Mac Tire � Son of the EarthPart 8 - Thou know'st not what the day....Before they went out to see what they could do to help the community which had saved them, Dom and Lij went to see Pen-Nekeb and Ninus. Ninus was better, he assured Dom, as now he could only see two of him instead of four. He peered at Lij trying to bring him into focus. "It is you, oarsmaster, is it not?" he asked, shading his eyes with his hand. "Yes, captain, it is I, indeed." Ninus lowered his hand. "I am glad to see you survived, my lad. Most of the dead came from below deck. It will be hard to replace them; they were all fine men..." He resolutely bit his lip, and the two men stayed only a few more minutes before visiting Nekeb. They left him carrying the jealously guarded bundles. Nekeb did not want to give them up, but conceded that the contents were Lij's property to do with as he wished. In answer to Lij's gentle questioning it was discovered that Nekeb had made no attempt to save his own belongings - only Lij's. Back in the hut they rifled the contents of the bundles Nekeb had nearly drowned to save. Wrapped in thick camel hide, they were, for the most part, undamaged by their immersion in salt water. They consisted of a white pleated kilt, rolled and tied. An adamant and turquoise pectoral with matching bracelets and arm bands. Another, set with emeralds. A pair of gold brushed sandals, still slightly damp. Five small linen towels. A fine cloak. A golden tiara studded with enormous adamant and sapphire stones given to him by a Persian satrap, together with the earrings and chin chain. The Royal Scarab Ring of Egypt, and a few other rings and various items of jewellery. A leather pouch with a silver ring pull that was still wet - and, being swollen with water steadfastly refused to open when Dom tugged hard at it - and several other string-tied bags of coin, both silver and gold. Lij stared at the collection in some distress. "And for this he nearly died? Dom...he is worth more to me than this trash. Even my father's ring... I would not have missed it." Lij looked at the ground. "The only thing I regret..." Dom put his arm around his spouse's shoulders. "I know, Lij. I am sorry I was so dismissive of it yesterday. I know - who better? - that you hold your kingly duties as a sacred charge. The crown of the Two Lands is a great loss." Lij shrugged. "But we have each other, Dom. And faithful Nekeb to aid us on our journey...when we can leave. Let us put by this...dross... and go out and work for our daily bread as so many folks do." They packed it back up, very carefully as Nekeb must have done in the time he had had on the barge whilst Lij was saying farewell to his children, and went off to find some useful employment. *** They met Ayveen on their way, and after asking about their health and charging Lij to come and have his dressing checked at the time of the midday meal, she directed Dom through the trees edging the compound, to the peat beds. There, half a dozen men were slicing peat and stacking it in piles, and several more women and older children were taking it away in baskets strapped to their backs. Dom fell into a routine straight away, slicing and stacking with great zest, but Lij's injury was troubling him today. He left to find other employment, and soon found a small group of women and two young boys tending a vegetable patch on the other side of the compound. He blessed Meri-Hep - now the grandmother of three fine lads - for teaching him about vegetables. True, there were several varieties he knew nothing about, but he was a quick learner and very observant. He spent a happy few hours amongst the friendly villagers sitting on the ground, digging root vegetables and sorting them. He was glad he had put aside his warmer clothing, and wore only one of his two wool shirts; he was surprised to notice he did not feel as cold as he had on previous occasions. But when they rose to eat their midday meal, he felt the bite of the wind and hurried back to their hut pulling his sheepskin tighter over his shirt. He saw with dismay that he was covered in earth stains. He sighed. It wasn't thoughtful to his hosts to think of a bath several times a day when every drop of water had to be carried from the river. Lij was deep in thought as he entered through the cowhide. Ayveen welcomed him with a smile. "So you are feeling well again, I hope?" She gestured to a stool, and Lij removed his upper clothing, and sat on it, shivering a little as the cold air hit his skin. "Yes, thank you. I am usually quite well." He smiled at her in return. "Except for the falling sickness?" she asked, pouring some pungent liquid into a small bowl and pulling a handfull of wool off a larger piece in a nearby basket. "Have you had it all your life, Lij?" She unwound the bandage and sniffed at the raw flesh. She seemed pleased with what she saw, and dabbed over his flesh with the cool liquid. "No, it came as the result of... a severe illness. I did not wake from it for a long time. It left me with this. But I am not often afflicted by it these days." Ayveen had finished dabbing at Lij's chest, and nodded, satisfied with her work. "I will not cover it again. The crust has formed over it. We will leave it to dry naturally." Lij pulled his shirt on again, wincing as a pain shot up his arm into his chest. But Ayveen was tending to her lotion, and did not see it. He had barely finished dressing when Dom came back for food. Ayveen had already eaten and left them alone. Dom looked flushed and happy with his morning's work. Lij commented upon it. "Oh, I love slicing peat; always have." To Lij's uplifted eyebrow he said "a king should know how his people live, Lij. I spent a year living