The Dark Half of the Sun (The Young Ancients: Timon)

by P. S. Power

  Then it was passed to him, the sigil on it familiar. It was hand carved, a smooth etching, but the design was clear. It was one of Tor's healing amulets. Hitting the design his head flared with sudden pain, which was a sign it was working. A moment later, no more than fifteen seconds, he felt fine again. Tapping it a second time, the small stone held in his right palm he smiled.

  "Excellent work! I haven't even tried to make one of these yet. It's pretty complicated. Is this one of yours?"

  The leader of Vagus shook her head and smiled proudly.

  "We have ten here that can make these already. I had to create a template for it, but they did the work. All our creations are in stone, since metal working is forbidden us by the treaty. Most of our work so far is making cutters, which have been spread through the land. Those are the most needed thing. It's a simple tool, but one that has more uses than anyone in Noram has seemed to realize. These are next, then water purification and new houses superior to the old. We don't have a lot of excess for sale yet, but it will come. I do have some things that I made, personally. Tanneries and such. Will that do for trade do you think? As a start? I'm no Tor. I have a few hundred things however."

  Dorgal looked greedy for a second and then... stopped.

  "I... If we're to be married, then your people are mine. I can't just think of myself, can I? We'll... It is enough to start with. We'll make sure that all of Vagus benefits from it." The words sounded right, if not like what Timon would have suspected from the man.

  Feeling better, if a little hungry, he watched the Mages walk away without a word, and handed the healing stone back to Lyn. It didn't have a hole for wearing after all. Looking into his eyes she suddenly held him again for a moment.

  "Don't worry about Gray. She won't take a personal issue and make it into something that might harm her people. The worst that will happen there is that she won't like you personally. It's not a wonderful thing. It also isn't something for you to fear. She'll yell and try to make you feel bad, but ultimately that's all she can really do to you. If she keeps doing it, well then she'll earn what she gets. You aren't responsible for her, family or not."

  For some reason that really did make him feel better, even if he didn't really understand why. Then he got it. Lyn was doing something to him. Some kind of influence was coming off of her, leaving him feeling calm and better about the whole thing. It wasn't unwelcome at all. It probably should have been, since he didn't want to have his mind influenced like that as a rule.

  The rest of the day was pretty relaxed, with red robed people scurrying to do work on various things while he pretended not to be bored. In the end he helped Dorgal make a new outfit, that was nice enough the King himself would have been pleased to be seen in it he was sure. Then he had to go and find Lyn, who was just going to use her red colored robe for the ceremony. It really was pretty, but that would have made Dorgal look over dressed, so she relented with a happy look and made it a bit more frilly and slightly glowing in places. It wasn't Noram style at all, while still being flashy enough to make Timon happy.

  Her Mages too, it seemed.

  It really didn't take long at all for the whole thing to take place. They all stood in a circle and chanted while Dorgal and Lyn clasped hands, then as she'd mentioned, they jumped over a fire. It wasn't a big thing, made of grass and horse dung in fact. It was the tradition, even with the larger magical Guide fire in the center of the cooking area for their feast preparation.

  That was mainly vegetables and horse meat, though there was some pig as well. It was plain... and still ten times more filling and tasty than the Austran food from that morning. That didn't get mentioned, because no one spoke to him, or did more than offer him food, barely making eye contact at all. It wasn't hostile really, in fact one of the girls, who he recognized from his last visit, touched his arm lightly, then pulled back shyly and stepped away.

  Lyn saw it and waved to him, then took Dorgal by the hand and walked carefully, a basket of food being handed over to them as they moved toward Timon.

  "We're off then for the night. Most of the day tomorrow. Are you staying?" Her tone kind of suggested that it might not be a perfect idea. She didn't hint as to why however.

  "No, I'll be off at first light. I could use a little food for that and some water. Oh, I have messages from my grandfather and Brown. Letters. Let me give you those now, or at least place them somewhere you can find them later." They were in the craft, in his case, with the other ones. Which meant getting up, carefully not dropping the warm food in his hand. They didn't use plates here, or bowls.

  That had to make eating whatever they used for potage interesting.

  He moved over, away from the light of the fire and opened the side of his vehicle. The letters took a few seconds to get and he had to wipe his greasy left hand on his pant leg, juggling a small pile of food in the right as he did, before handing the papers over.

  "I'll be back in... Call it two weeks? I can take return messages then, or grab you two up for the Noram ceremony. I guess that I have to pay for that, don't I? If so don't count on anything too grand. I'm already going into debt trying to make sure Austra doesn't starve." He didn't explain and Dorgal chuckled softly, which got Red's attention.

  Her words were pleasant however.

  "Thank you for the offer brother. Tor has already been roped into it however, by his lady Collette? I trust it will be suitably grand?" She giggled like a girl then.

  "Maybe you can rent the palace for it? Get the King to officiate? I want Sandra Morris to be my maid in waiting... Dorgal, who do you want as your defender to the claim?"

  He thought for a second and grinned after a bit.

  "My cousin Marco. Will you ask him Tim?"

