Shadows of the Dark Crystal (5 page)

I
t was like a little Gelfling, with arms and legs, fingers and toes, but its head was wide where a Gelfling's was long, and its nose was nothing but a rounded bump. A scraggly, thinning mess of red hair was pulled tight under a woven cap, and it wore a dirt-stained shift and a matching pair of trousers. In its chubby hand it held a gardening scoop.

“Gelfling!” it said again. When she didn't respond, only stared dumbfounded, it cocked its head and asked, “
Razumyety?
Ya speak no Podling?”

Naia let out the breath she'd been holding and let her hand fall away from the dagger at her belt.

“No, I don't. I only speak Gelfling.”

“Speak only Gelfling! Ha!” the brown man said. He bobbed his head up and down and laughed. “What ya doin' out here? Why ya so green? I never seen a green Gelfling! Ya lookin' for Sami? Ya look lost!” He laughed again, and it reminded Naia of her sisters giggling.

“I'm not looking for Sami,” Naia said, but hesitated. “I don't know who she is.”

“She!
Prostoduzan
. Sami! Sami Thicket. The
village
.”

He pushed down the grass so he could see, though Naia was
already tall enough to follow his pointing finger. A large thicket was near to the east. She'd seen it earlier, but paid it no mind. Now that the tuber-man was indicating it, though, she could see a thin curtain of smoke rising from beyond the trees and at least one small watchtower protruding from the leaves, well disguised to the untrained eye.

“Village?”

“Yeah, yeah, the village! Gelfling village!”

Naia's heart leaped. A village! She hadn't even thought of that. Of course there would be other Gelfling communities between Sog and Stone-in-the-Wood. Perhaps they could offer her a comfortable place to spend the night.

But then came the anxiousness. She had never met a non-Drenchen Gelfling before, except for Tavra, and that hadn't gone particularly well. Tavra had been the outsider then, and this time . . . Naia's stomach grumbled and she put her hand on her belly to quiet it. Swallowing her pride, she gave her thanks to the little man and headed toward the line of trees. He waved her off, laughing and muttering “
prostoduzan
” again, but if it were to tease her, he did it with a smile on his round little face.

As Naia neared the thicket, she came across more and more of the little people, all kneeling in the dirt with trowels and other gardening tools, digging up roots and crawlers from the earth. They watched her as she passed, though they didn't really seem to care. Their inspection was casual and more out of curiosity than anything. When she reached the shade of the trees, she could clearly see the village within, nestled in the cluster of tall,
well-maintained foliage and trunks. She heard talking and smelled cooking fires—then she saw them, two Gelfling, in embossed leather jerkins akin to what Naia might wear hunting, descending from the watchtower. They had dark brown skin and black hair kept in braids and threaded with beads. So these must be the Spriton. Many of the guards at the castle were Spriton, and Gurjin had mentioned their clan before—good with a
bola
and staff, tall and athletic. Yet with the way they approached, no weapon in hand, it seemed they might not have much need to defend the thicket on a daily basis. Perhaps this was the type of duty Gurjin would have preferred to the strict work he'd described at the castle—a duty he could well have done in Sog, while she donned the black-and-violet armor of a castle guard.

“Ho there, Gelfling!” one scout called. “Good travels. What brings you to Sami Thicket of the Spriton?”

“I am Naia, of the Drenchen of Sog,” she said.

“Sog?” he asked, and his nose wrinkled a little. He tried to wipe the expression from his face before Naia caught it, but it was too late.

“I'm heading north to Ha'rar. One of the little men pointed me here . . .” That much came easily, but she wasn't sure where to go next. What had Tavra said, when she'd first arrived at the foot of Great Smerth? “I was hoping I might ask . . . the inconvenience . . . of your village's hospitality.”

Though Naia had thought Tavra's mode of speech to be flowery and unnecessary, whatever power the words held worked with the Spriton scouts. They looked her up and down, and
finding her trustworthy enough, visibly relaxed. One even walked away, waving his hand and leaving the introduction to his partner. The remaining scout gestured and stepped aside.

