by K Madill
“One just simply joins the others while grazing,” Caballus had told his students and Mandamus knew that horses tended to be better tempered with full stomachs and males were always welcome for the larger the herd, the stronger it was. In the Silver Kingdom, Bachelors didn’t typically challenge each other; there was enough room for everyone so they saved their strength and charm for stallions with mares.
Mandamus didn’t worry about being challenged to a fight anyway, for he’d spent enough time around his aunt to know how to deal with that and if worse came to worse, he knew that he could outrun anyone.
With a heavy heart, Mandamus plodded along. Chirps, squeaks, and the buzzing of normal, everyday life in the forest filled the air and it seemed so odd to him that he could feel so lost and alone, while everyone around him just kept going on with their busy lives. “Easy for them,” he thought, with a twinge of resentment. They hadn’t just been foisted out of their homes. Their paths weren’t filled with uncertainty. For all the noise that surrounded him, the loudest sounds were that of his own lonely hoof steps. He sped up to a fast trot.
“About a day’s journey,” Daleth had said and she was right. By late afternoon, he was covered in a thin sheen of sweat but had reached the tree line of the Deep Forest and found the tall grass of the plains.
“It’s quiet here,” he thought, giving a wary sniff for the scent of bison.
Snorting to clear his nose, Mandamus took another deep breath, this time trying to snag the musky scent of another stallion. None came.
“Where could they be?” he wondered. The faintest scent of a horse reached him, but almost as quickly as it came, it was gone. There was no one here.
“Oh, no!” he whispered, a small knot of dread growing in his chest. “They’ve already left.”
He wandered along the tree line, unsure of which way to turn before he remembered he was supposed to be on the lookout for a bad-tempered bison. Being on his own was harder than he expected. A sound startled him, and he turned in the direction of it, surprised to see a red and silver flag tied to the branch of a tree. It rippled and snapped in the breeze. Peering closely at it, he could see a shape he did not recognize. It looked like a triangular head with no features other than two long feelers that curved outwards.
“You there,” a voice called. Mandamus pricked his ears. It was coming from above. “You with the black mane… yes… you!”
Mandamus looked up. Sitting high in a tree was a bald eagle.
“You’re trespassing!” the eagle cried, fanning his long wings.
“What do you mean?” asked Mandamus, nervously. He’d never met an eagle and this bird’s hooked beak looked very sharp.
“I mean you’re trespassing! You’re out of bounds. You’re not allowed to be here,” the eagle replied loudly. He leapt from the tree branch and drifted to the ground, landing gracefully in front of Mandamus.
“Intruding! Infringing on land owned by the Silver City,” the eagle carried on, swivelling his head like crazy. He stared at Mandamus with bright yellow eyes. “I could give you a fine for that, you know.” He waggled his wing warningly.
“A fine?” asked Mandamus.
“A ticket. A citation,” the eagle answered, snapping at a passing insect. “I am an employee of the Silver City,” he thrust out his chest so Mandamus could get a closer look at the glittering badge pasted to it. “Officer Ted” it read. “It is my duty to make sure wayward animals, such as yourself, stay off these plains. This is the private property of the Silver City now and anyone who steps foot on this grass,” he pointed downwards with his wing, “besides the queen and her wizard, are trespassers.”
“These are called the Sajan Plains because they belong to a bison by the name of Sajan.” Mandamus told him, trying to sound stern. “Not the Silver City. “Where is he? Where’s Sajan?”
“That’s not for me to say,” Officer Ted answered, but his expression told Mandamus that he didn’t know. “But you can clearly see that this land has been clearly marked as property of the castle.” He pointed to the flapping banner.
“Well, I’m not staying anyway,” Mandamus told him, annoyed at the eagle’s bossy manner. “I’m looking for a bachelor horse herd. They’re supposed to be here, have you seen them?”
Officer Ted shook his head. “I’ve not seen any horses. There are signs that they were here, over at that watering hole,” he said, pointing at a small pond that glinted between the trees. “It was all muddied up when I got here and surrounded by hoof prints, but I can assure you that now there’s no one here but me.”
