The group had finally made it to Crow Hollow to follow up the Spiral Dust trail. Having made a contact in a local called Paco Derois, they were attacked by henchmen of Don Wycliff and the Drood family. Out of thankfulness, Paco promises to make an appointment with Dona Ilsa as soon as he could. But the goons have found them again. This time the party are ready.
*******************************************************************
At the table, all eyes focused on the bolt quivering in front of them until the two words resolved themselves into one clear message.
Will Robinson!
“Will Robinson!” Tobias yelled, “Avel, quick! Do your shout!” And out of the tattoo, a wisp of something flew across the cupola at the four Cro goons. From inside the bar, they could see very little of the attack. A terrifying scream of anguish and terror was all they could hear. The Cro goons, they’d come to call Pushkin and Mauley, and a third looked disturbed and thoroughly spooked. Algernon witnessed Avel’s true form from behind the goons, that of a very familiar-looking human woman, her face distorted in fury, screaming and spitting in a language he couldn’t understand.
Back in the bar, Tobias cringed at the foul language and ducked under the table as Bruce pulled out his guns. Three rapid shots at Mauley, and the two as yet unnamed Cro. Their guns flew from their hands and into the crowd of shoppers desperately tried to escape the violence. Algernon spotted his favourite, Pushkin, closer to the end of the branch than the others. Pushkin sailed out away from the market with a sudden and violent push, leaving his gun behind. Now all four Cro goons were disarmed. It was Peggy’s turn. With a word from her book and a flick of a wrist, she sent a ball of fire at Mauley, singeing what was left of the feathers on his shoulders, neck and chest.
Out of the corner of his eye, Bruce spotted the movement as three more thickset Cro rose from their seats around a table in the bar. Ready for more trouble from a new quarter, Bruce spun his pistols on his fingers. Once the group had their say, however the new goons looked at each other and sat back down and returned to their drinks. It seemed they weren’t fussed that four of Don Wycliffe’s boys were being roughed up.
It was the goons’ turn. The three remaining didn’t hesitate. They picked up their guns and ran back the way they’d come, leaving Pushkin’s gun behind. Algernon picked it as he followed their disturbance through the market.
“That was amazing!” Came Tobias’ voice from under the table.
“Yes, well, that worked,” Bruce said more to himself as he turned back to the table and looked underneath. Tobias’ eyes closed, was patting his chest tattoo cheerfully, “Thanks, Avel!”
“Did you do that?” Bruce asked, and Tobias’ eyes flicked open and found Bruce’s.
“What?”
“The…spooky fear thing?”
“That was Avel,” Tobias’ replied proudly, “She’s amazing. Terrible potty mouth though, did you hear her?”
“Didn’t understand it, but I don’t hold with no cussin’”, Bruce drawled as Tobias crawled out from under the table. Spotting the bolt, he pulled it from the wooden support and took it out to Algernon, still watching the goons.
“Great idea,” He handed the bolt back to Algernon, who accepted it and the praise with a nod of his head.
“The sneaking around thing, also good. But, I think I have something that might help,” And Tobias reached into a hidden pocket and produced his puzzle box.
“While this is on you, I can hear and see everything around you. So, while I concentrate, we can still keep in touch…at least one way,” Tobias went to hand the puzzle box to Algernon before pulling back, “Now this is precious to me, more so now as…I think my soul is in it. Nice to know I have one.” He laughed nervously at the thought and offered the box to Algernon, “Just keep it safe. I know you will.”
“Are you saying that you possess that box?” Bruce said, trying to make sense of what was going on.
“Yes. Avel possessed me, and I guess you can say, I possess the box,”
“What if it breaks or is lost?”
“Lost…?” Tobias thought, concentrated on the box. He could see them all standing around it, “I think I could find it. If it’s broken?” At that thought, his whole being seemed to pale, and he shivered, “Bad things for me.”
