“Konifer, do you have a moment?”
“How can I help you, Lander?”
Hardt overlooked the insult. “I’d like to know more about your position in the village. How does the community decide who the new Vize will be?”
“Surely Deg can answer this for you.”
“He won’t.”
At that the man’s frozen mask of disdain dropped for a moment. Hardt had given him a valuable piece of information. “Interesting” was all he said.
“I think I’ve figured it out, but I’d like to know for certain, from you.”
“The soul of the next vizet will hatch in anticipation of our need.”
“Will that dTelfur help you then, until you go on?”
“No. I will train him or her until the dawn of their hundred and fiftieth shedding. Then they will be Vize and I will be nothing.”
Hardt had not realized that the vizet’s hatching would indicate a foreseeable end to the Vize’s reign. To him a hundred and fifty years, less now, would still be more than a lifetime. But to Konifer it was no time at all.
“You will lose your powers?”
“Yes, Lander. I will lose my powers. Nature listens to one only.”
Well, then maybe Mobious’ miracles weren’t as they seemed. Or, maybe his existence wasn’t the death knell Konifer imagined it was.
“Is it hereditary…?” Since there was no equivalent in dTelfur, he used the lander word while he searched for a translation. “Does it pass from parent to child?”
“Often. Yes. That’s why a male Vize keeps track of his mates and her eggs.”
Hardt was relieved and surprised. “So you already know that Mobious is your get.”
The look of shocked horror on Konifer’s normally cold, expressionless face told him that the Vize had not known. But it was too late, so Hardt barreled on.
“He’s performing small impossible feats. Sophie pretends they’re normal, but I’ve seen no other child do these things. And I overheard her speaking with Deg.”
“Deg says the boy is of me?”
“Yes.”
“By whom?”
Hardt froze. He found that he didn’t want to tell the man. dTserra seemed to be the focus of all the Vize’s anger against Hardt and this was even in ignorance of Hardt’s part in her death. If the man didn’t already know that dTserra had been pregnant with his seed, would he take the news as another deception?
The Vize repeated his question. “By whom? I was unaware of any…” He paused for just an instant as his eyes registered understanding. “And Deg didn’t tell me when it hatched. He called Sophie. And you. And facilitated your attachment. I see. And now you want me to take the boy.”
“I just want you to apprentice him. Teach him how to use these powers. He needs you.”
Konifer’s gaze shifted off in the middle distance right of Hardt for a brief moment then the ice glazed back over his eyes and he looked calmly at the lander.
“I don’t need him.”
Hardt was reminded of his mother as Konifer brushed past him and disappeared into the descending night.
Twelve
∞
Hardt and Sophie kept their peace. They neither of them spoke of Mobious’ lineage nor of his miracles. And in fact, if more occurred, Hardt was no witness. They raised Mobious with respect for the Vize and with all the certainty that on his hundred and fiftieth shedding, he would assume the position from the man they did not tell him was his sire. They taught him all they could about the landers. Sophie explaining all she knew of their history and Hardt teaching the language and culture. But they kept their promise to Konifer and had no more encounters with Hardt’s people.
For twelve sheddings.
On an evening in early spring, Sophie and Hardt heard a cry as they flew over the burnt forest where Hardt had begun his dTelfur adventures thirty-three frseason earlier. They were headed south to the land of spiky trees and tiny lizards for a quiet visit. A time for the two of them to be alone and to give Mobious some independence in the village. It would be the first time Sophie had taken Hardt to visit dTserra’s final bower.
They did not deliberately encounter the landers. They didn’t fly unreasonably close to a lander shale even though it lay directly in the path between the village and their destination. They were in fact turning south to avoid the shale when they heard the woman’s cry. Each of them even considered ignoring the cries, privately weighing Konifer’s approval against their own shame. But in the end, someone needed help and they flew in to assist.
It was chance that the laboring woman was from the countryshale of Stray.
