A Hollow Mountain (The Brightest Shadow Book 2), page 22
She had no such reservations about the food they served her. They used milk from the bicorns to make a substance called "cheese" that Tani thought very strange, yet she found herself scooping more curds from the bowl. Given their poverty, she had expected no meat, yet to her surprise she was served a little. Neither of the siblings seemed to find the dumplings remarkable, but Tani relished the three she was given. Each had a bundle of different vegetables, with just enough meat and spices to give it added flavor.
Though she wasn't sure of their customs for guests, the two grew more relaxed as they ate. Once most of the food was gone, Tani decided to ask Rubako her question. "I would like to stay here with you for a short time. I can fight, and I can probably help some with your work. Is that alright?"
"Are you bringing any trouble after you?"
"I don't think so. I don't know anyone in these mountains except for a few fellow travelers."
Cabari sat forward. "Oh, where are you traveling? Is it to Espal? Or Portant?"
"Strange as it may seem, I am traveling east. Can you tell me how to get to Mount Tmil?"
To her surprise, both of them stared at her in shock. The silence stretched and Tani was just about to inquire what was wrong when Cabari spoke quietly. "You're really going to Tmil?"
"Yes, I am. Is that strange?"
"Just dangerous." Rubako shook his head. "It's hard enough to live here without taking risks like that. Nobody climbs the big mountains except crazy warriors."
"Well..." Tani gave a sheepish shrug and managed to pull a laugh from Cabari. She decided to keep everything else about her journey a secret. After so long walking in the light of the Legend, it was a relief to simply interact with other people who wanted to live normal lives.
Once every morsel of food was gone, Rubako went out to check on the bicorns again. Cabari sat against one of the walls and pulled off her outermost cloth in order to mend it. As she did so, Tani noticed that her innermost robe seemed different than the others: far, far higher quality.
"Cabari, may I...?" She asked the question carefully, but the younger woman simply nodded and pulled out some of the fabric for her to feel. Tani knelt and ran her fingers across it, marveling at how incredibly soft the fabric was. "Just what is this?
"We make it from ombo wool. I think maybe you don't have ombos where you come from?"
Tani shook her head, resisting the urge to feel the fabric any further. She couldn't help but imagine what it would feel like to have inner linings made from it. With a heavier outer layer for warmth, she could easily brave far worse conditions.
Seeing her curiosity, Cabari guided her to the hutch she had seen before, where she observed the ombos to be small creatures sniffing about the cages. She had expected them to be covered in wool or heavy fur, but instead they were bundles of long hair, which Cabari explained was gathered to form wool.
When the young woman opened a cage and allowed Tani to hold one, she discovered that its body was much smaller than she expected within all the hair. It squirmed in her hands somewhat, hair tickling her arms, but seemed quite peaceful. She was amazed at how helpless it felt, though she noted that it had large ears to hear predators and strong back legs that might allow it to run swiftly.
"There are wild ombos, of course, but we breed these to have softer hair. They are the only truly valuable thing we have." Cabari sighed and ran her fingers along the robe herself. "We can't make cloth fast enough to pay the Steelbones, so I may have to use my own for payment."
"Do these Steelbones actually offer protection?" Tani asked gently. She saw something flicker in Cabari's eyes, but then the other woman shook her head.
"You will see, if you stay for enough days. It is not many now... will you stay?"
"Yes, I will." For now, at least, her days of traveling alone were over.
Chapter 17
-
"There was considerable disagreement among we scholars as to whether the Stillmarrow clan deserved to be considered among the four most dangerous. They have shown large numbers and above average strength, but what sets them apart is their good judgment: they have never allowed themselves to be cornered in a pitched battle. Information is scarce, and some among us believe that it would be unwise to make too much of this."
- Scholars of the Blue Mask
-
As the banquet drew closer, Celivia did everything that she could to take her mind off what was coming. There was too much turmoil in her mind for her to accomplish any meaningful sein training, so she threw herself into brutal physical work. Every time she lay gasping and covered in her own blood, however, she found herself thinking about her choice.
When she had raised the issue with Jeraeli, the other woman hadn't seemed to understand her objection, though Celivia had found herself staying quiet instead of articulating her thoughts. To Jeraeli, it was simply an opportunity to take a step closer to the Zeitai's inner circle. When the other woman received an invitation several days later, she had been elated.
Now only one day remained before that night. Though Celivia considered finding Daekhan and asking him what he knew about such banquets, she thought that he would not appreciate being contacted over so little. Since Jeraeli was busy preparing herself and Celivia had turned aside others interested in speaking to her, she had no other connections to bide the time.
Instead she wandered back to the headquarters of the Voidwalkers. Considering how they spent the majority of their time moving across the world, it was likely to be a meaningless trip, but she was in luck. No one stopped her and she found Unila sitting in a common area. The Voidwalker wore her dark uniform, but with most of the clasps undone.
"Unila!" Celivia smiled as she walked near. "I haven't seen you since we trained together!"
"Hello, Celivia." Unila looked up at her, only half-smiling in response. "What brings you to Wahleen?"
