Part Thirty-nine
Tsuki woke and Dale was half-curled in sleep, his back to Tsuki's chest. By the light at the shutters, it was midday. It seemed to Tsuki that Dale always slept soundly after drinking. That potential for dependence seemed sad, and had he been awake, Dale would have agreed, though likely not aloud.
Dale did not sleep most nights, even with the larger party and watches posted. He dozed half-asleep if Tsuki stayed close andtrusted Nightmare to stay with the party if he fell asleep while riding. It did not seem so bad, to Dale, to sleep during the day, but he was becoming nervous about those naps now.
Marduk made him nervous. Dale had not dealt with the sun-tolerant Westerners so much in the past, and had not known the other breeds to be so clever as to don cloaks and goggles against the sunlight. They made Dale feel he must remain alert at all times. It was very personal now, their conflict. It was perhaps as personal as it had been with Dumuzi and his Northern Clan when Dale was younger. It was a different situation, but still a very personal between Dale and a Clan.
Even the liquor and sharing a bed with Tsuki had not made falling asleep easy. Dale had been awake thinking about the Orcs. He was proud of Duma, but that situation could have turned out much worse, and Dale was plagued by fears that future encounters would go very badly for his party.
Even with Tsuki there, Dale held onto the handle of his whip as he slept. Tsuki could see the leather device as he rose. Dale had kissed him the night before, but Tsuki believed Dale would feel differently about the matter when sober and in daylight.
It was true. The arrival of Reif and the Orcs had put Dale in another state of mind, and he was not so willing to let go of the pretense that he shared himself with someone to whom he had no other attachment. To Dale, attachment equaled loss.
Yet, Tsuki's arm draped over his side, Tsuki's breath on his shoulder and Tsuki's quite tolerable Mannish scent, along with the amount of liquor he had imbibed, did eventually ease Dale into slumber. He had slept through the baying hounds and Duma fleeing the room.
In the early morning, the Marshal's Men and their hounds had tracked an Orc from the site of the tunnel to the inn. Duma had been woken by the sounds of the dogs. He was becoming more accustomed to peoples of various races and to Mannish settlements, but he had little experience with dogs and knew only what he had learned from other Orcs, that Men employed them to track and hunt and that like Orcs, they were quite dangerous to encounter when in a group.
Orcs of some Clans were able to tame Trolls or animals such as wolves, but dogs were loyal to Men.
Duma took his things and left the room, thinking to flee the city, but then decided to inform the most sober members of their party of his plan to depart, so that they would not look for him. When she found him at her door, Lenaduiniel insisted Duma come into the room she shared with Galadhiel and Laurel.
Lenaduiniel then woke Laurel and sent her to the next room, with her things, telling her to send Gwindor and Beryl back in her stead with their things. Laurel did as the Elf said and when the Men came to search the room under pretense of making sure guests were safe, they found what seemed five Elves sharing the room.
The dogs bayed, and even being somewhat fearful of so many Elves, which were not often seen in this region, the Captain among the Men insisted he had to do some search, as the dogs had followed the scent of Orc blood.
"Of course the scent is strong here, Captain," Lenaduiniel said, "It was one of our party who came upon the Orcs and their tunnel and drove them off. Was it not one of our party who brought warning to your Marshal? Our friend had so much Orc blood on him after the encounter that he trailed some back to the inn. I must apologize for the foul odor, as we females have not yet finished with the laundry. Our males keep us quite busy with mending and cleaning, what with all the riding and fighting they do."
Galadhiel then showed the Men a shirt stained with black blood.
The Captain apologized, saying they had been obligated to investigate and that certainly they were following other trails, including outside the city's walls.
"My sister enjoys reciting nonsense about sewing banners whenever she encounters Men."
"She turns a clever phrase. Dale and I have done most of the mending for everyone in the party since I met you," Beryl said drowsily.
"Someone in our family needs have diplomatic skill, we cannot resolve every matter by feasting, brooding or slinging arrows."
"Will the Men leave and not bother Dale?" Duma whispered.
"I believe they are satisfied that they found the end of the trail," Lenaduiniel said.
Galadhiel checked the rear yard from the window. "They are meeting others near the stables and seem to be moving on."
At Lenaduiniel's suggestion, those in the room remained to sleep. Duma slept in the corner, curled on his bedroll and clutching his obsidian blade.
Later in the morning, Lenaduiniel woke the others to have breakfast. She had abandoned sleep for the night to keep watch and passed the time on watch laundering clothing and making new inventory of items they needed or could spare to trade.