“Go on, then. The Drenchen have been good border allies to us. See Maudra Mera in the square. But be quick, understand? We're all a bit busy this evening.”

Naia bowed uncertainly before following his directions. A wood-slatted fence bordered either side of a wide dirt path that was worn through the thicket. As she neared the center, the dirt gave way to hard walking stones that echoed with
click
s and
clock
s as she tread on them in her makeshift sandals.

Closer and closer to the village, she could hear voices and music. The fence gave way on either side to spears driven head-down into the earth. Streamers and ribbons wound and rippled in the gentle forest breeze. At the front gate to the village, the streamers became full-out banners and festival flags painted with the image of long-legged, wide-eared Landstriders in all colors. Naia wondered if the plains-galloping, forest-dwelling Landstrider was the totem of the Spriton clan, as the muski was that of the Drenchen.

Sami Thicket was robust, though not nearly as large as the Drenchen clan's home near Great Smerth. It comprised one main dirt-packed road that formed a large square clearing at the center of the village, where a fire pit was dug and smoldered with coal and wood. Surrounding the square were huts and dwelling mounds, some multiple stories, all formed of clay and stone and wood with round windows built into the sides. The rainproof coverings of
shingles reminded Naia of the scales on the ymir-fish she used to catch with Gurjin when they were young.

Spriton Gelfling intermingled with the little people, some chatting, some arguing, some laughing, most working. Once in a while, a shadow flickered overhead as a Gelfling girl flew from one rooftop to another, landing softly before ducking in through a roof hatch. Bustling back and forth across the square, Spriton carried baskets of fruit and nuts, and all around the square, the Spriton erected elaborately decorated banner poles, wound with more ribbons, climbing vines, and huge blossoming flowers. At the opposite end of the square was a large mound of clay brick and heavy logs, far too large to be a single dwelling. Naia wondered if it was the Spriton's gathering place, just like Smerth's great hall back home.

Overwhelmed by the new sights and sounds, Naia stood immobilized, unsure where to begin. The Spriton gave her no mind except the occasional glance, more intent on their preparations. She twice stepped out of the way of a hurrying worker, the first carrying an armful of tinder and the second with a beautifully embroidered cloth, which she flung with grace over one of the several large feasting tables near the center of the square. Naia's stomach groaned again, and she adjusted her cloak and pack, held her chin up, and tried to look respectable as she approached a nearby Gelfling boy seated on a stone. Like the other Spriton, he had skin the color of dark umber and a long thick black braid that nearly reached the ground when he was sitting. He stared intently into his open hands and jumped when Naia cleared her throat.
He closed his hands just before Naia could spy what was in them, and her curiosity overcame her original intention to ask about the Spriton
maudra
, and instead she asked, “What are you doing?”

His startled green eyes brightened like a leaf with the sun shining through it. He was tall but thin, slender where other Spriton his age were growing into their athletic way of life. Where the scouts at the entrance to the thicket had worn and callused hands, this boy's fingers were artful, woven together in his lap. The moment of quiet that nibbled at the end of Naia's question dangled like a blindfish on a line, and the boy suddenly gave a little cough and opened his hands, responding simply, “A nut.”

Lying in his palms were two halves of a split nut. The outer shell was tan, with the inside nearly white. At the center was a red seed, and in the meat between the seed and the shell were thin green lines in concentric waving circles and ovals. The patterns were a perfect mirror, identical on both sides. It was interesting, but only to a point.

“Ah,” she said, trying to be polite. She'd been the one asking, after all. “I'm wondering if you could direct me to your
maudra
.”

The boy cleared his throat and pocketed the nut, ears turning back in embarrassment.

“Oh, of course,” he said. “Maudra Mera is at the hearth.”

He pointed to the cooking fire at the village center, visible below a whisping plume of smoke that twisted lazily into the sky. There, an older Gelfling was seated, surrounded by children as she gave instruction to the two boys who were much closer to the fire, holding forked branches over the smoldering flame.

“Thanks,” Naia said. “Um . . . enjoy your nut.”

