by J Battle
Then he pulled Telldred to him and whispered. ’Hold back here, until we are all away from the place, and see to Elstar’s comfort. I would not have him rise again needlessly, or at all; you understand my words?’
‘Of course, Turgon. You can rely on my thoroughness, and my discretion.’
‘Thank you friend. This will not be forgotten.’
Telldred watched him, and the rest of the crawlords disappear inside the palace, then he turned to the humans and sent them here and there to set up guard points so that they would not be disturbed.
When he returned, he found that Elstar was nowhere to be seen.
He raced towards the palace, suspecting that it would be Elstar’s first target.
Inside, he found the lower floor empty, so he climbed the stairs, finding them a little tight due to his size.
He joined a small crowd at the end of the first corridor, and pushed his way through, surprised at their silence.
He found Elstar and Turgon standing face to face.
‘It must have been here!’ snapped Elstar, his face inches from Turgon’s.
‘It is no longer, if it ever existed. If it was ever anything more than another one of your fevered dreams.’
‘Can you not smell it? Does the air not sizzle with the taste of it?’
‘Only in your dreams, Elstar; only in your dreams. I’ll give you your due though; you had us fooled, with this strange little valley, and the strange little man with the power to strike a crawlord to the ground. But it was nothing more than a dream, wasn’t it? There is no Magic to be had here, or anywhere. We are lost, Elstar, and it is high time you accepted that fact and put aside your foolishness.’
He turned to his audience.
‘Come now; we’ve had a nice day out, and we’ll all have another foolish Elstar story to tell, and I’m sure The Elflord will be interested to hear what Elstar has been planning, behind his back as it were. Come, we have the serious business of packing and getting ready for a long journey behind our true leader.’
Telldred stepped forward.
‘My friend, we have come all this way only to be disappointed. Perhaps there is still something to be gained from our efforts. There are wild humans in this valley; let us all have a little fun with them before we turn our backs. I know you’d be happy to find wild flesh struggling and squirming against your legendary lusts.’
Turgon glared at him for a moment, and then he nodded and smiled.
‘Ay friend, I believe you are right. We have time, and who knows when we will next have the opportunity to spend ourselves so rampantly.’
He pushed his way into the small crowd and, as one, each crawlord followed him.
Elstar was left all alone; just him and his loss.
**********
‘Watch your heads there, Sirs, so that you don’t do yourselves any damage. It’s a high doorway, but not quite as high as you, or as wide.’
‘Have no fear, little Lady-woman. There be enough room for me if I bend enough, but I’s not so sure for my fat friend here.’
‘Don’t you worry none about me, Raarvan. If you can get yourself through without pulling the place down around your ears, then I can.’
Alice backed off to give them plenty of room, though she was worried at the wisdom of bringing such massive creatures into a man-sized place. Her eyes fell on Cavour, sitting quietly by the door.
‘If you’d care to settle yourselves down here in the middle of the floor, you’ll each find a hogshead of ale to quench your thirst, and a sheep’s carcass as a snack, just to keep you going.’
Even sitting on the floor, they towered over her and everyone else in the tavern.
‘Thank you so much for accepting my invitation.’
‘Well, we weren’t likely to say no to free food and ale, were we Aarvarn?’
‘All the food and ale we get is free.’
‘Ay, but not the company, and I’s tired of listening to your stupid words all the time.’
‘Stupid is as stupid does.’
‘What does that mean?’
‘I don’t know. It’s what my Ma always said to my Pa. I always say it when people call me stupid. It makes ‘em think I be clever, it does.’
‘Now, gentleman, I hesitate to bring this up so early, but we need your help.’
‘Help?’ asked Raarvan.
‘Yes, help.’
Raarvan pointed at his old friend. ‘What do you think he is?’
‘Well, he’s a Giant,’ answered Alice, with a puzzled smile.
‘And what am I?’
‘You are also a Giant.’ She smiled again.
