The Broken World Book One - Children of Another God (32 page)

The silver
flashes seemed to have a great deal of difficulty freeing his
ankle, and slime engulfed the offending limb. The silver flashes
gripped him with many hands and pulled mightily. Some slipped and
drifted past, returning to renew their hold. The pain in his ankle
made him jerk and kick. The silver flashes hung on, and the water
cushioned his mindless reactions to a harmless flopping. With a
burning pain, his foot slid free, and he shot from his attackers'
grip to drift away on the current. The silver flashes caught up and
took hold of him again, pulling him through the water.

Now that the
pain and tugging had ceased, the water's soothing flow lulled him
back into his deep fog. He closed his eyes to block out the blurred
world that the collar denied him.

Talsy sat on
the beach and tossed coral pebbles into the sea. The midday sun
warmed her back and the sea wind chilled her front. She lay back
and gazed at the clouds that drifted past, changing shape as they
did. The wind blew over her and the sun warmed her more. Gulls
wheeled and mewed high above, riding the wind on narrow wings. She
envied their freedom, longing to fly like they did. The breakers'
pounding died away to a soft swishing as the tide ebbed, revealing
white sand sprinkled with seaweed and shells.

Sitting up, she
scanned the beach with idle eyes, and a movement caught her
attention. A man rose from the sea and moved towards the beach,
pulling something. She wondered who he was. The object he dragged
looked like another man, his head swathed in black hair and
seaweed. Curious, she rose to her feet. The sun glinted on silver
skin, and her heart leapt. Talsy ran along the beach, the soft sand
dragging at her feet.

The sea man
dragged his burden up the beach and dumped it on the sand. The
matted black shape lay still as the sea man looked up and down the
beach before he spotted her floundering towards him. Water dripped
from his ridge nose and pointed chin. When she reached him, he
stepped aside, and she stumbled past to fall to her knees beside
his prize.

She cried,
"Chanter!"

Talsy
hesitated, her hands hovering over the Mujar. A film of green slime
covered him, and patches of barnacles crusted his hands and knees,
as well as the tattered remnants of his vest and leggings. The
sea's action had worn away his clothes until little remained but a
few strings. With eager, trembling hands, she parted his matted
hair and pushed it back from his face.

Chapter Thirteen

Chanter lay
quite still, his eyes closed, seaweed-tangled hair was wrapped
around his neck. Barnacles clung to his forehead and crusted his
nostrils. She parted his hair to reveal the gleam of gold around
his neck and turned the collar until she found the simple clasp
that held it together. With trembling hands, she unclipped it and
pulled it off.

Chanter's eyes
opened, and he drew in a great gasp. His first reaction was
violently defensive, as it had been in her father's cabin. He sat
up and pushed her away. She caught herself on her hands and waited
while he stared at her, recognition dawning in his eyes. Talsy
blinked away her tears, her heart bursting with unspeakable
joy.

"Chanter..."

Her throat
closed and her eyes overflowed. His slight smile was all she needed
to release her from the constraints of shyness and uncertainty.
Talsy threw her arms around him, a huge lump blocking her throat.
His cold skin warmed and his hands rose to stroke her hair.
Clasping her shoulders, he held her away and studied her.

"Talsy." He
smiled again. "My little clan."

She gulped as
he wiped away a tear, rubbing it between his fingers.

"You weep for
me?"

She wailed, "I
thought I'd never find you!"

Chanter cocked
his head just like the sea man, his eyes intent. "And this brought
you sorrow?"

Talsy nodded,
wiped her nose and averted her eyes. Her massive guilt tempered her
joy at seeing him again, and fresh tears coursed down her cheeks.
He pulled her into his arms and held her, his action speaking
volumes of acceptance and forgiveness that washed away her shame.
She knew that no rebuke or accusation would ever pass his lips, and
the balm of his unsullied compassion filled her with a warm tide of
solace.