She left the boy to his own business, following his direction and her nose. She smelled food, and as she drew closer, she could see that there were roasting cherry-squashes on each of the forked prongs. Her mouth watered at the sweet rich scent of the cooking fruit as she listened to the
maudra
call out orders across the square, directing the Spriton that dashed around like busy scully-bugs.

“You Drenchen always know how to be in the right place at the most inconvenient of times, don't you?” said the
maudra
as Naia approached. She smiled, though a bit coldly, and held out her hand as Naia had seen her mother do. Naia took the
maudra
's hand and focused to keep from dreamfasting by accident. “Welcome to my Sami Thicket. I am Mera of the Spriton. Are you here with your mother? Naia, isn't it? You look just like old Laesid!”

“No, Maudra,” Naia said, startled that Maudra Mera might recognize her as the daughter of the Drenchen clan's
maudra
, much less know her name. “I mean, no, I'm not with my mother—yes, my name is Naia. I was traveling to Ha'rar with my father, but he was injured, so now I bear his journey alone.”

“Injured! That's just like Bellanji. Well, you are a brave girl to continue alone— Lun! Not so close, don't you see it's smoking? They must be
perfect
! If it burns, I'll see you eat it yourself!”

Naia watched Lun pull the fork farther from the fire and yearned for the squash, even if it was singed. She tried Tavra's approach once more, as it had worked so well with the scouts.

“Maudra Mera, I was hoping for the hospitality of—”

“Of course,” Maudra Mera said. “I couldn't very well say no,
though the night couldn't be worse . . . Well, what's there to do about it. Lucky girl, though. The Podlings harvested the cherry-squash for tonight, and if these boys don't burn them to crisps, we'll have more than even the lords can eat.”

“Oh, thank you—” Naia began. Then the blood drained from her face. “The lords?”

Maudra Mera let out a big sigh and waved her hand.

“Yes, my little soggy one, the lords. For the census. Now listen, they'll arrive soon, so if you're going to be here in the evening, I'll need you to help prepare, and then when they arrive, stay
out
of the way.”

Naia's heart beat with excitement and with a little pinch of awe-inspired fear. Only one council of creatures on Thra might be called
lords
by a Gelfling Maudra. They were coming to Sami Thicket? How lucky! To think, only her second day outside of Sog and she was going to see the Skeksis Lords with her very own eyes.

“Of course!” she exclaimed. “I'd love to help!”

“Good girl, then I'll give you a place to start. There's a stream just outside the village to the east. Please see to it that you bathe before supper, would you? You smell of Sog, and I wouldn't want anyone's appetite ruined.”

T
he stream was just outside the village limits, a small trickling thing that was big enough to leap over, should she have a running start. Even at its deepest, the water came up only to her thighs, so she left her clothes, pack, and sandals in sight and sat on a half-submerged rock to let the cold river water run over her. In the swamp, most water was slow and sluggish, full of life. Here, it was quick and so clear, she could see the pebbles and sand at the river floor. Though it gave her a chill, the cool water felt refreshing on her feet, washing away the dirt and pieces of grass that clung to her skin. Neech sniffed the streaming ripples once before puffing up his spines and gliding away to the safety of the riverbed, cowering under the folds of her rumpled cloak.

Naia slipped into the water and knelt so it ran over her shoulders, splashing her face and taking a sip to quench her thirst. Finally, she tilted her head back and fully submerged herself, letting her gills open and taking a big drink.

After she felt clean enough—she hoped—she dressed and squeezed her locs until they were dry. Bathing was largely unnecessary in the swamp, as most of the time the Drenchen were in and out of the water all day long. Naia raised an arm and gave herself a sniff—she didn't smell
that
bad. But if it was Spriton
custom and Maudra Mera asked it, she would do it. Embarrassing the Spriton in front of the lords was the last thing she wanted to do, especially as someone who would one day be
maudra
.

