DANCES WITH LIONS
Uneasy murmurs rippled through the crowd as a different Eldarion female stood up. “Master Goldspear,” she said in a French accent, “I would like to offer an opinion differing from ze person’s who just left.”
Her long hair, black as a Strangler rose, hung down her back while her body looked so thin she appeared almost skeletal. She wore a black dress and gloves highlighting the extreme paleness of her skin, even though she had put on rouge and painted her lips red like an actress or a lady of the evening. Beside me, Myste said in my ear, “Aye, she looks like the corpse of a fallen angel, risen up.”
I squeezed her hand as I made my other into a claw, beckoning like an evil witch in a three-penny opera. Myste smiled and put her head on my shoulder as the Eldarion went on. “My name is Professor Bella from ze University of Paris, who studies ze archeology of African cultures.” She motioned towards her face. “As you can see by my condition, I too have fallen victim to a native myth that proved all too real.”
Mr. Stephens said, “Professor, you have my sincerest condolences.”
She inclined her head. “Thank you. Master Goldspear, I have also read ‘Incidents of Travel’, as well as spoken to my countrymen who trade there, and ze Yucatan is a dangerous place, especially now.”
My grandfather frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I am friends with someone in ze French government, and he tells me there is talk, in ze highest political circles, of a coming war with Mexico over ze money they owe us.”
The audience began talking among themselves as Mr. Stephens said, “We have heard nothing about this.”
Professor Bella shrugged. “As I said, right now it is only talk. I just mention this as a warning. Now, I do have several questions. First, according to Miriam Ravenwood, who owns a hotel in Campeche City, ze Maya humans claim that for thousands of years, offerings of gold have been made at ze Bat god’s temple to appease it.
“Professor Bella,” Mr. Stephens said, “neither myself or Catherwood have been informed of such. However, if there is gold there, we have no intention of stealing it. We are trying to make friends with the Eldarion-Maya, not rob them.”
She gave him a sly smile. “Of course not. Monsieur Goldspear, I have a question for you. According to ze legend concerning your family, in ancient times when ze humans rose up against us, your family sheltered an Eldarion clan in return for their help in becoming ze kings of what eventually became Nubia.
“As a symbol of their faith in your family, they wove a spell more powerful than any Eldarion could do today, that gave ze first king a birthmark of a blue, seven pointed star, which was passed down only to those of royal blood who could legitimately claim the throne.”
“That is correct. I have one between my shoulder blades, as does my only child, Richard. As do his children, up until Jonathan. His younger sister is the first in our family not to receive a birthmark at all.”
“Because ze Eldarion clan you were allied with finally died out.”
My grandfather exhaled sharply. “Yes, I am afraid so. The Nile-Mandrake clan were down to a few members, but my older brother, who had remained in Africa, was doing everything he could to help them while I provided financing.”
He hesitated, and Professor Bella said, “I understand an anarchist was involved in their deaths?”
The familiar guilty expression spread over his face. “My brother’s family was having a reunion with the remaining clan members at a hotel in Cairo, when an unshielded Terramagica engine, which a waiter had snuck in and planted beside a support column next to the head table, was activated while an Aethyr illusion was being used during the Lion Dance. Between the explosion and subsequent collapse of the building, no one from either our family or the Nile-Mandrake clan survived.”
“I am sorry for your loss,” she said, not sounding sorry at all. “So, I assume Jonathan was ze next child born to your son?”
My grandfather sighed. “Yes, he was. We had hoped there was still a member of the Nile-Mandrake clan left alive, but when Jonathan was born with a dark red birthmark the color of old blood, we knew the line of kings had finally come to an end.”
Professor Bella leaned forward. “Was there not a curse associated with whomever received ze red star?”
“Madame, we live in the modern age of science, not in the times of mystical-”
“Indulge me, sir, for ze sake of my archaeological studies. Trust me, I have no wish to cause you any more pain than I already have. I only wish to understand ze legend a little better.”
He threw open his arms in a frustrated gesture. “Fine. According to our oral traditions, when the ancient Eldarion mages crafted the spell, they called down the spirit of the lion god, Apedemak, to watch over our family and bring us victory in battle.
“But calling the lion god was a two-edged sword. If our neglect ever caused the death of the Nile-Mandrake clan, or we turned against them, Apedemak would strike us down, one by one, until no Goldspear remained. However, if Apedemak judged that the Eldarion clan had died off through no fault of our own, then he would mark the last one in the line of kings with a red star instead of blue and that would be that.”
The sly expression returned to her corpse pale face. “Was there not something more? That if ze clan died by a human’s act of violence, then ze spirit of ze lion god would inhabit ze last one in ze line of kings, and give him ze power to destroy all ze human kingdoms and enslave their people as revenge?”
My grandfather threw up his hands. “Madame, this is an outrage. That is old, superstitious nonsense the Nile-Mandrake clan used to try and keep their political enemies from doing exactly what happened.”
