In the middle of the large room sat a long piece of stone that had a contained fire underneath to make the stone’s surface hot enough to cook. Several men and women used pots, pans and their assortment of items to cook the many meals that would sustain the palace’s inhabitants for another day. Off to one end of the cook-table was a large silver cauldron item that two people worked over and prepared a large vat of stew, but the cauldron didn’t use a fire, the stew’s steam showed the contents were hot and tasty.
Off on another set of tables were several people preparing dough to be baked into bread. And off on a far wall was a large set of doors that undoubtedly led to the castle’s stores. If Lily knew anything about how Allahandra did things, she knew that she’d keep at least a year’s worth of supplies on hand at all times.
Then Lily made a discovery, not everyone’s item was designed for the work they were doing, but no one seemed to be displeased with their task. Some of the staff were like her and were warriors, but those with weapons that got in the way were left by either stairwell.
“We will start with something easy for today.” Marge began. “Do you know how to knead bread?”
Lily shook her head which made the head mistress smile.
“Good, follow me for the basics are always the most fun.”
Mistress Marge led Lily to the tables where women were clad in flour and clumps of dough. Lily was given an apron and donned it with little trouble. The other women acknowledged the mistress with graciousness and continued to work, glancing at Lily with mirth. It seemed word spreads fast.
The mistress grabbed a sack of fine white flour and a large clump of sticky dough. Then she dumped the two ingredients that were needed before Lily and then left without giving instructions.
Unsure of how to proceed, Lily watched to other women work for a minute and began to copy what they were doing. She’d sprinkle the flour, work it in with her strong hands and form fist sized wads. She asked if she was doing it right and found she didn’t. Some clumps were either too dry or sticky. One of the young girls, half her age gave pointers, for which she was grateful. When Lily eventually made nine loaves to be baked, she realized how much she lacked for the other girls made no less than sixteen loaves.
After an hour of making bread Marge returned and had Lily wash the flour from her arms and face. Marge then gave her a sharp knife and had her wash and cut up carrots. Marge then left again, needing other tasks to be done. Lily soon found a better way to cut the vegetables and took out her crescent short-sword. The other girls looked at her warily until she showed she could chop five carrots at a time. The efficiency and cutting was easy to handle
The tasks made her wonder why Allahandra had her doing chores like this. She expected classes of refinement and proper etiquette, not chores. At least the work was good for certain things; it was mind-numbing, tedious and consumed much of her time. She didn’t even realize how much time passed until several people came down and began taking the heaping platters upstairs. She also realized the room slowly began brightening. The many mirrors reflected outside light into the room and soon all of the oil lamps were extinguished, until the next nightfall.
The mistress returned and told Lily breakfast was over and it was time to take a break and eat as well. She was grateful for she was exhausted after such work. She felt as if she fought fifteen armed opponents and barely made it out alive. After she ate she realized she had only an hour and a half to prepare for the noon lunch with the queen and hurried back to her room.
As she entered the council chamber she didn’t realize a war council had been called and almost all of the seats were filled with ranking officials. Lily was still caked in flour, vegetables shavings and sweat, but she didn’t ever want to seem weak so she kept her head high, met Allahandra’s smile and quickly proceeded to her room. Not one person dared laugh.
Once inside, she stripped and took a warm and soothing bath in the pool of her room, dried and attired a fresh set of clothes. As she left her room and reentered the war room, it was vacant save for the queen. Allahandra rose from her throne and smiled. “Are you ready to have lunch with me and my friends?”
“Of course, but I’ve been meaning to ask, why do you wish me to prepare meals. I thought I’d be taught differently somehow.”
The queen smiled without showing her pure white teeth. “There are many methods, but this one will work for you. Believe in me and you won’t regret it.”
“Alright,” Lily said and escorted the queen out of the room.
Behind the castle stood a painted pavilion, surrounded by wildflowers and a small pond that was filled with an assortment of colorful fish. As Lily and the queen arrived, ten other women waited under the canopy, eight of the woman were in their early thirties like the queen except for two. Of the gathered, Lily knew the only two, Mistress Marge and Niranene. They sat around a circular table and a constant breeze made the area more pleasant.
Niranene motioned for Lily to sit beside her and she did. Allahandra soon started the gathering by saying “My dearest friends, I know it has been some time since we’ve had an opportunity to meet like this and I’m grateful you could all make it on such short notice.”
“Sit down Allahandra or we’ll never get our turn to speak.” A woman as fair as Lily had ever seen boldly said with a lovely laugh. This woman’s beauty was beyond all that should be possible. Not much older than her or Niranene, she had long blond hair and wore exquisite clothing. She was impressive by any standard.
“Very well, Maria, but first I’d like to introduce all of you to Lily, she will be joining us from now on.”
“Hello,” Lily said and her short introduction was reciprocated with smiles and the other women introduced themselves.
It would take time, but she would learn each of these women’s names.
