Silver Ravens

by Jane Fletcher

  Lori stripped off. On entering the next room, she was hit by a wall of hot, humid air. Clouds of steam rose from a large rectangular pool and the surrounding tiled floor was warm under her feet. A wide set of semi-circular steps entered the water at the midpoint. Diffuse light came from windows high in the roof.

  Several women were already there, relaxing alone or chatting with friends. Lori descended the steps and drifted towards a corner. The water was hot and faintly scented.

  “Didn’t expect to see you here.”

  BH had her back resting against the wall about ten feet away. Tamsin was on her other side. Both were so low in the water that nothing was visible below shoulder height, but that did not make things any less awkward. However, she could hardly ignore them. Lori waded over to take up position beside BH—the advantage being she could keep her eyes on the far wall without it seeming obvious.

  “I woke early and needed a wash.”

  “It’s a good way to start the day.”

  Lori made a mental note to bathe in the evenings.

  “How did things go yesterday?” Tamsin asked.

  “No progress, I’m afraid.”

  “The queen needs the decoding done quickly.”

  “I know. But I’ve got very little to work with. Do you really know nothing about the scroll?”

  “Didn’t even know it was a scroll. Could have been carved on a stone.”

  “You didn’t ask the queen about it?”

  “Of course not. If we needed to know, we’d have been told.”

  Lori risked a quick glance sideways. BH was nodding in agreement. Asking them more was pointless. Besides, how much trust could she put in anything the queen might have told them?

  So, what did you talk about in a Roman bath? “Any plans for today?”

  “We’re going to the border to cut down on the number of slua, and then—”

  A boggart scurried into the room and knelt down by Tamsin’s side. It whispered in her ear.

  Tamsin pushed away from the wall. “I’ve got to go. The queen wants to see me.” She levered herself out of the water and stood, wearing only the iron torc and a grin. “And I better not go like this.”

  Lori felt her face burning. What were the chances of passing it off as an effect of the heat? She ducked underwater, hoping to wash the image from her mind. Not that she wanted to, but it was safer. Tamsin was very nicely put together. The faint lines of a dozen scars did nothing to detract from her defined musculature and well balanced frame.

  By the time Lori resurfaced, Tamsin was heading in the direction of the cold plunge pool. The rear view was every bit as good as the front. Maybe the queen would want her naked. The resulting wave of jealousy was the most stupid part of all, but the memory of Tamsin and Rianna on the balcony would not go away.

  “Does Queen Rianna have a husband?”

  BH laughed. “Hardly. Fay don’t go for things like that.”

  “Husbands, or marriage?”

  “The whole tied down monogamy bit.”

  “They have open relationships?” Been there, done that.

  For two of Lori’s exes, an open relationship translated as, “I sleep with who I like, and if you so much as look sideways at me, I’ll guilt trip you with the full two-hour spiel on the evils of possessiveness and the history of the patriarchal oppression of women’s sexuality. Whereas if you go with anyone else, although I wouldn’t dream of being so hypocritical as to say a word about it, for weeks afterwards I’ll pick arguments about your timekeeping, the laundry, TV channels, snoring, and a million other things.” Lori had no trouble believing Rianna would fall into a similar pattern.

  However, BH was shaking her head. “They don’t do relationships at all. If a fay likes the look of somebody…” She smiled and shrugged one shoulder. “You know. Someone gets lucky for the night. No need to worry about husbands.” Her smile broadened. “Are you fancying your luck?”

  “No.” Certainly not with Rianna.

  “You wouldn’t be the first human to fall for her.” BH clearly did not believe her. “Or the first to get lucky.”

  How lucky had Tamsin been? “You’re saying the queen—”

  “No. I’m saying nothing. Our queen can be very generous. Leave it at that. But a queen’s generosity…” her smile broadened, “…can be well worth having. Maybe you’ll be lucky enough to find out for yourself.”

  Rather than try denying it, better to shift tack. “With no marriage, how do they work out who’s next in line for the throne?”

