The First Kingdom

by T. S. Valmond

  Despite how much it made her smile, she worried about Poge and pulled herself from the man to go back for her. When she'd peeled herself from the crowd at last, she found Poge wasn’t alone. There was another girl from Joro with big eyes and long hair talking to her in their fast and incomprehensible language.

  Adera had to concentrate hard to understand them.

  “Poge, there you are. Mother's worried for you and father's close to calling in reinforcements. I promised them I’d find you and report back. Where have you been?”

  "Ujira." Poge held out her arms and embraced the taller green girl, who hugged her back even though she seemed angry. "I've been helping a friend find this place. You're the last person I expected to find here."

  “I'm here on contract. You haven’t been reporting in. What’s the matter with you? You can’t default on this contract. You know the rules. The contract is binding,” Ujira said.

  The crowd swelled again as they approached Adera to stroke her hair, but she kept her focus on the two girls. Poge’s eyes darted from left to right as if she wanted to run.

  “Now that our parents are no longer ready to throw themselves to the trees, what are you doing here, with her?” She asked, gesturing to Adera with suspicion. “You shouldn’t be seen together, especially now. The mermen and the red-men are going to war and although the other nations aren't involved yet, they will be. Everyone is taking sides.”

  Her speech was rapid fire, but Adera understood ‘war.’

  “Adera is looking for someone. They can’t be together in their lands. Here in the north is the only safe place for them.” Poge held out her hands as if pleading. “She’s my friend, I must help her.”

  “That’s all? You’re going with her and ignoring everything else?” Ujira placed two hands on her hips, a trait that her younger sister also enjoyed.

  “This is important to me, I don’t expect you to understand,” Poge said.

  "You don’t understand the people of the North. They're indifferent to the fighting happening all around them. Tero and Joro have, for the first time in history, created an official decree to work together. No matter what happens, we’re a part of the Twinlands."

  Ujira looked over at Adera. Then her eyes filled with recognition. “It’s you. You’re the one they’re looking for. You should go home where you belong.” Then she turned back to Poge. “There is a war coming and the only way to stop it is if the red prince and the mermaid go back to where they belong.”

  “Sanee, you have seen him?” Adera said, speaking in their tones only slower.

  “No, mermaid, but I would tell him the same thing. Stop this war.”

  Adera's eyes widened. Her the cause of an entire war? That seemed unlikely. She detested violence and hoped that Poge’s sister was just exaggerating the issue. She already loved it here. These people were her kind of people, she and Sanee would be safe here.

  Ujira put a hand on Poge’s arm and pleaded with her.

  “Come home, don’t get involved in this foolishness.”

  Poge jerked her shoulder away. “This isn’t foolish. Aren’t you tired of the fighting and the surveillance? Why are we sitting around watching a war begin when we have the means to stop it?”

  “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying that Tero and Joro aren’t neutral, they’re helping instigate the fighting by providing surveillance to lands that should be working together.”

  “I’ve never heard you speak this way before. Is this coming from the mermaid?” Ujira turned and started toward Adera, who retreated a step.

  Poge stepped between them. “No, this is coming from me.” Poge pointed to her chest for emphasis. “Imagine if Karmir and Majiwa came together.” She clasped her hands in front of her face. “We could end the next decade of fighting. If Tero and Joro can unite with each other, imagine more, three or four kingdoms working together for a change. That could lead to more lands joining us. We’d do something that has never been done before.”

  “It isn’t safe.”

  “As long as the fighting continues, nothing and no one ever will be safe.”

  Ujira frowned, her shoulders dropping in defeat.

  Adera couldn't help but smile at Poge's forcefulness. She was a natural born speaker. Her reasoning was strong with passion to match.

  Poge took Adera by the hand, turning her back on her sister. Leaving Ujira behind, Poge lead Adera back to the town center. The crowd followed but at a more respectful distance.

  “Do you really believe we could have peace in Bolaji?” Adera asked, unable to conceal the hope she felt.

  “I didn’t before, but I do now that I know you and these people. This isn’t an accident. More and more people are going to want what these people have here.”

  “What we have here,” Adera said holding up their clutched hands. The two girls ran off into the dancing crowd.

  17

  SANEE, JIDEN, AND NEKE MADE their way to the North Forest and entered. They followed the distant sounds of music playing. As they passed through, they found the small town nestled in the mountains. It was white and even from this distance Sanee could make out the building's construction. Large arched entrances with smooth white columns decorated most of them. A solid and strong architecture. He figured they would do a good job of keeping out the cold. He clutched his cape and started toward the town.

  “Wait, do you see that?” Neke pointed to their left.

  A glint of light and then another in the distance had them turning their beasts toward the sight.

  “Looks like there might be fighting,” Jiden said.

  Sanee turned his tuskin toward the glints of light and rode fast.

  When they arrived, they didn’t know what to make of it. A small tribe of multicolored people against a small guard of red-men. Sanee held up a fist as they entered.

  “Cease.” The guard recognized Sanee and his authority, and obeyed at once.

  Because he was with the twins, the other side also acknowledged his interruption and stopped fighting. Both sides seemed tired, otherwise it was doubtful they’d agree so quickly to a cease fire.

