Bronze Magic

by Jennifer Ealey

  Tarkyn regarded him quizzically. “Are you? Last thing I remember, you and I were arguing about whether you wanted to join and whether I wanted you to.”

  Rainstorm waved a dismissive hand, “You know I did and you did.” He smiled sweetly at the prince. “So, do you think we should let North Wind join?”

  Realising that Rainstorm needed a way to regain an equal footing, Tarkyn raised his eyebrows and said thoughtfully, “Well, he did not stay with me when I was injured as the main force of the home guard did and he did not defy his elders by untying me, as you did.” He smiled gently, “However, he did defend me against you when you were angry earlier on. Do you think that justifies membership?”

  “Do I get a say in this?” demanded North Wind.

  Tarkyn shrugged, his eyes smiling wickedly, “Well, there is really no point in asking you until we’ve decided whether you’re eligible. Is there, Rainstorm?”

  Rainstorm shook his head, laughing, “Absolutely no point at all.”

  North Wind crossed his arms and looked from one to the other. “So? Am I eligible?”

  “Do you want to join? Do you realise what it entails?” asked Tarkyn. “Do you think we should let him?” he added, addressing Rainstorm.

  Rainstorm nodded, smiling.

  North Wind frowned suspiciously. “What does it entail?”

  “You become one of my cronies, as I believe you phrased it earlier today.” Tarkyn grinned. “And the other factions ignore or devalue everything you say. You may or may not consider that an attraction to the post.”

  Seeing North Wind looking uncertain, Rainstorm butted in, “It means you support Tarkyn. That’s all. You don’t have to agree with everything he says or even do what he wants. You’re just basically on his side.”

  “It’s not really anything.” Tarkyn gave an embarrassed smile. “Home guard is just a collective nickname I made up for the people who have stood by me.”

  North Wind gave a casual nod and said, “Fine. I’ll join. After this last hour I’ve spent with you, I wouldn’t hear a word against you.”

  “Wouldn’t you?” The prince looked startled. “You’re not worried I engineered the oath on Rainstorm’s people?”

  The young woodman shook his head, glancing at Rainstorm. “No. I saw your reaction to Rainstorm’s distress. I’ve learnt a lot about you in the last hour; some of it unnerving but none of it bad.”

  “Thanks. You turned out to be a pretty worthwhile character yourself.” After a few moments, Tarkyn sighed. “Now, what are we going to do about this catastrophe with the oath? The last thing I need at the moment is another group of resentful woodfolk to win over.” The prince ran his hand across his forehead. “I’m tired of being everyone’s nightmare.”

  “Don’t tell them,” said North Wind baldly.

  “Why shouldn’t they suffer too, if I have to?” demanded Rainstorm peevishly.

  North Wind frowned at him. “I thought you were in the home guard? Then grow up and stop thinking of yourself and start thinking about how to help Tarkyn - and all of us, for that matter. We need to be focused on rescuing the woodfolk from the encampment, not on dealing with a new lot of unrest.”

  “All right. All right. So we won’t tell them. What if they jeopardise the forest by mistake?”

  “I don’t think they will,” said Tarkyn thoughtfully. “Since I have no intention of imposing my will on them or demanding their obedience, the issue of service won’t arise. They have already had their chance to attack me and haven’t. They will protect me to uphold everyone else’s oath and because I’m the forest guardian.” He smiled, “So you see, Rainstorm, I don’t think the oath will make any difference if we don’t let it.”

  After they had considered all the angles, Tarkyn said, “So, are we all agreed? We don’t tell anyone?”

  The other two nodded.

  Tarkyn gave a quirky smile. “And one last thing: I had better give you both permission to attack me if you want to. You, Rainstorm, so that if your hotheadedness leads you into another fight with me, the forest won’t give away that you’re under oath. And you, North Wind, because if Rainstorm has permission, then it wouldn’t be fair to leave you out.”

  Rainstorm shook his head. “You’re mad, prince.”

  Tarkyn laughed. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t fight back. I might even use magic if you’re too aggressive.” He stood up. “I’d better get back. Oh, by the way, I might tell Waterstone. Then we’ll have one person from each of the three factions here knowing. Anyway, I like to be able to discuss things with him. Agreed?”

