Jalia in the North (Jalia - World of Jalon) (8 page)

“I heard fairies had the heads of animals and were able to perform magic,” Kaydar the blacksmith interrupted. “They could only be killed if you cut off their heads and that an ordinary sword wouldn’t work. You had to use a magic one.”

Gasporin glared at Kaydar and he hastily shifted his eyes back to the cards in his hand and shut up.

“One day a Prince of the Fairie got into a fight in the city of Caldorney over a woman. A man attacked him without warning using his magic sword and…,” Gasporin glared at Kaydar daring him to speak, “He slew him by cutting off his head. Because the Fairie was a Prince the other Fairie got together to cast a terrible spell on Caldorney and the great city melted to the ground. The stones ran like water so great was the fire the Fairie created.

All the people of the city were killed, bursting into flames and dying in agony. It was said that what happened at Caldorney led the Magician Kings to declare war on the Fairie, which as we know, resulted in the destruction of both races. There are no more magicians and there are no more Fairie. Some people believe the ghosts of the people who died that day still walk in the melted streets of the city”

“And why would anyone believe there is any treasure?” Jalia asked.

“Caldorney was a rich city. Vaults filled with gold must exist below the melted stone if you knew where to look.” Gasporin smiled a thin smile, “Those people who prospect the city have a habit of disappearing, like Faflin’s sons. They say the ghosts of Caldorney kill anyone who tries to steal from their graves.”

It was at that very moment that Jalia resolved to go to the Caldorney Wastes and search for treasure. She was sure she could persuade Daniel to come with her and in any case, she would need his donkeys to carry the treasure away.

While the men continued to work on the house extension, Jalia was busy with preparations for the trip to the Caldorney Waste. She hadn’t informed Daniel of the modification to their travel plans, but he soon began to get hints that something had changed.

During a trip into town to buy the beams for the second floor and roof of the house the woodyard owner asked Daniel why Jalia was paying money for the urine of the local drunks. She was offering good money for each bucket she saw filled herself.

Daniel had no answers, but he suspected Jalia was using her alchemy skills to make something. Daniel had never managed to get her to explain exactly how she acquired those skills, given that only men are accepted into the Alchemists Guild.

Another clue something was going on was the mysterious arrival of equipment where Daniel stored his trade goods. The goods he arrived with were vanishing and being replaced with such things as pickaxe’s and a tent. Daniel had never owned a tent in his travelling because the weather in the south was either mild or extremely hot and when it was wet you could always cut yourself a shelter from the trees nearby.

The items Jalia were buying were being made to order, the pickaxe had a detachable handle which locked with a cunning mechanism. Normally having a detachable handle on a pickaxe would be highly dangerous for anybody working nearby, but if you wanted to transport it on a donkey, it was extremely useful. The tent was made of a strong waxed fabric of some kind Daniel had never seen before. Cleverly constructed wooden rods slotted together to make a frame, but as there were no instructions, Daniel hoped Jalia had practiced its assembly.

Jalia was absent all day and every day, arriving back at the farmhouse late in the evening, often looking as though she had spent the day working in a coal mine. The nights were drawing in and the air had a chill about it. Luckily, there had been little rain as that would have made working on the house difficult.

Daniel was pleased with the heavy fur lined coat that turned up alongside his diminishing pile of trade goods. It was his size and when he wore it, it stopped the cold bitter winds from penetrating. Jalia also provided new clothes and boots to go with it and Daniel wondered how she knew his size.

While Jalia was off preparing for the upcoming journey, a romance blossomed between Ben and Lonny. Lonny relaxed and become a much happier person after Jalia told her Teague had left the area. Ben and Lonny decided to make their relationship permanent and his parents were delighted. Buran’s Elder performed marriage ceremonies and they arranged for one two weeks hence, which would be around the time the extension would be finished. Daniel suggested to Jalia that it would also be an excellent time for them to leave.

“Good,” Jalia said and smiled, “I have the perfect present for them and my work will be finished before then.”

“Work?”

“Just a little mixture I’ve been making.”

“We travel to Taybee and on towards Telmar?”

“We’re going to make a little detour to the Caldorney Waste,” Jalia said casually as though discussing the weather.

“We are going to the what, where?”