‘That’s right, I be a Giant and he be a Giant. And we be Northern Giants, not like your soft Southern Giants who reckon they’re just big humans. And Northern Giants don’t help people; leastways not humans. No, we barge into towns and villages and we knock down buildings and we demand free food and ale, and we sometimes have sport with the little people. That’s what we do.’
‘And is that all you do?’
‘Well, I don’t know; it be enough I think.’
‘We don’t see many Giants here about, and we are pleased to meet you, but we do hear things; stories and such.’
Aarvarn lifted his head from his drink.
‘Stories? I likes stories, I do.’
‘Well, there is one story I could tell, but you must know it already.’ Alice sat down in a narrow chair before the Giants.
‘Tell it anyway,’ said Aarvarn placing his empty hogshead to one side, ’for, the more ye tell a story, the better it gets. Leastways, that’s what my Ma always says.’
‘But it is of Ragnockk; you must know him; you are also Giants, after all.’
The Giants shared a slow glance.
‘No Lady-woman, we don’t know a Giant by that name, do we Aarvarn?’ said Raarvan, suddenly showing more interest.
‘No, lessen she means Rogueckk, who ate a whole Haarbeast in one sitting. Is that who you mean, Lady-woman?’
‘No, I speak of Ragnockk, who saved a whole town from the Dragon Misanthrope.’
‘Now, we don’t see no Dragons nowadays, do we Raarvan?’
‘And that’s only for the best, if you ask me.’
‘Well,’ said Alice, in a soft, ‘I’m going to tell you a story’ sort of voice. ’There was a time, long, long ago, when Giants and the First Men lived in peace and respect together. And there was a small town, perched on the edge of Seacliffs, looking out over the great expanse of Fastsea.’
‘She speaks nice, don’t you think?’ said Aarvarn, in a whisper that was heard by all in the tavern.
‘But dark times fell on that poor town, when the Dragon Misanthrope decided to settle in the cliffs below the town.
‘Whenever a fishing ship would set off from the small harbour below, the Dragon would swoop down and destroy the ship and eat all that were aboard.’
‘Dragons were never very nice,’ said Aarvarn, nodding his great head.
‘Well, this couldn’t go on, so the leader of the town went to the Dragon, and gave him gold, and jewels, and three plump sheep. ‘Please leave us be,’ he begged, but the Dragon merely snorted and bit off his head.’
‘Dragon’s will do that, every time.’ Aarvarn was enthralled.
‘The people of the town didn’t know what was to be done, and they were in a desperate situation, until a Giant passed along the cliff road, on his way from where to where no-one knows.
‘A young lad stopped him on the road; blocking the way and standing as tall as he could. ‘You shall not pass,’ he said, in his loudest voice, and the Giant laughed down at him. ‘Pass, boy?’ he said, ’I shall pass wherever I choose, for I am a Giant.’’
‘That’s right; we always says that,’ butted in Aarvarn, ’we be Giants, we be.’
‘Now, the boy was afeared, of course he was, but he thought he saw some kindness in the old Giant’s massive face. ‘There’s a tithe that must be paid before ye can pass,’ he said, his voice
shaking with fear.’
‘The Giant laughed, ’And what be that, little man?’ he said.
‘Ye must do a service for the town, and then ye will be free to go on your way, with the good wishes of the people of the town to ease your path,’ said the boy.’
‘We’ll have another pair of hogsheads to keep us going,’ said Raarvan, without taking his eyes from Alice.
‘So, after he’d finished laughing, Ragnockk, for that was the Giant’s given name, said, ’What service would be required, for you to allow me to pass?’ and the boy stepped forward and held out his hand and said, ‘let us shake hands and make our agreement real.’ Ragnockk chuckled and took the boy’s hand between two fingers, being careful not to hurt him. ‘We have a Dragon, killing our people, and he won’t go away. Can you make him leave?’ Now, the Giant’s face went all serious, for a Dragon is no cause for laughter, not at all. Then he thought, and he pondered, and then he said, ‘Well, I don’t rightly think I’ve ever wrestled with a Dragon.’ And the boy laughed and led him from the road, and Ragnockk, he went down to the cave the Dragon had made his home, and no-one saw what happened; they just heard terrible roars, and banging, and flames were seen, shooting from the mouth of the cave. Then, after hours, two figures sprang into the night, clinging together and twisting and spinning, and roaring and yelling, and, still together, they fell into the sea.’
