Hand of Fire (The Master of the Tane) (2 page)

BOOK: Hand of Fire (The Master of the Tane)
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Pulling himself back with effort, Zadok ceased his barrage and knelt down placing his mouth close to his brother’s ear. “Oh, no you don’t,” he whispered softly. “You will not rob me of this moment with your death. You are clever to think I would kill you first, but I am smarter than you, Gelfin.” Lifting his head to the sky he shouted. “I am greater than you!”

             
Gelfin wheezed in reply and then coughed up a large clot of blood.

             
Zadok pulled his knife and moved quickly to his brother’s right ankle where a small mark blemished his skin. “This is going to hurt a lot,” he laughed. Bringing the dagger down, he slowly cut into the flesh around the mark. Gelfin’s body began to jolt in a flurry of convulsions making it difficult for Zadok to hold his ankle still. “That’s right,” he cackled. “Suffer like none has before. Suffer in body and spirit as I rip your soul from you forever. Suffer as I did! Suffer and die!” Zadok’s blade completed the circle around the mark freeing it from the bone. Gelfin’s body jerked violently one last time before it slackened and lay still.

             
Zadok screamed at the sky like a wild animal and then rose to his feet holding the bloodied flesh above him. “Your soul is mine!” he ranted. “Mine forev....” Zadok’s eyes suddenly went wide as his victory cry was prematurely cut short. Lowering his head, he focused on an arrow shaft protruding from his chest pinning his robe to his body and soaking it with his own blood. He turned about slowly just as another tore through his shoulder forcing him back a step to maintain his balance. “This is my day,” he whispered as another arrow ripped through his neck bringing his speech to a halt as it shredded his vocal chords into silence. His mouth moved without sound as another arrow whistled through the air on track for his heart. Suddenly, the air around him wavered, beginning like the rippling of a disturbed pond distorting his reflection and then thinning into the shimmering heat waves of a blistering day. The arrow shot past harmlessly and landed amongst the scorched bodies of the charred dead. Zadok was gone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

             
A flash of lightning lit the forest with a breath of daylight briefly chasing back the shadows from the Chufa village. The gathered mob blinked in annoyance as they waited for their night vision to return while thunder roared its disapproval of being left behind. The group had been anxiously standing outside the hut since dusk, oblivious of the torrents of rain that continually swept down upon them. It was a good sign for the coming crop to have such moisture on the first day of the planting moon, but that was not what held their attention. An event of great importance was about to occur in the village.

             
A woman suddenly emerged from the hut and was confronted by fifty pairs of black eyes focused intently on her. “Not yet,” she sighed.

             
A shaking hand touched her arm, bringing her around. “Will it be soon JenGua?”

             
“Yes DelVen, it will be soon. I know it’s your first but fear not, we’ve brought many into this land, including yourself I might add, and we have yet to lose one in birth. Do not worry yourself.  LynTeh is a strong one. Is there any word from TaqSagn?”

             
“No. He still waits as I do.”

             
“And probably just as poorly,” JenGua chuckled. “Now, enough talk. I must be down to the river and fetch some more water before I am missed here.” Grabbing a pail from the side of the hut she hurried through the crowd to the muddy path that led to the river beyond. The rumble of voices picked up again as she left but soon faded only to be replaced by the roar of the swollen river in the distance. 

             
“I still can’t get over the thought of two births in one night,” she muttered to the darkness.  “It’s unheard of. In all of my many years I can’t remember such a great event.” An owl’s nearby hoot suddenly startled her from her musings and brought her to an abrupt stop as she searched out its flight pattern. If it flew away from her it was a bad omen of evil things to come. If towards her, then she could expect good fortune. Minutes passed but revealed nothing of the elusive owl that should have been easy for any of her kind to spot in the night sky. “Oh dear Jen,” she whispered, as she continued on. “You must be getting old.” 

             
JenGua was both old and short by Chufa standards. She stood a mere five feet five inches but boasted four hundred and thirty-three years of life. She had lost the black hair of her youth to gray many years past and the point in her ears had also begun to droop but she was still very much alive and didn’t let anyone forget it. That is why she volunteered to fetch the water herself instead of sending one of her younger counterparts. She didn’t want anyone to think her unable to carry out her duties.  

             
Although aged and unable to catch sight of a fleeing owl, Jen’s old eyes were still tuned enough to the night vision inherent in all Chufa to allow her an easy stroll down the remaining sodden path to the river’s ragged edge. The water rushed by in a fury as the run-off from the mountains and the deluge from the storm caused the river to overthrow its banks in a flood of rage. Jen carefully set the lip of the bucket into the torrential waters and was almost swept in from the force of the current. Righting herself with an oath, she pulled the instantly filled container from the hungry water and quickly began the short journey back to the village. “You are getting old, fool woman,” she chided herself. “You almost met your death by the power of your own Tane. What would people think then? It’s a good thing no one was here to see you or you’d definitely be removed from your responsibilities.” Picking up her pace she berated herself more for taking so long. “Come on old bones, back to the village before they think you
have
drowned.” 

