Episode 56

We like to think that places don’t change

Mountains are fixed and valleys stay the same

So the towns that we love can be left with their culture

Frozen in time like a painting or sculpture

But mountains do move on magma plates

Valleys are carved at glacial pace

And so do towns change in their way

Moulded by them that leave and those who come to stay

Lilian felt her nails digging into her palms. Her eyes remained unblinking and fixed on the blade that the tallest sister, named Tourmaline, was holding just behind little Emma’s head. The little girl had not seemed to notice it and was still distracted by the moppet doll in her hands. Every question as to Sage Fenric’s innocence or motives suddenly left her head. This evil man and his trio of dangerous sisters were as rotten as the fruit hanging on the surrounding trees. The snow continued to fall around them, hissing its quiet chorus as it added to the drifts and peaks. Lilian forgot about cold. Fairness and due diligence left her mind, replaced only by thoughts violence. She took a step forward.

The three sisters moved as one. Tourmaline strengthened her grip on the blade’s handle. Hematite, the middle sister with the bottles strapped to her person, stepped out and round, making to flank Lilian. The youngest sister, whose name Lilian did not know, merely crouched low and looked as though she was about to spring forward. Lilian dug her feet in and calmed her breathing. She’d been in enough fights to sense that one was imminent here, but she didn’t want to move without getting little Emma out of the way. Sage Fenric stepped forward and spoke.

“I’ll admit you’re a clever one Miss Lausanne, and it's always the clever ones that give us the most trouble. May I suggest you use that intelligence to your advantage. You’re outnumbered, outmanoeuvred and we have leverage. Leave us alone and let us get on with our business. We don’t mean anyone any harm, but do not let that fool you into thinking we are weak.”

A question started to brew at the back of Lilian’s mind. Something wasn’t making any sense. Her beating heart and stress-filled brain were not letting her see the clearest picture, but there was something here that was not right. She ignored the feeling and she ignored Sage Fenric. Instead, she looked over at the little girl and waved to catch her attention. It worked. Emma looked up at her with big brown eyes and a curious expression. Lilian did as Emma’s mother had instructed her, she put her fingers together in the air and drew a square. At the same time, she mouthed the word ‘home’. Lilian could tell by the look on Emma’s face that she recognised this gesture immediately. The little girl stepped forward and proceeded to gesticulate several other signs to Lilian, trying to communicate something. Lilian did not recognise any of them, but saw from the little stamp of Emma’s foot, that she was insistent on staying here with Sage Fenric. And so Lilian summoned all of her indignation and drew the square sign in the air again. This time, she made the lines quick and the corners sharp and she added a finger pointing downwards at the end along with mouthing the word ‘now’.

Emma scowled at Lilian. Although she did not know this strange, redheaded woman, she could tell that she had a connection to her mother, and it was this that finally swayed her. Emma clutched the doll tightly and broke away from Tourmaline’s side. She picked her feet up high to run through the snow and only turned round to scowl at Lilian before disappearing into the distance.

Lilian had promised herself that she would not get angry. She even recognised the tactic Sage Fenric was using to try and rile her up. It was working. And Lilian didn’t care. She turned back to look at the group with a flame behind her eyes. Fritha, sensing her changing mood, shifted colours and nearly doubled in size, making sure her teeth were bared as a low jangling growl sounded from deep in her throat. The youngest sister’s eyes grew wide at the sight of Fritha’s shift. Not in horror, but in wonder and curiosity.

Sage Fenric, broke the silence.

“The girl may be gone for now, but there is nothing to say that she will not be caught up in some future altercation between us. She may even sustain an injury later today. An accident perhaps, brought on by certain citizens' refusal to listen to my message.”

Lilian could no longer contain herself, “if you think that I’m going to let you threaten her…”

“You’ll what Miss Lausanne?” interrupted Sage Fenric.

Lilian narrowed her eyes and filled her tongue with venom, “I’ll kill you.” She spoke softly, letting the threat fall through the air like a broken icicle. Sage Fenric’s lip curled into a sneer.

“Stronger than you have tried, my dear.” He looked towards the sisters, who had been approaching Lilian slowly throughout the conversation, “I tire of this welp. Teach her a lesson and send her on her way.”

