Draggah (11 page)

“
Like tree roots,
”
the boy said.

“
They are like roots, aren
’
t they,
”
said Olyva.

“
You
’
ll make a good tree,
”
the boy said with a smile.

“
Thank you,
”
Olyva said, not quite sure what to think of becoming a tree.

She pulled her toes up and continued walking.  She had never given trees much thought.  The trees that grew in Hamill Keep were stunted twisting things that had somehow managed to take root in the mountain itself.  Deep inside the Keep, the citizens mined coal, which they used to keep warm.  They grew a very limited crop of vegetables on the southern face of the mountain.  The soil there was gray and sometimes entire crops failed.  The fight for survival in Hamill Keep was a bitter battle that consumed most people’s lives.

When Olyva had been sent to Avondale, she had been amazed at how green everything inside the massive city was—the well-tended crops, the wide slopping fields that led to the forest, and the wonderful evergreen trees, like an army of towering sentinels standing watch over the deep lake at the heart of Avondale
’
s cone-shaped mountaintop.  She had admired the trees of that forest, but she had never considered what it would be like if she became a tree.  She probably would have considered such a fate tragic.  The idea of being rooted in one place, unable to move or even communicate with other creatures, seemed more like slavery than life.  But now she knew better.  She wasn
’
t sure how she knew exactly, and she guessed that not every tree was as sentient as she imagined them, but she knew the glory of feeding on sunlight, of feeling the richness soak into every part of her.  She knew how sweet water could be as it was drawn up through rooty tendrils in the soil.  She understood that surprises came on every breath of wind, and she had felt the strength of a full-grown tree in the way that it shelters smaller animals and weathers storms.

It was late in the day when they finally came upon the group of hunters.  Olyva saw immediately that Rafe was alone.  The tribe
’
s Rogu were busy harvesting the abundance that each of the slain Tamakas offered.  The only parts of the massive beasts that couldn
’
t be used were a few of the internal organs and the copious amounts of blood.

Once the tribe arrived, fires were kindled and the hearts of the great beasts were roasted over the flames.  The smell of the meat would normally have made Olyva
’
s mouth water, but she found that food no longer tempted her.  She watched as small parts of the huge hearts were sliced off and handed out.  There was only enough of the rich meat for each person to have a bite or two, but the tribe celebrated, much as they had the night before when Moswanee and his champion Ummar had been defeated by Rafe.  Olyva regretted that she hadn
’
t witnessed the duel, but she had heard the children talking about it.  Olyva guessed that the Tuscogee, which had only been witnessed by the adult male members of the tribe, had been exaggerated in the retelling, and of course the children embellished the story even more.  Still, it was clear that Rafe had not won the duel unharmed.  She was thankful that Tiberius was able to heal Rafe, who had seemed perfectly normal when she had roused him that morning.

Rafe finally came back to Olyva after having a heated discussion with one of the hunters.  She could tell he was angry, his face was set and his hand gripped the hilt of his rapier so tightly that his knuckles were white.  Despite these visual clues to Rafe
’
s demeanor, Olyva found that she could sense Rafe
’
s emotional distress as he drew near.  It was almost like an odor and she wasn
’
t sure how she was sensing it, but she could.  His anger and frustration made her feel uneasy.

“
You okay?
”
he asked, but she could tell he wasn
’
t worried about her.

“
I
’
m fine,
”
she said. 
“
What
’
s wrong with you?
”

He looked at her as if she was a raving lunatic.

“
I can
’
t keep up with all the things falling apart in my life,
”
he muttered.

The tribe was moving again, making the slow trek across the open prairie.  Olyva could tell that Rafe wasn
’
t happy about the direction they were traveling in.

“
Where is Tiberius?
”
Olyva finally asked.

“
That
’
s a good question, isn
’
t it,
”
he said, his voice dripping with cynicism.

“
I don
’
t understand,
”
she said. 
“
I thought you left together to look for Lexi.
”

“
We did, but then the Rogu had to hunt the Tamakas and when I turned around Tiberius was gone.  He took our horses too.
”

“
You
’
re mad about the horses?
”

“
No, I
’
m mad because I don
’
t know where the hell my best friend is,
”
Rafe said angrily, his voice getting louder and louder the more he vented his frustration. 
“
I
’
m mad because the Rogu could track him, but they won
’
t.  They say they have to stay with the tribe in case the Hulpatah attack during the night.
”

“
The Hulpatah?
”
Olyva asked.

