all that mumbo jumbo? Not interested.
“I have nothing to forgive. If your conscience eats at you, repent to the one you wronged. I am not of Blood. “
I moved on and made a note to keep my mouth shut next time.
But the damage was done.
Four girls Erta caught in the bushes became my self-appointed guard. Clearing the path before us and making sure nobody from behind pushed against us. Guided in such fashion we reached the summit arena and took a place in front row, next to visibly displeased pair of nobles. Altina put on one of her most diplomatic grins she could muster and tried to bear it. Vi balanced at the edge of asphyxiation after all the walking we just did so she no longer cared. I readjusted the fur to better expose my pillows. They did an excellent job of hijacking attention. Like hiding in plain sight, I hid behind my pillows and stared back at all the people that stared at us.
So many people.
I’m not very fond of crowds. Never been. With too many people something would always happen.
Although it's been years since my last, episode. Still…
*I am here, Dolt. Do not fear. *
Fear? No. I have not felt fear in a long time. I have no fear for anything… aside the mist. Rather, it would be trouble is something were to happen.
I appreciate the thought though. Love you too big softie.
Not that she could do anything against the mist.
Erta sent me a mental slap. More from a habit than real anger. Her feelings were in flux, anxious. She too expected something.
Something troubles you. What is it?
*There are too many guards out here. Not counting those mingling within the crowd, I can sense a force the size of a small army waiting within the woods. Perhaps more but I dare not to look any further, may it spark their interest. *
Tight security, check. People killed on the premise, check. More than a hundred nobles gathered in one place, check. I did not need Logic’s whispers to know something may happen.
I took a sip of my wine to cover my lips.
“Are you armed?”
I whispered softly. Not loud enough for anyone to hear but loud enough for the wolf’s ears to pick up. She did not look at me but one of her ears now aimed in my general direction.
“There is a force gathered nearby. It seems they are expecting trouble. Perhaps we ought too.”
Altina looked around, pretending to survey the stone arena. Our eyes met for a moment. She made a slight nudge with her head and returned her gaze to what transpired below us.
The changes were subtle, but I could see the faint blue light spreading through her tuxedo. Erta did not waste her time either. The familiar set of charms spread through my body. The spirit blessing seemed more than adequate protection, but she cast those spells anyway.
*Gentle one of the morning breeze, hide us in your shadow, keep our footsteps soft. *
A new one. You haven’t used that one yet.
*In case your luck would demand we leave early. *
Ah. How convenient.
A noticeable drop in the chatter volume made me focus on the center of the arena. About twenty feet lower from where we stood, in the middle of ash sprinkled sand, a man stood. It too ma moment to realize who he was. The exposed chest, the iron boots, the scars and the oversized iron arm made the prince unrecognizable. Had I not seen the mark on his cheek I would not know.
Victor waited until the noise died down entirely before her spoke.
“I am Victor von Ferreha, firstborn son of Annae an Jorn von Ferreha. I have come to lay my claim before the Law.”
His voice carried through the silence. A moment later, tall gates to our left creaked open and the crimson eyed woman entered, followed by the Voice of the treaty and at least twenty maidens in masks and holding spears.
“By what right you make you claim outsider?”
Feria spoke in the words of Blood and the Voice translated.
“By this mark my claim left.”
Victor turned his cheek towards her.
One by one, the maidens came and touched his cheek then went to kneel before the Law and spoke.
“He who speaks bears the mark, his right is true.”
“Outsider,”
The Law spoke.
“Your right is true. Speak the name you claim or leave and never return.”
“Feria of Blood, daughter of Lio and Terne.”
Did my eyes deceive me? Her arm shuddered when he spoke those words.
“You have spoke the name before the law, now, prove your worth. “
Finishing her role, the voice bowed and left the arena the others followed her. Soon only the two stayed, facing each other.
“My love, do not halt your sword. “
Feria spoke as she lifted her mask to drink from the flask she took from her belt. Were those tears upon her cheeks?
With her mask back upon her cheek, she waited for the juice to begin its work while the crowd held its breath waiting for the bloody show.