22-23. A Place to Start

‘Thankyou for telling us your story, Flip. You remembered a great deal. Any details are helpful.“ Munkho spoke softly and her eyes were red. “The man that rescued you was the Watcher I worked with. Talis.“

Flip’s eyes widened, as Munkho continued. ”We work in pairs, you see. But on this occasion he went alone. I was gone and he didn’t wait till I got back.”

Saka reached for Munkho’s hand, and she laughed gruffly through her tears. “I’ll be fine, but we cannot let his death be in vain. We have to finish what he started, and get Andron back. We have to.” She brushed her hand across her eyes, and sniffed hard, before turning her attention back to Flip. “Let’s go over what you remember, Flip,“ she urged. “ You said it was cold and…”

“Freezing,” Flip stressed. “The wind bit through my clothes and at the end of my journey in the stretcher, a cap of ice had formed on my hair.”

“Right. So, icy cold… windy….”

“You said there was hard gravel on the road?” Saka interrupted.

“Yes. Actually you’ll never believe this, but I still have a piece of the gravel!” Flip stood up, his voice rising. “ A bothersome bit got stuck between my toes, while I was still bound. I tried to shake it out, but it wouldn’t budge. When your friend, Talis, untied me, I pulled it out. It felt unusual, so I stashed it in the pouch around my neck. I’d completely forgotten about it till now. “

He pulled a thin leather band from beneath his shirt, and fumbled to open the pouch that hung from it. With great care, he tipped the contents into his palm; two miniature clusters of black gravel, their surface dull and porous. Flip held them out to Saka, who shook his head and nodded in Fen’s direction.

“Best we let our tracker have a squiz first,” he grinned.

Fen held out her hand for the stones, then she crossed over to the window and opened one of the shutters. “It can’t be,” she said, after inspecting them from all angles in the natural light, “It can’t be, because it doesn’t make sense, but it looks like this gravel has been cultured from molten lava.”

“Sooo?,” Saka said, inviting her to continue.

“So,” Fen said. “There are only two volcanoes in Pendelethe, and they are south of Aryk. It would have been impossible for the raseen, and even for baboons to have carried them that far in such a short span of time. Add to that the bulsar bringing Flip back here, well….., a bulsar is swift, but….” Fen shrugged, passing the small rocks around the group.

Tien rolled the black lumps about in the cup of her palm. They looked familiar. She had seen something like this before. But where? On this trip? No. She stared at the wall as she racked her brain. Then she remembered. That was it!

“I think carts full of this gravel used to travel along the coast road, past my home in Panzaar,” she blurted out. “If they were coming from the Volcanoes of Luuon, they would have gone that way, even though it’s longer, to avoid the Boulder Waste.”

“OK, excellent!” Munkho cried. “We have a start. Flip, do you have a map of Pendelethe around here?”

“Ahh.., well, hold on, I’ll have a look.”

Flip went into the next room, and soon they heard the flurry of hasty rummaging. Something heavy was being dragged across the floor, with muffled grunts of exertion. Fen, was just pulling out the map she carried in her pack, when Flip returned, holding out a yellowed book triumphantly, his face flushed and his hair standing on end. Fen hastily replaced her map as, with a flourish, Flip opened the book’s front cover and revealed a small, outdated map. Berry turned her amused cackle into a chest-thumping cough, as the others politely gathered round to study the map. Saka trailed his finger along the coast road, heading north from the volcanos through Aryk and up to Pasco. Near the join where the Rime Sea and the border between Pendelethe and the Locked Lands met in at a point, was the Teeter Ranges. He rested his fingertips there thoughtfully, before looking around at the others.

“Cold,” he said, holding up one finger. ”Windy.” He raised a second finger.

Munkho interrupted. “And the path that winds around the mountain to the top is narrow, only wide enough for one. The slight sure-footed baboons would be perfect for making that trek single file, with stretchers. In fact it all makes sense.” She grinned. “The stones. I remember hearing that the winds there are so fierce, someone was once blown right off the track. You see, the edge is hard and slippery. No grip for your feet. Bringing in something that travellers could dig their toes into, solved the problem. Cartloads of gravel!”

“Well,“ Flip broke in. “If that’s where we were being taken, no wonder we froze. Teeter Range is about 15,000 feet high. I think we were being taken to a prison or holding cell there. They mentioned a box. Everything about our capture was dreadful, but the idea of being kept in a box was unimaginable for me. I am terrified of heights and small enclosed spaces.”

