Benlunar - Episode 10
The hunters and the hunted.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
In the market square in front of the Stave Church in the middle of Benlunar there are many different stalls, each selling something unique, made with love and care by the stall’s owner’s. All are different but one thing many stalls have in common, is a small set of metal scales used to weigh products against a standard set of weights made by Benlunar’s own blacksmiths and measured to the standards set in the city of Freedos. The scales represent an unspoken agreement, they are so accurate that some say larger cities use scales as a symbol of justice outside their courts. The fairness and trust that these simple instruments represent can be seen as a universal language spoken all over the world. A few days ago, Lilian Lausanne had found herself transfixed by a set of these scales whilst her mother was buying oats at the market. The brass bowls reflected the summer sun and gave a satisfying clink as they hit the peuter stand signifying that balance had been found. She had found the image entering her head several times in the days to follow and each time it did, she found herself getting angry. Fairness. She would think. How could anyone believe in such a concept? Was it fair when rich children were born into rich families, and poor children starved to death? Was it fair to be accused of a crime one didn’t commit and be forced to serve the sentence? And was the world fair when disease killed a child? At these times she would curse the gods. All the high and mighty creatures on the Stave Church walls, looking down at mortals and tossing them aside like taken chess pieces. At no point did she feel this burning anger more strongly than in this moment. The moment when she was face to face with a mythical creature that her friend had so desperately wanted to see again. She felt an existential rage boil up from her belly, pushing away all the sadness that had been there only moments ago. And yet she could not look away. For it was looking back at her.
Against the backdrop of the forest floor, leaves the colour of burnt sugar crunching under its padded feet, stood an animal Lilian had never seen before. Two cat like eyes cut through the gloom and stared at her, unblinking. It had a snout, like a dog but its ears were pointy. From this distance Lilian could see its wet nostrils flaring as it drank in the evening’s scent. Its fluffy tail flicked back and forth in wariness from the back of its soft coat. It’s fur was a light brown but as soon as Lilian registered this, it flickered and changed. One moment it was brown, then it shimmered into a mossy green and then a flash of orange and for the quickest instant it was as blue as the sky had been that morning. And it was big, easily as big as Ortan’s dog, Silky, although it had a more regal way of holding itself, less slobbery and floppy. Lilian’s anger faded, replaced by wonder. She knew she ought to be scared, but she still felt too much sadness and anger. She found her breath again and began to slowly inhale as she shifted her weight to take a tentative step back. She heard a strange noise coming from the creature, which by now she knew had to be the Feinhound that they had been looking for all this time. It sounded like purring, but more metallic and melodious. It wasn’t an aggressive sound she thought, but more like the sound animals make when they want to keep you at bay. If it had been a dog, thought Lilian, it would have been a low growl. Lilian took the hint and started to step back even further. She didn’t want to, she wanted to run up to it, to touch it, to look at its fur, but life in the country growing up around the wild had taught her better than that. After 4 steps the Feinhound moved, it flattened its ears and stopped growling and crouched down close to the forest floor. At which point it promptly disappeared. Lilian stopped breathing once again. She was staring, unblinking at the spot where the Feinhound had been but she could no longer see it. She glanced left at a group of trees then right at a small thicket, hoping to see movement. But she saw nothing. Had she imagined it? She blinked several times, hoping to will it back into existence. But the light was quickly fading from the forest and the few thin streaks through the canopy from the setting sun were quickly disappearing. Lilian felt like she was trying to remember a dream upon waking. Every second that past sent the feinhound deeper into obscurity. She turned to leave, to head back to Benlunar the way she came. She hadn’t gone 20 steps however when she paused again. With every step she took, she could have sworn she could hear another step, a second or even third crunch in the leaves a few feet behind her. Lilian spun around, expecting to see the Feinhound again, but there was nothing there. She turned back and started to walk again, keeping an ear out for what she’d thought she’d heard. This time she was sure of it. With every step she took through the leaves Lilian heard a corresponding crunch coming from directly behind her. Suddenly, Lilian remembered something. She fumbled around her pockets until she found the heavy coin, her fingers touched the cold gold of the sovereign that had been given to her that night in the alley. She lifted it up to her eyeline and held it out a little to the left. The shine of the coin gave a slight reflection, and Lilian was trying to spot anything strange happening behind her as she went. She had to walk quite a way but once she’d shifted the coin enough she found what she was looking for. Sure enough, with every step she took, the leaves a few feet behind her moved. If she stopped, they stopped. She was being followed she thought. And then, her heart began to race as her common sense came crashing through her amazement. Moments earlier she had been wandering through the forest, not paying attention to anything but her own thoughts, and when she had looked up she had taken a strange and wild animal by surprise. Was it likely now then that it was following her? Or was it… hunting her?
Lilian instinctively quickened her pace. Her running made the already foggy mirror image become useless so she shoved the coin back into her pocket and broke into a run. The wind in her ears and the quick crunch of leaves as well as the sound of branches being flicked back made it impossible to tell if the footsteps were still behind her. All Lilian knew as she ran that was with each step she took, she had not been caught. And so she continued. She ran back through the forest, towards the river which she could now her in the distance. Once she reached it she splashed through it, slipping at one point and getting drenched. Once she had climbed back up the hill to her house however, she did not stop, she didn’t even give her kitchen window a second glance as she rushed past it, all the way up the path and on to Benlunar’s cobbled streets. By now her legs were heavy with exhaustion and she was taking quick, gulping breaths. She narrowly avoided bumping into a cart and donkey as she crossed the town square, the animal’s heehaw sounds echoed in the distance already as she ran up the top street, into the Stepson house, it’s heavy wooden door already open to the breeze. By the time she climbed the last few steps up to Mr Attorcop’s attic room, cursing his ridiculous choice of lodging under her breath, she was almost ready to collapse. She did in fact fall briefly to the floor, trying desperately to catch her breath as she sat against the wall, peering through her sweat stung eyes to see if Mr Attorcop was even in the room. He was. He was staring bewildered at the damp and exhausted girl that had burst through his floor unapologetically. In his hand he was holding a paper weight shaped like a spider and Lilian saw that she had interrupted him about to place it in trunk by his desk. This drew her attention to the rest of the room and she saw that it was filled with half empty boxes and bags. She turned her head to see various piles of clothes lying on the bed, some folded in neat piles. Mr Attorcop was wearing a grey tunic and black, loose fitting trousers and seemed to be in the middle of packing up his belongings.
“My dear girl, please don’t sit there, your dripping on my hat.” Lilian looked down to see that she had almost crushed a luxurious black suede hat and that there was indeed water dripping from her smock onto one of the brass buttons around the hat’s edge. She mumbled an apology and shifted herself away from it.
“What in Enoch’s name has happened to you?” Asked Mr Attorcop as he went back to packing his belongings. Lilian wanted to answer, but between breaths she could only say a few words.
“What… what are you doing?” Mr Attorcop didn’t look back at her, instead he spoke off handedly while examining a book, wondering which box to put it in.
“I’m packing of course. I did tell you I’d be leaving soon.” Lilian was taken aback. Everything these last few days had been so clouded over by what had happened to Kilde, she had forgotten that Mr Attorcop was leaving Benlunar. She realised that she hadn’t actually seen him since that night at Kilde’s house. She pushed the memory out of her mind, feeling a familiar lump appear in her throat at the very thought of it. Mr Attorcop looked up from packing.
“Lilian, I know these last few days have been difficult, but if you’re going to go mad I really wish you would tell me.” Lilian shook her head and snapped her attention back to the matter at hand. Her pulse was slowing now and her head was clearing.
“I saw it.”
“Saw what?” said Attorcop, throwing a few pages into a waste basket.
“I saw the feinhound. The thing that me and Ki… The animal I told you about, the one who’s fur we found. I saw it in the woods.”
Mr Attorcop slowly turned to look at her. He paused for a second and then walked over to where she was and sat down on the floor in front of her. Lilian almost giggled at how out of place he looked, sat cross legged like a child playing with wooden soldiers. He wore a serious expression as he spoke.
“Tell me what happened exactly.” Lilian had finally managed to slow her breathing and began to tell him everything that had just happened, she even brought out her gold sovereign to show him how she had used its shiny surface to look behind her. Mr Attorcop listened very patiently barely changing his expression as she spoke. When she finally reached the part about arriving at the Stepson house he took a deep breath and gazed at the clutter of his attic room, he seemed to be weighing what to say in his mind, ordering the words carefully like packing precious things into a trunk.
“Lilian,” He said finally, “do you know the difference between an objective and a subjective truth?” Lillian hadn’t expected this as a response to her story, she raised her eyebrows, curious as to what this had to do with mythical, disappearing dogs.
“No…” She had heard the words before but couldn’t confidently say she knew their meanings. Mr Attorcop reached behind him and grabbed a glass vial, one of the ones he’d use in his many experiments, it was a similar size to the vials of essence Lillian had seen, but not as ornate.
“You see this,” He said, holding it in front of himself, “Neither you or I or anyone observing us would argue that this vial is not here. I can see it, I can touch it I can smell what might have been inside it.” He tossed the small object between his hands, as if really making sure it was indeed real. “This vial being here with us now, that is an objective truth, meaning that it remains true for anyone and everyone, no matter who you are. With me so far?” Lillian nodded, “Good. Now, how this vile makes you feel, what it might remind you of, what it signifies to you, these things are all just as real as the vial itself, but they will be different for you and me. I have different memories or thoughts associated with this object, compared to you. That is called, a subjective truth, it IS true, but only for me, just as your subjective truths are true only for you.” Lillian still didn’t understand what this had to do with anything. Mr Attorcop threw the small bottle carelessly into a pile of cloth rags.
“This experience you’ve just had,” he continued, “There is no doubt in my mind that you did indeed witness something, that you had some sort of supernatural encounter. But I believe that it would be classed as a subjective truth, rather than an objective truth.” Lillian began to understand and she began to feel anger rise up inside her, of all the people she wanted to tell she told Mr Attorcop first because she was sure he would believe her.
“You’re saying it wasn’t real? But I saw it! Just like I’m seeing you.”
“I’m not saying that,” He reassured, “I do believe you saw something, all I’m saying is that, had I been there too, I would not have seen anything. Because when I think about all the things that constitute an animal, I remember that the ability to disappear is not one of them. It’s like when people see ghosts or have out-of-body experiences, they are true but they are not objective truths.” Lillian paused for a second. She shook her head in annoyance,
“So magical moon water and and and secret assassins and demons! They’re all real but the animal I saw today was not?” Mr Attorcop’s eyes grew concerned,
“Lillian, considering what you’ve been through, it’s not surprising that your mind would…” Lillian cut him off,
“No. Don’t say that, don’t use what happened to Kilde to make me sound like I’m going mad. I know what I saw and... and if you don’t believe me then, well, I’ll catch it, I’ll stay in Benlunar and I’ll catch it and prove it to you.” Mr Attorcop stood up.
“I’m sorry Lillian, I know this is frustrating. But as you can see…”He gestured the cluttered room, “I’m rather busy. If you would like, this evening, you and I can meet and discuss everything you been through these last few days and we can… we can say goodbye.” This stopped Lillian’s train of thought in its tracks.
“Goodbye?” She said, “What do you mean?”
“Well, I plan to leave Benlunar tomorrow or the day after at the latest. If you would like to come with me then that offer still stands. But I understand if you would rather stay here with your family. Either way, tonight you say goodbye. Either to me, or to Benlunar.”
Lillian left the Stepson house with a million more questions than when she had arrived. She wanted to continue her lessons with Mr Attorcop, but she had a lot of reasons to want to stay in Benlunar. She could help Stine, she could help her parents she could honour Kilde by trying to capture the Feinhound and prove its existence to the world. She could try and find out more about why Brother Thomas had that silver hand in his cupboard. She stopped suddenly in the market square. The setting sun was slowly turning the mountain behind her a beautiful peach colour and the last few stall holders were packing up their wares. The silver hand. What with everything that had been happening these last few weeks she had completely forgotten about it. She hadn’t even asked Mr Attorcop. She considered turning back but didn’t fancy another lecture about how she was going mad. Instead, her eyes fell on the Stave Church. It’s dark wood catching the pink light of the sky. How could something so beautiful hide a liar in its depths. Without evening thinking Lilian felt her feet move towards the Church doors. What did she have to lose? She thought. Her best friend was dead, she might be leaving the town altogether, sadness and anger drove her forward to confront Brother Thomas directly. She flung the bulky doors open as if she was about to confront the Gods themselves. And why shouldn’t she? She thought. They had taken her best friend and were refusing to provide her with answers. Their quiet images gazed down at her from the walls and tapestries as she marched into the main hall. She scowled at Kina, Goddess of the seasons in her form of a hare. The carving’s blank black eyes stared back at her, indifferent. She stormed past a statue of Liebling, the Goddess of goodness and fairness. Lilian stopped to look at the marble woman, posing with a doe in some flowers. Lillian used to love that statue, but now she wanted to push it off its plinth and watch it shatter. That would show her. Goddess of fairness, she thought, more like Goddess of…
“Lillian?” She snapped out of her spiteful trance to see Brother Thomas walking out of the back room carrying a book. Lillian didn’t know what to say, she thought that if she opened her mouth she would start shouting or crying, so she just stood in front of Liebling, fists clenched and eyes glaring.
“Lillian is everything alright?” Brother Thomas’ soft voice and compassionate manner didn’t fool her anymore. She let him speak as he approached her, his voice echoing off the walls and tall ceiling.
“I did wonder if I might see you. Thank you again for helping with the service the other day. I know that must have been difficult. How are you holding up?” Lillian said nothing, she continued to glare at him as she felt tears forcing their way into her eyes. Brother Thomas changed the subject.
“Ah. Liebling. Yes I suppose things don’t seem very fair or good these days do they? But you know, she can still be with us even when things seem terrible. Do you know why she is often seen with a doe?” Lillian finally snapped and cut him off.
“What was that silver hand?”
“Excuse me?” Brother Thomas looked genuinely confused.
“The silver hand brooch in the box. What is it? Where did you get it and what does it mean?” She had thrown off all caution, if she was going to leave Benlunar she would leave with answers or not at all. She studied Brother Thomas, his expression was fixed and quizzical. His words came out measured and careful.
“That was a gift. Many years ago I was given it as thanks for…” Lillian cut him off with a shout.
“Enough!” Her cry echoed around the hall for a long time. Brother Thomas’ face remained calm but Lillian saw his lips purse in anger. The two stared at each other. Lillian was not going to be intimidated, nor was she going to change the subject. Finally Brother Thomas sighed and walked over to a wooden bench where he sat down. Lilian did not join him. She studied him as he sat, his face looked suddenly tired as if he’d just set down a great weight. He looked back up at Lillian.
“I don’t know why you want to know about that brooch. It seems as though you’ve found out from someone or somewhere that it isn’t just a pretty piece of jewelry. Gods know how. Truth be told I should have thrown it away years ago.” He took a deep breath and sighed.
“It probably comes as no surprise to you that I wasn’t always a Church Brother. I grew up in Freedos and I come from a very poor family. Being poor in the city isn’t like being poor out here. There is no… community there. You can’t rely on friends or strangers to take care of you if you fall on hard times. Everyone is out for themselves, and those who fall behind get left behind. So when you’re born with nothing you take what you can get. Growing up I fell in with a group of people who were, let’s say, less than friendly. I worked for them and they gave me food and money in return. Good money too. Anyway, cutting a long story short I was once asked by someone outside the group to provide information on my boss. They offered me money and they wore a silver hand on their breast. For several weeks I reported to them in secret and gave them information on raids or robberies that we were planning. I figured that it didn’t matter where the money was coming from as long as it kept coming and if I was careful I could be a servant of two masters and earn double the salary. Well, that worked for a while. Luckily the group never found out but they had their suspicions. Eventually they were all arrested, even me, but I was released in secret. Anyway from then on I worked for The Guiding Hand. That’s what they called themselves.”
“Who are they?” Asked Lilian, she had approached Brother Thomas by now but still did not sit by him.
“They are a group of families, individuals, businesses all sorts. Basically rich people with nothing better to do than route out trouble and put a stop to it. They claim to stand against tyranny and guide society into prosperity through secrecy. They put a stop to tyranny if they see it and they make sure the guilty are punished.” Lillian was confused.
“They sound like good people.” She said, “Why did you leave?” Brother Thomas looked back at the statue of Liebling and the doe. He smiled.
“That’s one lesson the fables don’t teach us Lillian, but it’s one of the most important ones.”
“What?” She asked.
“Everyone thinks they are a good person. The guiding hand were no different. I’m sure that amongst its many members, there might even be some genuinely good people. But with every ounce of power, it becomes easier to justify a terrible deed.” Brother Thomas held his hands out in front of, palms up as if holding invisible weights. Lillian watched as his right hand came down, bringing his left up to meet it in the middle. Brother Thomas continued,
“Power gives you the luxury of creating your own morality. I left the hand because I didn’t agree with the means they used to justify their ends. Peace and justice are all very good, but if it comes at the cost of murder and blackmail then… well… that’s not the kind of peace I’d want to be a part of.” Brother Thomas stood up with a sigh and walked past Lillian towards the Church’s back rooms. Lillian was left alone with the Gods. She had answers now, but they had come with their own set of questions. She found herself looking towards a large tapestry depicting the Padda Stone against the Benlunar peak. None of this would have happened if she hadn’t decided to paint that silly toad, she thought. In the dim light of the hall the great stone toad looked as if it might be smiling at her. Lillian turned when she heard Brother Thomas come back. He was holding something in his hands, Lillian saw it glint as it caught the candle light. As he approached he spoke softly,
“I left Freedos and joined the Church because I was sick of having to justify bad things to myself each night as I tried to sleep. With these stories and this life to guide me, I know for sure that I can be a good person.” He held out his hands and placed the object into Lillian’s palm.
“What ever you choose to do with this, remember, the roads to good and evil are oft made of the same stone.” Lillian looked down and saw a shiny, silver brooch in the shape of a hand resting in her palm.
That evening, after Lillian had gone home to wash and change, she hid the brooch in her room among her belongings. She then sat down for dinner with her parents and told them that she would be leaving Benlunar the next day. She had made the decision on her way back from the Stave Church. In the back of her mind though she had always known that she would choose to leave. She loved Benlunar but the town was now heaped in painful reminders. She didn’t want every path or tree she saw to remind her of Kilde. In a strange way, his death made leaving Benlunar a little easier, as she didn’t feel as though she was leaving him behind and going off on adventures without him. That would have felt strange somehow. She chatted with her parents over a delicious cheese and ham pie her father had cooked for dinner and when they had finished her parents helped her pack a few things into an old bag.
Late in the evening Lillian kept her promise to meet Mr Attorcop. She kept her wits about her on the walk, just in case the Feinhound decided to conveniently show itself. The memories of the strange animal were already beginning to fade as they were mixed up with dark pasts and strange silver brooches. Her mind was on Kissandra the assassin as she stepped out of the tree line and into view of the Padda Stone where Mr Attorcop was already waiting for her. He smiled as she approached.
“It seems like years since I saw you that night, skulking around those bushes.” Lillian grinned, remembering how scared and confused she had been the night the Padda Stone had woken up. She’d grown up a lot since then and found that after everything she’d been through in the last few months, leaving Benlunar for two years, might not be so scary.
“Have you thought about what I said?” Mr Attorcop spoke softly as Lillian stood in front of him. She gazed past him, up at the Padda Stone, its serene smile still visible in the light of the stars. It was a warmer and calmer night than when she had seen the lunar essence spill from its mouth and light up the pool below.
“Yes.” She replied softly, “I want to come with you. But you knew that already didn’t you?” Mr Attorcop smiled again, Lillian thought she almost saw him laugh.
“Well I wouldn’t say I KNEW…” Lillian rolled her eyes.
“Why did you want to meet here?” She asked, looking around.
“Well I thought that if you were going to say goodbye to me this setting would provide a satisfactory sense of symmetry, and if you were saying goodbye to Benlunar then somehow this place feels more like the spirit of the town rather than any of the actual buildings.” Lillian remembered her encounter earlier that day in the Stave Church and nodded her head in agreement.
“Well, what time would you like to leave tomorrow?” she asked. Mr Attorcop raised his eyebrows,
“Aren’t you going to say goodbye?” He gestures behind him to the stone and the mountain. Lillian snorted, he didn’t expect her to actually say the words did he? But then she paused. Why shouldn’t she say them? This ancient statue was alive, sort of, and so it might be able to sort of appreciate it. She stepped past Mr Attorcop and gazed up at the great stone toad. She smiled and spoke softly, feeling a little self conscious as she did.
“Goodbye Padda Stone, Gorakja and goodbye Benlunar. Thank you for… the food. The fun. The family, and the friends.” She smiled and turned back to Mr Attorcop.
“How was that for satisfactory symmetry?” She looked at Mr Attorcop but he was standing still, gazing out over the pools in front of them.
“Hey come on,” She said walking over to him, “I thought that was pretty clever.” She came to a stop when she saw Mr Attorcop’s expression. His face was very still, his eyes were wide and fixed intensely ahead of him.
“Mr Attorcop?” Lillian asked, starting to worry a little, “Are you alright?” Finally after a few long and painful seconds, he spoke.
“What… in all the names of all the Gods is that?”
Lillian followed his gaze and peered into the darkness. She couldn’t be sure of what she was looking for, but after a few scans of the trees and waters ahead she saw them. A pair of large eyes were staring back at them through the gloom. Eyes, like that of a cat.
Benlunar - Episode 9
Ascension.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
The day in question began in a similar fashion to the days that had preceded it. Every morning for the past few weeks, Lilian awoke at dawn and ran up the mountain to train with Mr Attorcop on the stone shelf. When the time came for the visitors from Freedos to leave, Lilian had thought that she would go with them, back to the city where Mr Attorcop lived. But this did not happen. Mr Attorcop claimed that he still had work to do in Benlunar and so Lilian helped him when she could in the afternoon’s after their training. The work mostly consisted of noting down names and observations that Mr Attorcop found during his many experiments. The training itself had changed dramatically in the short time since it had begun. Without the fear of silent assassin’s creeping in the shadows, the master and student were free to work unencumbered. Once they had broken 100 sticks they moved on to hand to hand combat, incorporating kicks and holds as well learning the intricacies of the human body: which bones were easily broken and which soft tissues could be targeted and taken advantage of. In the 6th week,while looking in a mirror, Lilian noticed a change in her shoulders. They seemed somehow rounder, or broader. She found that she no longer became out of breath just by running up to the shelf, instead the exhaustion would come half way through the morning. In time, new groups of visitors arrived in Benlunar and Lilian made sure to keep a look out for any silver brooches, not having been able to gain any more information from brother Thomas about his. In the late afternoons she would wonder the woods with Kilde, setting traps baited with deer meat, or stalking foul from the bushes hoping they would attract the attention of the mysterious Feinhound. But even this past time, with its promise of magic and mystery, grew monotonous and soon became a once-a-week activity rather than an everyday occurrence.
When the day in question arrived, Summer was in full swing, which for Benlunar meant that it was a cool morning which would be followed by a hot afternoon. The Snow on top of the mountain had almost all disappeared and Lilian arrived on the stone shelf at the usual hour only to find it empty. This wasn’t unusual, Lilian often arrived before Mr Attorcop and whenever she did she would normally start stretching and warming up her body before his arrival. Today however, she decided to postpone warming up in favour of gazing out over the valley. The trees were in full bloom and it had rained the day before which meant the view was as clear as it could get. Without any cloud or mist, Lilian noticed that from the stone shelf she could see the end of the valley, where the mountains became hills and the hills became fields. She had never travelled as far as that in all her life but she knew that the fields belonged to another settlement that was nestled somewhere in the hills. Lilian turned round at the sound of footsteps behind her.
“My apologies Lilian,” Mr Attorcop was walking towards her carrying a large pack, “I was busy finding us some supplies.”
“Supplies?” enquire Lilian, “Where are we going?” Mr Attorcop turned around and pointed upwards.
“Up there.” Lilian followed his gaze to the mountain’s peak and her heart leapt, today would be a perfect day for the hike. She smiled widely and almost ran past Mr Attorcop in excitement.
“Alright, alright slow down now. If we’re going to do this we need to be slow and deliberate, we’ll set a steady pace and stick to it and we should reach the peak by early afternoon.” Lilian agreed and lead the way back to the path marker only instead of going down their usual route back to town, she turned uphill and set off for the next pile of stones that signalled the way to the Benlunar peak.