She shivered again as she made her way back toward the village, picturing the towering Skeksis with their rings and scepters, gathered in their gargantuan castle. Though she had never seen one, Gurjin had described their feather-adorned mantles and ruby-coated jewelry and gilt crowns encrusted with precious gems. Though they were lords over all of Thra, it seemed they had a particular interest in the Gelfling over other creatures. Gurjin had remarked that they were willing to pay heed to even the poorest or meekest of their race. Their council ruled Thra with a strong hand, full of wealth and bounty that they shared with the Gelfling through All-Maudra Mayrin. They had given the Gelfling people technology for agriculture, for mining, for inventions from wind ships to wheelbarrows. It seemed only proof of their protectorship. They were guardians of the Castle of the Crystal and the keepers of the Heart of Thra, yet they were coming all the way here, to little Sami Thicket,
tonight
.

What kind of faces did the lords bear? She had heard of their long black plumes and ebony beaks, and their omnicient-seeming intelligent eyes. Gurjin had spoken of hardly anything else when he'd last visited. The lords looked straight through you and into you, he'd said. As if they saw a universe inside.

Naia's heart gave an uncomfortable squirm, thinking of her brother. He'd been so full of pride before, telling the stories and filling her with envy, but now he was nowhere to be found.

The Great Sun had all but set, taking the Rose Sun with it, as she returned to the Thicket square. The village was gathering at the center hearth for dinner under the open sky. The roasted cherry-squashes were cut into slices, skewered on sticks, and set on wood trays beside diced roots, leafy greens, and bowls full of fruit. The Podlings scurried around with the Gelfling children, carrying dishes from the hearth to the serving table. A small band played on lutes and forked
firca
, though they had only a single drum. Only the music filled the square, as the rest of the Gelfling whispered anxiously among one another, many standing to the side and holding wrapped baskets and bundles of gifts.

All around, the villagers appeared, each with an offering to add to the table. Her stomach growled and she put a hand over it, hoping it would stay quiet while she waited behind two athletic Spriton girls with smooth ebony hair done in beautiful loops and braids, accented with feathers. Their open-backed bodices let their wings show, long and narrow for speed and agility, whereas Drenchen wings were shorter and webbed, better used for gliding and swimming in the deep of the swamp. Naia swallowed a little sigh and turned her eyes to the front of the square, where Maudra Mera was pacing back and forth, shouting last-minute orders and waving a gnarled old staff back and forth. The
maudra
was robed in a voluminous cloak that ballooned around her thin body. With the staff in addition, she looked like an overturned cup-flower caught in a wind eddy. A gentle giggle chimed like a chorus of bells from the lovely Spriton girls, and Naia smiled with them—until she realized their mirthful eyes weren't on Maudra Mera,
but on Naia's feet. Naia looked down; both of the Spriton wore dainty tailored shoes, beaded and strapped to their slender ankles with dyed leather. When the girls saw they had been noticed, they covered their giggles and moved elsewhere. Flushed with embarrassment, Naia quietly slipped off her sandals and hid them in her pack.

“They're here!”

The two words spread like spring rain, first in pairs and then across the entire square in a hushed pitter-patter of whispers. Every Gelfling stared eager-eyed and ears-forward, watching the gate at the Thicket's entrance. The band started up with a ceremonial processional, and Maudra Mera stood solemnly at the end of the main road, hands folded around the neck of her staff. At her left and right were two youngsters, her children, ready to partake in the welcoming of the lords—just as Naia had partaken in the welcoming of Tavra of Ha'rar.

Naia held her breath as ten Spriton guards bearing leadway torches entered in two rows. In the center of the well-lit aisle lumbered two big riding phegnese, resplendent in their brilliant azure plumage. The ground shook under the heavy plodding of their three-toed feet, each with black nails as big as Naia's arm. Their wedge-billed faces were masked and reined, driven by a single Gelfling each, seated where the big birds' necks joined with their lean shoulders. The Gelfling attendants wore light armor, violet cloaks, and adorned helmets, for they were guards from the Castle of the Crystal. Behind, on the saddled backs of the phegnese, were what looked to be crowned heads protruding
from
an extravagant mound of lush brocades, velvets, furs, and feathers. They were beaked, with bald heads and narrow-set otherworldly eyes: the Skeksis Lords, Two of Twice-Nine, holders of the castle and protectors of the Crystal.