Celivia slid down into the couch opposite her and noted how soft it was: Voidwalkers always had excellent accommodations to offset the difficulty of their work. "I'm only here temporarily before they send me back to the Sotunn Mountains. They're giving me difficult assignments, but in theory they will pay off. But what about you? Have you worked here long?"
"Hmm... I suppose it will be three years in forty days or so. Wahleen is a bit different than most positions. The humans don't have any equivalent to our division, not like in Fareshel, but some of their masters can voidwalk. We have to negotiate with them sometimes, which is always odd."
"I spent several years working with humans, so I know that can be difficult even before voidwalking gets involved. I probably won't be able to see you often, but you might end up bringing me supplies in Sotfaal. Hopefully we can support each other."
Unila fixed her with a flat gaze. "That's all very friendly of you, but we haven't spoken since we left Teirsan's program. What do you want?"
"Is that how it usually goes?" Celivia suppressed a wince, since Unila had essentially seen through her. It might be a weak connection, but having a Voidwalker on her side would be of great use. "I honestly don't need anything from you."
"You would not believe how minor of acquaintances approach me, wanting something voidwalked across the world. Everyone who's ever sold me a single skewer of meat thinks that's their angle." Unila lay back and rubbed her forehead with both hands. "If you even try to say anything about women sticking together, I will throw you out. And I could throw you pretty far."
"I really don't need anything right now, Unila." Celivia stood back up. "But you're right, you have more to offer me than I can offer you. If that's how you feel, then I'll just go."
"Oh, don't sulk." Unila wiped her eyes and stood up as well, giving her a bit of a smile. "At least you tried to talk to me before you needed something, and you were kind enough when we were both training to be Voidwalkers. Since you passed the early training, it would be easier to move with you."
"Then you're open to working together?"
"We have to stay neutral, but I'll give you a favor. If you need something transported, or need to go somewhere, I'll help you. Once. How much I'll be able to help will depend on the route they've given me and how important your request is."
"Thank you, Unila. I wouldn't ask for anything that isn't important."
"Importance is a relative thing." Unila shrugged, but her little smile hadn't disappeared. "I'll tell the staff here to take messages from you if I'm gone. So I'll see you when you need something."
Though Unila walked away, Celivia was the one who didn't belong. She wandered back out of the building, feeling more guilty than she had expected. Unfortunately, she did essentially fall into the category of people hoping to leech off the Voidwalkers. It frustrated her to think that she had been unwittingly exploitative, but Unila had freely given her the favor. That could make a huge difference.
Celivia returned to her room and began preparations for the banquet. That began with making her sein presentable, smoothing out all of the tension from her training. What she needed to present was an immaculate warrior, young but on the path to power. After so long in the wildernesses of the world, she struggled to retrieve old habits from dusty shelves of her mind.
Beyond that came more mundane elements of presentability. She bathed herself thoroughly, then took extra care to put her hair up properly: finally an opportunity to wear Reina's pearl comb. With Seinan skin and hair, maintenance of a basic appearance wasn't so difficult. Though Jeraeli had offered to let her borrow clothes more in keeping with the current style, Celivia opted to wear her best combat robes. Those would be a better representation of her true nature.
At last it was time. Celivia went to the gates of Castle Wahles and presented the invitation, only to be led in a completely different direction, to a smaller door in the side of the fortress.
There she discovered a grand hall filled with tables, three large bonfires blazing alongside them. The tables had only a few small bowls, but many of the chairs were already full. Not wanting to participate, Celivia slipped into a seat at the corner. Listening to the others, she gradually came to understand that arriving early was a sign of being one of the inner circle. Something to remember, if she stayed.
As more people arrived and servants began to bring out food, Celivia realized that she would need to take a better position. If the banquet didn't become anything she feared, at least not immediately, then she couldn't ignore this opportunity. Strength was only enough when it was completely overwhelming; until she obtained that, she needed to play the game.
Some tables were filled with nobles wearing elaborate furs, while others held mostly soldiers in remnants of their uniforms. She instead took a seat at a table filled with an irregular set of warriors, hoping that she might be best suited there.
"So you're the band leader who got an audience." The voice came from a warrior clad in heavy Wahleenese armor. Though his tone was not hostile, it was clearly a challenge as she sat down.
"I took initiative and destroyed one of the human raider clans." Celivia stared back at the helm to see if he would reject her, but her stare was interrupted when a Catai on her side of the table slapped her on the back.
"Not bad, Seinan! I spent a year in the mountains. Those bastards are slippery. They only fight when it's against weaklings." The Catai who spoke was perhaps the broadest man Celivia had ever seen, taking up the space of three normal people. His slap on her back was hard, but using full combat defenses, she managed to do little more than flinch.
"If you ask me, it was a crass misuse of resources." The new voice came from a thin Seinan man who at that moment sat down across from them. He stiffly pulled off a pair of black gloves, one finger at a time, not looking at her.
"How would you have eliminated the clan?" she asked. He sniffed and continued to focus on his gloves, but he did answer.
"The raiders are far too dependent on their strongest, their lesser forces lacking discipline or not having training at all. What you need - what I did - was collect a group of elite warriors. Eliminate the strongest members of the clan and the other humans will tear the survivors apart for you."