With each step up the air became thinner and after 2 hours Lilian could feel the altitude sickness setting in. They had left paths and path markers far behind and were now inching their ways across narrow ridges, constantly watching for loose rocks, one slip up here and one would not stop falling for a very long time. Luckily the route was well trodden and Lilian knew exactly which rocks to hold on to and which ones might let you down. Occasionally she would stop to observe the view and catch her breath, the latter being surprisingly difficult as the oxygen near the peak was very thin. Even Mr Attorcop, who normally made any physical activity seem easy, seemed to be struggling with the lack of air. Whenever they found a suitable outcrop or flat surface they would stop and drink water from Attorcop’s pack. Finally, in the early afternoon Lilian hauled herself over a boulder to see the peak only a few steps away. The child in her wanted to run towards it and claim herself to be the winner of the race, but common sense and fatigue slowed her down to a steady climb.
The peak of Benlunar mountain was, in every sense of the word, a breathtaking place. Any conversation, no matter how fascinating, died when travellers reached the top. From here, Lilian could see in all directions, she even looked down on the peaks of other mountains in the distance. The trees down below stretched out until the world curved them out of sight. By her feet, she noticed a small pile of stones, a path marker like those that had lead the way, only a lot smaller due to the lack of visitors. Mr Attorcop joined her on the small surface that made up the top of the mountain and handed her a flat rock he must have picked up moments earlier. Lilian smiled and symbolically placed it on the pile.
“There.” she said, “What do you think?” Mr Attorcop was at a loss. He simply breathed in a deep breath, smiled and nodded and finally said,
"Yes. I think this will do nicely.”
“Nicely for what?” Replied Lilian.
“Sit.” Mr Attorcop sat down and motioned for Lilian to sit opposite him. He took the pack from his back and rummaged around inside whilst admiring the view. He pulled out some bread and cheese wrapped in wax cloth as well as two apples and some grapes. The two ate in silence for some time, catching their breath and enjoying the expansive scenery. Finally, Mr Attorcop spoke.
“Do you remember when we were crouched behind that bush in the fog? The day Kissandra followed our trail up the mountain?” Lilian nodded, she did remember, she remembered being unable to see through the thick mist and the spiders crawling across the forest floor. She listened as Mr Attorcop continued,
“What do you remember feeling and thinking when we were hiding?” He took a final bite of his apple before wrapping the core in the wax cloth.
“I remember being scared, I remember it was hard to breathe because I didn’t want to make a sound, I was just listening and I remember feeling… I dunno, helpless I suppose.” Mr Attorcop nodded and shifted his feet under him so that he was sat cross legged with a straight back with his hands in his lap. He motioned for Lilian to copy him, which she did.
“I want you to close your eyes and take a deep breath.” Lilian did as she was asked. She felt the cold air breeze through her hair, she shut her eyes and breathed it in, its scentless chill filled her lungs. She breathed out and felt the tension from the morning’s hike melt into the wind.
“I want you to keep breathing, slowly and deeply, allowing your body to relax as you do. At the same time, I want you to recall your state of mind that day in the fog. Remember what it felt like to have your ears straining to hear the slightest sound. It’s the same state you might find yourself in if you wake up in the night and you hear a noise that you can’t identify, and for a few seconds you keep very still and try to listen out for it again.”
Lilian thought she understood the feeling Mr Attorcop was describing. She felt her ears move as well as her nostrils widen.
“Don’t forget to pair this with the breath.” He reminded her, “Without this you’ll tense up and stop breathing, the goal here is to be in two states at once. One is constant and relaxed, achieved through regular deep breathing, the other is one of hyper attention. Both of these together will root you in the present moment. In this state, I want you to tell me what you can hear.” Lilian’s first instinct was to say, ‘nothing’, because up on the highest peak in the region, there really was very little noise. The silence was almost eerie considering the plethora of sights. But Lilian concentrated, and breathed deeply and put herself as best she could in the state of increased attention. At first all she heard was the breeze in her ears but then she realised that that sort of qualified as a sound, so she said,
“I can hear the breeze.”
“Breeze does not make a sound. Air only makes a sound if it hits something, what is the breeze hitting?”
“My ears.” Replied Lilian, wondering if she was making some sort of mistake.
“What else?” Said Mr Attorcop. Lilian paused for a second.
“My hair. I can hear my hair moving around.”
“Good.” Said Mr Attorcop, “Now you’ve got a ball of attention around your head, I want you to widen the ball, make it big enough to encompass the mountain top where we’re sat. What else can you hear?” Again, Lilian paused and listened before answering.
“I can hear you breathing. I can hear your clothes move when you do. I just heard a rock or a pebble fall I think. It was a little sound behind me.” Lilian strained now, trying to push her attention outward to the whole area around her. It required a shift in perspective, she started leaning in to try and hear smaller and smaller sounds, sounds that might be coming from very far away.
“I can hear a bird screeching. It’s far down below us I think. I can hear the wind in the trees. There’s another sound too, maybe water? I think there’s a stream nearby, maybe a spring, it’s very faint.” Lilian continued to play this listening game. She found it incredible how only moments ago she had been filtering out these sounds as unimportant but now that she was paying attention to them, more and more were making themselves known. Somewhere nearby, an insect was flying around, she shifted her attention again to find that Mr Attorcop was moving some metal on his person every time he breathed, she could hear its soft and regular clink, keys or perhaps a chain she thought. She felt a smile on her lips as she widened her attention to the valley below. Echoing somewhere far below she could hear water, faster than the spring nearby but still as unmistakable. She wondered if she could hear anything coming from Benlunar town but no matter how hard she tried, that part of the valley seemed hidden, too far and too quiet to be detected right now. After some time she opened her eyes. Mr Attorcop was watching her.
“I could hear loads!” She exclaimed, beaming.
“Good, it is rare, almost impossible to shut one’s eyes and never be able to hear anything at all. This is an excellent place to demonstrate that. Over the next few weeks, I want you to take a few minutes 3 or 4 times a day to close your eyes and practise this.”
“Why?” Asked Lilian.
“Well if we want to get to a point where we can manipulate the natural world, we have to be able to be in tune with it.” Lilian’s heart leapt,
“Does that mean?” She started, eyes widening in excitement, “Does that mean you’re going to teach me how to do…” She wanted to say ‘magic’ but remembered how Mr Attorcop felt about that word.
“Still haven’t come up with a better name have you?” He said, knowingly, “Yes Lilian. You’ve progressed very well with your defense and attack and hopefully the training has placed you more in your body, meaning that combining it with this awareness practise you will in time come to see how your body and thoughts can gain power from and influence the natural world.”
“Will I be able to use the lunar essence?”
“I expect so, although I have no idea when you’ll be ready.” Mr Attorcop stood up as he spoke and Lillian followed him.
“How do I know when I’m ready?”
“I’m sure I’ll tell you.” He replied, picking up his pack from the floor. This frustrated Lillian, she wanted to try using it now, today, on top of this mountain. Mr Attorcop must have sensed her impatience.
“Look here Lillian,” He walked over to the steepest edge of the mountain and pointed down, Lillian joined him and felt her stomach knot as she looked over the edge. A strange sensation crept into her legs, like they might give out at any second. Lillian looked straight down into the thick spiky trees below.
“There are several ways off this peak,” Said Mr Attorcop pointing straight down, “And this is one of them. Another is a slow descent back the way we came. Both paths would take you to the bottom, but I’m sure I know which one you’d rather pick.” Lillian gulped and instinctively took a step back to relative safety, “If I gave you the essence now, it would be the equivalent of me pushing you off this mountain. You’d get what you want, but at a price you’re probably unwilling to pay. Now, follow me, we’re going to head back down. And please listen and take note of your surroundings as we go.”
As they made their way down the mountain, Lilian opened her eyes and ears to the world around her. Every insect that flew past she would turn to follow and see which flower it would land on as well as noting the pitch of the sound its wings made. She found herself hearing water in the distance and underground. She noticed how the breeze through pine needles sounded different to the breeze through birch leaves and the shadows they made on the stone paths were as different and beautiful as the trees themselves. As the reached the mountain path she widened her attention to encompass the entire mountain. She felt small and reassuringly insignificant in its presence. Her entire village had been born and would die and disappear in the time it would take this mountain to move an inch. Next to its glorious immortality, her problems and worries disappeared into meagre oblivion. She breathed easier now that they were approaching the stone shelf and she wondered if she might be able to live like this forever. In constant vigilance and presence of mind, seeing without judgement and living without past or future. Just the sun’s rays warming her face and the sound of nature all around her. But Lilian knew that sooner or later the future would bring concern and the past would present resentment but for now, these didn’t matter and when Benlunar town appeared in front of her, she smiled as if seeing an old friend after many months apart.
Mr Attorcop had said very little on their way down but when they got to the Thoreson house he turned to Lilian to say goodbye for the day.
“I enjoyed that,” He mused, “we don’t have any mountains near Freedos so I like to climb it whenever I’m here.”
“How many times have you been to Benlunar?” Asked Lilian.
“Oh countless. I find it the perfect place to escape the inane institutions and customs of the city. But I will probably be heading back to Freedos this week, or the next.” Lilian was shocked, she knew Mr Attorcop would be leaving eventually, but this news still surprised her. She noticed him looking at her, his eyebrows raised as if asking a question.
“If you wish for our lessons to continue, you will have to come with me. I would also greatly appreciate your help with my work in Freedos. I often find myself having to be in two places at once and with someone helping me I might actually be able to achieve this. I know you’ve probably been giving this much thought, but rest assured, I plan on coming back to Benlunar in a couple of years.” Two years, thought Lilian. Two years away from her parents. Two years away from all of this. Lilian didn’t know if she was ready for that. When Mr Attorcop opened the front door of the Thoresen house Lilian was surprised to see her Mother in the main hall talking to Mr Stepson. When they heard the door open they both looked up and seemed relieved to see Mr Attorcop walking in. Lilian’s mother rushed over to them.
“Lilian, where have you been?” She seemed panicked and stressed, her worry almost bleeding into anger.
“We climbed the mountain…” Lilian mumbled a response but it didn’t seem like her mother was really expecting an answer as she turned quickly to Mr Attorcop.
“Mr Attorcop,” She said imploringly, “Please can you help? A friend of mine, her son is sick, Our local doctor is there but he says he doesn’t have what he needs to help. I thought of you because, well Lilian says you’re a scientist.” Mr Attorcop approached her slowly and spoke in a soothing voice.
“Of course Mrs Lausanne, I will do what I can. Just let me head up to my quarters and fetch some things, I’ll meet you there, Lilian can show me the way.” He broke off into a run and took the stairs two at a time. Lilian’s Mum turned to her and Lilian finally asked the question that had been gnawing at her.
“Who is it Mum?”
“Oh my love,” She replied, “I don’t know how bad it is but Stine is worried.” Lilian knew that name. Stine. Stine Vichas was Kilde’s mother. Lilian pushed panic aside and steeled herself.
“Go and get them some fresh water and we’ll meet you there.” Lilian’s Mum was taken aback. Who was this confident woman, she thought? Where is my little Lilian? It was strangely at the same time that she realised that Lilian was not on a step or stood on a chair her but was looking at her at eye level from the same carpeted floor. How had she not noticed this new height until now?
“Go.” Repeated Lilian and Polly Lausanne was shocked into action. Lilian wanted to follow her but knew she had to stay. For a second, a silence descended on the wooden walled, carpeted corridor. Lilian found her feet shifting, as if on their own, into the locked defensive stance that Mr Attorcop had forced them into time and again when preparing her for a fight. Right leg in front, toes pointed slightly inwards, left leg behind, ready to send the body forward or receive weight if the body is pushed back. She was ready and waiting. She glanced towards the large and ornate staircase with its carved bannisters. Mr Stepson was still there. Stood in silence and waiting as patiently as Lilian. The two made eye contact but knew that no words needed to be exchanged. Now was not the time for talk.
After about a minute and a half Lilian heard the sounds of Mr Attorcop rushing down the stairs, he appeared at the top of the main staircase clutching a black bag that clinked and rattled with each step. As he approached Lilian he waved his hand out in front of him signalling her to exit and lead him to where he was needed. The pair paced their way through Benlunar, breaking into a jog whenever they weren’t impeded by people or narrow streets. Lilian lead the way, taking every shortcut she knew so that they could get to the back of the trade’s quarter and into Kilde’s house as quickly as possible.
The Vichas house was small, and the wooden front door with a metal ring knocker opened easily when pushed. Mr Attorcop ducked his head, rushed past Lilian and went through the small front room with its dining table and wood stove and headed to the door at the back where Lilian could hear voices. She knew this to be Kilde’s room and she followed Mr Attorcop to the door. As he opened and stepped inside, Lilian caught a glimpse of her friend lying in his bed, it was only a glimpse however as at that moment, her mother stepped out and blocked her path. Her voice was low and quick,
“It’s getting a bit crowded my love. Let's step outside.”
“I want to see him.” Argued Lilian but her mother’s tight grip on her shirt forced her back. Lilian looked through the crack in the doorway as it closed and noticed how pale her friend looked. His eyes were closed and his Mum was by his side, gripping his hand. Lilian felt angry as her way to him was blocked, she almost turned to shout at her Mum but caught herself before she did. It was true, she thought. She wouldn’t be any help in there. Best leave it to Mr Attorcop. She began to pace around the small front room.
“What happened?” She asked her Mum, keeping her voice low so as not to disturb.
“I’m not sure. Stine came round this morning saying Kilde had been sick in the night and asking if we had any ginger. I gave her some and didn’t think much of it. But later I went round with some mint water and some honey and he’d gotten worse. He wasn’t speaking and kept fainting so I went to get Mr Rumex and he gave him…” Her speech faltered, she was still in shock. “He gave him some tincture but it doesn’t seem to have helped.” Lilian’s head was racing. She took a deep breath to calm herself. This was a tough situation, she thought, but nothing that Kilde couldn’t handle. Lilian remembered the time that she’d promised him 6 silver bits if he ate a worm. She watched him do it so quickly that she regretted offering so much. He probably would have eaten it for a copper head and a good story and would have still been absolutely fine and healthy. He was a fighter. A scrappy little prince who wouldn’t hurt a bee if it stung him.
“I don’t understand.” She said out loud, almost without realising it. “I saw him two days ago and he was fine.” Lilian’s mother looked up from where she was now sat at the table. She didn’t know what to say, for all her height and confident manner, her daughter was still so young. Polly Lausanne had known more of sickness, more of injuries and the dangers of infection. And she also knew that sometimes, these things came without reason and without explanation and it was in these times that she put her trust in the decision of Gods and their strange ways.
“Lilian,” she whispered. “Come, sit with me.”
The two women sat, mostly in silence. They waited and listened and patiently. They sat like this for the best part of the evening, listening to the occasional murmured voice and soft step from the room at the back of the house. Lilian felt helpless and impotent. More than once she felt anger rise inside her but quickly remembered how being angry rarely helped anyone. Finally, Mr Attorcop stepped out of the room, wiping sweat from his brow.
“He’s awake.” He said softly and Lilian didn’t wait for another word before standing up and brushing past him into Kilde’s room. The atmosphere inside was tense and still. Lilian edged slowly towards Kilde’s small bed. Her friend was still very pale but his eyes were open and he was looking at his mother. As Lilian approached he turned to look at her. A small smile crept across his lips. His mother, Stine, spoke first.
“He needs rest. So maybe just a quick word.” Lilian nodded in understanding and knelt down so as to be closer to him. It was if she was looking at different boy. A boy with red around his eyes and sweat streaking his hair back from his face. It was only his smile, and his eyes that told Lilian that this was indeed Kilde.
“Hi Lily.” His voice came through softly.
“Hey.” Lilian wasn’t sure what to say so she put her hand over his, it was cold to the touch, despite the heat of the room.
“I’m not feeling too good.” Whispered Kilde.
“That’s okay.” She replied, “you just sleep and rest. And… and… and we’ll go down to the river in the morning.” Kilde smiled and nodded. His eyes closed for a second and then reopened. He looked at Lilian as if noticing her again. He smiled. And Lilian smiled back, happy that she was making him happy for he was always making her smile, even now.
“I’ll rest.” He spoke again, very softly now.
“Yes.” Said Lilian, “You rest. You rest now and then I’ll come see you tomorrow.” Lilian thought she saw a small nod but it may have just been Kilde relaxing into his pillow. Lilian looked at his mother and smiled as she got up to leave.
That night Lilian had trouble sleeping. She tossed and turned in her bed, throwing off her cover only to go and get it. She must have finally found some sleep however as she woke up from a dream when her Mum opened her bedroom door. It was still dark but the moon was shedding some light through her bedroom window. The cold glow of the moon was all she needed to see the shape of her mother open her door and step slowly into her room. Lilian sat up in confusion as she watched her mother approach her bed and sit beside her. As she sat, the moon’s light fell on her face and Lilian could see tears glistening in the darkness. Why was she crying? Thought Lilian, still half asleep. But then she knew. And when she knew, her vision blurred with her own tears and she felt her mother’s warm embrace as she wept and wept until morning.
Lilian Lausanne woke up a few days later, the memories of church services and traditional burials rushing around her head. She awoke to find a now familiar weight on her chest. A crushing sadness keeping her from getting out of bed. It had been like this every morning since that night. Lilian did not have the energy to run up mountain paths, or practise fighting bearded teachers. She did not want to eat. She did not want to speak. The only thing motivating her to get out of bed was a desire to help Stine and her Mum, she did not want them to have to deal with everything alone, so she volunteered to spread the word, as well as help Brother Thomas with the service. But as soon as her daily duties were done Lilian would walk away from Benlunar. Sometimes she would visit the Padda Stone, sometimes she would walk through the forests and return home after the sun had gone down beyond the horizon. Today would be no different. After managing to eat a little lunch that her Mum and Dad had prepared, she went over to Stine’s house to ask if anything needed doing. But when her knocking got no reply she found herself walking towards the river a little earlier than usual. She wanted to keep moving. Stillness allowed unwanted thoughts and memories to creep in, she found that as long as she kept walking she could focus on her steps rather than her sadness. She could walk for hours like this, and more than once in the past few days had she found herself looking up at unfamiliar surroundings and having to trace her steps back to town. Lilian walked like this now. As if she was at the bottom of an ocean, grief pushing all other emotions away. She saw leaves under her feet and dodged tree trunks that interrupted her path. It was here, in the deepest pit of sorrow, here in the darkest depths she had known in all her years it was here where all fear and fun had left her. It was here she first met the Feinhound.
Benlunar - Episode 8
In suspicious circles.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
“Lilian?” Brother Thomas’ voice came from far away. It was audible, but somehow quiet and unimportant. The way the constant sound of the breeze might get filtered out of one’s attention. Lilian knew she should reply but currently had so many questions running through her head that she was busy figuring out which one to address first. The cold weight of the silver brooch in her hand was pulling her thoughts in like a magnet. In a split second, she weighed up her options, she wanted to know why Brother Thomas had an identical brooch to that of the woman who only that morning had tried to assassinate her mentor but she didn’t want to reveal too much about her role in the events. As the small room at the back of Benlunar’s Stave Church came back into focus, she realised that she must have been staring at the brooch for a suspiciously long time. Lilian had to think of something quickly,
“This is nice.” She said, holding the brooch up in front of her. She checked it again to see whether it was indeed identical to the one she’d seen on the cloak of Kissandra the hired killer. There was no doubt. Everything from the arrangement of the fingers, to the polish of the silver was similar to the one she’d seen. Brother Thomas held the box from which it had fallen open in front of him as if to receive it. When he spoke, Lilian paid close attention to his every word and mannerism, hoping he might accidentally reveal something,
“Yes. My uncle gave me that. I don’t wear it anymore though, a bit garish for a church brother’s robes don’t you think?” Lilian placed the brooch back in the box and quickly picked another question,
“I feel like I’ve seen brooches like this before. Maybe one of the tourists from Freedos was wearing one?”
“It’s very possible.” Replied Brother Thomas, turning away to put the box back on the shelf it had fallen from. There was nothing in his reactions that suggested to Lilian any hint of secrecy or wrongdoing, but she couldn’t help but see Brother Thomas in a very different light from only moments before. She began to think back to when she first met him, she had only been a child then, probably around 3 or 4 years old. She didn’t remember much of his arrival in Benlunar, but she did know that he did not grow up in the village. In which case, she thought, who had he been before he arrived? And why did he choose Benlunar in particular to make his home? She didn’t want to push her luck with more questions, but she also didn’t want to drop the subject, making her bringing it up at any later date seem more suspicious. She decided upon a different tactic.
“My parents don’t let me wear jewelry like that.” To add to the innoquous nature of the statement Lilian coupled it with a relaxed gaze around the room, she even briefly considered sitting in the armchair by the fireplace, putting her feet up as if she was in her own room.
“Well I’m sure they have their reasons. Something like that is quite valuable and they might worry you would lose it or worse, someone might try and take it from you. Now, I’m sorry to be rude, but I have a few more things to prepare before tonight’s service.” Lilian turned towards the door, in the few steps towards it she wondered if this was Brother Thomas changing the subject. As she reached the doorway she knew she had one more opportunity to ask about the brooch before her persistence became suspicious. She turned and, in her most relaxed tone possible, said,
“Where do you think I could find a brooch like that?” She watched Brother Thomas turn back to her with his small smile fixed on his face. Before he spoke however, he paused. To anyone watching the scene they would not have noticed it, but Lilian saw that for a fraction of a moment Brother Thomas did not know how to answer the question. He simply smiled, breathed in and then answered ever so slightly too late,
“I’m afraid I don’t know. Silver is heavy and clunky though, much more suited to the city. Besides, I prefer the amber jewelry made here in Benlunar, don’t you?” Lilian smiled in agreement, said goodbye and then left the room. As she walked through the church’s main hall, her footsteps echoing off the stone slabs one thought repeated itself over and over in her head. He’s hiding something.
That evening Lilian and her parents visited the Stave Church for the service. They had insisted on making her wear one of her least favourite dresses. A pale green thing that barely fit but that was made for her by Kilde’s mother. Apparently she had hinted a few days ago that she had never seen Lilian wear it so here she was fulfilling her neighbourly duty, one ugly dress at a time. Lilian would normally have put up much more of a fight against wearing the dress but she had more important things on her mind. As the Benlunar locals and the visitors from Freedos mingled and took their seats in the Church hall, Lilian kept an eye out for any suspicious activity. She spotted Mr Attorcop who was too busy talking to the woman next to him to pay her any attention. The stalls and seats in Stave Churches were conveniently laid out in a large circle. It was supposed to represent community or togetherness but Lilian found it most useful when having to spy on everyone around her without having to crane her neck. She spotted the man in orange, the judge that Mr Attorcop had helped a few days ago. This time though he wasn’t wearing orange, but instead was dressed in a wonderful blue doublet decorated with pearls and what Lilian thought must have been dried flowers. Lilian and her parents took seats on the third tier round to the left as they entered the hall. This was where they usually sat for Church services, only they weren’t usually surrounded by outsiders, like the young couple behind them dressed in matching grey or the elderly man to their right who sported a rather fantastic looking feather in his hat. There were a lot more visitors in attendance than Lilian had thought there would be, Brother Thomas would be pleased she thought.
Just as everyone found their seats, the echoing murmurs died down and Brother Thomas entered the central space and addressed the crowd. He was wearing formal Church Robes and greeted everyone with his signature smile and welcoming nature. The circular hall and the wooden walls meant that he did not have to raise his voice very much to be heard.
“Friends new and old,” he began, “I would like to welcome you to tonight’s gathering, which I see as a celebration of connection. For hundreds of years Benlunar has been host to visitors from around the world, each come for a different reason, and it is our pleasure to welcome them all and try our very best to make sure their stay is enjoyable…”
Lilian began to feel tired. Perhaps it was her body’s natural reaction to sitting and listening to someone talk, or perhaps the rigours training was finally catching up with her. What ever it was, she had trouble keeping her eyes open almost as soon as Brother Thomas began to speak. If it hadn’t been for that afternoon’s discovery, she may have succumbed to her tiredness and drifted off as she had done in this church so many times before. But now she paid extra attention to Brother Thomas’ words as well as his manner. It was as if she was looking at one of Benlunar’s many tourists, a new man she had yet to meet and talk with.
“If your God is not depicted on these walls or in our songs,” he continued, “please do not let that make you feel unwelcome. Our Gods are closely connected to our stories and the world around us but that does not mean we cannot learn from your stories and your experiences and indeed, your Gods.”
Gaining nothing of interest from Brother Thomas, Lilian decided to scan the crowd around her. She was looking for silver brooches, for suspicious faces or for anything that might be out of the ordinary. But after wondering if a man sat on the back row opposite her was signalling to someone or merely picking his nose, Lilian realised that she was probably just bored.