Tourmaline was the first to strike. The curved sickle-like blade she had shown to Lilian from behind the little girl flew forwards through the air. Lilian was ready though and dodged to the left, letting it whoosh past. She failed to notice though that it was attached to a chain and no sooner had it disappeared behind her, did Tourmaline whip her arm back sending the blade flicking backwards in a deadly arc. Part of the curved edge caught Lilian’s thigh, sending a red hot flash through her leg. She cried out and clutched the wound. She was not dressed for battle and the sickle had easily cut through her leggings. Lilian knew that if she looked down she would see blood, but her attention was drawn to the second sister, Hematite. She had reached into one of her many pockets and had extracted a small bottle with a light green liquid inside it. Lilian caught sight of it sloshing around as her leg buckled from the pain. Hematite began to shake the bottle and Lilian watched the liquid turn a bright and dangerous looking yellow. Meanwhile, the youngest sister leapt forwards, bearing long and sharp fingernails and a murderous grin on her face. She was intercepted by Fritha who jumped up and grabbed the excess material on her sleeve. Lilian stumbled backwards just in time to dodge Hematite’s concoction. The bottle fizzed and shook in the air, letting out a whistle of smoke before shattering just a few metres away from Lilian’s face. Lilian managed to turn and shield her eyes in time, but she could feel small shards of glass embed themselves in her shoulder. When she looked back Tourmaline was already upon her. The chained blade came out in several swift swings. Lilian employed her Attarapian defensive skills and managed to bat each one away, but the sight of red on the snow around her was more than a little distracting.

Lilian finally managed to land a punch square in Tourmaline’s solar plexus, sending the blade user stumbling back. Lilian took advantage of the stun and made to close the distance between them. As soon as she took a step forward though, another potion bottle was flung high in the air. This one was cube shaped with a thick, opaque orange liquid inside. It landed between Lilian and Tourmaline making a square shaped hole in the snow. Lilian jumped back expecting another explosion, but nothing came. In her brief pause, Tourmaline’s sickle was loosed once more, this time in a wide arc from Lilian’s left. Lilian ducked, then ducked again as it came back around. She wanted to grab the chain but Tourmaline’s control of her weapon was too good. With each step Lilian took, the chain was shortened meaning that the only part of the weapon that ever came close to Lilian was the razor sharp edge. Suddenly, Fritha came to help, leaping from the youngest sister over the snow, under the chain and towards Tourmaline. The move made the eldest sister shift her focus, leaving a space for Lilian to run forwards. The snow around them was becoming messy and spotted with blood. Lilian tried to avoid looking at it and focused on the woman she perceived to be her biggest threat. Tourmaline was busy retracting her chain and backing away from Fritha so Lilian ran towards her. It was at that moment, just as Lilian stepped near to it, that the hidden cube bottle exploded. The blast sent a circle of energy through the snow, Lilian’s foot must have been just a few inches away so the force was enough to sweep her feet back and out from under her and send her head hurtling down to the ground. A flash of cold hit her as her head was buried in snow. Lilian also felt a sharp pain and tasted blood as her nose hit the ground.

Despite the angry pain filled fog that descended over her, Lilian knew she was vulnerable and so scrambled quickly to get back up. Forgetting that her leg was cut she put all her weight on it and tried to stand. This caused her to wince and slip again. At the same time, she felt the sole of a boot land heavily on her back, right between her shoulder blades. The force pushed her back into the snow and as she gasped from the pain, she was met with a mouthful of cold ice. There were two more kicks, one to her side and the other to her cut leg. Lilian tried to cry out in pain, but the snow prevented a sound from coming out.

Finally she felt strong fingers on the back of her head intertwining themselves into her wet hair. Her head was yanked backwards sending a shooting pain into her shoulders. Lilian managed to cough out a mouthful of snow and breathe a long and laboured breath. The arm holding her hair lifted her up and out of the snow, bringing her eye to eye with Tourmaline. The eldest sister was kneeling down, swinging her chained sickle playfully from side to side. She was so close, Lilian could see little streaks of white in the blue of her eyes. They looked like lightning bolts.

“So little flame headed Lilian,” Tourmaline spoke as the blade swung scarily close to Lilian’s face, “You’ve tried talking. You’ve tried bargaining, you’ve attempted threats and now you’ve tried violence. All have ended poorly and I am telling you now that whatever tricks you have up your filthy sleeve it will all end the same way. With you, face deep in the snow, begging for us to let you live.” Lilian coughed again causing another wave of pain to shoot through her body. That last kick had connected with some inner organ. Tourmaline’s sister Hematite, came into view now, meaning that it was the third sister that was holding her hair. Lilian looked around for Fritha, but saw no sign of her.