“Don’t fuss, Daniel, it’s only a little out of our way and you never wanted to go to Telmar in the first place.”

Daniel sighed and sat down. “Where is the Caldorney Waste and why are you so keen for us to go there?”

“The Caldorney Waste is north of here. It was once a great city according to some old stories and I want to see it.” Jalia clasped her hands behind her back like a little girl and pouted. “You like finding out about history and I thought you’d like to see it too. There are supposed to be ghosts there. Do you believe in ghosts?”

“Once upon a time I didn’t believe in magic or the Fairie and now I’ve seen them with my own eyes. Why shouldn’t ghosts exist too?” Daniel looked into innocent blue eyes and wondered what devilment was playing behind them. “Exactly why do we need pickaxes and shovels to visit ruins?”

“We might see something we want to excavate, Daniel, something interesting.” Jalia kept her voice neutral and averted her eyes. Daniel was becoming far too good at guessing what she was thinking.

“Someone has told you there is treasure there.” This was a flat statement of fact and Jalia silently cursed that she was becoming so easy to read.

“Perhaps,” Jalia admitted, “But they say the ghosts guard it, so it’s unobtainable. I want to go up and have a look.”

“Very well,” Daniel agreed after a pause and Jalia flung her arms around him giving him a hug. “Are you going to tell you what present you have got for the happy couple?”

“Later, Daniel, later.”

There was excitement the next day when Yeta played with her mother’s sewing box and a secret compartment opened. A thin tray lay concealed in the bottom of the box and in a set of carved circular indentations were gold coins. It seemed that the girls’ parents hadn’t been going to Telmar without the means to buy things they needed.

Maya solemnly handed the coins to Daniel.

“These are for both of you. We would have died without you.”

Daniel smiled at the child and thought how miffed Jalia would be that there had been gold so close.

“This is a fine gift and I will keep them for now. But I might find another use for them before we leave.”

That evening as Daniel fed his donkeys, Jalia arrived with a small wooden cask six inches in diameter and twelve inches long. It had a small wooden stopper at one end which was sealed with beeswax. Jalia put the barrel down besides the tent.

When she turned to face him, Daniel saw that Jalia no longer had eyebrows and her face was red as if it had been in the sun too long. Her hair also showed signs of burning. Despite this, she looked elated.

“What’s in that cask and should I be worried about my donkeys carrying it?” Daniel asked, raising his eyebrows at her state.

“It’s only a little alchemists’ powder and it will be perfectly safe if you don’t get it too near a flame.”

“Exploding powder, the alchemists’ greatest secret, the substance for which Kings have killed to obtain a few ounces?”

“It works better here. That’s what caused my little accident. It must be because people drink so much alcohol.” Realizing she had said too much, Jalia lapsed into silence.

“Don’t worry Jalia, knowing that men’s urine is involved in its preparation is not a big help,” Daniel said with a grin, “I’ve always wanted to use exploding powder, but the alchemists only sell it in the smallest of quantities.”

“It cost me a great deal to learn alchemy, both in the studying and in the men I had to sleep with to do that study. Not to mention the risks I took in stealing the final parts of the secret.” Jalia again lapsed into silence as she thought of Marco Rawn, the man who took her virginity at age twelve and all the others to whom she had offered her body to satisfy her thirst for knowledge.

“Speaking of thievery, it would appear that the children’s parents outsmarted you in hiding their gold.” Daniel said, grinning back at his partner. He knew from the look on her face that her mind had taken her to times she would rather forget and he sought to lighten her mood.

“You mean the coins in the sewing box? I wondered when someone would find them.”

“When did you discover them?” Daniel was astounded. Twice in the past ten minutes, she had surprised him to his core.

“On the night their parents died, just before Maya and Yeta started clinging to me. It was the first place I looked.” Jalia saw the bafflement in Daniel’s eyes and explained. “Their father was a carpenter and no one steals a sewing box. Really Daniel, you should have known to look there yourself.”

“And you didn’t take the coins because…?”

“I might steal from the dead, but I wouldn’t steal from children in my care. What kind of a monster do you take me for?”

“The children have given me the coins and Maya told me we should keep it for saving them.”

“We aren’t going to, are we?”