“No one?” Mandamus thought. “That can’t be.”
“I suppose I can let you off this time with just a warning, being that you are a youngster looking for your fellow horse males but don’t come back here again, or a fine it is. And if you can’t pay it out of a storage of food, which you horse’s never can because you don’t store food, then you have to work it off at the castle.”
“I won’t be coming back,” Mandamus told him, turning to leave. He paused. “What do you mean this is all the property of the Silver City now and that no one is allowed on it.”
“Don’t ask me,” Officer Ted shrugged. He bent down and spread his wings. “I don’t make the rules, I just follow the orders and my orders were to keep everyone away from this side of the Sajan Plains, I mean, the Silver Plains, so that’s what I’m doing. An officer of the law has to follow his instructions to the letter, you know.” With a swoosh of his wings, the bird soared back up to his post.
Mandamus trotted through the trees towards the pond that the eagle had pointed out and soon his feet began to sink into softer, marshy ground. “Signs of horses everywhere,” he whispered, taking in the muddy, bank, dented with many hoof prints. The watering hole was murky and shallow. He breathed deep to try to catch a scent.
There was nothing but the smell of stagnant water, good enough for a small drink but not good enough for a long one. The hoof prints circled the marsh but did not lead away from it. It was as though the horses had all vanished.
“Now what do I do?” Mandamus thought.
His belly felt like it was made of stone. He couldn’t be without a herd. He didn’t want to make the journey to the Light Sands alone. If the bachelors weren’t at the border of the plains, like Daleth said they were, then where could they be?
Was it possible that they crossed the plains before the eagle had come along? The bird had said, after all, that horses had been here. How was he going to find them if he wasn’t allowed to enter the plains now? He looked up at the eagle again, but the bird just sat on his branch, swiftly revolving his head, intent on finding a new lawbreaker.
Mandamus thought back to his lesson on Bachelor Herds. “Young stallions,” Caballus had said, “chase two things: territory and mates.”
“On the banks of large rivers and creeks,” Caballus had told his class as he wandered up and down the row of young horses. “That’s where you’ll find many Bachelor Herds grazing, mock fighting to show off their skills, and basically acting like fools, all to impress a female.”
The only large river that Mandamus could think of was the Gold River. It was as good of a place as any to start and it was only another day away if he kept up the same, steady fast trot he’d been going at.
“That’s got to be it,” he thought with a surge of hope. “The Bachelor Herd must have found this crazy eagle and decided to just carry on to the river. There will be mates and food and everything there, I bet.”
With renewed enthusiasm, he was bending down to take a small drink before heading out when a deep ripple spread across the pond’s mucky surface. With a startled snort, he hopped backward and watched curiously.
A large black beak rose out of the pond, followed by a bird-like face with small silver eyes. Two scrawny arms covered in black feathers heaved a skinny body and snaky tail out of the water and plopped itse
lf, sitting cross-legged on the surface of the water. It was a water imp.
“A horse,” the imp gurgled, staring at Mandamus eagerly. “Why does a horse come to my water?” His tail flopped on the muddy bank, spraying Mandamus with sour smelling liquid.
Alarm shot through Mandamus and he struggled not to choke on the stench of rotted meat that hung in a cloud around the creature. The imp’s legs were covered in scales that looked old and mouldering.
“I beg your pardon,” Mandamus said trying to hold his breath. His mane was stiff with fear and he shuddered at the powerful looking suckers that lined the inside of the imp’s ropy arms. “I’ll be on my way.”
The imp chuckled. “Horse of man’s army,” he said, bowing his head. “Be not afraid. I am nothing but a peaceful imp; Aicha is my name.” He slithered along the edge of the pool.
The hair on Mandamus’ back raised up in stiff, spiky points. Mandamus had heard of imps. He’d paid attention when Caballus told the foals about them, for he’d found the stories scary. All animals had to be wary of them, for they dragged creatures into the water and drowned them—just for fun.
