Rise of the Red Harbinger

by Khalid Uddin

  Baltaszar bit his lip hard, “Yeah. Definitely.”

  Anahi looked like she was about to ask a question, then held it back. “Baltaszar, did ya really just ask me ta walk ya around so we could talk about Cyrus an’ depressin’ things?”

  “Well, no. But…one more question about Cyrus and then that’s all, I swear.”

  “Fine.”

  Baltaszar glanced over to Anahi as they walked, “Why is it called The Happy Elephant? I’ve never even seen an elephant except in drawings back home.”

  “Ha! Ya really have lived a sheltered life, haven’t ya.” She smiled at Baltaszar as if there was a lot more laughter being kept in than let out. “Vandenar is known for elephants! Haven’t ya wondered why the streets are so wide? Every year in the spring an’ summer, we walk ‘em through the main road o’ Vandenar ta show off the stock ta our residents an’ visitors. Elephants are our main source a industry.”

  “Wait, so what exactly do you use them for?”

  “Well, food fer one thing. I’m sure ya know what a cow is. An elephant can provide three or four times as much meat than a cow, an’ the meat is just as tasty. Not ta mention the hide is more durable than a cow’s leather.”

  Baltaszar felt an uneasiness within his stomach. “What do you mean, food? People actually eat those things?”

  “Did Cyrus give ya any food today? Any meat?”

  “Yes, but he gave me a steak.”

  “Cyrus doesn’t serve beef, Baltaszar. I’m sure the steak ya had was much larger than any cow steak ya seen before.”

  Baltaszar was now torn between acceptance and nausea. He’d never actually seen an elephant before, so he wasn’t overly disturbed about the notion of eating elephant meat. Yet, for as long as he could remember, he’d only eaten beef, chicken, mutton, and fish. I suppose this is the first of many new things I’ll have to become accustomed to. “All right, fine. I’ll admit it was likely the best steak I’ve ever tasted.”

  “I must say I’m impressed. Dimwit farm boy fresh out into the world an’ the thought o’ eatin’ an elephant didn’t disgust ya. Perhaps there’s hope fer ya yet. So many foreigners turn their noses at the thought o’ elephant. Until they taste it o’ course.” Anahi squeezed Baltaszar’s arm tight, pulling him closer.

  “Just because I’ve been sheltered doesn’t mean I’m afraid of new things. So are you going to keep poking fun at me or are you going to give me a tour of Vandenar? What kind of guide belittles her customers?”

  “Oh yer payin’ me now are ya?”

  “Only if you’re good!”

  “Fine then, I’ll give ya a history o’ every single buildin’ in this city.” She walked faster, pulling him along.

  They walked on through the streets of Vandenar while Anahi discussed the intricacies of the town and details about the littlest of details. She held conviction in her explanations, passion for her home. Vandenar used wood for buildings and homes, because people worked so hard during the day that brick would only make them sweat more.

  There was no one ruler of Vandenar, such as how Oran Von was the Chancellor of Haedon. The people all had the best interest of the town in their minds and hearts, so the elders of Vandenar made the decisions that were in the best interest of the masses. Of course they were overseen by the Lord of Mireya, the nation in which they resided, who then reported to the King. But they all appeased the Lord’s tax collectors when they came through, so there was never any trouble. At the heart of it, people didn’t come to Vandenar to cause trouble.

  ***

  After over an hour of walking through Vandenar, Baltaszar had grown well accustomed to the habits, customs, and history of the city. I wish Bo’az had come with me. All that fear and apprehension he had about the world would have been gone by now. I wonder what he’s doing now.

  They walked along a side road toward the wide main road at the heart of the city. A few merchants and shop owners sat outside their stores and smiled and waved at Anahi as she and Baltaszar walked by.

  “Do you know them all or are they being nice with the hopes of getting to know you?”

  Anahi grinned and blushed, “I know them all. Most shop owners in Vandenar are men with families. And the city is too close knit fer men to be havin’ affairs. It’s usually the outsiders who abandon their morals at the sight o’ a pretty girl.”