  Sanee rode to the center of the battle, leaving the twins on the edge of safety. Neke’s side was still healing, and he didn’t want to push them into a confrontation.

  “What’s going on here?” He directed the question to both sides, but looked at the guards of red-men.

  Sanee recognized the guards. Bruhn and Zedomo were among them. He'd trained with them as boys. They might listen if he gave them a chance.

  "I’d like to speak with my kinsmen,” Sanee said, giving the other side a glance. He spotted a girl with dark auburn hair standing in front of the others and acknowledged her with a slight nod of his head. A little deference to a fellow leader could go a long way.

  "Let the Karmirian speak to his kinsmen,” she called out to the others.

  Sanee got down from the tuskin and approached his people. He changed his words so he spoke only the purist and formal Karmirian.

  The guards acknowledged him as the son of the chieftain by taking to their knees in front of him. Bruhn and Zedomo, who'd recognized him, stepped forward, and each placed their four fingers on the four dots of his forehead in turn, and Sanee did the same to them.

  "My prince, we've been scouring the countryside looking for you. We feared that the mermen had taken you captive," Bruhn said.

  "As you can see, I am not captured. I’ve come here to live free. Why do you attempt staking claim to this land for which I am welcomed?"

  "Your father demands it. He wants these lands to add to your own,” Zedomo said.

  "I want you to leave this place. Go to my father and deliver a message. In this task, you must not fail."

  "Whatever you wish, it will be done," Bruhn said.

  "Tell my father that Sanee the future chieftain of the Karmirians is living among these people of the North now. If he does not wish to sacrifice my inheritance needlessly, he should not attempt to ta
ke these lands by force again."

  "It shall be done,” Zedomo said and gave him a slight bow.

  "Thank you, kinsmen, and may Thelion bless your journey home."

  As they left, the twins, seeing it was safe, rode up and waited behind him as he approached the other side. The mix of people murmured behind the red-haired woman who stood out in front of them all.

  "There won't be any more trouble here for a time,” Sanee said to her.

  "You're sure?" she asked, looking over her shoulder for more Karmirians.

  "My father has a temper. I think his lust for land and his options for chieftain being limited to myself and my brother will force him to reconsider his plans, at least."

  “You three travel together?” She asked.

  Sanee and the twins nodded.

  "I’m here looking for someone, perhaps you’ve seen her. She’s about this high," he said holding out his hand. "She's a mermaid."

  The woman laughed, “It is too cold here for the Majiwan. There are no mermaids here, my friend.”

  Sanee looked down. He wouldn’t give up now. According to the bandits they encountered, the girls couldn't be far ahead of them. Maybe the girls had taken another less direct route due to the fighting factions. They’d been stopped by two more groups of bandits themselves. He’d interrogated them all in case they’d captured the girls, but they seemed as surprised as this one that a mermaid might be so far north.

  “My name is Remy. I live here with these others.” She cast her hand over the group. “That was amazing how you spoke to them. I wonder if you would return to the town center with me. A few of us have been working very hard to resolve this problem with our borders. We have a plan I think you might be able to help us put into action. I’ll tell you about it on the way.”

  The party had died down by the time they’d arrived in the town. It was much bigger than they’d originally thought. The streets were illuminated by light energy. The music was no longer blaring but there were still scatterings of sound. They heard snatches of singing and music from crowds of people returning to their homes or milling about the street they passed.

  “I have a place near to here to sleep for the night. If you would like, you can share my home along with the others,” she said, looking at the twins.

  “Remy, your offer is very kind. I’ll meet with you tomorrow. Tonight, I would like to look for my friend.”

  “It is late, but it is your right. If they did not find shelter in one of the homes, they may be preparing to sleep there, under the stars.” She pointed to a group of more than fifty make-shift tents and about a hundred people preparing to sleep outside around the scattered fires in the town’s center.

  Sanee roamed the fires, looking for Adera's unique but familiar face. Then he saw a young girl with green skin and big eyes. She looked like the girl the bandits described as their captive. She stood at the fire with another, but her back was to him. It could be Adera. She was the right height and, although it was cold, she seemed more wrapped up than most. She fidgeted from one foot to the other trying to stay warm.

  He moved fast, his pulse pounding in his throat. What if it wasn’t her? No, it had to be her. He placed a heavy hand on her right shoulder. Before he knew it, the girl was stepping back and using his body weight to throw him off balance.

  She propelled him over her shoulder and onto the ground between her and the fire.

  18

  ONLY WHEN SANEE WAS LYING on the ground at her feet with his hands over his face did she recognize him.

  “Oh my sweet, you lie at my feet.” Adera dropped to her knees and threw herself into his chest.

  “It’s all right my darling, I’m here. I will never leave you.” Sanee had forgotten to put his words in the order she would understand and yet she understood.

  “You’re speaking the way the land people do. Fighting like one, too.” Sanee got to his feet and pulled Adera up with him.

  “Yes, I am learning,” Adera said. Then her face took on a slight blush as she looked up at him through her lashes. “You got my note, the one Poge wrote.”