She barely caught a breath, when she saw Sophie, before her already pain-wracked features shifted ever so slightly to an expression of terror and her screams shifted from pain to panic. Sophie landed at a distance shouting in lander for her to be calm that Sophie was only there to help.
Hardt leapt from the dtur’s neck and dashed over to where the pregnant woman was desperately trying to crawl away despite her condition.
“It’s okay. It’s okay. I’m a lander. I know healing. We can help you.”
“He saved my life once.” Sophie quietly added, “I’ll stay all the way over here if you want.”
Finally hearing that the dragon was speaking lander words the woman was shocked into silence. She twisted around to look at the huge creature who had lain down and lowered her head to appear smaller and more harmless..
“How long have you been having contractions?” Hardt asked.
She had to swallow several times before she could speak. “Not long. I sent my bond, Ker back to get our healer and I was trying to walk back to camp but the pain overwhelmed me, I don’t know, an hour ago.”
“Okay, try to relax. I’m going to run to my friend, Sophie over there and get a blanket and my supplies. I will be right back and I won’t leave your sight. Is that alright?”
“Sophie?”
“Yes.” He confirmed.
“Alright.”
Sophie turned her head to unwork the ties that held their supplies on the flying harness as Hardt ran towards her. But he gestured wildly for her not to help him so she stopped, bewildered. When he got close enough, he whispered to her that he didn’t want the woman to see her teeth. He also told her that the woman looked to be much too early in her pregnancy to be giving birth and that the woman was older than most birthing landers. As he went around to Sophie’s far side to gather the blankets, she spoke up with a running commentary to reassure the lander woman.
“He’s just untangling the blanket from the harness. He never has been any good at knots. Always gets things tangled up so they’re sticking in my ribs. You know how men can be.”
The woman laughed in spite of herself and tentatively hollered over, “You’re called Sophie?”
“Or Soph, if you haven’t got much time. You don’t have to yell, I’ve got really good ears. I’m a dTelfur.” She added unnecessarily.
The woman laughed again, incredulous. “Well, it’s a surprise to meet you. I’m called Hundred.”
Sophie lifted her head in excitement. “Oooh, one of the Mytree?”
At the same moment, Hardt emerged from behind Sophie with the blanket and another contraction hit Hundred. He raced over to hold her against the pain. It had been ages since he’d used the natural healing magics he’d learned from Gaerel and Kalina and was wondering if he should send Sophie off for Mobious and one of his miracles as Hardt’s own concentration didn’t appear to ease her pain at all. But as it passed, Hundred let go of his hands and brushed the tears from her eyes.
“Thank you. Just having you here makes them more bearable.”
“Is there anything you know you need? I’m not sure how to help you.”
“Just hold my hands, Hardt. I trust you.”
He pulled back even as he reached out for her hands. “How do you know me?”
“You look just like Vyck.”
Hardt’s emotion overcame him at the s
ound of his aunt’s name and he found himself unable to speak.
“You were her favorite!” Sophie was yelling like Nahni in her excitement.
“How do you know so much about me?”
“Hardt has told me all about Stray. You and Noah get a lot of coverage.”
“And Noah is the one who told me that Hardt must have gone to the dTelfur.” Hundred smiled up at Hardt, a legend of her childhood, and asked him quietly, “Is she comfortable that far away?”
He was stunned. She was a Mytree and so he expected a high level of intelligence and she had spent a great deal of time with Vyck so he expected independent thought, but the speed with which she moved from utter terror to polite consideration in regards to a creature she had assuredly been taught to despise as evil stopped him in midthought.
“Hunny, you are wonderful. Sophie would be incapacitated with joy if you invited her to move closer and talk with you.” He leaned forward and whispered. “Most landers scream and run.”
“Well I did do that.” Hundred whispered back. “But I have every right to reevaluate my response.”
“She may cry.”
“I wish Noah could see that.”
“You can tell him all about it.”