  Baltaszar nodded. “So…do you…”

  “No, I am not a whore, Baltaszar.” Her tone and countenance suggested that she’d taken offense at what Baltaszar had implied. “Just because I offered ta sleep with ya doesn’t mean I sleep with every man who comes ta the inn.” She walked faster and Baltaszar quickened his pace to keep up.

  “Look, maybe that’s what I was going to ask, but I didn’t mean to offend you. You yourself said plainly when we first met that you ‘take care of’ the Descendants who come to this town. What was I supposed to think?”

  She pursed her lips and rolled her eyes, “You assume too much, farmboy. We hardly get any Descendants this far north. In the past few years, we’ve had less than five come up this way. An’ four o’ them were originally from this city. An’ before ya ask, I slept with one o’ them. I’d fancied him fer a long time. Does your lady back home allow ya ta be so forward when you speak ta her?”

  Baltaszar looked down at the road as they walked on, “Well, while she was still speaking to me, she was just as forward as me. So I guess it didn’t really matter to her. I guess perhaps I didn’t realize that I couldn’t speak that way to other girls.”

  “You really are sheltered an’ naïve,” Anahi quipped as she shook her head at him.

  Baltaszar smiled as he sensed her mood softening, “I wasn’t lying.”

  “Baltaszar Kontez! Come here boy! Come in! I have a prophecy fer ya!” A voice called for Baltaszar from one of the shops along the right side of the road. Baltaszar looked over to the porch from where he heard the voice. An old bald man stood up from his wooden chair and continued to shout, “Baltaszar Kontez!”

  Baltaszar looked to Anahi, “Who is that? How does he know my name?”

  “Are ya not familiar with the Blind Men? Augurs I think is the proper term.”

  Baltaszar shook his head, confused.

  “They are seers. The Blind Men give prophecies. Not at command, but visions an’ prophecies come ta them randomly. Arbitrarily. Actually I think there are Blind Women, too.”

  Baltaszar eyed her suspiciously. “So why are they called Blind Men?” The man continued to call for him in the background.

  “I supposed it is the Orijin’s way o’ givin’ ‘em balance in their lives. The legend is that children who are born blind develop this ability in their lives. So while they can’t physically see, their minds are gifted with this ability.”

  Baltaszar looked again at the man, then back at Anahi. “What should I do?”

  “Go humor him. The Blind Men are not evil. That he knows yer name is very tellin’. Probably it means he’s already seen somethin’ about ya. He probably knew ya would even walk by at this moment. Why else would he shout yer name, if he can’t even see ya? Go see what he wants. I’ll wait here.”

  Baltaszar looked back at the Blind Man, who still stood and stared directly at Baltaszar, despite his blindness. Chills ran up Baltaszar’s body at the unfocused gaze. He walked up the porch stairs to the man. “I am Baltaszar Kontez. What do you want with me?” Upon closer inspection, the main was frail, barely filling out the loose green robe he wore, and liver spots covered his wrinkly, yellow-hued skin. He barely reached Baltaszar’s shoulder.

  The old man’s bright green eyes flitted about in their sockets as he smiled and shook his head. “No need fer hostility, boy. I mean ya no harm.”

  “Then what do you want?” Baltaszar said, a bit more harshly than he intended.

  “I’ve a prophecy fer ya boy, though I do not remember it from the top o’ my weathered head. Come in an’ have some tea while I find what I must tell ya. Farco, help me inside.” The man motioned to
the doorway, where a boy, no older than ten or eleven years, stood with the man’s cane. The boy, Farco, helped the Blind Man inside. Farco bore the typical features of everyone else in Vandenar: yellowish skin, almond-shaped eyes, and his black hair was long and shaggy, almost covering his eyes. Baltaszar followed and Farco gestured for him to sit down at a table covered with piles of books. The room smelled musty and the walls were lined with bookshelves, all tightly packed with more thick, dusty books. The young, dark-haired boy helped the old man to a chair on the opposite side of the table, and then left the room to make the tea.

  “If you are blind, why do you have so many books? Does the boy read to you?” Baltaszar couldn’t imagine how annoying that process would be to have to read all of these books to the old man.

  “Open one up an’ ya shall have yer answer.” The man held his hand out to the piles of books on the table.

