Author's note: Took a rest from this to focus on other things, I'll finish up some chapters before posting them since I want to have Arc 3 of my fanfiction ready by December for the holidays.
I meant what I said, I won't be waiting up for the next seasons, I'm going by the books. Questions are best addressed by PM. In the meantime, read on and don't forget to leave a review please.
When Samuel got his first glimpse of the Grey Fang, he thought he was about to be devoured by a werewolf...
Until he saw that the bipedal wolf wore armor and a cloak, and held a ring of keys in one of it's paws.
The wolf stared at him with yellow eyes and smiled viciously.
It walked over to Samuel put its snout in his face. It sniffed him, and scoffed. Confused, Samuel looked into its eyes and saw something that took him aback: intelligence.
Then it spoke. "So you're the father of the one everyone's talking about, then." Its voice was deep, its manner measured and calm-not like the reptilian Fangs, who crackled and cackled and carried on like unruly children.
"But you'll bend, just like the rest of them. Welcome to Woes of Shreve, outsider."
And it hit Samuel, this had be another sort of Fang, and they already knew he and his children weren't from this land.
The wolf turned away and set to work pulling the chain holding the shackles to the prisoners, leading them to several Fangs and men with covered faces holding some strange reddish paint.
One by one the prisoners were dragged and covered up in them, before being herded up the ladder to the deck.
"Woes of Shreve?" Samuel was puzzled.
Carefully, he noticed that the temperature was rather warm. The ship must've arrived somewhere warmer, like a tropical island, or a desert.
Samuel had no time to take a guess because the wolf then dragged him towards the other fangs and men. At once, Samuel's shirt was removed and he was covered up in the substance, which he heard bloodrock dye.
"What's this for to cover in condiments for the rotisserie?" Samuel sputtered, chagrined by the roughness.
"Ha! If we wanted to cook you we'd have dragged out into the sunlight for you burn up without it." One of the Green Fangs sniggered.
Samuel stopped struggling immediately but was even more bewildered when instead of roughly giving him back his purple shirt, he was covered up in different robes that made him think of the Bedouins from the Middle east.
Then he was yanked right out of the hold and onto the docks.
The bright light nearly blinded Samuel before his sight adjusted. Above to his left, sorrowful people walked the gang-plank to the pier. All of them trembled and cowered at the sight of the walking wolves.
As he got his bearings, Samuel gaped.
He'd taken a correct guess, it was a desert region. And judging from the look of things, the Fangs intended to travel with the prisoners across it.
...
I left him!
His mind had screamed these words so many times over the years that they were burned into his core. No matter how he tried, he could not escape that one fact, that one decision that had haunted him all these years. No matter how he ran, no matter how he fought to protect the jewels, Peet's deepest heart was rotten and dying from those three brutal words.
All he had to do was give up and it would all be over. He could wave at the Grey Fang in the window, and the Stone Keeper would take his hand and trade his sorrow for the mindless nothing of the iron box. The red light would flash, and all that was left of Artham Wingfeather would disappear.
For days the Grey Fangs delivered more of the frightened children to the Stone Keeper, and she calmed them and welcomed them and killed them.
That's right, thought Artham, killed them. She took away their lives. Still, he felt a stab of guilt for the Fangs he had slain-had they been children like these?
No, these Fangs were no more men than an ax handle was a tree. It was Gnag who had done the killing. He had killed the living thing and made something different from it, given it a half-life. That was why the Fangs turned to dust and blew away when they died.
When he recognized Tink, he'd panicked and as a result the toher Fangs held him down.
Artham soon realized that neither the Stone Keeper nor the Fangs understood the High King of Anniera was in their grasp. They thought he was just another boy. Perhaps it was better if they didn't know who Tink was. But if they knew-if they knew, then maybe they wouldn't send him into the box.
Through the cluster of Fangs, Artham caught a glimpse of the Stone Keeper extending her hand.
"You, little boy," she said in a soothing voice. "Come nearer."
He heard each footstep as Tink climbed the stairs.
"Tmmmmk!" Artham sobbed into the Fang's paw. "Tmmmmmk!" The Fang punched Artham in the face so hard that his vision blurred.
"Don't pay any attention to them, child," he heard the Stone Keeper say. "Keep your eyes on me."
"All right," Tink said.
"What's your name, child?" asked the Stone Keeper.
Artham froze. He wondered what the woman would do when Tink told her his name. Would she recognize him?
"Uh, Weaver," Tink said in a small voice.
"Where are you from, Weaver?" asked the woman. Tink was silent. Artham heard the skritch of the Fang beside the dais writing Tink's answers in the book. "It's all right. It's been a terrible journey, hasn't it, boy? But the journey is over. You will soon have a new home, and a new name, and great strength. Would that please you?"