It was half way through the local choir’s first song, just before Lilian was about to shut her eyes and settle into a cosy sleep, when she noticed it. A dark haired woman, in a deep blue gown and a fur stole glanced directly at Lilian, looked back at the choir, and then moments later, glanced again. Lilian had caught eyes with her when everyone had sat down earlier, but she assumed that this was merely because everyone was looking at everyone else. The woman was sat to Lilian’s right, not directly opposite her in the circle so it was difficult for Lilian to be sure of the woman’s glances without obviously turning her head and looking at her. Lilian shifted her weight slightly so that her body was facing slightly to the right and then employed a similar trick to the one she did that morning, closing her eyes so that to anyone looking at her, she would seem to be asleep, but all the while keeping them ever so slightly open so that she could peer through her eyelashes. Luckily this didn’t make her stand out too much as some of the older church occupants had shut their eyes only minutes after sitting on the cushioned benches. In the low light of the Church hall, Lilian found it difficult to see in this manner but it only took her a couple more songs to be sure. The blue woman was looking right at her and was now barely looking away at all. Lilian felt nerves creep into the the pit of her stomach. Surely another attacker from Bana House wouldn’t strike within the sacred walls of a church? Would they? Lilian remembered that all her family and friends were inside as well and she felt her heart quicken. She opened her eyes just in time to catch the blue woman look away towards the choir. Lilian found Mr Attorcop in the crowd and saw him looking at the floor near the choir, his eyes also half closed in weariness. It would be impossible for her to get his attention and signal to him that she was being spied on. In fact, Lilian realised that while the service was happening it would be impossible for her to do anything without drawing unwanted attention. She resolved to wait until the end and then try to find Mr Attorcop to warn him about a potential second threat. She thought about how useful a bottle of Lunar essence would be at this moment. She could plunge the church in to darkness and then sneak away unseen, if she knew how that is.
After what seemed like an entire season, but was in fact just over an hour, the service ended. Brother Thomas said a few final words, reminding everyone to be friendly with each other or what ever and Lilian could finally stand up and put her plan into action. She waited patiently until her row emptied out and then ducked her head low so as to easily slip in and amongst the crowd without being seen. Once she had made it out of the door and to the square she turned back to see if she could spot Mr Attorcop or her parents. She had assumed they would be right behind her but in her haste she had left them behind. There was no commotion or disturbance happening in the church so Lilian assumed her parents were fine for the time being. To her left there was a small birch tree, planted into the ground beneath the square, the stones were carefully placed around its base so that it looked like part of the design. Lilian leant on the tree and kept an eye on the crowds exiting the Church. After a large group of visitors in their city finery came out stretching and chatting about the wonderful singing, Lilian saw the woman in blue step into the open and look around. She was clearly scanning the faces of everyone around her, not hiding the fact that she was looking for someone. Lilian wondered if she might spot her and pinned herself to the papery birch trunk. The trunk was not wide enough to conceal her completely, but it did hide her form and size enough to confuse anyone that might be looking out for her. Now that the tables were turned, Lilian watched as the woman in blue walked through the crowd alone, still scanning each face as she went. Just then, a small dog that must have belonged to one of the Freedos tourists as Lilian had never seen it before, sidled up to the tree and began to sniff around it. The dog was fluffy black and white with a pointed snout and it looked as though it could easily be accidentally stepped on, it was so small in fact that Lilian barely noticed it sniffing around her feet. She managed to dodge out of the way just in time as it raised its leg. This frightened the little creature and it began to yap and bark and fuss at Lilian who vainly tried to shush it at the same time. She had to look down to avoid stepping on it and when she looked back up she saw that several people were looking over at her to see what the commotion was and the woman in blue had disappeared.
“I’m so sorry.” Lillian looked up to see a rather large woman in a pink bodice and white skirt hurrying over to her, “He’s just fussy because he’s hungry.” She leaned forward and spoke to the little dog, “Marco come here. Marco, here. Here Marco.” The little dog paid her no attention and instead continued to sniff Lilian’s foot.
“Come here Marco, come come pet. Come here my prince. Stop bothering this young lady, he doesn’t bite he’s very friendly.” Lilian didn’t see a bite from this animal as being something she might have to worry about. Losing her patience she bent down, picked up the dog which promptly stuck its tongue out in surprise and handed it to its owner.
“Thank you my darling.” She said before turning away and fussing over her dog some more.
Lilian looked back at the crowd and saw her Mother waving at her. She was about to head towards her when one final look round revealed something. Across the square in between two houses she noticed a flash of what looked like blue material disappearing into the alley. Lilian ran over to her mother and said something about seeing her back at home before sprinting away. Before she reached the alley however, Lilian had a flash of conscience. Was pursuing a strange woman a good idea? Night was slowly falling on the Benlunar and Lilian glanced up to see the first few stars peering through wispy, pink clouds. Only weeks ago she would never have dreamed of putting herself in this much danger, but something about her training with Mr Attorcop had emboldened her. She felt as though if she did encounter any danger, she would be able to defend herself easy enough. And so she dipped carefully into the alleyway and made her way down it. The buildings were so close together here that it was as if night had already taken this part of the town. The alley lead to a small side street which Lilian knew well, although she hadn’t been there in several months. Going left would take her to the outskirts of town while going right would bring her to the back of the Fox and Octopus Inn. She glanced in both directions before having her mind made up by another flash of blue material to her right. Conscious of the noise her smart sandals were making, she slowed down and made her way quietly towards where she had just seen the dress flick into a doorway. Lilian hugged the wall as she approached, staying low so as to keep out of sight. The doorway up ahead was the back entrance to a house but Lilian couldn’t remember who lived there. As she approached it she heard voices, a woman’s and a man’s but she couldn’t make out what they were saying. As she edged closer to listen, she considered turning back but thought that even if she gained even a little bit of information on the silver hand brooches or Bana House or anything, the risk would have been worth it. The voices were very low, despite being so far from any crowds so Lilian had to step further and further forward. She was practically at the doorway, almost able to lean out from the wall and peer in when the unthinkable happened. Lilian had been so focused on hearing what was being said that she hadn’t noticed the dark puddle beneath her foot. The soft slap of water as her foot went in was enough to cause the voices to stop. Lilian considered turning to run but didn’t have time to put any sort of plan into action before the face of a tall man appeared in front of her. He’d almost jumped from the doorway into the alley in an effort to catch whoever had made the sound and when his eyes fell on Lilian they widened in surprise. This quickly turned to anger,
“What in the seven stars are you doing sneaking around?” Lilian froze, ready to fight, ready to run, but not ready to deal with questions. The man was dressed in dark grey and had a round, rather handsome face. Lilian had seen if before but it took a second before she could place it in her memory. He was the man who had been sat directly behind her during the service at the Stave Church. Before she could answer his question, the woman in blue came out from beyond the doorway to see what was happening. The light was low but Lilian could see that her cheeks were flushed. Lilian looked at the couple, she couldn’t see any suspicious brooches but something about the meeting still felt, conspiratorial.
“Well?” the tall man spoke again and this time Lilian knew she had to answer, so she lied.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb I just… I’m going to the Fox and Octopus to meet my parents and I thought I’d take a shortcut.” The tall man weighed her answer,
“Why were you tiptoeing around then?”
“I heard voices and I got scared.” The man clearly still had his doubts but thankfully, at that point, the woman in blue, stepped in to ease the tension.
“William,” she said to the tall man, “she’s only young, it’s ok.” She put an arm on his shoulder and Lilian watched him relax and breathe again. He mumbled an apology, Lilian had clearly scared him, which was strange, she thought, as he was almost twice her height. The woman in blue smoothed her dress and approached Lilian cautiously.
“My Lady,” she began, “Please excuse my, friend, he’s a gentle giant really. Please, don’t let us keep you.” Lilian found herself smiling at her manner. She spoke as if she was reading a story and her voice floated on the gloaming like silk in the wind, and when she said, ‘My Lady’, Lilian almost blushed. Instead of replying, Lilian just smiled and bowed and lowered her eyes as she fumbled past them in the small street. Before she was quite clear of them the woman in blue spoke again,
“Oh and, if I might ask a favour.” Lilian turned to come face to face with the woman’s large, brown eyes.
“Yes?” Said Lilian, the words almost catching in her throat.
“If anyone should ask, not that they would.” Lilian saw the tall man cast a sideways glance at his friend, she continued, “we would very much appreciate it if you kept this meeting to yourself.” The woman smiled sweetly whilst nudging her friend in his side. Catching on, the tall man reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiny gold coin and placed it in Lilian’s palm. The two strangers then just looked at Lilian and waited for her to react. Lilian wasn’t quite sure how to react so she reverted back to what Kilde would do in this situation.
“Thank you Sir, thank you my lady. Please, there is no need to worry. Consider the meeting gone from my memory. I wish you both a pleasant evening.” And with that she turned around and darted down the alley towards the back of the Fox & Octopus.
Once she reached the back of the Inn she turned around to see if anyone was behind her. She knew that Liny and Xander would have had no problem with her entering through the back door but seeing as no one was following her, she decided to run past it and head further down the alley. This path would take her to the trades quarter of Benlunar, near Jacob’s yard. It was a roundabout way to get home and she’d have to cut through the trees to get to her path, but seeing as it was a warm evening, Lilian didn’t mind the extra walk. When she reached the empty cobbled street that passed between the various yards and smithys she looked down at the weighty coin in her hand. The gold shone brightly even in the low light of the evening. It was a gold Sovereign, Lilian knew it because of the outline of Empress Silvia’s face on the one side, and the crest of Alicium on the other. She had never held a sovereign before, most Benlunar citizens traded with copper heads or occasionally silver bits but with this coin she could go into the Fox and Octopus and buy drinks for everyone in there for the whole night, or she could buy her own horse or a whole wardrobe of new clothes. Her mind was racing at the possibilities, so much so that she only just noticed the slick, scarlett liquid on the floor before putting her foot in it. Lilian stumbled to a stop, confused. One of the cobblestones at her feet was unmistakably wet, the light was very low now but Lilian had the intermittent brightness of the moon to help her. She waited several seconds for a small cloud to pass in front of it before she could tell for sure what it was she was looking at. A small patch of what looked like oil was splashed on the stones. The strange liquid was laid out in patches that formed a trail in front of her. Making sure not to tread on any of it, Lilian followed the strange splashes and drips down the street. They lead her to a stone wall, round the corner from Jacob’s yard. The liquid was plentiful here and seemed to end at the base of the wall. Lilian brought her hand up to her mouth in a gasp. She hadn’t wanted to believe that the liquid was blood, but there was no denying it now. At the base of the wall was a mass of black and white fur, eerily still in the darkness. It was roughly the size of a large rabbit or… or a small dog. No. Lilian thought, it couldn’t be. Just then she heard a sound from down the street where she had come from. A cooing and calling. She turned to see the light of a torch coming from the other end of the street and the shapes of several people walking towards her. Lilian hastily put the gold coin in her shoe and started walking towards the group. If the pile of fur and blood behind her was what she thought it to be, she couldn’t bring herself to let its owner discover it without warning.
“Marco!” A woman’s voice cut through the darkness followed by that of a man’s. The small group had yet to discover the first splash so Lilian broke into a run, to catch them before they did.
“Where could he have got to?” She heard the woman’s voice again. Lilian could clearly see them now, the large woman in the pink bodice was being flanked by two men, clearly friends whom she had asked for help in tracking down her runaway pet. All eyes fell on Lilian as she entered the circle of torchlight.
“Oh hello miss,” Said the woman, clearly not recognising Lilian from their earlier encounter.
“I don’t suppose you’ve seen a little dog run through here? He’s white with black spots and he’s oh so precious.” Lilian could see the worry in her eyes and hear it in her voice. She didn’t know how to put in to words what she had to say so she just tried to keep her voice as calm as possible.
“I did Madam. But I’m very sorry to say, I think there’s been an accident.” The woman looked at her, confused.
“An accident?” She repeated.
“Yes. I… your dog is over there but he’s seriously injured, I…” She tried to continue but at the mention of her dog being hurt the woman rushed past her.
“What’s happened? Where is he?” Lilian could only watch along with the two men as the woman in pink ran into the darkness to investigate. Moments later, a scream pierced the night and the two men ran towards the scene of carnage. Lilian was left alone, she looked down to see the still slick stones at her feet, glistening eerily in the moonlight. Lilian felt angry. How dare such a horrible thing reflect the beauty and grace of the moon. She felt a tightness in her throat as she heard the woman’s sobs in the distance. She was at a loss. A loss of how to help, a loss as to what to say or do. Lilian could only stare at the floor. She found her eye being drawn to a crack between the stones where something reflective caught her eye. At first she thought it was just more blood, but then she realised that the light it reflected was different. As she bent down to have a closer look, the object seemed to shift and change in nature. She almost couldn’t get her fingers between the cobbles to reach it, but when she finally managed to extract the thing she saw that it was only a small clump of fur. Just as she was about to throw it away however, the fur changed colour.
Over the next few days, many questions were asked, teams of men were assembled to track or trap the thing that had killed the dog, but nothing was found. At one point, even Lilian was suspected of doing the deed, but the accusation was quickly quashed. Lilian of course showed Kilde the fur she’d found on the scene and the two came up with their own theories as to what happened, most of which involved the mysterious Feinhound. All of the chaos and commotion eventually calmed down and the event was replaced by new and more pressing problems and daily demands. This was of course, many weeks before Kilde died.
Benlunar - Episode 7
The trap is sprung and a deal is made.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
On the stone shelf, on the edge of Benlunar mountain, where the air is thin and the trees can only grow pins instead of leaves. The sun shines brightly overhead and the sparrow hawks screech into the valley. On the scree and stones that make up the shelf floor, a stranger is suspended mid step. They’re holding a knife in their right hand, the tip of which is almost touching the skin on the throat of a bearded, bald man. A young woman, Lilian, watches all of this as if from many leagues away. Her mind distancing itself so as to maintain its sanity. Slowly though, as she sees the stranger breathing under their cloak, fastened by a hand shaped silver brooch, as she hears the bearded man’s voice speak to the stranger, she is brought back to the present moment with a rush as blood flows into her ear drums.
“Thank you so much for joining us,” Said mister Attorcop, “As you can see, I was hoping you would.” Lilian wanted him to step away from the point of the blade, one quick sneeze, she thought, and he’d be impaled. But instead of stepping back, Mr Attorcop leant forward and dipped his right cheek down towards the blade’s edge. He then slowly dragged his cheeky across it with a soft scraping sound. Lilian saw a few short hairs from the edge of his beard fall onto the stones beneath him. He’s toying with them, she thought. Lilian knew this from the small smile that fell across Attorcop’s lips.
“Well I suppose we should finally see who we’ve been dealing with these past few days.” Attorcop stepped past the knife and threw back the stranger’s hood, in another second he’d lowered their cloth mask revealing the face of a woman. She had dark brown hair and dark green eyes. Lilian thought her very beautiful, particularly as she’d never seen anyone with such tanned skin with green eyes before. She was breathing very quickly and her eyes were darting from Attorcop to Lilian to the sky to the floor as if she was desperately seeking a way out of her own body. Lilian noticed that she was moving small muscles around her cheeks and forehead but the rest of her body was completely fixed in place. Attorcop stepped back, marvelling at the efficacy of his trap. He walked all the way around her and then turned to Lilian and said,
“I mean that’s at least worth losing a toe or something. Look how still she is!” Lilian knew he was referring to the deal he’d made to make this trap possible, she also knew he was making a joke, a joke that Lilian didn’t find particularly amusing.
“Is she alright?” Asked Lilian, in a small voice.
“I assume so, let’s ask her shall we? Hello? Are you alright there?” Attorcop leaned in patronisingly close to the strange woman’s face. Lilian saw her contort her face and desperately try to form words. Through all the effort however, they only came out as a whisper.
“Release me.”
“What’s that?” Replied Attorcop, Lilian knew full well he’d heard her.
“Release me.” The words came out quicker now, but were still spat out through gritted teeth and hatred. Mr Attorcop held his chin in a mock thinking pose.
“Hmm I think I’ll pass on that one if it’s all the same to you. Well, at least until I’ve got some answers of my own. How does that sound? Hm? I ask a few questions and you tell me a few answers and then we all go and grab a bite to eat?” Lilian looked at the woman, she said nothing but Lilian could tell she was desperately trying to think her way out of the situation. Mr Attorcop, hands clasped behind his back, began wondering around her in circles.
“Let’s start with an easy one shall we? Were you hired, or are you working alone?” As Lilian had expected the woman said nothing. Whenever Attorcop came in to view she merely glared at him intently.
“I assume you’re some sort of amateur assassin, is this your first job?” Attorcop spoke the words calmly and matter of factly. Lilian was unsure why he was pursuing this line of questioning but it seemed to produce some results. The strange woman began to breathe quickly and her face grew even angrier and more frustrated. Attorcop must have picked up on this as he continued.
“I see you’ve got a silver hand on your cloak. Is that what your family give to youngsters on their first week? Is it a sort of helping hand?” Lilian realised what he was doing. He was purposefully getting the woman more and more irate. Lilian could see her nostrils flair and she began spitting through her teeth with each breath. Lilian remembered what Mr Attorcop had said about assassin’s wanting their victims to know who they were, she wondered if Attorcop was attacking this woman’s pride. What ever he was doing, it was achieving results. Lilian was still nervous but was less scared now that she saw how relaxed Mr Attorcop was. She decided to join in, if Attorcop was indeed attacking this woman’s sense of self, then being insulted by someone young enough to pose no threat whatsoever might prove useful.
“I know what it means.” She said, Mr Attorcop whipped round to look at her, his expression was worried, perhaps he only meant for her to observe but his facely quickly changed when he listened to what she said.
“I’ve seen hand brooches like that before. They’re given to some children on their first day of school. The silver hand basically says, watch out, my child is a slow learner and needs extra attention.” She saw Mr Attorcop turn to stifle a laugh. The woman’s eyes were now wide in fury.
“Ah yes of course.” Said Mr Attorcop, “I suppose that explains the ineptitude.”
“Enough!” The woman spat the word out through gritted teeth. Considering she hadn’t been saying anything only moments ago, Lilian saw this as a victory.
“If I answer your questions.” The stranger continued, much to Lilian’s surprise. “What guarantee do I have that you’ll release me.” Lilian looked to Mr Attorcop to await his reply. The teasing smile had disappeared from his face, it was now fixed in a serious expression. Lilian expected him to answer formally and fairly, like he always did. She expected him to say something like, ‘you have my word’ or ‘you can trust me’ instead he moved directly in front of the mysterious woman, leant forward near her ear and said,
“You don’t. You just made an attempt on my life, so the way I see things is that every second I allow you to breathe is a gift from whatever God you worship. If you wish to keep breathing, you keep talking, because quite frankly I have no use for silent assassins that I cannot learn anything from.”
Lilian felt a chill run down her spine from her neck. She’d never seen Mr Attorcop like this. His countenance had completely changed, the light around them seem to almost dim as he spoke. There was no trace of humour or heart left in his face and for this first time since meeting him, Lilian realised why someone might want this powerful man dead. The stranger sensed this too as the fight seemed to slowly drain from her eyes. It seemed as though her only options were to talk or…
“My name is Kissandra. I’m from Bana house. In Freedos.” She whispered to Attorcop who stood up straight upon hearing the new information.
“Bana house! Well, I must say that’s disappointing.”
“Why?” Asked Lilian.
“There are many ways to get a person to kill someone for money. You could even pay a group of men at a local tavern, some people make it their business, and some of those people are very expensive and very good at what they do. Then some of them might decide to band together and drive prices up, as well as train new recruits. Bana house is one of those places. But…” Attorcop paused for a second and looked at the Kissandra, “well, it’s not the Endless Well is it?” This produced a furious and shaking response from the suspended Kissandra.
“Those drunken halfwits couldn’t catch a caged chicken.”
“Perhaps not. But nevertheless I’m disappointed my life was only worth one emissary from Bana house. I would have thought my reputation more dangerous than that.” At this Kissandra looked confused, or as confused as she could look with a semi-frozen face.
“You are an advisor to the Empress. A politician who buries himself in books.” Attorcop began walking towards the cliff edge. This time, his hand brushed his beard as if he really was in deep thought.
“Am I now…” Lilian heard him mutter. After a few seconds of gazing out over the valley he snapped his fingers and turned around.
“You were sent by Lord Edward’s Mother, Lady Florentina.” Lilian whipped her head back to witness the reaction from Kissandra but there was none. She said nothing and did nothing and this, Lilian realised was as much of an affirmation as if she had simply agreed with Mr Attorcop out loud.
“Ha!” Shouted Attorcop in triumph, “I knew it. Lilian, there are very few people I tell about my work with the Empress. Mostly I just say I’m an apothecary or a scholar if people ask, but sometimes, I tell certain ambitious individuals that I know and have served Empress Sylvia. Which is true, but only once. The last person I told this to was a woman who wants to see her son marry the Empress. I had agreed to help her, but, then why try to kill me…” As Mr Attorcop spoke his thoughts aloud, Lilian watched Kissandra out of the corner of her eye. The spark of panic had gone and been replaced by dejection and defeat. For this time since she stopped, Lilian wondered what they were going to do once Kissandra of Bana house became unfrozen. Mr Attorcop was wrapping up his train of thought behind her.
“Which is interesting because I knew her when she was a young woman, but she wouldn’t want me dead unless… Unless I knew something that would threaten her son’s eligability, OR something that would make his power unstable once he achieved his goal. I doubt this one is going to tell me anything else are you?” He directed the question at Kissandra, who maintained her silence.
“Well, I suppose this is your lesson for underestimating your target. Do they not teach you that at Bana House?” Mr Attorcop walked over to the outstretched blade and began carefully working out of Kissandra’s grip. It took him a while but once he finally managed to extract it he held it up in front of him and tossed it from hand to hand, testing its weight. Seemingly satisfied with his new acquisition he turned back to Lilian.
“Miss Lausanne, you may wish to avert your eyes from this.” for a second Lilian didn’t understand why he was asking, but she quickly realised what he intended to do.
“What?” She protested, “No no no, you’re not going to, you know…” Mr Attorcop raised a single eyebrow.
“Well I’m not going to braid her hair.” He said, sarcastically.
“You can’t hurt her.” Cried Lilian, “We’ve caught her, she’s lost.” Mr Attorcop’s expression grew strained.
“It’s not that she’s lost, Miss Lausanne, it’s that we’ve won. And that victory would mean very little if we just let her walk away to try again. You do know how Assassin’s work don’t you? I’m sorry it’s her first day.” He directed this to Kissandra who was beginning to look terrified again.
“I know how it works.” Said Lilian, who’s mind was racing to try and find an alternative answer, “You said she was hired right? Can’t we just pay her to not hurt you?” Mr Attorcop was beginning to lose patience.
“And what happens when I return to Freedos, fit as a fiddle and her friends from Bana House spot me? What do you think they’ll do to her? What do you think they’ll do to me?? More’s the point.” Lilian began shaking her head and stepping backwards. There must be an alternative, she kept saying to herself over and over, but realised that repeating the phrase in her head wasn’t allowing any new ideas to enter it. She could feel the stones beneath her feet shift under her weight, she was stepping back towards the edge of the circle now. The edge, she thought, suddenly, she had an idea.
“Then let’s make a deal!” Mr Attorcop rolled his eyes but Lilian ignored him and ran over to face Kissandra. Up close, she could spot small scars on her cheek and could clearly see the silver clasp holding the cloak together.
“Listen,” She started, “My friend here set you up, he caught you and I helped right?” Kissandra said nothing but simply looked intently at Lilian, “that means you lost and if he wanted to he could, I dunno, cut your throat or or or just leave you here frozen or what ever. Which means right now, you’re basically dead.” Kissandra still said nothing, seemingly having worked all this out for herself already, “So here’s what I’m going to say. If you agree not to hurt us in the future, we won’t hurt you right now. You’re paying for something later, understand?” There was a pause, Lilian desperately hoped that Kissandra would agree with her. Finally, through gritted teeth and a cracking voice, Kissandra spoke up.