“Thanks, Rain,” Algernon tucked the puzzlebox away carefully. “I’m going to follow those guys. I’ll be right back.” With that, Algernon slipping into the crowd and disappeared.
Tobias focused on his box and could see Algernon gliding through the shoppers, always keeping contact with the goons ahead. He watched them head towards a hollow in the next branch up, guarded by Cro goons with guns. Words exchanged, they disappeared inside.
“I’ve just seen them enter a hollow. I’ll head back now,” Algernon murmured, and Tobias passed on the message to Bruce standing beside him.
Bruce scowled, unhappy with the whole possession situation. He looked from Tobias beside him up into the market where Algernon had disappeared.
“Tobias, you may want to talk to those three big guys back in the bar,” He bent down and murmured to the distracted con man.
“Hmm?” Tobias glanced around, not letting his eyes stop at the table groaning with feathered muscle,” Hmmm…good pick.” Sauntering back into the bar, he went straight back to Paco, quietly still drinking his drink as nothing had happened.
“See, you’re in good hands,” He smirked, patting his chest where Avel had returned, warm and reassuring.
“It seems so,”
“Say, what do you know of the three heavies across the way?” Tobias leaned out of the way to allow Paco to see around him at the goons.
“I’ve seen at least one of them around. They work for Dona Ilsa, I think,” Paco replied, and Tobias’ grin broadened. A quick word to the barman and the exchange of two crow coins later, and he was standing in front of the three Cro offering fresh drinks.
“Gentlemen, it seems we have a mutual friend,” Tobias gestured to Paco, “As you witnessed, we helped him out of a spot of trouble.”
“What, so is he yours now?” Asked the centre goon who by size alone seemed to be their leader.
The thought of running a protection racket in Crow Hollow made Tobias shiver, and he ruffled his feathers dramatically.
“On the contrary,” He stepped back, allowing the three of them a view of the bar and what they had just witnessed, “ I want a word with the Dona, at her earliest convenience.”
The three goons look at each other once more, downed their new drinks in one and stood.
“Wait here,”
“Wouldn’t think of being anywhere else.”
“Who should we say you are?”
“Tobias Cudo and associates,” Tobias nodded and watch the Cro’s leave the bar and head back up the tree.
Algernon had arrived back by that time and joined the others at their table. A fluttering sound and the shimmer of golden wings caught his eye. A moment later, there was a plop! And something landed in his drink. Slowly, without drawing attention to the glass, he slipped it under the table and fished out of the liquor a set of keys. Motorbike keys.
The Motobike’s keys.
The keys carefully stowed away into his pocket, he smiled in remembrance of the tiny fairies and their desire to pay back a favour.
Now, how was he going to get that bike back to Earth?
“Um…I’ll be back in a bit,” He said, suddenly remembering something else he’d seen on a stall.
“Where ya going, kid?” Bruce asked, casually sipping his drink. Algernon was a highly competent agent with many wins behind him, but to Bruce, he always looked suspicious when up to no good.
“I saw something in the markets. I won’t be long,” Algernon replied as casually he could and rose from the table.
“Well, don’t be. We don’t know when those goons will be back,” Bruce admonished, and Algernon nodded his agreement before disappearing once more into the crowds of shoppers.
Without a word, Tobias focused on his puzzlebox. He watched as Algernon made his way back to the stalls they had visited earlier that day, particularly one with several weapons on display, including a bound stack of dynamite. Just from the way Algernon’s eyes kept darting to the pile and away showed Tobias that the dynamite was the aim of this expedition.
At the stall, Algernon allowed his eyes to fall on a number of interesting items. A glove that seemed to be some sort of Strange touched artefact, a brain bug cypher and of course, the dynamite. There were fourteen sticks of nitroglycerin and clay, all with inserted detonation chords. He was trying to work out how much damage that sizable stack would do when he was interrupted by the stall owner.
“Interested in the dynamite, then?” Asked the Cro without interest.
“Possibly,” He replied, “How much is it?”
“Twenty crow coin.”
