“Zigal, it is not a good thing to be a queen in this age.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“I wonder if this new one will satisfy him?”
“She may, my lady.”
“A Strabian woman. They do not even see the light of day, do they?”
“It is said. Or, it is true for the noblewomen among them. Keeps them paler than the rest of us. And naive. The wealthy families prize that sort of look. There are also other strange things about them.”
“Like what?”
“I have heard more than once that they never age. At least not like other women do.” Diti laughed half-heartedly.
“Well, she should keep him happy for a long time indeed.” Zigal, ever serious, did not laugh.
“Do you wish to win back his favor, my lady? I could go and get a look at her. . .”
“No. I am tired of that. Let the other concubines contend with her. My interests lie with protecting those few Aishanna-La left within the realm. If I can.”
“It is good God chose you, my lady, to come here. I fear we all would have been wiped out if not for you. But I think your time here is at an end. You must not stay here. You must leave soon, my lady.”
“I thank you, Zigal but it took the actions of more than one person. Besides, I believe there is more I can do. Much, much more. I have no intention of being chased out of the palace. I was once queen here and many still remember and respect that.” Diti said, bristling. Then she changed the subject. “I hear that she worships a moon goddess.” Zigal's shoulder's fell. Her face darkened.
“The Mother-daughter moon goddesses, Nimnet and Elyshe, yes, my lady.”
“I wonder if a new temple will go up in their honor?”
“It will cost much ladre, I am sure. Perhaps you should send out Fricka, my lady. To watch things, to see how it will go for us.”
“I plan to do so. But first I must send a letter.”
“I worry for you, my lady. If you can go back to the citadel and live would that not be safest?”
“Zigal, I stay for the people, for the Aishanna-La. They need me here to watch over them. There is also something else.”
“Personally, I feel they should have left this city long ago. Jhis is a poisonous den, my lady.”
“And where should they go, Zigal? Is it a simple matter to just move?”
“No, but it is better than living among serpents and wolves. Even our own priesthood hates us and there have never been easy relations between the Aishanna-La and the worshipers of the sun god and now that the king is here and the games begin I fear things will ignite. Most families I know have moved to Rhuctium or Haiga or moved west to Rhe or even intermarried with the wild tribes that roam the plains and the deserts. Gamina is best of all for the faithful. Anywhere but Jhis. And that is why I worry for your life here. This is no place for peace loving people.”
“I know, but it is not a simple matter to pull up roots, Zigal. Many who stay have family lines going back generations and Jhis is the largest city in the land and the richest city. I know why people stay. There are the theaters, the arena games, the many shops full of fancy delicacies, the best and biggest market places with every kind of food, craft and artistry imaginable, the many paved streets and aqueducts that bring cold water in from the mountains for everyone. It is the ease of life and the comforts here that keep them.”
“Do those comforts keep you here, my lady?” At this Lady Diti's face burned hot with anger.
“Zigal! How dare you! Do not ever question me that way!”
“I am sorry. I did not mean to offend. It is just that sometimes those things are a trap, my lady.” Said Zigal. Diti nodded sadly.
“You are speaking right, Zigal. But I am no prophetess or desert mother to tell the people what is right. And even if one rose up, would they listen?” The servant woman's expression was despondent.
“You mentioned that there was something else, my lady.”
“Not now. Perhaps when it is clear to me.” Zigal looked away and continued to unpack and put away Lady Diti's veils. She was now settled in her new apartments in the House of Mourning, smaller than the Queen's Apartments and spare but her furnishings, tapestries and hangings gave it some semblance of luxury.
“Fricka!” Diti called. Fricka came scampering from her basket and stood at her mistress's, feet looking up at her.
“I have another mission for you.” Fricka mewled and stood on her hind legs gently pawing Diti's skirts.
“Zigal, bring me Fricka's seeing ball and bring me the mechanical bird.” Zigal obeyed. She lit a candle in it and the contraption became alive with a dull humming and she brought the contraption near to Lady Diti and unwrapped a silk kerchief. In it lay an exquisite golden hummingbird with sapphires for eyes. She brought a stylus with a tablet of clay attached to the contraption with wire. The metal of the bird was cool to the touch. The bird was fastened on to a thin rod and turned and as it was turned it wound up and then it clicked. Suddenly the eyes began to slowly light up and the tiny leaflet gold wings began to quiver rapidly. Lady Diti wrote her letter in the clay:
Mother Berenice,
It is your faithful student. The new queen has arrived today. Riding along inside a great statue in the procession of the Egian moon goddesses. It may be a sign that the king's heart may be inclined to this new religion but I do not know. The king's army is much greater now with the queen's house enjoined to the court and supplying more men.
But for the true reason I am writing again, Mother Berenice, the letter has been found and so far as I know, I have put it in the right hands to get to the king. The king has now arrived. I presume he has the letter with the false edict against the people. I have done my duty and all we can do now is wait. I know that you have said to weigh the circumstances carefully and to know when it is time to leave and I may, but it is hard. Jhis and the grand palace is my home. But I will watch and listen to the times and seasons as you have asked. May the name of Airend-Ur be blessed.