“I thank you for your mercy. But you do not understand. What do I tell Bana House?” Now it was Lilian who was losing her patience,
“I don’t care what you tell them, make something up! But while you do, be sure to remember that if it wasn’t for me you wouldn’t be telling them anything!” This seemed to persuade Kissandra who looked into Lilian’s eyes and finally ceased to struggle, something must have changed in her, for as soon as she did this she fell to the stone floor in a lump. Lilian trusted the chalk circle and she trusted that Kissandra no longer meant them any harm, she even crouched down to help her stand up. Kissandra’s joints were stiff and aching so she gladly took Lilian’s hand and used it to balance herself while standing up. Mr Attorcop was still a few feet away, wary of the goings on in front of him. As he watched Kissandra stand up he waved her knife in front of him and said,
“And I’m keeping this, by the way.” Lilian shot him an angry look, he wasn’t helping the situation. She turned back to look at Kissandra and was momentarily taken aback at how much taller she was than Lilian had thought. Her dark green cloak, free from the demon’s spell flowed soundlessly in the wind. Kissandra herself stood up straight and took in a deep breath while rolling her head, relieved to have the freedom to move again.
“I thank you for your mercy.” She looked down at Lilian, her voice was clear now, it cut through the breeze and Lilian detected a strong Freedos accent,
“I promise to leave you but I must warn you that Bana House prides itself on completing their missions. I cannot speak for what they will do when they discover my failure. But it is true that I underestimated my target.” She turned to look at Mr Attorcop who was busy studying his new knife.
“I do not recommend you return to Freedos any time soon sir.” Kissandra raised her voice so that Mr Attorcop was sure to hear it. He responded with a curt,
“Mm hm...” Kissandra then turned to look at Lilian.
“You have a kind soul, my lady, I pray that you do not let the city…” She looked back at Attorcop, “Tarnish it.” With that she turned back towards the mountain path and began to walk away. Lilian, still slightly questioning her decision to let Kissandra go, shouted to her.
“And you’re leaving Benlunar, tonight, ok?” Kissandra turned around and bowed deeply, then she stood upright, brought her hands together in a loud clap and promptly disappeared, replaced by a pile of twigs arranged in a strange symbol on the floor.
After Kissandra’s disappearance Lilian turned to Mr Attorcop. She watched him hide the blade in his sleeve and braced herself for a telling off. Instead of shouting or berating her however, he simply walked back to the tree line from where Kissandra had emerged. Lilian would rather have been shouted at than treated so coldly. She looked up to see an empty sky, the birds of prey must have flown back to their nests, she thought, as all she could see now was a blue and beautiful spring sky, stretching from the mountain’s peak across the valley and over the horizon. She noticed how tense she was and relaxed her shoulders as she noticed Mr Attorcop emerge from the trees holding two short sticks, each about the length of Lilian’s arm. He walked across the stones to where Lilian was stood and held one out for her to take. As she did so he said,
“Well done Lilian, you played your part brilliantly, I owe you my thanks, and probably my life.” Lilian didn’t understand.
“What do you mean?” She asked, gripping the stick and feeling the rough wood grain against her palm and fingers.
“I was prepared to kill that woman, although I admit that I didn’t want to. However, if I would never have been able to convince her not to hurt me, not like you did.” As he was speaking he was inspecting his own stick, testing its strength by trying to bend it.
“Why?” Lilian was starting to feel as though she had also been manipulated.
“Well if your job is to kill someone you’re very unlikely to listen to them when they ask you to stop. I mean, that’s exactly what they would say, isn’t it? You however, you came in at exactly the right moment and saved that woman’s life, and for that she rewarded us with mercy. You saw how she dropped from her freeze? That would not have happened had she not relinquished all desires to hurt me. You played on her pride, which you accurately guessed to be her weakness. An excellent piece of diplomacy and now you have a Freedos Assassin in your debt. Perhaps not enough to hire but certainly enough to gain some information, particularly if you threaten to tell Bana House how she failed. Very good work.” Lilian didn’t know whether or not to thank him. She had not been complimented on anything recently and the feeling felt alien to her.
“Mr Attorcop?” She asked, “What would you have done if I hadn’t got her to make the deal?” Mr Attorcop did not reply to this, but instead looked at her with a very serious expression. Lilian had asked a question to which she already knew the answer and so decided to quickly change the subject.
“What are these for?” She held up her stick.
“Well, seeing as you’re happy to bargain with my life I think we should step up your training don’t you Lilian?” Lilian looked up at him,
“What happened to Miss Lausanne?” She joked. Mr Attorcop replied simply,
“I honestly don’t know.”
For the next few hours Mr Attorcop instructed Lilian in a very different form of self defence. It was more aggressive than before, which saw Lilian only blocking and defending herself from attacks. Now she was instructed to block incoming attacks and combine the block with an attack of her own. As Attorcop’s stick would swing towards her, she would strike it with her own and then move in to punch with the fist that gripped the weapon. This would then be blocked by Attorcop’s open palm and the dance would flow and continue. Each time an attack got through Attorcop would stop and show her how to approach blocking it from a variety of different angles but the principle would always be the same. “A block is never just a block,” he would say, “if it is not followed by an attack, it might as well not have happened.” The valley sang with the rhythmic clacks of wood on wood. As soon as Lilian thought she understood something, Attorcop would surprise her with a quick jab or a kick that would knock her to the floor. Despite the bangs and bruises Lilian felt herself enjoying the training more and more. The fluid movement of the fight, coupled with the satisfaction of blocking a difficult or surprising attack made her smile again and again.
When the sun had gone past its peak Lilian was almost collapsing with exhaustion. Mr Attorcop ran through one last block repetition and then took a step back and bowed, signifying the end of the training. Lilian bowed back and the two of them started to walk back down the mountain. They chatted about Benlunar’s history and Lilian learned things even she hadn’t known before. Mr Attorcop knew a surprising amount about the valley town, including the fact that the Padda Stone had indeed been placed there before any building or settlement and that the first building wasn’t the Stave Church, like Lilian would have thought, but actually a sort of Inn where travellers could stay and get out of the winter cold on their pilgrimage through the mountains.
“And was the Padda Stone carved by the travellers?” Asked Lilian, as they approached the outskirts of Benlunar, “Or did it, you know, move there itself?” Lilian dropped her voice to ask this as she didn’t want anyone to over hear her and think she’d left her wits in the hills.
“His name is Gorakja and I don’t think he bothers moving very much. I’m not positive but I believe he came from the mountain, carved by the winds and rains over millenia. He is one of a few such beings.” Lilian watched Mr Attorcop as he spoke. She noticed a change in his voice when he talked about the Padda Stone, a sort of reverence entered into his cadence. A deep, respectful tone that one might find in churches or funerals.
“The next time he wakes up,” Said Lilian, “I want to be there. And this time, I won’t run away.” Mr Attorcop smiled and nodded his head.
“I believe you would get on very well. Now, I shall see you tomorrow morning just here, and we’ll resume training.” They had reached the steps of the Thoreson house and Mr Attorcop began to climb them, before he reached the door he turned back to Lilian and said,
“Well done today Lilian.” The complement came out awkwardly, but Lilian still smiled back in thanks. Mr Attorcop then disappeared through the large wooden door and Lilian turned towards the town centre. The Morning’s events kept running through her head. She picked out moment after moment where things could have gone very differently indeed. She wondered if Kissandra was still hiding in the town somewhere or if she had heeded her request and left immediately. By the time she reached the square she was playing blocking drills over in her head. She looked up to see the town square brimming with life. Its coloured flagstones were barely catching the light of the sun with all the people milling and stepping over them. There were stalls set up by locals and various wears being haggled over by tourists and townsfolk alike. The Stave Church imposed itself on the scene as always, its wooden spire towering over the activity like a teacher in a schoolyard. Near its entrance, Lilian saw brother Thomas struggling to carry some chairs. As she watched, he dropped one and nearly fell over it as he walked, Lilian almost laughed out loud whilst watching him get caught up in his robes whilst vainly trying to carry more chairs than he could manage. She ran over to him and picked up one of the fallen chairs.
“Ah Lilian,” He said, “Thank you so much. I said I’d collect these this morning from Sara’s house, but Brother Ulnar was unable to help me. Would you mind taking them inside?” He gestured for Lilian to go on ahead and she obediently opened the large Church doors so that he could stumble through into the echoing main hall. Lilian then followed brother Thomas as he comedically quickened his step so as to get to the back of the hall without dropping another chair. Lilian looked up at the tall ceiling above her. She never particularly enjoyed the church ceremonies but the building itself never ceased to impress. From the centre of the hall you could see all the way up to the tower floor, which Lilian knew housed an impressive array of bowl bells connected to pipes that flowed in and out of the walls of the tower itself.
“If you could just bring that through to the back here.” Brother Thomas’ voice echoed off the stone floor and wall carvings as he lead her towards a small door which lead to a back room. Lilian had been in here once before, years ago when her mother had asked her to help Brother Thomas decorate the church for the first snow festival, an annual event where Benlunar citizens sing songs and celebrate the coming of winter as a way to off-set the dread of the long cold nights to come.
“Just set them down there, thank you.” He pointed to a corner of the small room where there was already a few mismatched chairs piled on top of each other. The room smelled like tea and Lilian walked past the small fireplace to put her chairs down with the others. Brother Thomas breathed a sigh of relief once the job had been completed.
“Ah, that’s great. Thank you Lilian, we’re just getting ready for tonight’s service. I’m hoping we’ll get some extra people in because of the visitors. Will we be seeing you this evening?” Lilian had all but forgotten about the visitor’s mid stay service. As a show of thanks and welcoming, Benlunar traditionally performed songs and told stories for the city visitors when they were part of the way through their stay. She had planned on going with her parents but all of the recent drama and chaos had pushed it out of her mind.
“Oh, yes I think we’re coming.” This put a smile on Brother Thomas’ face.
“Excellent. Well hopefully it won’t be just you and your family. I was talking to some of the visitors earlier and they weren’t even aware that it was happening so I’m a little worried no one will show up!” Lilian could tell that he was distracted as he kept fumbling with the chord on his robe and tripping over things whilst looking for various parchments and musical instruments. Just as he was complaining about Brother Ulnar not doing his job of advertising the service, he reached up to grab a pile of robes from a high shelf. His stress however affected his judgement and he accidentally knocked a small brass box off the shelf below it. The box crashed to floor and burst open, spraying its contents across the wooden boards. Lilian heard Brother Thomas mutter a word under his breath, one she wouldn’t have even thought Church Brothers knew and she knelt down to start helping him pick up the scattered contents. Most of the objects were useless bits that any household would accumulate over the years. A spool of black thread, a couple of broken paper weights, a hollow sculpture of a frog with a slot in its back meant for coins were all picked up and placed back in the bronze box. Brother Thomas was busy picking up clothes pins when Lilian noticed some of the object had rolled under an armchair near the fireplace. She reached under it, felt around and grasped the first thing her hand felt. It was cold and metallic and had a satisfying weight to it that suggested it might have been quite precious. She pulled her hand out and opened her fist to reveal a shiny, silver brooch in the shape of an open hand.
Benlunar - Episode 6
Story circles
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
“There once was a Princess with 3 brothers. All older than she. The eldest was her father’s favourite, strong and brave. The middle brother was the people’s prince, they loved him for his good looks and charity. The youngest brother was her mother’s favourite, as he was sweet and loving. The princess felt like no one’s favourite, most of the people didn’t even know that the king and queen even had a daughter.
One day, the princess was walking through the forest, alone as usual, when she began to cry. Her tears filled her eyes so much that she could not see where she was going. When she finally stopped crying she realised that she was lost. Whilst trying to find the way out of the forest she came across a Feinhound. He was big and bold with a coat more luxurious than any bird of paradise. The princess knew she should be scared, but she was so sad that she wouldn’t even have minded being eaten. The Feinhound said, “Are you not terrified by my razor teeth?” And the Princess said “No.”
“Are you not afraid of my cutting claws?” Said the Feinhound.
And the Princess said “No.”
“Well do you not tremble at the site of my jaws?” Said the Feinhound.
But still the princess replied, “No”. The Feinhound, practised in the arts of terror, became angry. He had eaten many brave warriors, killed courageous kings and bitten mighty soldiers, yet he could not scare this little princess. She explained to him about her brothers and the Feinhound proposed a deal.
“I can make it so that you are everyone’s favourite.” He said, “I can make you the most loved princess in all the land.” The princess was very happy, but she did not trust the Feinhound.
“If you give me the love of my parents and the people, what must I give you in return?” At this the Feinhound smiled, “Oh nothing,” he said, “just a little patience.” And so the princess agreed and the Feinhound showed her out of the forest and back to her castle.
Over the next few weeks, nothing changed for the princess. She was still ignored by her parents and treated as almost invisible by anyone who met her. The only thing that was different was that the youngest brother had begun to act very strangely. He would shout at his mother, throw things at the walls in a rage and be very rude to everyone he met. Eventually, he became so nasty that his mother told him to leave the castle and live as a monk. It broke her heart to say goodbye to her most loved son, but she could no longer abide the horrible man her sweet boy had become. A few weeks after he left, the middle brother was also forced to leave the castle. He had been visiting an orphanage, when he started insulting the townsfolk, telling them that they were poor and miserable and that he was rich and beautiful. The people pleaded with the prince to stop but he would not. He gave money to criminals and rich landowners and said that they were the only people that deserved it. He stopped funding the orphanage and said that unwanted children should live in the streets. The townspeople turned on the prince after only a few days and forced him out of the town, tying him to a horse and whipping it out of the gates.
The King and Queen were distraught. Two of their beloved sons gone. But at least they had their eldest, they said. The bravest and strongest of the three. But in the weeks that followed her second brother’s exile, the princess also began to notice changes in him. He grew tired and his eyes became desperate. His once broad arms became small and skinny and instead of hunting and riding like he used to, he would only visit a house in town and stay there for days doing nothing. Eventually he never came back to the castle and renounced his title as prince. And so then there was only the princess left. She started to perform her duties as the king and queen’s only child and soon the town saw how wonderful she was. Left with no choice she became strong and brave, as well as sweet, charitable and kind. The King and Queen admitted their love for her and the princess lived very happily.
One day however, she was out riding in the forest when she got separated from her troup. And there, in a tree above her she saw a large and lazy Feinhound.
“Oh my!” she cried, “This cannot be the same beast that agreed to help me all those months ago. Is this what you have been doing instead of fulfilling your promise? Sitting in sunlight and filling your belly? Without your help I was forced to work twice as hard to win the love I desired.” At this the Feinhound grew angry.
“YOU had to work hard?” he said, “I’ll admit that your youngest brother was easy to frighten and become. A few choice words at your mother and he was quickly gone. The middle sibling was tougher but I still bent him to my will. I took his shape and insulted the town and they sent me over the hill. The eldest brother was the hardest, for he was strong and brave. So I became a beauty and made him my love sick slave. I weakened him until he nearly died by refusing his desires to leave my pretty side, after that the way was clear. I hear no thanks but you’re still welcome dear.”
“And where are they now you demon beast?” The princess cried and spat.
“They were just here, we had a feast, why do you think I’m fat?”
When he had finished the story, Ortan looked up and around the main room of the Fox & Octopus Inn and caught Liny’s eye, he held up a finger and she brought over a freshly filled flagon of beer.
“Is he boring you with stories?” She asked Lilian and Kilde as she put down the heavy mug. Lilian was still in the world of the princess and the Feinhound and so had to snap herself back to attention.
“What? Oh… no. We were just hearing about the princess and the Feinhound.” Said Lilian.
“Aaaah that’s a good one.” Replied Liny, “Not as good as the Duke and the duck though.” At the mention of this story Ortan scoffed.
“Aah that’s for little children. There’s no danger, no moral.”
“And what’s the moral of the Princess and the Feinhound then?” Liny snapped. Ortan looked a little stumped,
“Hmm, don’t hurt your family.” Kilde disagreed,
“No it’s be thankful with what you have.” He turned to Lilian to get her opinion, Lilian sensed that they were all waiting for her to offer an interpretation. She thought for a second and said,
“Never trust a promise.” There was a short pause where they all thought about this for a second. Finally, Liny turned to go saying,
“Ooh, that’s a little dark. You don’t get that from the Duke and the duck.” As she walked towards the bar Lilian noticed her parents getting up from their table and motioning her to join them for the journey home. Kilde was also standing up,
“Thank you Ortan, that was a good story, I hadn’t heard that one before.” He finished his drink and walked over to his Mother who had been sitting with Lilian’s parents. Lilian looked back at Ortan.
“Yes, thank you.” She said. Ortan shrugged and sipped his new drink.
“Like I said, it doesn’t really say what the Feinhound looks like. But I think it’s just supposed to be a magical animal.” Lilian got up to leave when Ortan spoke again.
“I think the main message is probably, be careful of creatures you meet in the woods.”
The following morning Lilian got up early. As she had suspected, her arms and legs ached from the training she had undergone the day before. She managed to haul her body out of bed, into some comfortable clothes and out of the house just as the sun was cresting over the valley. When she reached the town centre she turned back to look at the view. She was rarely up this early and marvelled once again at the ever changing beauty of the landscape. The light was dusting the tree tops down in the valley and behind her the mountain shone like a beacon. The sky was clear and blue and it looked as though it was going to be a beautiful day. As they had agreed the day before, Lilian went straight to the Thoreson house and met Mr Attorcop outside on the steps. She was relieved to see him standing there as before going to bed she had worried whether or not their strange friend might have showed up in the night. Attorcop looked happy. For a man who rarely smiled this was a welcome change. He had an extra spring in his step as they approached the mountain path,
“I think you’ll be quite impressed with what I’ve cooked up. If it works, we should have ourselves an assassin by lunchtime.” He started to jog lightly, Lilian ran to keep up. She noticed that the jogging had started earlier today, meaning that she’d be even more tired by the time they reached the shelf, if that was indeed, where they were going. During the run up the sloping path Lilian decided it was time to get to the bottom of the Feinhound mystery.
“Mr Attorcop?” She said between breaths.
“Miss Lausanne?” replied Attorcop.
“Last night Ortan the trapper, told me and my friend a story about a Feinhound?” Lilian was watching her steps as she spoke as the path was beginning to get more rocky.
“Oh yes? Which one?” Attorcop was looking out over the valley, admiring the view.”
“The one about the princess and her three brothers.”
“Oh I like that one.” Said Mr Attorcop, “did he do the rhyme at the end? Some people don’t do the rhyme but honestly without it, what’s the point?” Lilian tried to get him back on topic.
“He did do the rhyme, but, you know what the story doesn’t say? It doesn’t say anything about what a Feinhound looks like… And I was wondering.” Lilian was having trouble speaking between breaths now. Her aching body was screaming at her to stop, but Attorcop’s relentless pace continued. “I was wondering if you knew what a Feinhound looked like?” Attorcop thought for a second. When he spoke, Lilian almost got irritated at how easily his words came, he was not out of breath at all!
“Are you asking because of those hairs you gave me the other day? I should tell you that, I only said they belonged to a Feinhound because that was the most logical explanation. I’ve never actually seen one. No one has.” At these words Lilian faltered and almost tripped up on a loose rock. Her already heavy bones became further leadened with sadness. How would she break the news to Kilde? She thought. Poor Kilde. Hang on, Kilde! The idea rushed into her head so fast it burst straight past her throat and out of her mouth,
“My friend Kilde has seen one! He saw the one who’s fur we found. He said it looked like a big dog but also a cat.”
“Probably a leopard.” Said Mr Attorcop.
“That’s what I said! But he got angry when I did and insisted I was wrong. I mean, we found the fur so it was definitely something strange, right?”
Mr Attorcop thought for a second. By now they had reached the path marker that signalled their break away point for the stony shelf, but before heading down the mountain side Attorcop turned and said,
“As the story suggests, the Feinhound is a magical creature that can take many forms. That’s why people use it as a sort of ‘catch-all’ for anything they can’t explain. The fur you brought me was indeed strange but I’ve worked with hyper reflective materials in the past and for them to appear in the natural world is not uncommon. Inside oyster shells for example. I offhandedly said ‘Feinhound’ because I didn’t know what it was, when I find out that it’s from a large moth I’ll take the necessary steps to classify it. Your friend might have seen something he didn’t understand but to assume it’s unnatural or mythical in nature is, well, childish. There are many creatures in these woods Miss Lausanne, most are content to mind their own business but some are currently drawing plans against us. Which brings me to why we are here today!”
On this Attorcop seemed to close the matter. The finality of his tone and the swift motion of his turn towards the secret path suggested that he no longer wished to chat about ‘childish’ things, as he called them. Lilian resented him for calling Kilde ‘childish’ but even she had to admit that Kilde enjoyed embellishing stories. As the stepped off the stone step path and into the trees to find the animal track, Lilian remembered the time she and Kilde had caught a salamander in the river. She heard him tell 10 different people that story and every time he told it the salamander seemed to grow larger and more ferocious until by the end Kilde was practically having to slay it like a dragon.
Once they reached the circular shelf Attorcop strode into the middle, turned and held out his arms.
“Notice anything different?” He said to Lilian and she stepped onto the layer of rocks and rubble. Lilian squinted in the morning sun, she looked up to see a big bird float across the blue sky, she turned to look back at the trees she even looked down at her feet, everything seemed much the same as the day before, with the exception of the lack of fog.
“No.” Said Lilian, still a little annoyed at the non-existence of the Feinhound.
“Excellent!” Attorcop clapped his hands together in delight, “Then we should be alright. Come, have a look at this, this is an important lesson.” Lilian noticed how Attorcop seemed to be enjoying his new role as ‘teacher’, it reminded her that he probably didn’t have many opportunities to share his knowledge with anyone. As he lead her over to the very edge of the stoney circle, she felt a little sorry for him. It must be a lonely life, she thought. Attorcop beckoned her to crouch down as he pointed to a flat rock on the edge of the circle,
“Look under there,” He said, almost giggling in delight. Lilian did as requested and knelt down to have a look under the rock. She noticed a line of chalk drawn on the stones underneath it. The line seemed to continue round the edge of the circle.
“Took me ages to lift up all the stones around the outside so that the line underneath isn’t broken. It goes all the way around see.” Attorcop moved a little way around the circle and lifted another rock to expose the chalk line underneath it. Lilian wondered why he’d gone to all the trouble.
“The chalk line,” Explained Attorcop, “Is best hidden so as to not alert suspicion. I learned this from a witch in the Swamm marshes. It’s called a protection circle. The brilliance of it is, that anyone can enter the circle as long as they’re not trying to hurt anyone already inside it.”
“What happens if they are trying to hurt whoever’s inside it?” Asked Lilian, intrigued by this new kind of magic.
“Well, that’s what I’m hoping to find out today.” Replied Attorcop.
“You mean you’ve never tried it!?” Lilian almost shouted at him, how could he be so reckless with their safety when they’ve already been attacked once?
“My apologies miss Lausanne, please explain your better plan to me so that I might assist you.” Lilian felt her face go red. She didn’t appreciate the sarcasm but she admitted to herself that Attorcop probably knew more about this than she did.
“You can take a breath Miss Lausanne. I’ve made the deal so everything should be fine.”
Lilian didn’t understand.
“What deal?” She asked. Attorcop beckoned her forward to the centre of the circle and motioned her to put her hands up in a guard position. She realised that they were starting training so she obediently put her hands up to guard against any slaps or punches that were about to come her way. As Attorcop slowly began sparring, lightly aiming various attacks and observing Lilian as she blocked and deflected them, he began to talk.
“There exist many preternatural and scientific arts in this world Miss Lausanne. I’ve shown you some of the uses that can be made of Lunar Essence, the power of essence is derived from the natural world. It’s a sort of accelerated access to the power of nature.”
Lilian batted away a particularly fast punch that was coming for her left cheek,
“Does that mean,” She spoke mid block, “that some people can use the power of essence but without the actual essence?”
“Very astute Miss Lausanne,” Replied Attorcop, crouching low to deliver a blow to Lilian’s stomach, “There are indeed people who can do that, I myself am one of them. The reason I prefer to use essence however is that it is much quicker and more powerful. The cost being that finding and storing essence is very difficult.” Lilian ducked under a high kick and attempted to retaliate with an uppercut to Attorcop’s chin, this was deftly caught and sent sailing past him.
“So everytime you use magic, there’s a cost?” She asked, collecting herself for another round.
“Exactly right. Although, I would say that this is true of everything, wouldn’t you?” Lilian didn’t have time to think about the philosophy behind this statement as she was busy avoiding a flurry of blows from Attorcop’s left side.
“But I suppose,” He continued, barely noticing the exchange, “This is especially true of… magic.” Lilian registered a pause before Attorcop said the word ‘magic’. She almost thought she saw him roll his eyes.
“I don’t like that word.” He said.
“Why not?” Asked Lilian.
