Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue

by Chuck Black

DAY ONE

  Carliss sat down in the chair next to Dalton and resumed her duty of swabbing his forehead and face with cool water. His entire body was trembling uncontrollably.

  Salina was pacing back and forth. “What do we do now?” she said, finally taking a seat next to Carliss.

  Carliss looked at her friend and was moved with compassion for her. She put her hand on Salina’s and squeezed.

  “You must be greatly distressed for your family,” Carliss said, wanting to let her know that she had not forgotten.

  Salina bit her lip and squeezed Carliss’s hand. She wiped a tear from her eye and gave a nervous laugh. “We are in quite a mess aren’t we?”

  “Yes, we are,” Carliss replied. She could think of no good solution to their double dilemma. “We are tired, and it’s late into the night. Rest now, and we’ll decide what to do in the morning.”

  Salina attempted a smile and nodded.

  Eunice and Petolemew, who had graciously invited Carliss, Salina, and Ganoaf to sleep in their hut, offered blankets for the floor. Carliss declined, preferring to stay beside Dalton. Hours after the others had fallen asleep, Carliss was still by his side, trying to cool him as his body fought the fever and the tremors. She’d kept a candle burning so she could see his face.

  “Why couldn’t you stay away?” she whispered as she wrung out the cloth in cool water and applied it to his feverish forehead.

  It simply wasn’t fair. Two years ago, the thought of finding someone to spend her life with had been far from her mind, for she had long assumed that her zeal to serve the Prince made her less attractive to most young men. She was too single-minded to play the necessary games. Besides, she was a plain, quiet girl, very different from the smiling, pretty creatures the young men seemed to like.

  From an early age, she had settled on the very likely possibility that she would be a Knight of the Prince unhindered by romantic distractions. This notion suited her well, and she was very comfortable with it. She actually pitied the girls who struggled with the awkward emotions their yearnings brought. With her heart protected and her mind focused on her work, she was able to cast aside any concern about the perceptions of others, and this freed her to just be Carliss.

  Then one day two years earlier, the foundations of her finely tuned emotional world shifted. It was just a small shift, but she felt it—and did not like it. Sir Dalton was a couple of years older and well into a relationship with Lady Brynn—a beautiful girl, much prettier than herself, and openly scornful of Carliss. Carliss had quickly pushed aside the notion that the momentary flutter within her had anything to do with Sir Dalton. She had moved on with her life, being careful to avoid him just in case.

  As circumstance would have it, however, Dalton kept crossing her path. The very worst of it all was when her dear brother, Koen, became close friends with Dalton. Before Carliss realized it, she was daily—nay, hourly—fighting the emotions she had so despised. They embarrassed her, angered her, teased her, and tempted her. Then, when she realized she was losing the battle of her heart to the merciless whims of unreturned love, she withdrew.

  That was when she volunteered to help retrain the knights at Varlaken instead of going back home to Salisburg. Although she could hardly admit it even to herself, she was running from Dalton.

  And now, once again, her life had been inexplicably entwined with the very man she had tried to stay away from.

  Carliss paused in her duty and looked at Dalton. Her heart ached in so many ways. All of the careful protection of her heart seemed for naught. She had fallen in love with a man who was promised to another, who could never love her. She had even heard rumors of marriage between Dalton and Lady Brynn. She accepted the fact that she would be condemned to a life of loneliness no matter the outcome here, but she also knew she could bear that loneliness much easier if Dalton were alive, even though he was with another.

  Daltons right hand was trembling severely, and Carliss could not make her heart obey her mind. She reached out and put her hand on his. She squeezed his hand to comfort him and began to withdraw, but his hand squeezed back. Her touch seemed to ease his tremors a bit, and though she knew her inner conflict would only increase, she left her hand on his.

  “The tremors seem to have stopped,” Eunice said as she set a fresh basin of cool water on the table beside Carliss.

  Carliss snapped her head up and blinked to clear the sleep from her eyes. Sunlight was streaming through the window and into the hut. Her neck ached, and so did her arm.

  “What?” she asked groggily.

  “I said, it looks like the tremors of your friend are over,” Eunice repeated.