Most Honored Lady Diti
As she wrote the letter, after a few seconds her first words disappeared into the clay as the stylus sunk into it and formed new words and by the time she got to signing it and impressing her seal in the tablet, her first sentences had disappeared into the clay. When the entire contents of the letter disappeared she put away the stylus and unwound the bird from its dock. The bird-machine hummed softly and it had grown slightly warm. Fricka's eyes lit up at the sight of it.
“No Fricka. Not for you.” She then inserted it into a small globe filled with gold and copper wires of longitude and latitude and fixed its destination by moving the lines on the globe until it was set right above the marked, general area of the citadel town of Gamina. She let it hover there for a few moments and then the bird's wings fluttered slightly. It lit up like lightening for a moment as it registered its destination. She took it off the globe and handed it to Zigal and Zigal went to a latticed window and let the tiny bird fly off.
“The things they make in those lands amaze me still, my lady.”
“They were originally made in Hybron. But some peoples in other lands have retained the knowledge of the old crafts and alchemy their forefathers learned here. Let us hope no one ever sees either of us using these things, lest we be roasted for “destroying the kingdom”.” She said.
“Never mind that the games do that all on their own, my lady.”
“Ah, but “to criticize the games is to hate life itself”.” She quoted a famous saying in Jhis. Then she laughed, mirthlessly.
Chapter Nineteen
They passed by Rhuctium and several other towns before they had arrived, after two weeks traveling in the caravan to Gamina. Anet did not know when she'd been so tired of traveling and so terribly sore. What was she thinking? Wanting to travel the wide world! She longed for some soft eggs and pepper soup, good bread that wasn't hard as a rock or meat that wasn't dried and tough. She wanted fish, honey, milk, dates and figs or juicy olives in brine and
lots of cold water! Anything was better than traveling like this and she was so happy to see the rough-hewn towers of the citadel that she nearly cried. Her dreams were intermittent but all of a similar theme: blood and the strange man. She did not see the beating mechanical heart any longer in her dreams. It also seemed that Mother Berenice knew whenever she had a dream. It was as if they were both riding a line of understanding that no one else could see.
As they made their way up the hill toward the citadel many sisters came running out to meet them. Lots of little ones came to greet them and even a few of the townspeople.
“Oh, blessed way! We'd thought something terrible happened! You are all safe! God is good!” Cried Medeah.
“We managed to avoid the Hatchet Men by going by sea.” Said Mother Berenice.
“By sea? Oh my!”
“Yes. We had to make a rush to find a way out of the city as quickly as we could! We sailed to Murka and found an inn owned by a fellow brother and his wife there. From there we made our way back by the Golden Road.”
“We saw war ships leaving the port at Murka. King Kufun is amassing ships at Tarkal.” Said Helga.
“We have heard many disturbing things from the south. This time they have done more than steal goods and burn villages. They have stolen women from numerous towns on the coast, even raiding up near Haiga.” Said Olimah.
“Just recently?” Asked Mother Berenice.
“Well, no. The last was a few months ago but we are hearing rumors again, of ships coming from Jura. Helga has just confirmed it.”
“Will the king do nothing?” Exclaimed Ava.
“It would seem he does not care about the people outside of the big cities.” Said Mother Berenice. There was a look of worry on their faces.
However, these things were far away from Anet, Kaisha, Nirka and all the young ones. They saw the small vineyards, green land and hills and listened to the bleating herds of sheep with their jumping lambs and the happy voices of the people of the land. This was home and there was no reason for fear. They ran to the heavy front doors, exuberant at seeing the rest of their sisterhood. Hugging and belated greetings filled the halls until a stranger had walked in among them. The sisters who stayed at home did not seem surprised by this man. He stood apart, a deep frown etched in his long, bearded face. He wore the striped robes of the Ainash and he wore three, plain leather bands around his left arm. Anet was suddenly afraid. Why is this man here? Are not the Ainash evil? She pointed at the man. He turned his hard gaze on her, as if appraising her out of all the girls there. The others who had just arrived finally turned to see him. Mother Berenice immediately approached and greeted him.
“Ahaifa, Ilim Gulin na-Shayin, my brother of the temple.” She bowed slightly and he did the same.
“Ahaifa, Mother Berenice of the citadel of Gamina. I have come in God's name. As the Lord of the Deep Heavens decreed that I must be here, here I am.”
“Sisters, this man has been sent by God himself.” The ones who had just arrived fell silent, giving Mother Berenice questioning glances.
“Come sisters. We are all weary so let us rest today. Many things must take place in the future. Momentous things.” She glanced at Anet as she said this.
“Supper will be ready in the dining hall in a few hours.” Said Medeah, the head cook. The large gathering of scions followed Mother Berenice and Ilim down the hall. Some went off to rest or bathe themselves before the evening meal. Anet trailed after them, suspicious about their new guest and curious about what any of this had to do with her.