"A good strategy, if you have elite warriors available." Though she answered lightly, Celivia agreed with the arrogant man. She would rather have a few with strength similar to her own than an entire company of soldiers like her band. Whatever path the raiders followed, it seemed quite effective at producing warriors.
"The Portantese are the same." A new voice entered the conversation and Celivia turned to see a rare Feras Catai. A fierce mane of golden hair sprung from his neck and shoulders, blending with the hair atop his head. But where most Feras she had seen had matted and tangled hair, this man had brushed his until it shone impressively.
When he spoke, the arrogant man sniffed and turned away. Celivia realized that he had finished removing his gloves only to begin putting on a different pair of gloves. The new pair was thin and white, perhaps for eating, but did he truly need a different pair simply to walk to the banquet? That was a level of vanity she had yet to face.
"They have armies, but you've just gotta find the biggest one." As he spoke, the wide Catai continued to shove pieces of meat into his mouth. "Take them down and all the rest run away. Battle over."
Though his strategy was crude, to say the least, he radiated sein as if he had plenty to waste. Celivia knew that most warriors at the table were powerful, but she was still surprised at how carelessly he spent his strength. If these were the type of warriors who generally received invitations to the Zeitai's banquets, she was out of place.
As the meal continued, more dishes were brought out and the conversation ranged. Celivia learned few names, but she did come to understand more of how the politics surrounding the Zeitai worked. Ignoring ranks, Kreue had a select set of elite warriors he trusted most, and authority trickled from them down to their subordinates. If not for her audience, she would have been beneath even them.
Jeraeli arrived fashionably late and couldn't find space at the same table, so Celivia remained alone. Fortunately, they mostly allowed her to be an observer of their own conflicts. The broad Feinan, the stiff aristocrat, and the Feras had all gone through Catai rebirths, and not the simplest version. She couldn't compete and found herself wishing that she could exit.
"Excuse me." The soft voice beside them made her flinch, because she hadn't sensed any arrivals. She looked up to discover Yelaan, the functionary who had stood outside the Zeitai's door. "The four of you are invited to come deeper inside for a more private dinner."
The other three seemed unsurprised, so Celivia decided to go along with them. They were swiftly taken from the main feasting hall to a side chamber, where she noted several others had arrived. Though Celivia tried to make eye contact, her friend seemed much more interested in the Feras, flirtatiously toying with his mane. It was difficult to tell if she was interested or merely manipulating him. Judging from how he reacted, the latter would be an effective strategy.
All around her, the atmosphere had changed. The broad Catai was regularly rubbing at the bulge in his pants, and Celivia caught a few fragments of conversation that suggested what was about to happen. Though no one was looking at her, that didn't make her any more comfortable. She edged toward the door, only to find the fussy man by her side.
"Planning to depart early?"
She met his gaze evenly. "Is that forbidden?"
"Of course not." He shrugged languidly, finally turning his attention from his gloves to look at her. "If you wish to advance in the Zeitai's court, however, refusing gifts is unwise. I only wanted to tell you that if your concern is privacy, private rooms with whatever you desire could be arranged."
"Thank you." She smiled, but it was a weak attempt that convinced no one.
Before they could say any more, the functionary returned to escort them into another room. This one was filled with cushions and low beds, adorned with the white-clad women and men she had seen in the throne room. The broad Catai let out a roar and charged in, throwing two of the women over his shoulders.
Further in, Celivia could see Zeitai Kreue seated on a bed. He was alone, but something in his eyes struck her as infinitely cruel. That, more than anything, was what made her finally turn and walk in the other direction. No one tried to stop her but Jeraeli, who caught her gaze and urged her to return before finally letting her go.
Celivia left the castle by the shortest path, finally stepping into the night. It had grown cold outside, yet she could still hear the sounds of the celebration and feel the warmth on her back.
~ ~ ~
Though there were no obvious consequences to simply leaving the banquet, the next day Celivia realized that her social aura had changed. When she ate at a restaurant, no one made any attempt to talk to her. She didn't see anything approaching scandal or even interest, she had simply ceased to be a relevant entity in the circles of power surrounding the Zeitai.
As Celivia ate her way through an entire tray of meat, she tried to decide how much of a problem that was. Soon enough, she'd be given the exact details of her assignment and then sent back south. Most likely she wouldn't see anyone in Throne Wahles again until she'd succeeded, at which time her behavior probably wouldn't matter. She wondered if she had burned bridges that might have brought aid of some kind.
"You robbed yourself of an amazing experience last night." Jeraeli appeared beside her, wearing a different but equally gorgeous dress than the one she'd been wearing the previous night. She sat down opposite Celivia, giving her a strange smile. "Anything you'd wanted, you could have found it."
"A good night of sleep?"
"Ha, no." Jeraeli leaned forward, examining her carefully. "If you have someone, you should have said as much. You'd have been viewed as eccentric, but it wouldn't have been a refusal."
That would have been a good lie, but it was too late to reconsider, so Celivia merely shrugged. "You found what you wanted, I take it?"