She paused to take a breath.
‘What happened Lady-woman?’ asked Aarvarn, softly as a Giant can be.
‘The next morning, the boy went down to the sea shore, and there he found a body, lying half in and half out of the cold sea. It was the Giant, and his body was ripped and terribly torn. The boy stood over him and lay his hand on his shoulder. Tears fell from his eyes. He was about to turn away when the Giant moved. He rolled over onto his back and his eyes opened. For a moment, he stared at the boy. Then he spoke. ’Can I pass now boy and be on my way about my own business?’
The boy laughed and hugged him, as well as a human boy can hug a Giant, and the Dragon was never seen again.’
‘Oh, good story. I could wrestle a Dragon, I think,’ said Aarvarn, a big smile on his wide face.
‘Easy to say when there be no more Dragons about,’ grunted Raarvan, ’unless ye do have a Dragon for him to fight.’
‘No, we do not have a Dragon, my welcome guests, but we still need your help.’
‘Now, Lady-woman, my friend here, he looks a fool, I’ll allow you that. But he’s not as stupid as stupid-looking, and nor am I. We be Giants, and we’re not in your story, so we’ll eat and drink, and whenever there be nothing left, we’ll be on our way.’
Alice stood up and sighed. ‘It was just a story, to while away the night, and pass time with new friends. Of course we need your help, but how could I think to trick such wise and ancient creatures as you?’
‘As long as you know that.’
‘Let us eat and drink, and forget about the doom that approaches.’ The Lady raised a hand to call for food and drink to be served.
With her attention distracted, Cavour took the opportunity to slip through the door and out into the night.
Back in the tavern, all the food was soon gone, but the drink still flowed.
‘Now, fine gentlemen,’ said Alice, her face a little flushed, ’I hear that Giant’s like a wager, and I hear that a Giant likes a drink; well, I can see that for myself. Now here’s a challenge for you. What say we set a challenge; a drinking challenge. I’ll wager that a person in this room; a human person, can outdrink a Giant. Now there’s a challenge for you. What do you say?’
Raarvan laughed. ’A human? Outdrink a Giant? Never.’
‘I accept the challenge,’ said Aarvarn, with half a bow.
‘Why are you accepting the challenge, without knowing what it be?’ snapped Raarvan.
‘More ale.’
‘The challenge is accepted, and the terms are to be that whoever can drink no more will pay a forfeit to the winner, and there can be no argument or dishonour will fall upon the race of the loser.’
Raarvan rumbled to his feet.
‘I shall ward this challenge and make sure that honour is met. My old stupid friend here will drink against anyone you might find. So, Lady-woman, where is your champion? Who will drink against a Giant?’
She turned and her eyes ran before her as she studied each man remaining conscious in the tavern.
She hesitated for a moment when she realized that Cavour had gone, but without any change in her expression, she continued.
When she’d completed a full circle, her eyes met those of Raarvan.
‘It shall be I,’ she said, with a half-smile on her face.
‘You! Pah! Nonsense! How can you drink against a Giant?’
‘There is no-one else. Now, we shall have some rules. We shall drink out of fist-sized containers. My fist is this size, so a quarter tankard size will suit me. Your friend, his fists are so big that four tankards would be required. Does that fit well with you, Ward of the Wager?’
Raarvan shook his head to clear the confusion caused by her words. ‘Whatever you say; it will make little difference.’
So the first round was served.
Alice sipped at her small cup as Aarvarn tossed his set of tankards down his throat.
When the next round was served, Alice had barely finished her first.
The fourth round was being served when she yawned. ‘This could go on all through the night,’ she said, ’if we stick with this puny weak ale, we’ll be fortunate to finish before the week ends. Why don’t we try something a little stronger? To speed things up.’
Aarvarn nodded, his attention on his four new tankards.
