Tag: fantasy novel

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

Summer 31: mound

Matthew ELeave a comment

Most treasured Zann,

One thing I had managed to do was spend a few minutes with a map of Cas Crid. I had never seen the place back when it was still standing; I had only come to Crideon after it had been thrown down. And even then I had never really looked at the ruins. So if I was going to figure out how to get in, I needed to know what the layout of the place was.

As castles went it didn’t make a lot of sense. Crideon hadn’t been in any danger of invasion for centuries. (Or so they thought.) So the castle, before it was destroyed, was just another city building in a lot of ways. Different kings had added to it, torn parts down, built things on top of other things, and even included some buildings that were by any reasonable standard down the street from the actual castle. There was only about a third of the original curtainwall left, and it wasn’t really trying to defend anything so much as it was trying to stay out of the way. But I thought I had a good understanding of its main parts as I strolled up to it that morning.

Unusually for Crideon before noon, there was a mist around Cas Crid. I thought it seemed like a very lauran, greenkind kind of mist. Dark gray, with vague blue and yellow lights inside it. Like a fool, I walked right into it.

And then everything was different.

Life was pleasant inside the mist, as long as you kept out of the way of Lord Clear. Much nicer than the harsh sunshine world with all the filthy men and women. How long had I been standing here looking at the cairns of earth that had been raised over the corpse of Castle Crideon? Many days, surely, and contented ones. But now perhaps I could continue on my way, and find the rest of the Rosolla Guard within.

I strolled past the first mound, trying to fit it to what I remembered of the map. The one I wanted, I thought, should be in the middle of the cluster of mounds. I didn’t have a shovel with me. What was the point of digging up ruins? If Clear and the Rosollas and everyone were in here, it was through magic, and therefore I would have to find some kind of magic.

One good place to look might be at the top of the central mound.

Climbing a hill of dirt was one of the least frightening things I had tried to do in the past few swings. It was messy but not really very difficult. The mist was still everywhere, but I could see about twenty feet in all directions, and that was enough. Finally I stood on top of the mound, greyness all about me. There was something up ahead to the left, so I went to investigate. It was a flagpole, only about ten feet tall, flying a blue banner with a blue diamond on it. Lord Clear’s, surely. Could it be magical? It could.

I reached up to touch it, maybe to pull it down, and was wrenched aside magically! Something pulled me, roughly, through some walls of reality, and flung me to the ground. My hand stung where it had brushed the cloth of the flag.

I was in a stone room, somewhere, sprawled on the floor. A small torch provided the only light. There was one door, and it opened. Two Rosolla Guards strode in.

Trall and Carsaduam.

Love,

Ybel

Summer 31: light heavy

Matthew ELeave a comment

Dearest Zann,

Coy and Lasl let me sleep in their boat that night. I don’t know where they slept. It wasn’t too uncomfortable, though it was a little cold.

The next days were… not uneventful, but frustrating. I had a lot of things I wanted to do, but I couldn’t do them until I did other things first. I needed money, for one thing, so I worked most of a day on the docks and accumulated a small handful of pennies. Spent a couple on passage upriver to the palace.

The laziest siege in history was happening outside the palace walls, and as far as I could tell nothing was happening inside them. The greenkind were in there, no doubt, but they weren’t letting themselves be seen. It wasn’t difficult to evade the besiegers and slip into the place, but once I did I was alone. Nothing but echoes in the great halls. Ambe wasn’t in her lair, none of the Rosollas were in our guardrooms. Ellewen wasn’t there; I left him a note just in case.

I figured this might be my chance and sought out the kitchen to see if there was any Sauce around. I couldn’t even find the kitchen. I knew where it had been, but it was hidden from my eyes now.

I found a bit of food in one of the guardrooms and slept there that night. Next morning, back to Crideon and look for Srix. I tried Birch Spit but the place was abandoned. Only one thing left to try, and I wasn’t looking forward to it: go to Cas Crid and see what was happening there.

The city was much emptier than usual too. Where had everyone gone? Fled to the countryside? The war, or whatever it was, certainly wasn’t over, but nobody troubled me as I skulked down the streets and alleys. Mostly I just heard cries and other noises in the distance.

One thing I should probably mention is that thing I found and put in my pocket, back in the laur, as I was turning to ash and crumbling away. It was still in my pocket. Somehow. It was a seedpod of some kind. Made of tough fibers, greeny-pink in colour. When I first took a good look at it, I turned it over and over to see its various details, and I could swear that it turned lighter and heavier as I did so. Heavy, light, heavy, light. In the end I put it away safely.