“Yet ze legend-”
Enough was enough. “Professor Bella,” I said as I got to my feet, making sure the opera cloak remained closed, “I can assure you I do not have the spirit of Apedemak, or any other Nubian deity living inside me. I am an Englishman who is planning to go to the University of Londinium next year to study law and business, so I might carry on my grandfather’s dream of improving society and making the world a better place.”
I took a deep breath. “I have heard of this so-called ‘Curse of the Destroyer King’, but I can tell you without hesitation that the only thing I plan to destroy are the hopes of the other university teams next year when I begin playing War Chess as one of Londinium’s pieces.”
“Edinburgh will kick Londinium in the pants,” a young man called out from the back of the hall.
“You can try,” I called back.
The audience laughed, breaking the nervous tension and getting a smile from Professor Bella. “My apologies. I do so get caught up in my work that sometimes I become ze boor without meaning to. I tell you what: let me examine ze birthmark after ze lecture and I will tell you about ze upcoming expedition I am organizing to explore ze ruined Nubian capital of Meroe.”
I was keen to hear more about archeology and readily agreed. Behind the lectern, Mr. Stephens said, “If there are no other questions, I will turn the stage over to Shabaka and Jonathan.” No one else raised their hands and I took off the opera cloak as Ambassador Bannon rose to take it, folding it over his arm as he took my seat next to his daughter.
His wife Starshine had risen as well and led the way up the stairs onto the stage as she began softly chanting in Latin, channeling the Aethyr energy she was about to use. We walked across the stage as Mr. Stephens turned off the lectern and went to where Professor Alar was standing, Catherwood picking up the shiny black, Aethyr Artifact, and moving it offstage to join them as three half-blood Orku males joined us.
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They had the greenish skin and warts of their Orku mothers, but the human features of their fathers. All of three were dressed the same as I: bare-chested, with a long skirt around our waists held in place by a red leather belt, and bare feet. However, while their skirts were white, mine was made of leopard skin, with bands of lion fur at my wrists and ankles. My belt was edged in gold.
Goro, the shortest of the three, took the drum he held and remained to one side while the other two moved to flank me as I stopped beside my grandfather.
Starshine took her position almost offstage on the opposite side, where a lion doll and a stick had been placed and knelt beside them. My grandfather waited until she had finished her chant and crossed herself, nodding to him to indicate she had gathered enough Aethyr energy to begin the illusion spell.
He turned towards the audience and raised his voice. “In the early days of Nubia, whenever a lion came out of the wilderness and began devouring men, it was customary for the king to be the one to hunt it down, for the people believed Apedemak had sent it to test him. In time, this practice became one of our rituals, handed down from father to son over countless generations as the sacred Lion Dance, which we present for the first… and likely the last time in Edinburgh.” He glanced to the side. “Starshine, whenever you are ready.”
She nodded and held out her hands. They began to glow with a soft blue light and she cupped them around the lion doll as she spoke the invocation of a spell. Something like blue webbing appeared beneath her outstretched fingers, which she carefully pushed inward until it wrapped itself around the doll. There was a blue flash.
Sitting next to the lion doll was its exact copy. Starshine took the doll away and began a new spell, her breath coming faster as she used different blue webbing's to alter the illusion’s features, making it look like a real lion in miniature as my grandfather projected his voice. “We are fortunate that Ambassador Bannon’s wife is a skilled illusionist. Before anyone worries about someone’s affinity for Terramagica disrupting the illusion, the three gentlemales helping us have done this dance many times, as has the Aethyr spirit that will inhabit the illusion, and my grandson has a rare resistance to Terramagica energy. So nothing will go wrong.”
Starshine had gotten the lion’s features to where she wanted them and was now working on enlarging it to the size of a young adult male. She finished, sweat glistening at her brow, and the lion illusion shook itself before sitting down on its haunches, as Starshine used the stick to create an illusion of a spear.
When she finished, the lion took the spear between its teeth and trotted over towards us. Drog and Baroda, who was the biggest half-Orku I had ever known, moved to give us space as I knelt down to accept the spear. As I grasped it, the Aethyr spirit inhabiting the lion illusion said, “Hullo, Mr. King.”
I smiled. “Hullo again, Mr. Lion.” I put my hand out to feel its flank, smooth and hard as were all illusions. “You seem pretty solid.”
The illusion looked past me. “Solid enough to knock Baroda on his warty arse, though I’d pop like a soap bubble before he hit the ground. Starshine’s good at this.” My grandfather began explaining more about the ritual as the Eldarion rose to her feet and went to join Professor Alar and the others, Mr. Lion watching her go past before lowering its voice. “I saw you holding hands with her daughter, who’s going to be the jammiest bit of jam when she grows up. Have you finally found yourself a half-blood lover?”
Here we go again. “I would never even consider it. Not only is she too young, but legally she cannot give consent until her coming-of-age party at sixteen, which will not happen for another three years. Are all Aethyr spirits this obsessed with carnal passion as you are?”
“Not as obsessed as she is with you.” Before I could ask Mr. Lion what it meant, my grandfather called my name and the lion bared its fangs. “Looks like it’s show time.” I got to my feet, the spear solid yet feather light in my hands, as all illusions had substance but little weight. I nodded at my grandfather as the lion bounded away offstage. In turn, my grandfather motioned at Goro before joining the others standing at the opposite side.