  Carliss looked down at Dalton and realized she was still holding his hand. She quickly pulled her hand away.

  “Ah, yes, it does seem so.”

  Eunice smiled at her. “It’s all right, child. Love is the greatest medicine there is.”

  “It’s not like that,” Carliss began, but Eunice seemed to see right into her heart.

  Eunice pulled up a chair beside Carliss and sat down. “I don’t know much about him, but you’ve picked a handsome one.”

  Carliss fidgeted and looked about to make sure the others were still asleep. The only one she couldn’t see was Petolemew, who was probably studying in the back room.

  “I’m not really his type.” Carliss gave Eunice a brief smile. “Besides, he’s promised to another.”

  “I see,” Eunice looked kindly on Carliss. “Many times things don’t work out the way we’d like them to. But sometimes they do, and in my experience there seems to be an extra measure of blessing for those with a good and kind heart.” Eunice took Carliss’s hand in hers and patted it. “You have a good heart, child. And when your Sir Dalton recovers, perhaps he’ll see just how good.”

  Carliss could not help but smile at Eunice. The words had soothed her ache, but she did not let them rest too long on her mind. Contentment was something she wanted restored in her life, and daring to hope for such a thing as Dalton’s love did little to help that. Nevertheless, she was grateful for the kindness of this old woman.

  “Thank you, madam. You are very kind.” Carliss looked back at Dalton and gave a start, for his eyes were open.

  “Dalton!” she exclaimed and drew close to him.

  Dalton blinked.

  “My love, I’ve come to rescue you,” he said and lifted a hand to her cheek. “The dragamoth comes. Hurry!”

  Carliss grabbed his hand and laid it back on the bed. Dalton looked to the ceiling and slowly closed his eyes. Carliss then realized something grave.

  “The tremors have stopped, and the visions continue.” She looked at Eunice with alarm. “We’re running out of time!”

  Carliss stood and began to pace. Salina raised her head and blinked her eyes sleepily.

  “What is it, Carliss?”

  “According to Petolemew’s book on the esca lizard, we have only nine days to travel to Moorue, find the antidote, and give it to Dalton before he dies.”

  Salina pushed herself to a sitting position. “If we take him to Salisburg before we go to Moorue, we’ll never make it in time,” she said.

  Carliss put her hands on her hips and tried to think of other options, but could not. She was in a race against time, and every moment she delayed brought Dalton closer to death.

  “We could take him with us to Moorue,” Salina said. “That would save the four-day journey back.”

  Carliss looked at Dalton again and tried to imagine that scenario.

  “He’s in no condition to travel at all. We would use up the time just trying to get there.” Carliss looked back at Salina. “There is only one option. You and I must leave straightaway for Moorue.” Then she looked at Eunice. “You have already done so much for us…”

  Eunice stood. “We will care for Dalton.”

  Carliss grabbed her hands. “I don’t know how I will ever be able to repay you.”

  Eunice smiled. “No need—”

  She w
as interrupted by a ferocious commotion from Petolemew’s study, followed by sharp coughing.

  “Eunice”—cough, cough—“Eunice! Come quickly!” the old man yelled from behind the door.

  Carliss, Eunice, Salina, and Ganoaf all rushed into the study. A thick black cloud of smoke hung in the air just above their heads. Petolemew was sitting at one of the tables. His face looked as though it had been painted pitch black, and the fringes of his hair were singed. He was smiling broadly, and his white teeth and eyes stood out in stark contrast against his blackened countenance.

  Eunice hurried to his side. “Petolemew, what have you done?”

  “It’s marvelous!” he exclaimed, pointing to a large charred mark on the table before him.

  Eunice went over and touched his face. Petolemew brushed her hand aside.

  “Wonderful! You’ve brought visitors. Watch this.” He scooped a small mound of black powder from a large crucible just within arm’s reach. He reached for a lit candle and brought the flame near the mound.

  Eunice began to back away. Carliss and Salina took their cue from her and also took a couple of steps back. Ganoaf, however, stepped forward toward Petolemew’s experiment.

  “You be careful, Petole—” Eunice’s scolding was interrupted by a bright flash of light and a loud sound, followed by another poof of black smoke that rose up from the table in front of the alchemist.