When the five went down to the common room, they found Fei, Laurel and Kato already seated together at a table and arguing. The conversation was difficult for the newcomers to follow, as Fei had become angered enough to lapse into his Middle Kingdom speech. It was eventually made clear enough to others that Fei was of the opinion that Kato should announce to others sharing a room when he was awake, while Kato was of the opinion that he had no such obligation to warn others he was conscious and if privacy was desired, others should hang curtains.
"Must you speak so loudly?" Beryl asked softly as he took a seat beside on the bench Kato and the borrowed tomes on which he sat to better reach the Man sized table. Fei closed his mouth and Kato laughed as Beryl combed hair into his face to shade both his eyes.
"I know not why you are so out of sorts," Gwindor said, "I am the one that swallowed that foul worm."
"Should we wake Dale?" Duma asked.
"He sleeps not at night," Fei said with a resigned sigh as he pushed his bowl away to open a scroll.
"Dale needs sleep," Lenaduiniel agreed. "We may all go to bed again, but it is best we get some food in our bellies while we have the opportunity."
"Yes, we are paying for room and board here," Kato agreed.
"Yes, though Duma should not go to sleep again. I have excused you from archery due to your injuries and sudden lack of bow, however, we would all be remiss if we neglected your lessons entirely. As we are sure to be summoned by the King today, I think we should have a lesson in etiquette."
"Is 'etiquette' an Elven word?"
"Pardon. The more Mannish term would be 'courtly manners.'"
"Learning courtly manners likely seems torture to any young male, so I excuse you from your practice of Elven Lore for the day," Beryl whispered with a dismissive flourish of his hand.
"Your instructor is after-drunk," Kato laughed.
"How is it the Halfling is so merry?" Gwindor asked in grating tone.
"I have a tolerance for spirits better than that of two Elves!"
"Kato is a very spirited fellow," Duma said.
Beryl laughed, though it hurt his head.
"Do Orcs enjoy wordplay?" Gwindor asked.
"The Westerners sometimes. They would not be considered so clever in it by Elves, I think. They do make shortenings and familiar terms and occasionally rhymes. Orcs like to make up new words that others will not understand. It seems very clever to use such language, if you are an Orc."
"You seem more Elvish in that respect."
"I do seem star-crossed."
Beryl laughed. His head ached.
When the King's summons came, Dale and Tsuki had already come down to the common room for luncheon and Lenaduiniel was in the midst of explaining to Duma that Men of this region ate with knives and sometimes forks as well as with bread and fingers. "They often mix dairy with meat, unlike Elves," Lenaduiniel said.
"The common people eat beans quite often, but if we truly are to eat in the presence of the king, we will likely be served meat of their cattle." Tsuki told them.
"They have many traditional dishes using fish, from the time in which their ancestors lived farther north and near the river, but they have since adapted to this lifestyle of ranching horses and cattle."
Duma seemed distracted to the others, as he was thinking on something Lenaduiniel had said. Then, he asked, "What mean you…'dairy and meat'? Is it not true that normal Elves do not eat flesh?"
"It is not precisely true," Leanduiniel admitted. "It is a matter of Elves having dietary customs which to the Men who have befriended them have always seemed so strange that my people became accustomed to telling the Men they ate no meat at all, to avoid imposing upon the Men should they host meals."
"Elves kill animals and eat flesh?"
"Normal Elves eat as I do, only much more strictly," Dale said, "The kinds of animals they may take, the manner in which they should be killed and the methods in which they should be cooked are all in their lore and are taught to young Elves before they are old enough to live alone."
"Elves aim to be in harmony with nature," Tsuki observed, "and are very cautious about disturbing the populations of wild creatures, and plants as well, for that matter."
"You must sow at least as much as you reap," Lenaduiniel said, "or that is the best translation I can make." Lenaduiniel trailed off, as she saw a Man in the livery of the White Horse came into the common room by the front entrance.
The messenger spoke to the innkeeper and she then pointed toward their table. Dale was cursing softly about females wanting to be able to view the door, while Tsuki was taking a mirror from his jacket.
"We were expecting a messenger," Duma hissed, "You look suspicious."
"What they lack in diplomacy and social grace they make up in combat ability," Lenaduiniel whispered, then lifted her head and smiled at the messenger as he approached.
"I have a message from the our King to Beryl the Horse Merchant."