“Magic is what you use to impress children and idiots. Magic involves waving your arms around to distract people from what you’re doing with your hands. The word offers no gravity to the powers we deal with. The power to bend and shape the physical world to our needs, it requires a better word. Art is good, for it does require creativity and practise. But it’s still not quite right.” Lilian sensed that Attorcop was going off on another path, so she changed her stance to attack and brought him back to the conversation at hand.
“What was that about a deal?”
“Ah yes,” He said, easily deflecting all of Lilian’s punches. “The power of the protection circle doesn’t just come from the chalk, it has to be sealed with a deal. That’s where the cost of this particular power comes into play.”
“Who do you make the deal with?” Asked Lilian.
“A demon.” At this Lilian faltered and received a sharp jab in the shoulder as punishment for dropping her guard. She ignored the pain as she repeated what she’d just thought she’d heard.
“A demon??”
“Well yes. We’re dealing with witchcraft Miss Lausanne, where did you think witches got their power from? Their superior herbal remedies?” Attorcop was not letting up, he motioned Lilian to put her guard up again and changed up his attacks to ones she hadn’t seen before. A few got through but Lilian quickly learned their counters as she contemplated the existence of demons. Attorcop continued his explanation.
“Witchcraft was developed as a means to protect women from persecution. It’s a noble and ancient art. Thousands of years ago groups of women realised that they could appeal to the charitable nature of certain demons, a race familiar with persecution, and make deals with them in return for power. I happen to have been given the means to contact one of these demons and occasionally will negotiate a deal with her in exchange for power.”
Lilian was still stunned, she was letting more attacks get through her guard because her brain couldn’t handle this new and quite frankly, terrifying information.
“What was the deal? What did you give the demon so that you could make this.” She briefly gestured to the stone circle around her, which she now realised must be some kind of paranormal trap. When she asked the question though, Attorcop paused. Lilian considered trying to punch him in the face but his expression of genuine concern gave her pause.
“That’s the trouble with this one.” He said. “She made me promise to give her something, but she didn’t specify what that thing was or when it would be taken. It’s a little worrying but I’m trying not to think about it.” Lilian’s eyes opened wide,
“You said you’ve made deals like this before though. What do demons usually want?” Attorcop snapped his attention back to her.
“Oh anything really. That’s the problem with dealing with beings that are thousands of years old, they’ve all gone a bit mad. Could be that they want all your fingernail clippings for a year, could be they just want money, not because they use it, but because they think it’s funny for you not to have any. They don’t have any needs so they just ask for things that they think will be fun. I think I caught this one off guard so she just said she’ll take something at some point, no doubt to amuse some whim she feels in the future.”
“Aren’t you scared?” Asked Lilian, remembering Ortan’s story and the fate of the poor Princess.
“Oh not really. Think about it. People lose things all the time. I myself once lost an entire collection of antique salt shakers just because I forgot the box in a carriage. The only difference here is that I know I’m going to lose something, I just don’t know what.”
At that moment an almost imperceptible movement caught Lilian’s eye. It came from the trees behind Attorcop. She craned her neck to see if she could look at what caused the leaves to rustle slightly, but Attorcop realised what she was doing.
“Don’t look.” He dropped his voice down to a whisper. “Just look at me and pretend to keep training.” He made a show of putting his fists up in front of him and jabbing at Lilian, who deflected them by second nature now. To her surprise, although Attorcop knew they were being watched he continued to calmly teach Lilian the basics of self defense.
“Excellent form there Miss Lausanne. Notice the difference of power when you have your feet planted firmly on the ground, that way the punch comes all the way from the ground before connecting with the chins of your enemies. Now the true experts would be able to deflect attacks like these with their eyes closed, such is the power of experience. See now for yourself how difficult it is, that’s it, close your eyes.” Lilian looked at Mr Attorcop, distressed and confused. Was he really expecting her to close her eyes?
“That’s it!” he repeated, loudly. “Close your eyes and deflect my attacks, no peeking now!” his raised eyebrows and tilted head on the word peaking, suggested to Lilian that she should make a show of closing her eyes. As she shut them slowly, just enough so that any observer would think her sight impeded, she began to find the whole situation quite funny. Here she was, pretending to close her eyes whilst on top of a mountain whilst being stalked by a killer and trained by a mad man who made deals with demons like anyone else might buy fish in a market. She suppressed a giggle as that would have given the game away entirely and the whole venture would be a waste. Admittedly it was still hard to deflect the soft slaps and jabs that Attorcop was sending her way, but then again, this was probably a good thing as it helped maintain the illusion. Still, she was sure Attorcop had made her do this just to annoy her. Then, like an alligator emerging from the depths, Lilian saw a hooded figure appear from behind a tree trunk. As soon as she spotted them they began to run. They had chosen their moment to strike and Lilian was witnessing the attack in real time. They had a small distance to cover from the trees to the stone shelf but they did so at lightning speed. Through her eyelashes Lilian could see their blade in their hand, reflecting the light of the sun. She held her breath to see what would happen when they crossed the chalk threshold. They crossed it at maximum speed and Lilian almost gasped in shock as they first put one foot, then the other over the outer rim of stones. Had the contract not worked, she thought. Lilian presumed all was lost, the demon had lied to Attorcop, she was about to call out when something strange began to happen. The birds of prey above them were still circling and spying, the insects were still buzzing about their day, even Mr Attorcop was moving and behaving normally, but the strange, hooded figure began to slow down. Lilian watched as their limbs started to drag as if they had been plunged into a pit of mud and were being told to sprint their way out. Each footstep suspended the stranger in the air for longer and longer and as the knife sprang forward to attack the back of Attorcop’s neck it moved so slowly that Attorcop had time to calmly turn around to face his attacker. Lilian’s eyes were well and truly open by now and she gazed in amazement as the knife slowed more and more until it finally stopped, a hair’s breadth from Attorcop’s exposed throat.
Benlunar - Episode 5
Training begins!
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
Lilian reeled back in surprise. She was stood the edge of cliff shelf on the side of Benlunar mountain so she was conscious of not stepping too far back. Her cheek stung from having been slapped hard by Mr Attorcop who was still stood, brazenly in front of her holding his hands up and close to his chest. Lilian tried to speak through her shock,
“What are you doing? That hurt!” The pain and humiliation she felt at being slapped someone she considered a friend was causing anger to boil up inside of her, she could feel her face redden.
“We are up here to train you in the arts of self defense.” Said Mr Attorcop, as though that was answering her question.
“So!?” Shouted Lilian.
“So defend yourself.” Mr Attorcop pulled his hand backwards like he was preparing for another strike. Lilian flung her hands up in front of her and swung her head to the side in a desperate flinch.
“Stop, don’t move.” Mr Attorcop lowered his hands and stepped forward, Lilian tensed up but watched as he approached. “Look here, your fingers are spread wide, that’s bad.” He pushed Lilian’s fingers together so that her hands were open and curved, “If I can grab one finger then I can break it just as easily, keep your fingers closed and focus on knocking my hands away. Now your head.” He reached past Lilian’s outstretched arms and tilted her head back so that she was facing him directly.
“You turn away and you lose sight of your opponent. Face them always and keep your eyes open, even if you get hit, blinking only takes a moment but a moment is all some people need to get past your defenses. Now step forward to the centre here.” Mr Attorcop lead her to the centre of the circular shelf, it was a misty and damp day so the stones below her feet were damp and a slippery. As they walked, Attorcop continued, “Your surroundings are your biggest asset in any combat. See these stones, they’re sharp and they’re plentiful, you could easily reach down and grab a handful to throw. The edge of the cliff back there? That’s the end of a fight, the end of a life as well, always try and position yourself on the other side of your opponent to the most dangerous thing in the arena.” Lilian was taking as much information in as possible all the while keeping an eye on Mr Attorcop, should he decide to try and slap her again. When they reached the centre of the circle Attorcop turned towards her.
“What else might you use to your advantage right now?” Lilian thought and looked around for a moment. The shelf was empty except for stones and where normally she might be able to see further, the mist was obscuring her vision. This triggered a thought.
“The fog?” She proffered, mainly because it was the only thing she could see.
“Good.” Replied Attorcop. “If you ran into the mist your attacker might lose sight of you. Running is ALWAYS an option in any fight. You and I are outmatched so your best bet would be to use the mist and your speed to your advantage.” Lilian was confused. Is this really how she was supposed to defend herself against assassins? By running away? Attorcop must have read her expression, “The answer to the question you want to ask is yes. Running away is the best defense available. It creates distance between you and your attacker, it ends the fight and no one is harmed. What I want to teach you today and over the coming weeks, is what to do if running away is not an option. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” Lilian nodded.
“So what do you do if you think someone wants to hurt you?”
“I run away.”
“Excellent. You’re a fast learner, Miss Lausanne. Now put your hands up, I’m going to attempt to slap your other cheek.”
For the next few hours Lilian batted away wave after wave of slaps, punches and kicks. She didn’t always succeed and so felt her cheeks and arms beginning to sting from the relentless onslaught. Her arms were getting heavy with exhaustion and she was so focused on avoiding every attack that she didn’t notice the time slip by. Mr Attorcop on the other hand, did not seem to be tiring. He would surprise Lilian with attack after attack and each time she failed to defend herself correctly, he would calmly explain where she was going wrong and then repeat the move until she had mastered the correct defense. But Lilian noticed that the water droplets forming in his beard and on his bald head were not sweat, but just mist clinging to skin. Before the midday sun was all the way above them, the two sat to rest. Mr Attorcop passed Lilian skin of fresh water from which she drank deeply. As the two sat in silence, admiring the mist around them Lilian felt the surge of questions once again well up inside her. She was not normally an inquisitive person but Mr Attorcop was always so full of surprises, she felt herself constantly wanting to ask how he knew things, where he’d come from and what he was doing, she wanted to ask about the Feinhound, about the assassin about where he learned to fight but Mr Attorcop was normally so quiet and reserved she felt like asking him a personal question would be some kind of invasion of privacy. She had just spent the morning being assaulted though so Lilian thought he might owe her at least one answer.
“Mr Attorcop?” She spoke up in a soft voice, trying to sound casual. Attorcop turned his head to listen, “If you don’t mind me asking. What exactly is it you do? For a job I mean. It’s just that, my Mum was asking and I thought…” Lilian trailed off, chastising herself for hiding behind her Mother as an excuse for her own curiosity. Attorcop’s expression remained fixed but he turned his head to gaze out to the edge of the cliff. He seemed deep in thought. Finally he said, “Do you remember the conversation you heard me having in the town square on the day of my arrival?” Lilian did remember, she thought about telling him about her encounter with the man in orange but instead just nodded her head. Attorcop continued, “That man lives in the city, in Freedos, he works in the court of Empress Sylvia as part of her justice system. His role in the court is to judge those accused of crimes and sentence them appropriately, he also decides which cases should be brought to the attention of the Empress. He is a powerful man with much influence in the court. The day you saw us talking in the square he was complaining about rheumatism when he in fact had gout. I saw an opportunity to ingratiate myself with him by supplying him with a remedy of my own design I know fixes most ailments, including gout. Do you remember what I said when he asked what he owed me for the remedy?” Lilian thought back, she didn’t remember any money changing hands.
“Didn’t you just say you wanted to see him back in the city?”
“That’s right.” Said Attorcop.
“Sooo, you didn’t ask for payment?” Lilian wondered aloud.
“No Miss Lausanne, the chance to have an appointment set for any time I wish with a powerful man who owes me a favour. THAT was the payment I was seeking. I don’t really have a job in the traditional sense, but I make it my business to deal in power and influence. Someone might come to me and say that they want their son to be a general in the army. I might pull strings, call in favours and hold meetings until I can get their son into the most prestigious officer training school, where they will be on a fast track to becoming a general in a matter of years. I ask for payment upfront, that covers my lifestyle expenses and within 5 years I have a general in the state’s army who owes their entire career to me.” Attorcop upended the water skin and finished the last drop. Lilian was unsure what to make of this explanation. She furrowed her brow and asked, “So you work for the state?” At this Attorcop snapped his head back to look at her,
“No.” He said sharply, “I do not work for anyone. I have no political affiliation and I hold no guiding principles. If I meet a young Lord who supports the Empress I shall dress my room in her colours, if I have a favour asked of me from a woman who would see the Empress perish I shall inform her where to buy the best blades. This is how I always remain ahead.”
“Hold on,” Said Lilian, “so if someone hears that you’re working for the other side and accuses you, what do you do then?” At this Mr Attorcop smiled widely and stood up. He held a hand out to Lilian to help her up whilst maintaining the largest and most charming grin Lilian had ever seen,
“Young lady,” He said, overly sycophantic and far too sweetly, “Your enemies will say anything to impede your progress.” Lilian took his hand and stood up. She smiled at the remark,
“And people fall for that do they?” She said, remembering her own attempts to manipulate class mates into passing the blame on to someone else,
“Oh usually yes. The key is to make yourself indispensable. If someone truly believes you are their only key to achieving their goals, they will believe you because they want to believe you.” The two started making their way towards the mountain path. Lilian was pleased she was getting so much information out of Mr Attorcop, she let him speak rather than trying her luck with more questions. When the pair reached the path back to Benlunar Attorcop turned to Lilian with a more serious expression on his face,
“I trust you understand that my role in Freedos and my methods are to be kept a secret? I don’t wish to burden you with such a weight, it’s just that my life runs smoother if my methods are kept private.” Lilian smiled and nodded.
“Yes of course.” She then felt a pang of guilt as she remembered her interaction with the man in orange and his friends. She explained what had happened and Mr Attorcop thankfully smiled.
“Oh don’t worry about that. Those silly courtiers love nothing more than to gossip, I’m sure my taking on of a protege has got them stirred up more than rabbit in a carrot farm. In Freedos I’m relatively well known but seeing as my work is based on reputation, I like to control that where I can.” Lilian was about to ask how one might go about organising their own reputation when Mr Attorcop froze and put his hand out to stop her. Lilian looked up to see him staring straight ahead at where the path disappeared into the mist. Lilian held her breath. Suddenly, Mr Attorcop looked around sharply at the edges of the path, his eyes fell on a bush a little way off into the trees. He pushed Lilian towards it with urgency. She almost slipped on the damp leaves as she sped round a gnarled oak tree and ducked quickly behind the bush. Mr Attorcop dropped to the floor completely, being too tall to be able to crouch and not be seen from the path. The pair waited for some time, Lilian noticed a spider crawl across her foot, normally she would have batted it away, but she didn’t want to make a single sound. She only hoped that the spider did not crawl up her trouser leg. Jus then, through the smallest gap in the leaves, Lilian noticed movement, coming from the mountain path. She froze, and forgot all about spiders or insects on the forest floor. She wanted to see who was moving up ahead, but the leaves were obscuring her sight. She tried silently to move her head to the left, so that she could see more of the path. Luckily the leaves here were slightly further apart so she could actually see what was happening up ahead. The movement had ceased but Lilian could now see who it was that had made Mr Attorcop so nervous. The person on the path was tall and wore a dark hood, obscuring their face. Lilian breathed in sharply and felt a sudden and silent hand cover her mouth. Attorcop had caught her shock in time and was staring intently at the stranger. The assassin from the day before was standing a stone’s throw away from them and was now bending down to look at footprints in the soil. Lilian looked at Mr Attorcop as he slowly took his hand off her mouth. To her surprise he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Lilian’s heart was beating quickly and she couldn’t understand why Mr Attorcop was so calm. She looked back towards the path and saw that the stranger was looking in their direction. She wanted to shout again but noticed that their gaze went over their bush and off into the forest behind them. The looked back towards the mountain path, seemingly undecided as to which route to take. Lilian’s heart leapt into her throat as she watched the stranger take a slow step off the path and towards their hiding spot. Mr Attorcop was still calm next to her, his eyes closed as if in deep thought. Upon the second step towards them Lilian noticed something strange. The mist around them seemed to be thickening. With each step the stranger took, Lilian found it harder and harder to see them. After only 8 or 9 steps, the fog was so thick she could not even see her own fingers on the forest floor. Having lost the use of her sight Lilian listened intently. She could hear soft footsteps up ahead, she could hear her own heart beat and when she finally gave up on seeing entirely and closed her eyes, she could even hear the strangers breath, whistling through the cloth pulled up over their face. All she could do was focus on controlling her breathing so as to not make a sound. Finally, after what seemed like hours but was probably just a few seconds, she heard the strangers footsteps head back towards the path and away from them. She opened her eyes but the thick mist still hung around them, making it difficult to see even an arms length in front of her. Whilst she waited for instructions Mr Attorcop slowly came into focus through the fog, he motioned her to stand up quietly and lead her back round the oak tree and back on to the mountain path. They said nothing as they sped towards Benlunar, the fog slowly clearing as they went. Lilian couldn’t believe how lucky they had been for the fog to thicken when it did, but as they reach the Thoreson house near the town square, she wondered if it had had anything to with luck at all. Still saying nothing Attorcop lead her into the Thoreson house, past Mr Stepson who was snoozing on an armchair in the hallway and all the way up into the tower room. Lilian could tell that he was distracted, maybe even angry. When they emerged through the floor of Attorcop’s chambers Lilian saw that the mess from yesterday’s intrusion had been cleared but the window was still not fixed. There was a side table placed in front of it however, on top of which was a wire structure that looked like what you would put a kettle on to hold it in place over a fire. This was much smaller though and instead of a kettle, Lilian could see a vile of lunar essence suspended by the wire frame with its cap open. Out from the bottle and through the broken window came a steady stream of thick mist. Lilian approached in amazement. The bright liquid inside the vile was half empty but as Lilian watched she didn’t notice the essence depleting. Mr Attorcop was busily hunting through his draws and bags, looking for something. After opening the second trunk under his bed he paused and looked at Lilian.
“Miss Lausanne, it seems as though our work is being impeded, would you agree?” Lilian nodded.
“That was the same person as yesterday wasn’t it?” she asked.
“I assume so, although not having seen their face I can’t be sure. We must not presume there to be only one but for now it seems as though they are persistent in their task.”
“Mr Attorcop,” said Lilian, cautiously, “Why is someone trying to hurt you? Didn’t you say you help people?” Lilian’s voice cracked as she spoke, she’d been wanting to ask this since the attack yesterday and realised that Attorcop’s answer would influence her decision to work with him. Mr Attorcop stopped rummaging through his belongings and looked up. He was looking at Lilian with stoney expression. He walked over to where she standing beside the flowing mist and knelt down in front of her.
“I do help people Lilian. I help whenever and wherever I can. But not everyone agrees with the people I choose to help. Some people might see me helping someone they don’t like and assume I’m to blame for their suffering or ill treatment. They might hate me so much that they hire a hooded fool to climb towers and punch through windows.”
Lilian felt unsure. All she knew was that Mr Attorcop, aside from a surprise slap, had been kind to her and kind to her parents as well. She felt as though she trusted him and so couldn’t conceive of why someone would want to hurt him. She reminded herself then that she had known this man for less than a week. She felt as though her next question would help her make up her mind.
“So who do you think hired them? And why? Are they… bad people?” Mr Attorcop stood up and turned his attention to the whole room, he scanned every inch it whilst answering distractedly.
“First of all, I would try and avoid concepts such as ‘good’ and ‘bad’ when talking about people.”
“Why?” Asked Lilian.
“Because everyone thinks they are good. And all good actions might have bad consequences. Such is the nature of things. There is no ‘good’ or ‘bad’, there is only people’s interpretation of events.” He had begun looking through cupboards now, frantically opening and closing anything he couldn’t see inside.
“I don’t understand.” Lilian was becoming confused, and she knew that as soon as Attorcop found what he was looking for, the conversation would be over. “If you hurt someone, that’s bad.” She said, decidedly.
“Ahh yes, I would normally agree with you. But if I hadn’t hurt our hooded friend yesterday, he might have hurt you. So would you say that hurting them was good?” Mr Attorcop was now checking coat pockets.
“You could have asked him to stop, you didn’t HAVE to hurt him.” Lilian almost shouted. Her raised voice caused Mr Attorcop to pause and look at her.
“I was not ready to take that chance Lilian. I have been known to gamble but I will never, ever take a risk when it comes to your safety, do you understand?”
Lilian nodded. After witnessing everything this man could do, she realised that she might just be in the safest room in Benlunar. Lilian looked at her feet and pouted.
“I wish no one wanted to hurt anyone else.”
“A noble pursuit.” Replied Attorcop, “I think the key is just to cause the least amount of suffering possible, whilst simultaneously coming to terms with the fact that any action will undoubtedly cause suffering of some kind ah ha!” Attorcop yelped in delight. His hand was in a side pocket of a stachel that was currently hanging on the back of his desk chair. He pulled his arm back to reveal a small white stone, roughly the size of an egg.
“Is that chalk?” Asked Lilian, unimpressed by the discovery.
“Very good Miss Lausanne, you’re correct, but this is not just any chalk that you might pick up whilst wandering the coast of Zandt, no no. You remember whether you asked me if I was practising witchcraft?” Lilian nodded, “well were I to practise witchcraft then this is what I would use to do it. This and a lot chanting, as I said before.”
“What are you going to do with it?” Lilian held out her hand to take the chalk and Attorcop gave it to her as he breezed past to go and pick up some papers from the side board. It felt strangely heavy in Lilian’s hand and when she looked closely at, she saw that it was littered with small streaks that shone when they caught the light. Like tiny veins made of topaz.
“Well it seems as though our strange friend is determined on carrying out their mission no matter the cost, so instead of avoiding them, hiding in bushes and weaving detection mist, I think we should practise our art.” Lilian watched as Attorcop snatched the vile of essence by the window with his free hand, almost immediately the cloud of fog bursting out of it started to go in reverse. The mist that had covered Benlunar all morning was being sucked back in to the little vile at an alarming speed. When the view was as clear as the day before Attorcop shut the cap with a click and went about his business as if nothing had happened. Lilian had to remind herself to blink as her eyes, wide in amazement were beginning to dry out. Attorcop whipped the vile back into his sleeve and turned to Lilian.
“Tomorrow morning, we reverse the roles. I’m supposed to be teaching you about the art of power, well I don’t like being hunted like a feeble rabbit, do you? Of course not. So what do we do when wolves are at our doorstep?” He grabbed the chalk from Lilian and held it in front of his eyes, they were alight with mad kind of excitement. Lilian wasn’t sure if she was supposed to answer the question.
“We shut the door…?” Attorcop glanced down at her.
“We set the traps.”
That evening Lilian was sitting in the Fox & Octopus with Kilde, drinking a large glass of Xander’s famous Blackberry Fire. An extremely sour and fizzy drink that Lilian loved. Her parents were sitting with friends at a table near the beer taps and Lilian was chatting with kilde in one of the booths. She had left Mr Attorcop to prepare his hair brained scheme and, as she had promised, had spent the rest of the afternoon looking for anymore signs of the Feinhound with Kilde. Unfortunately, they had had no luck, and were now discussing tactics over a quiet, non-alcoholic, drink. The rest of the Inn was populated with several Benlunar locals, as well as Xander & Liny of course who were busy serving a small group of city folk.
“Are we going about this in the best way?” Kilde was almost whispering, not wanting to be overheard, lest anyone should steal the hunt for themselves.
“What do you mean?” Said Lilian.
“Well, I’m not sure just going out and about and looking for it is going to work. Like today, we went back to the river, up round the back of your house and then through the woods to town right?” Lilian nodded, scrunching her face up from the sourness of her drink. “Well if we do a different part of town tomorrow, then the feinhound might be where we searched today. We could look all over the place and never find it.” Lilian didn’t want to spoil the fun by saying that the most likely scenario was that the feinhound had moved on from Benlunar completely. Instead she asked, “So what do you suggest?” Kilde thought for a minute before replying. Lilian looked around the inn and felt a wave of tiredness wash over her. Her body was beginning to ache from that morning’s fight practise.
“I think we need to know more about it. Once we know what it eats and what it wants then we can put ourselves next to that and then just wait.” Lilian didn’t much like the sound of waiting around for something that might never show up, but she admitted that that probably was their best bet. She scanned the crowd in the Inn.
“So, who do you think knows about feinhounds in Benlunar?”
“You still haven’t asked whats-his-face, Smattershop?”
“Attorcop.”
“That’s the one.” Lilian grinned, Kilde definitely knew his name.
“No I haven’t. He’s… I dunno he’s always busy with something or other. Never feels like the right time.”
