Tag: blog novel

Summer 36: unforgivable

Matthew ELeave a comment

Oh, Zann…

“Now then,” Fafafa said, “Gods, it’s good to see you. I suppose some things make more sense to you.”

“You fighting in the resistance, you mean? Yes. I suppose Quoon and Ostavon are also part of it? Are they all right? It’s good to see you too.”

“Of course, yes, they’re fine.”

“And what about Wande?”

He sighed. “Yes. I’m sorry. She was. But she’s not with us now. I don’t know what happened to her. Or her little girl.”

“Oh! I know where they are. Don’t worry about that. They’re well.”

“They are? You’ve seen them?”

“Ay,” I said. “But the resistance.”

“Ay. All simple enough. We couldn’t tell you about it, because you’re a Rosolla Guard, obviously. You must know that. In fact, we still can’t tell you about it.” A few of the other soldiers relaxing in this courtyard were close enough to overhear us. I could see them straining their ears to eavesdrop.

“Yes, you can. Please know, I’m not your enemy. I’m… I’m just trying to fix all this. And I need help. I know Acea hates me, but… is Acea your leader?”

“Ay. Why does he hate you?”

“I could never explain it. It… never mind. My point is, Lord Clear is the enemy. And the greenkind have done unforgivable things, but they’re not the enemy. And I’m not either. And we have to make it all right for us all to be here. Somehow. And I’m the only one who wants to do that, and I need help.”

He shook his head dismissively. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. How are you going to fix the whole city? You’re not making sense. But see here. You know I’ve done a lot of fighting, over the years.”

“Of course I know that. But–“

“This isn’t the first time I’ve had a friend on the other side. And, whatever you think, I do care about that. I don’t like having to treat you like an enemy–“

“Then don’t!”

“–but now that you’re here it doesn’t matter. I can just put you somewhere safe until this is all over, and I don’t have to worry about us killing you in battle!”

“Put me somewhere! Faf, no, I have to help–“

“It’ll be somewhere comfortable. We’ll feed you. And let you out after we’ve won. You can just relax. We’ll bring you books. You won’t have to worry about anything.” He signaled a couple of soldiers to come over.

“Like piss I won’t! I’m not just going to sit in a box while the world changes all around me! You don’t even know what it’s about! I need to–“

“What are you doing there?” he asked, indicating my left hand. I looked down. I had pulled my coin, on its thong, out from under my tunic and I was digging its edges into my fingers, without knowing. “Is that your magic coin?”

“Ay,” I said. “I don’t know–“

“You’d better give it to me,” Fafafa said, reaching for it. “I’ll hold on to it for–“

“Get your own,” I said, standing and shoving him back over his bench. I used the bench to vault myself over him and run for the nearest door. There were resistance soldiers all around us and I couldn’t avoid them for long, but I knew I couldn’t let them take me.

“Hey!” Fafafa shouted, lying on his back flailing his arms. “Take him! Don’t kill him!”

A couple of alert soldiers blocked the nearest door. Next closest thing was a low window. This was going to hurt, I thought, and dove into it.

I crashed through the glass and slats, and it hurt, and I fell to the floor below. The window may have been low from the point of view of the courtyard, but it was high in the wall of this room. Two women were in here, backed against shelves and cabinets in surprise. “Day,” I said to them.

“Day,” one of them said automatically. “Who are you? What’s happening?”

“Can you get me out of here? The soldiers want–” I looked around. There was a long table with a lot of glassware on it. Many books. A map of the city on the wall, next to a map of the stars. Two purple lights bobbing around in the corner. “You’re wizards? With the resistance?”

A soldier stuck his head through the broken window. “Amele! Hold him there!”

One of the other items in the room was a wooden frame, standing alone, on a swivel. Faint black-and-green smoke was coming out of it. Inside it was a green void, with small yellow lights chasing each other around deep inside. I could hear music, faintly, from it. Harp music.

“Never mind,” I said. “That’ll do.” And I dove through it.

Love,

Ybel

Summer 33: bumbers

Matthew ELeave a comment

Most precious Zann,

I suppose there could have been some other prisoner who ate dried bumbers, but I assumed immediately that Wande and Jhusdhe were behind the door I was guarding. But why? They never did anything; what could the point possibly be of locking them up?

It must be about me, I decided, incorrectly. After all, Lord Clear hated me for ruining his plan with the Great Beast of Crideon. And… learned that I had escaped? And found out that Wande and I were partners, and captured them to… take some kind of revenge on me? It sounded weak, but what other reason could there be?

Usually, I hope, I’m not so self-centered that I can’t think past it, at least a little bit. But that time I was stuck on one idea.

One thing was explained, anyway; if Clear had them locked up in here, it made sense that the wizards wouldn’t be able to find them for me. Cas Crid may have been protected from magical searching even without Clear.

I knocked on the door, not too loud. I was nervous! Why was I nervous?

A moment passed, and I heard Wande say, “I’m here.”

I unlocked and opened the door. And there she was: she looked good. Not hurt. Clean. She stepped back, shocked. Then forward to hug me.

