The Hekamon (48 page)

After carefully inspecting them, it seemed the voight
reached a conclusion.

"I'm of the belief that these are what Coralainians
call the Plautius Gauntlets," he said, lifting his gaze and
facing them, "but I know them by different name. The Haaken Iron
Grippers. If they are, then you're right to think the Coralainian
was looking for them. The whole of Coralai will be looking for them,
too. How is it that they have found their rightful home after all
these years?"

Rightful
home?
Saskia
thought to herself, "Kormak bought them from a merchant on the
Regis Highway. He paid a high price for them, thinking they might be
worth it. I thought them to be valuable, too."

"They are valuable but they are much more than
that," Vondern said, looking at her. "Whoever wears the
Haaken Iron Grippers, commands the Hekamon."

Jervay began by removing the man's boots, belt and
tunic. Their style in keeping with those from the south. Clean shaven
and with short hair, another indication that the man was either from
Coralai or beyond.

It was not unusual for travelers from that way to stay
at the priory. Pilgrims were common, particularity in the summer
months. Visitors would sometimes stop and rest here, due to the favorable
reputation it had gained under Jervay's stewardship.

There was also
the unfortunate fact that travelers along the Regis Highway were more
likely to be preyed upon by thieves. If they were, then they would
typically be sent to him for treatment of their injuries.

"What do you think, the victim of a robbery?"
Leofrey asked.

From what Jervay could tell, the man had no bag with
him, which was unusual for a traveler, so robbery was plausible. Yet
he was still in possession of a small moneybag, and his short blade
was still on his belt. The blade appeared to be of good quality and
valuable.

"That's certainly possible, Leofrey," he
replied.

"You don't think so, though?"

"The items on his person seem intact, so there
could be other motives."

"Maybe he put up a fight," Leofrey suggested.
"Maybe he was ambushed and struck on the head, drew his knife to
protect himself and avoided further harm. The thieves made off with
his bag, satisfied with their loot, and he staggered away."

Jervay considered this, "You might be right."

"His clothes are covered in coal dust,"
Leofrey noted, as he shook down the tunic and placed it with the
man's boots in a basket.

"Yes, he must have gone to Serfacre looking for
assistance and been mistaken for a drunk or vagrant. They would have
moved him on just to get him out of the way. Not everyone is like
Brice, it was fortunate he happened by him."

While Leofrey continued bathing the injured man with a
damp cloth, Jervay began cleaning and applying some ointment to his
head wound. When that was done, he applied the bandages. Fine, clean,
white bandages. He had discovered that cleanliness and hygiene were
vital when treating open wounds, and he took particular care to apply
and fasten the bandages with a series of pins.

No sooner had they finished cleaning the patient, than
the man started to wake and show signs of vitality. Jervay calmed
him, just in case his confusion at the unfamiliar surroundings turned to
aggression. It was not an uncommon reaction, particularly among
victims of violent robberies.

"You're safe," he said soothingly, "you
are at the Demedelei Priory, hurt but beginning your recovery. Can
you tell us your name?"

The man murmured, but said nothing coherent.

"Do you think you can stand for a short time? That
way we can get you to a more comfortable bed."

The man could stand, albeit slowly and uncertainly, but
well enough to be helped to the infirmatory hall.

"The bed next to Croneygee?" Leofrey asked.

"Yes," he replied, and they helped him to the
bed.

"The guards who brought Croneygee in, said he was
found very near the fort, they were incredulous at the audacity of
the attacker," Leofrey said, as he folded down the sheets.
"That's near to Serfacre, I wouldn't be surprised if they were
attacked by the same man."

"I think it's almost certainly the case. When he
and Enyon are awake, they can talk to each other and compare
experiences. Perhaps between them they can give a description of the
man, or men, who robbed them."

