Book of Remembrance: The Forgotten Gods: Book One

by Tania Johansson

  CHAPTER 2 – Bitter Days and Peculiar Nights

  We made haste with our journey, but it still took us a full seventeen days before the massive Jurpa statues came into view. The rearing antelopes guarded the main entrance to the village. Moma used to tell us that they protected the village. With their two heads and great thrusting horns, they certainly looked fearsome.

  Growing up, I had always wondered why such a small settlement had such a massive wall around it. I had eventually found out that, millennia ago, Rakadamon and his followers had been a threat to the Tretakai people in particular, as they harboured the secret Talent of the Navitas. Despite the people forgetting through the ages the true purpose of the Navitas, they continued to guard this knowledge fiercely, passing it along the generations, and finally onto me, even though I was not of the Tretakai.

  Alathaya laid a hand on my arm and I realised I had stopped and was staring at the statues. With a sigh, I led my family through the gates.

  My plan was to go straight to Moma’s house. To my dismay though, I was waylaid soon after stepping into the village. Everyone I ran into stopped me to offer their condolences. I appreciated their concern and I knew Moma had been dear to them as well, but I needed to see my little sister. Breen, now the stable master, was a welcome sight. With a sympathetic nod, he took our horses from us to lead them to the stables.

  I said a brief thank you and marched on quickly past another woman in the midst of saying how sorry she was for my loss. My abrupt departure left her looking after me with a perplexed frown on her face. I thought I heard Thaya murmur an apology to her.

  Walking into Moma’s kitchen felt as it always had; like I had reached a safe sanctuary. For a fraction of a moment, I looked around for her before my stomach clenched again with the realisation that she was not there and never again would be. Lilana came out of Moma’s bedroom at the sound of our arrival. Her dark eyes were red rimmed and puffy, her black hair scraped back into a messy tail. Alathaya murmured a greeting before ushering the children into the bedroom.

  I hugged her tightly and neither one of us said a word. What could we say? After a long moment, I slowly pulled away. She wiped her eyes while setting the kettle on the fire for some tea. I sat quietly, knowing that she would talk when she was ready.

  She put a cup down in front of me and sagged into a chair opposite. Sighing, she said, “When Moma did not show up in the common dining hall for breakfast, I got worried. I came here.” She glanced over to Moma’s bedroom. “I found her in there. For a moment I thought she was sleeping, but I couldn’t wake her.” Her voice broke, fresh tears streamed down her face and she sat shaking her head.

  “Had her cough gotten worse?” I asked. “I had known that she was ill, but I did not think it was serious. Otherwise, I would have been here.” I added guiltily.

  She shook her head miserably. “No, I don’t understand it. If anything, I thought it had gotten better.”

  I took her hand in mine and gave it a squeeze. “When was the funeral?”

  “I think, um, about eighteen days since. We would have waited for you to arrive, but…” she trailed off. I nodded my understanding.

  “Come.” She stood up and I called Thaya and the children. We walked in silence to the grave. Thankfully, passers-by stood gazing after us, but kept their silence.

  We stood staring at the piece of dirt that now covered the first person to ever love me, accept me. I was startled when Thaya wiped at my face. It was then that I realised I was crying.

  She reached up on tiptoes, kissed my cheek and whispered in my ear, “We will give you some time alone.” I looked up as she ushered the children away. Lilana had already gone.

  I sat down. As always when troubled, I pulled my sentinel from my pocket. It had been my denouement gift when I completed the Tretakai induction ceremony. Little did I know it would end up saving my life.

  Although the disc’s beautiful golden surface was marred by burn marks, the inscription was still clearly visible; ‘We come when summoned, but bearer be aware, we come but once’. I had long pondered these words. When I activated it with my Navitas in a moment of dread, it had summoned a group of Fae warriors. It had been clear that they had had some sort of debt to repay and once they had come at my call, rescuing me from my dire situation, the debt had been repaid.

