Jadde - The Fragile Sanctuary (7 page)

‘Indeed, we agree with your assessment of
Malkrin.’ The man looked even more intense, his eyes held a request. ‘We ask
that you come with me now. We believe your husband will seek you out when the
extent of the dark threat we all face is revealed to him. We want him to come
to us first, not Cyprusnia. You can help us persuade him.’

‘I don’t know . . . How can I trust you? I
am to be bait to attract my husband. You could be Brenna come to deceive me, or
a minion of Priest Rantiss.’

‘I will reveal my sincerity to you by
opening my mind and showing you the truth of my words.’

Cabryce just looked at his open face and
sincere eyes and somehow . . . saw the truth in everything he had told her. She
thought of his request to accompany him and was convinced. It would be easier
for Malkrin to contact her if she was beyond the Darent Pass.

‘Yes, I think I believe you now, and
Malkrin will . . .’

A sharp rap on the door interrupted them,
followed by gruff commands.

The man suddenly rose and hurriedly
concluded, ‘I will return tomorrow, but will leave this token with you to show
our goodwill. It is one of our treasured relics, an actual star worn by Falconfeather
himself.’ The crash of a shoulder on the thick wood door threatened to drown
his voice. ‘Be ready tomorrow night.’

He strode to the curtained window and peeped
out, ‘
Brenna guards: I must leave.’

Cabryce stood, frozen in indecision.

‘Take, keep it safe.’
He handed her the
gold sun. She concealed it in her dress pocket, and then backed away abruptly
as the door burst open sending the locking bar splintering across the room. Two
Brenna warriors burst in with spears extended before them. They paused, peering
into the fire-lit shadows. The stranger’s eyes fixed on her for a moment, and
then he ran for the high rear window obviously intending to dive through. He
bounded over a chair and clambered up grasping the sill but the warriors
grappled him to the floor and held him down.

A third warrior, an officer with his orange
sash insignia over a crimson cloak entered and barged past Cabryce. ‘Search him,’
he spat. A fourth grabbed her wrist from behind – she hadn’t seen him enter.
Stunned, she didn’t resist as the man held her wrists firmly behind her. She
looked on as the warriors dragged the stranger to his feet and held a sword to
his throat.

The officer approached the man in triumph.

‘And who might you be?’ He laughed coldly,’
I expected the outcast but you are a good alternative.’

One warrior held the stranger confidently,
the other continued pointing a sword at the crofters throat. The stranger
looked to Cabryce as if to say, good luck. Later she realised his eyes had also
said goodbye. She watched in horror as the stranger grabbed the sharp sword
blade and thrust it deep into his own throat with a look of determined
resignation. The stunned Brenna warrior tried to prize the blade away but he
seemed to be struggling with an immoveable object. In horror Cabryce saw the stranger’s
eyes lock on the warriors. An invisible command seemed to emanate from them, freezing
the Brenna man; somehow it allowed him to complete his self sacrifice. Blood
spouted from his slashed fingers then from his neck as he forced the blade
through his windpipe. The stranger choked and a hideous gurgle came from the
wound. The warrior finally came to his senses and jerked the weapon away. The
stranger collapsed to the floor.

‘Fool,’ the officer rasped. ‘Get a cloth
woman, staunch the flow,’ he shouted to Cabryce.

She stood aghast, staring at the stranger
as his blood soaked the floor tapestry. Then alarmed at his life draining away
she ripped the woollen shawl from her neck and crouched to press it tightly to
the man’s throat.

It was too late, the stranger shuddered. A
look of contentment formed on his face then he lay still in a spreading pool of
his lifeblood.

Her hands felt weak, useless. She did not
even know his name.

‘Fools,’ the officer repeated, ‘you will be
punished for your incompetence.’

He turned to Cabryce. ‘And you will come
with me. You are not as innocent as you appear.’

CHAPTER EIGHT

N
either Malkrin nor Halle mentioned it but
the thought of another wild cat mauling Seara was incentive enough to take
turns guarding the cave entrance that night. Malkrin gave Seara a token one
hour first watch as she had insisted they treat her as an adult. She appeared wise
beyond her years which pleased Malkrin; she would be a responsible and valuable
companion. He’d feigned sleep and listened for anything unusual that Seara
might miss. After the allotted hour he yawned and stretched as if he’d woken
from a deep sleep and took over the watch.

Eventually the sun rose from behind the eastern
mountains. The pale light filled the cave with early summer warmth as they ate
and drank before the day’s journey. Halle waited until Seara was at the back of
the cave gathering items for their backpacks then whispered, ‘Thank you for
letting Seara do her watch. I felt her pleasure at being given the responsibility.’

‘I slept easy for the hour,’ Malkrin kept
his face transparent as he tested Halle.

‘
You did not sleep Sire
, my
highsense seems to manifest more frequently since leaving Cyprusnia. I sensed
your supervision.’

‘Good, your talent is improving for sure. There
must be a reason why. We should give it some thought and try to use it to our
advantage.’

‘And nurture it,’ Halle concluded.

Seara finished packing her backpack and
examined Malkrin’s injuries. Then announced they had healed into pale scars.