Algernon nearly choked. That was twice as much as he had.
“So, what’s it good for?” He asked as if only remotely interested.
“Mining,” The Cro replied tersely.
“I have ten coins for half?”
But the Cro was only interested in selling the whole bundle and not parts.
“I think I need more? Where can I get more?”
“You were just talking about half a moment ago. Now you want more?”
“Miscalculation, can you get more?”
“This is all I have and it for twenty,” The Cro repeated, sticking out his feathered hand to complete the sale.
“I don’t have enough, but I do want it.” Algernon waivered. If only he’d thought to ask for a little extra cash from Rain.
The Cro looked him over, “You look like your good for it, shake my hand, and the dynamite is your,” He said in a tone that suggested that more than just the few coins he had would be part of the transaction.
“Urr…no, thank you,” Algernon kept his hands to himself and walked away from the stall.
At another stall, he found a group of Earth tech and went over to examine them. With the shopkeeper’s keen eye on him, he started up an old laptop, and a primary coloured black-bordered window on a cloudy blue sky filled the screen. Passworded, he figured he could get around the security…until he couldn’t and locked the computer instead.
“What did you do? You’ve broken it! That’s worth fourteen crow coins. Hand them over!” The owner cawed sharply.
“I assure you, I can fix this. Please, let me try again,” Algernon said, sure if he could bypass Ni’Challan’s systems he could get passed this machine’s security. Grudgingly, the shopkeeper allowed him to try and within a few keystrokes, he had returned the computer to its former state. With that little excitement under his belt, he started back for the bar where the other waited.
It was odd for Tobias to see himself from Algernon’s point of view as his friend stopped a hundred metres out from the bar and watched the crowd. Tobias waived and saw himself waive. Algernon nodded back, a small gesture of acknowledgement.
“He’s back, watching,” Tobias told the others, still sitting around the table, “ What are you all up to?”
Paco seemed to be drinking himself into a quiet stupor. Peggy was working out complicated mathematics related to the Angels by the images she sketched on the back of a napkin. Bruce was just people watching, keeping an eye out for anyone who was taking a little too much interest in them. Avel was a comfortable warmth on Tobias’ chest and he held his hand there for a moment enjoying the feeling when a movement from Algernon alerted him to the goon’s return.
“Where’s the other one? Weren’t there four of you?” Said the big goon, he certainly thought himself the boss of this trio.
“Just there, didn’t you see him as you came in?” Tobias asked politely of the goon while giving a wink as Algernon stepped out of the crowd and stood behind the Dona’s heavies. With a start, the realised the young Cro had snuck up on them.
“Ur…The Dona will see you now,” Said the leader.
Giving their farewells to the now inebriated Paco, the group followed the goons through three levels of the tree. As each level passed, the markets and stalls slowly gave way to buildings of more prominent and grander proportions. Eventually, they reached a branch reinforced with massive metal bands. Cables as thick as Algernon or Tobias around connected the bands to other branches further around the tree, creating a latticework of support. In the centre of the spider’s web was a mansion, suspended in thin air. A white spiral staircase led up from the branch to a roof garden, complete with a gazebo.
In the shade of a white flowering climbing rose, the lady sat like a Queen at court. Dressed in an elegant black evening dress, rings, and jewellery flashing in the bright sunlight, only found this high in the canopy. As they walked up Tobias paid close attention to her posture (rigidly upright), her arm and legs (quiet and seemingly relaxed in a studied way) how the light flashed off the gems on her jewelled fingers (they fidgeted and moved to show agitation that the rest of the body didn’t) and he watched her eyes (flicking between each of the group trying to gauge them as well). She was hiding it well, but there was something very wrong with the Lady’s world, and she was wondering if these were the ones to help.
Tobias lifted his head, did his best to smile with a beak, and gave the lady a short bow.
“I’ve been waiting a long time for this meeting, Dona,” He said respectfully, not just for her rank but because he found her a woman worthy of respect.
“Oh, how so?” She asked imperiously.
