Treva's Children (4 page)

Talisa bowed. “Yes, Mistress.”

Tears fell down Talisa’s cheeks as she turned away from Mistress toward the light of the fires.  Safe.  Her people were safe.

Embron looked up from tending the fire as Talisa  stepped out of the woods. "Milady!"

He leapt to his feet and dashed to her, almost bowling her over.  He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her into the air, spinning around once. "Milady, I thought you dead."

"If you would set me down, Huntsman, I will explain."

Looking chagrined, he set her on her feet, then stepped back.  Talisa opened her mouth to speak but before she could, Embron dropped to one knee and bowed his head. "Forgive my presumption, Baroness."

Talisa stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Rise, Embron.  There is no presumption.  Gather the others and I will explain."

As Embron went to call the others, Talisa turned her eyes to the camp.  Several lean-tos made of deadfall and grass formed a rude circle.  Talisa nodded at that.  Embron had done well.  If Mistress truly served Treva of the Wilds, then she would frown on harm to her garden.

The fire at the center of the circle had burned down to coals.  Above it, tied to sticks, roasted several trout.  Talisa's throat clutched as she remembered her dream of the evening before.

Embron gathered the others.  As they passed her to gather on the grass, several reached out furtive hands to touch her, as if not believing she were real.  She smiled and nodded to each one.

When the last had settled in the group, Embron stood. "Milady, what happened?  I thought..."

Talisa nodded. "I know.  I thought I went to my death.  The lady of this place, Mistress, said that she did not claim my death, but my life.  I am sworn to serve her now."

"But...the King?"

"Aerioch is no more," Talisa said. "The King, if he still lives, has no kingdom, no crown.  I have never broken oath.  Not to husband.  Not to crown.  Death releases all oaths, the death of a kingdom.  So Mistress has said.  So I believe."

Banev stood.  She hugged herself, looking very frightened. "So what do we do, Milady?"

Talisa swept a hand, indicating the shelters. "For now, rest.  Mistress permits you to stay for a time so long as you take only what she permits and hunt only what and when she instructs." She pointed to the trees. "You may take the fruit." She stretched a hand toward the brook. "You may take the fish.  I presume she'll give other instruction later."

"Milady," Embron reached out a hand to her. "We could just leave.  This Mistress demands too much for an accidental intrusion.  Let's leave.  With the trail broken, the Schahi won't find us again.  I'd rather brave the snow."

"No, Embron.  I will not be forsworn.  Also--" Talisa put her hands on her hips and leaned forward. "You have not seen her power.  I have only seen a small part of it.  But I do not doubt that if we anger her we will all die."

Talisa returned to where she had left Mistress.

Mistress scowled at her. “You did not eat.”

Talisa shrugged. “You did not say I could.”

Mistress’s scowl deepened. “Is that the way you keep your oath?  To do as you are bid and no more?”

“I am sorry, Mistress,” Talisa said. “I do not know what is permitted.  I am, perhaps, overcautious.”

Mistress nodded. “Well enough.  I will remember that.”

Together, they walked deeper into the wood.  Mistress continued to name the various plants they encountered and tell Talisa about them.  This one reduces fever.  That one can help a weak heart, or stop it.

They reached a tree heavy with nuts.  Mistress reached up and plucked two of them. “Hold them in your hand like this.” Mistress placed the two nuts into her right hand, one low against the base of her thumb and the other farther up, next to the fingers. “Squeeze, one nut against the other.” She handed the nuts to Talisa.

Talisa took the nuts and squeezed.  The nut near her thumb cracked against the other.  Mistress took the cracked nut from Talisa and peeled the thin shell, revealing the nutmeat inside.  She handed the meat back. “Eat.”

Talisa ate.  The nut had a rich flavor, stronger than the nuts that grew in the barony’s orchards.

“Stay here.  Eat your fill from this tree.  I will return later.”

“Mistress, I am fine.  I ate enough fruit this morning.”

Mistress started to turn away, then turned back. “What happens to a person who eats no fruits or vegetables?”

Talisa hesitated.  She did not know of anyone who did not eat those.  Only in the winter following a poor harvest when such things were scarce. “Oh, the Winter Sickness.  A man gets weak.  His skin grows blotchy.  Eventually, he starts bleeding from the gums.”