She drew a quick breath. “Oh. Hardt, I’m sorry. He succumbed to a fever about fifteen frseason ago. We lost a lot of settlers.”
As Hardt sat back and digested this, Sophie moved closer. She had heard every word of their discussion and dragged her tail around to stroke Hardt’s back in support. She was about to ask who else had succumbed to the illness when another contraction hit Hundred and they were all brought back to focus on the immediate problem.
It was a long contraction and the ripple across her belly was obvious even through her thick shirt. Sophie raised an eyebrow at Hardt even as she offered a claw for Hunny to hang onto.
“Hunny, is this your first child?”
“I’m a Mytree, Hardt.” She retorted sarcastically as the contraction passed. “But this is my last. We don’t even know how it happened.”
Sophie spoke up again as Nahni would have, “Oh, Hardt’s told us all about that. The beginning part is just like it is for dTelfur.”
“Sophie, stop it!” Hundred doubled up over the muscle contraction caused by her laughter. “I’m in pain!”
Hardt nodded approval to Sophie for the distraction and wiped the sweat from Hundred’s brow. “Your experience is much wider than either of ours, Hundred. Do you think Ker will return with the healer in time?” He heard what he said and very nearly interrupted himself. “Ker? Getek’s son?”
The youngest Mytree nodded, pleased at his surprise. “Yes. And no, I think this baby wants to come out now.”
As it turned out, Hundred was incorrect. The baby didn’t come out for hours, but still Ker didn’t arrive with the healer. The bondstar, Aeschent, was setting when little Jaythree finally burst screaming into the world, her mother holding on for dear life to a dragon’s claws as any good dTelfur would, Hardt murmuring steady encouragement, and Sophie barely holding back her disgust at how icky the whole process was.
“Hardt, help her, help her, she’s bleeding to death. Her intestines just came out!”
Hardt could not tear his eyes away from the tiny baby squirming in his hands. “Everything is good.”
“I’m fine.” Hundred tried to reassure the terrified dragon through her tears.
“It’s a girl.” Hardt held the baby up for Sophie to see after he cleared the baby’s face and then set her on Hundred’s chest. “Remember Sophie? Landers have live births.”
“She’s beautiful. Weird looking and slimy, but beautiful.”
“Thank you, Sophie.” The glowing mother laughed, letting go of the dragon’s claws to wrap her arms protectively around her new daughter. “Her name is Jaythree.”
“Welcome, Jaythree.”
“Welcome, Jaythree.” Hardt looked up from the umbilical cord to the threesome. “Hunny, you need to push one more time.”
Sophie nearly fainted when the afterbirth came out. She had to take herself for a little walk to calm her stomach once she was reassured that Hundred was fine and didn’t need to be immediately flown to a healer. As the dragon walked around the burnt forest, Hardt helped the new pair clean up and wrapped them in blankets. The baby was far smaller than either he or Hundred felt she should be and he was concerned that she could catch a dangerous chill in the cold night air. Hardt was looking about for more shelter when Hundred reached out and laid a hand on his chest.
“Tell me about dragons, Hardt. Everyone hates them so much, but she doesn’t want to eat us.”
“I’m not even supposed to be here, Hundred. The leader of the dTelfur decreed that none of us, myself included if I want to remain in the dTelfur village, is to have any contact with landers. He wants to let tensions cool.”
“Tensions aren’t cooling. There are more stories every day about the evil of dragons and their slaves. Do you remember Brower?”
“Yes, of course.”
“He’s an elder now. He is pressing for us to take the offensive. He wants the Kimoet to lead a march on the dTelfur village. So, please, tell me what I can tell him to stop that from happening.”
“Tell him about Sophie.”
“He’d never believe me.”
“He can’t be the only elder.”
“He’s not. And in fact I am the Lord of Stray Tor, but there is a great deal of anti-dTelfur sentiment. Could you come back to the shale with me?”
“I’ve made a promise to my ‘lord’ if you will. One lander has to keep their word with him or he will never trust the rest of you.”