Tien’s face burned as her thoughts raced back to the night when she had been too afraid to jump out of the window at Green Moon Inn. Surely the others must be remembering it as well. How humiliating. She kept her gaze on Flip, determined not to glance around to see if any of them, especially Berry, were smirking at her.

“The box?’ Munkho said, with a look of dawning comprehension. She thought for a moment, then nodded and said. “This is the place. Look.” With an apologetic glance at Flip, she closed his map, and held out her hand for Fen’s. She spread it out over the table and pointed out where, in the far right corner of Pasco, the peaks of the Teeter Range were clearly visible. “This is where a childhood of growing up around historians becomes useful,” she grinned. “In the days before the borders of Tira, Aryk and Pasco were drawn up, dangerous prisoners were sent to the box. It was, and probably still is, a small chamber that is attached to the face of the Teeter Range by a pulley. It just hangs off the precipice.”

Saka’s face was alight with hope. “We have to at least go there and see if this is where Andron is,” he said, his knees beginning to jiggle. “It would take too long to walk all that way, but there are mar farms near the foot of Teeter Range. Mars can reach high altitudes, so that may be a quick way of getting there.” He looked around at the others. Fen nodded. “We need to hurry, he will be losing hope.”

Tien had no idea what a mar was. She noticed Fen mouthing a silent message to Saka. He nodded, smoothing his eyebrow and eye with his palm.

“Look Flip,” he began. “It is inevitable that you will be found out and captured if you stay here. Come with us. Your knowledge of plants and medicines will be invaluable on the trip. What do you say?”

Flip blinked in surprise, then a relieved grin creased his face. “Well, I was only an apprentice,” he said modestly, “and a new one at that. But I still have the notes I took from my lessons with Andron. Of course I will come with you. Actually, I can’t tell you how very good that sounds! When do we go?”

“Right away.” Fen’s voice softened as she turned to Berry.

“Berry, Munkho needs a partner now that she is without Talis.” Tien sucked in her breath, and stared at the other women. Without even glancing at Saka, Berry nodded, her expression unreadable. Flip’s grin faltered slightly.

“Right, we’ll be off then, before the crowds go home.” Munkho rose, farewelling them all fondly. Berry went through the motions of doing the same, and then they were gone. It had all happened so quickly, Tien wasn’t even sure how she felt about having Berry gone.

“Hold on,” Flip was saying, with new life in his tone. “ I’ll get my things. I haven’t collected much while I’ve been here, and there is nothing in what I’ll leave behind that’ll give any clues as to who I am.” He disappeared into the other room, while Fen studied the map, familiarizing herself with the route to Teeter Ranges.

After a few moments and much scuffling, Flip returned with his pack. He opened it proudly. “Tools of the trade,” he said. “Though they are nothing so grand as Andron’s bag of tricks.” His face fell. “I wonder if he’ll ever see his pack again.” Flip’s pack resembled a doctor’s bag. Each bottle was labelled carefully and wedged into a special pocket, so it travelled securely. Two sets of leather gloves, a handmade net, a couple of knives, slender mixing spoons, several empty vials, a tattered pad of notes, and a magnifying glass were also somehow fitted in. Saka slapped him approvingly on the back.

They stepped out of the house and Flip locked the door behind him. It was early afternoon, and the streets were busy, so they were able to backtrack through the market unnoticed, stopping only to purchase hunks of roasted maize and dripping hot camel strips from a street vendor. Moments later, the companions were walking out of the same city gates they had entered the morning before. Tien was grateful that she’d worn her leather sandals that morning in Panzaar. Her birthday moccasins would have been full of holes by now. It was wonderful to be walking in daylight. Tien had not seen much of the Pascan sector, not for years, and she’d never been across the Plains of Drune.

There was a slight breeze, and the sight of the flat expanse that stretched between Pasco’s Stra Mountain and the Teeter Range was a pleasing sight. Now that the initial excitement had passed and his story had been told, it appeared that Flip wasn’t one for much conversation. He was overjoyed to be outside and carefree, often pausing to study a particular plant or passing insect, and carefully documenting his findings in his notebook. Then he had to gallop after the others to catch up. Saka was in high spirits. He provided steady entertainment with lively songs and stories, and Tien plucked up the nerve to sing an Aryk cider-making ballad in the quavery voice of an old man. It was far less daunting to mimic someone else, than have her own voice heard, and the applause she received, along with Fen’s approving smile warmed her heart.