"Yeah," Tink answered quietly.
"No," Artham slurred through the Fang's paw. No! his inner voice screamed.
"Come inside with me and fear no more," said the Stone Keeper.
Tink sighed. "Yes ma'am."
Artham heard the iron door squeak open. He heard Tink walk inside. He heard the door close behind him.
And then he heard the first notes of the dreadful song of the ancient stones.
….
Kimera
While they settle into the warmth and safety of the Ice Prairies, the Bennet siblings know that their journey is far from over.
Leeli was delighted to see Elisheva alive, more so now that she officially got to meet Zev. The two younger siblings got along quite nicely.
Kimera turned to be an underground settlement made of ice and composed by a maze of round tunnels. Because many of the walls were made of ice and hard-packed snow, light from lanterns that lined the walkways fragmented and scattered, giving the impression that the city was high in the sky, cut from cloud and sunlight, and not deep in the ground.
Both Elisheva and Zev alike were amazed at the sight.
Later while Janner is resting, his shoulder is tended to with stitches due to that snickbuzzard attack. It must've been a few hours before the boy finally awakened to see Zev sitting on the bed opposite him.
The boy from New York city had gotten a change of clothes, particularly a green shirt and dark green pants yet still wore his sneakers.
"Hey somebody's eager to see you, Jan-boy." Zev grinned at Janner.
Janner lay in a bed of soft white fur. The covers were fur, too, but nothing like the smelly, stiff wolf skins he, Zev, Elisheva and Maraly had scavenged. These were soft as feathers and warm. Someone had replaced his clothes with a nightgown made of a downy fabric. The floor was cobbled stone, but the walls were glassy and white, and it wasn't until he touched them that Janner realized they were made of ice. His finger stuck to the wall, and when he pulled it away, a little wisp of steam evaporated as his fingerprint disappeared.
"They can come in," Janner nodded to the younger boy, and the wooden door swung open to reveal a girl on a crutch. She wore a simple white dress, and her blonde hair was pulled back in a long braid.
"Leeli!" Janner cried, and he swept her up in a tight hug.
"Its a good thing you fainted," she giggled. They had to sew up your shoulder." He had forgotten about his snickbuzzard wound. Janner pulled back the collar of his nightgown and was surprised to see a bandage wrapped around his upper arm. "It doesn't hurt," he said, moving his shoulder in circles.
"They put garp oil on it," Leeli said. "It's a kind of fish—which is what we eat around here, mostly. It doesn't speed up the healing, but it takes the pain away for a while."
"So how long have you guys been here?" Zev asked, looking around.
"We got here ten days ago." Leeli looked at the floor and avoided Janner's gaze. "I'm sorry we left you and Elisheva. I didn't want to. None of us did. But the Fangs—"
"Hush," Janner said. "It's all right. I had a lot of time to think about it, and I understand. It was the only thing that could be done to keep you safe. Where's Maraly—the Strander girl?"
"She's with Gammon. I don't think she wanted to get cleaned up, but Mama made her. You know how she is."
"You shoulda seen your mom when Lish sneezed, too." Zev grinned mischievously. "She made her get a warmer change of clothes so she won't get sick again."
"What about Grandpa and Oskar?"
Leeli rolled her eyes. "They got tired of waiting for you to wake up, so they're in the tavern playing cards. That's where Grandpa's spent most of his time. Elisheva's down there too, Mama wanted her to have something warm."
"There's a tavern? Underground?"
Leeli then explained, "Sort of. We're not actually underground."
"More like under snow, very deep snow." Zev emphasized.
"After a while, it seems like an ordinary town, with streets and houses and places to play." Leeli the noticed Janner's expression, "What's wrong?"
Janner had hung his head morosely.
Zev frowned a bit, he figured Janner was thinking of his little brother and how much he would have loved Kimera.
"It's not your fault," said Leeli. She limped across the room and sat beside Janner on the bed. "Nobody thinks it's your fault."
"Yeah, dude, you gotta stop beating yourself over this." Zev tried to reassure the older boy.
"But I'm a Throne Warden!" Janner snapped. "My one job in the world is to protect him, and I couldn't do it!"
Leeli and Zev became silent.
Janner felt a sob rising in his throat. He had spent days and days on the run. He had thought about Tink many times, but always, at the front of his mind, was his quest to reach the Ice Prairies. He had dreamed of his mother's embrace. He had dreamed of rest and food and safety. Lurking underneath it all was the stark, awful image of Tink in the Black Carriage, eyes wide and full of terror.
All that time, Janner had been able to push the guilt away because he wasn't sure he was much better off.