“Ybel! Where–No, never mind! I’m glad you’re all right.”

“I’m glad you’re all right. Have you been here all this time?”

“I–oh. I can’t talk to you about this now.” She let me go. “Ybel, it’s a curst situation, but I’m a prisoner and you’re a guard, and I’m not going to talk about it like that.”

“I don’t care about that,” I told her. “I’ve been looking for you all over the place. I can’t believe you’re here. Come on, let’s go, let’s get out of here. Wake Jhus and we’ll go.”

“Go where?”

“Away! Out of the castle, out of the city. I’m not leaving you two locked up in this musty old pisspot. Once you’re gone, Clear won’t have anything to hold over my head, and–“

“Over your head? Look, Ybel, how do you plan on getting out of the castle?”

She had a point. I didn’t really know where the castle was, exactly. Not really in the world, not in the laur. What other choices were there? “I don’t know. Maybe we can find Ambe and she can help. But we shouldn’t waste time!”

“Wait. My turn now. Well?”

“Well.”

She sighed. “I don’t know if escaping is the right thing to do. And there are complications. For one… I don’t think you and I are together anymore, are we?”

We could be. But… I remembered my time with Ellewen. “Maybe not. I suppose not. But we can still–“

Wande nodded. “And there’s something else. Jhus wants to stay.”

Spoiled brat kid. “Jhus wants a lot of things. If you tell her–“

“She wants to stay here because her father is here.” And she waited for me to understand that.

I understood it. “Her father? Wait. Is it Clear? Were you and Lord Clear…”

She nodded again, and said, “Can we close the door now? I don’t want to answer any more questions. From you or,” she signaled around with her eyes, “anybody else.” And stepped back.

I gave her a pat on the arm, closed the door, and locked it.

Now what do I do, I thought.

All my love,

Ybel

Summer 32: closed door

Matthew ELeave a comment

Most precious Zann,

“Day,” I said cautiously.

“Ybel,” Trall said, surprised. “How did you get here?” Carsaduam stepped over to help me up.

“Hard to explain. Are we all here? All the guards?”

“We are now,” Carsaduam said. “You were the only one missing.”

“Oh.” I started for the door, not wanting to be trapped anywhere. They let me, and we left the room. “And… why are we here? Is Lord Clear here?”

The corridors of Cas Crid were much smaller than those of the Palace. Shorter and narrower, and made of brick. “Mmm,” Carsaduam said. “He holds our oaths. He’s trying to conquer Crideon for himself, not for the rest of the laurans. He’s got us and some townspeople that he’s lured in here. But the castle’s not safe because some rebel townspeople were using Cas Crid as a lair before we got here, and they’re holding out in some places. And they don’t like us anyway.”

“Truly?”

“Ay. We need you. We need everyone. Are you ready to start now? I mean right now. Candur will be glad that you’ve turned up. We can get you a uniform at the guardpost just up here. No more blue pajazuse! Back to the old grey-and-whites.”

“Well,” I said, and followed them. “So there’s fighting in the castle? Now?”

“They’re dug in pretty well,” Trall said. “They have some kind of magic. Lord Clear could probably handle them all by himself, but the laurans in the palace are fighting him magically. He’s, uh. We try not to talk to him or attract his attention.”

“He’s a pisshearted murderer is what he is,” I told them.

Carsaduam turned a corner and we entered a guardpost at the base of a tower. He tossed me a bundle of equipment and I started changing clothes. “He could be ten times a murderer for all I care, if he’d only keep his murdering to our enemies. But he doesn’t care about us any more than he does the rebels. I think he wants the rebels and us to kill each other off until it’s just him.”

“Sounds like we’re talking about the same man.”

Trall handed me some bread wrapped around a bit of cheese and said, “Come on. You can start your first shift. We’ve had Old Aldo on this door for almost two shifts now and he needs a rest.”

“Well. I can guard a door. What’s behind it?” I ate as he showed me the way upstairs.

“Lord Clear has someone in an upper room here. Somebody important, I don’t know. Nobody goes in, nobody comes out. Just food twice a day. Simple as that.”

“Greenkind or human?”

“Piss in my pockets if I know. We guard the door, that’s all. Oh, but you always did ask too many questions.” He frowned at me. “Maybe that’s why Candur likes you. But that’s his business.”

We were in a different tower now. I couldn’t be sure which one, but it was a wide circle in shape. The guard platform was a half moon at the top of the stairs, and Aldo clapped me on the back as I took his place. Aldo leaned on Trall a bit going downstairs.

I was alone, and back on guard.

I had a closed door to protect. I had a lamp and a jug of water on an upturned barrel nearby. I had a cheap sword that I didn’t want. And there was a tray near the stairs with what was left of the previous meal for whoever was in the rooms, waiting to be taken back down. I glanced at it.

On one of the plates, there were some uneaten vegetables, sprinkled with dried bumblebees. Just like Wande makes for Jhusdhe.

All my love,

Ybel