  Even though I knew there would be no one forthcoming from it again, I still carried it with me wherever I went. It, and the Alliance symbol on it, was a sort of reminder that no matter how bad things seemed, they have been worse. That day though, I was not sure if this was true.

  All those seasons ago, the Cha had sent Moma to find me, but no one had asked her to adopt me. She raised me as her own, even in the face of opposition in the village.

  I sat there for a long while. When the sun started disappearing, I hunted for a flower. I found a red rose and laid it on the grave. The Kichwa had once said to me that I was like a blood red rose in a field of white moonflowers, so it felt right. I wiped at my tears and strode away.

  I walked along blindly until I nearly bumped into someone. I gave my head a shake and muttered an apology before brushing past him.

  “Kadin?”

  With a scowl, I turned. “Brant!” Despite the circumstances, I managed a small smile. He had not changed since I last saw him. His wavy dark hair was cut short with a long fringe, as was the fashion. His russet eyes peered at me.

  He gave me a hug and a pat on the back. “You look rough. Let me buy you a drink.”

  I shook my head, “I am weary after my long journey,” I glanced back over my shoulder in the direction of the graveyard, “and this day.”

  He smiled broadly. “That is exactly why you need a drink.”

  I relented and trailed after him to the Sprouting Fountain inn. It was Wilm’s da’s Inn, the only one in the village. As much as I had missed my brothers – the group of friends I had grown up with and who had become my family - I hoped I would not bump into them on this night.

  Brant took a table near to the centre of the room, but I shook my head, walked to a dim corner and sat facing the wall. He sat down with a shrug.

  When the drinks arrived, Brant lifted his mug and solemnly intoned, “To your Moma.”

  I nodded and clinked glasses with him before taking a long draught. “How is everything here?”

  He grinned impishly. “You know your brothers, always up to some sort of mischief. With Master Draek getting old, Prea has practically taken over now as the village healer. Everyone loves him and I think a few were a bit relieved when old Master Draek finally handed over the reins. He was getting so forgetful. Not what you want in your healer!” he said with a chuckle. I tried and failed to raise a smile for him.

  Prea would have loved meeting the Jerieghens. They were a people of the Fae who were more adept at healing than what we humans could ever aspire to.

  After a moment of awkward silence, Brant asked, “So, have you been in touch with any of the Alliance members?”

  I lifted my shoulders, vaguely saying, “Occasionally. I probably do not see them as much as I should or want to.”

  “I saw Seran, Trissa and Dhillion not long ago. Did you know Dhillion lives with them still?” he asked, his brows lifted quizzically.

  Trissa’s little brother had been a pebble in my shoe during the last part of our expedition. I did not know how Seran could live with him. Out of everyone’s Talents, his had been the one to frighten me. Truly, his compulsion was a Talent that lent itself well to selfishness, immorality and if not guarded against, evil. I shivered. “I know of it. I have not seen them in a good many seasons.” I did miss seeing Seran, but Dhillion had been reason enough to postpone my visits time and time again.

  “I was surprised at how mature he had become,” he said.

  I snorted. “Well, he is now a man of twenty-nine turnings; I would be rather surprised if he hadn’t.” Even so, I had always thought that he lacked the maturity to be responsible with his Talent.

&n
bsp; With a nod, he continued. “True, but he is not using his Talent as loosely anymore. As far as I could tell, he isn’t using it at all. Almost seems a bit of a waste,” he added softly.

  I looked at him disbelievingly. It had been about six cycles-of-the-seasons since I had last seen them, but at that point, he was still much a child. Demanding what he wants and if he did not get it, resorting to his Talent to force people to give him whatever he desired.

  “It is true,” Brant said. “He had learned a hard lesson.”

  I raised my eyebrows at him enquiringly.

  “Trissa had an argument with Dhillion and in vexation, he told her to go and wash dishes. Of course, she was compelled to obey. He stormed off and didn’t return for near on two days later. Seran nearly had his head for that, because naturally, Trissa was still busy washing dishes! At the time, she was five months pregnant with Griaty. Seran had managed to convince her to sit down while washing, but he could not get her to stop.”

