The Wretched

by Brad Carsten

  Books could cost a month's wage. Liam's father had bought a few over the years and paid a hefty sum for each. If they could fill that wagon, they'd be sitting on a small fortune. Liam wanted to ask what they wrote about but he had already reached the two women.

  Kaylyn began her greeting by flurrying her hand at her forehead, and then sweeping it down her middle in a graceful gesture. “Madam Sage. May the grace of knowledge favour you, and may your books be filled and your wagons protected, and may the world never forget that which it has already learned. My name is Aylyn Torree’ and these are my companions, Liam and Quinn of Brigwell in Faulton. We are honoured with your wisdom and knowledge.”

  Whatever name she chose, Liam was painfully aware of how refined her movements were—and her speech. Far more so than a simple village girl. She hadn't mentioned where she was from, and Liam hoped that she kept it that way until they could come up with a good story for her. They should have done that the moment they found out who she was.

  The woman mirrored the gesture, but she wore a curious frown. “May the grace of knowledge favour you. You are familiar with our ways?”

  “I'm afraid only in study. I have never actually met the scribes, but it is an honor to finally do so.”

  The scribes? Liam had once heard of a group that travelled the world looking for knowledge, but knew little more about them.

  “Thank fate for study then,” the woman said. “It's yet another reminder of why we do what we do.”

  Kaylyn inclined her head. It was all very formal, more so than Liam had any patience for, but at least someone knew what they were doing.

  The woman lifted a pry bar off the table and started up the ladder. “So, Fayre tells me that you seek food and horses?” She slid the pry bar behind the shutter to pry the existing nails free, and Liam moved to help her. “How did she fare?”

  “Rather well, Madam Sage, but she said that you do not have horses, which is troubling news indeed, as we are looking for a way to Luthengard.”

  The Madam Sage turned that frown on Fayre. “You discovered that they wanted horses but not why. Knowledge without grounding is like a ship without her rudder, and in a turbulent world, you risk running us aground.”

  Fayre blushed, like she had just been chastised. “I'm sorry, Madam Sage. I will hear your teachings and apply them.” She shot Kaylyn a dirty look.

  “Good. Make sure you do. Your mind’s been in the clouds ever since you got it into your head to capture our journey in writing.”

  Fayre tried to argue, but the Sage raised her voice above hers. “The world doesn't have patience for such nonsense and neither do we, especially when it starts affecting your work.”

  Fayre was looking more frustrated with every word. “But don't you think that people, generations from now, would want to know who we were, and what we were doing.”

  “That’s vanity, Girl.”

  “But don't you think we have the right to preserve our own culture, instead of just looking after everyone else's?”

  “That will do! I’ll not debate this with you now. Do you understand me? Or should I take those hounds away from you and assign you to shoveling the manure?”

  Fayre blushed again. “I’m sorry, Madam Sage.” She spoke through clenched teeth. “I’ll hear your teachings and obey them.” Despite the meekness of her words, her face was a thundercloud.

  The Sage opened her mouth to chastise her further, but the man they had seen exiting the forest with his six dogs rode up to join them.

  “Madam Sage.” The man inclined his head.

  “We'll finish this later,” Madam Sage said to Fayre.

  “Forgive the intrusion,” the man said. “The tracks broke through the trees this time to the north and then circled around to the south. The tainted ones are building their courage. This is the closest they've come to date, but they're still keeping their distance.”

  “That is troubling news indeed.” The Sage looked off into the trees as though half expecting to see them there. “How many were there?”

  “I could only find half a dozen tracks. There may have been more waiting further back, but I would need some more time to investigate.” He had the same emerald eyes as Fayre, set in a hard face. Liam wondered if they were related.

  “No, we cannot delay. Use what time we have, but we have a long way to go before nightfall, and I don't want to be caught on the road. We'll double down on our defences tonight and set a watch. Are they the same ones that were following us through Chetteney?”

  “It's hard to say for certain, but the tracks are consistent. Light knows, if others have joined them. Brinsley and Roldyn are still looking.”

