The woman didn't say anything for a second, her
head turned slightly to the side as if listening despite the calm
silence in the air. A brief scowl deepened the wrinkles on her face
before she returned her gaze outside. The shadow standing beside Mirrah
seemed to shake in its entirety, as if sensing the mood of the woman,
before soundlessly disappearing into the nearby shadows. When the woman
spoke again, her voice was tight. "The hubris of that child! I hardly
think he had forgotten his promise..."
She spun around then stopped, her amber eyes on Mirrah. She opened her mouth for a second, then hesitated, looking impatient. "Forgive me. Please remain here while I deal with this." She moved weightlessly toward the shaded entrance of her tiny cottage and pulled out a black lace umbrella from an urn beside the door before pausing again. "And please do not touch anything. I will be back shortly."
~~~~~~
The passage way was narrow, a split in the rock of the mountain really. Wilhelm had to shrug off the burden of his suitcase in order to fit comfortably through the narrow crevice in the mountainside and perform a strange tug step maneuver in order to pass through. It strained the one arm that held it up enough so that the wooden suitcase would droop and perhaps catch on a tighter space during the passage which he had to yank forcefully just to free. The thought of his fragile merchandise clinking against each other with each yank made him nervous, but the shadowed passage way perhaps made him anxious even more so. He kept imagining the shadows of the ledges up each flanking cliff-face darting off along the path or lingering in the various nooks and crannies that they passed by. He had seen Phsara's magic first hand when he last stumbled past the entryway. It was the stuff of nightmares.
"So. What's Ikarvoi like?"
Wilhelm glanced behind him to where Lorena was standing, rather comfortably. Her slender frame seemed to fit snugly within the narrow space and she moved like the two mountainous walls weren't there at all. Her casual talk seemed to only aggravate Wilhelm even more. "What does it matter what she's like?"
Lorena shrugged, following slowly behind the suitcase that Wilhelm frustratedly yanked up. "First of all, if she's hostile I can spend this time to work on my tact." She hopped around a thick stalk of grass that Wilhelm stumbled over.
If only she was courteous enough to offer her hand to help him! "If she were hostile, she'd have done something to us already." Wilhelm huffed, holding his suitcase up as he picked up his pace toward the end of the passage way.
The narrow space opened up into a forested valley. Well, perhaps valley was an overexaggeration, and opened was an overstatement. The cliff-faces were pushed apart by a good dozen feet and angled apartment to let more sunlight into the area, like someone had taken an angled carving tool and just scraped away a bit of the mountain. There certainly was more light now, except the towering pines and trees in full leaf left it sparse against the hard soil. The entire space seemed fabricated, but Wilhelm couldn't help but be grateful for the open, albeit thin, air.
"It's dark here." Lorena stepped up beside Wilhelm, one hand on her hip as she surveyed the forest. "Can't imagine what it's like here at night."
Wilhelm slung his suitcase back over his shoulders and squinted through the canopy at the bits of sky that showed. Even from here he could tell that the sun was turning the blue sky into a light yellow, golden even. "If we keep standing around, chatting, we can find out ourselves." He bounced the weight of his suitcase on his back before moving forward, his eyes fixed on the path ahead. "We'd better watch our step."
Though the forest floor was wrought with protruding roots and rocks snared in the earth, that was hardly what was on Wilhelm's mind when he said that. He was all too aware of the darkness of the forest. Even in daytime, the shadows seemed thick, even sentient when the winds ruffled the leaves. It was the kind of forest that young children skirted around, giggling with nervousness and creating imaginary ghosts with the fog. It was the kind of forest that people got lost and were never heard from in. It probably didn't help that it was nearing sunset and the sunlight fell into the narrow valley at a shallow angle, creating long shadows that seemed to stretch and meld with each other and snake across the ground.
The boy probably thought all of this too, when he first came. He was pretty sure that Lorena was experiencing some of these thoughts herself, given her silence, and he quietly relished both her silence and his secret knowledge.
The trees crowding the winding dirt path gnarled with roots became sparse and the floor gave way to patches of wiry grass and mountain flowers sprouting from rocks. The mountain wall gave way to caves on one side, and on the other a path led toward a haphazard wooden fence about a garden with the roof of a cottage just beyond. The late sunlight cast the entire clearing in shadow.
Both Lorena and Wilhelm stopped, a frown on the former's face. "Someone is watching us."
Wilhelm glanced back at her. "No doubt. I wouldn't draw my weapon if I were you." He was almost surprised that Lorena had noticed. Probably shouldn't have been, assuming that she had far more battle experience than he did. Wilhelm scanned the clearing, then spoke aloud. "Don't worry. She's here to meet you."
Lorena glanced at the boy with a cocked eyebrow, but started at the voice that responded.
"You made an oath with me, Haleth."
Wilhelm smiled as Lorena spun around to face the source of the voice. "I don't believe I've broken it." He turned about to see a face floating in the shadows of the forest. Of course, at first glance, a female face seemed as if it floated amidst black shadows, and yet elegant, bony hands extended from a pair of sleeves and wrapped around the handle of a black umbrella. Black shawls that seemed to absorb the light that fell across it covered her shoulders and tresses of of midnight hair tumbled around her shoulders. Her legs seemed to disappear into the shadows of the trees. Her face was thin yet had the beauty of wisdom. "Phsara Ikarvoi."