“It has been almost a year since we met your mutual friend, Lydia Lance.”
It had been during the Frozen Dead Guy Days in Nederland when the party had almost caught the Dona making a delivery of Spiral Dust Rock to Lydia Lance’s store, The Dreaming Crystal.
“Oh yeah, the basement,” Peggy said, remembering how long they’d fought and planned to create a trap only to have it fail because of their own stupidity.
“What the hell, Peggy?” Tobias turned on Peggy, his standard London accent slipping to a rough cockney. This was his moment to make an impression on the Dona, and Peggy reminded her that she was dealing with a group of thugs and pranksters.
“That was your doing?” Dona Ilsa asked, her beak in the air as if she could once more spell the bitter smell of spider parts and alkaloids.
“It wasn’t how I would have wanted it, but there it is. Even then I knew we were dealing with someone who wasn’t afraid of the dirty work, who didn’t palm it off to underlings but saw them through themselves. I knew I wanted to meet that person.”
“And now?”
Tobias thought for a moment. He looked around the garden and noted several of her henchmen, possibly loyal but who knew. With a thought his card appeared in his hands and he shuffled them absently, “Can I tell you a small story?” He fanned the deck revealing all the cards faces to the Dona, “Do you know Earth playing cards?”
Her head dipped and something within her expression relaxed, “I’ve counted a few,”
“A woman of my own heart, “He replied, drawing the cards back into a deck to then fan them out again, this time only revealing the Kings and Queens of every suit.
“Four noble couples, eight powerful people throughout history, mythology and religion. King David from ancient Judea, Charlemagne who united Europe under Rome, Pallas, a goddess and queen, Judith and Rachel saviours to their people,” Each time he mentioned a name the card would rise out of the fanned deck before sinking back into the whole. He went through the spades, hearts and diamonds before folding the deck back on itself again,
“All except one. One who stands out, “ He gestured to a wine glass that sat on a small table by the Dona’s chair. In the glass was a card, the Queen of clubs, “She is sometimes called Regina, which only means Queen, “She alone is nameless, she alone rules alone.” Tobias tapped his cards and made an apologetic gesture.
“Of course, this is where my story falls apart because “He once more gestured to the glass. Tucked in behind the Queen of clubs was the King of clubs, only just peeking over the edge of the card,” There is a King, but I can’t see him. He manipulates the Queen to do his bidding, but how? For what purpose? I can’t tell. It is, for this reason, I am here today. Good Dona, do you have the answers I seek?”
What Dona Ilsa thought of the story, she didn’t say, but something in it made an impression. Her imperious self-control slipped, and she revealed the worried woman below her facade.
“To save my children,” She said quietly and instantly Tobias took a knee before the Dona.
“Dona, in this, we are engaged in your service. You have heard of our power? Our deeds today have gone ahead of us to you? Your children will be found,” He bowed his head and smirked a small victory smirk. She was who he thought she was, “Only tell us how this all came to be?”
“A year ago, my five eggs were stolen. Cro eggs are viable for years unincubated, so I held out hope for their safe retrieval. But, money was demanded, money I had to find. Then a business proposal was offered, sell the blue dust to the humans, it seemed an answer I hadn’t dare hope for.”
Now that the story was out and the diplomacy had done its best, the others started to ask questions.
“Do you know who would have your eggs, how they got access?”
“No. All I have were the vague recollections from a traveller from Ardeyn. They seemed to think that Cro eggs were taken to the Mouth of Swords.”
She gestured to one of her guards and spoke to them in a voice too low to hear. The guard left and returned sometime later with a hand-drawn map of Ardeyn with the Mouth of Swords circled.
“No more details? Could we speak to this traveller?”
“Long gone, but I believe their story, I have to.”
“What do the eggs look like? Is there any special treatment?”
“Each fits within your hands thus,” She held out her feathered hands and made a cup with both indicating the size of a small melon or grapefruit, “They are blue with white speckles. As to care, they are eggs and are fragile, but if you are gentle…?”