with them, learning their tasks, seeing how they managed their lives. It is different for you..." he said, quietly, as Lij's face fell, slightly. ..."You are a god. Gods do not go out amongst the people and live with them." Lij smiled wistfully. "Perhaps, one day, there will come a god who will." They applied themselves to their food - fowl roasted on a spit with fresh bread - and had just finished eating when Lij remarked, "Dom, I wonder what... Ninus puzzles me. I noticed..." He was interrupted as a boy rushed in, breathless and flustered. "Ayveen said will you come to her, now. There is a man sick, and she thinks you can help..." The two men rushed from the building after the boy who led them into a smaller hut at the edge of the compound. There were two children cowering against the wall. In the centre, Ayveen knelt beside a man who was twisted on the floor in a rictus of such intensity his back was arched completely off the floor. "The falling sickness!" Dom murmured softly. Lij stared at the twitching man, horrified. He had never seen another suffer as he did. Is this how I look? he thought, distressed. The man's wife stood near him, holding a sleeping baby in her arms, the tears tracking down her face. An older couple sat nearby, their faces lined with distress. They looked up as Dom and Lij entered. "Will he be well again?" the old man asked, holding onto his wife's hand as if his life depended upon it. The man on the floor had quietened down, and to Ayveen's whispered question, he managed a nod before he fell asleep. The healer checked his clothing, and covered him with a fur. Then she looked at the man's parents and wife, including the children, too, in her glance. "Broug" - she said to the father - "you see this young man?" She pointed at Lij, who although shocked at what he had seen, smiled at the old couple. "He, too, has the falling sickness. Has so for many years, now. He is well, as you can see. Crath will recover, with the help of the gods. These men will speak with you all. They are life-bonded and have lived with this sickness for some time. I will leave you, now, to talk together." The young wife checked that her husband was now asleep, then came over to join the rest of the group. The children sidled up, clinging to their mother's clothes as children do. "How long has your man been like this?" Dom asked, sitting down on the ground beside the others. Lij hesitated then sat, too. He tried to look as if he knew what to say to them, but he didn't know. Dom would have to explain how it was for Lij when these things happened. Lij did not know. The wife looked up. "Since a tree fell on him a few weeks ago. It hit his head, and bounced off striking his shoulder too. He was recovering well, until this ...thing...happened to him. Three times in the past month he has been struck down..." She coundn't continue, and sat, pressing her hands tightly together in her lap. Broug coughed and asked Lij suddenly, "You are like this, too?" Lij nodded. "Yes," he said, almost in a whisper. He coughed to clear his throat. "Yes" he said in a louder voice. "It happened to me when I was recovering from ...a severe sickness. I got up one morning, and someone...upset me. Some task I wished done that wasn't completed to my satisfaction. I got angry, and started to shout. Then I smelt flowers...and the next thing I knew I was lying in my bed, with my...with Dom beside me. He can tell you what happened." "It was as you saw your son a moment ago," Dom said, quietly. "Only even more severe. I was very frightened, because I had never seen its like before. We could not stop him jerking. And when he stopped, he had another attack. It took an hour by the water clock...I am sorry....it took some time to wake him up. He...he had..." Dom looked at Lij, as if to ask permission to tell all he knew. Lij nodded. If it would help these frightened people, what did his pride matter? "He had soiled himself," Dom continued. "I didn't know what to do. We were frightened. But we have good healers, and they put us at ease. They told us by the will of the gods the seizures might lessen. And in time, they did - but I hear it is not always so." Lij looked the younger woman in the eye, and somehow it seemed to calm her. "I am well, now. In between the...attacks, I can do anything I have always done. I just try not to get too tired, or sick, or angry. That helps." Now the people were smiling a little. "Then he is not touched by madness as Rhon said?" the old woman whispered. "Madness?" Dom exclaimed. "Of course not! It is a sickness like the ague or the rheum. Who said this dreadful thing?" The old man replied wearily. "Another healer we have - not Ayveen - said it might be the punishment of the gods for his sins..." Lij leaned over and clasped the old man's arm. "The gods are not so cruel to us as we are to each other. Be at peace. Your loved one is neither mad nor unduly incapacitated. I think he should not work with sharp objects, in case he falls on it in his sickness. And not go into the water on his own. I do not." Dom put his arm around Lij's shoulder. "We forget about it until it happens again. When he wakes, I suggest you do the same." They stayed for some time longer offering advice and listening to and answering questions. When they left, the man was still sleeping, but the children were playing quietly together and the women were preparing food. The old man sat and plaited some thongs together. They all looked happier, thankful for the comfort of experience and truth offered by these strangers. As they walked away, Lij asked in a small voice, "do I...are my...?" "Yes, very much the same, my Lij, except sometimes yours are worse. But not lately." Dom