  Carliss closed her eyes and turned away, but she was not quick enough. Now, even with her eyes closed, a bright white light seemed etched in her vision, no matter which direction she looked. She looked back at Petolemew and saw that the table was on fire. After a few shouts of exclamation and some scurrying about, Petolemew found a rag and smothered the small flame.

  “What is it?” Carliss asked as they reassembled about the table.

  Ganoaf seemed completely mesmerized by what had just happened and was poking his finger into the crucible of unscorched black powder. He licked his finger and began to spit.

  “It’s not to eat, big fella.” Petolemew grabbed the crucible and glanced at Carliss. “Is he missing a horseshoe or two?”

  Carliss had to suppress her laughter, for that comment was a bit like the pot calling the kettle black.

  “Mister Petolemew,” she asked, “how do you make this powder?”

  “It’s a mixture of various substances…,” he began, then launched into a complicated explanation that lost Carliss almost from the beginning. But Eunice had grabbed a pen, inkwell, and parchment and was writing down as many of Petolemew’s words as possible, often asking him to repeat himself. Carliss marveled at the beautiful love that this woman demonstrated for her forgetful husband.

  When his oration was through, Petolemew looked at the notes his wife had taken. For a moment, he seemed to perfectly understand his curse and the magnitude of her compassion.

  “I am the most blessed man in the kingdom,” he said softly to her. A blackened tear trickled down his cheek.

  Eunice went to him and put her head on his shoulder. Carliss then understood that these brief moments of loving gratitude were compensation for Eunice’s seemingly unending patience and adoration and that she cherished those moments greatly.

  “Um, I hate to interrupt”—Salinas voice held a taut note of impatience—“but we need to leave as soon as possible.”

  Her words brought the reality of Dalton’s danger and the captivity of Salina’s family pressing back upon them, and they were shortly in the throes of hasty preparation. Ganoaf seemed to understand the sense of urgency and followed Carliss about wherever she went. “Ganoaf help,” he would say from time to time.

  Carliss took a moment to sit down beside Dalton. She felt his forehead. The fever seemed to have left him completely. She studied his face, then closed her eyes, pressing the imprint of his image into her memory while trying to quell the ache in her heart. It seemed so cruel to be caught in this web of yearning and desperation. At its very best, she imagined saving Dalton’s life to see him riding into the sunset with Lady Brynn. She opened her eyes, sat tall, and took a deep breath.

  “You are a fellow Knight of the Prince and the friend of my brother. This is why I go,” she said, steeling herself for the mission. When she stood, she stood strong, having recaptured the heart of the woman the Prince had called her to be… a warrior of the King.

  When all was ready, Salina mounted her horse, and Carliss waited to say farewell to Eunice and Petolemew, who had just exited the hut, each carrying a bundle. Petolemew’s face was mostly clean by now, though smudges of black soot remained about his eyes and nose. Carliss thought he looked a bit like a raccoon.

  “Eunice,” he said with excitement, “we have visitors!”

  “Yes, dear,” Eunice said. “But they are only passing through.”

  “What a shame.” Petolemew shook his head. “It seems we never have visitors stay with us a spell anymore.”

  Eunice gave him a patient smile, then handed Carliss a battered knapsack. “I’ve packed some food for you—nothing fancy, but it should keep you awhile. Will you be stopping in Brimwick Downs? It’s not too far off the way, isn’t it?”

  Carliss glanced over at Salina, remembering their conversation on the subject. She had proposed stopping for reinforcements from Sir Norsington at the Brimwick Downs haven, but Salina had insisted they would save time by keeping farther to the west and hugging the foothills of the Northern Mountains. Though still concerned about her family, Salina seemed willing to postpone a rescue in the interests of saving Dalton, and Carliss was deeply grateful for her unselfishness. They had agreed to locate Salina’s family in Moorue and then come back with reinforcements once they got the antidote to Dalton.

  “We will stop in Brimwick Downs on our way back,” Carliss said to Eunice as she secured the knapsack of food behind her saddle. Then she turned back and put her arms around the older woman.