  “Good. Let me know if they find anything, but don't keep them away from their duties for it. We have yet a long road ahead of us.”

  “I'm ready to leave with the others, so I'll keep looking until then. May the grace of knowledge favour you.” He inclined his head to Kaylyn and the others. “Jax.” One of the lumbrocks was sniffing Quinn who stood as stiff as a lance. It took off back towards the trees and Quinn shut his eyes and let out a long breath. Thank fate it didn't lift its leg or Liam wouldn't have heard the end of it.

  “Have you been having trouble with the nightspawn?” Kaylyn asked.

  The Sage watched the man go, with a troubled look in her eyes. “We've always had problems, and they've been growing in courage and numbers, but they haven't made a move to attack—not since entering Delwick. The lumbrocks are probably keeping them back, but our livestock and wagons are certainly a temptation to them, and I fear, it's only a matter of time before one of them tries to get a finger into the jam pot. But that is a concern for another day. Let us return to why you are here.” She climbed down from the ladder and took the shutter from Liam. She laid it on a small table, and with a hammer and pincers, began working the old nails out of the hinge. She worked the tools deftly as though she had done this sort of thing many times before. Liam supposed they would have to be good at fixing things. Wagons deteriorated, and wheels broke and that could happen far away from a town.

  “You're travelling to Luthengard,” the Sage said, “and as it turns out, we're heading in that direction, even if we will not be going all the way, but as you seem to be familiar with our ways, you may know that we're not always welcoming of strangers.”

  “Fools taint knowledge like poison in a crystal chalice,” Kaylyn said, “And the tongue of the deceitful is more deadly than a serpent, but I trust that you'll find us to be neither foolish nor deceitful.”

  “No, I wouldn't think so. You do intrigue me though. A tracker who can best Fayre, a man who carries a tainted one's spear, and a woman who is courtly and knows the ways of the scribes. Your purse is full as you've offered to buy supplies, and your clothes are good if somewhat dirty, and yet you are without your own horses. Yes, you intrigue me, and as one who has spent her life in the pursuit of knowledge, that doesn't come easily.” This time, she looked directly at Liam. “Tell me, tracker, what did your assessment say of you?”

  “Uh,” that caught him off guard. “I'm—I'm afraid I was never assessed.” He felt the fool to admit it, and would have left it at that, but the way she was looking at him, he found himself explaining how his father had taken him out on a trail the first time the assessors visited their village, and what happened the second time as well. She nodded, thoughtfully, and took so long to speak, he began to wonder if he was supposed to say something else. He looked to Kaylyn for direction, but her eyes were on the Sage.

  “Alright, you may ride in our wagons and share at our tables, and we'll take you as close to Luthengard as we come, but for everything there is a price, and for this there is no exception. Tonight, I will assess all three of you, for life without direction is no life at all, but I confess, I have my own, more selfish reasons as well.”

  “I—I cannot be assessed,” Kaylyn said, quickly. “I uh—” she looked at Liam. If they found out what she was, they wouldn't be quite as accommodating. “I ha
ve travelled outside the kingdom and have seen how badly others have been mistreated by us.” She repeated Liam's father's views of the kingdom, while Quinn nodded his agreement. “But I have extensive knowledge of the kingdom, how it all functions and the structures of power. I'll share as much as you want to know, but I cannot be assessed.”

  “I fear there isn't much we gain from conversations any more, but alright, I will give you a chance to prove yourself. Who is the first Lord of Queen Evalyn?”

