The Aebeling (31 page)

There were four men supervising the handful of theow; a large one sitting on a horse was now speaking out aloud.

‘Ladies and Gentlemen – tomorrow at noon – these young theow are for sale. This is a rare opportunity for you to purchase hard working Gatinan men and very attractive and amenable Gatinan girls as well. All paperwork is in order. A rare opportunity – tomorrow at noon in the square and...’

Conn interrupted him. ‘Excuse me; are you selling the Twacuman lady as well?’

Both the girl and the slaver looked in surprise at Conn as he interrupted. The slaver was shocked when he saw the tall blond warrior standing in front of him. ‘Who the heck are you?’

‘I am Conn il Taransay.’

‘Well, Feorrancund, go and ask your question elsewhere – you are rudely interrupting a discussion here. I’m a merchant advertising my goods.’

‘I am asking if you are selling the Twacuman.’

‘No I am not. None here could afford her.’

‘Is she theow?’

‘Yes she is.’

‘Very well, I’ll buy her for five thousand Ryals. That is a reasonable price for a theow.’

The slaver laughed. ‘You are a fool if you think I will accept that amount of money. She is worth at least twenty thousand Ryals at...’

He stopped talking when he suddenly saw the edge of a Katana two inches from his throat.

‘So how many Ryals would you pay for your life, then?’ Conn’s tone was serious and malicious. The slaver kicked his horse to push past Conn, but Conn had prepared for that and with a quick step and a reef on the sleeve of the trader, the merchant found himself flat on his back on the cobble stones, winded. He struggled to get to his feet. His men had rushed to his aid but stopped when swords appeared to prevent them from getting close. The Town Guards had also observed the goings on and were rushing over until they saw who it was and decided that Conn knew what he was doing.

Con walked over to the horse that carried the Twacuman woman. She looked about fifty, beautiful and proud. Conn did not know her and she certainly didn’t know him.

‘You can get down if you wish.’

She looked at him defiantly.

He spoke to her next in the Twacuman language;
‘Do not be afraid – I am a friend of the Twacuman.’
He eyes filled with astonishment and then softened.

‘Why didn’t you say so?’
She responded quietly, also in Twacuman. She dismounted and followed Conn as he went over to the slaver.

‘So Slaver, tell me where and when this lady become a theow? Show me the papers that give you the right to sell her.’ Conn knew the extensive rules about Theowdom.

The slaver had gotten to his feet and was brushing the dirt from his clothes. ‘I don’t have to answer your questions – you miserable Feorrancund bucket of scum – I am an authorized merchant from Gatina.’

‘Well, I’m not Lykian, I’m from Taransay, and I asked you a questions. I expect an answer.’

‘Never heard of Taransay – where is that?’

‘Over the hills and far, far, far away. Where are your papers?’

‘Here.’ The Slaver turned as if to fetch papers from his pocket but then spun to attack Conn. Conn swayed, and using his weight and force, grabbed the arm of the slaver and using his weight and momentum, flipped him over to his back on the ground, for a second time. Winded again, the slaver looked up at the Katana directly above his nose.

‘I give you points for trying. Do you wish to answer my question, or would you like to go a few more rounds – I’m happy to put my sword away.’

Somehow the Slaver thought that this was not a good idea, so declined. ‘I don’t have any papers.’ he muttered.

‘Well that is surprising…’ Conn looked at the Twacuman lady. ‘Can you please tell the crowd where you are from and how it is that you came to be here?’

‘My name is Caronwyn il Halani. Over ten years ago, I was with my kin in a hunting party on the edge of the great forest in Halani – near the border with Rakia. A number of Rakians ambushed us; they killed our men and took the women. We were sold like animals in a market in Rakia. I don’t know what happened to my kin. Last year I was traded to a merchant in Rakiak in exchange for a gambling debt. He sold me to this man.’

Conn was momentarily stunned into silence – no one in Halani had mentioned a missing Caronwyn. Finally, Conn readdressed the slaver who had his eyes on the top of the blade. ‘Given the circumstance, I’ve reduced my offer to three thousand Ryals. Accepting it is your least life threatening option.’

Given his choices, the slaver quickly agreed, and Conn stood, retrieved the coins from his purse and dropped the five gold Ryals on the ground and walked away. His men followed. With distance, the slaver struggled to his feet, and yelled out. ‘I will have you before the Magister, you thieving scum.’

