Edith Pattou - Hero's Song

And then Fara, who had also silently glided to Brie's side, let out a long, penetrating cry. Collun felt tears come into his eyes.

The king's head came up at the sound of the faol's cry. He stared steadily at Fara, who let out another low sound. The king gave a slight nod. He raised his hand. Two Ellylon came at once and lifted Brie out of Talisen's arms. They left the cavern soundlessly. It all happened so fast that Collun didn't have time to react.

Then Crann spoke in a quiet voice. "Thank you."

Collun's heart leaped within him. He did not know why the Ellyl king had decided to help them, but he wanted to shout aloud his happiness.

"I would speak with you more," the king said to Crann. "Silien, take the humans away, then return here."

As he and Talisen followed Silien, Collun asked the Ellyl, "Where have they taken Brie?"

"To Slanaigh and to the healing waters. Slanaigh will try to heal her." Silien's eyes fell on Collun's arm, which still hung limp at his side. "I had better take you to him as well."

Silien gave Talisen over to an Ellyl woman he called Ebba. Her face was tranquil, and she had long golden hair, which was brindled with gray.

Collun followed Silien through a number of caverns, then along a winding corridor, and down a steep flight of steps. They ducked their heads to enter a dark, warm room that smelled like the darkest, richest earth in which Collun had ever worked. A single light flickered from a thick candle.

When his eyes adjusted to the dim light, Collun saw an Ellyl seated by the side of a large, still pool of water. He was gently dipping Brie's emaciated body into the water, his hands holding her under the armpits. The Ellyl was very old, though his pale, translucent skin was unlined. He looked slight, almost fragile, but he held Brie effortlessly. He sang. His voice was feathery and ancient, but the melody was true.

The water Brie floated in was the color of milk. Small, rainbow-hued bubbles dotted the surface. Just looking at the water made Collun's body relax. Silien gestured for Collun to sit, and as soon as he did, he became drowsy. As he drifted off, he saw the healer lifting Brie's head out of the water. White beads of liquid dripped off her dark eyelashes.

***

At first Collun couldn't remember where he was. But he felt peaceful and warm. He blinked several times.

He lay in darkness. Something soft pillowed his head and a coverlet of feathers lay over him. He sat up, trying to remember. Brie. The white pool. The Ellyl with the translucent skin.

Then he suddenly realized. He could feel the tips of all his fingers! And his right arm moved when he wanted it to. He curled his hand into a fist, and he laughed out loud.

He lay there for a long time, savoring the warmth. Once, when he reached up, almost by habit, to rub his forehead, he found that it, too, had been healed. There was no more numbness.

Finally he sat up, thinking it was time to find out where he was and what had happened to the others, when someone bearing a candle entered the darkened room. At first he thought it was an Ellyl because of the way its hair shone gold. But the hair was cut short. And then the candle came up to the face, and Collun saw it was Brie.

Without thinking, he gasped. He did not understand. Why was her hair gold now when before it had been black? Was it the Ellyl waters, and was his own hair gold now as well? He reached up and touched his head in confusion.

Brie laughed. "Do not worry. Your hair is as it was," she said, smiling. "Mine has always been yellow. I used black walnut leaves to color it, to make me look more like a boy. The Ellyl water washed all the stain away. My eyes and lashes were always dark, like my mother's."

Collun gazed at her without speaking. She was still gaunt and pale from her ordeal, but her eyes were her own again. She looked young. And beautiful. She wore a simple white shift that fell almost to the ground. He had not seen her in women's clothing before. He stood, feeling suddenly shy.

"How is your arm?" Brie asked.

"It is healed."

"I am glad." A strained silence came up between them.

"Talisen must be pleased beyond measure to be here in Tir a Ceol," Brie said with a smile. "Perhaps he will finally learn an Ellyl song."

Collun nodded, his mind searching for words.

"Is something wrong, Collun?" Brie asked abruptly.

"No. Nothing," Collun mumbled, his eyes averted.

"You are angry with me. For the way I behaved to you..."

Collun blushed. "No, it's just—it's your hair," he blurted out.

Brie looked startled. And then they both burst into laughter. Collun's confusion drained away.

"Are you well, Brie?"

"Yes. The white water healed me."

"What was it like before? Your eyes were so empty, but I kept wondering if you could see or hear us."

"I could hear voices, yours in particular, but it was distorted, and I could not always understand the words. I was cold all the time, and I saw everything through a cloud of gray. Then toward the end the gray began to turn black, and I heard a hollow voice calling to me. I did not want to listen, but it kept calling and calling and pulling me toward it." She shuddered. "Then suddenly it stopped. I began to feel a warmth growing in my body. It started in my toes and worked its way up. It felt ... wonderful." She closed her eyes and smiled. Then she swayed and abruptly sat down on the bed.

"I still feel shaky," she said.

"Of course." He sat beside her. She looked so frail. Collun had a strong urge to wrap the feather quilt around her and to rub her thin arms with his hands to warm her. But suddenly that same feeling of shyness washed over him again and all he could do was say stiffly, "Can I get you something?"

Brie opened her mouth to answer, but the door opened and Ebba, the Ellyl woman with the calm eyes and brindled hair, came into the room.

"That's enough talking for now. You need your rest, especially you," she added with a stern look at Brie.

Brie rose and began to follow, but then turned back toward Collun. "I came to apologize. I have acted unfairly toward you since we left Temair. There is more I would tell you—that I would have told you if the creature, Nemian, had not come when it did. But Crann has asked me to wait." And then she was gone. The door swung shut behind them. Collun sank back on his soft bed, his thoughts racing.

***

During the next two days they slept, ate, and slept some more, as they recovered their health and strength. Collun, Brie, and Talisen each had a separate room, but the rooms were joined by a common one where they met for meals. The food they were given was different from the food they knew, but they soon developed a taste for it. A particular delicacy of the Ellylon, brisgein, was made of stalks of heather and silverwood. They found it to be surprisingly delicious. Fish was also a staple of the Ellyl diet and was prepared in a variety of ways.

They often heard music coming from other rooms. Whenever it began, Talisen would grab his harp and try to pick out the melodies. He asked Ebba if she would teach him a song, but she told him she did not have the gift for music.

Ebba was the only Ellyl they saw at first, except for an occasional visit from Silien, who told them that Crann and the king were deep in discussion, barely pausing for meals.

Ebba was an artist who worked with an unusual white clay with streaks of light blue running through it. She showed them samples of her work, and they were impressed by the grace of form and line she had achieved. The subjects of her art were from nature: a fish with unusual, trailing fins; a plate depicting the sky after a summer storm; a puffball bending in the wind.

"How do you know of plants and clouds, Ebba, when you live below the ground?" Talisen asked at the evening meal on their second day in Tir a Ceol.