“Well, that’s settled!” the Keeper said, breaking the tense silence with a little humor. He picked up his spoon with wizened fingers. “Let us eat.”
…………
In a secluded corner of the Sanctuary grounds, the earth sloped down into a bowl-like impression which, in some bygone age, had become a small pond. Occasionally, a fat trout would break the smooth surface of the water to snatch at an insect before vanishing again in a storm of ripples and scattered sunlight. Frogs croaked nearby.
From the trees that surrounded the pond, Maurus emerged and walked down the incline to stand at the water’s edge. Motionless, he watched the leaping flight of the fish for a moment, then stooped to pick up a rock. When he straightened, an unpleasant grin crossed his face.
“You’re the old man.”
He threw the rock. One of the fish, stung in midair, jerked and flopped back into the water with a graceless splash. Maurus searched around for another rock and waited for the next fish to appear. A fly buzzed close to the water, and a brightly colored form arched upward, droplets gleaming on its scales.
“You’re the stupid woman.”
The second rock zinged. It struck its target with an audible smack, sending it into a backflip. Maurus laughed in glee and retrieved a third rock. Eyes alight, he called out.
“The next one’s that idiot Sialan!”
Another fish crashed in midflight. Suddenly bored, Maurus sat down and lay on his back in the grass, putting his hands behind his head. Above him, the sun glowed indifferently. The sky stretched in all directions like a dome surrounding the world – and Maurus – in its blueness.
“You think you can trap me?” he said softly to the sky. “You think since you’re so big, you can hold me? Just you try. Come and trap me. You can’t even touch me, ha! I can move and run, and all you can do is look blue. I’m better than you, that’s why you can’t touch me. You can’t hold me. You’re worthless. Ha!”
His gaze wandered across the pond, and his eyes took on abrupt intensity. He sat up, staring fixedly. On the opposite bank of the pond stood the outer wall, the forty-foot-high barrier that enclosed Sanctuary’s grounds. Made of the same white marble as the citadel proper, the wall appeared flawless and impassable at this point. But it had been a very long time since maintenance had been done on these grounds with defense in mind. Next to the wall, trees grew in a neat line, some high enough to allow a good climber to make it onto the walltop.
No longer smiling, Maurus clenched his fists, mesmerized by the possibilities. He gave slight shakes of his head, arguing with himself.
“You are thinking of leaving, no?” a voice said from behind him.
Maurus rolled to his feet in an eyeblink, expecting to see Jasna or Sialan come to scold him and punish him for his lateness. The grin returned to his face in preparation for defense. Let them come again…
But the man who stepped from under the trees wasn’t one of the elders. It was the visitor from that morning. The man wore plain brown clothes belted at the waist with a large brass buckle. His distinctive beard, full, lush , and bristling, was tucked into the belt. Moving with strong strides, he descended the slope towards Maurus.
Stunned by this twist in a many-years-old pattern, Maurus found himself frozen. Something about the way the man was advancing made him flinch. “Get away! What are you doing?”
“Oh, I must have startled you. My apologies.” But the bearded man didn’t slow down. He came within arm’s length of Maurus and extended his hand. “Well met. You may call me Beardeau. Lord Nyx Beardeau. And you are?”
Maurus’ mind was still spinning. “Get away!” he repeated. “I’m not supposed to talk to you.” Part of him howled. If he were not off-balance he would never admit to that rule!
“As you wish.” Beardeau shrugged and withdrew his hand, but did not go away. Instead, he took a seat by the pond’s edge and peered into the water. ”Lovely pond. But it is a mere puddle to me. I have seen the Lakes of Lowan.”
Maurus gaped. Puddle? The Sanctuary pond was bigger than the pools and streams in the forest, bigger than any body of water he had seen, except one. Putting on what he thought was an aggressive tone, he said, “So what? I’ve been to the valley and seen the river. Now go away. I don’t talk to stupid outsiders.”
Beardeau chuckled. “A river? I have seen many rivers. I have seen citadels far grander than this rundown artifice.” He didn’t look up, but it was clear he meant the towering Sanctuary behind him. “Were you contemplating running away from your elders, boy?”