“Honestly my dear, you should listen to Sage Fenric,” Unlike Tourmaline, Hematite spoke with genuine concern in her voice. “Just leave us alone,” she said, “we won’t stay long, and it will be easier on you if you stay away. Maybe travel somewhere and come back in a few weeks.” Lilian wanted to spit, but she was using all her strength to balance on her uninjured leg. Hematite looked beyond her, at the silent sister that was still clutching a handful of Lilian’s hair and said, “That’s enough Spinel.”

Lilian was released and stumbled forward. She just about managed to hold her balance and avoided falling back down. For all the snow that was caked into her clothes and hair, she felt surprisingly hot. Her cheeks were flushed and she was breathing heavily. Lilian convinced herself that it was from the fight, but deep down she knew that she was burning with shame. She had come unprepared, she’d lost her temper and then she’d lost a fight. She had underestimated this troupe of travelling zealots and her arrogance had cost her dearly. The bold and brazen vow she’d made the night before seemed more like a dream than a memory, fading quickly into obscurity by her inability to keep her word. The three sisters backed away and Lilian turned to leave. She did not trust herself to say anything else. If her time with Mr Attorcop had taught her anything, it was the ability to know when she was beaten. Fritha was waiting for her nearby, limping as well when she walked. The duo left the grove leaving a trail of blood and regret in their wake.

Lilian’s feet carried her through the thickening snow back to town. A hundred scenarios ran through her mind. She could have avoided the second bottle, she should have realised the blade was on a chain, she should never have let Fritha fight alone. Over and over she replayed the events in the grove in her mind’s eye. But she knew that it was all useless. There was nothing she could have done different, if there had been, she would have done it. That strange question came back to her then, the one she’d thought of just before the fight broke out. She knew clearly what it was now. Why? Why were these religious travellers so well armed and so versed in battle arts? It had been bothering her for some time now. Yes there was sense in carrying some weapons while on the road, Lilian had her own very recent experience of bandits and highwaymen. But their skills went beyond mere self defence. Those three sisters worked as one. A quick and efficient team, highly skilled and deathly dangerous. Lilian glanced down at her right forearm. It was one of the only parts of her that was not in pain. She chastised herself for not using gloaming to turn invisible, or to access that strange night power she had discovered in the Empress’ tower while fighting Nicholas Telson. But she shook off the feeling. Those gifts required time to access, and that was one thing the sisters had not given her.

Lilian’s head was swimming, the brightness of the snow was making her eyes ache and each step brought a fresh wave of pain from the cut on her leg. When she looked up, she expected to see home or perhaps the Fox and Octopus. She knew she’d been headed vaguely in that direction, but had been so distracted with regrets that she must have taken a wrong turn. Instead, she found herself looking at a small, squat building that she did not recognise. She looked around and realised that she was near the timber yard, just west of Jacob’s smith. Something about the location seemed familiar but Lilian’s brain was filled with too much fog and anger to process the reason why. The snow continued to fall and Lilian was not sure if she had the strength to find somewhere safer. And so, against all reasoning, she knocked on the door.

The next few moments passed in a haze. It was as if the snow had suddenly thickened into a tempest or a mountain fog had just decided to descend upon the town. Lilian felt a sharp pain in her left knee as she collapsed onto the ground. The door opened and Lilian saw a set of legs emerge from a dark interior. The next thing she knew, she was being dragged indoors and hoisted onto a bed. She caught sight of a fire burning brightly in a hearth. Whoever had carried her inside was rushing around, fetching things and stripping Lilian of her wet clothes. As darkness descended Lilian caught sight of a small figure watching her from the doorway. It had curly hair and a lovely lavender dress. Just before Lilian blacked out, she saw the figure lift its hands and draw a square in the air with its fingers. It was a sign. A sign for home.

When Lilian woke up it took her a few seconds to remember what had happened. Her efforts to understand her situation were stifled by a powerful and painful hunger. She glanced around the room and saw a small and cosy living space. There was a fire burning low in a stone fireplace. Colourful wooden birds adorned the hearth and various dolls and toys were scattered around the floor. It reminded Lilian of her own room from when she was a little girl. There were a few girl’s dresses piled on the shelves of a simple doorless wardrobe. It wasn’t until she saw a wooden spinning top, resting on its side, that she remembered everything that had happened. Lilian stirred beneath the wool blanket. Her body ached but that was nothing compared to the pain in her head. She tried to call out but her throat was so dry that no words came. She attempted to remove the blanket and take a step, but the flood of pain made her quickly abandon the idea.