No more delays. Next time I’ll tell you about Cas Crid and what I found there.

All my love,

Ybel

Summer 30: head

Matthew ELeave a comment

Most beloved Zann,

Coy and Lasl were telling the truth when they said they knew of a tavern that was still open and operating normally. It was a place called Sosi’s, and I thought I might have been there once before. Just a little waterfront joint made of two joined cellars.

The first thing I saw coming down the stairs into the common room was a glass jar with a human head in it, in some kind of green liquid, hanging over our heads. The head glared at me for a moment, and then nodded, allowing me to pass.

“He gave you a good long look,” Lasl said. “Got some secrets? Usually he’ll let any normal customer in.”

“What’s his name?” I asked.

“I don’t know. Always just call him ‘the head’. I think he was a wizard.”

The common room was about half full. We sat at the end of a long table. Coy looked over at Sosi, behind the bar, and held up three fingers. Sosi nodded.

“So, Ybel,” Coy said. “Do you think you’re going back to the Guard?”

“Maybe. Probably. Something like it, anyway. I’m still thinking. What about you two? How do you live?” They will glance at each other before answering me, I thought to myself.

Before answering me, they glanced at each other. “We get by,” Lasl said. “There’s always something you can do with a boat. Fishing, if nothing else.”

“I guess that’s true.”

“It’s a pretty good life. Lot of dangerous people in the streets that don’t come out onto the water. Lot of politics that can be avoided. And the air’s always fresh.”

Sosi brought us a large trencher of bread with some strips of fried fish, pickled radishes, and wedges of cheese. Also, three mugs of stout.

“Sounds nice,” I said, trying not to stuff my mouth too greedily. The bread wasn’t very good, but it was fresh.

“Sort of thing that appeals to you?”

I smiled. “I hate to say this, because I’m so hungry for this food, and you’ve already done so much for me. But… you’re only telling me the good parts.”

“What do you mean?” Coy asked.

“I mean that sailing up and down the river in the sunshine sounds much better than having to worry about palace intrigue… but I don’t think I’d like smuggling goods into the city very much, especially when I’d have to deal with the neighbourhood gangs.” I wasn’t sure whether to look Lasl dead in the eye when I said that, or to look Coy dead in the eye, so I switched back and forth between the two of them. I don’t think it made me seem as formidable as I wanted.

“There is that,” Lasl said calmly.

“If you don’t mind my asking, does your gang think of you as their soldiers or their mercenaries?”

“Oh, mercenaries, definitely. They’re too close-knit for us to be anything else. You have to have grown up in their same four-block area or they don’t trust you. Why?”

“I’m just wondering. I don’t have an offer to make, but I would like to start collecting useful people who are available to, well, help the city out from time to time.”

“Are we not helping the city already?” Coy said, pointing a radish at me. “That stuff we bring in, most of it’s food.”

“Food that some mean dastards get a nice profit on before anyone gets to eat it. I agree, it does help, some, but I’d like some other choices for us.”

Lasl shrugged. “If you’ve got something to say, I’ll listen.”

I took a swig of stout. “Sometimes I think we never really woke up from the Nap.” Coy looked at me questioningly, but I didn’t elaborate.

The Nap. We all fell asleep and drowsed while the greenfolk took everything from us. And then we woke, and saw what had happened, and… nothing. We didn’t fight, or leave, or band together. We reacted slowly. We accepted this new madness as a fact and went along with it. Me as much as anybody.

And that was unusual for me. Back before the Nap, up north, I wasn’t like that at all. I… well, never mind that right now. I did a lot of things. I made people react to me. And now? I gave up everything I ever cared about to loiter around a palace on the offchance that a drop of the Sauce would fall in my mouth. But then, I was a different person now, wasn’t I?

But I’d never be so different that I would let everything come to an end just because I was too busy counting the bubbles in my piss. Maybe the people of Crideon had lost the trick of making things happen. Fine. I would relearn it.

And I knew who I had to find first.

All my love,

Ybel

Summer 29: scattering

Matthew ELeave a comment

Zann, my truest love,

I took my long branch and weaved as many colourful flowers as I could into the twigs at the end of it. It wasn’t easy, and I had been swearing continuously for about ten minutes before I found a technique that would work. At last I had a long colourful banner, about twelve feet, that I could wave in the air. I took it up to the downstream tip of the island, and waited for a boat heading up to Crideon.

