A Handful of Men: The Complete Series

by Dave Duncan

  Nine moons had come and gone since Leéb had shown her the place he had found by the river. She had never doubted his descriptions of it, though, and the journey from her parents’ house had been a torment for both of them. Even when they arrived, exhausted by the long walk, there had been a worse delay while they both ran frantically around in search of the one ideal spot to be their Place. Too far to carry water… too close to the river, it will flood… not enough shade…

  As darkness fell, they had found their Place, among the cottonwoods, and had made it theirs forever. True, that cataclysmic moment had not been quite as joyous or soul-inspiring as she had hoped. Leéb had been too impatient and anxious, she too nervous, and the twigs on the ground very unromantically prickly, but with a little practice they had been doing it much better in a couple of days — doing it well enough to bring Kaif into the world.

  Nine moons. She thought she could Feel his impatience. Definitely a boy.

  Nine moons, and the recorders had never found her. It would be very sad if Kaif never met his grandparents and even sadder for Gaib and Frial never to know their grandchildren. Coming from a Gifted family, she might bear more than two babies. Leéb didn’t know it yet, but Thaïle had decided that in a few years, when they had produced two — or more — children, then she would take them on a visit to the Gaib Place. Surely by then it would no longer matter if the recorders found her, no matter how strong her Faculty? Surely even they could not be so cruel as to drag a mother away from her family, off to the College?

  So even if Kaif had Faculty, as she did, he would never have to keep Death Watch, as she had been required to do — never have to learn a word, as she had.

  Oooo!

  She had been asleep again. The window was showing gray. And that had definitely been her tummy doing something she had not told it to do, something it had never done before. Kaif was on the way.

  She wanted to jump up and clean out the whole room and put in all new ferns and get out the new bed cover she had woven… And that was silly, because she spread all new ferns just yesterday, and the cover was in the basket in the corner. She had cleaned the whole house with her broom yesterday, twice. There was lots of time yet. Leéb would have to go and fetch Boosh from the Neeth Place, and he could not paddle a boat in the dark. The river was in spate, but that was good, because he could take a shortcut across the flooded grassland and then have a fast run home. It wouldn’t take very long, and Kaif was going to be hours yet.

  As she twisted again to find a more comfortable position, her hair fell all over her face. Amazing how much her hair had grown in nine moons! She wasn’t sure that long hair was worth the bother, but it was a sign of womanhood, and she wore it proudly. Leéb liked it. She tickled him with it, sometimes, and that roused him almost faster than anything. Perhaps that was why mothers wore their hair long and kept their daughters’ short.

  Oooo!

  Kaif, you are too impatient! Or maybe not. Thaïle had been dozing again. The window was quite bright now. And the rain had stopped. Good.

  Oooo-ooo! Getting serious, are you?

  Thaïle rolled over with a grunt and munched on her goodman’s ear. Leéb did not have nice, flat, pointy ears like pixies should have. He had big, round, stick-out ears, very suitable for munching.

  “Mmmph?” Leéb said, brushing her hair off his face.

  “Darling?”

  “Mmmph.”

  “Baby.”

  “Mm? What?” Leaping up from the bed, Leéb missed the doorway and ran straight into the wall. Disregarding his goodwife’s shouts, he regained his balance, found the exit, rocked the house again as he tore open the front door, plunged out into the dawn, rounded the chicken coop too closely, lost his balance, and sprawled headlong into the mud, narrowly missing the woodpile.

  She Felt his emotions — confusion, panic, shame…

  A few moments later he followed the sound of laughter back to the window.

  “How long have I got?” he asked sheepishly.

  “At least enough time to put some clothes on. Boosh is quite a prim old dear, you know, and may not want to get in a boat with a naked man — beautiful though you are.”

  “You are very cruel to mock me!”

  His eyes were twinkling, though. No matter how clumsy or inept he might be on occasion, Leéb never took himself too seriously. That was one of his better qualities — not that any of his qualities were inferior.