  They nodded and Tarkyn strode off through the trees, leaving behind two bemused young woodmen.

  42

  Danton tried to sleep but found he was too wound up. He lay on his back, with hands behind his head, studying the structure of Tarkyn’s shelter. The woven and mud daubed accommodation did not compare favourably with the stone, gilded rooms of the palace. He was deeply distressed at finding the prince in a situation where he seemed to have lost all status and authority. These woodfolk seemed friendly enough but that was the trouble, really. They were overly familiar with the prince and didn’t honour his exalted lineage, as they should. Danton, being of a generous turn of mind, put it down to poor education and ignorance rather than ill intent, and resolved to gently instil a more proper sense of decorum in them over time.

  Danton had been shocked by what he had been told about the oath. Many things concerned him about it. Most importantly, it was clear from what Waterstone had said that King Markazon had foreseen his elder sons’ capacity for treachery and had made provisions to safeguard Tarkyn. Danton pondered this, knowing that Tarkyn had not only refused to bend to the present king’s ruling but had also defied his father on at least one occasion.

  Danton was quite happy about the commitment the woodfolk had been forced to make to Prince Tarkyn. That was just as it should be, as far as he was concerned, and if there were consequences built into the oath, so much the better. It was unfortunate, though, that not all the woodfolk had taken it. Then there was the level of commitment demanded from Tarkyn by the oath. Danton wondered what effect Tarkyn’s forced identification with the woodfolk’s cause might have on the prince’s birth commitment to all people of Eskuzor. He would have been even more concerned had he realised that Tarkyn had now been formally adopted into the woodfolk nation, but that was a shock yet to come.

  After an hour or so of tossing and turning, Danton decided to give up on trying to sleep. He pulled aside the bramble screening and stepped outside to go for a walk instead. He nearly tripped over a little girl who was playing quietly on the path outside the door.

  “Whoops, sorry,” said Danton, as he stepped sideways to avoid standing on her. “Ow. That bush is prickly.”

  The little girl stood up swiftly and pushed back her light brown hair. “Hello. You must be Danton, Tarkyn’s friend. I am Sparrow.”

  Danton frowned as he rubbed his scratched arm. Even children were overly familiar. However, he realised that a rebuke was not the best way to start a new relationship. So he merely said, “Hello. What are you doing playing here?” His eyes narrowed. “You’re not keeping an eye on me, are you?”

  Sparrow nodded quite unselfconsciously. “Dad thought you might need some help, since you’re new here. So I thought I’d just play here while I waited for you to wake up.” She grimaced a little. “I probably should have set up a bit further from the door. Is your arm all right?”

  Danton gave a small smile, “I’ll live.” He abandoned his plans to go for a walk and sat down on the ground. “Do you want to show me what you were doing?”

  Sparrow eyed him uncertainly for a moment, then sat down next to him and showed him a map she had drawn of the local area with all the hidden shelters drawn in. “I haven’t finished it yet. I was getting it ready to show you when you got up.”

  Danton inspected her handiwork and raised his eyebrows. “This is a very clear map. That’s the stream there, is it?” he aske
d, running his finger over a wavy line that ran down the middle of her diagram. When Sparrow nodded, he frowned and said slowly, “So that’s the patch of beech trees we slept in last night and there’s the clearing where we had breakfast.”

  Sparrow regarded him with some surprise. “You’re quite good at reading maps, aren’t you?”

  Danton looked puzzled, “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  Sparrow shrugged and smiled, “Tarkyn is terrible at it. I thought maybe all sorcerers were.”

  “Are all woodfolk good at reading maps?”

  “Not everyone.” She smiled, “But most people are better at it than Tarkyn.”

  “Well, I think you’ll find most sorcerers are better at reading maps than His Highness. He has never had a very good sense of direction.”

  “No, he’s hopeless.” Sparrow looked at him severely, “But you mustn’t think he’s bad at everything because he’s not.” Danton was intrigued to realise that Sparrow was now championing the prince. “Anyway,” she was saying, “as he’s a forest guardian, he doesn’t need a good sense of direction because the animals will guide him.”