“I told you to get away from me, beardface!” Trying to cover his sudden unease that Beardeau might spill the beans on his private thoughts, Maurus started to walk away. “I’m going to lunch.”
“A pity,” Beardeau said. “It had crossed my mind that perhaps I could be of help.”
“I don’t take help from outsiders.” But at the top of the slope, just before the treeline, Maurus turned back. Folding his arms across his chest, he looked down from the higher ground, intrigued. “What does a stupid beardface like you want from me, anyway?”
Beardeau got up, but kept his back to Maurus. He seemed quite engrossed in his scrutiny of the water. “I want nothing from you, boy,” he said. “Only to grant what I sense to be your fondest wish.”
Really nervous now, Maurus hid it by narrowing his eyes. “So you think you know what I want, huh? I didn’t answer your stupid question. You don’t know what I want.”
“One of your elders is coming.” Beardeau faced Maurua then. The eyes above the beard smoldered darkly. “They hold you prisoner, boy. They will never set you free, and you will amount to nothing with them, for they will suppress the longing inside you. Bring your friends to the gates three nights from now, and I will set you free into the world. Come to the gates, three nights from now.”
Just then, a strong hand wrapped around Maurus' arm in an iron grip and spun him around. Sialan stood there with a look that said You're in big trouble. "What are you doing, boy?" His eyes flicked past Maurus to Beardeau, and back to Maurus. "Didn't you hear the ding-dong? That means get inside."
"I didn't do anything!" Maurus wrenched his arm in an effort to pull free. Beardeau's words rang in his ears, robbing his wits of their bite. He lashed out wildly nonetheless. "Your bell is stupid and just a piece of scrap!"
Sialan kept hold of Maurus' arm and began to pull him back through the trees. "Sorry," he called to Beardeau. "You'll have to excuse us."
"I understand," Beardeau replied. He resumed his seat by the pond. "It was a pleasure "
Maurus continued to struggle. Though taller than Sialan, he might as well be trying to break shackles. "Let go! I can come on my own!" but in his mind, he still heard the words: Come to the gates, three nights from now.
…………
In a secluded corner of the Sanctuary grounds, the earth sloped down into a bowl-like impression which, in some bygone age, had become a small pond. Occasionally, a fat trout would break the smooth surface of the water to snatch at an insect before vanishing again in a storm of ripples and scattered sunlight. Frogs croaked nearby.
From the trees that surrounded the pond, Maurus emerged and walked down the incline to stand at the water’s edge. Motionless, he watched the leaping flight of the fish for a moment, then stooped to pick up a rock. When he straightened, an unpleasant grin crossed his face.
“You’re the old man.”
He threw the rock. One of the fish, stung in midair, jerked and flopped back into the water with a graceless splash. Maurus searched around for another rock and waited for the next fish to appear. A fly buzzed close to the water, and a brightly colored form arched upward, droplets gleaming on its scales.
“You’re the stupid woman.”
The second rock zinged. It struck its target with an audible smack, sending it into a backflip. Maurus laughed in glee and retrieved a third rock. Eyes alight, he called out.
“The next one’s that idiot Sialan!”
Another fish crashed in midflight. Suddenly bored, Maurus sat down and lay on his back in the grass, putting his hands behind his head. Above him, the sun glowed indifferently. The sky stretched in all directions like a dome surrounding the world – and Maurus – in its blueness.
“You think you can trap me?” he said softly to the sky. “You think since you’re so big, you can hold me? Just you try. Come and trap me. You can’t even touch me, ha! I can move and run, and all you can do is look blue. I’m better than you, that’s why you can’t touch me. You can’t hold me. You’re worthless. Ha!”
His gaze wandered across the pond, and his eyes took on abrupt intensity. He sat up, staring fixedly. On the opposite bank of the pond stood the outer wall, the forty-foot-high barrier that enclosed Sanctuary’s grounds. Made of the same white marble as the citadel proper, the wall appeared flawless and impassable at this point. But it had been a very long time since maintenance had been done on these grounds with defense in mind. Next to the wall, trees grew in a neat line, some high enough to allow a good climber to make it onto the walltop.