  “Mock you? I am completely serious, my darling man. If I did not think you beautiful, would I ever have consented to let you sire this baby that I am about to, er, produce?”

  Thaïle passed out his breeches and a kiss, and he accepted both. “Go and wash off the mud before you put them on,” she said, preparing to close the shutter. “And you don’t want your shoes, do you? They’re not dry yet from yesterday. You don’t need hat and cloak yet. And don’t forget…”

  “Yes?” he said urgently.

  She smiled. “To milk the goat and let out the chickens and then come back and have something to eat. After that, we’ll decide whether you have to leave yet.”

  Then she said, “Oh!” and sat down hurriedly as Kaif rattled the latch again.

  * * *

  There was a watcher in the woods.

  There were two watchers in the woods.

  “No complications?” asked the newcomer.

  “Perfectly normal,” the first said. “Good-size boy. I’m tempted to do something about its ears before anyone sees them.”

  “I was reminded that the child is also precious.”

  The other sighed. “So was I — several times.”

  “Her Faculty is as strong as they said?”

  “It must be. She can Feel those families up on the ridge. Keep your guard up.”

  “Go and have your break, then, and I’ll stay here. Bring the body back with you.”

  There was only one watcher in the woods.

  Rain began falling again as Leéb departed in the boat. It did not wet the watcher, though.

  3

  Leéb was poling the boat across the wetlands in the drizzle. Thaïle could Feel his nervous urgency — poor Leéb was much more worried about what was happening than she was. Women had been having babies since the world began. She was healthy, barely sixteen. The younger the better, the old women always said. Lying contentedly on the bed, she could even Feel old Boosh herself, rousing to her morning chores, grumbling amiably at Neeth as she always did. Thaïle could Feel his tolerant amusement.

  If she tried hard, she could Feel other neighbors in the remote distance, several families — on the hill, and downriver. Boosh must have told them about the newcomers, but none of them had ever come to pry. When the dry season arrived, she would go visiting to show off her baby.

  Oooo! That was a bad one. Patience, my darling! Wait until Daddy returns.

  A beautiful home, she had. Near her feet was a hamper with her spare dress and some other clothes. Along one wall was a shelf Leéb had made for her, loaded with her precious things, the few she had been able to bring — colored shells, bright stones, the stuffed dragon that had been her plaything when she was tiny, a man’s elbow carved in stone. In the next room was a wickerwork cradle, with fluffy cotton blankets she had made herself, all ready for Kaif. Or possibly Frial.

  How wonderful to have a real baby of her own, to suckle and cuddle…

  Ah! Leéb had reached the Neeth Place, or else he was within shouting distance. She Felt excitement and impatience from him, surprise and joy from the two oldsters… The river was running very swiftly, she knew. That boat would be back in no time.

  Oooo… Ouch! Despite herself, she whimpered. Already? she thought shamefully. She had promised herself she was not going to make a scene over this. Poor Leéb would be terrified if she yelled and screamed, the way some women did. Two years ago, when Hoan was having her first, Thaïle and some of the other girls had crept close to the Jurg Place to listen. Such a fuss about a perfectly normal business! It co
uldn’t possibly be as bad as Hoan had pretended.

  Leéb would be back soon with Boosh. Maybe even Neeth, also, to keep Leéb company. Soon. The rain was really pelting down. They would be cold.

  The outer door creaked.

  For one instant, Thaïle felt a wild surge of panic. Who could be there? Who could approach without her Feeling them? Jain of the College, of course! He was a mage, and she could not Feel him if he did not want her to.

  Then a strange calm fell over her, washing away her rising anger, and she remembered that Jain could do that to her.

  She stared up without a blink as two women came into the room — one tall and elderly but not really old, the other shorter, younger, but not really young. They wore frilled pure-white blouses and long skirts of smooth cloth, brightly striped in greens and yellows, all very grand. Their hair was neat and shiny, and their faces seemed smooth and unweathered, their expressions stem. They were not wet.

  They stood at her feet, towering over her.

  “Recorders?” Thaïle whispered.