The Spriton crowded forward with cheers and praise, and Naia lost sight of the lords and their mounts as she fell to the back. Instead, she found a bench and climbed atop it, watching from farther away but higher up as Maudra Mera beckoned the lords to the square.

“Scroll Keeper Lord skekOk! Census Taker Lord skekLach!” she cried. “Come, come! Welcome to our humble Sami Thicket! Please, we have prepared—”

The
maudra
was interrupted by a harsh resounding guffaw that burst from Lord skekLach's barrel-thick body. As sturdy as it was, his phegnese was strained from bearing his weight, no small portion of it made up of the beautifully crafted armor and dazzling adornments he bore on his hefty broad-shouldered body. He kicked a leg over his saddle, and after he dismounted with a thundering
BOOM
, the riding bird nearly toppled in the opposite direction from relief. The second lord, skekOk the Scroll Keeper, remained atop his steed. Unlike his companion, Lord skekOk was thin, his face pointed and narrow, almost like Neech's. He was robed in a bright magenta brocade accented with an extravagantly frilled white-lace ruff. Finely crafted metals were bent and soldered in complicated spirals around gems bigger than Naia's eyes that glittered on the bangles and cuffs up the lord's wrists.

Lord skekLach threw his cloak back into what appeared to be
a plume of red and black, seeming to double his already massive size. There he towered, the village falling still as he cast his gaze upon them, panning slowly to take in every Gelfling face. Then he raised his beak and took a harsh, hard inhale, scenting the thick aroma of the prepared feast. He exhaled and immediately drew breath again, sweeping his head through the air and giving a deep hungry rumble of satisfaction.

“Something,” he said, “smells delicious.”

“Come,” Maudra Mera said, leaping into action. “Will the lords take sup at the head table? This way, this way!”

Lord skekLach grinned broadly, knocking his cloak back at the elbows. His companion, fingering the rim of the shining spectacles perched on his pointed nose, finally dismounted as well, and the two of them followed Maudra Mera to the front of the square. Until this moment, all Skeksis had looked alike in Naia's imagination, but now she saw they were quite distinct from one another. Where Lord skekLach was wide and powerful, Lord skekOk was narrow and shrewd; where one had a beak blunt like a boulder, the other's snout was fleshy and straight. Together they made quite the pair, approaching the head table surrounded by mounds of Spriton offerings. Maudra Mera seemed like nothing but a skittering crawly, zipping back and forth between them, barely avoiding a heavy squishing.

When they finally reached the table, Lord skekLach threw himself into the fat bench prepared for him, skekOk taking a more calculated seat beside him. With great ceremony, Maudra Mera gestured over and over to her sons who stood nearby with
a large dish of squash. At her bidding, they hurried forward and placed the offering before the two lords.

“Sweet cherry-squash, my lord,” Maudra Mera said, bowing yet again from lack of another position to take. “A specialty of the Spriton tribe. Sweet, in thanks for the kindness the lords have shown us, and sour, for the sharp strength of our loyalty to the castle!”

Both lords leaned forward to smell the platter. Though skekOk made a cluck of disdain, turning his head away, skekLach found the roasted vegetables more appetizing. Without further ceremony, he grabbed a fistful of squash, shoveling it into his hooked maw.

The Spriton fell quiet as they waited for his review. Maudra Mera stood before them, hands wringing one another, with every Gelfling in the square holding their breath. The air grew hot and tense in anticipation, and Naia felt an ugly chill crawl up her back. Lord skekLach plucked a final wedge of the stringy vegetable meat, and Maudra Mera tried to hide a tremble while the last wet sounds of Lord skekLach's feasting echoed through the silent square.

The silence was broken when skekLach let out a thundering roar. Naia's heart plummeted in fear. Was he unhappy? What would this failure entail? How might Maudra Mera and the Gelfling of Sami Thicket atone for the displeasure of a Skeksis Lord?

“GWAAAHHHH-HA-HA-HA!”

With a gulp, Naia realized the terrible sound was laughter. Following a collective sigh of relief, the Spriton band started up, and Maudra Mera turned away, wiping her forehead with her sleeves. The reception had passed, and the feast had begun.