“We go through ungentle places, do you have something in which to keep them safe?”
Again, the guard was ushered over and they returned with a handled box, padded with cushions to keep the eggs safe. This was handed to Tobias, who quickly indicated that Bruce was the best to keep the little ones from harm.
“Do you have any aids, ciphers and artefacts that could help?”
A third time the guard was sent. This time they returned with three ciphers, a force screen projector, friction reduction gel and a psychic communicator that could speak across recursions.
“Do you know what we are likely to meet in this Mouth of Swords? What being holds sway or claims ownership?”
“I do not know. I have had no one who can go there, no one who I could turn to for this.” She looked around the group and returned back to Tobias, still kneeling in front of her.
“For my children, I will tell you what you want to know.”
“It will be done.” He replied, with such finality, it was like she had spoken a prayer, and he’d given his Amen.
He stood and joined the group. Beside Dona Ilsa on the small table was a stack of playing cards.
“One last thing, Dona? You do not think that Don Wycliffe would be behind the kidnapping of your children?”
“Why? Of what purpose would they be to the Droods?” She replied in all sincerity.
“You compete with him over the Spiral Dust?”
“The Don was only angry with our house after we started the trade into Spiral dust.” The Dona acknowledged the feud between the great houses.
“Thank you, Dona. We will not take up any more of your time.” Tobias bowed his head, never dropping his eyes from hers until he turned to leave with the others.
“I could have got to the point of our visit more hygienically,” Peggy grumbled as the group walked away from the mansion and back into the Glittering market.
“ A little diplomacy costs nothing,” Tobias replied, “We don’t know the politics. That the Droods and Cornaro’s have only had issues since the Spiral Dust was news.”
“So, Ardeyn. Do we know how to get there?” Algernon asked. It seemed that in The Estate Orientation sessions he had been the only one to pay attention to the history of Ardeyn and knew how to get there. Bruce had listened, but it had lacked practical application and had slipped out the way it had slipped in. Peggy had been far more interested in The Strange’s science than the actual locations, and Tobias had bunked off the classes as soon as he’d been able.
“So are we going now?”
“Sure, I guess…” Tobias said before stopping mid-walk and clutching his chest, “No, I can’t leave yet. Oh no, this is bad. I can’t leave her behind.”
“What? Who?” Bruce asked, everyone was there. For a moment, he thought maybe Ish-Ma-El, but it didn’t seem likely and said nothing.
“Avel! She’s been wonderful. She was all alone before we came, I couldn’t leave her behind now.”
“Ah, Rain…” Algernon tried to interject, but Tobias was too caught up in his thoughts to listen.
“Avel,” He said out loud for the group to hear, “ You are part of us now and I won’t leave you behind.”
Behind? I don’t understand, She replied and hugged Tobias. The embrace that seemed so warm, so familiar… Tobias’ heart sank in his chest.
“She doesn’t understand about us leaving. She doesn’t know. She’s a manikin,”
“Rain, I don’t think she’s a manikin.” Algernon said, and Tobias clutched hold of the lifeline he offered.
“Of course, she isn’t! She’s special, we all saw it! That’s why she had to go with us!” He prattled on, hoping someone could make sense of what was going on.
“She’s not from around here,” Algernon persisted, and somehow, his words got through.
“No?” Tobias stopped and thought, “ Of course, she spoke Slavic. She must be from Earth. But now I’m confused…” Tobias sank onto his haunches, sitting on the branch in a very bird-like way.
“She’s not from here, because you brought her. I…I think you’ve been dragging her around.”
“Dragging…wha…?” Reaching up to where he could feel Avel’s hand on his cheek, “What do you mean? How do you know?”
“Well, she may not be related…?” Algernon said, trying to be helpful without saying what he thought he saw during the attack.
“Related…what do you know?”
Algernon squirmed under the cross examination, ” I saw her. There’s a resemblance…to you…not that looking like someone means anything.”