  The younger woman frowned. “Certainly not!”

  “She doesn’t understand,” said the elder. “Thaïle, my name is Shole; I am an analyst. Mearn, here, is an archivist. We are more important than recorders, but we are from the College, which is what you meant, wasn’t it?”

  Thaïle nodded. And they were both sorceresses. Black horror howled somewhere in the depths of her mind, kept at bay by that sinister calm.

  “Go away!” she said. “It is very rude to enter a Place when you are not asked in.”

  “Rude?” the younger visitor snorted. She had very ugly eyes, sort of muddy brown color. “Child, you have no idea how important this is! The whole world is in danger of —”

  Shole snapped, “Mearn!”

  “I am having a baby!” Thaïle shouted.

  “That’s why we came, of course. We shall help you have it.”

  “I don’t want your help. Go away!”

  The younger woman made an impatient noise and knelt down beside her. “Don’t be foolish, child. The other way is messy, and exhausting, and we need you healthy and fresh. This will be very easy, quite painless. It’s a boy, you know, a little early, but fine and healthy. Pull up your gown.”

  “No!” Thaïle protested. She tried to rise. Her arms went limp and she sagged back. She stared up at the roof, wondering if she had gone mad.

  Her cover and clothes vanished, leaving her naked. She whimpered.

  “Not too far along,” said the younger. “Good.”

  Thaïle was ashamed to feel tears in her eyes. “My goodman is on his way. I don’t need your help. Leave our Place!”

  “Foolish child!” the older woman snapped. “Do as you are told, for once! This unpleasantness is entirely your own fault. Had you obeyed the law, all this sorrow and pain would never have happened.”

  “Just relax,” the younger woman said. “Close your eyes. Take a deep breath.”

  “But I must clear the ferns and squat on the earth!” That was the way it was done, the way a pixie must be born.

  “Stupid superstition! Just relax.”

  Then a very odd sensation… Ooops!

  “Fine baby,” the woman said.

  Slap.

  Wail!

  Tiny Feelings of terror…

  Something hot and wet squirming on Thaïle’s belly… Wailing.

  “My son!” Again she tried to lift herself, and again her arms failed her. Even her neck had gone limp, so she could not lift her head.

  “Not your son, Thaïle,” the older woman said. She seemed to grow, larger and menacing, and her eyes were terrible. “He can never be yours. Do not try to look. It will only hurt worse if you see him.”

  Leéb, Leéb! Hurry! He was coming — she could Feel him coming.

  The burden was lifted from Thaïle’s abdomen. The Mearn woman rose and turned away quickly, carrying something. The little yowls faded as she left the room, but she could still Feel his terror and bewilderment.

  “My baby!” Thaïle scrambled up on her knees and then to her feet. Her great bulging tummy had gone. She felt cloth reappear on her, covering her nakedness. She registered vaguely that it was her best smock, so her breasts must have shrunk back to almost their normal size also. Her insides felt very strange, but not sore. She swayed. The tall Shole reached out a hand to steady her.

  Oh, those eyes!

  “You were warned, Thaïle! Jain warned you, didn’t he?”

  “My baby!” She tried to struggle, and that weak-looking grasp on her arm held her helpless. The eyes held her, burning gold eyes.

  “He warned you that you must come to the College.” The little, wrinkled mouth pursed, showing teeth as spiteful as a rodent’s. “But you didn’t! You disobeyed a recorder. You broke the Blood Law. Your folly has brought tragedy into three lives, Thaïle! And do you think we enjoy this either, you foolish, headstrong child?”

  “Leéb is coming!”

  The old woman nodded, seeming to restrain a smile. “Yes, he’s coming. He will be here very soon. He will find the baby, alive and well. But he will find you dead beside it.”

  “No! No! No!”

  “Yes. Oh, not you. But the body he will find will seem to be yours.”

  “Monster! How can you be so cruel?”