But now that he was in a soft bed in a warm room with his family so near, it felt unfair. He didn't deserve such comfort when his brother was-wherever he was. Janner wanted to tear off the soft nightgown, wrap himself in wolf skins again, and trudge back through the Stony Mountains to Dugtown. He would march right up to the nearest Fang and turn himself over. The Black Carriage seemed a better fate than this unbearable guilt.
"Aha!" said a raspy voice. Podo burst into the room.
He looked like Podo always looked, with his bushy white eyebrows and his wild white hair, but one of his arms hung in a sling. But if Podo's wound hurt, it didn't show. He rushed forward and tackled Janner onto the bed. He smelled of pipe smoke and ale. He poked Janner's ribs with his gnarled old fingers and laughed, but Janner only lay on his back, motionless.
Podo's mirth vanished. He plopped down on the bed beside Leeli with a heavy sigh and placed a hand on Janner's leg.
Nia and Oskar appeared in the doorway followed by Elisheva and took in the situation at once. Oskar's cheeks were rosy, his swath of hair was neatly pressed to the top of his head, and his folded hands rested atop his belly. Nia wore a different gown, but she looked no less regal.
Elisheva now wore a long deep blue winter coat with a white fur collar, over her clothes.
Without a word they crossed the room and sat on the bed so that Janner found himself enclosed by his family. They were silent. Janner stared at the ceiling.
"We love you," Nia said at last, placing a hand on Janner's face.
Janner sobbed. "I lost him," he wailed. "I tried to find him, but he was gone. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Tears streamed down his face. He cried so hard he could barely breathe. Over and over again he said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
And over and over again, Nia said, "We love you, we love you."
When Janner's tears finally ebbed, Podo gathered him in his big arms and held him close. Janner's eyes closed. He felt his mother's hand in his hair, Leeli's head resting on his arm, and Oskar's hand on his foot.
Elisheva and Zev had been quietly observing the emotional turmoil that Janner had been experiencing, empathizing with his pain and guilt.
Then the silence broke. Leeli prayed aloud to the Maker for protection for Kalmar Wingfeather. When she finished, Janner's well was dry. He had no more tears to cry, and his best hope was that the Maker indeed heard the name Kalmar Wingfeather and would stoop to Aerwiar to help him.
Leeli raised her whistleharp to her lips and played. It was a new melody, something she was improvising, much as she had when she played Nugget's song over the waters of the Dark Sea.
Zev opened his mouth to speak but closed it at once as he listened to the melody. It felt oddly comforting.
Janner's eyes were closed, but within seconds the blackness swirled and took shape, and he could see things far, far away.
"Keep playing!" Janner said, leaping to the floor. The adults watched him with concern, but he didn't care.
Leeli looked confused, but she kept playing.
Elisheva watched bemusedly, then remembered what happened back when Nugget had perished, the dragon's warning. At that time she'd wanted to offer the children condolences and then when Leeli had begun playing her whistleharp…
It was a long shot.
"I wonder." Elisheva took a few cautious steps closer to Janner and Leeli.
Janner turned slowly with his hand outstretched, willing the images in his mind to solidify. He didn't know it, but when he stopped turning, he faced south and east, and if he had been a bird flying that direction, he could have soared over the Ice Prairies, across the waters of a narrow strait, and to a rocky island where Peet the Sock Man struggled in a cage.
But Janner saw none of that. He saw only blurry images and darkness.
Then Elisheva blinked several times, the same vision Janner was seeing washed over her. What was she – well, more like, what were they looking at?
Here they understood that the darkness was what they were supposed to see, and that the blurry images weren't blurry at all. They were beams of light slipping through cracks. And there it was: two specks of light, deep in the shadows, and the outline of a dirty, swollen face.
A red light exploded in the darkness, and Tink's face materialized. His lips moved. His eyes were hollow and profoundly sad. When the light was brightest, Tink's eyes fell wearily shut, and he vanished.
Leeli lowered the whistleharp from her lips, and the image disappeared.
Elisheva fell backwards, bewildered. What was that red light?
Janner then came out of it with a gasp. His heart pounded so hard that he put a hand to his chest. "I saw him!" he cried. "He's alive!"
Elisheva's eyes widened, and she rushed forward, placing a comforting hand on Janner's shoulder. "Jan, you saw that-? Right?" she asked, her voice filled with hope.
Zev joined them, his face a mix of surprise and curiosity. "Yeah, tell us everything," he urged.
Breathing heavily, Janner struggled to find the right words to describe what he had witnessed. "I saw flashes of light and darkness, and then... then I saw Tink's face," he explained, his voice laced with both wonder and urgency. "He looked tired and sad, but he was there. I know it."
Elisheva gently placed her hand on Janner's shoulder, her voice filled with compassion. "Then there's hope. We'll find him, I don't know how. But we'll find him."
"What do you see when Leeli plays?" asked Nia, leaning forward.
