AESSA'S CHILDREN: BOOK ONE -- THE LAST BORDER
By V. A. Watts (c) 1993
NOTE: This work is under a registered copyright and unauthorized distribution is prohibited and will be prosecuted. All characters are fictional and of my own invention. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
Note on pronunciation: Proper Names and nouns within the language most commonly used on Aessa, Lliyassean, allow that each letter have its own sound. The first vowel in each word is long, the following vowels hold the short sound. Therefore, the name Thana is pronounced: T-HAYN-AH. Maygra is MAY-IH-G-RAH, Kieri is KI-ERR-IH, and Jael is JAY-EL. Diminutives such as Jai and Mag are pronounced as written, so Jai would be Ji (long "I") and Mag would be Mag with a short "a". The use of glottal stops is pervasive. Words ending in "I" are masculine gendered, "a" indicates feminine gender, "n" indicates plurals. Partial Glossary is at the end of each chapter.
Darkness clung to the high walls of Morvan like an ancient mold, obscuring the once pale walls with its heaviness. Even shadows were lost in the black night which took form and molded itself to the sturdy stone. CHAPTER EIGHT
Lorisa liked it thus. She would stand for hours at the window of her high chamber, her gaze caressing the darkness she had imposed as if it were a favorite child. She had spent many long hours sculpting the blackness, erasing all trace of the delicate and masterful works of the craftsmen who had decorated Morvan's walls with relief so skillful they seemed to live and breathe. In the same manner she had subdued the painstaking works of gardeners and artisans who had once laid out intricate patterns of leaf and flower, coaxing blossoming vines to clutch at deep pools of water so the viewer could not determine where flower ended and water began.
Lorisa had obliterated all of it with glee, striking down the gardens with laughter and a wave of her hand and a wish. It pleased her that craftsmen of such skill could be vanquished forever, their immortality ended with the destruction of their labors of love. In introspective moments she might admit for a moment she was jealous of their skill, envious that her own Gifts could never be turned to such simple loveliness. Such moments never lasted long for it took only a glance at her Kingdom, her Empire, to realize the power she wielded by thought and word was far and beyond the grasp of simple mortal artisans.
Her eyes narrowed as she stared out her window, their pale depths caught by the glint of sunlight on the plains far to the south. Soon, very soon she would overcome the depressing land as well, subjugate the grasses and trees to her design, pull the darkness around her like a comforting cloak until all she could see was hidden and secret in the shadows.
She could not say when the Dark Voice had finally wooed her with its courting. She had been young, barely out of childhood when she first heard its compelling call and saw the mystery and power it offered her if she would but take its hand and follow. Her given Gifts had seemed minor in comparison; a quick, strong Voice, and a Sight which allowed her see all the way through the forests bordering her homeland, and the racial Memory of her people -- from the First to her own contemporaries. Those Gifts had seemed sufficient in her youth and her companions thought her Gifted to excess. Then the Darkness had called and shown her the ways beyond the limited range of Kieri talents to the doors of Yranna's kingdom itself and had offered thoughts which became actions and a sight promising her mastery over all she could see.
Mastery. She had been a Masyra once, skilled in her arts at an early age. She vaguely recalled being pleased at gaining her rank. She chuckled softly at how simple her pleasures had been then. She had taken an Oath of service. How could she have wished to serve when she could demand service from others? A simple child, indeed.
But no more. She turned her gaze westward, seeing the stark pale walls of the place she had once called home. Ravon. The first Keep of the Kieri after the Crossing. She had entered the Iimarin garden as an acolyte, learning to balance its delicate energies through hours of concentration, making infinitesimal adjustments in the living structure so its Song would be true and its amplifying powers at a maximum. She had been awed by the energy harnessed within the living strands of light. Now her thoughts turned to how she could gain power for her own use.
Her former kinsmen were the only barrier to gaining the Iimarin web, the only resistance to her plan of using the Iimarin to unleash the dark power hovering on the fringe of the world, waiting to be tapped. She had no doubt she would win--the Goddess given Gifts of the Kieri were no match for the sorcery she had learned to command--but her plan demanded patience. Before she could control the Iimarin, she had to gain access to it. She had sacrificed her ability to work the Web in exchange for mastery over magicks not bound by physical limitations as Kieri Gifts were. But there were other ways. A single trained Kieri bent to her will or the untrained Gifts of Gifted children. Either would do. She had nearly had the first and she murmured a curse on the son who had turned against her. Revenge on her bastard child would be as sweet as the darkness she would condemn him to.