             
Jen quickly made her way back to the hut easily passing through the soaked mob of anxious onlookers who moved away to allow her through. Pausing at the door, she rung out the bottom of the thick cotton dress she wore that was typical of all Chufa women. It was a simple cut that extended just below her knees and would have appeared to swallow her if not for the tightly wound reed belt cinched at her waste gathering it in. In the darkness the color was muted to a dull gray but revealed itself as a faded violet when bathed in the warm light as she passed through the entrance.

The hut was characteristic of others found in the village; it was round and plain and made from grasses found in abundance along the riverbed. As she entered she wiped her bare feet on the mat by the door and placed the full bucket of water near the fire situated in the middle of the room. Two other women were seated on the grass-matted floor attending LynTeh who was lying by the far wall with a blanket to cover her. She was clutched by another labor pain and screamed out as one of the women grabbed her hand to give some bit of comfort. Jen quickly dipped a cloth into the bucket and handed it to the other woman. “Here Gil, wipe her forehead with this.”

              GilSagn grabbed the wet cloth and placed it on LynTeh’s forehead. “What news of Qal?”

            “The same as here it seems,” Jen replied while moving to Lyn’s feet to check for any sign of the child.

           “Does it come?” Lyn asked with effort.

          
“Soon, dear. Try to relax, it will be soon.”

           The pain seemed to pass as Lyn’s face became visibly relieved and she released her grip on KesQen’s hand. “What Tane do you think they will become?” Kes asked with excitement.
She was the youngest of the women, just passing her seventeenth year. This was her first birthing and the thrill, mixed with the horror, was reflected vividly on her pale face. Her own parents had been killed just two moons past while searching for berries at the foot of the mountains west of the village. A raiding party of rock trolls took them by surprise and KesQen was the only one able to escape and alert the village. When they found her parents, their bodies had been mangled so badly that it was feared the SaiEeDu, the Chufa death rite, could not be properly performed. The village still grieved at such a loss to their community but hit especially hard, and understandably so, was young Kes who was now left without a family. That was the main reason she was a part of the birthing now. GilSagn and her husband had taken the grief stricken girl in and adopted her as their own. GilSagn and JenGua were two of the four women in charge of bringing new life into the village so Kes was to learn the skills herself and follow in her adopted mother’s footsteps. It was also hoped that the miracle of a new life would help her forget the tragic death of her parents. “I hope one of them is QenChe,” she said excitedly.

             
“Could that possibly be because it also is the Tane that you were born to receive?” Lyn asked with a smile.

             Kes grinned and shyly replied, “Maybe.”

             “Yes, but if it is a male child, and you should find him appealing come his adulthood, what then? You know you cannot choose one within your own Tane. You would be disappointed then of your wish,” Jen laughed. 

             
Kes’ happy face turned suddenly to one of disappointment. “I had not thought of that.”                 They all laughed but were cut short when Lyn suddenly pitched forward as she was taken by another pain. Jen lifted the blanket and gave a shout, “I can see the head. Let’s get her up.” With the help of the other two, they lifted Lyn into a squatting position. “Now, Lyn,” Jen encouraged, “when the next pain comes, push down.” 

             
Grabbing the hands of her supporters, Lyn only waited short moments before she gave a grunt and then pushed as hard as she was able. 

             
“Good, good,” Jen encouraged, “it’s coming now.” Gil wiped Lyn’s sweaty forehead as Kes stared open mouthed in amazement. This process continued for quite some time before Jen finally announced, “The head is out.” Jen cradled the baby’s head while turning it to help the shoulders through. Lyn was commanded to push and once the shoulders were free the rest of the body slid out easily. “It’s a boy!” Jen shouted. Lyn smiled but then collapsed from exhaustion as Kes and Gil eased her back down to the padded mat. Kes also sat with mouth still agape and eyes wide in wonder while Gil and Jen went to work cleaning off the baby and tying the cord.

             
“Kes,” Gil called out, “put some more fuel on the fire. We don’t want this child to become chilled.” Kes stared blankly at her for a brief moment as if not hearing what was said. Then, snapping back with a start, she got up and went to the fire. The fire blazed up with the addition of more dead wood giving the hut an instant increase in light and warmth.

             
“By the Mother’s blood,” Gil suddenly cried out. “What is that?!” All eyes turned to her as she pointed at the baby’s right ankle. Jen quickly grabbed the baby’s foot and examined it. Her kind face suddenly hardening into a stern look as she turned to Kes. “Go get the Kinpa.”

             
“All five? What is it?”

             
“Just go child. Now! And tell those outside nothing.”

             
With a disappointed look, Kes turned towards the exit and ran out through the hanging cloth door.

             
With obvious difficulty, Lyn pushed herself up onto her arms. “What is it? What is wrong with my son?!”

            “Just lay down and rest child,” Jen soothed, “all will be fine when the Kinpa get here.”

              “Give me my child, I want to hold him,” Lyn countered, struggling to keep herself from falling back to the blanket.

             
“You are exhausted child, you must rest,” Gil responded.

            “No!” Lyn demanded. “Not until I know what ails my son.”

            Gil and Jen looked at each other as if in mute conversation and then with a sigh Jen held up the baby displaying the child’s ankle. There on the protruding bone of the ankle was a black mark. Its shape was that of a sea star with all five tentacles curved in a clockwise direction having a dot just above the tip of each leg.

BOOK: Hand of Fire (The Master of the Tane)
3.18Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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