Doira'Liim (The Beautiful Whisper of the Goddess Saga) (38 page)

     She could admit to favoring Arizira all of her life. She had ensured she had the best trainers in every available school of weaponry. She had made sure Arizira learned from only Cynra on matters of writing, reading, and geographical information. Nothing had been spared for Arizira. She had always had the best.

     And for what? So she could grow into womanhood and fall in love with an Esu woman, a woman who, a year before, was only a myth among the Arniran people?

     Had Talyn done rightly by giving Arizira the best? Had she done best by her by shielding her from the darker aspects of the world? From not allowing any major harm to come to her? She had watched Arizira grow up. She had watched her smile and laugh and be amazed by the world around her. Arizira, unlike her fellow sisters, had always seen matters in a much more beautiful way.

     Rarely had Talyn seen Arizira upset or sad. She had always been at peace with herself and that peace, that beautiful serenity, had touched Talyn in more ways than one. Could she truly do something that would, after so many years, place a damper on such an innocent spirit?

     Opening her eyes and looking up into the boughs of the gigantic
Raekir
, Talyn took a deep breath and shook her head. She could not.

     Even though Arizira's destiny had revealed itself to be entirely different than she had ever expected, Talyn found that she still wished only to protect the younger woman.  How could she do anything else? The events in motion were larger than Talyn. She knew that to be a truth. They were larger than Cynra or Arizira or the woman Arizira had given her heart to.

     All Talyn could do was play her part. Cynra had trusted her with vital and important information. She had told her of her past and her connection to Arizira. Talyn knew she could not betray that trust, but trying to keep a sense of peace among the clan when they were not privy to such information was going to prove difficult.

     Many of the women felt that sitting by idly was akin to holding the hand of a bad outcome. They felt that waiting was only the prelude to their own demise. The Arnira were not a warmongering people, but they did have a strong sense of community. Their land and their homes were nearly as important as Aitla Herself.  Not defending themselves or their forest was unfathomable to many.

     Yet, what could Talyn do? How could she declare war on an unsuspecting people when the Child of Whispers'
Doira'Liim
was a member of those people? What if her actions brought about unsuspected outcomes? Did Cynra wish for her to lead their people to war or was she meant to keep matters at hand until...

     Until what? Cynra had told her nothing! She had sung her words with rhyme and riddle and left Talyn with nothing but confusion and headaches. There was no right or correct choice.  Again, all she could do was continue leading her people as she always had. All she could do was try to protect Arizira and, by extension, the woman she loved.

     Talyn chuckled wryly to herself as she sat cross-legged on the ground. She was protecting a day walker, a dark skin, an Esu.

     She was protecting the enemy.

                                                                      *  *  *  *  *  *

     Taetylona walked with heavy steps through the deep and cold snow. She had been walking without direction for two days. The first day, her mind had felt liberated. She no longer had to live her life in halves. Her people could not grow unless she could show them the error of their ways. They were children without a vast amount of knowledge on the world. It was up to her to bring the truth before them. Being banished was beneficial to her in more ways than just meeting Cynra.

     The second day had come sooner than Taetylona had wished. She had not slept well the night before, her body protesting the chilling temperatures and her mind refusing to cease contemplating all the what-ifs. She had slept under a quickly constructed lean-to with a small fire and fought to keep the warmth in her body from fading into the snow.

     When daybreak had come, Taetylona had eaten a few berries she had picked and continued walking. The forest, even in the winter, was awash with an abundant amount of life. Badgers, foxes, and various winter birds had kept her company as she walked. She felt as if the animals had been curious about her presence, just as she had been curious of the forest around her.

     The snow, luckily, had ceased to fall sometime around mid-day and so Taetylona had been able to cover much more ground than she had been expecting. Her destination was unknown to her, but she continued to walk, sure in the knowledge that what she sought would present itself.

