by Andrew Wood
"Indeed they have," Hadan said, gesturing with his hand for the warriors surrounding Shonna to disperse.
Hadan held out an arm, and Shonna duly obliged by taking it. She felt herself being pulled upwards, before seating herself behind Hadan on his Caruc.
"A fine creature," she complimented him.
"Yes, he would have been little more than a calf last we met."
"Will your beast be alright out here in the chill?" he asked her.
"He will be fine, I shall let him go hunt in the forest. I am sure he can find himself enough in there to keep him occupied."
Hadan chuckled, before kicking his heels into the flanks of the beast carrying them both.
Shonna had sat upon a Caruc before, although many years ago. She had never found them comfortable then, and she did even less so now. She knew however to refuse the ride, would be seen as a snub against her would be ally, and so suffering this small discomfort was necessary.
The towns and villages in the valleys of the mountains were strange looking; the roofs of most buildings were barely above ground level. The natives dug their homes into the earth, to better keep out the freezing weather. The smaller buildings around the outer perimeter were homes to the people. The large circular building directly at the centre would be Hadan's, as Tribal Chief, he would naturally have the best and largest property. Shonna thought how strange it always looked to see so many tendrils of smoke drifting upwards. These were of course from the fires in the homes, yet from her position, it looked as if the smoke was coming from the ground.
The journey on the Caruc was thankfully only a short one, and Hadan pulled the large beast to a halt before sliding down. He then proffered his hand up to her, and she gratefully accepted it. He then led the way to the entrance, which went down some steps to a set of thick wooden doors. After passing through those and through another set similar, they walked a few yards down a short corridor. There were a few doors to the left, all of which were closed. In the dimly lit passage, they turned the corner, which opened out to a large central room.
Shonna was immediately hit by the wall of warmth, as Hadan gestured for her to sit near the large burning fire at the centre, knowing this was a place only offered to honoured guests. The large room was also considerably lighter than she thought it would be, mainly due to the vast number of oil burning lamps situated all the way around it. The floor was timbered, although around the fire lay a number of thick animal fur rugs.
There were dozens of people in the room, how many of them were actually related to Hadan, and how many were staff she had no idea. She did notice most appeared to be busying themselves, which probably indicated they were not family members. She was not even sure if Hadan were married, though it was quite likely, a chief without a woman to give him strong children would have been unthinkable. She decided it was probably a question best left for now.
With the room being much warmer, Shonna removed a few of the outer layers of clothing; her thick furs would not be needed sat beside such a lovely warm welcoming fire. Within a few moments, a young lady appeared carrying a wooden tray, upon it were two small cups, both containing a clear liquid. Hadan took the first, and after being gestured to do so, she took the other. The drink she knew was a very strong spirit, and having had the drink before, Shonna thought she was prepared for the strength of it. However, she could not help but gasp and cough a little, as she swallowed the liquid back in one go. Hadan had no such problems and knocked his drink back as if it were no more than water. The burly man could not help but chuckle a little at her reaction.
"I am sure you make this stuff stronger each time I try it," she said feeling the drink warming her insides as it went down.
Hadan gave her a smile, "Needs to be stronger if you ask me," he replied.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Shonna decided to cut to the chase, after all she was not there to check on his wellbeing, she was there to seek an ally for Gorius. Hadan did not seem to mind her changing subject. She watched his face carefully as she spoke, in attempt to judge his reaction, and was pleased that he appeared to show an interest in her proposal. Telling him that the King of Kothia had been forced from his capital, and now hiding just over the mountain peaks in Pitford seem to cause particular curiosity.
Hadan raised his hand, as a gesture for her to stop a while, so he could comprehend what she was saying. Shonna duly silenced, although she kept a careful watch on his face. She had learned in her many years, that there was much to be learned from watching a person's reaction carefully. The man looked deep in thought, and scratched at his beard, "You come to seek alliance with us?" he asked just to confirm his understanding.
Shonna nodded her head just a little to answer in the affirmative. She then unbuckled the pouch that was fastened to her waist, "As a gesture of goodwill Hadan of the Vardac Tribe, from his Royal Highness King Gorius of Bosaria," she said handing the heavy cache over. It was immediately clear the chief was impressed by the weight, as she watched his eyes widen, as he opened up the buckles, and pulled out a few of the gold coins from within. She let him have a moment before explaining what she wanted.
"If you want me to call all the tribes, you know this will not suffice," he said closing up the pouch of gold.
Shonna smiled and nodded her acknowledgement again. "I am to offer you and the other tribal chiefs part of southern Kothia," she said, all the time watching for his reaction. "From the mountains, as far as fifty miles in. That is as much land as all the tribes currently reside upon here in the valleys," she said trying to make it a deal to good to miss. Hadan nodded, and scratched at his beard again. As she expected, the chief played it a little coy, "Naturally I will have to run this by the other leaders," he said.
"Of course," Shonna replied, before adding even more to the deal. "Do not forget that any building upon that land would also be yours to keep. There is a castle at Pitford don't forget."