  I could not hide my outrage. “Could he not pick her up and carry her away? Lock her in a room?”

  Brant shook his head. “He tried that. He managed carry her some distance, but as soon as he put her down, she would walk straight back to it, and if he locked her in a room, she went crazy. Screaming, crying and banging on the door for hours, until Seran relented and opened the door. She had to have medical treatment for her hands after that. They were worried for the baby as well.”

  I sat shaking my head as he told me this.

  “Dhillion claimed it was a lapse of judgment on his side,” he continued. “That he had not realised he had compelled her. Since then apparently, he had been a whole lot more selective with how he uses his Talent. It is also the reason why he is so protective over their little girl, Griaty. Probably trying to make up for his mistake that nearly cost her life.”

  I sat back in my chair absorbing this story. He had always been irresponsible, but this went beyond stupid.

  “When last did you see them?” he asked.

  I thought for a moment before answering. “It must have been shortly before she was pregnant. Do you think Dhillion has learned his lesson then?”

  His mouth pulled down at the corners and his bottom lip jutted out. “As I say, he did seem to have changed his behaviour after that incident, but I only saw them for a few days.”

  I looked down at my mug and saw I had drained it, so I made my excuses and headed back to Moma’s house, Lilana’s house now. As I stepped out of the inn, though, another person stopped me.

  “Master Kadin!” he exclaimed. I thought I recognised him vaguely as being one of the elders who had sat on the village council when I was growing up. “I haven’t seen you in such a long time, son. The Kichwa told us of your great achievements and glorious victory. We were all so happy that our faith in you paid off.”

  He smiled ingratiatingly at me. I could almost smell the waves of honey coming from his tongue. I shuddered inwardly at the complete hypocrisy of it. They never had any faith in me. Their enmity was what had forced me to learn the Navitas in secret and even when I achieved that, they had rejected me as an outsider, with the Kichwa leading the mob with pitchfork in hand! I clenched my teeth to keep from saying anything, and strode past him.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  After the children went off to bed, I told Alathaya of my evening. She was not as shocked as I had been about Dhillion’s carelessness. “I always thought he was going to get into a whole lot of trouble with his Talent. That boy never knew where the line should be drawn. He was lucky that it was not more serious.” She sat shaking her head.

  I scratched at my beard. I would have shaved it off long since, but Thaya liked it, so I put up with it.

  “You look tired. Do you want something to eat before bed?”

  I shook my head. “No thank you, I am not going to be awake long enough for that.”

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  Far off in the distance, I heard a howl. I had to strain my ears to catch it at first, but over several minutes it rose and fell like a lamenting call, louder and louder. My heart started racing. That was no wolf; it was a Dyrrendrel. The nightmarish creatures that Rakadamon had Twisted from the shape of the wolf were much larger than their normal counterparts.

  But, how could that be? The Twisted Ones had all reverted when Rakadamon fell. Suddenly, it sounded loud and clear and very close.

  I sat straight up in bed, covered in sweat. Thaya woke up and laid a hand on my arm. “What is it?”

  I squinted at her through the darkness. “Did you not hear it?”

  “Hear what? Is Myria awake again?” she asked with a groan.

  I shook my head and sat listening a while before answering. “I heard howling…a Dyrrendrel howling. It was getting so close.”

  She sat up next to me. “That can’t be. You know they all reverted back to their natural forms. Perhaps it was a wolf, or do you think you could have been dreaming?”

  I ran a hand through my hair. “I suppose.” Could I have dreamt it? I was so sure I heard….With a sigh I laid back down. Thaya cuddled up next to me and soon she was taking the long slow breaths of sleep. I stayed awake listening for a while more, even focusing my Navitas to enhance my hearing. When I heard nothing more though, I had to admit it had probably been a dream.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  The next morning we all went to the common dining hall where I knew I would find my brothers. When I saw them sitting at the same table we had always used, I could not help the smile that came. Jench spotted me first and sent up a joyous cry of greeting, jumping up and nearly knocking his chair over. “Look, I think I recognise that man!” he said, pointing to me.