No longer smiling, Maurus clenched his fists, mesmerized by the possibilities. He gave slight shakes of his head, arguing with himself.
“You are thinking of leaving, no?” a voice said from behind him.
Maurus rolled to his feet in an eyeblink, expecting to see Jasna or Sialan come to scold him and punish him for his lateness. The grin returned to his face in preparation for defense. Let them come again…
But the man who stepped from under the trees wasn’t one of the elders. It was the visitor from that morning. The man wore plain brown clothes belted at the waist with a large brass buckle. His distinctive beard, full, lush , and bristling, was tucked into the belt. Moving with strong strides, he descended the slope towards Maurus.
Stunned by this twist in a many-years-old pattern, Maurus found himself frozen. Something about the way the man was advancing made him flinch. “Get away! What are you doing?”
“Oh, I must have startled you. My apologies.” But the bearded man didn’t slow down. He came within arm’s length of Maurus and extended his hand. “Well met. You may call me Beardeau. Lord Nyx Beardeau. And you are?”
Maurus’ mind was still spinning. “Get away!” he repeated. “I’m not supposed to talk to you.” Part of him howled. If he were not off-balance he would never admit to that rule!
“As you wish.” Beardeau shrugged and withdrew his hand, but did not go away. Instead, he took a seat by the pond’s edge and peered into the water. ”Lovely pond. But it is a mere puddle to me. I have seen the Lakes of Lowan.”
Maurus gaped. Puddle? The Sanctuary pond was bigger than the pools and streams in the forest, bigger than any body of water he had seen, except one. Putting on what he thought was an aggressive tone, he said, “So what? I’ve been to the valley and seen the river. Now go away. I don’t talk to stupid outsiders.”
Beardeau chuckled. “A river? I have seen many rivers. I have seen citadels far grander than this rundown artifice.” He didn’t look up, but it was clear he meant the towering Sanctuary behind him. “Were you contemplating running away from your elders, boy?”
“I told you to get away from me, beardface!” Trying to cover his sudden unease that Beardeau might spill the beans on his private thoughts, Maurus started to walk away. “I’m going to lunch.”
“A pity,” Beardeau said. “It had crossed my mind that perhaps I could be of help.”
“I don’t take help from outsiders.” But at the top of the slope, just before the treeline, Maurus turned back. Folding his arms across his chest, he looked down from the higher ground, intrigued. “What does a stupid beardface like you want from me, anyway?”
Beardeau got up, but kept his back to Maurus. He seemed quite engrossed in his scrutiny of the water. “I want nothing from you, boy,” he said. “Only to grant what I sense to be your fondest wish.”
Really nervous now, Maurus hid it by narrowing his eyes. “So you think you know what I want, huh? I didn’t answer your stupid question. You don’t know what I want.”
“One of your elders is coming.” Beardeau faced Maurua then. The eyes above the beard smoldered darkly. “They hold you prisoner, boy. They will never set you free, and you will amount to nothing with them, for they will suppress the longing inside you. Bring your friends to the gates three nights from now, and I will set you free into the world. Come to the gates, three nights from now.”
Just then, a strong hand wrapped around Maurus' arm in an iron grip and spun him around. Sialan stood there with a look that said You're in big trouble. "What are you doing, boy?" His eyes flicked past Maurus to Beardeau, and back to Maurus. "Didn't you hear the ding-dong? That means get inside."
"I didn't do anything!" Maurus wrenched his arm in an effort to pull free. Beardeau's words rang in his ears, robbing his wits of their bite. He lashed out wildly nonetheless. "Your bell is stupid and just a piece of scrap!"
Sialan kept hold of Maurus' arm and began to pull him back through the trees. "Sorry," he called to Beardeau. "You'll have to excuse us."
"I understand," Beardeau replied. He resumed his seat by the pond. "It was a pleasure "
Maurus continued to struggle. Though taller than Sialan, he might as well be trying to break shackles. "Let go! I can come on my own!" but in his mind, he still heard the words: Come to the gates, three nights from now.
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