“That is so,” Mistress said. “But if a person were to eat only fruit, that too would cause sickness.” She raised a hand, pointing into the deeper wood. “If the lynx tried to eat grass and ivy, it would die.  If the deer tried to live only on flesh, it would die.  Each must eat that which is natural to it.  Men eat many things.  Try to eat just one and man sickens and dies.” She plucked another nut and held it out to Talisa. “You do not serve me well to sicken and die.  Eat.”

Talisa took the nut, cracked it against the other in her palm, and ate.

“When I send you to give instruction to the people, if they have food, you may eat with them.  Do not dawdle, but I will allow the time.”

Talisa bowed.  Mistress stood, looking at her.  Talisa looked back.  Mistress frowned and raised a hand, indicating the tree.  Hastily, Talisa plucked another nut and cracked it in her hand.

“I will return,” Mistress said and she was gone.

Finding that she was actually hungry, Talisa ate.  When she could eat no more and Mistress still had not returned, she sat leaning against the bole of the tree.  After a time, she drifted off to sleep.

“Rise.”

Talisa woke to see Mistress standing, staring at her. “You are fed.  You are rested.  Good.  Come with me.”

Mistress led Talisa to a small ravine.  They stopped at a narrow spot in the ravine, where the ground sloped more steeply to either side.  A stream ran along the bottom of the ravine, little more than a trickle.

“Treva’s Garden has many streams and brooks,” Mistress said. “But some fish require still water to thrive.  I want you to gather rocks.  Pile them here, across the stream.” She looked up at the sun, filtering through the trees. “I want a wall, waist high at the middle stretching level to both slopes by sundown.”

“Now, Mistress?”

Mistress nodded. “Now.  I will return at sundown.”

Talisa waded into the stream bed.  She tried one rock but found it too heavy to lift.  A smaller rock broke free.  She lifted it and waddled to the narrow spot in the ravine.  She dropped the rock where it splashed into the water.  She looked up.  Mistress was gone.

She went to select another rock.

Talisa’s arms felt like wooden sticks, or maybe lengths of rope for all the strength that remained.  She staggered up to the low wall and dropped another rock on it.  Her breath coming in short gasps, she splashed to the center of the small stream to check the height of the wall.  The water caught behind the dam she was building was only a little more than ankle deep.  The water trickled through the gaps between the rocks and did not rise any higher.

The wall reached barely to her knees.  She looked up at where the sun shown through the foliage.  Too low, both sun and wall.  She was not going to succeed.

She wondered what Mistress would do when Talisa failed to complete the wall.

She trudged up the ravine, looking for another rock.  She had already collected all the rocks small enough for her to lift that lay close to the wall.  Each trip for another took longer than the one before.

Talisa found a rock, roughly the size of her head, and stooped to pick it up.  As her fingers touched the rock a rustling at the top of the ravine interrupted her.  She stood and turned to face the source.  A human figure stood at the lip of the ravine looking down.

“Milady!” Embron called to her. He wore his pack, empty save for the bow stave tucked in its sheath at its side.  He half-ran, half-leapt down the slope of the ravine to her side.

“Embron, what are you doing?” Talisa asked. “The Mistress of this place has not given permission to hunt.” She pointed at Embron’s bow. “Do not risk her.  I do not know what she would do if we disobey her word but she has magic to come and go in the blink of an eye.  I fear her anger would be terrible.”

Embron raised his hands. “I do not hunt.  We take only fish and fruit, as she commanded.  I merely sense out the land.” He crouched and laid a hand on the rock Talisa had been about to lift. “May I ask...”

“Mistress has set a task for me.” She stooped and wrapped her hands around the sides of the rock.  With a grunt, she stood.  Embron stood with her, then reached out to grasp the rock.  Talisa stepped back, pulling the rock away before he could take it from her.  She turned and began to trudge back toward the wall.

“What are you doing, Milady?”

She did not answer.  She merely continued her way back to the wall.  She dropped the rock on it then turned to head back up the ravine once more.

“Milady, please.”

Talisa stopped.  Her back hurt.  Her arms hurt.  Her legs hurt.  She rubbed at her arms, trying to will some strength back into him. “This wall must be waist high by sundown.”

Embron looked at the wall, then up at the sun. “You’ll never do it.”

Talisa sighed. “I must try.”