Hadan grinned, "Ah yes. I have always thought someone of my status should rule from a castle."
She smiled back and nodded, quite sure Hadan would join her and Gorius.
As the Tribal chief would naturally have to discuss the matter with the other leaders, Shonna knew she would likely have to stay for a few days. Fortunately, the hospitality of the Mountain Tribes was generally quite good, despite the food not usually being to her taste. With her meeting over, she was shown across the large central room by a young lad, probably no older than thirteen years of age. She was led through a door, and after turning a few corner's they stopped outside a room.
Shonna waited while the young lad silently went inside and lit the lamps on the walls. As the entire building was technically below ground level, few of the rooms had any natural source of light. As she was waved inside, Shonna thought how chilly it was in there, as she perused her surroundings. Without saying anything, the young lad then quickly started lighting the fire in the hearth, and she knew it would not be long before it was nice and cosy in there.
As she looked around, she was pleasantly surprised as to the room's cleanliness. The bed was covered in thick furs, and there were large rugs covering the wooden boarded floor. There was a small table with a chair tucked away underneath it, and beside the fireplace was a large cushioned chair, which Shonna thought she would be making use of very soon. Sitting upon an Aclat for several hours, although special in a way, was not the most comfortable of experiences. The walls were all painted white, which she supposed was to help lighten the room, and were all bare apart from a single small, rather crude looking painting above the fireplace.
With the fire lit, and burning, the lad lowered his head just a little, before speaking for the first time. "I am to serve you during your stay Mistress Shonna," he spoke in a voice that had not quite yet fully broken. "If you require anything please pull this cord," he added showing her where. He then told her he would bring her food in shortly, but would let her settle first. "Is that to your liking Mistress Shonna?" She smiled and nodded it was fine.
Shonna thought what a pity it was, that in another couple of years this polite young man, would be training to be a warrior. All the men in this particular tribe were taught as such. Some went through the basic training, before working the lands; others continued their training to become soldiers. The ways of the tribal people were set as they had been for countless years. The men carried out the manual work, whilst the women cooked, cleaned and looked after the children.
Once alone, Shonna sat down on the cushioned chair beside the fire, glad the warmth from the flames could already be felt. Whilst she waited for her food, she ran through her mind what she would do next. Already knowing her stay in the mountains would last a few days at least, she needed to occupy her time. The answer from Hadan was almost certainly going to be yes, but she needed to remain for the reply just the same. For her to depart without waiting would be frowned upon, and seen as presumptuous.
One thing she wanted to do, whilst in the area, was to fly over Pitford again, this time however, she wanted to get down much lower. For her to do this, would mean her having to wait until darkness, and allow the lights of the fires below to illuminate the area. For the plans she had arranged with Gorius, she needed to know the layout of the walls and buildings a little better.
Her pondering was interrupted by a knock and the door opening. The same young lad as earlier walked in, gingerly carrying a tray, which he duly placed down upon the table. Shonna did not usually eat large meals, but much preferred to nibble bits and pieces throughout the day. Her hosts however were more conventional in having three meals a day. Shonna knew that under the white linen cloth covering the tray, there would be a substantial feed. She politely thanked the boy, and watched as he left the room, before closing the door behind him.
She stood from her comfortable position by the fire, and walked over to the table. Removing the cloth, she revealed several round bowls. She knew the food of the Mountain people was usually hot and spicy, and from inhaling the aromas, she doubted this was anything different. Although she was not overly keen on food cooked this way, she was feeling very hungry, which was just as well as her hosts would deem it an insult should she leave food.
In one bowl was a kind of dark meat in a sauce, mixed root vegetables in another, as well as some flat bread. Her first course though would be the watery looking soup in a smaller bowl. After sitting down and making herself comfortable, she picked up a spoon, and sampled that first. Despite the fact it looked like murky water with bits floating in it, the soup was quite flavoursome. The meat and vegetables that followed were not quite so nice. The spices were far stronger than she had hoped, and Shonna found it difficult chewing the meat. Despite this, she still managed to finish it all off, and leant back sipping at the cup of water that had been on the tray.
Content with her fill, she moved back over to the cushioned chair beside the fireplace. Suitably fed and sufficiently warm, she felt relaxed. Tonight she thought, she would go out and fly over Pitford, although she would have to ask for a pen and paper, so on her return she could map out what she had seen.
Chapter 7.
Shonna put on as many layers of clothes as she could, before she ventured outside. Now the last of the daylight had gone, the temperatures in the valleys dropped considerably. She had sent a mental command out to her Aclat, and the beast had duly responded by landing just a short distance from her. She had thought it best to move away from the homes of the people, so as not to cause alarm.
After climbing up onto the beast's back, she willed it skywards. Shonna could tell by the slightly swollen gut of her Aclat that the creature had recently had a feed. She just hoped that it had been a wild animal, and not a human that the beast had fed on. The night sky was relatively clear, meaning the moon and stars would give her some additional light. Soaring through the cold night air, was in some way, quite exhilarating, and it always felt to her that they moved faster than they did in the daytime; whether that was true or not, she was never quite sure.