  “That would be Jarold of house Gonwin. He is young and ambitious, put in power by the other houses and not his own, and so, he serves those who should be serving him. His wife is the Lady Hollis, his mistresses Mardin Estwyn, Garalyn of Nerah, Oria of house Wessow and Tana a serving maid. His land is in Listor, but he also has property in Faulton and Temenon. He has three sons, Wiren, Layne and Hallard, who had his tongue pulled for plotting against his father, and was then hung in the dining chambers. His body was later burned to cover the evidence, and the world was told that his neck was broken when he fell off his horse. Need I go on? There are four daughters, Gliria, Cloude, Shia and Redelle. Neither are particularly smart, and all are as lazy as they come, preferring to eat and drink in the company of Lords and Lords' sons, oh and Gliria has a bowel problem from all the rich foods she eats. Shia takes delight in seeing her subjects punished, and Redelle collects shells, although she wouldn't be caught anywhere near a beach. The sand would take forever to brush out of her hair—hair that she spends hours having fashioned every morning...” Kaylyn's voice petered out under the Sage’s gaze. “I had a tutor that once worked in the palace,” she said, quickly. “He liked to talk.”

  “Fair enough,” the Sage said. “I'll assess your companions tonight, and you can instruct me on politics and nobles. We have a long ride ahead of us, and much time to fill. In the meantime, Fayre will bring you some food and find a wagon for you.”

  “Wait,” Quinn said, awkwardly. “I’m afraid I can’t be assessed either. I believe the same things about the kingdom as she does. It—it goes against my beliefs.” He had almost missed his first assessment when he was six. His father was a drunk who had passed out in the early hours of the morning and couldn't be roused until that afternoon, and then they found that in his drunken state, he had left the paddock gate open, and the horse had wandered off.

  Quinn ran all the way to town, and arrived that night during the festivities. He begged them to assess him, and when they did, he was told he had nothing that the kingdom wanted. He walked away, devastated, and two days later, Master Ballow found him hiding in the hay loft with tears staining his dirty cheeks.

  “And what knowledge do you offer, my young champion? War? Leading an army?”

  “Uh, well.” He looked at Liam for help.

  “Dancing. He can show you a traditional dance.”

  Quinn grimaced, and Liam knew he had blundered.

  “While that does sound interesting,” Madam Sage said, “You are the one I am most interested in assessing, so no, I'm going to decline your offer, but you can still show us this dance of yours tonight. Now, if you would excuse me.”

  After she had left, Quinn threw up his hands. “Dancing! Is that the best you could come up with? Now I have to be assessed and bloody dance for her tonight. Plight Liam. Plight!”

  Breakfast was a basic meal of pickled eggs with bread, thick butter and jam. Liam was hungry before they arrived, but with the news that at last he was going to be assessed after twenty-five years, he lost his appetite. His father had gone out of his way to keep him from being assessed, and he wondered if this was a betrayal of the man's memory, but what other choice did he have? He didn't have Kaylyn's education, so he couldn't offer them an alternative, and besides, he wasn't being selected for the kingdom. He was just going to find out where his talents lay and what he should be doing with his life. Then again, he may discover that he was never destined for kingdom duty after all. Either way, he would know by the evening. He just wondered how he was going to get through an entire day before then.

  Quinn sat by himself, still fuming about the agreement they had reached on his behalf.

  Kaylyn was bubbly, now that they were travelling with the scribes—these people she’d read so much about, but when none of her conversations took, she ended up eating in silence.

  On the road, the lumbrocks ran between the long train of wagons, barking constantly. The scribes used the hours to debate each other. Arguments broke out along the wagons, and others would join in shouting their opinions. Even with tempers high, they all seemed to be enjoying themselves thoroughly.

  A light mist returned in the afternoon bringing the cold with it.

  Fayre packed them onto an open supply wagon, probably as a way of getting her own back after they somehow got her into trouble. Liam didn't understand any of it. Kaylyn sat out front with the driver when she wasn't talking to the Sage, and Liam and Quinn squeezed between the boxes to try to find some shelter from the cool wind, but it wasn't long before the wooden boards numbed his legs.

  Fayre, riding one of her hounds again, stopped by to check on them.

  “So, Tracker, how're you enjoying your journey so far? You look comfortable back there.” Since they'd last seen her, she'd tied her hair in braids.

  “It's comfortable enough.” His knees reached up to his chin, but he tried to avoid shifting awkwardly and give her the satisfaction.