“Well…” Kilde caught her eye and jerked his head backwards, “There’s always…” Lilian shifted her weight on her chair so that she could look behind him. In the corner of the Inn, sat alone, except for his dog, was Ortan, the town trapper. His big brown beard flecked with grey hairs was damp where it had been dipped in beer. He was not talking to anyone, he just stared into his flagon and occasionally took a sip. Lilian sighed deeply and picked up her drink. Kilde beamed and stood up as. They both walked over to the Ortan’s table. They weren’t half way over when Ortan’s dog, Silky, looked up. Silky was a huge animal, her eyes drooped and her slobbery cheeks wobbled as she glanced up to greet the two young people coming over. If she had stood on her hind legs at that moment, she would have been able to put her paws on Lilian’s shoulders, but instead she just started wagging her tail. Kilde, a big fan of dogs, bent down to scratch her ears whilst Lilian shifted into the bench opposite Ortan. From this distance he reminded Lilian of a bear or some forgotten forest creature that was merely posing as a man. He said nothing at their approach but instead fixed Lilian with a silent stare, no smile behind the beard, and no frown beyond the eyebrows. Lilian didn’t flinch.
“We’d like to ask you something.” Lilian congratulated herself on her unwavering tone. She waited for some kind of reply but Ortan offered none. Lilian took this as a sign to continue, only now she lowered her voice so as not to be overheard.
“We know you know a lot about animals, and we were wondering.” Lilian faltered, was she going to be laughed at? Or would her question make this bear-man angry? Despite her doubts, she continued. “We were wondering if you could tell us about Feinhounds.” Kilde and Lilian waited with baited breath. Ortan looked at them both, one and then the other. When he spoke, tiny drops of beer flew from his beard and onto the table in front of him.
“What do you want to know?” Hi voice was coarse from years of straining through pipe smoke. Lilian looked at Kilde, she hadn’t actually planned this far ahead.
“Well… What are they?” She said. Ortan took a deep breath and looked from side to side, weighing his words before choosing the right ones.
“Feinhound, they are... dangerous.” Lilian waited, hoping her silence would prompt more information. After another sip, Ortan continued. “I’ve never seen one but sometimes you find deer in the mountain with claw scratches, like a lion, only there’s no lions in this country. So we say it’s Feinhound. But really this could mean anything. It’s like…” Ortan looked around the inn as if trying to find inspiration for a story, “Like finding a burnt tree and saying there was a dragon. It’s fun to say dragon, but it’s more likely to be lightning.”
At this, Kilde spoke up for the first time since joining them at the table. “So, they’re not real?” Lilian detected a hint of sadness in his tone. Ortan looked at him as if he’d only just noticed him sitting there. “Hmm not sure.”
“What do you mean?” Said Kilde.
“Well, something is killing those deer. It’s not me. It’s not wolves. And it’s not lion.”
Lilian and Kilde sat in silence for a time. Both of their imaginations were running wild. Ortan didn’t seem to mind the questions or the silence and Lilian paused to wonder at what an odd group they must look like. Finally Kilde spoke up.
“I have a question.” Ortan and Lilian turned to him, expectantly. “If you saw something that you thought was a Feinhound, what would that thing look like?” At this Ortan thought long and hard. At least that’s what it looked like, Lilian did wonder if the amount of beer he’d drunk wasn’t just slowing him down a bit.
“Well, like I say, I’ve never seen one. But my Father told me a story about one when I was young like you.” Kilde’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates.
“Can we hear the story?” he asked. Ortan thought for a second. He shifted his weight in his chair, creaking the leather of his many belts and straps. To their right, Liny threw another log on the fire and the sparks reflected brightly in the grizzled man’s eyes. For the first time, he smiled as he cast his mind back to his childhood.
“I can tell you.” He said softly, “but you must promise one thing.”
“What?” Said Lilian.
“To listen.”
Benlunar - Episode 4
Lilian comes face to face with a stranger and an old friend.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
Lilian was standing stock still. She had just come face to face with a mysterious person who had somehow managed to climb the walls of one of Benlunar’s tallest houses and was now staring at her through the window. Time slowed to heartbeats. Lilian gazed at those big green eyes and was suddenly brought back to her senses. She breathed in as the stranger brought their right hand back balling it up into a fist. Lilian managed to get the first few sounds out of her mouth before the stranger’s fist connected with the glass, cracking it under brute force. The syllables of CROM and WELL left Lilian’s lips as she stumbled back from the shattering glass. As she lost her balance and fell to the floor time jerked back into gear, seemingly doubling its speed so as to make up for the seconds of stillness. Shards of glass sprayed across the floor as Cromwell Attorcop spun up and out of his chair and round to face the intruder. The stranger poured themselves into the room in a swift, slithering movement ignoring the broken glass around the window’s edge. Their hood obstructed their face so Lilian couldn’t get a good look at them, but for as long as she lived she would never forget the look of purpose and hatred in their eyes. They were almost standing over her now but had shifted their attention to the greater threat. Lilian scrambled backwards toward the bed, panicking and hoping to get under it, the gap however was too small and so she pressed herself into the corner between the bed and the wall. From here she had a view of the whole scene, she desperately wanted to close her eyes and disappear but an older more instinctual part of her brain was forcing her to keep them open just in case any danger would come her way again. She watched as Mr Attorcop produced a vile of Lunar Essence from somewhere in his sleeve or waistcoat, Lilian recognised the flash of distinctive brightness against Attorcop’s night-black clothes. The stranger stood up carefully and pulled a large knife from a scabbard at the back of their belt, Lilian thought to shout, to warn Mr Attorcop that this person had a weapon hidden from his sight, but before she could find the words Attorcop moved with unnatural speed. He unstoppered the vile and dragged it across the air in front of him, the bright fluid slipped out from the cap but instead of spraying everywhere or falling to the floor, it seemed to hang in shimmering lumps across the air in front of him. The stranger must have been just as surprised as Lilian because instead of leaping in for the attack, they decided in a split second to shift their weight and focus on defense. Looking back on these events later, Lilian would realise that this initial decision was their undoing. The production of the essence did not plunge the room into darkness but Lilian did notice a visible drop in the light around her. In a flash Cromwell Attorcop reached out and plucked a large shifting lump of essence from out of the air. He moved quickly forming his hand into a fist around the liquid, then in a flash he pulled it back and was suddenly holding a brilliant glowing sword. It was if he’d had an invisible scabbard in front of him and the sword had been pulled out of the air, the large blob of essence was now gone. The stranger wasted no more time and leapt across the room towards Mr Attorcop, they brought their own blade round and it connected with Attorcop’s sword with a deafening clash. Unperturbed by Attorcops swift defense the stranger slashed at him again and again but their knife only ever connected with the pointed, razor sharp sword that Attorcop was maneuvering deftly all around him. At first it seemed like the intruder had the upper hand, pushing Mr Attorcop back towards his desk, past the still floating lumps of liquid. But as soon as Cromwell felt the wood of the desk touch his leg he reached out with his free left hand and grabbed the first thing it found which happened to be an ink well half full and with a quill still sticking out of it. He brought up towards his attacker’s face and stopped inches away letting the black liquid continue out past the rim and into the stranger’s eyes. Surprised they stepped backwards into some of the essence and began frantically wiping their face with their sleeve. The essence seemed to lose its light as soon as it touched the fabric of the stranger’s cloak as it soaked into the threads. Attorcop did not hesitate to take advantage of the stranger’s blindness. He pushed himself off the desk and used the momentum to slam his weight into the attacker pushing them across the room. Attorcop then turned towards the essence, almost half of it had gone by now but without a moment’s hesitation he opened his mouth wide and swallowed one of the shimmering lumps. Lilian gasped, she threw her hand up to her mouth to try and catch the sound coming from it. She could feel her heart pounding in her ears and almost rubbed her eyes in disbelief as she watched Mr Attorcop’s form slowly become opaque. He turned to look directly at Lilian and brought a finger up to his lips, signalling her to keep still and quiet. Lilian watched as his bearded face went almost completely see-through and finally disappeared. Lilian was stunned. The hooded figure in the corner of the room had finally managed to regain their vision but at the cost of losing sight of their target. Lilian watched them whip round and round desperately seeking out Mr Attorcp or any sign of where he might have gone. Their ink stained eyes finally fell upon Lilian. She wanted to scream, to run or to disappear completely just as Mr Attorcop had done. Feelings of betrayal and abandonment flooded her stomach as the stranger approached her with their hand stretched out. They must have thought they could use her as some sort of bait or hostage and they were just kneeling low to grab her hair when Lilian’s fear overcame her and she shut her eyes and screamed into her chest.
She expected pain. She expected movement. But as she waited in the darkness, several seconds went past without anything happening. Slowly she opened the corner of her eye and look up. She saw the stranger, frozen with an outstretched hand just inches from her head. They were staring intently at her but all movement had ceased. Lilian saw a tiny twitch, flicker under their right eye, from this close she could see that they had a black cloth pulled up over their nose to further obscure their features. Their skin was pale and Lilian could feel hot, sweet smelling breath on her cheeks. She looked down at the silver clasp fastening their cloak and saw that it was shaped like a hand, palm up, fingers closed. She wanted to reach out and feel it when the stranger finally slumped onto the floor revealing a tall Cromwell Attorcop directly behind them. His silver blade was out in front of him, the tip still pointed at his assailant.
“Get up, stand behind me.” Attorcop spoke quickly and calmly and Lilian did as she was told without hesitation. When she had stepped past Mr Attorcop she turned to see that the stranger was still writhing on the floor, they weren’t screaming but they were obviously hurt. Lilian glimpsed a large cut across their back as they tried to scramble to their feet. Attorcop approached them, his blade aimed down at their throat, ready to strike. Lillian noticed that the strangers knife was on the floor by the bed, presumably dropped in the commotion. Unarmed and desperate, the stranger narrowed their eyes up at Attorcop.
“Who sent you?” Mr Attorcop almost shouted the words. The stranger said nothing, but Lilian saw the corners of their eyes wrinkle from a smile, they glanced at the door, then at the window and finally made up their mind. They began muttering in whispers under their breath. Mr Attorcop must have noticed too because he took a step forward and shouted, “Hey!” trying to break their concentration, but the blade was now a finger length from the strangers throat but they didn’t stop, nor did it seem like they were going to answer Attorcop’s question. In a flash, the stranger clapped their hands together with an abnormally large crack, Lilian flinched, looked back and the stranger had gone. She looked down at the space they had just occupied and there on the floor was a pile of sticks and leaves arranged in a strange pattern. The stranger, was nowhere to be seen.
In the minutes that followed Lilian said nothing, she was breathing fast and heavily and kept jumping to look at the rustling of a page or the movement of a curtain out of the corner of her eye.
“It’s alright. They’re gone.” Mr Attorcop was speaking from the other side of the room. He was slowly easing the remaining essence into the half empty vial from which it had come from. Once he was satisfied that all of it was in there, he proceeded to place the tip of his blade in the top of the little bottle and Lilian watched as it began, drip by drip to melt into the vial. Once the hilt and handle had gone completely Attorcop flicked the cap shut and held the vial up to his eye line. The liquid had been depleted by about a quarter of its total. Seemingly satisfied he hid the vial away and turned to Lilian.
“Here, drink this.” He said softly, reaching for one of the larger bottles on a shelf by his desk and handing it to her. Obediently, she drank. The brown water tasted like overly ripe apples and after just one swallow she felt herself begin to calm down. Her heart beat slowed and her breathing began to return to normal. Attorcop sat her on the bed and knelt in front of her.
“Lilian I am so sorry you had to witness that. And thank you for shouting when you did, a moment later and we may not have been having this conversation.” Attorcop’s eyes were visibly shaken, Lilian wondered if he was maintaining his composure for her sake.
“Who was that? Where did they go?” She asked.
“I don't know who they were but they were probably sent by someone out to get me. As for where they went… I have some theories." Mr Attorcop poked the sticks on the floor with his foot.
“Were they trying to…” Lilian couldn’t bring herself to say the actual words.
“I’m afraid so.” He shrugged, “Not the first time and I wager it won’t be the last.” He stood up and began mopping up ink and sweeping broken glass. Lilian sat there, still stunned for a while before getting up to help him. They cleaned in silence for a time before Lilian remembered something.
“The clasp!” She exclaimed.
“Excuse me?” Cromwell looked up.
“They were wearing this silver clasp on their cloak. It looked like a hand, like this.” She raised her hand up beside her, fingers tight together, “does that mean something?” Mr Attorcop rolled his eyes and went back to mopping up ink with a rag.
“Oh I don’t know. Probably some secret organisation or something. These assassins they’re all the same. They creep around in the shadows and then they let you know exactly who they are at the last minute. ‘I’m from the guild of the golden duck, now you will die!’ It’s always like that. How do you think they ever get hired? Can’t stay a secret if you need the work. I met one once who just introduced himself. Right there and then, told me his name. Fool.” Lilian thought he was taking the whole event extremely lightly, this did help her to calm down somewhat. Just then, she turned towards a sound coming from the staircase. She stood up and braced herself for a second wave when she recognised it to be the clinking of cutlery on a tray. Mr Stepson slowly appeared through the floor and was so focused on not dropping anything that he didn’t notice any signs of the struggle until he reached the floor of the tower room at which point he looked up and dropped the tray.
“Goodness Gods!” he bellowed, “What has happened?” His surprise quickly turned to anger as his eyes fell on Lilian. Attorcop however interrupted him.
“Not to worry Stepson. I’ll have everything cleaned and replaced. All my fault really, I was showing young Lilian here a dance move I learned in Freedos and I spectacularly misjudged my surroundings. All of my apologies.” Mr Stepson seemed as quick to calm as he was to anger as he instantly muttered something about brooms and slippery floorboards and disappeared downstairs. A silence followed his departure. Lilian looked over to Mr Attorcop and saw him standing still in thought. He glanced back at the debris and the broken window, and for an instant, Lilian thought she caught a glimpse of something very real. His face was relaxed and the weight of many years of stress seemed to pull down his cheeks. Lilian had never considered him to be an old man but suddenly she saw someone who was perhaps not old enough to stop working but certainly too old to put up with attempts on his life. Lilian realised that his jokes about dancing and fighting off ridiculous killers were probably for her benefit. Mr Attorcop was visibly shaken. In another instant though he regained his composure and turned to her. He spoke softly and clearly.
“Lilian. I am so so sorry. I truly wish you never to come to harm and it appears as though staying by my side might lead to just that. I would understand if you no longer wished to work with me. Please send my apologies to your parents.” With that he turned back to picking up parchment from the floor and arranging the sheets on his desk. Lilian stepped towards the staircase in silence. She was about to start walking down the spiral flight, she even placed her right foot on the top step, when she stopped and looked back.
“When I was 6,” She began, catching Attorcop’s attention, “a few of the town children were playing in the river. When the sun went down we all started heading home when we realised that one of boys, Bjor, wasn’t with us. We shouted and shouted and spent ages looking for him but he never showed up. He must have fallen and hit his head on a rock or something because they found him a few days later downstream. He was only 5.” Mr Attorcop’s expression did not change, he was listening intently, “What I’m trying to say is,” Lilian continued, “Is that he was surrounded by people who loved him and he was just playing, something that all children do and he got into a horrible accident. It can happen to any of us, anytime so… me not working with you is not a guarantee of being safe. So if it’s all the same, I would still like to help.” Mr Attorcop’s eyes widened,
“Are you sure? You saw what just happened, someone broke in here and tried to kill me.”
“Yeah, and you stopped them, so if you promise to teach me how to fight like you, that means we’ll be able to protect each other. Right?” Mr Attorcop thought for a second, then started shaking his head. “Lilian I can’t…”
“Right?” She interrupted him and he understood that she wasn’t giving him a choice.
“Right. Thank you. I think that’ll be all for today. I appreciate your sentiment but take the rest of the day to really think about whether or not this is what you want. If it is then be here tomorrow morning and we’ll start your training. I suggest we split our days in two for the next few weeks, training in the morning, working in the afternoon.” This plan of action put a smile on Lilian’s face and she turned to leave. The room was almost out of sight when a sudden thought stopped her in her tracks. She raised her head above the floor and caught Attorcop’s attention a final time before leaving.
“Oh, Mr Attorcop? What did those hairs we found belong to?” Mr Attorcop looked at her with a very confused expression, like he had no clue what she was talking about, suddenly though he remembered.
“Oh yes! Feinhound.”
Later that evening, Lilian and her family were sitting at their kitchen table eating dinner. “A what?” Shouted Kilde who had been invited on Lilian’s way back from the Thoreson house.
“A Feinhound.” Lilian repeated herself. A silence fell on the kitchen as everyone furrowed their brows and tried to think if they’d heard the word before. Kilde was chewing a large carrot he’d found in his stew when he asked, “He didn’t say what it is? He just told you its name?”
“Yes.” Replied Lilian, she hadn’t told any of them about the attack and after all the chaos and threat, these animal hairs weren’t really her main concern.
“Why didn’t you ask him?” Lilian’s Dad spoke between mouthfuls of bread.
“He was busy alright? I’ll ask him next time I see him, I think he just thought I knew what it was and went back to his work.” Kilde looked disappointed. He seemed upset that they were not really any further in solving the mystery. He was about to ask another question when Lilian’s Mum cut him off.
“Did you ask him about his work? What do you think you’ll be doing together?” At this Lilian’s stomach dipped, with all the excitement of the fur discovery and the attack she still hadn’t told Kilde about her decision. She avoided looking at him as he looked up quickly.
“What work?”
“Oh I’m sorry, I thought you knew. Lilian has agreed to help Mr Attorcop with his research. Speaking of, did you manage to find out what he’s doing exactly?” Lilian couldn’t bring herself to look at Kilde, but she could tell from the corner of her eye that he was shocked.
“Not really. I think it’s quite secret so even if he told me I don’t think I’d be allowed to say. I think I’ll mostly be making him cups of tea or sorting out parchment.” Lilian’s Mum seemed satisfied.
“Well it’s a good start! And I’m sure he’ll let you know eventually what it is he’s doing up in Benlunar. I haven’t seen him at any of the walks or meals organised for the other city folk.” Lilian had finished her food and was starting to clear away the plates. Her mother chatted on about a friend of hers who once worked with a governor of a nearby city, but Lilian wasn’t really paying attention. Kilde had asked no questions and was avoiding her eye. At the end of the night when Lilian was showing him to the door he finally turned to her outside and mumbled a low ‘good bye’.
“What’s wrong with you?” Asked Lilian, annoyed that her friend didn’t seem happy for her.
“Nothing…” He said, but Lilian crossed her arms by way of reply. “I mean, when were you going to tell me?”
“I don’t know,” she replied, “I was going to say something today but we got so caught up with the search and stuff. Anyway it’s not a big deal.” Kilde looked cross.
“It IS,” he said, “Your mum said you might be going to work in Freedos, that means you’re leaving Benlunar and I won’t see you.” Lilian felt an urge to contradict him, to tell him that he was wrong like she usually did, but she couldn’t seem to find the words because this time, he was right.
“I know.” She said finally. “And I’m sorry Kilde. I am. I love Benlunar, I love it when we’re playing by the river, or when we’re running through the streets, or when we’re eating pies in the square. But I’m not with you all the time, and when I’m not with you then… I don’t like Benlunar very much at all. I hate school, everyone is always asking me if I can help them with something boring or stupid, and I’ve been fighting with my parents and when I met Mr Attorcop that kind of stopped. He’s nice and he’s clever he’s, well he’s like you if you were an old man.” Lilian caught Kilde looking away, a glint of moonlight catching a tear in his eye.
“You’re an old man.” He sniffed and Lilian smiled. She hugged him tightly and then let him go. As he slowly began to walk away Lilian felt a wrenching pain in her stomach. If she made Kilde as happy as Kilde made her then she understood how sad he must be feeling in this instant. She wanted to burst into tears but decided that she had cried enough and that she could still make him smile once more before leaving.
“Kilde!” She shouted out and he turned around, “Before I go, we’re going to find it.” Kilde looked confused and bleary eyed.
“Find what?” he spluttered.
“The Feinhound.”
The next morning Lilian was up at dawn. She had no idea what to wear for her first day of training, she didn’t even know what training she would be doing. Magic? She wondered, in which case she might wear her strong sheepskin jacket, or would she be learning how to use a sword? That would undoubtedly require a more movable fabric. All this was made more complicated when she realised that she wanted to look smart, dress formally, like Mr Attorcop did, but none of her current clothes were particularly fancy. Finally she settled on cotton trousers and a patchwork, wool shirt. They were both old and so it didn’t matter if they got damaged, but were also colourful and rather dapper, by Benlunar standards anyway. As she sat at the kitchen table, shovelling oats and milk into her mouth, she thought back to the promise she’d made last night. Had she done the right thing? The smile on Kilde’s face when she said they would find the Feinhound together was a site she would never forget. It was like she’d told him that he could have a magic puppy that granted wishes when you stroked its belly. But what if Mr Attorcop had plans for them to leave the city tomorrow? Or even today? She decided to devote every second she was not helping Mr Attorcop, to tracking and finding the Feinhound. She breathed out a loud sigh over her bowl as she felt her stomach sink, she didn’t even know what a Feinhound looked like, let alone how to track one. Pushing these worries to one side she opened her kitchen door to a grey morning. Mist hung in the air and obscured her view of the path to town. Lilian felt nervous, ever since the attack she had been checking every corner and window. Every time she saw a small movement out of the corner of her eye she would spin to check it wasn’t a silent assassin come to finish the job. She reminded herself that the stranger had clearly been after Mr Attorcop, but this did little to calm her nerves as she began to walk towards the centre of town. They may have been after Attorcop, she thought, but they’re probably not too happy with the young woman who foiled their plan.
When Lilian reached the Thoreson house, she saw Mr Attorcop talking with Mr Stepson on the steps leading up to the front door. Mr Attorcop was dressed in black, as usual, but he wasn’t wearing his night-sky cloak, instead he wore black cotton trousers and a black, sleeveless shirt with large toggle buttons. He looked strange in these comfortable clothes, Lilian had assumed from his usual attire that he always dressed to be able to drop everything at a moment’s notice and be ready for an audience with the Empress. As she approached Mr Attorcop turned and greeted her.
“Good morning Miss Lausanne. I trust you have eaten?” Lilian nodded, “Excellent, then we’ll get started. Mr Stepson has informed me of an area where we should be undisturbed.” Lilian smiled and Mr Stepson and he returned the greeting, bowing his head so low, Lilian worried he might fall down the steps. Mr Attorcop lead Lillian away from the town centre and up towards the mountain path. Lilian knew this walk well, she’d done it many times with her parents after a holiday meal, she understood why Mr Stepson had recommended this route. The road up to the peak was steep and rocky. After about 30 minutes walk the path ended and the two were forced to step from rock to rock. Lilian had noticed some time ago that Mr Attorcop instead of slowing down had been steadily increasing his pace. By now the two were almost jogging up the natural steps. Lilian was almost out of breath and having a hard time keeping up with the spry old man. An hour after they’d left the Stepson house they reached the first path marker. These were piles of stones left by travellers as signals to future walkers that they were on the right path. It was customary when walking past a path marker to pick up the nearest, flattest stone you could find and place it on top of the pile. Mr Attorcop must have known this because just before he reached it he bent down to pick up a flat piece of granite and placed it deftly on the pile. Lilian looked upwards to where the path lead up the mountain, normally she would be able to see the next path marker before the way turned a corner, but today the mist was obscuring it from sight. Attorcop saw her looking.
“Do you ever go to the top?” He asked, casually, seemingly not out of breath at all.
“I have.” Lilian spoke between gasps, up here the oxygen was very thin, “I have… been up twice… But you can only go… in the Summer. The snow is too dangerous in Winter or Spring.” Mr Attorcop paused for a moment and then took a step towards the edge of the path, he looked straight down the edge, past the path marker and studied the landscape under their feet.
“There it is.” He finally said to himself and started stepping over the path marker and bending down to tread on the sheer edge of the hill. There were still some trees on the slope and he seemed to be aiming for one to catch him as he slipped down the wet grass towards it. Lilian was nervous. She didn’t mind heights but she knew it wasn’t wise to stray from the path. Swallowing her fears she copied his movements step for step.
Mr Attorcop led them carefully down through the trees, Lilian was surprised to find that they were following a small animal track, hidden from view from the steps above. The track wound through trees and boulders and eventually opened out into a clearing. Lilian held her breath as she stepped onto a large open shelf on the side of the mountain, it was almost completely circular and was littered with sharp scree and stones, centuries of collected landslide material. Lilian couldn’t resist stepping to the very edge but all she could see were the trees below her disappearing into the mist.
“Why have we come here?” She asked, confused. There were plenty of spare rooms in town she thought. When Mr Attorcop didn’t answer she turned to see where he had gone. As she turned however she felt a sudden shock across her right cheek. Her hand instantly went up to where the pain had come from and it took her a second to understand what had happened. Mr Attorcop had slapped her, hard in the face.
