Redemption
Disclaimer: Tamora Pierce owns PotS. Anything you recognize is hers, anything you don't recognize is mine.
Shiver and Shake
Greenish-brown with blue;
Dear Lady, please be true.
The Lazy Lord shall come awake.
The hills below will shiver and shake.
Stone and silver, silver and stone.
Mend the Mountain;
Make it your own.
"Are you going to lie there all day? Why don't you say something? This is what you decided to do - now get to it!"
Joren knew the voice no longer came from the Chamber of the Ordeal. Gods willing, he would not have to encounter the Chamber any more. The Chamber had finally released him. Unfortunately, the main after-effect of his Ordeal was that Joren continued to have a running dialogue with himself inside his head. It was more than just talking to himself; it was as though his Ordeal had created in him a conscience that debated with him all the time now. Joren had desperately wanted his body to wake up so that he could talk to someone, anyone else for a change. Slowly, he opened his eyes, and then closed them again as the world began to shake.
Hours later, Joren stirred as he felt a cool damp cloth pressed to his forehead. Silently, he searched throughout the body he was in and, to his great relief, he discovered that it was his own body. Merciful Mithros! The gods had sent him back after all. He opened his eyes slowly and the light from the windows made him wince. This time the world stayed still and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Close those curtains!" commanded a woman's voice. "The light is too much for him."
Joren tried to turn his head toward the voice, but he couldn't make any part of his body move. He heard the rustle of fabric and felt a gentle pressure on the bed beside him. The face that hovered over him was of someone he had only seen recently in his dreams. "Mother," croaked Joren, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Thanks be to the gods! You're awake!" exclaimed Lady Virryn of Stone Mountain. "We've been waiting for so long and now you're finally awake!" And she hugged her son tightly to her bosom. Joren could feel his mother's warmth, but he could not make his arms move to return her embrace.
"Where ...?" Joren croaked again, but his mother interrupted him.
"You're at home, in your own room. Hush, now, my son," replied Lady Virryn, as her voice caught in her throat. She released her hug and settled Joren back on his pillows. "You've been asleep for a very, very long time, and we've just had another one of those awful earthquakes. If you can stay awake, you will need to regain your strength before you can speak and move about. Our healer, Sir Alwin, wants to examine you now. Don't be afraid."
It was as if her last remark was more for herself than for Joren. Lady Virryn's face displayed worry and concern for her son and her eyes shined brightly with unshed tears. She watched silently as the family's private healer, Sir Alwin of Jennsmont, examined Joren from head to toe.
"Are you in any pain, my lord?" asked Sir Alwin. "Don't try to speak - just blink once for yes and twice for no."
Joren blinked twice. He was not in any real pain, but his whole body felt numb and tingly, the way a foot felt after a person sat cross-legged too long. The Chamber had warned Joren that there would be unknown consequences of his spirit being away from his body for such a long time. Joren had not known what to expect, but he was not too surprised to find that his body was numb after so long a time of 'sleep'. He was happy just to be fully alive again, especially considering the alternatives.
"Can you feel this?" the healer asked as he tapped on Joren's foot.
Joren blinked once. Then the healer poked and prodded Joren and moved him this way and that, because Joren could not move his body or his limbs on his own. Joren continued to blink and let Sir Alwin know that he had feeling, if not control, over his entire body.
"My lady, this is better than we ever could have hoped for!" exclaimed the healer, and he continued to speak very fast. "I feared there may have been some damage from the earthquake, but he appears to be alright. It's too soon to tell if he'll make a full recovery, but it seems that the mages were correct - your son truly was just in the Deep Sleep. The Chamber didn't kill him; it just took a very long time to release him."
Lady Virryn gave Sir Alwin a warning glance and the healer changed the topic.
"Do you think you can drink some water now?" he asked Joren.
Joren blinked once. He was very thirsty. Sir Alwin nodded to Lady Virryn, and the two of them lifted his torso to place more pillows behind him. When Joren was sitting upright, his mother came forward with a small cup. She spooned water into his mouth, and most of it went down his parched throat, even though a little bit dribbled down his chin. He was able to open his mouth for more. After she had given him the contents of the cup, one spoonful at a time, Joren closed his lips and smiled. Now his mother had tears streaming down her face.
Joren knew he had to meet certain conditions to keep his life, but for now, he would just work on reclaiming control of his own body.
Thunder boomed and lightning flashed across the earthquake-damaged mountains. No one wanted to be out in a storm on that terrible day, but Kel and her soldiers rode to the stricken villages quickly to assess the full extent of the damage and to offer assistance. Thankfully, since it was the first day of the New Year, no one had been working in the mines. Almost everyone was at home, enjoying a day off with family and friends. Only a handful of guards had been at their posts outside of the entrances to the mines.
Long ago, mages had placed spells on the fort and on the villagers' stone huts to withstand the kind of temblors which were so common in this part of the mountain range. Most of the damage came from large boulders and rocks that rolled down from the mountaintops and smashed buildings, carts and other equipment. There was one report of some missing sheep, but Kel thought the poor beasts probably ran away in a panic. All in all, Kel discovered that they had been very, very lucky and she sent up prayers to all of the gods, thanking them for their good fortune.
"Have you lost your mind?" ranted the Great Mother Goddess. "That's the kind of stunt I expect from our trickster brother - not you!"
"What?" Mithros shrugged. "The boy's body has been asleep for seven years. I thought the situation merited a grand entrance."
"That's a bit too much drama," she replied angrily. "If I discover that your little shake-up has ruined any part of my plans, I will hound you the way I hounded Kyprioth when he interfered with Alanna the Lioness. You know I will!"
"Calm down, love," soothed Mithros. "No one died. As a matter of fact, those mortals are going to be very happy - and very busy - with the new sources of wealth my 'shifting of the mountains' has just uncovered. Perhaps they will build you a shiny new temple decorated with fine silverwork and highly polished marble. You'll see - everything will be just fine."
"I'm still mad at you! Look at the mess you made! The avalanches and rockslides have completely cut them off not only from Corus, but from each other as well. Now there's all this extra work - it's distracting! Mortals can concentrate on only one or two things at a time. Mistakes happen when they're overwhelmed."
"Mistakes happen because they're mortal!"
"Listen, I appreciate you agreeing to let me answer the prayers of that poor mother down there. Her love and loyalty to her son are commendable, and she deserves a little happiness before the Dark God comes for her. But this ... this display of your power is completely ridiculous! What if she had had a heart attack and died, hmm? What if a piece of the ceiling had fallen and crushed them both to death?"
"Alright, alright! I'll make sure the passes between the two locations are clear. I'll even blow away the snow. Surely their king will send help soon, so you only have a little time to put your plans in motion, anyway."
"Like I said ... if your actions have messed up my plans ..."
"Oh, stop it! The mother is fine - her son is awake. They're both alive and well, if a bit shaken. I still don't think much of the boy, but maybe his mother's love can help redeem him. As for the girl, good luck with that. I fully expect to see the boy back in the Chamber in a year's time - mother's love or not."
Although there were no more flashes of lightning, and no rain fell from the sky, the thunder continued for the rest of the day.
A/N: I love constructive criticism. Please R&R. Thanks!