  Danton frowned, “I beg your pardon? What do you mean, the animals will guide him?”

  Sparrow smiled sunnily at him. “Tarkyn can mind talk with forest creatures. Well, not mind talk, exactly. He uses pictures but it works the same. So he can ask an animal or bird to show him where to go or to find things for him.”

  A thoughtful expression came over Danton’s face. “Or to keep watch over someone?” he asked slowly.

  “You mean the eagle owl,” said Sparrow inconsequentially. She nodded. “Tarkyn used the eagle owl to find you and then to watch you until the others came.”

  “I see.” Danton pondered for a moment. “I suppose he hasn’t had time to talk to me about the owl this morning.”

  The little girl put her head on one side. “Don’t worry. He’s not trying to trick you. Anyway, that’s another thing he’s hopeless at, tricking people.”

  Danton smiled suddenly. “You do know him well, don’t you?”

  Sparrow nodded, “Dad and I looked after him all the time he was sick and that’s how we all became friends.” She looked down at her map and started working on it again as she talked. “And now Tarkyn’s my uncle, and Dad and Ancient Oak are his brothers.”

  Because she was concentrating on her map, Sparrow missed the look of consternation on Danton’s face. As the silence lengthened, Sparrow looked up.

  “And how did His Highness become part of your family?” he asked carefully.

  “My Dad and he became blood brothers, so Tarkyn could become a woodman. No one has ever become a woodman ever before. That’s because Tarkyn was really brave…and the oath of course.”

  “And who is your father?” asked Danton tightly.

  “Waterstone, of course.”

  “I see.” With years of court training coming to his aid, Danton managed to produce a small smile to cover his concern. “Same green eyes. Same light brown hair. I should have known.”

  Sparrow laughed. “You’re silly. We’re all like that.”

  “I know,” said Danton lightly. “I was joking.”

  Sparrow considered the guardsman. “I like you. I’m glad you’re Tarkyn’s friend.” She paused as she decided to confide in the sorcerer. “I felt Tarkyn’s feelings when he saw his brothers riding through the forest.” Tears sprang to her eyes. “They were very bad to him. People have been so mean to him and he doesn’t deserve it, you know. He thought no one would be his friend any more after what happened.”

  Danton looked thoughtfully at her. “You know, I wasn’t there, and each version I heard was more terrible than the last. But I have always been his friend and I always will be, no matter what he’s done. If he lashed out and killed all those guards, he must have had a good reason.”

  Sparrow’s eyes widened. “You think Tarkyn did that? … And you still want to be his friend?” She shook her head emphatically. “No, it wasn’t like that at all.” She told him Tarkyn’s version and added, “But Tarkyn still thinks everything was his fault because it was his fear that made the shield go wrong.”

  “But I hope he can see that his brothers’ action precipitated the situation and at the very least, they should share the blame,” put in Waterstone, as he rounded the corner to join in the conversation.

  Danton scrambled to his feet. Despite any misgivings he might have about Tarkyn being considered a member of a woodfolk family, the sorcerer was determined to behave correctly. He bowed and said, “Your Highness, I beg your pardon for not showing you due respect earlier.”

  Waterstone looked over his shoulder and, seeing no one there, asked, “Who are you talking to?”

  “You, my lord. If I had realised….”

  Waterstone cut across him, “Now settle down. What’s Sparrow been telling you?”

  “That you are bloodbrother to the prince,” replied the sorcerer.

  “True enough.” Waterstone frowned at his daughter, “But I was going to let Tarkyn tell Danton that himself, Sparrow.”

  “Your Highness, I would never have questioned your right to tell me what to do if I had known. Why didn’t you tell me then?”

  The woodman frowned. “Because I was speaking to you with the authority of a woodman, as I told you. I did not ask Tarkyn into my family to hang my consequence on his shirttails. I have sufficient of my own, as does every other woodman or woman.” He bent down, picked up Sparrow and swung her onto his hip as he spoke. “And Danton, much as I appreciate the honour you do me in recognising my right to that title so unquestioningly, I have no wish to be referred to as ‘Your Highness’.”