What a makeshift family we’re becoming to each other, she thought happily. She felt a sudden twinge of guilt for her happiness. But that is ridiculous, she told herself sternly. I survived the Thelpy tablets for a reason, and I’m doing all I can to rescue my family, my real family, and so are the others. It will be a long hard journey I think, and I can’t feel bad every time I enjoy myself on the way. The afternoon passed pleasantly as they strode through the sweeping space of grasslands, uninterrupted by trees, with the ranges looming abruptly in the distance.

Tien‘s thoughts kept returning to Prusience, the girl from her dream. It had been so real, and even now she could remember every detail. She was already dreading going to sleep tonight, for fear of what she might see and have imprinted into her brain. The scrolls were certainly powerful, but she felt no urge to open them. Rather she wished that she could palm the duty of being their protector onto someone else. Their strength or magic frightened her. If this was magic, she wanted no part of it. The others had seen the Wendigo and the goblins, and Saka at least was still scornful about the existence of magic. Fen hadn’t said much about it either way. But if she or Saka had seen Tien’s dream, they would have no doubt that magic was very real.

Tien desperately wanted to know what had happened to Prusience. In the dream she had spoken of Saka, so she obviously knew him. Tien wished she could just ask Saka outright who Prusience was, but she wasn’t brave enough to, and anyhow she couldn’t. There could be no discussing of the dreams. Lumin had been adamant about that. Tien had an uneasy feeling that this might cause trouble later on, though she couldn’t explain why, even to herself. I’ll ask Saka about his family and friends in conversation, she decided. It’ll look natural that way. But why do I need to know, she wondered? Out of curiosity? I suppose it’s because I want to test whether what Lumin said about the scrolls is true. And I want to know if Prusience is all right. She thought carefully about how she could phrase her questions as she looked out at the flat terrain that surrounded them. The short yellow grass of the savannahs had given way to green pastures, scattered with trees that cast long shadows in the late afternoon sun. Tien was walking alongside Saka, and the next time Fen said something to Flip, she saw her chance. “Saka, does your family live in Tira?” she asked, her tongue feeling large and dry in her mouth. She swallowed hard.

Saka glanced at her. “Most of them do.”

Come on, Saka, don’t go quiet on me, she thought with a silent groan. We usually can’t get you to shut up. Her mind had suddenly gone blank, all the casual questions she’d planned were forgotten. She made herself continue. “Any brothers or sisters?”

“Yup, I have one of each. I’m the middle child. You have two brothers, right? And you’re in the middle too?” She nodded with a smile. This was going well.

“Very good,” she said. “But do you remember my brothers’ names?” Saka made a face, as he thought for a moment. “I like a mental challenge, Tien. Hang on, it’ll come to me. Now it was Graic, the wonderful older brother who taught you all about taro. Am I right?” Tien nodded again. “And your younger brother. Hmmm. Is it… let’s see, is it Tain?” “No, but close enough. His name is Haim.”

“Ah, of course. Haim. "

“What about your brother and sister?” she asked. Do they have good Tiran names like you?”

“Oh boy, my own family’s names,” he laughed. “It’s been a while. Let me think. No, in all seriousness, they are Teek and Pru, Teek being my brother.”

Prusience is his sister, Tien thought, her blood racing. Oh my!

“Do they know where you are?” she asked, glancing at him. “And what you do?”

Saka’s smile vanished. “No, I don’t think they do,” he said, his eyes darkening. “But I’m not exactly sure where they are either. Like I said, it’s been a while.”

Tien did not know what to say next. Don’t push it any further, she told herself. It is time to stop. “Oh,” she said aloud, feeling that it was a inadequate response after making him sad. He gave her a half smile, and they walked steadily in silence, gazing around the whispering grass that stretched on for miles, each lost in their own thoughts. The sun set in a final burst of flaming colour behind them, and a herd of Persian cats came out of their hiding spots to hunt.

“AAAAgggghhh!!!” Saka’s yelp of pure suffering scattered the startled beasts, and they scampered for cover as he stumbled and fell heavily. He was trying to grasp his ankle and rub his entire leg at the same time.

“Pain all up my leg,” he shrieked. “Awful pain!” Fen dropped her pack, and knelt next to Saka, her fingers fumbling with the vial that hung from a leather string at her throat. It popped open and she pressed it to his lips. He was thrashing wildly, and some spilt, but he managed to keep his head still long enough to swallow the rest.

© 2006 by Shelly Taylor