It wasn’t a perfect plan. The river was wide, and the best currents to travel in were near the banks. Someone on a boat might see me and still not want to come out into the middle of the flow to help me. But it might work.

As it happened, the problem wasn’t that the riverboats were unwilling to come out from the bank, but that they weren’t there at all. When I was working on the docks, and later when I did guard duty out on The Tongue, I would see dozens of boats a day go past the city. The fighting must be keeping people away. I waited there for hours, seated on the sand with my flowery branch.

And a boat did finally approach! It was a trader, hugging the north bank. I jumped to my feet and flailed the branch around like a maniac, scattering flowers, trying to attract their attention. It was pretty far away, but they had a man on watch and I could tell that he saw me. He called to someone else, and another fellow joined him, and they both watched me bouncing about waving my branch. The boat stayed on its course, though. When it was drawing even with the island, the first man waved back, finally, and pointed at me with both hands, and then pointed downwards, pointing at my feet. He gave me a little salute-like wave and the boat passed behind a point on the island.

He meant something, but I didn’t know what. What about my feet?

Maybe he meant that I should stay here and wait. I could do that.

I waited, for hours. The island was far enough from the city that the afternoon mists were all a thin white that didn’t do anything but smell like trees. It didn’t help the sailing visibility, though, so I had almost given up on any boats coming by when I heard, “Hoy! The island!” from out on the water.

“Hoy!” I called back.

A large dinghy sailed into view. A bearded man was at the rudder. “Do you mind getting wet?” he said. “I don’t know how close I can come.”

“That’s fine,” I said, wading out. “Thank you!”

He grinned, and a woman near the mast threw me a wooden ring on a line. The boat was coming around the island, but I had my arm through the ring and it pulled me along. I swam out, trying to work my way up the rope. The boom swung past the two of them, and the woman helped me aboard.

“Thank you, again. I’m Ybel.”

“Ybel. Glad to help. I’m Coy and this is my husband Lasl. What were you doing on that island?”

“Oh. It’s a long story. I don’t mind telling you, but it’s a really long story. I’m a Rosolla Guard, at the Palace, and I’ve been out of the city for a while, doing all kinds of crazy things. Someone who dislikes me stranded me on the island. What’s happening in Crideon now, do you know?”

“Rosolla Guard, eh? Hm,” Lasl said. “That’s interesting. As far as I know your people are all sealed up in Cas Crid with Lord Clear and a brown glow around the whole area keeping everyone out. So you’re coming back to the city… to do what?”

“A brown glow? Oh. I’m coming back to, well, to try to put things right. I don’t know how. But I can’t just let everything fall apart the way it’s doing.”

“Because of your oath?” Coy asked.

I thought about it. “No. The oath is nice too. I just have to do this.”

I was lying on my back in the bottom of the dinghy. I could have sat up, but every now and then Lasl and Coy felt it necessary to do a sailing thing where the boat changes direction a little and it yanks the boom over top of the hull and everybody has to duck. I never know when to duck. So I just stayed down all the time.

“Brave of you,” Coy said. “I say ‘brave’. Do you prefer ‘foolish’? ‘Suicidal’? ‘Simple’? Or should I stick with ‘brave’?”

I laughed. “Any of those. I don’t know. I’ve been in a lot of unusual situations. I don’t know what can be done. But it doesn’t feel like I have much choice about it.” I paused. “And, there was a time when I let a couple of people down. I cared about them a lot. I still do. But I wasn’t there for them when they needed me, and now it’s too late. But it isn’t too late for the people I know here.”

They nodded. Still keeping their eyes on the water ahead.

“And I count you two in that. You’re really helping me here, and I owe you a debt. And I’ll make good on it.”

Lasl waved it off. “We just did a bit of sailing. We sail all the time. A little run downriver because a fellow on a trader told us that some other fellow was caught on an island? It’s no great thing.”

“In that case, I’ll forget your names.”

They laughed. “There’s still a place near the docks that the laurans and gangs haven’t discovered,” Lasl said. “Come have a drink with us, and we’ll talk about some items of interest, and we’ll say it’s even.”

“Glad to,” I said, and we came around a bend, and there was Crideon, with the sun setting behind her, and the afternoon mists blue and green in her streets.

All my love,

Ybel