  “For the queens, it’s easy. They know who their kiddies are. Kings have harems and name whichever child they like most as their heir. Or sometimes they’ll pick a niece or nephew.”

  Rianna’s father must have been strapped for choice if she was the best he could do.

  BH was still smiling at her. “So how about you? Do you have a husband back on Earth?”

  “No.”

  “A boyfriend?”

  “No.”

  “A girlfriend then, or a wife? I hear that’s the new big thing on Earth these days.”

  “No. But I split up with my last girlfriend a few weeks ago.”

  “Ah. So you like the ladies.” BH sounded pleased. “You’re not alone in that.”

  Several hundred thousand in the last Gay Pride march suggested as much. Lori did not bother saying anything.

  “What was your girlfriend like?”

  “Her name was Jess and she was a chartered accountant.” Sad how that summed up everything of note about her.

  “Why did you split up?”

  “She ditched me for someone else.” Which no longer hurt. How had she got over it so quickly?

  “Had you been together long?”

  “Best part of four years.”

  “Ohhh, that’s tough. Still, you might find yourself a good woman here in Annwyn.”

  “I think I’ve got quite enough to handle without throwing more trouble into the mix.”

  BH laughed. “Don’t be so hasty. You could be in with a chance—not that I’m speaking for myself. The only woman I’ve ever gone for had blue skin, if you get my drift. And I got lucky.” So Rianna has been putting herself about. “But I can point you in the right direction for some women here, if you like.”

  “Thanks, but I’m really not looking at the moment.” Lori was certainly not interested in the services of a volunteer matchmaker.

  However, BH would not let it drop. “Tazer is the same way, you know. She prefers women.”

  Which, while not coming as a world shattering surprise, was still something Lori had not wanted confirmed. It only put additional strain on her self-control. “I don’t plan on hanging around in Annwyn long enough to get involved with anyone.”

  “I wouldn’t worry about plans. Just go with your heart.”

  Which was advice that could get you into all sorts of trouble. Lori gave a noncommittal “Hmmp.”

  “Ha, listen to you. But take me and Danny. He was one of the Iron Ravens. Lovely, lovely man. We were together years. And we had plans, oh yes. We had plans to retire together and spend our last years on Earth. But he came out second best in a fight with a basilisk. Now he’s the most beautiful statue you’ll ever see, and I’ve got no plans left.”

  “Oh. I’m sorry.”

  “It was six years ago. I’m coming to terms with him not being here.” BH began wading in the direction of the steps. “But I’ve got to be going. If I stay in here any longer I’ll turn into a stewed prune. See you at breakfast.”

  Lori leaned back, resting her head on the rim of the bath, and stared up at the ceiling. An unspecified number of humans had got lucky with the queen, and she had no doubt Tamsin was included in that tally. However, Tamsin did not just go for blue-skinned women. Lori ducked herself under the water in another futile attempt to blot out the world. As bad ideas went, a fling with Tamsin was a complete no-no, but the temptation was there.

  * * *

  Lori’s fingers were stiff. She had
not written this much by hand since leaving school. The archaic equipment did not help. She copied the final entry onto the depressingly long list, then added multiple links on each of her cross-referencing sheets. At last, she put down the quill and sat, massaging her hand. Would she be allowed to bring a ballpoint pen with her next time?

  “Okay. Going by the number of letters, this is every possible instance on the scroll that might be where Queen Morgaine wrote her own name. Right?”

  “No.”

  “What?” She stared at Gaius in confusion.

  “If Queen Morgaine wrote her own name it would be shorter.”

  If Lori had been holding something heavy, it would have taken all her self-control not to throw it at him. “Why did you tell me the wrong number of letters?”

  “I did not.”

  “So how is it wrong? I told you what I was doing, didn’t I?”

  “You said you were picking out all the words of the same length as the queen’s name.” Gaius tapped Lori’s notes. “This is the correct number of letters for her name with the addition of the submissive declension, which is the proper form you or I should use. Queen Morgaine would have used the possessive form of her name in writing.”