  A hint of panic flared in Danton’s eyes. “Your values are so alien to me. I can’t imagine anyone in Tormadell not flaunting such a connection with a prince.”

  Waterstone’s eyes narrowed, “Now, let us be completely clear on this. I would never use any connection I had with Tarkyn, either as a friend or as a brother, to my own advantage. To do so would be to use him as a commodity and betray his trust in me.” A wave of pride and gratitude broke around the three of them. Ignoring it for the moment, the woodman clapped the bemused sorcerer on the shoulder with his free hand. “Don’t worry. It will be easier than you think. There are fewer rules in our society, not more.” The woodman smiled broadly, “And just to make you feel more comfortable about it, I will undertake not to call you ‘my lord’ in return!”

  Before Danton could react to this last sally, Waterstone called quietly, “Come on, where are you, Tarkyn? You must be here somewhere. I can feel you.”

  Tarkyn appeared around the bend in the track through the brambles, grinning, “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop. I was just coming to find Danton and stopped when I heard what you were talking about.”

  Danton’s looked puzzled. “How did you know he was there?”

  “Didn’t you feel the wave of feelings?” asked Waterstone.

  Danton’s face cleared, “Was that you, Sire?” A smile dawned on his face, “I can see why you feel that way. I, too, would be proud to call Waterstone my friend.”

  Waterstone, usually so rock solid and imperturbable, was clearly flustered by this remark. He cleared his throat and managed, “Thank you, Danton, I am honoured by your words.” The woodman glanced wryly at Tarkyn. “You are a lot quicker off the mark with your offer of friendship than your liege was.”

  “Ah, but my liege’s trust in you has paved the way for me and I do not have his experience of betrayal to overcome,” said Danton gently. “To the unjaundiced eye, your integrity shows through in everything you do.”

  Waterstone cleared his throat again and asked the prince, “Is he always this embarrassing?”

  Tarkyn gave a short laugh. “Only to people he likes. Now if you don’t mind, you two, I need some time to talk to Danton before this meeting.”

  “Well, don’t stand all over my map because I haven’t finished it yet. It’s to show Danton everything,” said Sparrow.
>
  Tarkyn ruffled her hair as Waterstone carried her past him. “We won’t. I promise. I’ll see you in a little while.” He turned to Danton, “Shall we go back inside?”

  When they were both seated inside the small shelter, Danton said, “I don’t know why you would rather be in here than out in the forest.”

  “Privacy, Danton. Privacy. You can’t tell whether woodfolk are anywhere near you unless they choose to let you know.”

  “Are there things you wish to say that they may not like to hear, Sire?” asked Danton, with a faint edge of eagerness in his voice.

  Disappointingly, Tarkyn shook his head. “No, Danton, there are not. But there may be things you wish to say that they may not like to hear.”

  “Oh. I see. And I am free to say what I like?”

  “Yes, my friend. It is much better that you talk to me about it here rather than stir up ill feeling outside.” Tarkyn smiled at him, “So. What would you like to say or ask?”

  Danton looked down at the ground for a while then brought his gaze up to meet the prince’s, his purple eyes twinkling with mischief. “They have funny voices, don’t they? It’s really hard to switch from listening to one voice then tuning into the next, isn’t it?”

  Tarkyn nodded, smiling, “Yes, very. You get used to it after a while but it is hard. Waterstone is often hard to hear properly when you’re near a stream. Autumn Leaves’ voice gets lost when a sudden gust of wind scatters leaves. Their voices blend in. I thought there was running water nearby for days when I was semi-conscious and all the time it was Waterstone talking to me.”

  “And it’s just as well their voices are different because how are you supposed to tell them all apart?”

  Tarkyn laughed. “You get used to that, too. They all look completely different from each other to me now. But they didn’t at first.”

  Danton became more serious, “Sire, I am very confused about the proper way to act. I don’t want to offend anybody but the woodfolk’s behaviour towards you offends me continually. None of them show you the proper respect due to your station.”