"Pictures," Janner said with a shrug. "But it's not every time she plays, and all three times it's been a different song."
"Three times?" Leeli questioned.
"I only remember it happening with the sea dragons."
"It happened again when you were in the mountains," Janner said, smiling at the surprise on Leeli's face. "I saw you all. I didn't understand what I was seeing, and I didn't want to believe it, but I saw you in the snow, high in the mountains. At the same time I saw Elisheva looking for us in Dugtown and Tink in the Strander cage."
"In the Strander cage?" Podo growled. "Was it them who turned him over to the blasted Carriage?"
"Yes sir," Janner said quietly,
"It was." Elisheva and Zev confirmed simultaneously.
Podo's chest rumbled.
Janner then inquired, "Mama, why does Leeli's song do that? Is it magic?"
Nia smiled. "What's magic, anyway? If you asked a kitten, 'How does a bumble-bee fly?' the answer would probably be 'Magic.' Aerwiar is full of wonders, and some call it magic. This is a gift from the Maker— it isn't something Leeli created or meant to do, nor did you mean to see these images. You didn't seek to bend the ways of the world to your will. You stumbled on this thing, the way a kitten happens upon a flower where a bumblebee has lit. This is like the water from the First Well. The music Leeli makes has great power, but it is clear the Maker put the power there when He knit the world. If it seems as though we have uncovered some secret, it is only because the wars of the ages concealed what was once as common as grass."
"Okay that last part really got to me," Zev admitted scratching his head.
"Wait so that does that mean there could be holy relics like the Ark of the covenant scattered around or well hidden?" Elisheva inquired.
Everyone looked at her puzzledly.
"Uhm, I'll explain later."
Oskar then spoke, "Onto the subject of history, I've learned much from the First Book. Much about Aerwiar and the cause of its breaking. Anyara—Anniera—was such a bright city. Justice and gladness were the jewels in its crown." He removed his spectacles and wiped the corner of his eye. "But Ouster Will laid waste to it all. He saw the gifts the Maker gave, corrupted them, and bent them to his own will. But that was much later," he said as he replaced his spectacles. "When the city was bright, the children sang music that made flowers change color overnight. Other children wrote poetry that it was said raised the great stone arches of the city gates. Still others painted pictures that, when the right child sang the right song or read the right tale, moved-"
"The pictures moved?" Leeli asked breathlessly.
"They did?" Zev's eyes widened.
"That's what it said," Oskar told them in a whisper, "and I believe it." He looked from Janner to Leeli and he Bennet siblings with shining eyes. "All my life I've wanted to believe the stories are true. I've never been able to quiet the pleasurable ache between my heart and my stomach that I felt as a boy when I read these tales. And now that I am wrapped up in the Wingfeather saga, that ache has grown so that I can hardly bear it. Here I sit in the presence of queens and heroes and magic. Yes, magic. It is only when we have grown too old that we fail to see that the Maker's world is swollen with magic—it hides in plain sight in music and water and even bumblebees."
"I have seen many things, children," said Nia, and a faraway look came into her eyes. "Wonderful things. The old stories might call it magic, but I call it beauty. I might even call it love." She blinked and came back to herself.
"But… how can Lish – er, my sister here can see the same thing as Janner but I can't?" Zev inquired, jerking his thumb at Elisheva.
"Maybe it has to do with me becoming the Key, but so far I haven't opened any doorways to other places yet." Elisheva surmised.
Nia smiled. "That you can see these things when she plays is a gift. Never try to become its master, but serve it. Allow it to be what the Maker meant it to be."
So many questions. Why did Leeli's song only work some of the time? Why did Oskar say it was only children whose songs and poems and paintings had power? Was Tink in the Black Carriage? What were they going to do?
"Are we gonna sit here and blather about kittens all day?" Podo asked impatiently. "We came here to fetch Janner for dinner, if ye recall."
"Yes, yes," said Oskar, rubbing his chubby hands together. "Might we continue this discussion over cider and garp chowder? I have much to tell you about your First Book, Janner! On page twenty-seven your mother and I translated some old whistle-harp music—a song called Yurgen's Tune,' as far as we could tell. Imagine our surprise when Leeli played it and it was very like an old nursery melody your mother used to sing to you. Think of it!" Oskar jiggled with excitement. "And of course we need to learn about what happened to you, Elisheva, and we may have planning to do. 'Learn and plan over food if you can,' said the great R.T. Crunk. I'm inclined to agree."
Everyone laughed, but Janner's stomach growled at the mention of food, which made them all think of Tink again. They filed from the room in silence.
….
There was no wind. Janner and the Bennet siblings noted that for days they'd slept outside and walked outside, contending with an eternal, biting wind that cut through every layer of wolf skin they'd worn. Kimera was warm by comparison.