Goro nodded and began beating out a complex rhythm on the drum, shaped like a ceramic wine goblet with hide stretched across the top, while the three of us took our places. Goro’s beat had a beginning, a middle, and an end, and I waited for the point where it finished, paused, then started up again to begin our dance.
First came the search. Our bare feet moved in unison as Drog and Baroda moved ahead of me and pretended to look for tracks, Baroda ritually motioning he had found the trail as the lion poked its maned head out from behind a curtain. We dance-pretended to follow its tracks, the lion moving in a circle, its own paws dancing in a counter rhythm to ours as we began closing in. The lion stopped and looked over its shoulder as we got close. Then turned, silently roared, and charged.
I rushed towards it with the spear braced in my hands and the lion bounded away, my two friends falling back as the lion and I continued to dance. It moved as if trying to attack and I ritually scored its flank with the spear, the dance changing to the lion in pain. Then it pretended to score my side with its claws and the dance became the king injured, yet determined to go on.
Finally, it gave the last charge and I braced the spear, the Aethyr spirit opening a hole where the spear could enter and leave so when the lion impaled itself on the spear, it looked as though the weapon had actually pierced it.
The lion landed on all four paws with the spear sticking out from its chest to its side, prompting a gasp from the audience as it staggered, pretended to roar, and then fell over on its uninjured side.
I slid the spear from its body and held it over my head. Then ritually broke it as the ancient Nubian kings supposedly did to honor the spirit of the lion. Drog and Baroda joined me once again as the two pieces dissolved, while the lion stirred and rolled onto its stomach.
Then it stood up on its hind legs. Together, the four of us did the victory dance in unison, Drog and Baroda careful to keep their distance from the illusion as we did a complete circle. The complex beat reached its end and we stopped, hands and paws held over our heads as we faced the audience.
Thunderous applause began as we got into a straight line, then took a bow as the crowd, including the Koncava, rose to their feet. Mr. Lion pretended to lose its balance, windmilling its front paws as it staggered, prompting laughter as it righted itself once more. I smiled as I shook my head. “You are such a ham bone.”
“Just doing what I can to make Aethyr magic seem less threatening to the masses,” Mr. Lion replied as Professor Alar announced the end of the lecture, inviting everyone to the reception being held in the building next door, and then thanking those who had been involved.
Most of the audience were moving towards the exits, though a few were moving towards the stage, including Professor Bella, who was already coming up the stairs. Instead of an evening bag, she had a leather satchel in her hand, which seemed odd until she said, “I hope you do not mind that I brought along my instruments. I may never get a chance like this again.”
I shrugged. “I suppose not.” As she reached the stage and strode towards me, Drog and Baroda were moving towards my grandfather and the others, but Goro watched the professor with a suspicious expression on his warty face. I noticed Mr. Lion watching her as well before the professor reached me as I turned around. Listening as she rummaged inside her satchel, I wondered how many other people were going to ask to examine the birthmark, and how long before I could put on some proper clothes-
Something clamped down between my shoulder blades like a vise. I jerked away, then yelped as I felt a bite like a hornet’s sting, spinning about as Professor Bella’s corpse pale face broke out with a look of triumph. She activated an Artifact amulet in her hand as Goro dropped the drum he had been holding and raced towards me.
The room spun. I fell to my knees, looking up at Professor Bella as glowing blue rings began to circle us, going faster and faster still. “Ze fools do not understand what you are, but I do. Before I finish, I will make you a demigod-”
The lion slammed into her with all its might. It knocked her and the blue rings away from me as the illusion hit the floor and shattered into a thousand pieces which instantly dissolved, Professor Bella snarling as she struggled to reach me a moment before the blue rings around her became blinding. I put my hand in front of my eyes.
When I took them away she was gone, and so was I as the room spun down into darkness and I knew no more.
Little is known about the kingdoms of the Eldarions before humanity rebelled against them, or even why mankind rebelled in the first place. For centuries, it was commonly thought that, after the great rebellion, the world fell in barbarity for thousands of years as the remaining Eldarions hid themselves away from the world.
However, in the 19th Century, archaeological expeditions of Eldarion ruins in Africa, particularly in Egypt, began to shed new light on the time between the Eldarion’s fall and the rise of human civilization, showing that the time between the two was actually much shorter. It has been hypothesized that it was those humans, allied with one or more Eldarion clans, who were the ones that rebuilt civilization.
The Goldspears were one such family. Their oral tradition speaks of a pact with the Nile-Mandrake clan that, in exchange for keeping their Eldarion allies alive, the Eldarions would become advisors to the Goldspears and help them retain their kingship. The kingdom was founded sometime around 3500 BCE, and soon became intertwined with Egypt to the south, lasting for several thousand years.
The kingdom became Christianized in the 11th Century and successfully defended itself against the Islamic invasions until the 14th Century, when a civil war led to its collapse. The Goldspear family broke into two different branches, the southern family continuing the tradition of keeping the Nile-Mandrake clan alive, while the northern branch became sea traders to help support the southern branch.