  “No Jench, you are mistaken, I am sure that is a stranger,” Prea laughed.

  I chuckled along with them. “It’s not been that long!”

  Jamber snorted. “Please! We have not seen you in, what is it, like two whole cycles-of-the-seasons! And look at the mini-Kadin’s. Not so mini anymore, are they? Riaph, you are almost as big as your da now!”

  Riaph grinned at this. Prea got up and bowed to Alathaya, taking her hand and kissing it lightly on the back. The others followed suit with the bow and I gave them each a hug before going back to get some food. Riaph was already sitting down and talking animatedly with Jamber.

  After a short while of sitting there chatting, Lilana walked in and after getting her food, came to sit with us. I was relieved to see that she looked better than she had the day before.

  “So, Lilana, have you decided to give in and marry me then?” Jench asked with a serious face.

  Her tinkling laughter made her eyes sparkle. “I have told you, if I am not married by the time I am twenty five turnings, I will be marrying you.”

  Jench’s face was a picture of mock disappointment. “And in the meantime, you are happy for me to become a lonely old man?”

  She chortled again. “Become? You already are a lonely old man!”

  I was sitting with my back to the entrance, but when I saw Wilm waving to someone at the door, I looked over my shoulder to see Brant raise his hand in turn. Jamber groaned. “Why did you have to wave at him? Please, do not let him come and sit with us today.”

  I looked at him with a frown. “I thought you were all friends with him now?”

  He gave me a deplorable look. “Have you forgotten how he had used me, blackmailed me to get information on you? How you ever became friends with him is truly beyond me.”

  I sniffed. “That was a long time ago. Besides we went through a lot together.”

  His eyebrows climbed. “Well, we have not.”

  To Jamber’s dismay, Brant made his way over to us. He put a hand to my shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “I heard that you had arrived yesterday. Just wanted to say I am really sorry for your loss, Kadin.”

  I looked at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  Now it was his turn to look at me with a baffled expression and he glanced over to the rest of the men. “Your Moma, Kadin
. I am saying that I am sorry for your loss.”

  I shook my head and pursed my lips. “I know that of course. But, I spoke to you last night. We went to the Sprouting Fountain. You bought me a drink…is any of this ringing a bell?”

  He looked at Aliana who had come up behind him, but she shrugged. “Well,” Brant continued, “I must have had a lot more to drink than I had thought. I vaguely remember sitting in there, but I do not seem to remember talking to you at all. I did wake up with a fierce headache.” He added almost to himself.

  Aliana grinned, gazing up at him. She was short by Tretakai standards and only came up to Brant’s shoulder. “Brant that is a new record for you,” she said and looked at me apologetically. “He has been known in the past to get hazy on the details of nights out, but this…” She shook her head at him.

  Myria giggled loudly until Thaya told her off and even then, she tried quite unsuccessfully to stifle her mirth by pulling her long blond hair over her mouth. His cheeks flushed lightly with colour and he self-consciously rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Don’t worry Brant, we will have to catch up again.” I tried for a placating smile.

  “Kadin,” Aliana said, “it is nice to see you again. We will have to arrange to take tea together before you go, perhaps when Brant is feeling better.” She linked arms with Brant and led him away.

  I looked after them. He only had two drinks while I had been with him. Perhaps he had more after I left, I mused.

  I turned to Prea. “Does he often drink this way?”

  A worried frown creased his brow. “Not that I was aware of.”

  Jamber grinned to himself, most likely revelling in Brant’s embarrassment.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  Later that day, I found myself walking toward the Cha’s house. Before I knocked on the door though, he opened it with a welcoming smile. “Kadin, you have returned.” For a moment, his face went sombre. “I am sorry for our loss. Your Moma was a remarkable woman.” He waved his hand gesturing for me to follow him in.