That wasn’t true. Tobias knew it. She was too familiar, her touch too comforting, her presence too calming.
“Well, are we going?” Bruce asked again, not unkindly.
“We have to go. You’ll have to translate us,” Finally Tobias said in monotone before drawing his arms around himself (and her). He had no concept of the others adding him to their circle or the travel through the Strange.
The first thing he was aware of was Avel, settling herself back into her tattoo on his chest. He looked down not to see the white scarred Cro feathers or even his new yellow suit and shirt but a dark violet coloured exoskeleton and the tattoo now an inlaid crystalline design in the carapace. He breathed out, thankful Avel had not been lost in the translation and looked around.
Bruce and Algernon looked as usual, though Bruce’s crowbar was still made of some fine-grained hardwood. His armour was heavy fabric with hundred of metal plates riveted into scaled brigandine. Algernon still had his crossbow on his back over the top of a thick gabeson, all in natural colours. On top, they both wore heavy woolen cloaks and where Algeron wore a close-fitting hood around his head and shoulders, Bruce has a shiny metal bascinet over a chainmail coif.
Peggy and Tobias were something else again. Thin and dark-skinned, the creatures seemed to be based on someone’s idea of Anubis, the jackal-headed Egyptian god. Unlike Algernon and Bruce, these creatures didn’t seem to need a lot of clothing, decorating themselves in tinkling crystals and the barest essentials for modesty.
On her dog-like face, Peggy had a curious look aimed at Tobias. A slender dark hand reached out and touched the tattoo mark on Tobias’s chest.
She screamed as her mind was swamped by anguish and terror that she had no defence for. She was blind, deaf and dumb to everything except the mind-numbing grief and loss. For a moment, Peggy strained against the emotion and felt too, underpinning it all, the terrible strength of protective love. Eventually, when she felt she could take no more, she disconnected the link and slid ungracefully to the ground. Her first breath was a scream, and it didn’t abate until there was no breath left. Her next breaths were uncontrollable sobs, the grief was too much, and it poured out of her like an overfilled vessel. Tobias sat down next to her and reached out a hand in comfort.
“Peggy?”
“Don’t…touch! Not…just yet.” Was all she could say as she pulled away.
She wept unrestrainedly until either by exhaustion or the last remnant of the link disappeared, and she was able to gain a little control of herself again.
“I can’t describe that, not yet,” She said in a husky whisper, her throat now hoarse from screaming.
“I don’t think you need to, not with me,” Tobias replied just as quietly, his throat tight with emotion. She had heard the screaming, but she had not connected to him.
Silently Bruce wandered off and came back sometime later with a large steaming teapot and mugs.
“Here, I think you both need a good strong cup of tea,” He handed each of the Peggy and Tobias creatures hot mugs and they all stood or sat drinking the bitter brew as reality reasserted itself.
They were in Ardeyn.
It was early morning, and the air was chill and damp.
It was market day in Citadel Hazurrium and people were staring.
They were not human.
Peggy had heard the voices… and not from Tobias.
Avel was…
“You live with that?” She finally asked, the practical Peggy reinforced by the hot bitter brew.
“It’s not always so…unrelenting, not for me, not since…well, not for a while,” Tobias stumbled over his words. He felt numb and stupid and just wanted to curl up in a corner and sleep. To sleep and dream of Avel.
“How long for?”
“As… far back as I remember,”
“She’s…very aware of you…and protective.”
“And I’ve been dragging….her…? She’s been with me…” It was just too much to comprehend.
“Well, if you two are ready we need to purchase equipment and get moving,” It was Bruce. His words were enough to get the two creatures on their feet again.
“What are we?” Tobias finally asked Algernon who looked relieved to have an answer to that question.
“Qephilim, the original inhabitants of Ardeyn and the servants to the Maker.”
“Avel is here,” Tobias wrapped his arms around his chest and felt her warmth there, “So, there’s that.”
