The Blessed Asgotl, Healing Shrine of Mugash, the day after the attack
I spotted her coming down the hallway from her guest chambers. Aylem was wearing the white kirtle and grey working robe of a healer. She had her thick wavy hair in a simple braid down her back. It surprised me since she usually dressed in the most fashionable clothes and had her hair done up in fancy arrangements.
“Bow when I do,” I whispered to Rialdiaj. When Aylem was right in front of me with a perplexed look, I bowed my head, “May the blessings of the eleven gods be upon you, Great One.”
"And upon you too, Great One," she gave me a knowing smile, knowing I liked all these honorifics as much as Emily did. "I thought I was seeing double coming down the hall just now. Will you introduce me to your friend, Asgotl?”
"Aylem Queen, this is my young cousin, Rialdiaj. He's interested in Opa's open position for a mount. Rialdiaj, this is the Blessed Aylem Nonkin, Revelator of Tiki and Queen of Foskos."
"May the blessings of the Lord of Winds be upon you, Great One," he performed a perfect griffin bow for Aylem.
"Also upon you. I am pleased to meet you, Rialdiaj." Aylem was at her most personable. "Have you gotten settled into a spot in the mounts' residence or at the garrison yet? Or did this lazy excuse of a griffin come straight here without giving you a chance to catch your breath?" She smiled the perfect welcoming smile for him.
I closed my eyes and groaned. She knew me too well.
"We came straight here, Great One," he gave me a little kick. “We left Is’syal before the first bell."
“Have you eaten?” she asked.
“Yes, we have, Great One, but thank you for asking.”
“Such wonderful manners,” she nodded approvingly. "Let us move somewhere a little less public," Aylem suggested, eyeing the curious priestesses, priests, and trainees of Sassoo looking into the corridor from the walkway around the atrium. The sight of two griffins inside the shrine was a novel one for them.
She opened the double doors to Lisaykos’ study and we followed her in. I was shocked at what I saw.
“We heard there had been an attack here and at the Crystal Shrine, but what happened here?” I saw that the two windows behind Lisaykos’ work table were boarded up. Some of the armchairs were missing as well as one of Lisaykos' precious patterned wool carpets. Wolkayrs and Thuorfosi were sorting through a heap of disordered scrolls, loose vellum, and pieces of paper.
I saw some red-brown spots on the baseboard by one of the boarded windows, “Is that blood?”
“Where?” Thuorfosi asked. “I thought I found all of it.” She picked up a rag and a stoppered bottle of cleaning potion.
"There, on the baseboard to the left of the window," I pointed a talon.
“Good eyes, Asgotl,” she nodded with a sad smile. “Oh!” She stopped and put the cleaning supplies down. “Honey,” she tapped Wolkayrs on the shoulder, “we are amiss in our greetings.” She flashed a brief grin. Wolkayrs nodded.
They got on their knees, “May the blessings of the eleven gods be upon, Great Ones.”
I couldn’t help but groan. All my human friends enjoyed this too much.
“And upon you too,” Aylem answered since she was senior in precedence. “Please rise.”
“Aylem Queen, what happened here?” I asked again with a horrible fear growing in my gut.
“A force of two hundred silverhairs and halfhairs on flying mounts attacked yesterday just after the fifth bell. They had four targets: the Holy Raoleer and the Revered Huhoti, the Healing Crystal in the Well of Mugash, Princess Opo’aba, and Emily.” Aylem spoke in a very controlled neutral tone of voice.
The feeling of horror and shame inside of me got worse. “Please tell me Emily is safe and sleeping in her bedroom or is off doing something that only a mekaner could love,” I pleaded.
Aylem’s face was as sad as I have ever seen it, “The Impotuans succeeded in abducting Emily. The Revered Lyappis was with her when it happened. Lyappis was struck by a stone missile after it destroyed one of the windows. The blood you saw is probably hers. There was a fight in here between the attackers and the wraiths guarding Emily. Six wraiths against around 30 attackers. One wraith survived. Twenty-five attackers died. The wraiths took out twelve, the Holy Kamagishi took out one, and the Holy Senlyosart took out twelve from her sick bed while protecting my daughter.”
“The High Priestess? Lisaykos?” I had noticed her absence. Trading insults with the old vulture was one of my joys in life.
“Lisaykos will be in bed today and tomorrow, but she will be fine,” Aylem smiled solemnly. “You may be amused to hear that your old adversary is as bad a patient as Emily.”
“She might be worse than Emily,” Thuorfosi added. “I’ve been assigned to looking after her. Last night, Lisaykos tried to negotiate her two days of bed rest sitting at her worktable. Then this morning, she tried to have her work brought to her so she could work from bed. Her latest attempt, just a little while ago, was a request for someone to read her reports while she listened from bed.”
“She sounds like she will recover just fine,” I was relieved. “How did she get injured?”