  “Poge?”

  Poge stepped forward raised the wiggling fingers of her right hand.

  “I’m Poge, and you must be the mermaid’s Red-man. It is wonderful to make your acquaintance,” she said then held up her hand in greeting.

  When the twins approached, Poge’s eyes darted to them with suspicion.

  “It’s okay, they’re with me,” Sanee said. “Come and I will tell you all that has happened and you can give me your account.”

  Poge sat down and ate some of her supper while Sanee spoke. When the twins saw that Adera was indeed a mermaid, their excitement wouldn't be contained.

  “Your fin, where is it?” Neke asked.

  “If we splash water on you, will you be flipping around like a fish right here?” Jiden asked.

  The questions came too fast for Adera to understand and answer.

  “She’s a mermaid, she can change back anytime she wants. How inconvenient would it be if she had to fear water while on land on top of everything else?” Poge said and rolled her eyes.

  The twins nodded in agreement. They sat amazed by every word Adera said. The minute she opened her mouth, they silenced themselves to listen to her speak.

  “They are strange, these two with you,” Adera said softly to Sanee.

  Sanee nodded. He didn’t speak much at first. The twins were very attentive to her, but he’d hardly said a word. Maybe it was the hair. She went to reach for it even now but forced her hand back down. It would grow back eventually. Couldn’t he see she’d done it for safety?

  “Adera and I will take the first watch. The rest of you can sleep for now,” Sanee said.

  Even surrounded by friends in the middle of town, Poge was on high alert.

  It was the first time that Adera noticed, though, that the two boys were fast asleep. One with light hair and one with orange, sitting side by side, they slept propped up against a nearby tree.

  Poge nodded. She looked at her time keeping device and hit a few buttons, no doubt to ensure she would wake in a few hours.

  Adera had a hard time sitting still now that Sanee was near. She had no desire to sleep. There were too many questions and so many things to tell him.

  “I-”

  “We-"

  They both began in unison. Then they laughed. The sound of his laugh comforted her. She hadn't heard in a long time. In that moment, she realized she hadn’t been worried about the wild beasts or the fighters in the area. With Sanee, she felt safe from everything else.

  “I worry my hair offends you. I hope it doesn’t too much displease you.”

  “Not at all,” Sanee said as he removed her cap with one hand, letting her wavy hair fall to her ears. He reached up and put his hands through it as he’d wanted to since the moment he saw it. “Beautiful, as always.”

  Adera's face grew warm where his hand caressed her cheek.

  “I’ve missed you, dear one. Have you missed me?”

  Adera nodded and smiled as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. The fire would need tending soon. Some days ago, she'd stopped being so afraid of it. As she sat close to Sanee, the cold didn't seem to touch her.

  “Tell me what happened?”

  “My brother found out about us and told my father, who forbade me to go to the shore. I think I will hate him ever more.” Sanee shook his head when Adera brought her hand up to his face. “I was so angry.”

  “Never mind that hound, we are forever bound.”

  Sanee nodded.

  “Yes, I am promised to another, but my heart belongs to you. I’ve already told my mother, but supporters among my people are few.”

  “It’s all right, my love. We can live here, on the land above.”

  “Yes, that’s exactly what I want for us,” Sanee said, forgetting all about his rhyme. “I will provide for us both and we will go to the water as often as you need.”

  “A
greed,” Adera said and smiled.

  Sanee’s eyes dropped to her lips, and she knew what came next. In her stomach, an agitated school of fish swam around.

  His eyes met hers as he shifted his hand from hers to the back of her neck, still touching her hair. He pulled her closer and closer until only a whisper passed between them.

  “Adera, I love you.”

  “From when we were children, I’ve loved you since, my tall, handsome Karmirian prince.”

  Then the explosion that their kiss caused swept over her. It released her soul from the confines of her body so it intertwined with his in a dance of motion and light. When their lips parted, she noted that Sanee, like her, could hardly breathe.

  “What was that?” he asked.

  “I believe our souls approve of one another,” Adera said, wording the phrase in a way she thought he might understand.

  * * *

  Poge and the twins were packing their small camp when Sanee and Adera stirred awake. It was well beyond dawn and most of the groups who had slept under the stars had already packed up and gone about their daily business.

  “I wondered if you’d sleep for a year,” Poge said as she threw Sanee’s pack at him.

  The others ate some of the dried meat that Poge had prepared.

  Adera had no appetite for such food. She kept on the edge of the group and declined a piece of the meat that the blond-haired twin offered. Jiden and Neke seemed to love it, and Sanee also ate a great deal of it. She hoped she'd find more options she could tolerate in the small town.

  Sanee must have noticed because he pulled out his pouch and leaned over to give her some berries he'd gathered. Grateful for something not burned, she smiled in thanks.

  Adera didn’t feel like talking. She’d done enough of it the night before between the twin’s questions and the time with Sanee. When she looked down at her legs, she noticed with some interest they’d grown in size. She’d gained muscle in places where before she had none.

  She looked over at Poge who sat nearest the fire and poked at it. Would the others continue with them now that they'd been reunited? What reason would they have for staying so far north?