Chanter
released her and looked around at a world newly brought into focus.
He shied away from the golden collar beside him, and Talsy picked
it up and hurled it into the sea with a vicious flick of her wrist.
Sensing another presence, he turned to face a sherlon. Talsy wiped
her eyes and glanced shyly at the silver-skinned being. The sea man
bowed and signalled in the silent, complicated speech of his
kind.

The Lowman
female, he said, had informed him of a Mujar in the sea, and he had
called his people to aid in finding and freeing Chanter. He
apologised that they had not noticed him before, but the foul metal
had disguised his presence.

Chanter signed
a reply with graceful gestures that were second nature to a Mujar.
He communicated his understanding of the sherlons' inability and
informed him of the great joy his release had brought.

The sherlon
made a series of slow, ritual gestures of acceptance and gladness
at Chanter's recovery and offered gratitude for the Lowman female's
aid.

Chanter
signalled acceptance and farewell, and the sherlon mirrored the
gesture before striding down the beach to dive into the sea.

Chanter gazed
around, revelling in his freedom and the wonder of the sunlit
beach. The scents, sounds and sensations charged him with
happiness, and he longed to leap into the air and frolic amid the
fluffy clouds to celebrate his return to the land of Life. The wind
made him shiver with delight and the warm sand reassured him with
its gritty firmness.

Now was not the
time to indulge in wild celebrations, however. He owed his freedom
to the young Lowman girl who clung to his hand, sniffing and
brushing tears from her cheeks. Cupping her chin, he lifted her
face and gazed into her eyes. A tremulous smile curved her lips as
he studied her with a puzzled frown.

He bowed his
head. "Gratitude."

"Oh, Chanter!"
She flung her arms around his neck and hugged him again. "How could
I leave you trapped at the bottom of the sea? Thank god the sea man
found you and brought you to shore."

"Yet only you
could take off the collar," he said. "And you told the sherlon to
search for me. It is to you that the debt is owed, and I must pay
it."

"Just hold me,"
she said.

Chanter
obliged, marvelling at her loyalty, so unlike any Lowman he had
known before. When it seemed that she would never release him, he
pried her away, smiling at her forlorn look. She sighed and rubbed
her eyes while he inspected the barnacles that crusted him and the
matted hair that was tangled around his neck. Plucking the knife
from her belt, he hacked it off as short as he could. She watched
him with shining eyes, making him a little self-conscious. He
wondered how long she had lived alone on this shore next to
Rashkar's ruins.

"How long have
you been here?" he asked

"Too long."

"Months?"

She nodded.
"Five or six, I think."

Chanter looked
at the matted hair he had just cut off and realised that he could
have worked that out for himself. The coral and seaweed that grew
on his skin and clothes gave off a nasty smell as it died. He
picked barnacles off his elbows and threw them into the sea, where
they might find new homes. The drying salt and slime itched, and he
rose to walk down to the sea, where he used wet sand to scrub his
skin in the foaming waves. Picking off the barnacles was no easy
task. They sprouted in his ears and nose - a painful problem.

Talsy helped,
aglow with happiness, and smiled whenever he glanced at her,
absorbed in her task. When the barnacles and coral had been
removed, he washed his hair with sand. He cut off the scraps and
strings that dangled from his clothes, ending up with little more
than a pair of shorts. Many marine creatures had taken up residence
in his clothes, and he was forced to strip to evict them. Talsy
turned away, making him smile at her strange Lowman prudery.

Looking a lot
less like part of the sea bed, Chanter followed Talsy along the
beach to her cave, where she cooked all her supplies in a stew. She
could hardly bear to take her eyes off him. The miracle of his
return was too amazing for her reeling mind to accept.

"I missed you,"
she said.

"I
noticed."

She stirred the
stew, smiling at his gentle mockery. "Who was the silver sea
man?"

"A sherlon. A
creature of this world."

She pondered
that. "Why did he save me when I swam out after him and the current
swept me away?"

"Like all the
creatures of this world, they revere life, although it is odd that
he saved a Lowman. Perhaps he felt sorry for you."

"Probably. Then
he found you."

"Yes." Chanter
took hold of her hands. "If not for you, I would have stayed there
until my life ended. You saved me." He met her eyes, his gaze
intense. "Gratitude."