Her second bid had been equally unsuccessful, she reflected as she gazed eastward. Her sight gave her a clear view of the ruins laying at the base of Itheron. Those Kieri had been a surprise. She was annoyed she had been unable to garner more than the few children she had stolen from Rhema. Of those only three had minds enough left to work the Web. But there was hope there yet, she thought and stepped away from the window. She had gained a couple of minor bonuses on her foray south.
Her bloodhounds had picked up the resonant scent of a few who had escaped the Rhema's destruction. They were unsure how many--their crafted minds had no capacity for detail unless specifically described. But they served their purpose well enough. Almost well enough for the high cost of their Making worth the drain on her strength. Just as the price she had paid to enspell the fair-haired Rheman Healer was proving to be worth the effort.
She had not intended the Healer to die; she had been careful not to tamper too deeply in the hopes he might survive. Her bloodhounds had been able to supply her with proof he lived and now it would be only a matter of time before she found him. If she was lucky, there might be enough left of him to suit her purposes quite well. It had been an off chance gamble; she had set her trap more for amusement than anything. He had been strong and her offer had only been half in jest. Had he assented to her proposal she might be closer to her goal now.
She pondered the Healer for a moment; there had been a response in him, of that she was sure. Almost as if he had sensed she could show him the deeper, darker side of his Gift and he was curious. It had been fleeting, however, and she had quickly lost interest.
Her attention was diverted by a trigger response as one of her bloodhounds sensed something. Without a movement she cast her thoughts along the thought-path, locking into the beast's mind with such force it cried out in pain.
A Gift in use! Farther north than she had anticipated. Whoever led the little band of fugitives was cunning, a trait to be admired. She honed her stolen sight in on the flare of power, spreading her senses wide to make sure she missed nothing.
The Gift surged again and Lorisa arched her great wings to turn, vaguely aware there was something familiar in the sudden surge. It was not the Healer, she was certain but as she tried to focus on the source of the signal, the Gift-surge winked out and Lorisa screamed in frustration, screaming through the throat of the vegen. She drew back from the creature, mind already snapping commands at her minions, giving the general location of the surge and cursing her shortsightedness in making her bloodhounds blind. She cursed again and whirled back to the window, watching the Hai'Karin mercenaries as they left the Keep to meet up with their fellows in the south. She waited for them to clear the ridge before she began spreading her darkness further outward, a reaching for the faint contact closest to the surge. The contact was tenuous over such a distance and she drew on deep reserves, feeling the strain and knowing what she did now would severely limit her other activities for weeks.
The response was startled and anxious and she put as much force behind the contact as she could. He had survived her anger after the debacle at Rhema for only one reason -- an unlooked for possibility he had discovered, forgotten within Rhema's thick walls.
Mek'ain, our fugitives are close and I want them, alive, she ordered and showed him where the contact was, her fingers dragging across the surface of her map. don't fail me in this. You are less than a day behind them.
Her captain's response was less than enthusiastic and she reinforced the order with a painful reminder, smiling as his discomfort promised to increase as he rode. She withdrew, husbanding her strength and waiting. Amusing her self by pushing the darkness of her realm further outward, a soothing exercise when she was angry. She could not extend too far, she had not the power she needed yet, but she darkened the slopes of Arris Graen, pushing her shadows toward the woodlands in the west and sending her creatures out to play in the blackness. Still, the sunlit plains mocked her with a bright, tinkling laughter which sounded suspiciously like the singing of the Iimarin.
Servants came and went silently through the day, knowing better than to disturb their mistress and edging around the map with uneasy caution. Their mistress sat like a stone statue, pale face frozen with only the hint of a smile, one hand laying casually across the blood red markers of her borders. By dawn, they were whispering for she had not moved through the night and her eyes were cold as the frost on her windowsill, the smile still in place.
Mek'Ain's report came silently but urged her from her watchful stance.
The patrol is dead, Shadrai; and your Seeker, he murmured, his contact the barest whisper.