Conn stopped and turned to look at the slaver, who immediately took a step backwards. ‘Good luck with that.’

As Conn headed back to the Inn, the crowd cheered and clapped. Later, Octa could hardly contain his laughter. Caronwyn had been taken away by Allowena and was in a room having a hot bath. Allowena was now buying her a change of clothes from a cousin’s shop.

‘Another fine mess you’ve got yourself into!’

‘Well, he had it coming. Surely it is against the law to sell a Twacuman theow?’

‘I’ve never heard of a Twacuman becoming a Theow – I guess she could have allowed herself to become theow, but that doesn’t happen. This supports your argument that the Ancuman have been in Rakia for a long time – over ten years. They would be the only ones to have the money to pay for a Twacuman theow.’

‘What recourse does he have?’

‘If he pays a fee he can have the magister summon you to account. You have to pay another fee to agree to the hearing. If you don’t, the judge finds in his favor. It’s expensive which is why it doesn’t happen so much. But he is Gatinan…’

Octa was right. A summons was hand delivered by one of the town guard and Conn accepted it and sent back his deposit – a gold Ryal. He then went to the keep library and sought out the Librarian.

‘Thane, what do you need?’ Everything in the library had been on scrolls; cumbersome and inconvenient, and thanks to Conn, everything was actively being copied to Codices. Conn was popular in the library as it was now a beehive of activity.

‘Have your notaries finished the Book of Laws yet?’ Conn asked the Librarian.’ The library had been compiling a single book that contained every proclamation and edict every made by a Healdend, anywhere. It had been the largest task undertaken by the library, and whilst not complete, it covered the laws of Lyciak.

‘I believe they have. Would you like to see it?’

‘Please.’

At the appointed hour the next morning, Conn turned up at the keep with Octa, his men, the Librarian, and Caronwyn. His accuser, the merchant Jory, as he discovered to be his name, was waiting, looking self-satisfied in that he had been able to get this sitting as soon as he had, without realizing that Conn had facilitated the speed of the hearing. Octa directed Conn where to sit and retired to the visitor’s gallery.

The official in charge of the hearing was the Sheriff – Oswald – and he brought the session to order and asked the accuser to state his charge, and his case. The person who sat in judgment was the aging Magister of Lyciak, Herewald; a man that Conn had spent some time with discussing the history of the laws of Meshech.

Jory stood and answered ‘Coercion’, then explained how Conn had used force to make him sell his property, the Twacuman theow, for much less than she was worth. It was not his concern that the theow might be illegal; he had purchased her in good faith, and that he demanded that not only should Conn return her to him, he should also be made to pay as fine of twenty thousand Ryals for the humiliating he had suffered.

At the end of this long address, Conn stood and addressed the court.

‘Magister, in answer to the charge levelled against me, I wish to counter accuse the merchant of Larceny and Deprivation of Liberty.’

Jory stood in opposition. ‘What is the meaning of this – I have never heard of such things.’

The Magister acknowledged his point. ‘Thane, those charges are new to me as well. I will note your accusation for now, but I will need more information.’

‘Magister, they should be withdrawn.’ Jory didn’t like the way things were going. ‘The Thane is to be brought to account for his actions alone.’

‘Merchant, you will have your chance later. Thane, please proceed.’

Conn continued. ‘Very well; first to his case of Coercion. The merchant claims that I forced him to sell the girl to me, and he is quite right that forcing someone to sell you something – even at a fair price is against the Law. But my question to you is how can I force him to sell me something or someone that he doesn’t have a right to have? According to the ancient laws that apply to theow, there are only two types; those taken as prisoners of war, or those that sell themselves or their children as theow. These are laws that have been in place since the time of the last Casere. If a theow is not of one of those two types, then the person who tries to sell such a person has broken the law and has to pay a Wergild. That is also the law.’

Behind Conn, Jory started to become more vocal, increasingly unhappy.

‘So where is this Law that you are speaking of?’ he called out.

Conn looked to the Librarian and Aldfrida came forward with the “Book of Laws”.

‘Magister, I understand that you have received one of these Codices?’ Conn had copies done for all the Magisters.

‘Indeed I have – a magnificent effort. So which page are we reading from?’ He chuckled to himself. ‘I don’t believe I said that – I didn’t even know what a page was a year ago!’

‘Page 345 – Librarian, would you please read from the book.’