  Baltaszar took one from the top of a dusty pile and opened it, the leather of the spine cracking a bit. As soon as Baltaszar opened the book, he understood. The pages were filled with patterns of dots and dashes, raised slightly off the page. “Did you create this language yourself?”

  At that, the man let roar a hearty laugh. “Me? Ha, oh no dear boy. The ‘Patterns’ have been around fer ages, most likely since the Tower o’ the Blind was built over in that giant lake. What do they call it? Oh yes, the Eye o’ Orijin. Ironic that we Blind Men would situate ourselves in the Eye. Ya see, we Blind Men are very studious people and we like ta document everythin’, so we needed a way of writin’ as well. Most o’ us are taught the Patterns from the time we are little.”

  “How did you know I was outside? How did you know my name?”

  “I’ve seen two prophecies o’ ya in my life. I think. Well, I don’t quite remember the first one, which is why I’ll have ta consult my books. But the second one, well that one only came about a week ago, which was a vision that ye’d walk by when ya did. I’ve just been keepin’ track o’ the days. Today is Lionsday, isn’t it?” The old man’s eyes continued dance around in their sockets. They made Baltaszar uncomfortable when they fell on him.

  “Lionsday? What do you mean? What is Lionsday?”

  “Did your father never teach ya the names fer the days o’ the week, boy?”

  “Where I’m from, we never bothered to name the days.”

  “What cave were ya livin’ in then? The whole world knows the days o’ the week! I wish part o’ my vision was ta see how uneducated ya are!”

  Farco returned with two cups of steaming tea. They smelled of ginger and honey. He set one down on the table in front of Baltaszar and, after setting down the old man’s, took the man’s hand to the cup. Baltaszar was still sore from the insult. “Instead of belittling me, teach me.”

  “Ah, a boy who’s willin’ ta learn. Good, then. Are ya familiar with the Harbingers o’ the Orijin?”

  Again these Harbingers? How much of this world and life don’t I know? “I am aware that there were Harbingers, but I know nothing of them.”

  “The original three were Cerys, Magnus, an’ Taurean. Centuries later, the Orijin chose five more. They were Abram, Gideon, Lionel, Darian, an’ Jahmash.” The old man counted on his fingers as he named them, “Eight in total. Jahmash betrayed the rest, which leaves seven Harbingers that the world presently honors. Seven Harbingers, seven days o’ the week.”

  Baltaszar nodded. “Okay, that makes sense. So what are the names of the days then?”

  “The week begins with Cersday, after Cerys, because she was a lady. Then ya have Magnaday, Taursday, Abraday, Gidsday, Lionsday, an’ Dariday. I assume ya can see the connection ta the original names?”

  “Yes, yes. I am not as stupid as you believe. And by the way, you haven’t told me your name.”

  The old man smiled again, “Eh, when yer old like me, ya sometimes forget introductions because ya assume everyone knows who ya are by now. My name is Munn. Munn Keeramm.”

  Maybe I can finally get some answers. Baltaszar sipped his tea, which tasted even better than it smelled. The honey gave it a nice smooth taste while the ginger added a small kick of spice afterward. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Master Keeramm. I am wondering, do you have some time to educate me? At least a little? You are not the first person in the past few days to talk about these ‘Harbingers’. Tell me about them. Please.”

  Munn waved his hand dismissively. “O’ course, my boy, o’ course I will teach ya. I’m used ta ya young folk always rushin’ off. Farco here is just like that, always in a rush, except with the tea. Very well, then. Farco boy, make a whole pot a tea an’ leave it on the table.” Farco disappeared into the other room once again. “I have ta warn ya, boy, this will take some time.”

  “I don’t have anywhere to rush off to.”

  Munn smiled widely at that, “Good, good, son. Then I can tell this right. All right, well, somewhere around a thousand years after the Orijin put people in the world; he grew a bit annoyed at ‘em. Ya see, people became bad, lyin’, stealin’, killin’, all kinds o’ sinful things. So Orijin, what He did was He chose three people, Cerys, Magnus, an’ Taurean, an’ blessed ‘em with the power ta do some amazin’ things. Things regular people couldn’t do, an’ so the Orijin intended fer people ta look up ta these three.

  “Ya see, they were stronger an’ smarter an’ better than everyone else. Real heroes. Real leaders. Fer years, them three traveled the whole world spreadin’ the Orijin’s message, convincin’ people ta act right.”

