GoCorral

Chapter 9 – Hollow Rejoicing (Continued)

Blendegad nodded. “Yes. I have that in Densmith. It is nice. To have… something.”

Galandir said, “So the funeral in a few days. How are they going to do that without the bodies?”

Tereman said, “It won’t be a real funeral. Grandma Blintz asked me to help as an acolyte of Zeus. We’ll be asking the gods to grant them an easy passage to the River Styx and a comfortable wait until they can be properly laid to rest. That’s all we can hope for at the moment. At least until the bodies are recovered and a proper funeral is held.”

Galandir said, “And you think that can be done? Recovering the bodies?”

Tereman took a deep breath. He quickly pinched his nose and released it. “No. I don’t. Not while the adlishars are still there. Maybe they’ll leave? Maybe we’ll find some power or weakness in Phoenix that will help. Then we could come back.”

Galandir nodded. “No chance yet then.”

Blendegad said, “When do we set out for Phoenix. I’m getting itchy staying in one place for so long.”

Tereman said, “We’ll go first thing after the funeral.”

Chapter 10 – Phoenix

The trio of Tereman, Blendegad, and Galandir left the day after the funeral service for the slain villagers of Shalerton. Tereman gave them a glorious sendoff with a speech and blessing from Zeus. While their travels to the Underworld would not be over until two coins could be placed on their eyes, they were at least eased on the way to their interim destination at the shores of the River Styx.

Tereman had heard many funeral speeches in Dalleer for fallen guards. He modeled his speech after theirs as best he could, knowing little about the people of Shalerton that had died.

“People of Shalerton, mourners of loved ones. I stand before you with a burden greater than words can shape. For no speech, however carefully forged, can match the weight of sorrow we carry today. My tongue cannot fully honor those you have lost. Yet someone must speak so that those who have fallen can be remembered, grieved, and praised rather than pass in silence. I will do what I can for them and for you.

“Shalerton is a small village filled with the common, hardy people of the world. Farmers, tailors, smiths, shepherds, and dairies. Fathers, mothers, sons and daughters. You carved a home from the wild lands and kept faith with the Olympians through your yearly toil. Our ancestors teach us that community is not built in grand halls and distant castles. Community is built with the shared work, shared hope, and shared lives we live together. From these beginnings came Shalerton, a humble and enduring village. Never imagining that creatures outside our knowledge would test you and your steadfast courage.

“The adlishars descended upon Shalerton and took many of you. Children and parents stolen in the night by a crafty predator. Some of those taken did not return. In the grip of the adlishars, they suffered. Before the eyes of some of you here, they suffered. It was a horror that no one should have witnessed and a loss none of you should bear.

“Yet know this! Those dead did not fall meaninglessly. Their resistance bought time for my companions and I to arrive. Their will to live kindled the fire of your rescue. In their last breaths, the taught the adlishars that the people of this village are not beasts to be broken, but people bound together by their love and devotion to one thing, community. The monsters are not your masters. They bleed like other beings and can suffer just the same.

“We honor those lost today as victims of a tragedy and as heroes who helped the rest of you survive in whatever ways they could. We grieve them with the added weight that their bodies are beyond our reach. They have not been carried home. They have not been burned or laid into the ground. No coins laid upon their eyes to pay the ferry toll across the River Styx. No final farewell to aid their passage into the next life.

“But hear this promise! From me, from Blendegad, from Galandir, and from Stenvall who remains among you.” Tereman pointed at the others as he named them. “We will return for them. Whether it takes days or months or years. Whether we must improve our skills or uncover the secrets of the adlishars’ twisted magic. We will recover the bodies of your loved ones. Their spirits will not wander for one hundred years on the wrong side of the Stygian River. They will be brought home. They will be honored with two coins. And they will be guided into the Underworld as our ancestors have before them.”