"We are companions to Beryl," Tsuki told the messenger. "He is not at the inn now, but within the city. May I accept the message in his stead? I am known to your Marshal and many other veterans among your people. My name is Tsuki Eru, though some here call me Skywanderer."
"If you are members of his party, I may deliver the message to you." The messenger then opened a scroll and read from it in a clear but quiet voice, saying that the party was to come to the King's hall that evening to dine.
"I think I should not go to meet the King," Duma whispered when the messenger had gone.
"They know the number in our party and will have some basic description of us from the guards at the gate and possibly have spoken to our hosts here. I know that much about royalty: you do not expect them to be fools within their own capitol. They will know what is going on in their home city when they desire to know."
"Dale is correct, and they will want to meet you especially, as they have been told you alone drove off the Orcs from their city," Tsuki added.
Lenaduiniel frowned slightly. "It was the most peaceful solution and only a small alteration of the truth. A lie would have come to be used against us. Duma did face the Orcs and they did leave."
"Yes, but as you named him the hero, he will be studied more closely," Dale insisted.
"It is not my choice to hide what I am, but it is not my choice to be attacked by a mob of Men simply for being of another race. What choice of action do I have? I did not choose to be a half-breed."
Dale growled. "I was not really aware that I was an Elf at the time!" he hissed "Haven't I…?"
Tsuki put a hand to Dale's shoulder. "No. Do not fight the same fight again. Neither you nor Duma can change the past."
Duma clacked his barbell against his teeth. "I have not spoiled, tortured, or eaten anyone since arriving in the city. That is what they expect Orcs to do. But I am quite certain, they will treat me just like one of those Orcs if they find me."
"Orcs really do those things!" Dale insisted, "And do you know that you would not have done any of those things if you were traveling with a band of Orcs and not our company?"
"I never enjoyed all the…spoiling, even to be near others taking part in it. Torture depends greatly on the way you view actions, for what seems torture could be a rite or ceremony to encourage bravery or good hunting or endurance. And though it is true Orcs will and have eaten the flesh of other races, or even their own, that does not mean they prefer to do so or that they hunt Elves specifically to eat them. Men need too many herbs to taste good and Elves are a lot of trouble to hunt. I know that you understand, Dale! What most often happens is that Orcs kill for some other reason and then eat the flesh of the dead to gain strength. We are not wasteful. We use what we have. It has never been said that a Dark Lord kept Orcs too well fed or supplied."
"It makes you easier to control if you are hungry," Dale admitted, "still, do not pretend the ways of Orcs are noble. They do murder, rape, capture, torture and eat other creatures. You can't use yourself as example, because you are only half Orc."
"You are fully an Elf and you did all of those things when you were in Dumuzi's Clan. That is true, is it not? You know, because you did all those things. So, my being part Elf has nothing to do with the matter."
"Duma. Stop." Tsuki said gravely. Dale was shivering and rolling his eyes. "You truly do not understand yet. Those things are entirely against Dale's nature and the fact that he acted as he did is evidence of how very cruelly he was manipulated. From all I have heard, your life in the mines, even as one of these 'pets', was privileged and pleasant compared to what Dale suffered with Dumuzi's Clan of Northerners. That Clan is responsible for murdering nearly all the Vale Elves."
"And it is not a matter of Mine-dwellers being any more noble than Easterners, Northerners, Westerners or Mountain Orcs," Lenaduiniel said, "The Dwarves can tell you of the atrocities committed by the Mine-dwellers. The Orcs of the Mines do not craft their fierce spiked armor for the purpose of serving tea."
"That may be," Duma agreed, "But is it not also true that Men murder, rape, capture and torture other races and even their own? I have heard that some Men also eat flesh of their own race."
"Men do?" Dale asked.
"I suspect it is true, though most often it is done out of necessity or in ritual, most likely the heart or some other organ is consumed for the power that is perceived to be held within it."
Duma smiled, as Tsuki had just defended the practice that he had described in Orcs.
"Men have potential for nobility as well as debauchery," Lenaduiniel said. "Men have been tempted and served the Dark Lord, but there have been Men who resisted such temptation and gave aid to people of all races when they were in need."
"Then no race should be judged as a whole on the actions of some. Many think Elves noble, yet I know it is likely not true all are. I have learned much about Elves lately. They simply have playful euphemisms and wordplay to hide the records of their failings. Did one of Beryl's stories not include such a phrase as 'forced the Elf maiden to marry him'? I know that Elves believe they should not engage in intimacy between the sexes outside of marriage, and so Beryl must have meant that the male Elf forced the female into an act that only two who were married could share. References to killing and abduction are even more obvious."