  Baltaszar furrowed his brow. “Where were these three from? Taurean, Cerys, and Magnus? And why did the Orijin choose them specifically?”

  Munn nodded in approval, “Good questions, boy, very good. Well, the world was a much different place at that time, much bigger. The nations an’ cities we have today weren’t the same. Even Ashur, this continent we live on, was much different. Everythin’ changed once Darian came along an’ drowned the world. But that’s a part o’ the story that will come much later. Where was I again?”

  “Where Cerys, Magnus, and Taurean were from. And why they were chosen.”

  “Yes, yes. Right. They were from very different parts o’ the world, which is part o’ why they were chosen. The Orijin chose ‘em when they were young, even younger than ya. They weren’t educated, couldn’t read, weren’t wealthy, didn’t come from very devout families. An’ that was the point! He chose them because they were already humble an’ had good hearts. They weren’t seekin’ power an’ didn’t have enemies.

  “So they each spread the message an’ gained followers an’ traveled from nation ta nation. City ta city. In fact, they didn’t even meet one another ‘til their work was done. Accordin’ ta the scriptures, they were aware o’ an’ accepted one another, but the three didn’t meet until over ten years after they’d begun spreadin’ the word. Magnus an’ Cerys married each other eventually, Taurean married someone else, went off inta the forest an’ started his own family. Eventually, two o’ Taurean’s daughters even married Magnus’ an’ Cerys’ boys.”

  “So what happened to them? They just lived normal lives after that?”

  “Sure they did! They still did what they could ta inspire people an’ preach an’ such, but the world had gotten better under their watch. They grew old an’ eventually died peaceful deaths. The problems came again after they died though. The world followed their example fer a few hundred years, but things got worse again, o’ course.

  “An’ that’s where the Five came in. The first set o’ The Orijin’s Harbingers were called ‘The Three’. Second Harbingers were ‘The Five’. The world got much worse than before. It wasn’t just crimes anymore, there were wars goin’ on. Stupid wars over borders an’ rights ta thrones an’ money. The Orijin chose five this time, though ya ask me, mighta been wise ta choose more. Jahmash, Darian, Abram, Gideon, an’ Lionel. Orijin chose ‘em the same way. Young, humble, good hearts, all from different parts o’ the world.

  “That was the extent o’ the similarities though.
For the Five, the Orijin blessed ‘em differently. He endowed ‘em each with a specific, different ability, stronger an’ more outrageous than what the Three could ever even imagine. O’ course, to keep em in control, the Orijin also gave them a weakness. I suppose it was a safeguard to keep ‘em from abusin’ their powers.

  “So Abram was the Traveler. Ya see, he could blink in an out, disappear, an’ show up somewhere else. Boy, I’m blind an’ I tell ya, that would still scare me outta my wits. Just imagine how somethin’ like that would affect people a nearly thousand years ago.” Farco reentered the room with a pot of steaming tea and set it down on the table after filling Baltaszar’s and Munn’s cups. “Anyway, Abram sought out the other four. The Five traveled the world together, a band o’ heroes, although they were all barely men when they first met. I tell ya though, Baltaszar, they brought some kinda order ta this world. But it wasn’t without sacrifice.

  “I told ya how they each had their weaknesses. Gideon was the youngest, but that boy was somethin’. He was able ta turn things ta stone, but he was so very afraid of death. An’ I suppose that’s what makes Gideon so much more incredible. He’s really the one who set things in motion fer the whole world. That’s when everyone got scared. Ya see, there was a great battle brewin’. One a Jahmash’s abilities was ta be able ta persuade people ta see things the right way. But Gideon didn’t want Jahmash ta interfere with tryin’ ta change the minds o’ the soldiers on either side o’ the battle. The way Gideon saw it was, people should have ta think fer themselves sometimes, or they’d never learn.

  “So Gideon told both armies ta stop fightin’, ta turn around, go home, an’ decide on a peaceful resolution. Course, nobody listened, the boy was barely sixteen. So once both sides had lined up, ready ta fight, Gideon walked right in between ‘em, raised his hands ta the sky, an’ turned everything ta stone, himself included.”