Jervay was about finish making the patient comfortable,
when he suddenly grabbed his arm. The man's alertness had returned
and so had some of his strength. Perhaps he had heard what they'd
been saying and could tell them something of importance.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

The man was looking at him, trying to speak, and then
said a word that he couldn't quite catch. Could it have been,
Hekamon?

Jervay knew that there was reputed to be a device deep
within the mountains and beneath the Halvyon Temple.

Rumors spoke of
a row of giant sluice gates, held in place by chains, with a series
of levers that enabled the gates to be opened and closed at the
behest of a gate master. It was said that Coralainians called this
mechanism, The Hekamon.

Whether such a device really existed, Jervay didn't
know. He thought it possible, the flow of the rivers could be
altered, that much seemed true.

What he did know, was that
Coralainians were mistaken if they thought the mechanism itself was
called the Hekamon. Jervay knew that the Hekamon was not the name of
an object, but the name of person. A person of great power.

"I have treated your wounds and applied some
ointment. It will have you back to your old self in no time," he
said, moving to listen more closely, as the man tried to speak again.

"Hayden, my name is Hayden," the voice said,
in an icy whisper.

Jervay stood back and smiled warmly, "See, it's
working already, but you need more rest, "and watched, as the man
lay his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes.

Satisfied the man was asleep, Jervay and Leofrey left
the infirmatory hall, and the two sleeping men to their dreams.

Saskia stood in the doorway of the strong room and
watched as Vondern cast his eye over the valuable artifact. The
voight had fallen silent gathering his thoughts, then he spoke.

"The Coralainians say that a man called Plautius
moved a rock blocking the entrance to the inner sanctum of the
Halvyon Temple. They say the gauntlets gave him the strength to
reveal the previously hidden depths of the mountains."

"And did he?" Tolle asked, the young ferguth
and patrol leader taking a keen interest.

"No," Vondern said emphatically. "The
Temple was neither blocked by a rock nor was its existence unknown.
It had been a place of worship for the people who lived among the
hills, glades and forest for miles around. The Halvyon Temple, along
with the mountains and the Hekamon deep inside, had been considered
sacred by them for eons past. It was only when the people who
respected that sanctity were attacked and defeated that the temple
was taken as a possession. The Coralainians then expanded the Halvyon
Temple into the Templum Complex and claimed it as their own."

Vondern placed the iron grippers back in the leather bag
and studied the embroidered silver talons before continuing.

"The temple was reputed to contain many important
artifacts, all of which were destroyed or melted down for the
precious metals they contained. The exception was the Haaken Iron
Grippers. Plautius was a military man and they were the only object
he thought of as possessing any value." The voight then placed
the leather bag into the chest, before closing the lid and locking
it.

The story of the desecration at Halvyon was one Saskia
had heard before but thought it unusual coming from Vondern. While
the man had no time for Coralainians, he didn't normally question
their command of the mountains or the Hekamon, the precious water
source, therein. After all, It was the Coralainians channeling of the
water to them that maintained the marshes.

It had never occurred to Saskia that Vondern might be
resentful of their dependency on them and their benevolence. Not
least because it was he who had helped cement that relationship, more
so than any other Fennrean. That had been the agreement in the
Aquassent Treaty. The treaty that Vondern had himself negotiated and
signed.

It stated that Coralai's control the temple would be
recognized, and in return the Coralainians would ensure a limitless
supply of water to Fennelbek.

With the grippers now locked away, she, Vondern and the
young ferguths left the armory and moved back into the main room of
the stockade.

Saskia watched as Vondern locked the door behind him.
She could see the man was deep in thought. His long gray hair
obscuring part of his face but leaving his one good eye visible, pale
blue, cold, calculating, even in the warm glow of the lantern he
carried.

Perhaps holding the relic had reminded Vondern of an old and
unresolved injustice. An injustice he had put to one side for reasons
of pragmatism.

"This is an important find," he said. "Where
is Kormak, I should congratulate him on his discovery."

"He went to look for Alyssa," Tolle said.

"Alone?"