Lenaduiniel sighed sadly. "Forced marriage sometimes describes a political union between houses in which the Elves are instructed to marry by their elders, but I believe that story Beryl told did speak of rather unspeakable things. It is true: there have been evil Elves. Yet, I believe they have been very few. There is some truth to the rumor that Elves take those who trespass in their realms and do not release them, but it is a measure taken to defend our people. We never torture prisoners or work them as slaves."
"Orcs do," Dale said. "If one among them does not have a skill, they will abduct one who has and force them to labor."
"To an Orc that would seem only wise," Duma whispered. "To take advantage of someone's skills…"
"Is in its way an Orcish expression of respect for said skills," Dale finished.
"You must have stitched many wounds for them."
"No. For a long time I resisted or was not trusted and they kept me only as a trophy and plaything. By the time they or I realized I had any skills, it was too late for them to take advantage of me. Many things I know, were not taught to me by Elves of any sort or Orcs. I learned how to survive on my own. No. That is not true. It was, but I have learned new things. In the house of my Elf Lord, and in the Wood, and among the Rangers. I am not alone anymore, and I am always learning."
"It is not bad being in your Clan. You keep company with people that have useful skills and knowledge. I do not mind so much baths or taking lessons. Still, I did not choose the position I am in. I do not want trouble with a King. Kings are powerful Men."
Dale sighed. "Let the King see you, if you wish."
"Let Men see?"
Dale shrugged. "You have inspired trust in members of our party beyond what I would expect them to give for my sake alone. And there was that girl. I still do not know what you did to convince the girl not to betray you."
"You do know," Duma said quietly. His face colored with blood and appeared bluish.
"What girl is this?" Lenaduiniel asked, "What did you do?"
"I know of no polite euphemism, My Lady," Duma whispered, his head bowed.
Dale laughed. "He was as a bee to a lily."
"A bee," Lenaduiniel mused, "to a lily…not stung then…ah, drank of her nectar, we might say."
Tsuki coughed, only then coming to understand the act, and shocked that Lenaduiniel's euphemism was so clear.
Dale laughed.
"Do not seem so shocked. I am a Lady, but I have more years than all of you combined and do know of such things. I understand that not all have a taste for such things, but that it should have been quite pleasing for the girl. Pleasing a partner is always a good thing. No doubt the girl was pleased enough not to mind that Duma was, as Beryl has named him, Yrchelen."
"I think it mattered very much that I am part Orc, as Elves and Men are not in the practice of piercing their tongues to fit with studs."
"Euphemism please, or have you forgotten already you are seated beside a Lady?"
"Orcish urge to boast," Dale offered. "I used to have many such piercings, before my caretakers removed them."
"Many? I could make you new devices for each hole. Even delicate jeweled pieces if you like, or large spikes."
Dale grinned malevolently. "I do not need such equipment to be pleasing."
Duma growled.
"I will go find Beryl," Tsuki offered.
"I can go," Duma said. "I want to go to stores."
"You have to be careful with your purse."
"I mean to, but I cannot go to see a king in these boots, especially if he is to see what I am. Mud and blood does not clean easily from this canvas."
"So it is. You may as well buy a bow while you are at it."
"No," Lenaduiniel said. "Boots if you wish, but no bow. When we see the King, be humble, yet do not allow him to forget that he owes us for returning his stolen horses and for keeping Orcs from his city. Make that clear with the fact that you lost a bow in the process and he will open his vaults to us."
"I often heard it said Elves did not know how to bargain."
Dale smiled. "That would be judging a race based on the actions of a few."
"Then you go with the Wizard and I will escort the Lady to the shops."
"How is it he gets to go shopping with a Lady and…" Dale saw Tsuki's stern gaze and laughed. "Which Tsuki are you now?"
"Your partner it seems. Let us find Kato, Beryl and the others and carry on with our mission."
By sunset, late that afternoon, their party was gathered at the inn again and preparing to walk to the King's hall. They were dressed in whatever garments they imagined presentable to meet a King and his court and at this time had some weaponry upon them. They waited only for Beryl. He was alone in one of the rooms and seemed to have set Kato as a guard, and as no one in the party held real animosity for Kato, no one dared move him aside to inquire with Beryl what was taking so long.
"He cannot still be sick from drink," Gwindor said.