She spun around then stopped, her amber eyes on Mirrah. She opened her mouth for a second, then hesitated, looking impatient. "Forgive me. Please remain here while I deal with this." She moved weightlessly toward the shaded entrance of her tiny cottage and pulled out a black lace umbrella from an urn beside the door before pausing again. "And please do not touch anything. I will be back shortly."
~~~~~~
The passage way was narrow, a split in the rock of the mountain really. Wilhelm had to shrug off the burden of his suitcase in order to fit comfortably through the narrow crevice in the mountainside and perform a strange tug step maneuver in order to pass through. It strained the one arm that held it up enough so that the wooden suitcase would droop and perhaps catch on a tighter space during the passage which he had to yank forcefully just to free. The thought of his fragile merchandise clinking against each other with each yank made him nervous, but the shadowed passage way perhaps made him anxious even more so. He kept imagining the shadows of the ledges up each flanking cliff-face darting off along the path or lingering in the various nooks and crannies that they passed by. He had seen Phsara's magic first hand when he last stumbled past the entryway. It was the stuff of nightmares.
"So. What's Ikarvoi like?"
Wilhelm glanced behind him to where Lorena was standing, rather comfortably. Her slender frame seemed to fit snugly within the narrow space and she moved like the two mountainous walls weren't there at all. Her casual talk seemed to only aggravate Wilhelm even more. "What does it matter what she's like?"
Lorena shrugged, following slowly behind the suitcase that Wilhelm frustratedly yanked up. "First of all, if she's hostile I can spend this time to work on my tact." She hopped around a thick stalk of grass that Wilhelm stumbled over.
If only she was courteous enough to offer her hand to help him! "If she were hostile, she'd have done something to us already." Wilhelm huffed, holding his suitcase up as he picked up his pace toward the end of the passage way.
The narrow space opened up into a forested valley. Well, perhaps valley was an overexaggeration, and opened was an overstatement. The cliff-faces were pushed apart by a good dozen feet and angled apartment to let more sunlight into the area, like someone had taken an angled carving tool and just scraped away a bit of the mountain. There certainly was more light now, except the towering pines and trees in full leaf left it sparse against the hard soil. The entire space seemed fabricated, but Wilhelm couldn't help but be grateful for the open, albeit thin, air.
"It's dark here." Lorena stepped up beside Wilhelm, one hand on her hip as she surveyed the forest. "Can't imagine what it's like here at night."
Wilhelm slung his suitcase back over his shoulders and squinted through the canopy at the bits of sky that showed. Even from here he could tell that the sun was turning the blue sky into a light yellow, golden even. "If we keep standing around, chatting, we can find out ourselves." He bounced the weight of his suitcase on his back before moving forward, his eyes fixed on the path ahead. "We'd better watch our step."
Though the forest floor was wrought with protruding roots and rocks snared in the earth, that was hardly what was on Wilhelm's mind when he said that. He was all too aware of the darkness of the forest. Even in daytime, the shadows seemed thick, even sentient when the winds ruffled the leaves. It was the kind of forest that young children skirted around, giggling with nervousness and creating imaginary ghosts with the fog. It was the kind of forest that people got lost and were never heard from in. It probably didn't help that it was nearing sunset and the sunlight fell into the narrow valley at a shallow angle, creating long shadows that seemed to stretch and meld with each other and snake across the ground.
The boy probably thought all of this too, when he first came. He was pretty sure that Lorena was experiencing some of these thoughts herself, given her silence, and he quietly relished both her silence and his secret knowledge.
The trees crowding the winding dirt path gnarled with roots became sparse and the floor gave way to patches of wiry grass and mountain flowers sprouting from rocks. The mountain wall gave way to caves on one side, and on the other a path led toward a haphazard wooden fence about a garden with the roof of a cottage just beyond. The late sunlight cast the entire clearing in shadow.
Both Lorena and Wilhelm stopped, a frown on the former's face. "Someone is watching us."
Wilhelm glanced back at her. "No doubt. I wouldn't draw my weapon if I were you." He was almost surprised that Lorena had noticed. Probably shouldn't have been, assuming that she had far more battle experience than he did. Wilhelm scanned the clearing, then spoke aloud. "Don't worry. She's here to meet you."
Lorena glanced at the boy with a cocked eyebrow, but started at the voice that responded.
"You made an oath with me, Haleth."
Wilhelm smiled as Lorena spun around to face the source of the voice. "I don't believe I've broken it." He turned about to see a face floating in the shadows of the forest. Of course, at first glance, a female face seemed as if it floated amidst black shadows, and yet elegant, bony hands extended from a pair of sleeves and wrapped around the handle of a black umbrella. Black shawls that seemed to absorb the light that fell across it covered her shoulders and tresses of of midnight hair tumbled around her shoulders. Her legs seemed to disappear into the shadows of the trees. Her face was thin yet had the beauty of wisdom. "Phsara Ikarvoi."