A delicious smell wafted through the bright tunnel and grew stronger with every step. They passed several wooden doors, set into the hard ice just as they would have set in a wooden frame.
"Oy," said Podo as he led the company past two men with buckets of water. They wore leggings but no shirts. Their chests were hairy and broad as a bomnubble's, bigger even than Polo's. Their hair was long, but their beards were longer, and though their faces were hard and cold, they broke into fine, handsome smiles at Polo's greeting.
"Oy back at you, old man," said one of the men as he splashed an entire bucket of water at the wall. The water crackled and turned to ice before it reached the floor. The other man dipped a rag into his bucker and rubbed the wall smooth.
"They get fresh water from a wellhouse, deep underground. Gets warmer the deeper you go. Ain't that surprising?" Podo said.
As they walked he explained how the Kimerans repaired the ice walls and how they got food either by hunting or fishing.
"Fishing? Are we near the Dark Sea?" Janner asked.
"Yes and no," he said. "These garp are from a river they say runs beneath the ice near the city. That's where they get most of their food. As for the sea, if we walked across the surface it would take days, but that's only because the ice stretches for miles over the water.
"The Kimerans are smarter than that, though. Epochs ago they cut tunnels that led to the Dark Sea, great caverns in the ice where waves lap at a frozen shore. In fact, there used to be a Kimeran port before the war. Sailors could steer their ships right into an icy corridor just wide enough for the oars, then row for miles through a white canyon." Podo's voice changed, and Janner didn't need to ask if the old pirate had been there himself. "At the end of the canyon is die mouth of a tunnel, and the maddest captains would wait until low tide and sail right in. Miles the tunnel went, tight to the port at Kimera, where there was always good trade and garp chowder to warm the bones."
"Speaking of chowder," said Oskar, and they rounded a bend in the iceway and stopped at a set of giant wooden doors.
Podo pushed them open. Hundreds of people sat at long candlelit tables, laughing, shouting, singing, and chattering. The domed ceiling was smooth as glass, and just transparent enough to see the orange glow of the setting sun at the western edge. The sunlight gave all the Kimerans a happy radiance that deepened. The stone walls glistened with water that melted from the icy dome and trickled into a gutter that lined the perimeter of the floor and sent the runoff away through a culvert.
"Well, it's not Iceland, but it's cool." Zev joked.
Elisheva lightly elbowed him. "I doubt even the snowy tundra towns back on Earth could compare to this."
The air was thick with the rich scent of garp chowder, but the smell of hot bread and the glad aroma of a fire. On the opposite side of the room sat the largest fireplace ever seen. The opening was as tall as a man and wide as a barn door, and whole trees crackled in a warm fire. It was made of sea-smoothed stones, gray and black and layered with patterned shades. The chimney soared upward into the ice. Above the fireplace was an enormous mantel on which lay an arrangement of the bones of a large creature.
"What's that?" Janner asked. "The bones, I mean."
Zev titled his head to examine the sight. "Is that a sea serpent or a dinosaur?"
"A sea dragon," said Oskar.
"Its too small." Janner said. The dragons are enormous."
"That's because," Oskar said sadly, "it was one of their young.
"Say what?!" Elisheva spun around in shock.
Oskar nodded. "Not more than a few years old. Many years ago, baby sea dragons fetched a high price. They were nearly impossible to catch, but their hides were worth more than many jewels. The meat of a young sea dragon was one of the finest delicacies in all of Skree. Only the wealthiest could afford it."
"Gruesome." Zev said cringing, Elisheva had told him about her experience in Glipwood on Dragon Day.
"That's terrible," said Leeli.
"It was, dear," said Nia. "The kings of Anniera, it is said, once had an alliance with the sea dragons. For epochs Annierans tried to renew the old alliance, but they didn't know how to communicate with the beasts. Still, our people always believed that of all the Maker's creatures, the sea dragons were sacred." Her voice darkened. "But to the dragon hunters there was nothing sacred but riches. Wicked men will do anything for money. Annierans despised the dragon hunters and were right to do so."
Janner shivered. Elisheva has winced at the thought. The dragons were creatures of such terrible beauty. They couldn't imagine killing one, let alone one of their young.
"This is the oldest part of the city," said a familiar voice from just inside the room. Dressed in black, Gammon leaned against the wall with his arms folded, smiling. "It's the one room in all the city where we can burn the driftwood as hot as we like and not worry about the walls melting." He pointed at the ceiling. "We pump water from the well to a fountain that pours onto the glass dome night and day. The air outside is so cold that it stays thick and clear no matter how warm it gets down here."
"Gammon,'," Podo said in greeting, "you've done a great work here. I can't cell ye how fine it is to live in a city with no Fangs. Skree is lucky to have such a one as yourself."