After descending beyond the peaks, and into the land of Kothia, she could immediately see the lights from the fires burning in Pitford in the distance. Swooping down lower, she willed the Aclat to move quicker, the thrill it gave her travelling so quickly always made up for the discomfort that came from sitting upon the beast.
Once over her destination, she slowed considerably, and circled just a hundred feet or so above the rooftops. Below she could even make out the dark figures moving about; probably, she thought, guards on duty. Gorius had tried to explain to her the general layout, but now she could see things for herself, it was easier to understand. Happy she had the knowledge she needed, Shonna headed back toward the mountain peaks.
In Pitford, Ramon once more sat alone in his study, though his latest visions had him very confused. He had once more been focusing on the king, trying to estimate as to when the assassin might strike. However, something had changed. Rather than seeing the body of Oran lying on the floor, along with his guards, this latest look into the future gave a different picture, and this time the king had appeared quite well. Ramon had looked a little further into the future thinking the deed was perhaps going to happen later, but the same result was visible.
Such a change in his visions only usually occurred when something drastic had altered. He was trying to think what he had done that was so great to have transformed the future he had seen for Oran. He then banged his hand against his head, perhaps it was not his doing that had changed the king's immediate future. He shook his head for not thinking of it earlier; perhaps whomever it was planning to kill the king had changed their plans.
If this was the case however, he now had to try to fathom out why. What change could have been so big, as to altar the plan to assassinate the King of Kothia? Did this now mean a different target? Was the perpetrator even in Pitford, or had they ever been? Despite the vision showing a different outcome to the one he had first seen, he thought it prudent to still keep everyone on a high state of alert.
Despite now having more questions than he had answers to, Ramon thought it best to settle for the night. Until he knew any more, there was little he could do. He stood from his chair, and extinguished the lamp that he used on his desk, before leaving his study, and heading the short distance down the corridor to his quarters. Perhaps during his hours of sleep, something further would be shown to him.
After a good night's sleep, Maxim was the first awake, and after braving the chill getting out from his bed, he quickly dressed. He looked over to his two roommates, Mikel was clearly still asleep and Zack was starting to stir. Shadow, lay on the floor at the foot of Mikel's bed, but Maxim noticed the creature did have one eye partially opened, as if just keeping an eye on who was moving about.
Trying not to wake the others, he quietly sorted out the small fireplace in their room. Removing some of the ashes, it had all but burnt out. He placed some smaller pieces of wood upon what remained of last night's fire, and concentrated. This was one of the tasks Darion had asked him to practice, hoping by doing so, it would help him with his problem of control. Rather than manifest the small flame in his hand, he now had to utilise the small remnants of the fire.
Darion had told him to picture what he wanted in his mind, as Maxim took a deep breath and set to work. Doing as he had been taught he willed the meagre flickering flame in the fireplace. He kept his thoughts calm, as the flames grew before his eyes. It was now Darion had told him to release them, and for him to allow the fire to behave more naturally. This may have seemed a rather menial task, but Maxim was certain even in the few days he had been practicing, it had helped.
After the others had finally risen, and the trio had gone for breakfast, it was time to resume their lessons with Darion. The old man was still as brash as ever as they approached the room set aside for their learning.
"Are you three stuck together?" he asked sardonically.
"Ramon asked we remain together Darion, you know that. Nice to see you as always," Mikel replied.
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br /> The old man grumbled to himself as the three entered the room, and went to close the door, before realising Shadow was still following in behind.
"Stupid dog," he uttered under his breath.
Shadow just looked up at him as he nonchalantly walked by, almost purposely going slower.
"Bloody dog's got more about him, than the three of you lot put together," Darion said, as much to himself as to the others.
Darion explained they would all be trying something different today. Mikel would work on his ability to move objects with his mind. Maxim was to be taught one on one with Darion, but they were going to work on other elemental forces.
"What about me?" Zack asked feeling a little left out.
"Oh right yes. You Sissy boy will be taught by Danton. He's coming down in a bit. Until that time you'll have to occupy yourself," he added somewhat abruptly.
Zack just shrugged, that was fine as far as he was concerned; after all, he would much rather be taught by Danton in any case.
"Have you ever been nice to anyone?" Mikel asked not really expecting an answer.
"I like to think I am nice to those that deserve it. Everyone else can go whistle if they don't like the way I speak," Darion snapped.
Mikel left it at that, knowing saying anything else would just probably antagonise the old man further.
Zack sat quietly, whilst he waited for Danton, and in the meantime, he watched the others. Darion drew two lines, one either end of the desk they were sat at. Mikel's task was to move a series of weights from one end to the other. The weights started off small, and grew in size, and Darion had told him, that if he did not push himself to use the power to move objects, it would slowly wane away. With him usually concentrating mainly on the lessons with Shadow and the lady known as Katria, he needed to work his other abilities extra hard, or risk losing them. Ultimately, it was this thought that inspired Mikel to work, pushing himself more than he had ever done.