“She stopped the attackers from entering the Well of Mugash and taking the Healing Crystal,” Aylem answered, taking a seat on the north lounge nearest Lisaykos’ worktable. “When we counted up the bodies in front of the door into the Well, there were 28. When we found her, she had been stabbed in the abdomen twice. She’s alive because she cast stasis on herself before she passed out.”
“Since you are here, at least for now,” I sat on the carpet facing her, “I assume you were not able to locate Emily last night or this morning.”
Aylem nodded, looking dejected. “I haven’t tried yet today though I did try yesterday. I just woke up. I was healing all last night so I slept in.”
“What she’s not telling you, Great One,” Wolkayrs looked up from sorting shrine records, “is that she saved my sister’s life last night from what we thought was certain death. The attackers went after my family’s woodshop because that’s where the Holy Raoleer and the Revered Huhoti were yesterday afternoon, building the new legs for Kayseo that Emily designed. The Impotuans almost burned the north market down throwing fireballs at our shop.”
"We lost nine healers, seventeen Cosm residents, and two Coyn in the attack," Aylem sighed. "They have broken more than half of the Conventions of Surd by attacking two shrines yesterday. The third attack aimed at the White shrine in Yant was intercepted over the Holding of Surdos by Imstay King. I’m supposed to meet him at the Crystal Shrine today. I didn’t expect you to be here, though I’m not going to complain either. Why did you cut short your family visit? I thought you were planning to return at the end of Growing Season.”
She studied me and then she looked at my cousin, “it is fine if you want to lie down, Rialdiaj. This is one of the few places that griffins can mingle inside a shrine, though the new shrine for Sassoo in Black Falls will have a lot more access for flying mounts built into it.”
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“Thank you, Aylem Queen,” Rialdiaj laid down next to me. “I was unsure about what was proper. It sounds like I picked a bad time to come to this side of the mountains.”
“Now, if you will hold for a moment,” Aylem tranced to mindcast someone. “There, that’s taken care of. Now, why are you back so early, Asgotl?”
My head drooped of its own accord, “on the day before yesterday, I was visited by Sassoo in his aspect of the Black Griffin. He told me I had to come home because my prophet needed me. So here I am, a day too late.” My beak bumped against the floor. “I’m assuming that Emily really is the foretold prophet?”
“The gods confirmed it on the night you flew to the Crystal Shrine to bring her back to Black Falls,” Aylem filled in the missing gap in my knowledge. “She fessed up to Lisaykos last rotation but has otherwise not talked about it to anyone.”
“And now she is missing, and probably abducted by Impotuans,” I felt so inadequate for this task given to me by Sassoo.
“My, aren’t we a cheerful bunch,” Opa said from the doorway. “So, what do you want to show me, Mom, that convinced the Holy Senlyosart to let me out of my schoolwork for the rest of the morning?”
“Asgotl brought his cousin, Rialdiaj, dearest. He is interested in your offer of a contract for a flying mount.”
“Asgotl,” Opa smiled, happy to see me. “What are you doing here? I thought you were visiting your folks?”
“Long story,” I was wondering how many times I would need to tell it.
“Oh,” Opa stopped and her eyes popped wide, “here I am, forgetting all my manners.” She got down on her knees right in front of my beak and put her hand over her heart, “May the blessings of the eleven gods be upon you, Great One.” She waited patiently for my reply.
I sighed, probably for the fiftieth time since landing at the shrine, “and upon you too, Princess Opo’aba. Seriously, dear one, how can you be making jokes when my Emily is in the hands of those...those...I stop now before I say something embarrassing in public.”
She laughed lightly, "We could use some humor, or at least some good news around here. What mother hasn't told you yet is that there was a visit by Galt last night with a foretelling that Emily will be fine and we will get her back." She got up and sat next to her mother. She took Aylem's hand and squeezed it.
“When?” I asked the two of them.
“The foretelling did not say when Emily would be back,” Aylem nodded, “though it did imply that Emily would be coming with two others, and those two may arrive first.”
“So, you are Rialdiaj,” Opa addressed my cousin, “you look just like Asgotl. How old are you?”
“I am seventeen. My mother pushed me out of the nest six years ago, so I have hunted on my own for the five years it takes to be acclaimed an adult in the Naver aerie,” he said with just a touch of pride showing.
“I see. Gee, mom, I don’t know about this. I can barely tell the two of them apart. I could see us mixing up mounts.”
“Opa dearest," Aylem finally showed some of her usual spirits, "it would take any young griffin at least a decade of practice to achieve Asgotl’s sassy mouth, and another five years to descend to Asgotl’s lazy ways.”
“Don’t forget that he’s a slob when eating,” Wolkayrs remarked drily, not even looking up from the papers he was sorting.
“Thank you, Wolkayrs,” Aylem didn’t even pause for breath, “and we won’t even mention his messy eating habits. I’m sure the differences will make themselves known in no time.” Aylem gave me a teasing smile, which made me feel a little better. She looked so dour when we met in the hallway.
“Rialdiaj, do you have a saddle yet?” Aylem asked.
"Sorry, I don't," he blinked. "I must confess, I have never had anyone ride me. I never visited a human city or town before yesterday. All of this is new to me. I am amazed to be sitting inside a real human building right now."