     With the snow being so heavy, the sounds of the forest were muted and so Taetylona was taken aback when a large white wolf fell into step beside her. The wolf nudged her hand and looked up into her face. Icy blue eyes caught her attention. Instead of feeling frightened by the presence of the wolf, Taetylona felt a welcome sense of familiarity.

     She felt that she had met this creature once before, though it had not presented itself as a four-legged animal. Was this the same entity that had come before her so many years before?

     "It has been many years, Spirit. Many years," Taetylona said in a raspy voice.

     The wolf allowed her to take a hold of the scruff at the back of its neck. With her walking stick in her left hand and her right on the wolf, Taetylona let herself be led through the snowy and quiet landscape. Her eyes took in the pristine beauty of the forest as she walked and she marveled at the height of the trees and the towering presence of the rock cliffs.

     Before long, Taetylona caught sight of a wolf den and inside she could see the red and orange flames of a lively fire. Smiling at the prospect of a warm fire to heat up her old bones, she released the hold her right hand had on the wolf's fur. She watched the great and majestic creature quickly continue without her up to the entrance of the den. It lowered the front half of its body so that its head could duck inside and a moment later, an old and frail looking woman crawled out.

     Taetylona watched the woman stand to her full height, which wasn't anything close to impressive, and roll her shoulders back. Her hair was pure silver and her glowing eyes held a speck of light purple. Taetylona could see several rings on the woman's boney fingers and a seashell necklace hung around her wrinkled neck. A cloak was wrapped around her shoulders with a jeweled clasp keeping it in place and her clothing appeared to made from ornately treated leathers.

     Though old, Taetylona could see that the woman held a beauty that was, most assuredly, common to all her people. She took a step toward the woman and was stopped when the she spoke to her in her language. "Took you long enough to get here, you old crone."

     Taetylona looked confused for a moment. The words had been in her language, yet they had not been. Overlooking the "crone" accusation, because clearly Cynra was older than she was, Taetylona opened her mouth to speak. "You know my words?" she asked.

     Cynra placed a hand on the head of the wolf by her side. "No, I know my words." Feeling slightly agitated with Cynra's behavior, Taetylona placed a hand on her hip and gave the woman a pointed look. "I understand your words, yet I do not speak them. You do not speak mine, yet we are sharing our thoughts. How is this so?"

     Looking down at the wolf beside her, Cynra chuckled. "We can thank our mutual companion. She allows us to communicate. Now, we can remain out in this white blanket of death allowing our thoughts to ponder such nonsensical notions as my language versus your language, or we can get inside where the fire will warm our bones. The two of us are old, woman, and we have very little time left to speak of matters of import."

     Taetylona looked from Cynra down to the wolf and then back up. Small snow flurries began to fall into her line of vision and she heard the howl of the wind as it began to blow again. Moving and closing the distance between herself and Cynra, she retorted, "You appear to have far less time than do I. Worry for your old bones makes you a wonderful hostess."

     Cynra was silent for a moment before her lips parted and a hearty laugh left her mouth. The sound caused Taetylona to laugh as well and the two of them shared a light minute of easy fellowship . "Come inside, Taetylona. We have much to discuss. You have questions?"

     Taetylona nodded and the two of them ducked down to crawl into the rather large wolf den. The fire was warm and welcome and Taetylona smiled to herself. Somehow, she felt very much at ease with Cynra, despite their amused bickering.

     The wolf crawled down inside the den and settled itself near the opening. As the snows once again fell from the heavens above, two women, one Esu and one Arnira, spoke at great length about matters of the past, issues of the present, and prophecies of the future.

                                                        Chapter 27: Days Go By

     Arizira, for the second time since her accident, slowly allowed her thoughts to take focus within her mind. She was vaguely aware of the sound of grinding and the crackling hisses and pops of a fire. She licked her lips in an effort to moisten them and tried to take an account of where she stood in regard to her pain.