During supper Anet took the opportunity to take sideways glances at this man named Ilim. He did not speak much and always he had a frown on his face as dour and cranky looking as Instructress Helga's, who by the way, did not seem especially pleased at the presence of an Ainash priest, but she did not raise a fuss at supper. Supper consisted of a very special meal, almost as if the festival were upon them: roasted lamb bones with the marrow – the head cook relented on her rule not to serve meat before Holy Week because everyone was so glad they had arrived back home safe and sound - roasted root vegetables and currants and flat bread with olive oil and milk wine. He glanced at her a few times but seemed mostly lost in his own thoughts. Anet wondered if he was a bringer of good or evil. Mother Berenice and Carisse and a few of the older scions seemed to think his coming a good sign. Something about “things moving, the light of the future” and all that. But all she saw was a gloomy old man. Anet decided she did not like him and resented his intrusion into their citadel home. She would hide tomorrow so no one could find her. As this thought burst through her mind he suddenly glared at her. Anet looked down at her plate while everyone else talked, paying no heed to her. She felt tears well up inside. What was he doing here and what did this have to do with her?
Chapter Twenty
The month of Zali, 1685 A.T.V.
The king rode up with his grand procession to the grand palace and handed his red stallion off to an attendant. All the courtiers that had not traveled with him, the most important city officials of the land and all the palace servants were arrayed in the front courtyard and ready to administer to his new bride and her household. They all bowed low. It was a sea of finery but none so fine as his new queen. She was being carried from her magnificent barge to a chair under a ceremonial canopy of red and gold.
He strode up the steps and into his palace, intent on mischief and he kept Bakku close. Tiny beads of sweat formed on the royal messenger's brow. As soon as he reached the first hall he commanded the servants:
“Take my bride and her household to their quarters in the west wing. Send for the Lady Diti and for Shishak and Teman. There is a matter that must be attended to before the wedding tomorrow.” Bakku felt his knees grow weak but he revealed no emotion except a slight smile. The king strode up the dais and sat on his throne between his red stone lions. A servant handed him his scepter and he stabbed it against the dais. The sound rang through the hall like an ax ringing against stone.
“Bring them before me!” All who were present, hundreds together with his courtiers, the princes and lords of the land and his officials were silent, keenly watching for which faction at court had displeased him – and who would be uplifted and who would be brought low - as Shishak and Teman came before him. Teman's eyes were filled with fear, yet Shishak looked around with what the king thought was undisguised pride. Eliaz and other older priests and scribes were among the crowd in the court.
“Shishak, what is this that you have done in my name in that you have forged an edict of death against the people of the Golden Temple?” Shishak bowed low to the ground.
“Oh king, may you live even forever and ever, oh Great One! But I do not know of what you speak.” The king raised a brow and looked from him to Teman.
“You do not know?”
“Who has accused me of this thing?”
“You will not question me. You will answer. Did you give the command to execute certain followers at your temple?”
“No my king! Never did I do such a thing as that!”
“Did you not raise the tax at the temple?”
“ We did, with your permission, Your Greatness.”
“And did I give you permission to use my seal on this edict?” The king asked, taking out the letter and opening it.
“Herald, come forward.” The king commanded. Master Caina stepped forward and cleared his throat. Shishak's countenance changed at once from pride to fear.
“You informed me of this forged letter. How did you come to know of it? Repeat it for me again.”
“My king, Your Greatness. You sent me back to the city to tell forth of your coming and to ready the city. The city was in turmoil because of Lady Diti. Lady Diti positioned herself in the city square dressed in mourning and her women with her and they rose up such a cry that they had the city in an uproar. Some of the officials here can tell you it is the truth. They saw it for themselves.”
“And why did Lady Diti do this thi
ng?”
“Because, as she said, she felt sorry for the people about to be killed over the tax. It was she that told me of the letter and it was she who gave it to me.”
“Bakku come forward and bring me the signet ring I gave to you.” It took all of Bakku's reserve to keep from trembling and he did as he was bid. The king snatched the ring and looked it over, then at the seal on the letter. He glared at Bakku. Bakku bowed to the ground.
“Why is my seal upon this letter? The seal that I gave to you?”
“I know not why, Your Greatness! I have had this ring all along upon my person. I know nothing of this letter, I swear to you, lord king!”
“Yet, here is the seal of this ring upon the letter. You are of the Ainash, Bakku and I gave you the ring. You will be held partially responsible for this. You are behind this as well.”
“No! I swear!” Cried Bakku. The king ignored him.
“Where is the eunuch in charge of the courtly women? Find him and throw him in the dungeon! Bring the Lady Diti before me.” Guards hurried from the room to find Ruz. Lady Diti was brought forward and she fell upon her face.
“Get up! Why have you done this? Is it to humiliate me in front of the queen and her family for which you have done this?” Lady Diti fell to the floor in front of the king again.
“No, my lord the king! Please do not do anything at all to Ruz for he heard my pleas to help the people and took pity on me. For you know that I am also one of the Aishanna-La and I could not see this done and do nothing in the sight of God! It is because these men here,” she pointed to Shishak and Teman, “who planned something wicked in your name. Did you create the edict that the Aishanna-La who cannot pay the new tax must go to the their deaths? They, with their wives and their little ones?”
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