“I am not an army horse,” he answered, hoping he sounded firm while inching backwards. He did not want to turn his back on this thing, not even to flee. “I am a Harena.”
“A Harena, no,” Aicha giggled. “A son of Mareva Queen, you claim to be? I don’t think so. A beach horse is tall with a mane like wheat and a coat like summer grass at sunset. I do not see her in you. I see the black Alsvid in your coat and your white, glowing eyes.” He slapped his tail again, splashing globs of muck onto Mandamus’ chest.
As much as he hated being in the presence of this creature, a jolt of interest shot through him.
“He called me an Alsvid,” he thought eagerly. “This imp knows what I am.”
“What do you know about the Alsvid?” Mandamus demanded. “Do you know where they are?”
“Everyone knows the story,” Aicha replied with a dismissive shrug. “It’s old news.”
Mandamus did not want to let on that he, himself didn’t know what happened but he needn’t have worried for Aicha continued his story.
“The Rakhana captured the Alsvid,” Aicha said, “Took them to the queen at the request of her master.”
“The queen’s master?” Mandamus asked, puzzled. His mother had been a queen and she never answered to anyone.
“The Andhera,” Aicha answered, reaching out as if he meant to pat Mandamus on the nose. Mandamus jerked his head back and tried not stare at the suction cups on his arms that flexed and puckered like small hungry mouths.
“The Andhera once ruled the Harshlands,” Aicha said, heaving himself to his feet. Mandamus flared his nose in disgust at the imp’s long, filthy toenails. “The Andhera once rode a beast of a horse, named Always and it was called that because it could never die.” He giggled.
Mandamus’ head swam with confusion. Andhera? Always? What did these words even mean and what did they have to do with his herd?
Aicha’s eyes glittered like silver coins. “The Alsvid were bitten and turned,” he crooned, capering on the surface of the slimy pool.
“Bitten? Bitten by who?”
“By Always!” Aicha cackled and the hair on Mandamus’ back stiffened. “Queen Asura, and her master, the Andhera, they own your herd now.”
The chill in his spine grew colder. “What is ‘Andhera’? what does that word mean?”
Aicha shuffled up the bank, clacking his beak. “Andhera is the dark. It is what lies in shadows. It is what drives men to kill and women to weep and babies to cry. It lives in the darkest of hearts. It breeds there. It is power. You should see what my mistress did to the Alsvid. She turned them all into horses like Always and now the Alsvid belong to her. When she finds you, you will be turned too.” Aicha’s tail wrapped around Mandamus’ hoof and squeezed.
“Get off me!” Mandamus cried, his heard pounding his throat as he struggled to wrench his foot from Aicha’s grip, but the imp’s tail was stuck to Mandamus’ leg, for it had suckers too and they were firmly latched to his fur and dug into his flesh. Mandamus kicked out as a stabbing pain pierced his hock but it was no use. Aicha clung tightly.
“They’re eating them, you know,” Aicha rasped, crawling towards him. Thick runners of drool hung down on both sides of his beak. “The Alsvid are eating those little forest animals that have disappeared because now that they’ve been turned, they hunger day and night for meat and blood and bone.” He snapped his beak, drenching Mandamus with saliva.
Mandamus yanked free of the imp’s grip, wincing as bits of hair and flesh tore off, spilling hot blood down his hoof. He whirled away and raced for the trees.
“Queen Asura will get you too,” Aicha screamed after him. “There is nowhere to hide in this kingdom; she’ll get you too.”
Mandamus ran. He flew over logs and dashed under trees. Aicha’s laughter trailed closely behind and he galloped believing that any moment he would be grabbed by those stringy arms and dragged back to that filthy pond. He raced so hard and so blindly that in his panic the missed the low hanging branch and he slammed straight into it, stars bursting across his vision and then, darkness.
Chapter 7
Luco
Plink.
Plop.
Plunk.