Just then, she heard footsteps coming towards the door. The little girl from the grove, Emma, appeared there, distracted by a daydream and scanning the floor for a toy or trinket. She wore a faded green dress which tied at the shoulders with wooden toggles. It had little flowers sewn around the hem and had clearly been made with great care. Lilian waved, but Emma must have grown accustomed to having a stranger lying in her bed, because she was too distracted by her current task to notice. Lilian looked about. Thankfully, a plush pig was stuffed between her mattress and the wall, Lilian had clearly been given a friend to keep her company in her rest. She grabbed the button-eyed animal and chucked it at Emma. It bounced off the little girl’s side and caused her to whip round, wide-eyed and smiling. Lilian smiled back and was about to try and communicate her need for water when Emma rushed out of the room. A moment later, she returned, clutching at the hem of her mother’s skirt. Lilian instantly recognised the woman, Esther, that had interrupted her journey to see Sage Fenric. She was much more composed than when they had last met. She was dressed in a grey shawl and she was currently drying her hands on an old cloth.

“Lilian!” she exclaimed, “You’re awake! Hang on, let me get you some water.”

A few minutes later Lilian was sitting up in bed and draining the remaining drops of a large cup of freshly melted snow. Emma was sitting at her feet, clutching the toy pig and glancing from Lilian to her mother. Occasionally she would tap her mother’s arm and Esther would communicate Lilian’s words to her with a series of hand signs.

“And so I must have come straight here,” said Lilian. “I’m sorry to have burdened you.”

Esther shook her head, “it was no burden at all. After Emma came back and told me that a red haired girl had sent her home, I was already thinking of ways to thank you.”

Lilian smiled, “Well, I think a bed for the night makes us more than square. I’ll get out of your hair as soon as…” Lilian stopped mid sentence. The look on Esther’s face had changed from a friendly smile, to one of shock.

“Lilian…” she started, “you came here with a bad cut and a fever. I woke you up every now and then to feed you broth and water but you were never really lucid. You’ve been here for five days.” Lilian’s stomach dropped. Her thoughts quickly turned to her parents, which Esther must have predicted. “I told your mum and dad where you are and they came by every day with supplies. They have your large… dog too. We considered moving you but thought it was better to keep you here. Brother Thomas and that nice man Doran have been here too.” Lilian fell back into the pillow. Five days, she thought. What kind of damage could Sage Fenric have done to Benlunar in all that time? She watched Emma tap on her mother’s arm and Esther told her that Lilian thought she’d been here for just one night. Emma fell about giggling. Jumping up on her knees she held up five fingers in mocking glee. Lilian smiled.

She watched then as Emma and her mother chatted for a moment. Lilian’s head was still heavy but her thirst had been quenched and the smell of stew coming from the other room was igniting her appetite. Her thoughts were trying to plunge her into a state of panic and anxiety. She wanted to ask Esther everything but she couldn’t get the words out. Perhaps it was her headache or perhaps it was the bewitching show of movement taking place in front her.

The mother and daughter communicated effortlessly and silently. The only sound coming from their conversation was the occasional tap when a hand hit a fist or a finger tapped a head or cheek. Lilian didn’t understand the individual signs but felt that she could grasp the gist of what was happening. Little Emma was becoming increasingly unhappy, her signs becoming quick and erratic. Her mother remained calm and insistent. The little girl kept pointing at Lilian and repeating the same phrase over and over again. She had been so excited to see her awaken that Lilian wondered what might be causing this shift in mood. Finally, with tears swelling in the corners of her eyes, she jumped off the bed, grabbed her soft pig and ran out of the room.

Esther, turned to Lilian, smiling, “I’m sorry, why don’t you lie back and I’ll fetch you a bowl of stew, if you have strength enough to eat that is. Would you rather go back to sleep?”

“Thank you,” replied Lilian, “but I think I’ve slept enough. A bowl would be wonderful. Is…” she paused, gesturing to the open door, “is everything alright?”

“Oh, fine,” Esther said, standing up. “Don’t mind Emma, she’s been so excited to talk to you ever since you got here. Going on and on about some plan she has. She needs to understand that you need rest.”

Lilian pushed herself up, the speed of the movement caused her to wince. “I don’t mind! I want to talk to her, it’s just… I can’t speak without…”

Esther turned and sighed, “you’re both as bad as each other. Fine, I’ll fetch a bowl and I’ll translate, but as soon as you finish your last bite you rest, promise?”