‘You’re fit to fight dragons and wolfs Sire,’
she stated.

Malkrin just hoped neither would be
encountered, but laughed as he scolded her. ‘For Jadde’s sake, do not call me Sire
again. I’m now an ordinary tribesman –
remember
.’

‘Sorry, Dragon Slayer.’

He sighed and shook his head in mock
admonishment, her sunny optimism invigorated him. But somehow the thought led
him back to Cabryce, his heart felt heavy for her.

It had been difficult formulating a plan. After
all they had nowhere to go; the only place all three had ever known was now closed
to them. And ahead lay only deadlands.

Or so the priests had always preached.

Malkrin had tried to win over his
companions with his plan to find the Wolf bandits. Its biggest flaw was that it
relied on the Wolf people’s leniency and ability to recognise that the three refugees
posed no threat. Halle looked uncertain, his ingrained suspicion was fuelled by
the priest’s tales of Wolf men being merely lowly animals that robbed and
killed to survive.

Malkrin sought to persuade him. ‘Look at
how they dress. Thick wolf furs from large healthy animals – not mangy scrawny
creatures battling to survive. The Wolf bandits look too well nourished. And
their breeches, leather boots and well made weapons do not denote outcasts
struggling to survive.’

Halle conceded with a nod, which encouraged
Malkrin to continue.

‘If you conclude they are well fed then you
must suspect we are the ones from an impoverished area. So the further we
travel from Cyprusnia the more abundant game should be.’

‘And fruit, wild corn and nuts in the
autumn fall,’ Seara chipped in.

‘Yes indeed daughter. And well put Sire, I
hope you’re right.’ Halle said as he looked around.

‘The Wolf bandits will be a stepping stone
in our search for Jadde. I’m hoping they will point us in her direction.’ Halle
nodded and his face relaxed, convinced. Malkrin had watched Seara out of the
corner of his eye; she was concentrating, taking in his argument. He was
pleased she had then joined the conversation.

Malkrin distributed Seara’s and Halle’s
packs between the three of them and they set off. The wind gusted enough to
knock him off his footing.  They passed the wildcat carcass with its singed
head and imbedded stick.

‘There’s enough meat on it for another
stew,’ Seara stated, glancing with laughing eyes at Malkrin.

‘No, I’ve had enough of that creature,’ he
responded trying not to smile. She’s bearing up well, he thought. Then he added
to himself; I did an efficient job during the life and death struggle. It
filled him with a hunter’s satisfaction.

It had been four days since Malkrin had
first rested in the cave and he felt stiff and out of condition. He caught the
rhythm of the journey and his body settled into it; soon he no longer noticed
the wind. His injuries now itched more than throbbed. He marvelled at the power
of Seara’s healing.

The view constantly changed as they
followed a clear track winding between fallen boulders and through small
gullies. All the time they were progressing downhill. Then when walking along a
gully the buffeting wind abated. They enjoyed the respite; the sun began to
warm them. Gusts, when they were caught on open ground, diminished to a mere
breeze, it was such a welcome reprieve Malkrin saw it as a good omen – Jadde
was with them. The downhill progress continued. They walked toward the sun as
it approached its zenith, knowing the direction was opposite to Cyprusnia. The
track agreed with Malkrin’s sense of direction and took them further from all
they had known. Then as the sun progressed through the sky they came to a fork
in the track. Malkrin and Halle chose the path that led away from Cyprusnia.
The other track seemed to run in a line parallel to their old home. Scrub trees
started to appear. One was a large wild pear, they sampled the ripening fruit,
deciding they were a few weeks too early and left it. It was a good sign,
backing Malkrin’s earlier argument.

That night as the sun set behind them they
camped in a ravine. The gravel bed was dry, but Malkrin guessed it would flood
in the winter storms. They kept the same watches that night. The next morning he
examined the boulders beside the gravel, they were smooth as if at one time a
permanent torrent had raged through the ravine. They continued the journey,
progressing gradually downhill then along a level plain covered in a blanket of
rye and bluegrass. In the distance a huge herd of large beasts sauntered as
they munched grass. They had small horns on large heads and looked to be
covered in loose fur, but presented no obvious danger and were soon out of sight.

The plain became a slow descent and the
Great Mountain diminished in size then disappeared into a shroud of mist. The
air felt thicker and richer as they progressed.

‘I hardly need to breathe,’ Seara stated in
wonder and skipped ahead full of youthful energy.

‘Careful, stay with us,’ Halle commanded.

She ran quickly back and circled them.

‘I feel as if I could just run forever,’ she
shouted.

‘Let’s try it. If only to get rid of your
daughter’s energy,’ Malkrin suggested.

So they ran as if chasing a herd of deer.
An hourglass later they stopped at a stream to refill their water leathers.

‘This air,’ Halle commented, ‘it’s like
honey beer and lemon water. I can’t get enough of it.’

They all laughed with the unaccustomed
freedom.

Breathing so shallowly was a strange
feeling and it had energised them all. Malkrin guessed that if it came to an
enforced run the rich air would aid them.