  “Cruel? We, cruel? You do not know what you are saying.” The woman shook Thaïle one-handed, raising her voice shrilly and shouting in her face. Her tiny teeth were very white and even. “Evil is abroad in the world, and you have duties so far beyond that peasant and his spawn that I cannot even attempt to explain them to you. Your folly has delayed your preparation and perhaps weakened our defenses. The Keeper was furious when we discovered what you had done.”

  “Leéb! Oh, Leéb!” Thaïle thought of him rushing up from the river and finding —

  “Forget him, foolish girl! He will bury the false body. He will raise the brat on goat’s milk, with the old crone’s help. Soon he will find another Place and mate again. Stop your weeping! Do you think Mearn and I enjoy this squalid deception?”

  Thaïle tried to break free of the bony grip and was helpless as a fly in a web.

  The sorceress smiled thinly. “Now we go to the College. You must forget the child, Thaïle. You must forget its father.”

  “Never! I will not leave my man!” Thaïle felt a strange shimmer. “If you take me away I will come back!” she screamed. All around her the Leéb Place disappeared and there was sunshine…

  4

  A swan slid close to the verge, snowy white on dark water, sailing so smoothly it did not stir its own reflection. Then it waded out of the pond and was suddenly awkward, trudging black flippers on the mud. Drops and ripples broke the empty mirror left behind. Divine beauty became unsightly effort as it rolled forward with in-toed gait, snaky neck stretched out before it. Ugly.

  “I love these mixed-up days,” Jain remarked cheerfully, amber eyes twinkling as if the remark held some hidden meaning. “White clouds and gray clouds and patches of blue — unsettled, full of surprises. Makes you appreciate the sunshine instead of taking it for granted. And it isn’t really cold, is it? You’re warm enough?”

  “Yes,” Thaïle said. There was something she wanted to say, and she could not remember it, something lingering at the back of her mind.

  They sat side by side on a bench. From their toes, the turf ran down to the pond, which had swans on it, and ducks. All around them green hillocks were ablaze with flowers — white and gold creeping through the grass, festoons of purple and scarlet draped over bushes like washing hung to dry, blue and white and crimson standing up to dance in the breeze. Even some of the trees had exploded into blossom. The world was twinkly and sparkly after the rain, but the sun was shining now. High forest enclosed the glade with a comforting wall.

  A pair of bare-chested young men went trotting along the path by the shore. She Felt a momentary flash of man-interest, cut off sharply. One of them waved. Jain waved back and watche
d them go, but Thaïle knew the wave had been directed at her. She was puzzled — what were they running from, or after, at that pace?

  Jain said, “Exercising.”

  “Exercising?”

  “I expect they have to sit a lot. People don’t work on their feet all day long in the College.”

  Thaïle thought of her mother. Frial mostly sat while she worked — sewing, weaving, plucking chickens. Her father? No. Scraping a pigskin, maybe. Everything else Gaib did required standing: weeding, digging, pruning… Odd she’d never realized that before.

  What was that other thing she wanted to think about?

  “This is the Meeting Place,” Jain said. “Anytime you want company or feel like talking with someone, you come here. It’s a good place to sit and think, too. Just to lie on the grass and count the birds.”

  She could Feel nothing of his emotions, of course — he was a mage. But there were other benches in among the rainbow-draped shrubbery; there were little open cabins, too, to keep rain off, maybe. She could see about a dozen people, sitting or walking, in twos or threes, all too far off to obtrude. The nearest were a boy and girl standing together, holding hands and gazing spellbound into each other’s eyes. She could Feel very clearly what was in the girl’s heart, but the boy and all the others… she could Feel none of them.

  “Sorcerers?” she muttered. “Or mages — like you?”

  “I was a mage,” Jain said tersely. “Now I’ve been told a fourth word, so I’m a sorcerer. I didn’t rank quite as high as I’d… but not too bad. And I’m not a recorder anymore. I’m an archivist now.”

  An archivist was more important than a recorder.

  How did she know that?

  “Congratulations.”

  “Have you any idea what I to talking about?”

  “Not the muddiest!” she admitted.

  He laughed. “You’ll learn all that soon enough.”