Talsy grinned.
"A very big one, I suppose?"

"The biggest
any Mujar has ever owed."

"Bigger than
releasing you in my father's house?"

He nodded. "The
fact that you and your father were the perpetrators reduced the
gratitude immensely, but this time you saved me from others, so
it's unsullied."

She leant
forward and kissed his cheek. "You're welcome."

He looked
puzzled. "Make a Wish."

"No."

"Why not?"

"I was to blame
for what happened, and I want nothing except for you to be
free."

"You rescued me
only for my sake?" he asked.

"Yes."

"How would you
feel if I chose to break clan bond now and leave?"

She looked
away. "Sad."

"Not angry, or
hateful?"

"No. I'd still
be glad that you're free, and I freed you. I'd only be sad that you
left me."

Chanter stared
at the sea, squinting in the glare. "I offer you the Wish again.
Anything you want. Anything at all."

"I want
nothing."

"Why were you
weeping when you took off the collar?"

She smiled.
"For joy."

"That I had
been returned to you."

"That you were
free."

Chanter
frowned, and she dished up the stew to distract him. He seemed to
be deep in thought, and Talsy feared that he contemplated leaving.
When she collected the empty bowls, he looked up at her again.

"You must
accept the Wish. Name it now, for I'll not offer it again. I'll
grant you anything, even to stay with you always, which I know you
want."

She looked
away, ashamed of her selfish hope. "Yes, I want that, but I won't
ask you for it, no matter how many times you offer me a Wish. Your
happiness is more important to me than my own. Don't you understand
that?"

Chanter bowed
his head, then raised it. "Look at me."

Talsy met his
intense eyes, and he held her gaze. He jumped up, startling her,
and she thought he was going to leave her lost and forlorn on this
barren shore. Then he held out his hand and pulled her to her feet.
He led her down the beach until the waves lapped at her toes,
stopped and turned to her, releasing her hand. The urge to beg him
to stay almost overwhelmed her, but the words stuck in her throat.
She could not steal his freedom with a selfish wish. She loved him
too much to trap him. The wind whipped his hair as he raised his
head, spread his hands and addressed the sky in sonorous tones.

"Where one is
worthy, so shall there be others. So say the laws of retribution
you inflicted upon this world. You commanded, 'find me the one, and
they shall be saved'. Antanar, God of Life, hear me. I, who am your
eyes and ears, say you thus. I am your messenger of salvation, to
whom you gave the power to choose or not to choose."

The gravity of
his demeanour confused Talsy, and she glanced around, wondering who
he was talking to. His words held the sing-song quality of a
ritual.

Chanter lowered
his eyes to her face. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you
save me, when you want nothing in return?"

She looked away
in embarrassment, not wanting to admit her feelings, which she had
striven to hide for so long. Several flippant replies occurred to
her, but she could not lie to him. "Because... I love you."

"Even though I
can never be what you want? Even though I may break our bond and
leave you? Would you still love me if I did?"

"Yes."

"Then
understand this; Mujar don't love as Truemen do. I will never love
you like that."

Her heart
ached, but his hurtful words did not change her feelings. "It
doesn't matter."

Chanter
inclined his head, his mien expressionless. The air swelled, and
the cold stillness of Dolana gripped her in its icy embrace. It
vanished, and the screaming hellish visions of Crayash followed,
vivid and frightening, then the soft mist and splashing of Shissar
engulfed her, followed by the howling wind and beating wings of
Ashmar.

His eyes rested
on her. "Are you afraid?"

"No."

Chanter reached
up and plucked what looked like a rainbow from the sky. The
multi-coloured light swirled in his palm, and the misty radiance of
water, a hard glitter of earth, and the soft sighing of wind joined
it. She stared at the shimmering orb in wonder, then raised her
eyes to his. He lifted it above his shoulder, holding her gaze as
he clasped the back of her neck with his other hand.

He said, "I
have found one who is worthy. Hear me, Antanar! I have chosen!"