T Southwell - Children of Another God

The following morning, she tripped over Kieran on her doorstep again and cursed him as he walked off with quiet dignity. Hurrying to the beach, she found Chanter perched on a rock, gazing out to sea. In the distance, a low black object moved through the waves as if an invisible hand powered it. As it came closer, she made out more details, and it approached with remarkable speed. When it grated onto the sand, she frowned at it in dismay. The burnt-out hull reeked of smoke and soot, water sloshing in its bilges.

The chosen hauled the hull far up the beach, above the high tide mark. Chanter conferred with the shipwright, then invoked Dolana. The people gasped when the icy hush released them, and Chanter laid his hands on each fresh plank and formed it into a new rib or stem post. The men carried the pieces to the ship and held them in place, and Chanter used the Earthpower to weld the wood together.

At the end of the day, Chanter and the weary men stood back to admire the work that should have taken them a week. With the hull completed, all that remained was laying the deck and stepping the masts. After supper, Chanter returned to the beach to work on the ship all night. By morning, the deck beams were in place and half the decking laid. The chosen packed provisions aboard, barrels of water, sacks of potatoes and turnips, and hay for the animals.

The next day work continued, and Chanter used the powers to hasten it. Kieran slaved harder than anyone, and often he and Chanter worked side by side, dripping with sweat. The Mujar's strength was prodigious, but Kieran seemed to be a little stronger, although he tired when Chanter did not.

At lunchtime, the men returned to the camp, where the womenfolk had prepared a meal. Chanter and Kieran came to Sheera's hut and sat on the low wooden stools while the old woman ladled thick stew into their bowls. Kieran brought with him the musky smell of sweat, and Talsy wrinkled her nose as she sat next to Chanter. The Mujar remained odourless, even though he had sweated just as much as the warrior.

While they ate, Talsy pondered Chanter's toil, which seemed strange for a being who commanded the elements. "Why can't you just command Dolana to build the ship?" she asked.

The Mujar glanced at Sheera and Kieran, then smiled. "A ship is built of wood. Unlike stone, it isn't pure Dolana, it contains Shissar and Ashmar. I can't make it flow like rock, only form it into the right shapes, which must then be bound together."

"But you could build one out of ice, for instance."

"Yes," he agreed. "Ice can be crafted easily, for it is pure Shissar. I can cause it to take any shape I wish, but it would not be very comfortable as a ship on a long voyage. For that matter, I could cause the sea to freeze in a great pathway, but it's a long way to walk."

Talsy cast Kieran a superior smile, but he seemed unimpressed, concentrating on his food. Sheera's faded brown eyes were wide with wonder, however. The Mujar spoke matter-of-factly, clearly unaware of the awe his words inspired in those around him, no matter how well they hid it.

Chanter's head jerked up, and his brows drew together. Talsy stared at him in alarm, and Kieran put aside his bowl. A faint rumbling came on the wind, like thunder or an earthquake. Or the drumming of thousands of hooves, growing louder. Chanter stood up and took hold of Talsy's arm, glancing at Sheera.

"Gather the chosen," he said. "Don't let them flee."

The old woman hurried over to the other groups that stood in alarmed confusion, gathering them together with urgent gestures. Youngsters who had been playing in the forest ran back to the camp, yelling a warning. Other stragglers who had been in the woods gathering nuts and berries or answering the call of nature came running into the camp.

Talsy looked up at Chanter. "You're going to protect them?"

"Yes."

The Mujar strode to the middle of the settlement and stopped, his eyes searching the distant forest whence the rumbling came. The people gathered around him, gazing at him with fear and hope. Youngsters clung together and the older seers stood like bastions of calm amid a sea of whimpering dread. The faint thunder of hooves struck a familiar fear into Talsy's heart, and she clung to Chanter's hand, soaking up his calm.

Even though a Mujar protected them, the terror the Hashon Jahar engendered could not be denied, although his presence made it possible to stave off panic. Kieran had disappeared, and Talsy wondered if he had fled. She recalled the Kuran's prophetic words with a shiver. The Black Death approached. The unstoppable Hashon Jahar, against whom no Trueman city or town had ever stood. People wept and wailed, and Talsy stared at the trees as the crowd crept closer to the Mujar.

A finger of darkness seeped from the forest, flowing over the land's contours. The Black Riders approached at a full gallop. Flocks of sheep and goats scattered in panic, like flotsam swept before a dark wave. Young girls hid their faces, clinging to each other. Some tried to run, but older, wiser members of the group held them back. Many clasped their hands and prayed, closing their eyes to block out the approaching horror.

Talsy fought a strong urge to flee, swallowing the lump of terror in her throat. Chanter’s presence lent her the courage to stand still, and she told herself that no harm would come to her while she was under his protection. He shot her a warning glance, and she braced herself as the air screamed with raging fire, engulfing the people in the illusion of a massive conflagration. The manifestation winked out, and the crowd beat at their clothes in a desperate bid to put out the spectral flames that had licked over them. Many wept in hysterical terror and clung to each other.

Chanter raised an arm and pointed to the beach on the left of the camp. Blue fire shot from the sand with a thump, rising ten feet high. It followed Chanter's finger as he turned to guide the firewall. The Hashon Jahar thundered across the fields beyond in a long line, riding four abreast.

The leaders turned to follow the edge of the fire, trying to outrun it and slip through. Chanter's fire kept pace with their steeds, foiling them. The firewall reached the sea to the right of the camp and entered it in a cloud of steam that obscured the flames. The Black Riders halted on the shore, their steeds rearing and plunging, splashing into the waves before turning away. The line slowed and stopped, and the Riders that still emerged from the wood spread out to encircle the camp just beyond the wall of fire.

Although the Hashon Jahar were only a few hundred feet away, the heat shimmer warped them, and Talsy could not make out any details. Their horses pranced and pawed the ground, snorted and shook their manes. Thousands of Riders surrounded the camp, too many to count, a seething sea of glinting armoured forms. As they had been at Horran, they were silent but for the thud of hooves and jingle of armour. They slowed into immobility, facing the fire. A great sigh went through the crowd, and pale faces smiled as Chanter turned from the wall.

He frowned at Talsy. "We must launch the ship and sail as soon as it's ready. Tell them."

Too shy to address the masses herself, she went in search of Sheera. The old seeress shouted the instructions to those nearest her, who passed it on. Men and women broke from the group around Chanter and headed for their various tasks, throwing nervous glances at the Hashon Jahar. Talsy headed back towards Chanter, noticing several rough-looking men beyond him, revealed by the thinning crowd. Fear gripped her heart as she recognised one of the brigands who had attacked the girl, and she broke into a run, pushing people aside.

"Chanter! Look out!" she yelled.

The man lunged, thrusting a spear into the Mujar's back. The bloody head sprouted from the centre of Chanter's chest, and he doubled over, clutching it. Time seemed to slow as he struggled to keep his feet, turning to face his attackers. Fire exploded from him and engulfed the men, but through the flames a long club fell, striking him on the side of the head. The Mujar's knees buckled, and the protruding spear flipped him onto his side as he hit the ground.