picked up a mug and dipping it into a drinking tub, drank deeply. "It is nice to drink cold water," he smiled offering the refilled cup to Lij. "Do I always...soil myself?" Lij asked in the same tone, taking the mug. Dom realised with a shock that Lij had not known he did this. "Not always." Lij replaced the mug and said quietly, �I�m glad I know this now. I have been so ignorant�� Dom glanced at him but Lij was lost in thought. The evenings were drawing in. They had been there for several hours with the distressed people in the hut. Now the darkness gathered, and Dom and Lij went to see Nekeb once more before returning to Ayveen's home. As they entered the hut, Lij remarked, "If I...if it happens again whilst we are here, Dom, bring the adult family to see me. It may help them to understand, having seen me well...before it." Dom nodded, and changed the subject. Soon he had Lij laughing at his nonsense, and when Ayveen came back it was to find the two men in good spirits. She grinned at them. "Your Nekeb may get up tomorrow, my friends. His leg is much improved and he needs to get it moving or it will stiffen. Soon you will be able to travel. Where are you headed?" she asked, easily, pulling her chair nearer the fire. Dom placed a few more slabs of peat on the slowly burning embers and they flickered into life. Lij remained silent. He did not know as yet what Dom's plans were. "We are headed for Tara," Dom said, tidying the remaining peat blocks in the basket. "I am going to offer myself to the Ard-Ri as ollave. Every king needs music and poetry. This, I can offer him." Lij hid a smile. Dom was the foremost harper in the country, Lij knew that. And the reams of poetry he kept in his head were endless. He was, after all, the ollave of ollaves. No one could touch him. Ayveen looked up at Dom in surprise. "You play? What do you play?" Dom coughed. "Harps, big and small. Flute, rebec, timpani, shawm, several things you''ll never have heard of..." "...and he sings most beautifully, too." Lij interrupted. Ayveen looked suitably impressed. "And what do you do?" A searching look was directed at Lij. "I sing, too...and dance, when necessary," Lij glanced at Dom, his love for him apparent in his shining eyes. "And I have a few other talents that might prove useful to the king's court." Dom nodded. So he does he thought. Ayveen did not ask what they were, she had more searching questions to put to them. "It seems to me you come from a warm climate. The clothing your ...Nekeb...brought with him is not very suitable for these lands. What is the name of your country, Lij?" Lij was flustered. He did not want to say. She knew he was a king. But Egypt was a huge country, time over time the size of Erin. It would not help them to be known as rulers of this vast wealth. "It is known as Mawanre" Lij extemporised. How that came into his head he had no idea, but it sounded like a country to him, in any case. "And where is it?" "It is in the hot places not far from the Nile delta," Lij continued truthfully. Ayveen shook her head. "These names mean nothing to me. But if it is as warm as those articles of clothing indicate, you are going to be very cold when the snows come." Lij had, of course heard about snow from Dom, recently. Pretty flakes of white, falling from the skies. He was determined not to be thought ignorant. "Before we were on the boat I had seen rain...once," he amended truthfully. The healer laughed. "You will see it more than once while you are here, my lad!" Dom laughed as Lij�s face took on the look and he stared down his nose at the woman opposite him. "He is a man nearly thirty, not a lad, Ayveen!" Dom explained still laughing. Lij grinned and then joined in, not wanting to feel left out of things. "I am sorry, Lij, " the woman offered as all three of them stopped laughing. "But sometimes you look so young and untried. It is hard for me to think of you as a man, let alone a king. How long have you ruled your kingdom?" Lij thought. "He died, my father, when I was fourteen, so that is fifteen years ago. I have ruled my land alone since then. I am not untried, Ayveen. Appearances can be deceptive." She nodded her acceptance of this statement. After they had eaten, the healer excused herself, and left the two men to talk, which they did, lying in their bed, warm and comfortable. Ayveen entered Cassawn's hut. He was engaged in honing his knife. It had a long blade and the joint between the blade and the handle was encrusted with dried and darkened blood. "So, lady?" he asked, not taking his eyes from his task. She sat beside him. "They are lying. At least the foreigner is. He said his country was called "Mawanre". Pen-Nekeb says it is called "Egypt." Either way, I have not heard of it. And I don't intend asking enlightenment of anyone else, either. What will be will be." She reached for his hand, and he put down the knife and returned her clasp. "They are bound for Tara, Cass. Dom told me that, freely. He says he is going to bid for a place as ollave. I expect he is adequate to the task." Cassawn wrinkled his brow. "He seems familiar to me, Ayve. I don't know why." He shrugged. "But nevertheless, familiar or not, they must die before reaching Tara." "Are you offering to go with them?" she asked, frowning. "The journey will be long and hard. The young one is not used to the cold. Maybe the weather, or the wolves will finish them off, so. There has been too much killing of late." Cassawn stared at her in amazement. "Are you willing to take the chance that they will reach Tara alive, mo chridhe?" She got up to leave, pulling her wrap closer around her against the chill night wind.. "No, my friend, I am not," she said. "Do what you must." |