  Why not, he nodded and shook the man's hand, then hugged Lyn and realized that he'd picked up yet another task. He needed to start writing down all he had to do, or things were going to end up being forgotten. He didn't have any paper and Vagus didn't either, so it would have to wait until he got back to Noram.

  Lyn called out instructions and then, in a rather dramatic fashion pulled out an amulet and created a tiny stone cottage off to one side. Then she went inside with her new husband, the door being shut firmly behind them.

  The people danced and occasionally looked at him, without approaching or interacting with him at all. That was probably just due to his being unfamiliar and new. When he got tired, about an hour later, Timon got up and went to his craft, changing the seats inside, so that one would be very large and lay all the way back into a sleeping platform. There was no blanket, though a pillow was built in that worked well for the purpose. At first he didn't think he'd sleep very easily, until his eye closed. When they cracked open there was light outside the front viewing window.

  He had to go outside to find a bush and nearly tripped over a pile of things outside his door. Cooked meat, wrapped in large leaves, vegetables and two animal bladders with stoppers that held water. It wasn't a full shower, but it let him have something to drink and some breakfast before he left, as well as a decent tooth brushing. He nearly felt human as the craft lifted into the air. He had one more stop to make, in Soam, but then he could get back to familiar ground.

  As hard as it was to admit, he felt a little home sick.

  Not for Two Bends exactly, or even his family, just for his land. It was, right or wrong, what he knew.

  That proved to be no small fact as the day drew on, since even though he made a run lengthwise over the whole continent, he wasn't really certain where he was supposed to find Julie at all. It was a bit of an oversight on his part, since any of the other Ancients would have probably have known where to find the woman, meaning he should have asked. Finally he just landed in what he figured might be the capital. It was the largest city or whatever they were called here. It looked different, but it had vast stone buildings and well paved streets, wide things that each could have been used at the square of a large town in width. He went to the middle and settled in one o
f them, hoping it wasn't against the rules, or if it was, that their habit would be to simply tell him that, instead of attacking or throwing him into a cell for the mistake.

  Instead he was simply observed for a long time, well over an hour, no one coming close enough to him for speech. Just as he was about to climb back into his craft and go home, a large block of stone, larger than his own craft was at the moment, settled next to him out of the air. There were five people on the top of it, and stone hand holds carved into the gray side of it. They all wore white, but it was the one in the middle, who came down last, that he was interested in.

  Julie White.

  The woman was exotic and unique in all the world as far as he knew. Her skin wasn't simply pale, it was the color of pearl, slightly iridescent with just a hint of glitter to it as the sun hit her flesh. She didn't move across the distance between them, which was nearly eight feet, she danced, a thing that should have seemed strange and bizarre. For her it worked, the whole city stopping to watch her do it. The world itself almost seemed to focus on her for a moment, until she bowed in front of him.

  Timon touched his shirt front and activated his shield, which gained an instant relief from the energy she was giving off. The woman was still alluring, which she probably couldn't help, it being her nature. He'd been warned about it and had dealt with the effect before, so was ready for it.

  "I have messages for you, White. Is this the right place to land?" He looked around and while he didn't seem to be in the way people were watching them.

  The woman laughed, a sound that was having an unfair influence on him he realized. He really wanted to please her suddenly. It was all he could do not to touch her. The people near her didn't refrain totally, reaching out every now and again, then pulling away as the others intercepted them. Julie though was focused only on him. It was more intense than he really liked.

  "It is a good place for it. This is my home, for now. So good to have a visitor. Will you stay for a time, Timon? We have much to discuss, you and I." It was tempting to stay and forget his responsibilities, which was the danger that she presented. Her land was a reflection of her in green that way. It all called to him on a deep level, making him want to stay with her.

  To be her lover.

  Since he was a bit too young for that he pulled back for a second, into the craft, and came out with the letters for her.

  "Sorry, I need to be on my way as soon as possible. Some nobles from Noram want to come for a tour here, in a few weeks. Is that alright? We can bring food and pay people for any services they provide."

  The woman smiled and nodded as if it were a present for her, not him begging for help.

  "That would be most welcome Timon. I simply ask that if they are too large, over seven feet or so, they not expect to meet with me personally. I... It's embarrassing, but I rather have a fear of people that are too large. I mean no insult. Could you smooth that over for me?"

  He nodded.

  "Not a problem. They'll understand. Or if they don't, I won't bring them. I can just set down here? Is it possible to have housing for them? I probably won't be able to stay with them the whole time, and will need my vehicle, which wouldn't be big enough for all of us to sleep in comfortably anyway. About ten people. Maybe more." He kept waiting for her to have a problem with something he said, but Julie just kept smiling and reaching out for him, making a little face when she hit shield.

  "We have ample housing and food. We can also take people to places of interest. Waterfalls of great splendor and ancient ruins that have stood from before the time of my own birth. I will have to arrange for a translator... No worry for you, I know a few."

  Then, without ceremony she sat on the ground, her firm breasts bare as was the custom here. It was a fact that Timon was trying to ignore. He'd seen naked women before, in the Capital, at a distance. The women here were close however and the concept of undergarments didn't seem to be a thing here. Most just wore different colored skirts.