How long, you imbecile!! Find them Mek'ain or the next Seeker shall hunt you! How many? she snapped.
Two, maybe three -- the trail is cold. her captain whimpered. there is nothing save the bodies of your servants and one of their's -- he's dead.
Anger fueled her power and Mek'Ain gasped as his mistress's Reach wrapped around his heart and soul.
Three against your so mighty warriors? How disappointing, my pet. You and I need to have a little chat, face to face. The rest of your patrol had better find those fugitives, before my seeker finds them, she purred, relaxing her grip. I'll expect you in a week, my dear. Oh, and bring the body of their friend. You know how. I may have use for it, she added and released him.
She sank back into her chair, trembling with both anger and fatigue, a gnawing hunger deep within her which had nothing to do with food. Using the pull beside her chair, she summoned her manservant.
Akis arrived before she released the embroidered cloth. "I need some company, Akis," she murmured. "Two or three of our guests and food and wine. Send three guards as well -- preferably with strong stomachs. And perhaps one of the children, the one who hums. Someone young will be a delightful change. And hurry, Akis. It has been a very disappointing day," she said with a sad, sweet smile. The horrified look on his pale face startled and then amused her and she laughed. Akis ran from the room, fearing his mistress had gone mad driving away his horror at her command.
She laughed harder, her voice rasping in her throat and her eyes dropping tears tinged pink. She choked, wiping her mouth and frowning as her white hand came away with a trace of blood. Her fingers moved quickly in a pattern and she rose to her feet, leaning heavily against the map table as she stared out of the window, the dark hunger screaming at her in its intensity.
Soon, she promised the Darkness, soon it will be all ours and our laughter will mock the light. A knock at the door brought a soft response as a guard entered with the four companions. She smiled sweetly at them, picking up her goblet from the table beside her chair. She moved slowly, regally to her guests, kneeling before the child first.
"And what's your name, pretty one?" she asked as the child stared blankly at the ceiling, a tuneless hum accompanying every breath. "No, matter," she said motioning to one of the guards. "We'll just call you Lunch, shall we?"
Chapter 9
GLOSSARY
A'del'eva:..............Literally: "By your oaths to Aessa" A war cry and a summons. (think au secors)A'Ki'Ka................A binding Oath of will, heart , soul and mind...reserved for the Goddess.
asa:........................Literally: Truth. an affirmative as in, "yes" or "is it not so?"
Graen:....................pl. Mountains, (also Grae; Mountain)
hait:........................ "To Me" or "Here", imperative, a summons.
Ien Ki'Ka............... Soul Oath. An oath of binding.
ka'kiira...................f. Daughter of...
kira'sai:...................f. sister, little sister, beloved sister, [familial]
kira:........................f. little one, child (diminutive)
kiri:........................m.little one, child (diminutive)
kiri'nai:...................m.brother, little brother, beloved brother [familial]
ki'ta.........................f.heart sister. Not quite a lover.
Makyera:................f. First, as in a title.
Makyera Gen:........as in First Sword a title, overall commander of the Watch (also: gen... sword, shield, defense)
Makyeran Gyeld......First Born. A title of respect applied to no other peoples but the original five Oathtakers who birthed the Kieri race.
Masyra-Maena:......f. title of rank for females, equivalent of Lord-Master, title for a member of the Elder Council (or Lady-Master)
n'gari:.......................large lizards, desert scavengers, about the size of a rhinoceros, but looking more like komodo dragons.
N'yris.......................Oath Breaker...a broken oath. A fatal transgression
Shadrai:...................Literally, Shadow Speaker.
shan'nai:.................m.Wise man or brother, an affectionate term of respect. Used between equals.
shan'sai:..................f.Wise woman or sister, an affectionate term of respect. Used between equals.
theris:.......................fruit bearing tree native to Elerak and the Eastern Plains, rather like a pulpy pomegranate
uralen:.....................pl. Ural; a large cliff dwelling bird, average wingspan is about 20 feet, scavengers mostly.
varin:........................a breed of extremely stocky, sure-footed horses, powerful bodies but small heads. (pl. varinen)
vegen:........................historically they were small leather-winged creatures, not unlike bats, but with elogated snouts and long flattened tails used as messengers for the gods. (pl. vegenen)