She closed her eyes a moment and Hardt saw how pale she was, how tired.
“I have to do something, but I….”
“Hundred, you have to rest. And we need to get you some shelter.”
Sophie returned from her stroll. “Let me curl around them, Hardt, and you can go find her bond.”
He was torn by a great desire to see Vyck again and his promise to Konifer. The struggle knit up his face.
“Hardt. This infant needs help. We could fly the two back to their shale, but that wouldn’t be safe for any of us. If you go find someone, you can blow our horn on your way back and I’ll fly away before you get here. Then, after you make sure that Hundred and Jaythree are in safe and competent hands, you can walk south and call for me. We’ll barely break the rules at all.”
Hundred shifted the sleeping baby in her arms and reached a hand out to the man she’d grown up thinking of as a myth. “I want you to come back to the shale and explain the dTelfur to everyone, but I will respect your promise. You can take the Mytree horn and blow it as you go. There have to be some out looking for me by now and perhaps you won’t have to go into Stray at all.”
Hardt looked down at the tiny infant. He didn’t think himself bright enough to figure out the wisest course of action, but he knew the right one. So he saw Hundred and Jaythree snuggled in the curve of Sophie’s flank, her head twisted in to breathe hot air into the dturic shelter, then gathered the horns from the ladies and took off for the trees at the eastern edge of the area Hundred had told them was called the Hardt burntbos plaine. Just before he blew the Mytree horn for the first time, he heard Hundred say to Sophie, “So, tell me about dragons.”
He’d not run for a half an hour when he heard shouts answering his horn.
“Hundred!!! Stay where you are.”
“We’re coming, Hundred. Hang on.”
Hardt froze as the voices closed in on him. Both were male. One of the two was a trained tracker, moving quickly but with care. The other crashed through the underbrush like a boar. Hardt slipped his knife from his belt to be safe, but kept it at his side.
The boy who appeared first was too young to have been alive when Hardt had lived in Stray and pulled up short in surprise at finding someone other than Hundred.
“Where is she?”
His aggression didn’t worry Hardt wh
o could see at a glance that the boy, with all his youth, was no match for Hardt’s solid and carefully conditioned post-middle-aged form. His fear was natural at meeting a stranger with the Mytree horn. Hardt couldn’t blame him for that, but he waited for the older man to approach before he answered the question.
The second man, the older one trained in stealth tactics approached at a more cautious pace. He wore a brimmed hat which shielded his eyes, but Hardt saw deep wrinkles around his mouth and on what little neck he could see above the high collar of his cotton shirt. His question was calm.
“Did Hundred send you to find us?”
“Yes. She and Jaythree need to be taken back to the shale.”
He turned and walked swiftly back in the direction he had come, the older man at his side. After some hesitation, the boy followed. As they walked, Hardt slowed the pace to accommodate the older man.
“The baby is safe?” The man spoke louder than necessary for the benefit of the boy hiking loudly behind them.
“She is small, but she appears healthy.”
“Good.” He sighed.
“May I ask you a question?”
“As many as you like.”
“How long has there been a lord of Stray?”
“For about three seasons, since Hundred finished the building of the Tor at center.”
“So Stray is now a castleshale?”
“Thanks to Hundred, yes. After her mother died trying to save her brother from that horrible sickness, she was determined to formalize the shale in honor of Jaydee.”
“Jaydee is gone?” Hardt swallowed heavily. “And Garce?”
“Garce is old. But he is still carving all of my family’s chairs.”
“And...” Hardt was uncertain he wanted to ask but he did. “And do you know about Vyck?”
The old man stopped walking. Hardt stopped too. The boy nearly ran into them before he noticed the change.
“So it is you.” The old man reached up and tilted back his hat so that Hardt could see his eyes.
It was Getek.
With trouble Hardt managed to say, “I’m not supposed to be here.”
Hardt's Tale: A Mobious' Quest Novel Page 23