The last to introduce herself what the lovely woman who went by Maria. After she introduced herself she said “So you are the one Allahandra told me of yesterday. I understand your situation and have come up with a few ideas to fulfill your goals. I own a business and she said you’ll be working with me after we leave here.”
“What manner of business?” Lily asked.
The gorgeous woman smiled. “My business is in making the women of this city become as beautiful on the outside as they are on the inside. We do all kinds of things my customers wish. We do their hair, give treatments to make their skin glow, trim and clean their nails, make them smell irresistible. Those kinds of things.”
“And what would you have me do?”
“Whatever I tell you.” She stated simply, Lily already began to like this Maria. Simple, direct and sophisticated.
Soon the party began and Lily was able to speak to all of the queen’s childhood friends. She liked how they all spoke their minds and none of them seemed to anger their friends. They spoke on many subjects ranging from the mundane to racy. It was a fun experience Lily’s never had before and it was all worth it. Niranene spoke with Lily mainly for they had more in common at the moment and the company was welcome.
Allahandra could see that all enjoyed the reunion and the new member.
Once the gathering ended, much still needed to be done. Soon Lily followed Maria to her large shop and began working on whatever Maria told her to do.
***
Chapter 9
The Shura Mountains seemed to keep growing without end the past two days, but as the five reached the foot of the daunting mountains both Alex and Shade marveled at the giant peaks. They looked blue nearly two days ago, but up close they were green, gray and the many jagged peaks were all pure white with snow and ice. The seemingly never ending horizon of mountains were so imposing that it gave the impression some grand artist made them so perfect and unique that you couldn’t look away. Many trees rose along the steep slopes and vanished at nearly the same height and stone competed its way to the peaks until white snow took over. The white caps of the mountains seemed to spit white mist from the ever changing wind. Se
veral birds flew as they hunted from the sky.
Alex asked if Sheer could fly over the mountains and she said it was impossible for the higher she went, the harder it was to breathe and it became so cold that her eyes and feathers iced. She also said the air currents alone were so unpredictable and turbulent that no being capable of flight could ever cross over them. Only several impassable fissures could be flown through to reach the other side.
As Alex rode atop Shade’s back he heard Sheer’s shriek as she called for the other birds that were seen in the distance. Soon over fifty giant Fury’s began flying overhead, circling one another and Alex came to the conclusion that Sheer had returned home with a warm welcome.
Not long after, the other Fury lords disengaged themselves and all began flying towards what Alex and Shade noticed as a long jagged crack between mountains and they knew they were heading for a fissure Sheer spoke of.
As Sheer returned she circled lower to say “Everyone will be expecting our arrival by morning. They are all excited and I cannot wait to see my chicks again.” She crooned happily.
Gerieg laughed from atop Elo. “Impulsive as ever, eh Sheer?”
“Not me, I shall see you all soon.” She snorted with humor and flew off again, returning home with the other aerial beings towards the fissure and leaving Gerieg and the others behind.
Gerieg looked over and caught Shade’s attention. “We’ve run almost all day to reach the foot, do you need to rest or can we push on?”
Shade smiled. “Lead on, master. I’m getting too excited to even consider the offer. I want to see your den as soon as possible.”
Soon all of them were smiling and Elo led the way up a mountainside.
About halfway between the foot of the mountain and where the trees ceased to grow they came up upon a vacant and boarded home on the slanting slopes. “Kikren lives here during the winter. Most of the snowless year he spends in different cities working for us.” Elo informed. Kikren’s home was simple in design, but seemed welcoming for none of them had a proper shelter in some time. There were stacks of firewood beside the house and many herbs and vegetables grew wild around the property. The wooden windows were boarded up and closed and the roof was slanted, obviously to help during the winter months. In the middle of the home was a chimney which held a central hearth inside. Before either Alex or Shade could investigate, Elo announced “If we hurry we can make the cave by sundown.” The foster brothers grumbled but pressed on.
Trees thinned the higher they went and came to an end as the soil turned into loose shale and scree. As they reached this point Gerieg dropped to the ground saying “Alex, it would be in your best interest to walk under your own power from now on. The ground is unstable and should Shade’s paws shift the loose ground, you might be crushed or hurt should you be thrown or he accidently roll over you.”
It didn’t take long for the words to become reality. Luckily he took his master’s advice and moved under his own power. Alex was the first to be taught the dangers of climbing the scree. He misplaced a step and slid down five feet before Shade dropped low and used his own large body to help stop and save his brother. The downside to the dangerous slide was that for the first time in months Alex’s bare feet were cut in several places. Angry to do this and having to stop the ascent, he opened his pack and took out his knife and old tunic that was beyond repair from rescuing Sean and Shay from the cave. Soon he wrapped up both bleeding feet and hated the feeling beyond all logical reason although it offered some minor protection.
For the next hour and a half they each struggled climbing, but it was Shade who had it the easiest as he walked half in and out of his shadow behind Alex. Experience helped Gerieg and Elo, but it didn’t make the trek much easier. They stuck to the easier paths, but sometimes they had no choice but to take the mountain head on. Concentration on their footing helped keep them all alive.