Benlunar - Episode 3
The lights come back and and we meet an old friend and a new enemy.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
There was a scream from the other side of the room followed swiftly by the sound of a plate crashing on the floor. Lilian barely had time to register what direction the sounds had come from when light returned to the Fox & Octopus Inn. It was so sudden that Lilian had to wonder if she hadn't just had her eyes closed for a few seconds without knowing it. As she adjusted to the brightness, she noticed that the space in front of her was empty, she jerked her head around but Mr Attorcop was nowhere to be seen. Lilian stood up and made for the door, walking past a very cross looking Liny who was picking up shards of broken plate and muttering something under her breath about getting the fireplace seen to.
The door creaked open and Lilian was met by the bright spring sunshine and a very smug looking Mr Attorcop.
"you see?" He said, "the darkness can be a powerful ally, particularly when it appears unexpectedly."
"How did you…" Lilian was still confused.
"look," Mr Attorcop motioned her closer and knelt down. He brought out 2 bottles of lunar essence and held them up side by side.
"what am I looking at?" enquired Lilian.
"the one on the left, see?" She leant forward, the light from the bottles was almost too bright to be this close to, despite having to squint she looked at the liquid in the left bottle. She noticed that when compared to the level of liquid in the right bottle it was ever so slightly depleted. She had to look hard as it was perhaps slightly more than the width of her fingernail, but once she'd seen it, the difference in levels was unmistakable.
"it gets used up?" she said, slightly surprised.
"Alas yes," he replied, tucking the vials into his sleeve, "power never comes without a price."
Lilian's head was spinning. This time yesterday the strangest thing to have ever happened to her was the time she found a rock that looked like brother Thomas. And now she was learning about… What was this? Magic? She looked at Mr Attorcop but didn't want to sound babyish.
"is this…" she started, "witchcraft?"
Attorcop shook his head. "Goodness no. Witchcraft involves a lot more chanting. No this is, well," He paused for a moment, they had started walking towards the Stave Church, Lillian spotted brother Thomas and Brother Ulnar chatting with some out-of-towners on the Church Steps. "I suppose it's a combination of many things. The vials are my own design and took many weeks of scientific research in their creation , the essence is a product of the natural world and its use requires meticulous lessons in thought control. I've never thought to name the art in its entirety." Lillian was looking at the Benlunar Square and all of the people she had grown up with, all of them milling around, blissfully unaware of the wonders that were under their noses. She smiled, "I shall name it. I'm good at coming up with names."
Attorcop stopped and looked down at her, "does this mean you're accepting my offer?"
Lillian realised suddenly that she had been caught. Like a clueless fly in a web of wonder, she knew she couldn't stop now. She had to know more and she had to learn it all, every last mystical puzzle her brain could find she would consume and conquer. She knew this. And Cromwell Attorcop knew this too. He had baited the trap beautifully, with such subtle skill that Lilian had barely noticed herself wondering in to it. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of showing him that his plan had worked, that he had acquired his diligent assistant. So she just shrugged. "Yeah maybe…" she said, "I'll speak to my parents and let you know." Attorcop smiled.
"Well that's good to know because here they are." Lilian glanced up and saw her Mum and Dad emerge from behind a small group on the other side of the square. She had a very brief thought that Attorcop might have planned this as well but quickly ignored it, she bumped into people she knew all the time around town. This was just another coincidence. Right? "Hello you two!" Lilian's Mother was waving energetically as she made her way over.
"How's Frieda?" Lilian spoke first, she didn't want to be bombarded by questions so she got her own in early.
"Oh fine." said her mum, brushing the question aside.
"Turns out the beam was just loose, looks bad but easy to fix." said he Lilian's Dad.
"Fancy that." Attorcop muttered under his breath, just loud enough for Lilian to hear. "My friends, I'm afraid I must depart for now. I have some business to attend to at my lodgings. I believe I'm being overcharged for jam. If you'll kindly excuse me." and with those parting words, Attorcop was swallowed up by the crowd. Lilian turned to look at her mother and almost instantaneously rolled her eyes. Her mother was not a subtle woman and her giant smile screamed, how did it go?? She leant in close and whispered loudly, "you know he's a very important man. Frieda thinks he was an advisor to the empress herself a few years ago. If that's the same Cromwell Attorcop, but you know, it's not exactly a common name." Polly Lausanne was a nervous talker. She was almost the exact opposite in this regard to her husband. Lilian's father did not ask questions. He just waited for answers. They began to walk home and as they left the square Polly's patience ran out.
"Well?? What did he say? What did you two talk about?"
"We talked about his work." Lilian replied. She decided to keep her answers vague.
"And what is that? Did he ask you anything?"
"I'm still not really sure. He's a sort of… Inventor. And he said he was getting a bit older and that he might need some help with his research."
Lilian's Mother almost fell over as she missed a step. "Well that's great news isn't it? Edward? Isn't that great?"
"Mm…" her father grunted. Suddenly, a voice from behind caught their attention."Ho there!"
Everyone spun around to see a sweaty Brother Thomas chasing after them. He stopped a few feet away on the path and caught his breath. "May I speak with Lilian, Polly, Edward?"
"Of course." said Lilian's Mum.
"is something the matter?" added her Dad.
"No no. I just wanted to ask something."
Lilian's parents looked at other quizzically.
"Fine. Lily we'll see you at home." said her Dad and they continued down the leafy path towards the river and Lilian turned to listen to what an overly exhausted Brother Thomas had to say. Perhaps he had been eating too many pies she thought as he knelt down in front of her.
"Lilian, that man who you were with in the square. How do you…" he was searching for the right words. "Do you know who he is?" Lillian nodded apprehensively. "isn't he a friend of yours?" She asked Brother Thomas, remembering Attorcop’s words in her kitchen that morning.
"We have met before yes, but I would hesitate to call him a friend. Lilian listen to me. Please be careful around him. Men like him they, they are ambitious and they rarely do anything that doesn't benefit themselves. He's connected to many dangerous people and although I'm fairly confident he wouldn't hurt you, I can't say the same for them." Lilian was shocked, how did Brother Thomas know Attorcop, why was he warning her? She was paralysed by the choice of questions, her face must have betrayed this because Brother Thomas went on."I'm sorry, I don't mean to scare you, I just want to make sure you're safe and that you know that there are other options for you. The school house needs teachers, the town needs builders and blacksmith's and grocers, farmers, traders, pie makers and you're always welcome at the Church." he stopped, he was searching his memory for jobs or hobbies or people that need help or even pets that need looking after. But looking at Lilian now he knew it was useless. She was too far gone, a spark was lit behind her keen green eyes, if only he'd got to her this morning, he thought, if only he'd said the right things last night, maybe, just maybe this poor girl would have been spared a life of corruption and violence that only men like Attorcop could bring. The spider had its prey.
The kitchen door shut with a familiar click and Lilian was met with the smell of fresh Berry tea and honied oat cakes. Her sweet tooth sang in excitement. She poured herself a mug of the red and hot water and sat down to eat. How was she still so hungry she thought? All of this talk of magic and decisions really works up an appetite. She was half way through her 3rd oat cake when she realised that her mum and dad were sat watching her from the other end of the kitchen table. Her Mother looked ready to burst with questions but her Father sat there stoically, patiently waiting for his daughter to speak.
“What?” Asked Lilian, her mouth still filled with cake and tea.
“Roux!” Her mum exclaimed, “You’ve been chatting with a man from the city, an important one at that. He told me he might be looking for help with his work, brother Thomas stops you in the street and tells us to go away and you ask US, what? What have you been doing all morning? Where did you go last night? What is going on with you?? Edward my nerves!”
Polly Lausanne was at her limit, she was equal parts worried, equal parts excited and she wished and wished that her daughter’s silent phase wasn’t coinciding with her rebellious streak. Lilian looked to her father who was smiling at his wife’s exasperation. He’d never been a talkative man and it seemed as though his daughter was inheriting his love of silence and simplicity.
“Lilian,” He spoke softly, “Your mother is worried. If we knew a little bit more about your decisions regarding your future, we might worry less. Have you agreed to work with Mr Attorcop?”
Lilian looked up, “Yes.” She said, admitting this to her parents as well as herself. Her mother breathed a sigh of relief.
“That’s good, Roux. You know he’s very wealthy and quite high up in the court of the capitol, he’ll teach you a lot I think, I think… I, I, I think this is a good thing. You’ve made the right choice, you’ll…” Her voice cracked a little. Lilian saw her mother’s eyes glisten,
“Mama?” She pleaded.
“I’m sorry. It’s just that, I know this will be good for you and you’ll make an excellent living but, well he works in the capital you know so I’m just scared you’ll leave and I won’t see you. I’m being stupid.” Edward reached across and gripped his wife’s hand. Lilian couldn’t stand the idea of making her mother cry, “Then I won’t go!” She exclaimed, spraying cake half way across the kitchen.
“Oh no!” Said both her parents almost at once, “You’re going.” Said her Dad.
“Your father’s right, this kind of opportunity doesn’t happen every day you know. And it would be very rude to turn it down. And…” Polly thought for a second, “and I knew this would happen.” Lilian looked up quizzically, “Of course I knew. You don’t like building, or farming or church work or cooking or, well, anything that Benlunar has to offer. You’re a big red goldfish and you need to get out of this little pool. Go become a scholar or a politician or I don’t know. But I know that what ever you want to do with your life, Benlunar won’t be able to give it to you. But it will always be here you know. For when the wide world becomes too much.”
By now Lilian was also crying, she scraped the chair out from under herself and ran across to hug her mother. Edward also got up to slowly walk round the table and join the two women in their embrace. The fire crackled in the corner, the home stood still amidst the trees and the streams flowed down the side of the mountain, like tears falling down a face.
That night, Benlunar slept soundly. The sky was awash with sleepy stars and even the gusting evening wind had settled into a calm breeze. The night was occasionally disturbed by the cry of a fox, or the hoot of an owl and at around 3 o’clock in the morning the steady crunch of footsteps may have been heard on the mountain path on the outskirts of town. The steps were quiet and the stranger that made them breathed a slow sigh when they finally turned a corner and saw the spire of Benlunar’s Stave Church in the distance. In the brush by the path a rat was busily sniffing out a meal, if it had cared to look to the road at that point, it would have seen the stranger stray from the path and stop a few feet into the tree line. Should the owl spying on the rat from a tree top have bothered to turn its head to look down at the stranger, it would have seen them kneel down, and busy themselves with breaking a few twigs, snapping off some grass and arranging forest flora into a strange symbol on the ground. The stranger then stands, goes back to the path and turns towards the sleepy town just as the owl swoops silently upon its prey.
The next day Lilian busied herself with tidying her room. She was gathering some silly drawings and old dolls from her childhood up in her arms, when she heard a knock at the front door. It was a small, polite knock and she knew instantly who it belonged to. She jumped down the stairs three at a time to open the door to a short blonde boy with sparkling blue eyes and smart clothes, “Kilde!!” she shouted and threw her arms around her best friend. When she let him go, he seemed shocked, “Hi Lilian. You seem well.” Lilian smiled at his cracking voice and overly polite manner. They’d known each other their entire lives and he still insists on knocking, and on the front door! No one knocks on the front door, no one even uses it! No one, except Kilde. “I’m great.” Replied Lilian, “Come on in, have you eaten? I’m starving.” Kilde giggled,
“Nothing new there then! I’m alright thanks, oh hi Mrs Lausanne.” Lilian whipped round to see her mother’s head poking out of the kitchen doorway.
“Hi Kilde! How are you?”
“I’m very well thank you Mrs Lausanne. How are you?” Lilian and her Mum shared a smile, Kilde was an exceptionally polite boy. He still called Lilian’s Mum ‘Mrs Lausanne’ even though Lilian called his Mum by her first name. And she didn’t mind, that’s what was so funny, no one knew how Kilde got to be this way. His Mum was friendly but not stuck up, she wasn’t even that polite, often speaking her mind at very inopportune moments. But for Kilde it was always, Mrs this and excuse me that.
“I’m fine thank you Kilde,” Replied Lilian’s Mum, artfully disguising her mockery.
“Lilian, I’ve got to tell you something.” Lilian turned back to listen.
“Oh?”
“Yes.” Lilian waited but Kilde was stalling. He glanced back to see if Lilian’s Mum was still listening but she had disappeared to prepare for work. Finally, he gathered his courage. “Can we, can we go to the river?”
“Sure!” Replied Lilian, “Let me just put some boots on.”
The pair walked down the stone steps to the small stream behind the house. It was a sunny day and the two walked in silence. Lilian was trying to think about whether she should tell Kilde about everything that had happened with the Padda Stone and Mr Attorcop but just as they reached the point where the stream joined the river, Kilde stopped.
“Ok so… I was down here yesterday, just throwing stones and I looked up and you see that space over there?” His hand pointed to a patch of grass on the other side of the river and a little distance down stream. The grass was growing long now that spring had arrived and Lilian could see the first few colours of flowers emerging amongst the stems. She nodded and let him continue, still unsure about what to tell him.
“Well I’m not completely sure but, well I think I saw an animal…” Lilian waited.
“What… like… a deer?” She proffered, unsure about why an animal sighting was producing such secrecy.
“No. That’s the thing, I thought that at first too. I thought, ooh look a deer, oh no wait I thought, that’s not a deer because deers have antlers, well the bucks do, and this didn’t have antlers or hooves and I think it was a bit bigger than a deer but it looked more like…”
He stopped, searching his memory for a suitable comparison. “It looked like, ok well it was kind of dark so, i dunno but it looked like a big dog but also… a cat.”
“Like… a leopard?” Asked Lilian.
“No. Because they are cats. And this wasn’t a cat.”
“But you just said it was a cat.”
“I said it looked like a cat.”
“If it looks like a cat then it probably is a cat…”
“No! Butterflies look like birds but that doesn’t mean they’re birds.”
“Yes but no one looks at butterflies and thinks ooh look a bird!”
“Shut up. I knew you wouldn’t believe me, Mum doesn’t believe me either, she says it was a wolf but remember when we were 8 and we saw that wolf, well it didn’t look like that because it was bigger and it’s eyes were like a cat’s.”
“Okay okay I’m sorry.” Lilian could see that he was getting upset. She tried to think of another question, “Were you scared?”
Kilde thought for a second, “Not really. Well I was at first but then it looked right at me and I could tell that it was just as surprised to see me and it looked scared you know, its pointy ears went flat and it backed away and then, woosh, into the trees. And then I ran home.” Lilian studied her friend, she’d known him since she was a baby, they’d been on countless adventures and knew these woods like the backs of their hands, she’d seen him tell stories she’d heard him tell lies and she knew the difference.
“What colour was it?” At this his face lit up, finally, it seemed to say, someone is asking the right questions.
“That's the thing Lily, I don’t know, well when I first saw it, it was definitely brown, like a deer but by the time it ran away I think it was… maybe orange? Like a ginger cat. But maybe sort of yellow? I’m not sure, like I say it was getting dark.”
Lilian thought for a second,
“Well, let’s go over there and have a look? Maybe we’ll find a paw print or something” Kilde’s face went pale but he smiled.
“You see, I knew you would say something like that. Whoo yeah ok, yeah… yeah ok let’s go. Wait.” Kilde glanced around fitfully, his eyes fell on a big stick, washed ashore in the last swell and dried hard by the spring sun, he picked it up and gripped it tightly. “Ok let’s go.”
The pair removed their boots and waded into the river. No matter how hot the sun ever got in Benlunar, this river was always freezing cold. The water came from the melted snow caps in from deep within the frozen mountains so Lilian breathed in sharply when she took her first step in. She navigated her way across the many smooth stones on the river bed, at its deepest the water came up past her knees but in just under a minute they had made it to the other side. The two donned their boots once more and went over to the long grass. They walked for a while longer than Lilian had expected to but once they arrived they split off and began hunting for clues. The sun was almost at its highest point and the constant stream of sound from the birds and the water made it a typical Benlunar spring day. Lilian thought back to springs of her childhood, where the town children would spend hours on these river banks hunting various things, mostly flipsies, or each other. Only now this was different, this hunt had a purpose, there would be no child screaming at finding a stone with a hole in it and claiming it to be a flipsy amulet, if anything was found now it would be real evidence, a genuine clue to real mystery and this gave the hunt purpose. Lilian found herself brushing back nettles, getting her hair caught in twigs and overturning mossy rocks but all she revealed were stings and the occasional newt. It was just after Lilian had checked under the 14th suspicious looking rock when she heard a shout from Kilde. She whipped round but couldn’t see him anywhere. The shout had come from the beyond the tree line and Lilian started running towards it, “Kilde??” She shouted but she got not reply. More urgently now she scraped past the branches of a pine tree, ripping the side of her smock in the process. Twigs creaked and cracked around her but she still couldn’t see signs of her friend. “Kilde!” She shouted again, louder now. This time, she got a reply, “here!” the shout came from over a mound and Lilian ran towards it, dead pine needles crunching under her feet as she went. As she neared the top she finally saw Kilde knelt down beside a holly bush. The red winter berries had long disappeared and the spiky leaves were starting to brown around the edges. Kilde was transfixed by a spot about waist high up off the ground, when he heard Lilian behind him he beckoned her forward, never taking his eyes off the spot as if looking away might make it disappear. Lilian approached, closer and closer. She couldn’t understand what Kilde had seen until she was right next to him. “Look”. He whispered. At first, Lilian though he was pointing at something inside the bush, but then the sunlight shifted, her eyes focused and she saw it. The smallest tuft of fur, just a few threads stuck to holly leaf. She was about to roll her eyes, she was about to stand up and say it was deer fur or fox or rabbit or anything but just then, she saw the fur shift in the breeze and with the smallest movement, the fur changed colour. Lilian blinked. It must have been a trick of the light. But the once light brown fur was now unmistakably yellow, she was about to say something but she was transfixed as the fur changed again, now orange, now green, now blue. Lilian didn’t want to breathe, afraid that the slightest exhale might blow the strands away. She reached forward with her fingers outstretched, Kilde looked at her urging with every thought that she be careful. Slowly, like a clockmaker removing a broken spring, she gripped the strands between her fingers and held them tightly. Now that the danger of them blowing away had past, she spoke, but still in a cautious whisper.
“Do you have a handkerchief?” Kilde sparked into motion, plunging his hands in to his trouser pockets he extracted a coin, some string, a rather nice looking button and then a balled up red cloth. He unfurled it and stretched it out over his knee.
“It’s clean.” he said, seeing the worried look on Lilian’s face. He brought it up to her fingers in cupped hands and watched as Lilian slowly placed the hairs in the centre of the fabric and folded it over, corner to corner and finally rolling it up lengthways, so as not to bend or break the precious strands inside. Kilde’s face was beaming, “you see?” He asked all of his suspicions confirmed. Lilian wasn’t exactly sure what she had seen and was not quite yet convinced that she was holding the fur of some mythical beast, there were, after all, many factors at play. It might be deer fur, with paint on it. Or the hairs from a fox that had eaten too many blueberries. Whatever it was, she wasn’t jumping to any conclusions.
“I think we should take it back to town.” She said finally. Kilde nodded in agreement but made no sign to offer to carry it, he didn’t want to be the one responsible for dropping it in the river. “Yes,” He agreed, “but what then?” The pair had started making their way back towards the river. As they emerged from the trees and back into the sunshine a thought occurred to Lilian. “I think we should show it to someone. Someone who knows about animals.” Kilde wracked his brain, searching for such a person.
“Ortan?” He said.
“Maybe.” Replied Lilian. Ortan lived on the other side of town, up near the mountain path. He was a tall, greying trapper who would send ferrets down rabbit holes or place traps in the summer around the livestock pens so that wolves got caught. Lilian didn’t really like Ortan. He always smelt like a barrel and he’d shouted at her once for trying to help a fox out of a trap. She could still remember the horrible sounds it had been making. Just then, as she hopped from one boulder to another she had a thought.
“I actually think I might know someone who would be better to ask.”
“Who?” replied Kilde, just as he misjudged the distance between boulders and almost fell in the river.
“He’s… a friend. He comes from the city and he’s staying in town.”
Kilde seemed hopeful. “Does he work with animals?”
“No…” Replied Lilian. “But he knows a lot about mysteries and strange things. He studies them in the city.” She didn’t turn back to catch Kilde’s reaction but he must have been satisfied.
“Well,” He said, “We can show him and if he doesn’t know then we can show Ortan. And if Ortan doesn’t know then… Well then I guess we’ll just keep asking around.” Lilian was thankful that he didn’t continue asking too many questions, she didn’t want to have to lie to her friend about what she’d seen the other night, especially after he trusted her with his story about the beast.
Throughout the entire walk in to Benlunar Lilian clutched the handkerchief close to her, a firm but gentle grip, as if she was holding a small bird, she was so focused on her task that it wasn’t until she reached the town square that she realised that she didn’t know where Cromwell Attorcop was staying. She glanced down the street towards the Fox & Octopus, might he have a room at the Inn, she thought? She looked back at the Stave Church, she could ask brother Thomas if he knew. No she thought, he might ask questions about the fur, then Kilde would tell him everything and the next thing you know you’re praying at some statue of a woman that’s supposed to love you or something. Lilian liked brother Thomas but he did tend to have predictable answers to everything. Just then a flash of colour caught her eye, among the crowd. Stood amongst a small group of well dressed men and women, there was a portly, friendly looking man in a bright orange doublet. Lilian remembered him from the other day when she first saw Mr Attorcop in Benlunar, he’d been talking to this man about rheumatism. She walked over to him across the flagstones, ignoring a nervous Kilde at her side. The group were clearly tourists, their clothes and jewels were far too nice to come from the Benlunar markets and as Lilian approached she saw from the empty bottles around scattered around the tables that they had been drinking wine. When she got close to the man in orange she stopped and waited for a lull in the conversation. A loud woman in a yellow and purple dress with a silly cloth hummingbird dangling from her hat was spilling her wine and saying, “My father was of course old enough to have still been around when they were both alive and HE said that things ran smoother then because he was the only person in the world she actually respected. And now he’s gone well… she doesn’t listen to anyone and so that’s why we’re in this mess with the young Lord what’s-his-name.” This sloshing statement was met with jeers and cheers from her little circle, Lilian however had grown tired of waiting and decided to tap on the orange man’s arm. The man startled and turned to see her. As they spoke, the rest of his group leaned in to listen as well.
“Oh er, good day miss.” Said the man.
“Hello.” Replied Lilian, suddenly nervous as to what to say. She remembered what Attorcop had told her about people stopping at nothing to attain secrets and wondered if this man could be trusted. But her doubts quickly faded when she saw the man smile widely.
“How may I be of service young lady?”
“Do you know where Mr Attorcop is staying?” At the mention of Attorcop’s name, she noticed a visible shift in the atmosphere of the group. Some members looked at each other and smiled, others looked away in contempt. The woman in yellow simply raised an eyebrow, suddenly very curious.
“Would that be Cromwell Attorcop?” Asked the man to clarify, Lilian nodded. “I believe he asked to be put up in the tower room at the Thoreson house, it’s the big blue place up the hill, you can’t miss it.” Lilian knew the house and she thanked the man, she was about to leave when the woman in yellow narrowed her eyes and spoke up again.
“How do you know Cromwell Attorcop?” She asked Lilian. Everyone stood still, awaiting her reply. Lilian didn’t know what to say, she wanted to keep her answer brief and as similar to the one she’d given Kilde as possible.
“He’s my… friend.” At this answer the group of men and woman all smiled, one man visibly stifled a laugh. Lilian felt a hot flush of embarrassment fill her face. The cloth hummingbird in the woman’s hat danced and flopped as she leant forward towards Lilian.
“Trust me sweetie. He’s not.” At this Lilian turned and walked away. The orange man had not laughed but the rest of his friends could barely stay on their seats with the idea that this young girl could be friends with Cromwell Attorcop.
Lilian still hadn’t shaken her anger by the time they’d reached the Thoreson house.
“They stupid city folk.” Kilde was muttering beside her. “And did you see, they’d been drinking Xander’s dandelion wine. That’s why they were being so rude.” Lilian rolled her eyes, Kilde’s ability to see the good in everyone was a lovely quality most of the time, but it was also frustrating, why couldn’t he call them what they were? Dirty city…
“May I help you?” Lilian looked up to see an old, wizened face staring at them from the Thoreson house door. In her frustration, Lilian hadn’t even noticed that they’d arrived and that Kilde had knocked on the door.