  “You’ve sat there all morning watching me. Why didn’t you say something earlier?”

  “You did not ask.”

  Lori shoved back from the table. “I need to talk to Queen Rianna.”

  Gaius’s face showed no reaction. “You have news to give Her Majesty?”

  “No. I have to explain something to her.” Maybe it was unwise, but Lori was too angry to care.

  “Her Majesty does not require explanations. She wants you to decode the scroll.”

  “That isn’t going to happen unless we make some changes.”

  “It is not your place to make demands.”

  “It’s not a demand. It’s a statement of fact. This task is impossible as things stand at the moment.”

  Gaius froze for a few seconds then nodded. “I will inform the queen.” He left the room.

  Waiting his return, Lori stared out the window, stoking her anger as a defence against fear. She was in deep shit, with no clear way out. If only her tooth had behaved itself. If only she had ignored the bloody puzzles. If only she had not fallen into Tamsin’s trap. It was too late for all that. Wishing was pointless.

  The door opened. “Sien a cali ae talin da.” Queen Rianna’s voice could have bored holes in stone. She was not happy.

  Gaius plodded in behind her. “Her Majesty wishes to know why you have requested her presence.”

  Lori took a deep breath. “Please. Thank the queen for granting my request so promptly. But I regret to say, it’s impossible for me to decode the scroll with you as my only assistant.” She waited for his translation before continuing. “It’s not that you don’t do everything I ask. It’s that I have to explicitly ask for every scrap of information. I need help from someone who can play a proactive role. Someone who can use their intelligence and imagination.”

  “Her Majesty says you are supposed to be providing the intelligence and imagination.”

  “I’m sorry, but you…” She paused, uncomfortable at discussing Gaius as if he were absent, even though, in a very real sense, he was. There was no point pretending he was playing with a full deck. “Gaius is less use to me than a dictionary. I can’t even flip though the pages of his memory in the hope a random word sparks an idea. I need more help. An unknown language is the hardest code to break. That’s why, in World War II the Americans used Navajo code-talkers.”

  “Are you saying you cannot decode the scroll?”

  “I’m saying that, unless I get more help with the language than Gaius can provide, it might take years, and I know Your Majesty needs an answer quicker than that.”

  Queen Rianna stalked across the study, until she stood in arm’s reach. “Quelin torq da calidi.”

  “Her Majesty instructs you to remove your torc.”

  Lori’s stomach turned to ice. “Tamsin told me never to do that while I’m in Annwyn.”

  “Captain Tamsin would not mean you to disobey Her Majesty’s commands.”

  Which was undoubtedly true. The only options were to obey the order, or have the queen summon sufficient help to overpower her. Lori slipped the torc from her neck and laid it on the desk. What next? Would she know if she was standing like a slack faced zombie? Her mind felt as if it was working normally.

  Rianna’s icy expression did not change as she placed a hand on either side of Lori’s head. This was it. This was where the queen sucked her brains out. Instinctively, Lori tried to step back, but was too slow. Fog flowed into her thoughts, blanketing her in a shroud of apathy. She could see the room, but it was like an old photograph, a lost scene watched from a distance.

  The mind fog lifted as quickly as it had arrived. Lori’s nose and ears itched, and she could see stars, but apart from this she felt exactly the same as before.

  “You may put it on again.” Queen Rianna had returned to her previous position.

  Lori snatched up the torc. It was ridiculous how vulnerable she felt without it round her neck.

  “I trust you can now perform your task.”

  “I…” She stopped. Rianna was not speaking English. “I…” Hyannish was sitting in her head alongside English, and she was equally fluent in both. “I guess so. But how—”

  The door closed. Queen Rianna had left, and no more answers would be forthcoming.

  Lori collapsed on the nearest stool, struggling with surprise. Whatever had been done seemed permanent, the effect lasting after the torc was replaced. She touched the spots where the queen’s hands had been. She needed to know a lot more about magic, its capabilities and limits, but that would have to wait.