“
That
’
s what they call the Graypees,
”
Rafe said. 
“
I have no idea where Tiberius has wandered off to, and we can
’
t even begin looking for him until the morning.
”

“
I
’
m sure he
’
ll be alright,
”
Olyva said, trying to reassure Rafe.

“
It
’
s just like him to disappear.  He
’
s the new chief of this tribe, as mind boggling as that thought is, and still he feels free to leave whenever the urge strikes him.
”

“
You think he
’
s irresponsible?
”

“
Not irresponsible,
”
Rafe said,
“
just undisciplined.  A soldier never leaves his post.
”

“
Tiberius isn
’
t a soldier.
”

“
You think I don
’
t know that,
”
Rafe nearly shouted. 
“
How the hell are you so calm?  Look at you, you
’
re growing patches of stems, doesn
’
t that bother you at all?
”

Olyva thought for a moment.  She guessed that seeing the strange looking woody patches on her pale skin would have horrified her before they had been banished from Avondale, but now, she didn
’
t seem to mind.

“
I know you don
’
t like the way I look,
”
she said slowly.

“
No,
”
Rafe said. 
“
Don
’
t do that.  Don
’
t blame me for this.  I never would have gone near those damn trees if I had known what they might do to you.
”

“
The trees were just doing what they had to do to survive,
”
Olyva said.

“
What?
”
Rafe shouted. 
“
You can
’
t be serious.
”

“
Should I blame you for slaying the Graypees, or were you doing what you had to do to survive and keep me safe?
”

“
That
’
s completely different,
”
Rafe snapped. 
“
We weren
’
t harming those trees.  We wouldn
’
t have burned them down if they hadn
’
t tried to kill you.
”

Olyva felt her face flush with anger.  She hadn
’
t realized that Rafe and Tiberius had set the grove of trees on fire.

“
You did what?
”
she said in an icy tone.

For the first time, Rafe
’
s ire receded.  He looked at her.

“
What did you do to those trees?
”
she asked again.

“
We burned them,
”
he said.

“
Why?
”
Olyva asked in horror. 
“
You burned them?
”

“
It was the only way to save you.
”

She turned her head away so that he wouldn
’
t see the tears in her eyes.  She felt conflicted.  On the one hand she understood that Rafe and Tiberius had been trying to save her.  They didn
’
t know what was happening, and since Olyva didn
’
t really know what had happened to her either, she couldn
’
t blame them.  On the other hand, she now had a repulsion to fire.  She didn
’
t want to be anywhere near an open flame.  She understood it; she knew that fire was used to cook food and keep people warm when it was cold, but she also had an overwhelming fear of fire.  She felt so much empathy for the trees they had burned down that she couldn
’
t keep from crying.

“
What is it?
”
Rafe asked, his voice softer, more compassionate than before.

“
It
’
s nothing,
”
she said. 
“
I just feel differently about things now.
”

“
Like what?
”
Rafe asked. 
“
Us?
”

“
No,
”
she said honestly.

She reached a hand out and took hold of his.  Her hands had always been long and thin, his were wide and calloused from his many hours of weapons training.  He held her hand softly, but there was still a sturdy sense of strength in his touch that reminded her of the evergreen trees in Avondale.

“
It
’
s just that I can relate to things better,
”
she tried to explain. 
“
I
’
m different, Rafe.  I
’
m not just the Earl
’
s daughter from Hamill Keep anymore.
”

“
I never thought of you that way,
”
he said.

“
I know,
”
she said, brushing a tear from her cheek and smiling at him. 
“
Just promise me you won
’
t burn any more trees.
”

“
Okay,
”
he said. 
“
I promise.
”

She leaned into him and he put his arm around her.  They walked on in silence after that.  The tribe kept moving until just before sundown.  Then they stopped and set up camp.  Olyva felt a deep weariness come over her as the sun began to set.  She watched in fascination as the tribe arranged itself.  The night before, the tribe had made camp in a long line, but this time they put the animals in the center of the camp and the small shelters were arranged neatly all around.

Rafe spoke to the Rogu, who were the warriors of the camp.  It was obvious to Olyva that wild creatures such as the Graypees would be attracted to the smell of blood and offal from the slain Tamakas.  Olyva could smell the blood on the wind, although it wasn
’
t an unpleasant scent.  She didn
’
t marvel too much at her strange new abilities.  Rafe came back to her as night fell.  Olyva wanted to lay down and sleep, but she forced herself to stay awake.  It wasn
’
t just that she was tired, she felt drained, empty.  In the light of day, she felt full of energy. But without the sunlight, all she wanted to do was sleep.