“No, I plan to give Gilben the money as a dowry for the girls. I will tell him to spend the money if he needs to, farmers often need money in the bad times and I want him to know I understand that.” Daniel looked into Jalia’s eyes and she nodded in agreement.

The day of the marriage arrived and the family travelled into town for the ceremony. Daniel and Jalia packed the donkeys and intended to leave immediately after the marriage. They said their goodbyes to Maya and Yeta the night before and the children solemnly kissed them and wished them good travelling with tears in their eyes.

Earlier that evening, Jalia relieved the card players of all the money they were willing to bet. As a result, she kept a close look out for any sore losers as they entered Buran. She also took the time to get detailed directions from Faflin, as she planned to follow the same route to the Caldorney Waste that he and his sons had followed. In return for the information she promised him they would bury his sons’ bones should they find them.

As soon as the marriage was over, Jalia gave the happily married couple the deeds to Teague’s farm. Like most farms near a town, the town demanded taxes for services rendered and Teague failed to pay his. Jalia paid the taxes and took possession when she needed a dry place to make her exploding powder.

“Just be sure to sweep the place carefully before you light a fire or a lamp,” she cautioned the couple, taking time to make sure they understood she wasn’t joking.

On the Way

Jalia and Daniel headed for the ferry over the River Esta. The Esta was one of three large rivers rising in the mountains of the Delbar Heights and flowing towards the north. The River Esta was over a hundred yards wide near Buran and at its deepest point. Horses would have to swim to cross it.

The Magicians Road had mighty bridges spanning all three rivers and those bridges still stood despite the ravages of time. But at Buran, crossing could best be achieved by using the ferry that traversed the river. The ferry was a crude affair consisting of two platforms jutting out into the river. Thick ropes bound the platforms together across the river. The ropes were attached to a raft and by pulling on the ropes the raft was pulled from one side to the other.

There wasn’t enough room on the raft for the horses and donkeys to cross together. Jalia went first holding the reins of Jet and Swift who became jumpy and difficult to handle as they felt the raft shift under them. It took all Jalia’s skills to prevent the horses hurting themselves during the crossing.

Daniel followed with his donkeys. This proved easier than expected as the younger donkeys took their lead from Ferd, and Ferd was unperturbed at being on the raft. As Jalia watched their passage across the river she felt a pang of jealousy as Daniel leant against a rail and admired the view.

The road on the far side of the river turned south east, eventually joining the Magicians Road a hundred and fifty miles away at the town of Taybee. Jalia and Daniel were travelling north east, and there was no obvious road or trail in that direction.

Jalia got out the map Faflin gave her. The map used landmarks to mark the trail. The gentling rolling plains and small hills of the land west of the Esta changed to steeper hills intertwined with long winding valleys in the east. Pine and fir trees covered the tops of the hills while at the lower levels stands of deciduous trees dotted lush grassland. These trees had shed their leaves as the cold of autumn had turned to the first flush of winter.

The map guided them through a series of valleys and narrow passes. An unnamed river ran through the valleys and as they followed it upwards, it dwindled to become little more than a stream.

Every day they faced ice cold rain, which Jalia believed was soaking into her bones. They creaked in the morning and she went to sleep aching in the damp. The tent worked well, but as the days passed it became heavier and less effective as it soaked up rain. They moved higher up the sides of the valleys to find wood that would burn despite being soaked, pine twigs and branches spat on their fires as sap came to the surface.

Despite the weather, the countryside around them was inspiring. They encountered lush fertile valleys. There were signs people once populated these places if you knew what to look for, square edged stones at the river bank where a bridge once stood, a pile of rubble that might once have been a house half hidden in the trees.

“The human race seems to be in decline,” Daniel remarked as he spotted a flat piece of stone with carving upon it.

“There are plenty of people in Bagdor.”

“Bagdor is only a shadow of what it used to be, the current city walls used to be an inner keep for times of crisis. My parents farmed within the outer walls of Delbon but the fields we ploughed showed signs houses once stood where fields of wheat now grow.”

“It’s true that even twenty years ago there was regular trade with Ballis,” Jalia mused. My father talked of going there and my mother intended to reopen trade with the west on the journey that killed her.”