  “Glad to hear it. I picked it especially for you, so I would have been, oh, so shattered if I'd heard any complaints from you. So how good are you at shooting from a saddle?”

  “Why?”

  “Don't look so suspicious. I just need to catch something for Fluffy and Cuddles to eat”—Those must be the names of her lumbrocks. There was something disturbing about giving cute names to things that would rip your throat out—“and I was wondering if you want to come with me? We could make it interesting.”

  “What do you have in mind?” He didn't trust her as far as an arrow could travel, but he needed the distraction to get his mind off of the assessment, or this day would drag on forever.

  “We'll keep with the wagons, just because I don't want you to get lost and then have to come and find you again, but let's say, the first one to bring down a deer or a rabbit wins. Unfortunately, that was the only wagon that was still available, so I had to put you in it, and I'm sorry about that, so let's say, if you win, then I'll let you all ride with me in my wagon instead. There are soft cushions in there, and things to eat, and you can have as much as you want.” Out in the open, the light caught the green of her large, innocent eyes, making them almost translucent, like the sun shining through the leaves. She was attractive and that irritated him even more.

  “And if I lose?”

  “Well, if you lose then—hmmm,” she pretended to think about it, but it was obvious to anyone watching that she'd planned it all down to the letter. It was painted all over her face. “Okay, if you lose, then you three have to cook supper for me this evening and do my dishes afterwards. What do you say? I need a chance to prove myself after you humbled me in the forest earlier.”

  Now she was using flattery against him. “I don't know...” He needed time to figure out her angle.

  “Come on, it'll be fun. And it'd be nice to have the company.”

  The Sage wasn't a fool. Perhaps she had put Fayre up to this as a way of learning a bit more about them. Liam would have to be careful of what he shared with her. She’d probably let him win just to disarm him, and then she'd have them as close as a man's whiskers where she could ask as many questions as she liked—and listen in on their conversations. “Alright, I'll do it.” He’d play her little game, but he’d keep one step ahead of her. The Sage wouldn't learn anything, and they'd all get to ride in a more comfortable wagon, out of the wind.

  “Bravo. You're not going to regret it.”

  “I already am. Now where's my horse?”

  “We don't have horses, remember?” She whistled to the back of the li
ne where a man came riding over with a donkey. He too had a grin on his fool's face.

  “See you in the forest.” Fayre took off on her hound, and Liam was left staring at the cursed ass, wondering how in light he didn't see that one coming.

  They ended up cooking dinner that night, and Fayre stretched out on her small veranda enjoying a cup of vanilla tipsy.

  The hours drew closer to Liam's assessment, putting him more and more on edge. Quinn went off to practice his dance, grumbling like a wino in a bathtub, and Kaylyn took over the cooking. She finished stirring the pot and took a seat next to Liam. “Are you ready for this?”

  “I think so. I hope so.” He had been waiting a long time to be assessed, but now that it was here, he wasn't sure he wanted to go through with it anymore. “I wish I knew what to expect.”

  “It's not that bad. Really, it isn't. I remember when I was assessed, my brother told me to imagine that I was having a lovely dream, and that's exactly what it feels like, just a lot more real. Don't try to do anything. Just allow it all to happen, and everything will be fine.”

  “I hope you're right.” He had to consciously stop his leg from bouncing. “How’s the food? I don't know about you, but I'm famished.” And yet he didn't think he'd be able to keep anything down, but he had to get his mind onto something else.

  “I'm sure it's fine, but I wouldn't take my word for it. I've never actually cooked before. I always wanted to learn, but my caregiver was a stickler for ceremony. He almost died when I asked him to teach me.”

  “How long have you had your caregiver?”

  “My whole life. He was there for my birth, he was there when we ate, when we laughed and fought. He'd tuck me into bed at night, and tell me stories, and he'd sit with me if I was sick or afraid, all night if that's what it took. And then, when the palace fell, he gathered me up in his arms and carried me out of the city with nothing of his own.” Her smile faded, and she got a faraway look in her eyes. “You know, that was the last time I saw the palace.”