Janner wasn't used to Podo speaking to another man in such a way. The old pirate actually liked him. Janner was glad, because he liked Gammon too. In the Stony Mountains he had placed his trust in the man, and he was relieved to see that Podo would have approved.
"Thank you, Podo. I'm glad you're here. Make yourself at home. Kimera is a free city, as free as Skree before the war, and as free as Skree will one day be again. Janner, Elisheva, Zev, you're all probably wondering about Maraly. That's her at the table by the wall."
The youngsters were shocked to see a girl in a red dress. Her hair was still boyish and short but clean and adorned with a string of pearls. If Gammon hadn't pointed her out, he never would have recognized her. Beneath all the dirt and meanness, Maraly was quite pretty. Then she leaned over, snorted, and spat on the floor beside the table. She wiped her mouth with her sleeve and shoveled a lumpy spoonful of chowder into her mouth. A glop of it landed in her lap and she scooped it up with her fingers and licked them clean, then absentmindedly wiped her fingers on the front of her dress as she scooped up another spoonful. Janner smiled.
"Yeah, that's her alright." Elisheva mumbled.
Nia raised one eyebrow. "I see we have some work to do with that one."
The Igiby family and the Bennets joined Maraly at the table, and three Kimeran women appeared with steaming bowls of garp chowder and mugs of cider. It was the finest meal Janner had ever eaten. If he hadn't been sitting next to his mother, he would have gobbled the food just like Maraly, but he forced himself to keep his back straight and take modest bites.
Zev hesitantly tried the chowder. "Mmm, this is great!"
"I'll say." Elisheva agreed. "Kinda reminds me of that diner broth back when we visited the beach one summer."
Several times during the meal, various men, women, and children stopped at the table to welcome Janner, Elisheva, Zev and Maraly. They were kind and respectful, especially to Nia, who was most dearly some kind of royalty.
Maraly said little and ate as noisily as Podo for the duration of the meal. When she finished off her cider, she belched and patted her stomach. Podo would have laughed had Nia not fixed him with a hot glare. Janner could tell she was trying very hard not to let her disapproval show.
Zev lightly elbowed Elisheva, who smiled slightly.
"So tell us the story, lad," Podo then addressed Janner. "What happened?"
All eyes turned to Janner. Podo nodded at him, Zev and at Elisheva. "I know it's hard, but it's yours. Ye'll find healing in it, like it or not. Start at the beginning—at Ronchy's place. What happened after I broke down the door?"
Janner took a deep breath and began. He told them all of it. He told them about his anger at Tink. About how he lost sight of Elisheva, the horrors of Tilling Court, about the awful darkness of the Overseer's box and the peace he found there. He told them about finding Sarah Cobbler, discovering Zev at the factory, and Nurgabog, Elisheva recovering, and Maraly.
Zev was next. "Mine's short enough," he shrugged and he explained what happened right after he and Samuel had been forcibly torn away from Elisheva months ago, and their subsequent arrival to Dugtown. The Fork factory, Samuel's involuntary transfer.
"I fought against the big kids, trying to get to Dad… and they knocked me out then put me in the box." Zev relayed the last part flatly.
Elisheva covered her mouth, horrified at what her father and brother endured.
Then Zev explained how he and Janner managed to escape. He showed off his firecrackers to the others, who were astounded at Zev's ingenuity of successfully building something from his world.
Nevertheless, Elisheva was shocked. So the dark place where that creep tried to bother her was where Zev, Janner and Sarah were being kept?
"You and Janner were in that dump this whole time?" Elisheva felt her heart sink, conflicted on what else could've happened.
Zev nodded. "Yeah. It sucked. But we're here now, and that's what matters."
Elisheva nodded, but her expression was terribly troubled. "I can't believe you were there all that time, and I didn't know it. I'm so sorry, Slugger."
"Hey. It's not your fault, Lish," Zev said, putting a hand on her arm. "But how'd you lose sight of Jan, I mean Janner here? At least before you got sick and fell in that burrow with the old lady that you couldn't leave for days?"
Elisheva sighed. "It was my fault, Zev. I was trying to protect him when we went looking for Tink, but I didn't do a very good job. I should have stayed closer to him."
Janner shook his head. "Elisheva, it wasn't your fault. We were both trying to protect each other. We just got separated, and I couldn't find you. I took a wrong turn, that's all."
"Before you fell in the burrow, lass, what happened?" Podo asked, his face full of concern.
"How'd you get so sick you couldn't leave?" Leeli questioned worriedly.
Everyone at the table all looked at Elisheva with troubled expressions. As if they were afraid the young woman would faint on the spot.