Drops of water splashed on to Mandamus’ brow and trickled into his ears. His head felt as though it had been run over by a herd of cattle. His eyes felt rubbly as if someone had filled them up with pebbles. He struggled to sit up but was pressed back down.
“Easy boy,” said a voice, and Mandamus felt a strangely shaped paw stroke his shoulder. He froze. Panic coursed through his gut. Forcing his dry eyes open, he was shocked to see the face of a young, human male, gazing down at him with a broad grin.
Mandamus let out a yelp. It was the first person he had ever seen. The human had pale skin, large blue eyes and a shock of thick, dark hair.
The man stepped away and held up his hands reassuringly.
“You’re okay,” he said. “You banged your head pretty badly though and there were some weird cuts on your leg, so I bandaged them up.”
Mandamus’ vision blurred, and he lay back down on the ground with a snort. The human had a small fire going, and the smoke-filled Mandamus’ nose. He closed his eyes and tried to gather his thoughts. Where was he? He remembered meeting the imp and all the horrible things Aicha had said came rushing back to him. He had run after the imp attacked him and judging from the dull ache in his head, he’d hit a tree and been knocked out. To make things worse, now, he’d been captured by a human. He whinnied in panic as he thrashed on the ground, trying to roll to his feet, but a fresh wave of pain lit his skull on fire and his lower leg, where the imp had taken hold burned under Luco’s dressing. The man leaned calmly over him and placed his hands on Mandamus’ chest. His palms were warm and the knot of panic in Mandamus’ gullet loosened. His flank that had been coiled with fear, relaxed. The man’s touch was calming.
The human gave Mandamus’s shoulder a pat then got up and headed for his campfire. Mandamus sat up and then slowly got to his hooves, swaying loosely from the agony in his forehead. Standing felt better and now, he could take in his surroundings.
He’d hit the branch, just behind him, he could see that now for it was splintered and had snagged some of his forelock. It seemed as thought the human had been living in this spot for a there was a bright red tent surrounded by objects that Mandamus did not recognize. A syrupy smell wafted over to him from the fire. Whatever this human was up to, it smelled delicious and it made his belly rumble. He had not properly eaten since he’d left home. It was hard to graze alone.
“You’re going to be alright,” the man told him, crouching down at the flames. “You’ve got a nasty bump on the head, but that’s about it. You thirsty?” The man stirred a tiny pot that hung from a makes
hift tripod and dropped his spoon into the fire. “Shoot,” he said, quickly retrieving it from the flames. “There’s a creek over there.” He pointed his spoon over his shoulder.
Mandamus flinched at the man’s sudden movement, sending a fresh wave of agony through his skull.
“Easy. I’m not going to hurt you,” the man said. He stood up and wiped his hands on his pants, then held them out, palms up. “See? Nothing in my hands.”
Mandamus felt caught between wanting to flee and not wanting to lose the first bit of friendly company he’d had since leaving home. He studied the man’s face and although his eyes looked sad, he had a welcoming smile.
“Are you hungry?” the man asked. He grabbed the spoon and held it out to Mandamus. Trailing off the end of was more of the tantalizing, sweet scent. Mandamus craned his neck forward and took a nip. It tasted better than anything he’d ever tried.
“Oh, careful now,” said the man. “You’ll eat my spoon.” He grinned widely as Mandamus took lick after lick. “Would you like some more? It’s not quite ready, but if you wait a few minutes, it will be.”
Mandamus nodded.
“Alright then,” said the man before squatting back down to his fire.
Mandamus could hear the man’s heart beating swiftly, and he realized that this human was just as nervous as he was.
“So, while we wait for our food, how about we get to know each other? What are you doing out here all by yourself? Where did you come from? Where’s your herd?”
“Harena Beach,” Mandamus said, wary of giving too much away. He watched as the man laid down the spoon he’d fed him with and picked up another one.
“Ah, the ocean. Beautiful place. I’m on my way home from the Silver City. Have you been ever been there?”
Mandamus shook his head.