“Yes, what are we going to do about this parasite on Rain?” Peggy asked the group. Tobias winced and shied away protectively.
“It’s not a parasite,” Bruce replied gently as neither Peggy nor Tobias looked up for much at that time, “It’s Rain’s Mama.”
“What?” She asked, stunned.
“It’s my m…” Tobias started to say but the word caught and eventually, he just gave up.
“Come on, let’s start moving and see what we can find, hey?” Urged Bruce and the group trudged together through the market, stopping every now and then for supplies, camping equipment, horses, tack and fodder. Algernon remembered to buy a decent map and was given a detailed one of the whole of Ardeyn. With it and the horses he worked out, the Mouth of Swords was a two days trip.
Horses were a revelation. Tobias had never grown up around animals of any sort especially nothing as large and imposing as a horse. While the others put away their kits and saddled their horses, he stood and watched his, paying attention as he did a human he wanted to understand. The horse looked back warily, a one-eyed stare over its big lippy face. It spoke of fearfulness of the strangers and a tentative acceptance of new members of the herd. The ideas were simple and appealed to Tobias at that moment. He stood beside his beast and leaned into its warm side. It turned its huge head and huffed in his face. He breathed in its horsiness and breathed it out again for the horse to accept in return. A handful of oats from the travel rations and a sprinkle of Spinner’s ideal and the horse soon relaxed and was resting its head on his shoulder.
“Calliope, that’s your name, isn’t it?” He asked her quietly and there was a tension of recognition. He soaked in its warmth and smell until the others asked if he was ready to go.
The day warmed as they travelled through the rolling hills of Ardeyn. Very little was said, and soon, Algernon got bored of the constantly dull scenery. He pulled out the puzzlebox and started fiddling with it, pushing sections this way and that, trying to find the part that moved to reveal the next step. He wasn’t having a lot of luck when Bruce’s eagle eyes spotted what he was doing.
“Should you be doing that?” Bruce asked quietly so Tobias especially wouldn’t hear.
“Nobody said not to,” Algernon replied innocently.
“Which usually means you don’t,”
“I guess,” Algernon signed and put the puzzlebox safely away.
They rode throughout the day until they found a suitable camping site. By the light of the fire, Algernon bound pieces of goose feather to a thin sapling trimmed down to size. On the other end, he glued a bodkin head of cast iron bought from the market and checked it’s straightness by lining the whole arrow up with his eye. Bruce watched until he was too tired and asked Algernon to keep an eye out while he slept. Across the campfire, both Peggy and Tobias has collapsed into bedrolls too exhausted to even eat. As Tobias lay looking out into the darkness beyond the campfire, the sound of a lullaby drifted through the air around him. Bruce and Algernon looked up from what they were doing and listened to the gentle song, in a language they could not understand. Over the dark mound that was Tobias, a feint figure hovered.
Algernon didn’t understand the purpose or benefit of the song and worried that it might draw enemies to their camp. In the end he recognised the music itself was not maliciously intended and at such a low volume was not going to draw anything dangerous.
“That’s a mighty lovely tune. Where’s that from?” Bruce said conversationally remembering it from their trip through the caverns under Dreamland. Tobias himself had hummed the tune to his echo in the cavern and then sung harmony with himself. It was as eerily beautiful as it had been back then.
Avel ignored the question. Avel sung in Bosnia for only one and stroked his cheek.
“Hush my little one, close your eyes,
The tears of day have all ceased.
Your cries are stilled and your tears have dried,
Hush, my darling one, sleep.”
The tune and the gentle hand were so exceedingly comforting to the restless Tobias that all pretence of sleep was soon given up for the real thing.
The following day Bruce and Algernon went out hunting, testing out Algernon’s new arrow. They returned to companions refreshed and ready for the days travel and ready too for the feast of wild foods and game the foragers had found. That day’s travel was as uneventful as the previous days and they made it to the Mouth of Swords before nightfall. The camp was located and made a little way off from the foreboding portal.
A Strange Life 