Jalia was lost for a moment in memories of her beautiful fair-haired mother. She had been a formidable woman, every bit a match for her husband. She came from the west though she never did say exactly where she was born.

“Why haven’t we re-colonized these lands?” Daniel asked. “Why do people crowd into Bagdor and Delbon when lands like these exist with nobody in them?”

“It snows here in the winter?” Jalia suggested, “Or perhaps the ghosts scare people away?”

“I think it’s the nature of the city states,” Daniel mused, “The king of Delbon is only interested in Delbon. He only protects the farms and villages beyond the walls when food becomes scarce. Slavers and raiders steal from the farmers, and villages with impunity, knowing the king won’t stop them.”

“You’ll be wanting the High King back next.” Jalia laughed at the thought, “And while you’re wishing for that, why not ask for the Magician Kings as well. According to legend they could travel from city to city in the blink of an eye and built mighty machines to run on rails.”

“Now you’re being silly,” Daniel said. “The Fairie killed every magician in the world, so the Magician Kings are gone for good.”

Three weeks later they reached the point on the map where the route left the valleys and climbed a ridge to the north. It was a steep climb and they had to walk the horses as it was far too dangerous to try and ride them on the treacherous slopes. The rain became a mist blown by strong winds into their faces. It kept them permanently wet as they trudged along.

Fortunately, the clothes Jalia bought were able to keep them warm even while wet or they would have died of exposure.

One evening they found a large cave, big enough for the horses to walk into and for the first time in days, they were spared the wind and the rain. Daniel started a fire far enough from the entrance to be free from rain, but not so far in as to risk smoking them out of the cave.

“We should stay here for a few days and dry our clothes and gear,” Daniel suggested. He knew they were close to the Waste and wondered if Jalia would refuse in her eagerness to find treasure.

“I agree,” Jalia said as she sank down before the fire and held her hands out to get them warm. “If you can think of a way to warm some water and make me a bath I shall perform sexual favors known only to the Harem of the Caliph of Enbar Entar.”

“I’m tempted to build you a pool to bathe in and heat it just so I can prove what a liar you are Jalia al’Dare. How would you know of such things?”

“Get me a bath and I’ll tell you.” Jalia smiled a knowing smile at Daniel that started his heart racing.

Later that night they sat naked around the roaring fire that Daniel had built and watched their clothes steam gently on a frame constructed from the branches of bushes. The horses and the donkeys watched them from the far side of the cave. The animals didn’t like fire but they did enjoy the warmth it brought and had found a position that compromised between fear and desire.

“Still no bath, I see. So you can tell that appendage of yours it is wasting its time standing to attention as it is going nowhere tonight,” Jalia mocked.

“I never tire of seeing you naked, Jalia. It always has this effect on me,” Daniel replied without a trace of anger. “Sometimes it’s good enough to watch.”

Jalia opened her mouth to make a scathing reply about Daniel’s lack of physical stamina when a white vaguely human shape appeared on the other side of the fire. Two knives thrown less than a second apart flew through the air as Daniel and Jalia reacted. The shape ignored the knives, which flew through where its heart should have been.

Before the knives hit the ground, Jalia and Daniel picked up their swords and sandwiched the shape between them, ready to strike.

“Leave this place or at least one of you will die,” a voice told them. The white shape stopped looking human as it contracted into a ball of light. The ball exploded and Daniel and Jalia were flung across the cave.

When Daniel opened his eyes, it was to the darkness. The fire had been extinguished by the explosion. The wood on the fire had instantly stopped burning. When Jalia lit a lamp, they examined the remnants of the half burned branches and found them cold to the touch.

Daniel relit the fire as Jalia calmed down their spooked animals.

The companions picked up their half dry clothes and put them back onto the frames. The fire was soon roaring again though not as powerfully as before. Jalia disappeared into the night to retrieve their knives.

When she returned, they resumed their previous positions by the fire as if nothing had happened. The fire quickly dried Jalia’s body, which had become wet when she ventured out to find the knives. Neither had spoken since the shape appeared.

“You always bring me to the best places,” Daniel said as he offered Jalia a cup of tea he had brewed for her.

“If you can get that appendage of yours working again, I might be able to find a warm place to welcome it.”

“Your wish is my command.”

Daniel bowed low before Jalia, and she smiled.