"The prisoner was heavy and Kormak wanted us to
bring him here without delay," Tolle continued, "Some
guards were on the bridge and were taking a close interest. Kormak
seemed to think finding Alyssa was his responsibility and his alone,
he was very insistent on it. He said he owed it to her to bring her
back safely."

"It was a noble act by Kormak. He can be brave and
spirited, if a little misguided, he's like his father in that regard.
Why was Alyssa south of the river by herself anyway?"

"She lost her necklace there and is looking for
it."

The mention of Alyssa's necklace seemed to animate the
voight.

"That accursed necklace, it will be the death of
her," Vondern said, raising his voice. "I should have taken
it from her. I should not of allowed her to keep it, for her own sake
if nothing else. It is cursed, of that there is no doubt. If she finds
it, and returns with it, I will destroy it."

"You can't destroy it, it's precious to her. It
reminds her of her mother," Saskia said, raising her voice in
response.

"Some things are best forgotten," the voight
said, almost spitting the words out and the bitter sentiment hung in
the air for some time. He paced around the stockade, before turning
to Tolle, "Better still, you can destroy her necklace. It will
be a statement of your authority, one she can't ignore."

The young ferguth looked at her, unsure of how
to respond. She returned a look that said, stay quiet.
Vondern's temper could subside as quickly as it had risen.

Saskia watched the man, lost in his own thoughts. There
were very few things that seemed to agitate him as much as the mention of
Alyssa and Kormak's mother, Naryna. The necklace that she had
bequeathed to her daughter being one of them.

Saskia knew, and just as importantly, Vondern knew, that
the necklace was charmed. It was a talisman that had
been crafted with a purpose, but neither of them knew what exactly.
All Saskia knew, was the necklace gave whoever wore it a strong
connection to nature. Something she had felt for herself when Alyssa
had allowed her to hold it. Even in that brief moment, Saskia realized it was powerful.

From what she could tell, it seemed women could
connect with it more easily than men, and each person felt its
effects differently.

Her own experience of it, was that it elevated her
intuitiveness, but not without a cost. It told her things she didn't
want to hear. If anything, she became too intuitive, understood
things too well, it had been a relief to let go.

The wearer would
need to be sure they were strong and pure of spirit. It was a power
that was not easily controlled, and if anything, it might control
them. It might be why Vondern thought the necklace to be cursed.

Not only that, the pendant contained something that
Naryna had called the Solsceafa. A tassel of hair, but whose, Naryna
refused to say.

Saskia had thought that when Alyssa told her the
necklace spoke to her, that it might be the Solsceafa that brought
that power to the necklace. If the Ettinshel was powerful, the
Solsceafa might be even more so, or perhaps it was the two together.

She watched the voight pacing. What was he thinking?
Whether to destroy the necklace should he get the chance? She
suspected that his threat to destroy it to be an empty one.

Vondern had lived in the marshes longer than she. He
knew there were forces more powerful at work, it was palpable to
anyone with any connection with the land here. For all Vondern's
faults, and they were numerous, he had a strong feeling for the land
and the spirits. He knew some things were best left well alone.

The
real reason he hadn't destroyed the necklace before was because he
was neither brave, nor foolish, enough to do so. If he was angry with
Alyssa, he would take it out on her in other ways.

Suddenly, Vondern stopped pacing. It seemed that
whatever he had been weighing up in his mind had resolved itself.

"Kormak has brought the Haaken Iron Grippers back
to us and he will bring Alyssa back, too. He will succeed in his
mission. But I can't be sure what the Coralainians are planning,
their next course of action is unclear to me. We need to get as much
information as we can from the prisoner you have secured—"
Vondern said, before pausing and looking quizzically at Tolle.

"The prisoner, he is secured, isn't he?"

"Oh, he's not going anywhere," Tolle said,
standing and looking pleased that the voight's attention had turned
to his own prized acquisition, and the fate that awaited the man in
question. "He's outside, bound and gagged."