Tereman looked out across the crowd. Many somber and crying faces stared back at him. They gathered in a field close to the village center. Shalerton’s graveyard lay there for those who did not earn the honor of cremation. A few graves with stone or wooden markings. None of those dead from the adlishar attack could be buried yet, but it still seemed the fitting place for a funeral.

“To the families of the fallen, no words can mend the pain in your hearts. Know the virtues of those you have lost. Their courage, their loyalty, their sincerity, their generosity, and their love. All these live on within your community. In your survival and in your memory you keep them alive. And our companion Stenvall will help keep you alive.

“Mourn your lost as you must. Let your tears fall freely for grief is what we can offer the dead. But remember tomorrow that the life of Shalerton continues. The fields need tending, homes need repairs, clothes need mending, and children need teaching.”

Tereman cleared his throat. “I have been asked to provide a blessing in my capacity as a acolyte of Zeus.” He looked to the heavens, a clear sky. “Hear me, O Zeus! Hear me, Zeus Xenios, guardian of guests and hosts! Hear me, Zeus Horkios, keeper of oaths! Hear me, Zeus Soter, savior of the endangered. If we have ever offered you meat, grant us this blessing. That we may suffer sorrow with mercy. That the bonds between the people of Shalerton remain strong. That myself, Blendegad, Galandir, and Stenvall may defeat the monsters that threatened this village. That the people of this village may endure and that those lost to them may be returned to be laid to their rightful rest. That those lost may have comfort and succor in the afterlife as they wait for us to perform our duty.

“These things I ask of you, O Zeus! I offer you the meat and bones of our feast later today.”

The assembled crowd applauded through their tears.

Peter and Rona hosted a feast to remember the lost and celebrate the returned people of Shalerton. Tereman slaughtered sheep which were roasted over a bonfire outside. The hooves, bones, and gristle were tossed into the fire to provide a sacrifice to the gods. All enjoyed the delicious roast mutton. Sacrifice days were always a welcome treat to enjoy the meat of the slain animal.

Everyone brought their best dishes. Pies, sweet muffins, griddle cakes. Apples and figs. Bread with nuts and seeds. Honeyed baklava. Fried slices of sheep flesh skewered on sticks. The people of Shalerton gave the heroes first pick of everything. They accepted everything, preferring to stretch their stomachs rather than offend their hosts’ generosity.

Hot spiced wine was brought out. As the feast continued into the evening the wine flowed like a rapid. The villagers sang slurred songs to celebrate their saviors.

“Don’t be angry with me, my eyes!
Don’t be angry with me, my eyes!
Don’t be angry with me my eyes!
For my people are not lost,
They’re only gone a moment,
And will return to us once more

“Open your window, my cherished flower,
And with a sweet smile, wish me goodnight.

“Don’t be angry with me, my eyes!
For I must leave you now,
But only for a moment,
Let me see you,
Let me bid you farewell,

“Open your window, my cherished flower,
And with a sweet smile, wish me goodnight.”

Tereman and Blendegad joined in, sharing their music with Shalerton. Galandir sang next, singing a song in Elvish that the others didn’t recognize a word of. They loved it all the same for its beautiful sounds. Stenvall led the party in an orkin call-and-response chant.

“I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down!”
“I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down!”

“For when the work stops, I can lie down!”
“For when the work stops, I can lie down!”

“I’m waiting for my master to lay down!”
“I’m waiting for my master to lay down!”

“For when he does, I’ll lay him out!”
“For when he does, I’ll lay him out!”

“I’ll be free tonight!”
“I’ll be free tonight!”

“One way or another, I’ll be free tonight!”
“One way or another, I’ll be free tonight!”

“Master of myself, I’ll be free on Earth or below!”
“Master of myself, I’ll be free on Earth or below!”

“ORRRrrrr BEEEEeeeeelooooowwww…”

Stenvall carried out the last line herself, long and low without a response. The village folk didn’t notice the seditious content of the song. Or if they did, they didn’t mention it.

The party lengthened into the night. Villagers returned to their homes before true dark came. Others found space on the floor of the Pot of Comfort to relax.