“Well, you certainly look more than big and strong enough to handle a full-grown silverhair, which is what Opa will be in two to three more years. I’m not sure you realize everything this job entails. Has Asgotl told you much?”
“He spent at least a day telling me about what he does,” Rialdiaj gave me a sly look, “how much time he has to nap, all the big meals he gets without having to do his own hunting, all the good-looking young lady griffins and which mount residence they live at...”
“Oh dear,” Aylem said, looking at her daughter, “maybe we should consider an eagle instead. I don’t know if the world will survive if we have two griffins with the same sense of humor in the same place.”
“Are we sure they aren't twins?" Opa said with a straight face. Rialdiaj looked panicked, and then realized his humor was reciprocated.
“My cousin took me to the House of Mounts in Is’syal yesterday,” Rialdiaj went back to speaking seriously, “and introduced me to other mounts, both owned and on contract, and encouraged me to talk with them, so I would have more than just his opinion on what I would be getting myself involved in.”
“He did?” Aylem was pleasantly surprised. “And you’re still willing to consider employment by my daughter?”
“I would be open to a short-term contract to see how it might work out,” my cousin replied.
“How do you feel about Coyn?” Aylem asked from out of nowhere. The question certainly surprised me.
“Well, they're little," Rialdiaj had to stop and think. "With the few that I've met, I've found that I must be very careful where I put my paws and talons because they are so small. Their young are very noisy, but you can say that about griffins kits too. The ones I know work very hard. Other than that, I don't know much about them. They seem like differently shaped people to me."
Aylem nodded, approving of that answer. “I suggest we offer a half-year contract so the two of you can see how you get along,” Aylem said, looking from Opa to Rialdiaj. “Though now is not the right moment to worry about contract covenants. Wolkayrs, do you have a draft contract for flying mounts that I might work off?"
“I do, Great One,” he nodded. “Would you like me to find it for you?”
“It doesn't need to be done this moment or even today. A day or two will be fine. For right now, I need to head up to the Crystal Shrine because the King will be waiting for me there. What do you want to do, Asgotl? You can hang out here with your cousin and kill time fishing. Both of you can follow me to the Crystal Shrine, and kill time there. You could also split up, though that might not be so good for Rialdiaj, since he doesn’t know anyone here yet.”
“If you don’t mind, Opa,” I looked at my favorite princess, “I’d like to go with your mother and take Rialdiaj with me. It will give my cousin an idea of what mount life is like on a military campaign with all the troops that will be there, and I can stay on top of any news of Emily by staying close to your mom.”
“Yeah, I’m good with that,” she nodded and then smiled encouragingly at Rialdiaj.
Rialdiaj looked at Opa with a tilted head, “so how do I address you? I know very little about human titles.”
"If you're in private like we are here with friends, call me Opa. If it’s in public, you should use Princess or Honored One. If I’m dressed and acting like a trainee of the Shrine of Sassoo, then you should call me Trainee Opa instead.”
“How do I tell the difference?” he asked.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you figure it out,” Opa smiled. “Most of the time, it will be Trainee Opa, and you will be able to tell since I’ll be wearing the Shrine uniform.”
Opa turned to her mother, "Mom, speaking of being a trainee, I think it's time to go back to living with my classmates. My identity as a princess is now the worst kept secret in Aybhas, so what's the point of hiding me here any further?"
I could see the “no” rising in Aylem, and intervened: “Aylem, it’s been two whole rotations since the attack in Black Falls. She probably has at least two wraiths shadowing her all the time. Keep her away from her classmates much longer and she might as well drop out and get tutored at the palace. That would defeat the whole purpose of enrolling at a shrine, which is to meet people and expand your horizons.”
“I agree with the griffin," Lisaykos said, in a nightgown, slips, and a housecoat, with her hair down and pulled back. I don't think I've ever seen her with her hair down and undone. She walked in and sat down in the closest chair. "Opa was doing well and was happy as a trainee and she needs to go back to that. Otherwise, what is the point of being a trainee if you're prevented from living the trainee life? I sometimes think we would have had fewer problems, Aylem, if we had let you enroll as a trainee, to live with others of your own age group. I would hate to see the same mistake made with Opa."
“But what about her security?” Aylem protested.
“There is no better security than that provided by Lord Usruldes, Aylem, and the wraiths kept her from harm in this last attack. Five of them died doing so. There is no doubt as to their skill and dedication. Besides, hundreds of haup Foskos princesses have been trainees at shrines throughout the years, myself, Irralray, and Foryuna among them.”
“I will think about it,” Aylem frowned.
“Good, I will make arrangements with Senlyosart to send Opa back to her dormitory group,” Lisaykos said, ignoring Aylem's intent to put off making a decision.
“You can do that after you go back to bed,” Thuorfosi attacked. “You’re not supposed to be up.”
“But Thuorfosi, dear heart,” Lisaykos did a credible job of looking innocent, “I’m out of tea.”