Aldfrida cleared his throat. ‘Magister, this is an account of the proclamations of Oswah, the first Healdend of Moetia, in the year of 580.’

Rory called out again; ‘that’s almost three hundred years ago – that doesn’t apply.’

The Magister directed Jory to keep his peace until it was his turn to speak, but added ‘Unless there is a ruling of a later date that invalidates the previous Law, then it is current. The laws that the first Healdend proclaimed were the laws of the last Casere – and they were proclaimed by all the Healdend. Please continue, Aldfrida.’

‘It reads, ‘By the grace of Badb, I proclaim that no Twacuman shall be made a theow except by personal sacrifice, by penalty of fine equivalent to the blood value of an Eaorl’.’

Conn turned to Caronwyn. ‘Caronwyn il Halani; how was it that you came to be made theow – was it by personal sacrifice?’

She stood and addressed the crown. She had had a bath and was dressed in some of Conn’s finest clothes. She was beautiful, graceful and regal. ‘No it was not; by my oath, I was taken captive by Rakian slavers who killed half my company and sold me as theow in Rakia.’

Conn addressed the court. ‘Is the word of a lady of Halani considered truthful in the Domhus?’

‘It is indeed. Never in history has it been recorded that a Twacuman has been untruthful.’

Conn continued. ‘Magister, the evidence thus concludes that that Caronwyn il Halani was never a theow – and by having her as a prisoner, the merchant has tried to profit from stolen goods – which is the crime of Larceny, and has kept her as an illegal prisoner – the crime of False Imprisonment. I would ask that he be brought to account for those crimes.’ Conn sat down; the eyes were all on Jory now.

He stood, ‘Magister, I withdraw my accusations as it seems that I have been misinformed by my client in Gatina…’

Conn interrupted Rory; ‘Does he accuse and name his client so as to relieve himself of guilt? If he wishes to relieve himself of guilt, he must do so.’

Rory was now in more trouble – he could hardly name a Gatinan Eaorl. That would ruin him as a trader.

‘No, I do not.’

‘Then, in my understanding of the Law, you are unable to withdraw the accusation.’

The Magister addressed the Merchant. ‘The Thane has made some very good points, Merchant. Can you prove that you did not know that the Twacuman was not an illegal theow? Do you have any documents that show how you purchased her?’

After twenty minutes of protestation, Jory had to admit that he had no documentation, and he knew or had reasonable grounds to suspect that the Twacuman was an illegal theow. Rory was starting to realize that he was in disastrous trouble, and it could be seen on his face.

The Magister consulted with some of his staff, and then made his judgment. ‘As to the question of the charge of Cohesion, I have determined that the Thane il Haran is not guilty but virtue that our lady of Halani was not a legal object for sale. In contrast I have decided that the Merchant Rory is guilty of both charges; Larceny and False Imprisonment, as he knowingly kept imprisoned a person that he knew was not a legal theow, and had expected to make a profit on the sales of such a tainted object. I order that he pay the wergild equivalent to that of the murder of a Thane – as is written in our ancient texts – for each crime. I give the merchant Jory one moon to pay three hundred thousand Ryals, or have his goods and family confiscated and sold. In the event that he is unable to provide his goods and family as payment, the penalty is … death.’

The Magister was about to dismiss the court when Conn interrupted.

‘If you will, Magister, I agree to pay the fine of the Merchant on his behalf.’

The Magister looked in surprise at both him and the Merchant. Jory was also stunned. The Magister asked Jory if he had any problem with the Thane paying his fine.

A very contrite and despondent Jory shook his head. ‘No, Magister, I have no complaint.’

‘Very well, it is so ordered.’ The court was dismissed.

Conn addressed Jory. ‘Get your men and the theow you have left and come over to the “Boar’s Head” Inn – we need to work out how you are going to pay me back the money you owe me.’

Jory stood stunned, while Conn left to return to the Inn.

Since his arrival in Halani, Conn’s economic progress had been stunning. The excellent summers and mild winters combined with new technologies to create wheat harvests so large that the markets in Lykiak were currently over supplied and prices declining. Luckily Conn had the resources to export large quantities to Silekia, Trokia or Moetia. Silekia needed everything that they could send, and Trokia and Moetia were still profitable destination. Eggar, son of Abrekan, now controlled over ten schooners and Junks travelling the coastline transporting goods.