The heroes stayed up laughing and singing as they could manage. Tereman learned the songs of the villagers and joined them. His voice only seemed to grow louder as the night dragged on. Stenvall watched Tereman, having turned quiet after she finished her chant. Galandir saw a small smile on her lips as she watched Tereman sing. Galandir himself had not drunk as much of the wine. He’d switched to a fine cider one of the villagers had brought.

Galandir’s buzz was passing as he noticed Blendegad talking with one of the villagers. She had brown hair and a plain but pleasing face. She wore a brown dress festooned with brown ribbons. The pair were in a dark corner of the Pot of Comfort. Blendegad’s hands moved to the front of the woman’s dress. Galandir watched them begin to enjoy each other’s company. His eyes met Blendegad’s then looked away. Privacy wasn’t a guarantee in Valor’s Forest either, but traditionally acts of adultery were still kept private. Galandir hoped the woman’s father or husband wasn’t watching.

In the morning Tereman, Blendegad, and Galandir said their goodbyes to Stenvall and Shalerton. They left with packs full of food and the knowledge that the village was always happy to host them once again. Tereman and Blendegad also left with splitting hangovers.

The journey to Phoenix was uneventful. The ford across the Curving Stream was an easy crossing in the summer. The trio said their “good mornings” and “good afternoons” to people they saw along the road westward. A trio of armed warriors can be intimidating to walk past, but a trio of friendly travelers is easier.

Phoenix was the oldest city in Cimmeria. The great hero Sadroston founded the city at the start of the Goblin War when the Olympians first came to Cimmeria and created the Conclave. Sadroston had slain the monstrous goblin god, Phoenix. The city was built on top of the Phoenix’s ashes to prevent its rebirth.

While Phoenix had originally been built as a Conclave city the buildings and neighborhoods had long since abandoned such ideas. The Conclave of five races, dwarves, elves, orcs, humans, and halflings, broke up centuries ago. Humans occupied Phoenix as the other races trickled away. Any vestiges of dwarven, elven, orkish, and halflings buildings were long gone, cannibalized for their stone and wood by new architects over the years.

The neighborhoods and all other aspects of life in Phoenix revolved around guilds. Phoenix was a city of guilds. Weavers Guild, Wizards Guild, Clerics Guild, Cobblers Guild, Blacksmiths Guilds, Whitesmiths Guild. Guilds, guilds, guilds. And at the top was the Thieves Guild.

Tereman was never quite sure why a group of thieves had a publicly recognized guild. It seemed that in a normal city such an affiliation would be immediate grounds for arrest and punishment. The citizens of Phoenix apparently thought otherwise.

Phoenix had a King once. During the Draconic Hegemony a human hero, Delain, protected the city from monsters. The people of Phoenix gave him a crown and let him lead them. Delain was by all accounts a good King, but a poor lover. He never gave his wife a child, preferring to spend his time with a halfling mistress.

Queen Stasia, Delain’s wife, did have a son. King Delain did not have a son. Many suspected the child’s father was Amalgami the Lightning Knight and Dragon War Hero. Without a child and heir, when Delain passed the institution of King passed with him.

Into the power vacuum stepped the guilds. They kept order and life in Phoenix moved on as before. People lived, worked, and died within the city. And for some maddening reason at the top of it all was the Thieves Guild, a guild devoted to crime. Not public service, not knowledge, but theft and burglary.

Tereman had been taught by his family and learned from others in Dalleer, “Always keep your hand on your coin purse in Phoenix.” He passed this wisdom on to the others as they approached the city.

Galandir said, “A city ruled by thieves? That can’t be right. Wouldn’t they steal from each other if they’re in power?”

“I swear it’s true,” said Tereman.

Blendegad said, “Cities are always ruled by thieves. Is thievery any different from taxes? A farmer works all year in the field to produce a healthy crop. Then along comes the tax collector to take his percentage. What did he do to grow the wheat? To harvest it and thresh it? Nothing.”