     She was warm, possibly feverish, and her body felt dirty and sweaty. Briefly, she wondered how much time had passed since she had last been awake, but the state of her pain bombarded all her other thoughts. Opening her eyes with an effort, she noticed Talliea sitting not far from her diligently using her mortar and pestle. The other woman's brow was furrowed in concentration and her hair was falling into her face.

     Smiling, Arizira allowed herself to appreciate Talliea's natural beauty before, without thinking, trying to adjust her position. The sharp pain she was expecting never came. Instead, a dull throb sent a spasm through her shoulder blades and echoed down her arms. Her slight intake of breath caught Talliea's attention and soon the other woman was sitting beside her.

     "Ari? Oh, I am so pleased to see your eyes. I feared I would have to do without your company for another day." Arizira opened her mouth to speak, but the dryness present prevented her from doing so. Talliea quickly reached behind her and grabbed one of their water skins. Bringing it to Arizira's lips, she cradled her head and neck so that she could drink. "Slowly, Ahmanae."

     Arizira placed a hand on Talliea's wrist and held her eyes as she drank her fill. The cold liquid washed down her parched throat before settling into her belly. Turning her head away, she indicated she was sated. Talliea pulled the water skin away but kept her hand supporting Arizira's head and neck.

     "How are you?" she asked softly, her fingers tracing over the delicate and high arch of Arizira's eyebrows.

     Arizira hesitated a moment. Her pain was not nearly as severe as before. The tight and frightening restriction she remembered was somehow less. Though she was still in pain, the level and intensity had decreased and she found that she could move more easily. "The pain has faded to a degree, Tah-li."

     Talliea smiled, the gesture bringing happy tears to her eyes, before leaning forward to kiss Arizira's temple. Her lips lingered a moment longer when she took notice of the heat rising from her love's skin. "Your body carries an unnatural heat," she said pulling away.

     Arizira inhaled deeply again and looked away from Talliea's dark and sorrowful eyes. She let her gaze come to rest on the ceiling above. It was dark out, the fire flickering and sending dancing shadows around the walls of the cave, and Arizira's blue eyes glowed brightly. Her right arm was sore for having laid on it for so long and she struggled to get comfortable.

     Hand still wrapped gently around Talliea's wrist, Arizira spoke after a moment. "It will pass," she said, referring to her fever while her fingers rubbed over soft skin.

     Talliea studied Arizira's face and knew she was putting up a brave facade. She had felt Arizira's pain and discomfort as the two of them had laid together. How she had felt it, she could not explain, but she had known how serious the situation was as she held the smaller woman.

     Eventually, she had fallen asleep with her cheek against the back of Arizira's neck. Her thoughts had continued to swirl around her fervent desire to heal what she had so accidentally broken. Over and over as she had slept, her mind had been awash with nothing but her intentions, wishes, and invocations to make Arizira well. It had become her singular thought. When she had awakened the following morning, Arizira had continued to sleep.

     She had checked on Arizira's wound and had been surprised to notice it was not nearly as dark in color. The swelling had still been present, but it too had appeared to be less than it was before. Covering Arizira back up, and trying not to be distracted by the sight of her half nude form, Talliea had set out to refill their water skins and to bathe in the hot spring.

     Upon her return, much to her discontent, she had found Arizira still lost to the depths of her unconsciousness. The next several hours had been spent sharpening blades and cleaning tools and looking through Arizira's pack for anything that could be of use. When she'd come across a small pouch containing herbs and, what she recalled to be willow bark, she had decided to try to mix the
dohethra
on her own.

     After a few failed attempts, she had finally succeeded in getting the mixture to the correct consistency. She'd tenderly and gingerly applied the mixture to Arizira's wound before once again cuddling up behind her. The entire time Arizira had slept, Talliea had felt her sense of guilt continue to grow. Her actions had replayed in her mind until she'd found herself crying against Arizira's back, her tears meeting their demise upon the heat of pale skin.