Elisheva spoke in a quiet, subdued voice, her eyes downcast as she recounted her experiences. Her usually lively and intrepid demeanor was replaced by a solemn and serious one. She seemed almost hesitant to speak, as if the memories were too painful to relive.
Her voice was soft as she explained what had happened to her after she and Janner had been separated. "I searched for you guys for days," she said, her eyes downcast. "I disguised myself and asked around, hoping to find some clue as to where you or my family might be. But I didn't find anything."
She paused, then continued. "One time, I stopped right in front of the Fork factory, and that's where I saw… him. The Overseer. He was right behind the portcullis, looking at me with way too much interest. A-a-and he tried to lure me inside by sweet-talking me, but I knew something was seriously wrong. I turned him down flat, and he started shouting threats about catching me one day. I was scared, trying not to show it, but I got away."
Her audience listened intently, their expressions shifting from concern to anger as she recounted her encounter with the Overseer. The atmosphere in the room had become tense as Elisheva spoke about the encounter.
Nia was visibly horrified at the thought of Elisheva being in such danger. Maraly scowled but her eyes told a different sentiment, and Leeli listened intently, looking as if she were listening to a scary tale.
Elisheva notices the darkened expressions on the faces of the males in the room as she recounts her encounter with the Overseer. It's clear to her that her story has evoked strong emotions in them—anger, concern, and a fierce protectiveness.
Podo clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, his eyes reflecting a mix of anger and determination. His protective instincts were ignited.
Oskar N. Reteep shifted uncomfortably in his seat, his usually calm demeanor replaced by a stern expression.
Janner listened to Elisheva's story attentively, having paled when he heard how close she was to being captured. Hearing about her dangerous encounter with the Overseer filled him with a mix of anger, guilt, and renewed determination to keep her safe.
Zev clenched his fists tightly, his face contorted with anger. The boy tried hard not to think of what would've happened if that sleazy snake had gotten his hands on his sister.
"I KNEW I shoulda thrown that firecracker in his face." He muttered.
Elisheva gave Zev a small smile, appreciating his protective instincts. "Slugger, he failed to catch me. I'd say the joke's on him." she said.
Her expression softened as she looked at Podo, Oskar, Janner, and Zev, recognizing the depth of their care and concern for her.
She went on to explain how she had gotten sick after spending a rainy night outside, trying to avoid the Fangs.
"Then when I started searching the streets again, I kept seeing Fangs, some were a little too close to the usual hiding places one rainy night. So I had to stay out of sight for hours. Then I decided to head back to the Burrow, hoping to find you there. But as I opened the trapdoor… I fell in."
That was when Nurgabog had found her and nursed her back to health. Podo's expression softened, as did Maraly's.
"It was a blessing from Messiah that she found me when she did," Elisheva said, her voice trembling slightly. "When I was more lucid, Nurgabog said I was feverish for hours with intense nightmares." she said the last part gripping her knees at the memory. "She was hurt herself, but did her best to bring down the fever with the leftover water and herbs."
When she spoke of being treated by old Nurgabog, her voice softened with gratitude. She looked up at the group, meeting each person's gaze briefly before continuing her story elaborating that after recovering a little, Janner and Zev arrived at the Burrow.
And as they say, the rest is history.
They listened with wide eyes. They asked questions now and then, and more than once Nia's eyes brimmed with tears. But what Podo had said was true—telling the story hurt and helped all at once. Already Elisheva could see ways the story had changed her, Janner and Zev would go on changing them.
Oskar leaned back in his chair and dabbed his brow with a napkin.
"Now those are tales," Podo said.
Nia put an arm around Janner and squeezed before giving gentle glances at Elisheva and Zev.
"But we need to find where they could've taken Elisheva and Zev's father, AND do something about Tink," said Leeli. "If Janner saw him in the song, that means he's alive, doesn't it? And if he's alive, then we have to find him."
"How?" Janner asked. "All I could see was that he was in a box. That could mean he's in the Black Carriage or a dungeon or—or a ship, even. It would be no easier to find him than it would have been for you to find me when I was in Dugtown."
"Ain't no hope for Kalmar or the twosome's father," said Maraly. It was the first she'd spoken since Janner, Elisheva and Zev's tales began.
"Don't say that," Nia snapped.
Maraly narrowed her eyes at Nia, and the Strander returned. "It's true. Nobody who gets taken by the Carriage ever comes back. Me pa sent I don't know how many kids—some of 'em were from our own clan!—to the cages, and they never come back. Friends of mine too. Boys who could fight a lot better than Kalmar ever could and who knew the forest better than me. They promised they'd find a way back, and they never have. Not once. What makes ye think Kalmar's any different?"
Many of the Kimerans seated nearby looked up from their chowder when Maraly's voice rose.