  Julie's hair was a white that was almost blue, it was so brilliant and that wasn't coloring of any artificial sort it seemed, because the stuff between her legs was the same color. The only good thing at all to the situation was that almost everyone else was staring at her as well. He looked away as she started to read the messages. Thankfully she read only one page of the long thing Green sent and both pages from Brown. For a moment he'd been afraid it would take her hours.

  "I don't need to reply at this time. Will you be available to me when you return? I may have thoughts to share with the others then. Blue and Black as well. Is that a thing you can do? Contacting them?"

  Timon allowed that it might be... eventually. He didn't want to promise anything he might not be able to deliver on, no matter how likely it was at the moment. Still, it was in the plan to visit both of those places.

  "But not Afrak again. Gray hates me and I'm not really so sure it isn't mutual now. Don't mention that to my parents though, they'd tan my hide good just for saying it." There was a horrified look from White, but it lessened when he explained. "Just with words. They never really beat us. Well, that one time that Todd was calling Sue-Anne Moore ugly. Da did take after him with a belt for that. That's fair though, because Sue-Anne is very sweet, even if not fine looking." As it was Todd only got a few token smacks that did no damage. It was a clear message to both him and the rest of the kids that there were things you just didn't say at all.

  White clearly didn't approve, even of that. It was in a different land though and there were other rules there.

  "It makes sense that Lara Gray would dislike you. She has to after all. You're her worst nightmare come to life. A male of the Gray line. Her Rhetistics... do you know what those are?" She waited, her face curious rather than standing in judgment if he lacked something she considered basic knowledge.

  "Sort of. Neuro-peptide combinations that are self-reinforcing, a sort of permanent memory that can influence a person forever. More or less. Don't ask me to set up a system of them. I have the basic idea." It was Brown that had taught him that too, explaining to him that Tor had those, as did the other Ancients, but Timon didn't. From the sound of it, Tim was glad. They seemed to have been a joke when they were built, causing people to like strange things, like a specific color to the exclusion of all others, or to fear things or situations. That was probably why Julie didn't like overly tall people.

  She clasped her hands delicately in front of the gap her skirt left as she sat cross legged. He resisted looking again. She wasn't blood, but she was family as much as anyone. They hadn't made up what to call each other yet, but just in case it was something too close, he didn't want to start bad habits.

  "Yes. That. One of those in Lara Gray's set is meant to prevent her from having male offspring. She's had a hundred daughters or more, but your mother is her. Free to have what children she wishes. And now here you are. A son of her line. Worse, you aren't vile and evil, not stupid or coarse, you're everything any sane grandmother could have wanted. It's simply that, in regards to you, Lara Gray simply isn't rational."

  It... made a certain kind of sick sense, given what he'd been told about her. If that was the truth of it, they'd never be friends, would they? It wasn't even her fault, as rough as she'd been with him when they last met.

  "Well, when I hire a female pilot we can send things there with her. Right now it's just me and Morgan. You'll like him. Wonderful person. Very happy and cheerful. Married... and I don't know if he and his wife follow the noble rules, so, you know, please be careful there." He didn't know that the woman had sex with everyone she could, but he could tell they certainly wanted to. It was clear on the faces of everyone, man or woman, around her.

  He felt it himself, which was at least a good enough reason to leave as fast as possible.

  "I'll try to get down this way, every few weeks. Oh! Red just got married. Last night. To Dorgal Sorvee, who's a merchant from Noram. If you want to open up trade with Noram or Vagus at all, he's the one to talk to. Do
you want me to bring him around? Also, you might want some ambassadors in other lands, what with everything happening so fast. Let me know and I'll set up fast transport for them and pass the messages you need to set things up. I get the equivalent of three hundred gold for the whole contingent, as long as it takes less than five craft to do the work. More if I have to make several trips. You travel free, as a relative, of course, though if you try to abuse the privilege I'll put you to work."

  That earned a smile and another attempt to touch him, which got an actual laugh.

  "Are all the new men of Noram so very careful with themselves? The others allow me contact. My brothers and sisters."

  Shrugging he moved back toward the floating silver box and grabbed the side to pull himself up. When he turned Timon smirked a bit and shook his head.

  "You are too lovely to take risks with Julie White. You know it too. That's one thing Tor was right about, in his warning about that to me. If I stayed in your presence too long I'd do things that would shame me. Or try to at least. I'll avoid that for now. I'm too young to have all other women ruined for me anyway." It sounded like a polite enough rebuff. It was all true too, which got her to bow again as he closed the door.

  "Come again soon, Timon of Noram."

  The trip back to the Capital was actually the shortest leg of the journey so far, which probably meant that setting up a regular route to the place was a good idea, especially if they had anything unique to trade. Carrying around things that people already had didn't make a lot of sense. Dorgal had said something like that even.

  Timon reflected that he seemed to have married off a member of the Assassins Guild to the leader of a foreign land without mentioning that fact to her, which was a bit of a problem. In potential at least. Not that Lyn was in danger. In that Tim was certain Dorgal was in fact a very safe bet. You didn't keep a secret like that if you were prone to lazy violence or combat rage, did you? He hadn't even tried to attack Tor at school he'd said.