  “Thank you!” she whispered, then released her embrace. “We are in your debt.”

  Eunice put a gentle hand to Carliss’s cheek. “Don’t you worry, child. We will take care of your young man. You take care of yourself.”

  “Yes, madam.”

  Eunice stepped aside. “Petolemew has something he would like to give you as well.”

  Petolemew stepped forward. “Here you go, dear.” he said and handed a bundle to Carliss with a big grin.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  Petolemew thought for a moment and then smiled even bigger. “I have no idea!”

  “It is some of the exploding mixture you saw earlier,” Eunice said. “I asked him to mix up a batch for you. It seems like it might come in useful where you are going.”

  Carliss couldn’t imagine how, at least not yet.

  “Be careful with it,” Eunice said. He’s put a batch in each of six leather pouches for you.”

  Carliss took the bundle from Petolemew and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek, which delighted the old fellow. It was an action that surprised even her.

  “Thank you, sir,” she said, then swung into Rindy’s saddle.

  Ganoaf stood beside Rindy and put his hand on the steed’s neck.

  “Ganoaf come.” The large fellow said as he looked up at Carliss with pleading eyes.

  “I’m sorry, Ganoaf, you must stay here.” Carliss patted the huge hand. “Thank you for all of your help.”

  Ganoaf’s hand slowly fell from Rindy’s neck.

  Just as they were about to leave, a hawk screeched from a nearby tree and Carliss jumped.

  “It’s just a bird, deary,” Eunice said.

  Carliss spotted the bird and took a deep breath as she realized that it bore no resemblance to the death ravens she had fought. “Yes, of course it is. I just don’t care much for birds… especially large ones.”

  Carliss and Salina launched their steeds in a northerly direction, toward the foothills of the Northern Mountains. But they had barely crested the first knoll of the hollow when they heard Eunice shouting for Ganoaf. Carliss tur
ned back to see him jogging toward them. Her shoulders fell slightly as she thought of the poor fellow trying to jog all the way to Moorue.

  “Come, Carliss,” Salina said. “When we are out of sight he will give up and return to Pembrook. We can’t be encumbered with watching over him while we are trying to save my family and Sir Dalton.”

  Carliss considered Salina’s words and knew them to be true, though Salina’s harsh tone bothered her. She turned her horse back on course and then realized that riding away from the meek and lowly was something she was incapable of doing. Something in her compelled her to respond to Ganoaf It was the same force within her bosom that had made her run to Sir Orland as a little girl and ask of the hope she saw in him. It was the same force that caused her to join with Sir Dalton and free her fellow knights—like Salina—from the evil prison of Lord Drox. It was a force she could not refuse, so she turned her horse around and galloped back.

  “Carliss!” Salina shouted.

  Carliss ignored her.

  After another short delay, Ganoaf was sitting atop Dalton’s horse, Chaser, hanging on as if he had never ridden before. Carliss and Ganoaf joined Salina on the crest of the knoll, and Salina looked disgusted.

  “He had better keep up,” she huffed, “or we’re leaving him behind.”

  Ganoaf looked sheepishly at Carliss. She smiled at him and then nodded in the direction Salina was headed.

  “Come along, Ganoaf,” Carliss said and kicked Rindy into a trot.

  The haze of the morning had not yet lifted, making the Northern Mountains difficult to see, but they pressed forward, anticipating their passage to a strange city that hosted a mythical creature… and a mythical cure.

  NORTHERN JOURNEY

  Moorue was a three- to four-days’ journey, providing all went well and the foothills were kind to them. By the end of the first day, Ganoaf had learned to ride Chaser, remarkably well, much to Salina’s surprise and chagrin. In spite of the heavier load, Chaser seemed to take to Ganoaf, and Ganoaf to Chaser.

  When it grew too dark to ride any farther, they made camp. Ganoaf stayed away from Salina and close to Carliss. When Carliss laid out her bedroll, Ganoaf lay down at her feet on the ground. Carliss wasn’t quite sure what to think about his apparent attachment to her. She didn’t find him annoying because he seemed always grateful that she allowed him to be near, but she did find his constant presence a bit awkward and wondered when, if ever, it would stop.