Gammon tried to calm her. "Easy, lass," he said to Maraly, who smiled at him. He spread his hands and looked at the Igibys. "For years we've eaten our meals in peace, and no sooner do you good people arrive than we have a scuffle."
Maraly's smile vanished, and she scowled at Nia. "She's scuffling."
"Me apologies, Gammon," said Podo. "You know how womenfolk can be"— Nia's jaw dropped at this while Elisheva scowled—"always bickerin' amongst themselves. We'll keep it down. Won't we, daughter?" Podo looked sternly at Nia, who returned a smoldering gaze.
"Good," Gammon said. "What was the source of the spat? Perhaps I can help."
"We were discussing how we should go about finding Kalmar," Oskar said.
"And how to rescue our Dad." Zev added matter-of-factly.
Gammon raised his eyebrows. "Oh? I thought they were both been taken by the Black Carriage."
"They have," Janner said.
"Then I'm afraid there's no getting any of them back," Gammon said gravely.
"That's what I told 'em," said Maraly without looking up.
Nia threw her napkin on the table and left the room.
"Jan got you outta that cage, you got a funny way of showing gratitude!" Zev grumbled.
"Listen, sir," Podo said. "We're guests here. I know we owe you much for gettin' Janner and the Bennets here safely. But ye have to understand somethin'."
"What's that?" Gammon asked.
"Kalmar is her boy. We have reason to think he might yet be breathin', and as long as that's true, we don't aim to forget him or to give up. Well keep the candle burnin', just as we did with Janner here."
"I hear what you're saying, Podo, but there's something you need to understand too. Nobody gets out of the Carriage. There's too many Fangs."
Podo scoffed. "We both know the Fangs ain't as much trouble as a snake in the grass if you know how to use a blade. Dust and bones is all they are."
"Not anymore," Gammon said.
"What do ye mean?"
"I mean they're stronger. Faster. More dangerous than they used to be, and now that they come from the Phoobs they can get here quicker—"
"The Phoob Islands? What about 'em?"
"Nothing."
Podo glared at him and waited for an answer.
Gammon sighed and glanced around to be sure none of the Kimerans were listening, then leaned in close. He opened his mouth to speak, then shook his head. "I can't tell you. Too many ears."
Podo rolled his eyes. "What, ye can't trust your own?"
"No. I can't. Remember Migg Landers?" Gammon asked. Podo growled. "He was one of my own, and I couldn't trust him, could I? I have a plan, but I don't mean to tell it to a soul until the time is right. In the meantime, you and your family just stay put. Kimera welcomes you. Enjoy the rest." He rose from the table. "One more thing. I know you loved your grandson, and I know he was important in Anniera. But if he and the Bennet children's father have been taken by the Carriage, it's but you put your hopes to rest. Even if they're still alive, they're gone by now. I'm truly sorry."
Podo studied the other man's face for a moment, then nodded stiffly.
Before anyone else could stop her, Elisheva stood right up and glowered at Gammon. "Look, I thank you for getting me, Jan, my brother and Maraly here alive. But let's get one thing straight: I'm not giving up." She stared right into his eyes, "We've come too far to be stopped now. One way or another, my brother and I are going to find out where those freako's are keeping our father and somehow get him out, with or without your help."
Gammon's eyes were sincere and sad. "Best keep that spirit of yours burning, girl. You're going to need it." and he left.
The company sat at the table in silence. The roar of the great fire, the laughter and conversation from the nearby tables, the clatter of spoon on bowl—all mocked the terrible thing Gammon had said. Janner hung his head.
"I know somethin' about the Phoobs," Maraly said.
"What might that be, dear?" said Oskar.
"What do you know?" Leeli asked, sounding like her mother.
"I heard me pa say the Black Carriage sometimes went there instead of Lamendron. Said the Fangs had some new plan. Might be that Kalmar or the other outsider are there. I still say nobody could ever escape the Carriage, but—" She paused and cocked her head sideways.
"But what?" Leeli said.
"Nobody's ever escaped before, but then, nobody's ever had help." She shrugged. "Maybe we could go get 'im. Wouldn't mind finishin' that tackleball game we started at the East Bend."
Looks like one rescue mission had become a two for the price of one. If Elisheva and Zev's father was in the Phoob islands, they'd find out soon enough.
"Right, so are we doing this together or not?" Elisheva nodded firmly.
"Aye." Podo smiled. And like a cloud slipping aside to allow sunlight through, the shadow of Gammon's words drifted away, and hope returned.
"Let's find Nia," Podo said. "I don't know what we'll do or how we'll do it, but we're gonna get me boy back, with or without Gammon's help."
"You guys ever tried a rescue plan with firecrackers?" Zev asked with a knowing grin.
Maraly looked at him. "How do they work?"
Zev replied, "Girl, we got loads to talk about."
To be continued…