During the next break Halle disappeared for
five minutes and returned with a brace of rabbits. The hunting was good here, and
they were ravenous.  They soon had a fire burning. Malkrin rejoiced as he filled
a battered metal plate with wild corn and carrots to add to the skewered rabbit
that Seara had roasted.

Seara had brought the plate in her
backpack. It had been in her mother’s family for generations and was easy to
carry as the metal was so light. Malkrin wondered idly whether it was as old as
the ancients. It was certainly a metal the Edentown blacksmiths would have
puzzled over.

Later that day they came to a hillock in the
flat plain. As they drew closer to the protrusion Seara’s sharp eyes spotted the
criss-crossing of raised lines. Nearer still the lines solidified into broken
walls and enclosures with a ruined building atop the hillock. They approached
cautiously in case unknown creatures or men had built the structures and still
lurked there. On close inspection they were unused and covered in moss and ivy,
in places impenetrable with bracken. They were in an abandoned settlement.
Malkrin could make out a hearth and chimney in one wall and elsewhere square
openings in the vegetation showed where windows had been. They wandered around
the ruins, but there was no sign of timber or usable tools. It made them uneasy.
They discussed whether the building materials had been robbed to build new
dwellings nearby. Then Halle formed the idea that the settlement had been
abandoned lifetimes ago and the structures had mainly rotted back into the
soil.

It was the most likely explanation. They
relaxed and returned to the most intact ruin with the highest walls and hearth.
They cooked a meal and used the shelter of the walls to camp for the night.

Halle muttered, ‘I feel the faint presence
of ghosts. They had a sad passing.’ He commented and fell silent.

Being within a haunted ruin meant they
could be attacked by any manner of ghoul, so Malkrin set an alert guard that
night. But when his turn came to cover himself in his thick fur he slept as if Jadde
shielded him.

The next day the three walked at a steady
pace. They continued along the flat plain where more stunted trees broke
through the long rye grass. Then occasionally they passed more ruins battered
down by lifetimes of decay. Malkrin wondered if at one time they were farms
amongst fields of corn. Wild wheat grew in scattered clumps which seemed to
back his theory, whilst piles of loose stones still formed ragged lines as if
once walls. Soon, trees became taller and thicker, and a diversity of flowers
grew amongst them. Halle scratched the ground with his spear and declared it
quality crop growing land.

 They discussed why people would abandon
land capable of a good yield. It was another mystery to think about. Then came
a natural but not unexpected obstacle; a thick scrub barrier. It forced them to
search through increasingly tangled hawthorn, scrub trees and bracken for a
path to continue along. After a long detour, an animal track led forward into conifer
woodland so dense they couldn’t set an accurate bearing. They wandered a faint
path in the gloom using Malkrin and Halle’s hunter senses as a guide.

The sun was at its highest point when
Malkrin’s highsense alerted him to being watched. Halle then felt the presence
of strangers. They started looked closely into the tree shadows and then behind
them, hoping not to spot any followers.

Malkrin kept a hand on Palerin’s hilt and
Halle shifted his bow and thrust his spear before him. They kept Seara between
them.

They progressed steadily downhill again and
gradually the closely packed trees opened out a little. Malkrin made out the
sound of water roaring rapidly in a narrow channel. They rounded a bend and the
sky suddenly appeared deep blue before them and the steep slope fell away bare
of trees. The track turned abruptly right at a cliff edge. Below was a massive
gorge with high rock cliffs running along both sides. Far down in the gorge a
river rushed in a foaming torrent, its wildness and ferocity was like nothing
they had experienced in the Cyprusnia valleys. Clearly there was no way
forward.

‘We have to go back,’ Halle stated resignedly,
for there was no safe way of climbing down and crossing the seething flood.

‘We’ll walk along the cliff, look for a
path downwards so we can ford the torrent and reach . . . ’

Malkrin highsensed a twig snap from the
woodland behind them. He turned toward the sound.

Through the trees appeared faces tattooed
with blue swirls and lines – he couldn’t see bodies attached. The heads
appeared to be floating unsupported. He felt uncertain about their reality:
were they ghosts of men or the demons the priesthood had always warned of?
Malkrin drew Palerin and noted Halle push Seara behind him and thrust his spear
forwards.

‘Give me your bow Father,’ Seara implored,
but Halle ignored her.

Within the leafy shadows, heads moved
forward, branches parted and sunlight joined bodies to the faces to reveal
human forms. They wore bandannas of ivy threaded through green dyed cloth that appeared
woven into long skirts over green leggings. The combination of cloth and
vegetation blended the people seamlessly with the tree and shrub backdrop. The
effect was one of animated vegetation. Very clever, Malkrin thought and
realised that was why he could only see disembodied faces.

One of the devils jumped from the
undergrowth and danced in a ritual weaving of arms and hands in intricate patterns.
The flowing ivy and leaf clothing swirled about him like river weed in a
whirlpool. He wore a short cloak around his neck bedecked with rattling bones
which created an eerie sound to accompany his twirling rhythm. The only weapon
in evidence on the devil was a short bone knife on a leather belt around his
waist.

‘They don’t feel hostile,’ Halle announced;
his eyes momentarily glazed.