Lilian considered jokingly replying with ‘yes mum’ but felt that that might be pushing it. Instead she just smiled and nodded.

Emma turned out to be a keen conversationalist. She had rushed back into the bedroom and thrown herself onto the covers, narrowly missing Lilian’s foot, and had started signing before her mother had had time to walk back in and sit down. She asked Lilian how she came to be hurt and Lilian told her about the fight with the three sisters. Lilian worried at first that the little girl might not believe her, she had seemed so infatuated with Sage Fenric and his toys that Lilian assumed her to have gone the way of the rest of Benlunar. But this was not the case. Emma nodded along in understanding as if the story only seemed to confirm what she already believed. She interrupted once when Lilian mentioned the third sister. The one who fought without weapons and had that strange look in her eyes when she’d seen Fritha. Emma tapped on Lilian’s foot and began signing something to her mother. Esther looked confused for a moment. Emma repeated the gestures again and again but Esther did not seem to garner any clarity from them.

“What is it? What’s she saying?” Lilian asked.

Esther shook her head. “I’m not sure, she keeps saying animal and woman. Then that, that’s a sign for change. But it’s the sign I use for when I want to change her clothes. So not like when a season changes. That’s different.”

Suddenly, a memory triggered in Lilian’s mind. After her humiliating defeat, as Hematite was advising her to leave Benlunar for a while, she had turned to the last last sister and told her to let go of Lilian’s hair. She had addressed her by name. Spinel. That name was familiar. Hadn’t it been what she’d called the bird that had showed her where to find those herbs down by the river a week ago? Could they be…

“Esther, could you ask her if one of the sisters can turn into animals?” Esther’s forehead wrinkled.

“What was in that Broth? Are you both…”

“Please,” Lilian interrupted her. Esther considered how to phrase the question and then turned to put it to her daughter. The look on Emma’s face lit up the room. She clapped and nodded and showed Lilian her toy pig, then she reached behind her for a toy dog, a sheep and then just pointed at anything in the room that was shaped like an animal. Which was a lot of things. Lilian smiled.

“Thank you Esther, how can I sign to her that I understand.” Esther still looked very confused but she showed Lilian a quick gesture that involved pointing a finger repeatedly upwards while nodding. Lilian repeated the gesture to Emma which prompted another smile followed by a big hug. Then the little girl turned back to her mother. Esther translated.

“She says, thank you, red girl. That’s what she’s been calling you. Thank you for understanding. I was scared no one would believe me.” Esther turned back to Lilian. “But… she’s joking isn’t she? People can’t turn into animals. That only happens in the stories.”

Lilian pursed her lips in thought before replying, “the more I learn about these visitors, the more strange and dangerous they become. I don’t doubt for a second that one could turn into a beast. I’ve already seen her bestial nature for myself.” Lilian’s right hand reached up to the back of her head absentmindedly. “I underestimated them again and I’m afraid Benlunar will pay the price for my arrogance.”

She felt the sting of tears coming back to her eyes. Esther put her hand on Lilian’s arm.

“Benlunar is capable of making its own decisions. If we trusted everything to fifteen year old girls then the Fox and Octopus would serve only sweets and the town square would be an ice rink. Take that weight off your shoulders and rest. You’ll figure it out. You might have taken a hit but you still managed to make a big impression.” She surreptitiously moved her eyes towards Emma who was staring lovingly at Lilian. “I’ve a feeling you’ve more supporters than you think. But put that aside for now. Rest, Lilian Lausanne. You can save the world tomorrow.” With that, she got up and gestured to Emma to leave her alone.

Lilian watched them both exit the room and was about to fall back onto her pillows and give the biggest world-weary sigh she’d ever given, when little Emma tiptoed back into the room. She must have ducked into her mother’s blindspot and rushed back to complete some secret mission. The look on her face was one of iron resolve. She kept glancing back towards the door to check that her mother had not followed her. When she was finally sure they would not be disturbed, she thrust something into Lilian’s hand and then sped out of the room like a rabbit from a snare. Lilian smiled. She looked down to see what Emma had given her. In her palm, was a scrap of parchment, folded over and over until it was just hard edges. Lilian unfolded it and flattened it across her knee. There was a message written in wobbly charcoal script. It took Lilian a second to decipher it but eventually, the letters became clear:

I KNOW THEY ARE BAD. I WILL SPY FOR YOU.