As the sun began setting they all spotted a cave several yards ahead and soon they were all inside the solid comforts of it, resting and breathing heavily. It was strange for the cave was not only empty, but also ended after only twenty feet inside. Alex also figured this was the reason Sheer flew off with the others of her kind was because the cave would be impossible for her to accompany them. It was barely large enough to incorporate Elo’s enormous bulk. To give himself more room Shade kept his legs submerged in his shadow and it looked as if his legs were cut off at the joints.
Yesterday Gerieg explained that their home was inside the ring of the Shura Mountains and the only way to reach it was to use the hidden cave systems. It would be physically impossible to reach the other side by any other means.
The cave forced Alex to ask “Master, where is the cave system you spoke of? This one doesn’t go anywhere.”
Gerieg grinned. “Do you honestly believe Pilluan has ever been found by another explorer or happened to be accidently stumbled across before?”
“Pilluan?” Alex asked for he has never heard the name before.
“Exactly,” Gerieg stated with a grin. “Pilluan was the original home of the Furions and where most came to receive their training. Usually in their eighteenth year they’d come to see their ancestral home. Your father came here with me, but your uncle knows nothing of this place. Thank the stars I was smart enough to not reveal this secret to him or else I would have been found a very long time ago. Each hidden entrance to our home can only be opened by one of us.” He pointed to Alex and himself. “In most of the cave’s I have fiends stationed to guard them and the Fury’s report should anything come up. Most people fear this place for the surplus of fiend lords that reside in these mountains.”
Gerieg then turned around and stuck his hand in the crack of the wall and pulled out a torch. Before he lit it inspiration donned on him as he pointed to the large rock off to the north of the cave. “Alex, allow me to judge your progress and by that I mean for you to open the entrance of the hidden caves. That boulder needs to be pushed back so that we may proceed.”
He understood and knew what he had to do. First he took off the wrappings and felt relief that his feet were released once again, but they still expressed their pain. When he stood in front of the stonewall, Alex looked closer and found that this was a false-wall for small flecks of dust and chips littered the base and the outline of the rock showed miniscule amount of moisture coming from inside.
Alex first tried using his normal strength and found it impossible by any means. The others chuckled, but didn’t criticize.
Then he sat down before the rock and closed his eyes. In a few moments his heart began thundering and his strength increased dramatically. Slowly opening his eyes, he held onto the images he created and fed the raging anger to keep the power flowing. He had to move slowly for if his focus wavered for but a moment his strength would drop back to normal.
He rose to his feet and firmly placed both palms on the firm boulder’s surface and slowly pushed. Some effort was needed, but Alex still had much to spare. Soon the boulder shook as it began being forced back. The sound of stones grinding together filled the cave, but Alex remained focused on the task. As it pushed back cool, moist air blew out and into the cave, eliminating the summer heat that clung to them.
As Alex pushed the boulder back almost enough to allow the others enough room he thought ‘I did it!’ and his focus was interrupted. His strength left him immediately and the boulder rocked in his direction, but before he was hurt Gerieg showed up and held the stone back with a single hand and pushed it the rest of the way while Alex caught his breath. He was almost crushed.
Gerieg appeared impressed for this was the first time Alex retained his strength to accomplish a task with such effect before failing. He said he was proud and Alex thanked him for the praise but also said he needed more control.
Looking into the darkness that no light penetrated Alex was reminded of the two times he’s nearly died already and it gave him pause for a moment before entering behind his master. Soon both Elo and Shade entered and
Gerieg shut them in after he lit the torch to bring light to the total darkness none of them could see through.
Strong flames from the torch shone and revealed that the cave wasn’t entirely natural. The walls showed signs of gouges and chips from a pickaxe and other excavation tools from many decades or centuries ago. The ground was cool and mostly flat, which helped soothe Alex’s sore feet. The ceiling was higher and allowed more room for the larger size of both Elo and Shade, for he came completely out of his shadow.
As Gerieg led them down the dark tunnel with Shade bringing up the rear he admitted “It feels good to be so close to home.”
“That it is.” Elo replied in his deep purring voice.
Then the elder Furion said “These cave systems were made hundreds and hundreds of years ago by the first of our kind and they run throughout the Shura Mountains, but should someone mistakenly or purposely find this system they will have an impossible journey for most paths branch of into traps for the wary intruder.” Then Gerieg stopped as he came upon a fork in the path as it branched in three directions. “Shade, Alex, come up here and tell me which way we should go and see if your choice would be correct.”
They came forth and kept the firelight to their back as they both inspected each of the branches. All three were subtly different. One was perfectly carved in an arch with a level floor and a smooth ceiling, while the next looked to have been cut by a person with no skill whatsoever, while the last seemed to be natural for it didn’t have the first visible tool mark.
Furion's Trials (Book Two of the Items Trilogy) Page 19