  Although his translation services were no longer needed, Gaius remained. He was going to be keeping an eye on her, maybe closer than before, now that she could work independently of him. She glanced at the bookcases. What would he do if she pulled out a book at random? Rianna had not forbidden reading.

  “You must make all speed to complete Queen Rianna’s task. Idleness will not be permitted.” Gaius ran on a limited command set.

  Lori rolled open the scroll. The fay magic had given her knowledge of the writing as well as the language. The runes were no longer strange symbols, but phonetic components. Had they formed proper words she could have read the text aloud. Decoding was going to be so much easier now that she understood the sentence structure. Already she could guess the location of prepositions, and the likely verbs and nouns.

  Morgaine’s name would be there, she was sure of it, and probably the words “Annwyn,” and “spell.” Lori sighed. Much easier—but it still might take a while.

  Chapter Nine

  Lori hurried down the stairways of the middle bailey. Gaius had not approved of her leaving work early, but she had missed dinner the previous day, and was not about to do so again. There was only so much bread and cheese her digestive system could take. She had made vague noises about possibly returning after she had eaten, with no intention of doing so. Quite apart from food, she needed a break from the room and, if possible, an ordinary conversation with someone who was still in possession of their own brain.

  She ducked into the porch of the mess hall and collided with a tall figure who was leaving.

  “Hey. Watch where you’re going.”

  “Sorry.” Lori realised who the tall figure was. Her pulse rate spiked. “Oh. Tamsin. Hi. I was worried I’d missed dinner.” Through the open doors she could see the emptying tables and boggarts clearing away the remains of food.

  “You…” Tamsin was staring at her.

  Had she got ink on her face? “What’s up?”

  “You’re speaking Hyannish.”

  “Am I?” She had not noticed. It was all very confusing. “Oh, yes. Queen Rianna did it. I told her I couldn’t decrypt a foreign language. She told me to take my torc off. I know you told me never to do it, but I gu
essed it didn’t apply to the queen’s orders.”

  “Of course not. You’re totally safe with her.”

  Which brought to mind Arthur Dent’s quote about unfamiliar usage of the word safe. “Anyway, she did something, and then I could speak Hyannish, even after I put the torc back on.”

  “She’d have used transformation, rather than illusion.”

  “That makes a difference?”

  “Oh yes.” Tamsin glanced over her shoulder. “You’d better be quickish if you want to eat. I’ll come with you.”

  “All right.”

  The benches were three-quarters empty, with a corresponding decrease in noise level. Finn and Widget were the only two left at the table used by the Silver Ravens. They got up as Tamsin and Lori approached.

  “Back already?” Widget grinned at Tamsin.

  “I’m going to keep Lori company.”

  “Right. Well, you won’t mind if I don’t join you.” Widget’s tone was light-hearted. “Oh, and there’s a card game in Shorty’s room. See if you can’t talk lover boy here into going. It’s my turn to take some money off him.”

  Finn gave a snort. “Like you stand a chance of that.” He patted Tamsin on the shoulder, said, “Night, Tazer. See you tomorrow,” and walked from the hall. Lori felt suitably ignored.

  Widget started to follow him, but stopped and turned back. “Say, Lori. You used to work on games, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “I don’t suppose you know anything about Warlords of Acadia III?”

  “No. It’s not one I’ve worked on.”

  “Shame that. There was me hoping you could drop hints about Easter eggs. Never mind.” He switched his attention to Tamsin. “Maybe catch you later in Shorty’s.”

  “Maybe.”

  Widget left.

  Once again, there was bread to use as bowls. The thick stew contained vegetables, the first Lori had been offered in Annwyn, although their variety was unclear. A platter of sliced meat also was laid out, species similarly unknown. Regardless, she helped herself to a generous serving of both. Tamsin sat on the other side of the table, watching her in a way that might give rise to difficulty in swallowing.