"He is probably taking all this time to decide what to wear," Dale guessed.
"Or concealing coins and kerchiefs on his person," Laurel supposed.
"Or polishing his flute should the King ask to see it?" Kato wondered aloud.
Dale rolled his eyes.
"Hentai," Tsuki whispered.
"Do you mean that you do not know his reason for taking so long?" Duma asked Kato, stopping to glare at him directly.
Kato laughed. "I know. I know. It just seemed so much fun when everyone else made their guesses."
The door opened then. Beryl was wearing his embroidered green velvet cloak again and it was drawn close around his body and the hood covered his hair and cast his face in shadow.
"Well, Beryl is with us. Let us be off," Kato said merrily.
They went from the inn together, walking in a line, most wearing cloaks to fight off the evening chill, or perhaps to protect their finery or disguise themselves until they were before the King. The attracted some onlookers, particularly as they reached the large stone building at the highest point of the city, where the King lived.
Men and their women and children counted the cloaks, three grey, four green, a black, a red and a brown. Duma was wearing his borrowed green cloak over his coat.
The passed over packed earth and onto flagstone and then came to the steps that led to the hall of the King. They were allowed to climb, but stopped at the top of the flight by guards. "We were summoned," Beryl said.
"We have had word of your party. You are expected. Go now through the doors."
Beryl went first through the large carven wood doors set in gilt frames. The hall truly seemed more impressive than the surrounding houses, though many of those showed the same skill in carving and masonry. There was a great chamber within, and at the far end a dais also of stone. There were four chairsset on the dais, two leafed in gold, but none occupied. Around the room, more guards had been set, all wore bright mail and were armed with spears. Many wore beards and braids in their long golden hair and wore the White Horse on their garments. Among them were a lesser number of swordsmen in green and one guard that seemed a boy wearing the emblem of the Shield Arm.
There were four others in the room, also standing, three Men and one female of their race. All four wore swords at their belt. Reif was among these, looking apart from the others, because his blood was also of the people to the south and he seemed darker of skin and hair than the other three. Tsuki and Beryl both recognized the other three, though they did not in every case know them well.
The woman was sister to the King and herself a great heroine of the war, who had slain one of the Dark Lord's most powerful minions and Captains and injured her shield arm in the process. It was healed now, but she still held her left arm close to her body. She was also wife to the other Man with them. Tsuki knew him better than Beryl, as he had served him during the war, after leaving Reif's command. This man who had held the front line for the race of Men and all allied with them against the Dark Lord had then been the son of the Steward of the kingdom to the south, but now was a Lord of a province east of the Great River, loyal to the King who had reclaimed the throne from his father. This Lord Royalhill was not so fair in complexion as his bride, but his brown hair was bleached by the sun and his skin was tanned, yet there was an air about him that suggested he was not one who only spent time outdoors, but who had spent years studying lore and was wise. Tsuki believed this to be true of him.
The King Beryl and Tsuki had known or glimpsed when he was Marshal. To the others, he seemed surprisingly youthful or handsome. He was certainly no child, but many had grown accustomed to the idea that all kings must be aged, grey and long of beard. Unlike his brother-in-law, he did seem one who would be most at peace outdoors, riding or perhaps tending to some stray calf. He appeared wise, but it would be a different sort of wisdom than the visiting Lord brought.
The only one of the recently arrived party that did not look at the King or his sister in awe was Fei. He was studying the small, helmed guard in the livery of the Shield Arm. Fei remembered there being a boy who was the cook for their convoy and whom had been taken to prison with Fei and several others. The boy had been taken to another cell and Fei had not learned what had happened to the boy afterward. He suspected this boy had been issued his scholarly supplies, while the cook's gear had been left for Fei.
"Welcome, Friends. I would greet you and speak of business here, but I have already given orders for a feast to be prepared in a more private room and invite you all to join me there. Now, cast off your cloaks and be at ease. I would hear your names and your accounts personally."
All removed their hoods and cloaks at the same time, and as they did, several guards stepped in toward them. The King, or those with him, did not look so surprised by the strangely dressed Elves, Easterlings, and decidedly Orcish creature before him. Even members of the party were shocked when Beryl removed his cloak, for all his long hair was white and he had dressed himself in silver and green Elven robes.
The King smiled and spoke softly to Reif. Reif then made a series of
gestures to the guards, at which half left the chamber. "Perhaps
only your names," the King said to his guests, "Your story may
be one best told over dinner."