‘What would you change the drink to?’ asked Raarvan.
‘We have a spirit behind the bar. Rumm it is called, from Fairisle, and it is 20 times as strong as this weak ale.’
‘Rumm it is then. Four new tankards of Rumm, and a cup,’ yelled Raarvan; his voice waking those who’d lacked the stamina to continue to observe the proceedings.
As she received her first cup of Rumm, Alice held up one hand to Aarvarn. ‘Now be careful,’ she said, ’this Rumm is very strong, and it should be sipped slowly.’
‘Sipped?’ asked Aarvarn, as if he had no knowledge of the meaning of the word. ‘Giants don’t sip.’
He threw the contents of the first tankard down his throat; then the second, third and fourth.
As he dropped the last to the floor, a flush ran to his cheeks and his eyes misted over.
Alice sipped the last of her Rumm as the next round was being served.
‘Don’t forget to sip, this time,’ she said softly, ’you don’t want to underestimate the strength of this brew.’
‘You think this is strong? We wean children off mother’s milk with a stronger drink.’
He knocked back one and two, as before. There was a slight pause before number three went the same way. Number four sat there, cupped in the palm of his hand for an age before he brought it to his lips. With a grunt, he tossed it back.
He looked at the Lady before him; trying to meet her eyes, but he was no longer sure which Lady he should be looking at.
‘If you drink the next round that way, you’ll lose,’ she said, her eyes and words equally clear.
‘I’ll drink…drink a Giant’s…way,’ he replied as the next round was served.
He tossed the first drink back, and glared at her. He knocked over the second with his clumsy unfeeling fingers. He couldn’t seem to work out how to pick up the third drink, and that one was sent spinning across the room. He managed to get a grip on the remaining drink, but he unbalanced himself in the process and rolled over onto it.
There was a loud burping sound, and a couple of grunts, and then began a long series of heroically loud snores.
Alice sipped the last of her drink as she watched his demise. Then she turned to Raarvan with the sweetest of smiles.
‘I believe that I am the victor.’
‘What would you have us do?’
‘I would have you rid the valley of an infestation we have.’
‘An infestation?’
‘Yes; an infestation of Elvenfolk.’
Chapter 45 Fleur
‘I’ve asked him and he wanted more coin, but I gave him one of my looks, I did, and he said he‘d tell me.’
‘And?’
‘Well, sis. I don’t know. He said there weren’t no words for what you want. He said the book is full of words to tell you what to do with the Magic, and how to make it do what you want, but nothing about how to get the Magic. If you ain’t got it, you ain’t got it. It’s as simple as that, it is.’
Fleur sighed and tried to get more comfortable in her chair. It was no more than she expected.
‘But, I don’t see how your hands are not burnt. I smelled them burning and I saw the flesh peeling away from your fingers.’ He lifted her hands in his. ‘But there ain’t nothing wrong with them. So, you must have had the Magic in you.’
Fleur pulled her hands back and dropped them onto her belly. There had been no more words inside her head since she’d closed the lid on the chest and pushed it back into its hiding place. Perhaps it had all been a dream. It surely could not have been her baby speaking to her. Could it?
‘Anyway, I gave him a bit of a smack, to be sure he weren’t telling me lies. It weren’t hard or nothing. You could have hit him harder, but he was sobbing like a babe, he was, and I don’t reckon he’s got the strength to lie.’
‘He’s probably right. I don’t feel nothing, and I reckon I would. Meldon seemed to glow with it when it was on him, and I’m not getting any of that.’
‘So, what now? We make a run for it? Take what we can and show them our heels?’
Fleur shook her head and frowned. ‘Not yet. We might have to, some time. But not just yet. Not when we can still succeed. Now, you go and get the lads, as many as you can, and get them ready. If we can’t think of some way to control those fool nobles and courtiers, then we’ll have the lads come along and take everything they have, and strip the palace as well. There’ll be no running off with what we can carry in our purses. We’ll take wagon loads when we go, and mayhap we’ll stroll down the street and take a drink if we please, for there’ll be no-one left alive to come after us.’