“Hello Mr Stepson, we have some business with Mr Attorcop and we believe that he is lodging in one of your top rooms. May we come in and speak with him?” Lilian instantly forgave Kilde, she wished she had his way with people in that moment. His effortless charm and proper manners put a smile on the old butler’s face and he bade them come in.
“Is he expecting you?” Croaked the old man.
“No I don’t think so, but he will be quite interested in what we have to say I can assure you.” The old butler lead them into to a grand entrance hall. The Thoreson’s were Benlunar’s oldest family, they owned half the land the town was built on and had lived in this house for hundreds of years. Mr Stepson was their employee and performed the duties involved in keeping such a large and impressive building up and running, including the management of renting various spare rooms to make extra money in the summer. He was known around town as a man of exquisite taste and eye for detail.
“Mr Attorcop, requested the tower room. Not our largest guest room but certainly one with a good view. I haven’t seen him leave today so I assume he’s working in there. Please be sure to knock when you get to the door, open or closed.” He showed them towards the large ornate staircase and pointed to the top of the house. “And if you would be so kind as to inform Mr Attorcop that his lunch will be with him momentarily.” And the mention of lunch Kilde almost jumped out of his skin.
“Is it midday day already??” He exclaimed. Mr Stepson was taken aback.
“Young man, midday has been and gone, Mr Attorcop broke his fast late and so requested a late lunch.” Kilde almost squealed in panic.
“I promised my mother I would be back for lunch.” He looked at Lilian apologetically.
“That’s ok.” She said, “You go. I’ll tell you what he says later.” Kilde barely muttered his thanks before sprinting out of the front door. Mr Stepson looked confused but still allowed Lilian to go up to see Mr Attorcop in his room.
When Lilian reached the top floor she was almost out of breath. She was still clutching the handkerchief but her palms had become sweaty with the exercise. The landing floor had a faded red carpet on it and various paintings of scenery or haughty rich people looked down at her from the walls. The door at the end of the hall was ajar and when Lilian approached it she saw that it opened onto another set of stairs, steep ones that spiralled round to the right. This must be the tower room she thought. Remembering Mr Stepson’s instructions she knocked loudly on the door. From somewhere above her she heard a voice reply,
“Come up.” Lilian climbed the staircase, watching her step so as not to slip and drop the handkerchief. The stairs lead her through the floor of an octagonal room with windows on most sides. There was a large and beautiful bed to one side and a writing desk at the other end. There were papers scattered across the floor, some strange looking bottles with various colours of liquid
in them. Mr Attorcop sat at the desk and didn't even look up when Lilian climbed the final step.
"One moment." he muttered, busily writing some notes on parchment. Lilian waited patiently and looked out of the large window behind the head board of the bed. She crained her head down so that she could see the mountain peak, it was slightly obscured by small clouds that stood out despite the whiteness of the snow that still clutched to the very top slopes and ridges. Attorcop finished his writing and looked up.
"Ah Lilian, good afternoon. I wasn't expecting to see you today." his brow was furrowed and Lilian wondered if he was upset with her.
"Sorry, Mr Attorcop but I wanted to ask you something." he didn't reply, he simply waited as if the next logical thing to happen would be simply that Lilian asked what she wanted to ask. And so Lilian began.
"I was down by the river this morning with my friend Kilde…" she launched into the morning's events making sure to leave no detail but also try to not waste any of his time. His expression did not change and Lilian worried that she was boring him or had she believed Kilde's childish fantasy and was in fact here to show him nothing more than a bit of badgers bum. When she reached the part of the story that had her place the hairs in the handkerchief Attorcop finally spoke up.
"Bring it here. Let me see."
She approached carefully. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Was her first act as Attorcop's assistant going to be wasting his time with nonsense? She watched as he carefully unfolded the cloth. With a surgeon's precision he held a single hair up to the light and gazed at it. His expression was hard to read. Suddenly he got up and walked over to a trunk by the bed. He rummaged around for a second and then pulled out a sort of instrument. Lilian thought it looked like a telescope, only it was smaller and green and had many different lenses attached around the outside. What ever it was, thought Lilian, it looked valuable. Attorcop brought it and the hair back to his desk and began fiddling with the various dials and lenses around the edge of the main tube all the while looking through one end and holding the hair in front of the other. Lilian leant in closer, almost holding her breath. She saw his lips move ever so slightly and thought she heard him whisper.
"fascinating…" his focus unbroken he spoke up, "Lilian, pass me a piece of parchment please. Over there, on the side board." Lilian looked over to a window and saw some clean sheets piled on top of one another on the shelf beneath it. She moved over to grab the top most sheet when she froze. Completely still transfixed at what she saw on the other side of the window. On the outside of the tower was a dark hooded figure. Lilian could clearly see the blue and red colours of their cloak and the silver fastener pinned to their chest. But what transfixed her most were the large, green eyes. The eyes. Of a stranger.
Benlunar - Episode 2
The second episode, where we learn more about magic.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
Lilian was so stunned with shock, she thought she must be dreaming. She even pinched the skin on her left leg to try and wake herself up. But of course nothing happened, unless you count the pinching sensation and the fact that she didn’t wake up. Moments ago she had seen a strange secretion seep from the moon and down the side of the mountain above her and trickling through the mouth of the great Padda Stone, Benlunar’s famous toad statue. All of this she could remember clearly, she had seen a strange man gather the liquid in small bottles and as if all of that wasn’t bizarre enough, she was now witnessing a stone toad open its eyes and look around. Although the moon was still very bright in the sky, it was the middle of the night and Lilian had to keep adjusting her eyes in the darkness. But no matter how many times she blinked or looked away, she was sure that the toad’s eyes were open and moving. It blinked several times, apparently also getting used to the dim light, and with each blink Lilian could hear the soft tap of stone on stone, like when you drop a rock on a marble floor. She found her muscles slowly waking up after being paralysed with fear, she wondered whether or not to run or to jump down and hide, but she did neither of these things. She only watched, raptured to the spot. The strange man by contrast seemed more relaxed. He was looking at the Padda Stone but he was still moving and seemingly waiting for it to do something. Eventually it looked down and saw him standing just beyond the pond where seconds before water had been flowing in from its mouth. The two locked eyes and waited. Finally the great stone toad shifted its heavy boulder body and spoke. Its voice was a deep, wet croak and although its mouth moved with the words, it seemed as though its voice was coming from somewhere deep within the mountain.
“You again.” It said to the stranger. It didn’t seem surprised, or angry it was just as if it was stating a fact. It might as well have said, ‘It’s night time’. The stranger’s voice was softer but Lilian could just about make it out.
“Me again.” He said, “I’m sure I’ve changed these past 10 years.”
“You were a young man not moments ago to me.” Replied the Padda Stone.
“Indeed. And younger still the time before that. I must have been just a lad of 15 the first time I came here.”
The great toad shifted and almost smiled. It seemed to be laughing. “Hahaha. You were so frightened. And alone. I remember when hundreds would gather to greet me when I woke.”
“I’m sorry for my secrecy. You do deserve the attention of hundreds, you are truly splendid Gorakja. But while I have my work to finish, I’m afraid I must come alone.”
Again the toad laughed. “HaHaHa.. Alone?” It said, “Are you sure Cromwell?”
Even in the darkness Lilian could see the colour drain from the man’s face. His eyes widened to the size of plates as he whipped and whirled round desperately seeking an intruder. Lilian knew that she would be spotted any second. Without waiting for that to happen she turned and ran back, back down the hill through the trees back through Benlunar, back past the Stave Church and the Fox & Octopus Inn, she was not breathing, she was not thinking she was only moving as fast and far as she could. Her body finally getting its wish of fleeing granted by her mind and moving so quickly she almost ran headlong into a couple stumbling out of a doorway. She could hear a faint ‘Watch it!’ from the man but it was already fading into the distance behind her as she ran further and faster. Finally she saw her house, she saw the comforting light in the kitchen, like a beacon guiding her home in the night. As she reached her front door, she paused for a second to catch her breath. Had that really just happened? She thought. Or was her mind playing tricks on her? She replayed the entire event over in her head, remembering every word, every detail. What was she going to tell her parents? Or… should she tell them? They definitely wouldn’t believe her. She wouldn’t even blame them for that. If Kilde, her friend from town, ran up to her right now and said that he’d seen a tree just wake up and ask him directions to the bakery or something she wouldn’t believe him for a second! She was still asking herself what to do when she opened her kitchen door and came face to face with her Mum, her Dad and Brother Thomas sat at the kitchen table.
“Lilian!” Her mother got up and almost fell down to hug her. Lilian could feel the warmth of the stove on her mother’s woollen jumper, she’d been so distracted by everything, she hadn’t realised how cold she was. Her shoes were soaked through and her smock was wet up to her knees. Her fingers began to tingle as the door closed behind her and she warmed up.
Everyone’s face in the kitchen looked worried. Her father spoke first, “where have you been??” He asked. Lilian realised she must look half crazy. She was about to answer, she even moved her lips to speak, but then she thought about all the questions she would get, the worried looks, the side glances at each other as she would be pressed more and more for information. The last thing she wanted in that moment, was all of that, so she simply said, “Out” Her father looked like he’d just been slapped by a wet fish.
“Out? Yes I know that, but where?”
“Just around town. I’m sorry I ran off, I was upset. Hello brother Thomas.”
The church brother smiled his warm smile and pulled a chair from the kitchen table.
“Your parents were worried,” He said, “But I know how strong and resourceful you are. We’ve actually just been talking about your qualities and we have a few ideas we’d like you to listen to. How does that sound?” As a wave of tiredness crashed over her, Lilian thought that sounded just awful, “I’m…” She started to speak, but she could barely find the strength to keep her eyes open. She stumbled forward and almost lost her footing.
“Look at her,” pleaded her Mother, “She can barely stand up. Roux why don’t you go to bed, I’m sure this can all wait until morning. Brother Thomas, you can come back tomorrow can’t you?”
Lilian heard him agree, but his voice seemed far away now. Her knees finally buckled and the next thing she knew she was in her father’s arms, being carried upstairs to bed, just like all those years ago when she was just a little girl. She was just a little girl.
She woke up to the sound of voices coming from downstairs. A sun beam was sneaking in through her curtains and Lilian could see tiny specs of dust dancing in it. It fell on to the foot of her bed where her feet were wrapped in blankets. She didn’t remember how she got in to bed, and she definitely didn’t remember putting her pyjamas on… She flushed with embarrassment as she realised her dad must have helped her put them on. Last night’s events came flooding back in her mind, only now they seemed even stranger, even more like a dream. Could it have all been a dream? She thought. The clinking sounds of spoons in teacups echoed up the wooden staircase and Lilian thought she’d best get up and head downstairs. She glanced around her room before opening the door. It was the room she’d always had. There were toys in the corner she hadn’t played with in years, there were pictures on the walls she’d done when she was 3 years old. Looking around, Lilian had an odd feeling, like this wasn’t her room really. It was a child’s room. After breakfast she thought she would come back and tidy a few things.
She threw on some old clothes, a green smock and some grey stockings, ran a brush through her hair, opened her door and started making her way downstairs. The voices from the kitchen grew louder with each step. She heard her mother’s voice and another man’s. It wasn’t her father’s, his was much deeper. She rolled her eyes at the realisation, “Creatures & Curses” She thought, “Doesn’t brother Thomas ever take a day off?” with that she opened the kitchen door. The smell of bread and honey hit her as she waved good morning to her Mother.
“Ah there she is! Good morning! Would you like some warm milk and honey with your breakfast?” Lilian nodded, rubbing her eyes and yawning as she did. She noticed a figure with their back to her sat at the kitchen table.
“Ah yes,” Said her mother, “I don’t think you two have met yet. Lilian this is Mr Attorcop, oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your first name…”
Lilian’s eyes came in to focus just in time to see a cloak, black as the night’s sky shift and turn towards her. “Cromwell, my lady, and you must be Lilian. Your mother has been telling me all about you.”
Lilian froze to the spot. She was about to shout out or run away, but this man, this Mr Attorcop was fixing her with such an intense stare she dared not move. His small dark eyes seemed to be willing her to play along, he was acting as if he’d never seen her before and his eyes were suggesting she do the same. They stared each other down like dueling knights while Lilian’s mother pottered around the kitchen.
“Now where did I put that lavender honey? There’s fields of lavender down in the valley in the spring you know, if you find a beehive near there you get this incredibly fragrant honey, I have a jar somewhere for special occasions.”
“I do not wish to impose. Plain forest honey will suit my needs just as well.” Mr Attorcop spoke without blinking or breaking eye contact with Lilian. He jerked his head slightly towards the empty chair next to him, motioning Lilian to sit down. His regal clothes and perfect posture seemed very out of place here amongst the kitchen bric a brac and their family’s teapot collection. Lilian slowly went to sit down, she looked around for the man’s bag the one he had night before, the one in which he had placed the eighteen bottles of that strange silver water, but she couldn’t see it anywhere.
“There you go my love.” Lilian’s Mother placed a cup of warm milk in front of her, and started slicing a loaf of bread, “Mr Attorcop knows brother Thomas, isn’t that right?”
“Ah yes, I’ve known him for many years. I saw him this morning in fact and he suggested I come here to meet you all.” Lilian’s Mother was still rushing around the kitchen, it looked like she was getting ready to leave.
“Yes and we’re hoping Lily that you’ll listen to what he has to say. Now I have to rush off, there’s a broken beam at Frieda’s place, your father is already there so I’m going to go and meet him. Mr Attorcop, please help yourself to anything you wish, there’s plenty of bread left. Roux” She knelt down beside Lilian, “Please just listen and we’ll talk later ok?”
“But, Mama..” Lilian wanted to stop her going, she wanted to tell her everything but her mother was already standing and making to leave, “No buts my love, you don’t have to decide anything today but just, well, keep an open mind that’s all. Goodbye you two, see you later.” And with that she was gone, out of the kitchen door in a flash of red hair, leaving Lilian with this stranger, which, Lilian thought to be slightly irresponsible. Was he really a friend of Brother Thomas? How could anyone be sure? The two sat there in silence whilst this strange man, this Mr Attorcop, ate some bread and drank some milk. He seemed very relaxed, but then again why wouldn’t he be, thought Lilian, he was enjoying a free breakfast in a warm kitchen and it’s not like Lilian could be any threat to him. She just stared. She wanted to ask questions but she couldn’t put her finger on which one. She thought she would start with, “what in the fiery depths are you doing in my house?” when he spoke first.
“Wouldn’t you like to know what he said?” He raised his grey eyebrows inquisitively and calmly wiped crumbs away from his beard. Lilian knew who he meant of course.
“I heard him.” she whispered.
“Yes but you ran away, we had a long and pleasant conversation after you left. Not many people get the chance to speak with such a being. It’s unfortunate that your fear bested your curiosity.”
For a brief moment Lilian felt a pang of regret. In the light of day it seemed silly to have run away. An idea popped into her head and she was about to suggest something when the man interrupted her thought again,
“Ah no I’m afraid you can’t go back tonight. The conditions for him to awake are very specific, I haven’t done the exact calculations, but I wager the next night won’t be for at least 5 or 6 years.” Lilian dropped her head in disappointment. At least it hadn’t all been a dream she thought. “Now your mother and father,” continued Mr Attorcop “they weren’t asking me any questions about any giant talking toads so can I assume that you haven’t told anyone what you saw last night?”
“They would think I was crazy.” Shrugged Lilian.
“Indeed they might. However, there are people in this world, perhaps even in this town who not only might believe you but may try and learn all they can, to the extent that your own safety and health would not stand in their way.”
Lilian sat up. Fear began feeling its way back into her stomach. “What do you mean?” she asked.
“Well, let’s say you told someone about last night, and they told someone else and that person wanted to know more, who would they ask?”
“Me” replied Lilian.
“Exactly. So then let’s say you tell them everything you saw and everything you know, only they either didn’t believe you or wanted to make absolutely sure you were telling the truth. Most people would simply give you money or something you wanted. Some people might not be so kind.”
Lilian understood. What ever she was mixed up in here, there was clearly a lot at stake, or else this man, this, Mr Attorcop, wouldn’t be telling her all this. He didn’t seem to be threatening her in any way, simply warning her. His manner was confusing. Most people smiled and span their words in such a way that made her feel like she was being talked down to. This man wasn’t treating her like a child, he seemed to be simply telling the truth. Lilian wanted to tell him that she wasn’t scared, that she was the bravest girl in her class and that only 2 nights ago she’d done something no one else would even dare to do. But now didn’t seem like the right time. Suddenly, Lilian’s courage returned and with it, her curiosity.
“What was that stuff? The silvery water stuff that came down the mountain. It looked like…” She almost didn’t want to say it for seeming silly. “It looked like it came from the moon.” A smile appeared on Mr Attorcop’s face. It was as if some suspicion had just been confirmed. “You don’t seem worried about what I’ve just told you Lilian.”
“Why should I be worried? I’m not going to tell anyone so no one will want to know more. And if you were going to hurt me you’d probably have done it by now. So…” Mr Attorcop said nothing, he just stared incredulously at this brave, redheaded child. “How old are you?” He asked finally.
“I shall be 13 in 3 weeks. I’m not a kid you know. Now stop changing the subject.You’ve already threatened me by saying that people might want to hurt me in order to find out more about last night, but I’m not so thick as to not realise that’s just you wanting to keep it a secret. If someone asked me about last night they’d quickly realise I was there by accident, I wasn’t even wearing a coat. YOU were there on purpose which means you knew it was going to happen. So all I’d have to say to anyone who was asking is: You know that Mr Attorcop, bearded bloke with a bald head? Yeah that’s the one. I’d ask him If I were you, he’s the one with 18 bottles of moon juice in his pockets.”
This outburst left Mr Attorcop stunned. In the 3 seconds following its end he decided two things, one was that he had underestimated this girl’s intelligence and 2 that was never going to happen again.
“Fine.” He said, breathing out and relaxing. His original plan of ensuring her silence and leaving had failed, but his powerful, calculative mind was quickly formulating a new plan.
“Last night you witnessed a rare awakening of an ancient and preternatural being yet you’ve astutely made the connection that that would not have been possible without the appearance of the, what was it you called it? Moon juice? While I do enjoy that name, it’s not strictly accurate. I refer to it as essence.”
Lillian cocked her head in confusion. “What does it do?” She asked. Mr Attorcop seemed reluctant to answer this straight away.
“You know. Your parents are under the impression I’m here because I’m looking for someone to help me with my work. One conversation with Brother Thomas this morning and I was able to not only find out who you were and where you lived, but that your parents are desperate for you to find some sort of meaningful occupation. While originally I only used this as an excuse to speak with you, I have recently been feeling the effects of my age and could use some assistance in my endeavours. I don’t just divulge the secrets of my craft to anyone you know? But if you do wish to work with me then I would be more inclined to give you the answers you seek.”
Lillian had trouble keeping up with the way Mr Attorcop spoke. It was like he was saying something very simple, but in the most complicated way he could find. She guessed from context that he was asking if she wanted to work with him.
“Tell me what that stuff is and what it does, and then I’ll tell you if I want to work with you.”
Smiling and seeming sure of himself, Mr Attorcop stood up.
“Let’s walk, I always find my mind is clearer when on the move.”
The two walked through Benlunar in silence for some time. Lilian had many more questions to ask, but she didn’t want to pressure him. She guessed she was lucky to get this far. The pair were walking down a wide cobbled lane, past the blacksmith when Mr Attorcop stopped. He was looking into the smith’s yard, watching Jacob and his son Varne working together by the fire. Lilian followed his gaze to see the two smiths, hammers in hands striking a hot bar again and again. With each blow from the hammer, sparks would fly off the anvil. Everyone in town knew that Jacob was a genius when it came to working metal and it seemed as though his son was learning very quickly.
“You see these two.” Mr Attorcop finally spoke. “They use the various tools available to them. The hammer, the anvil and the fire. With these they can produce beautiful, useful or even dangerous things yes?” Lilian nodded, understanding so far. “But in your hands, or mine, that hammer wouldn’t do much good would it?” Lilian shook her head. She remembered dropping her father’s hammer on her foot once. It hurt a lot, and certainly didn’t produce anything beautiful apart from a large bruise. Mr Attorcop continued. “However, the hammer alone in the hands of even the most skilled blacksmith also would do no good, for the smith needs the fire and the anvil to use his skills effectively. Correct?” Lilian nodded once more as they turned to leave. When they were out of sight of the smiths and indeed anyone else, Mr Attorcop reached into his cloak and pulled out one of the bottles from last night. Even in the middle of the day, the liquid inside it shone brightly and illuminated his hand and face. He held it in front of Lilian and spoke, “This is the hammer, the fire and the anvil all at once. It is a powerful substance that needs great skill when being handled, or else the smith in question…” He was cut off by a loud yelp from behind them. Varne’s hand must have slipped and been hit in place of the metal. Attorcop smiled, his point having been made. He whipped the small bottle away from Lilian’s outstretched hand and hid it once again in his cloak. The two continued through the town. After some time Lilian spoke up. “I think I understand. But…” She couldn’t put her finger on what she wanted to ask, “But if the blacksmith is using tools to make a sword say. What do you use the essence for?” By now they had reached the square and were making their way towards the Fox & Octopus, Benlunar’s famous Inn run by Xander and Liny. Lilian realised then that in all the excitement she hadn’t eaten breakfast, most unlike her, and was secretly hoping Mr Attorcop might buy her some rye bread and jam. Whilst Lilian’s question was being mulled over in his head, Mr Attorcop opened the door to the Inn and motioned her inside. He didn’t like discussing these things in broad daylight. You never knew who was lurking round a corner. The Inn was a large, soft room that smelt of last night’s stale ale. Xander and Liny were busy cleaning the tables and surfaces as well as removing a fancy looking hat from the antler’s of a stuffed deer’s head behind the bar. Xander motioned for them to take a seat, which they gladly did to get out of the way.
“There are many answers to that question.” Said Mr Attorcop once they had been brought some fresh pressed juice and warm bread. “Just as there are many things that can be made by a talented blacksmith, indeed the more talented the smith the more possibilities there are. But if we move away from metaphors for a moment I suppose it all boils down to just one thing. Power.” Mr Attorcop’s eyes flashed wide at this last word. Lilian felt like she was supposed to be impressed but she still didn’t really understand. Her face must have said as much because Attorcop continued: “One gains power when one has the advantage yes?”
“Like in 4 ladies” Lillian often played that particular card game with her class mates. Her father had taught her some special moves that meant she would almost always win. “You can be a great player, but if someone else starts the game with more than 2 ladies then it’s almost impossible to win.”
“Exactly,” said Attorcop, “So what the essence does is it gives you a strong advantage because it’s all there. In the bottle.” He was getting excited talking about this, Lillian got the impression he didn’t really get many chances to do so, “What’s there?” She asked, almost frantically now, “What is it? What’s in the bottles?”
“Night!” Mr Attorcop almost shouted the word but caught himself at the last minute. There was a pause. Behind the bar Xander had started whistling, somewhere in the distance Liny dropped a glass and a rude word tumbled from her mouth. Birds sang in the trees outside, the clouds parted, the sun shone, and Lillian raised a single eyebrow.
“Night.” She repeated, hoping that Attorcop would explain himself.
“Indeed. Tell me. What do you remember about yesterday evening. What did you see, what did you feel?”
“Well, it was dark.” Mr Attorcop raised a single finger, counting the first thing in Lillian’s list.
“Yes yes, what else?”
“It was dark, but I could still see, because of the moon. The moon was… really big” A second finger went up, “Good. Go on.” Lillian thought for a second.
“I dunno… It was cold.” A third finger. Lillian was quickly running out of things to say, but listing these things was triggering memories of the event.
“I remember listening to the water trickling down the streams and into the ponds. There were animals moving and making noise. The stars were beautiful and the moon looked like it was touching the mountain. I remember the breeze rustling the reeds and how anytime I wanted to focus on anything, I had to look really hard, and then keep looking because the darkness kind of obscured it.” Attorcop’s fingers were almost all up now and he was smiling his enigmatic smile. He slowly began to reach into a hidden fold in his cloak.
“So all these things you’ve just listed, they all make up the night, correct?” Lillian nodded, “So night isn’t just one thing. It’s not just a time in the day, it’s not just the absence of the sun and the presence of the moon. It’s a huge series of sights, sounds and sensations.” The bright bottle appeared in his hand once again. In this dark corner of the inn, the light was almost blinding. Attorcop’s face and beard were bathed in it. Lillian sat amazed. It wasn’t like anything she’d ever seen. It was light, there was no mistaking it, but it wasn’t the warm light of a flame, or the bright, blinding light of the sun, it was as if Attorcop was stood in a moonbeam in the middle of the day. At this distance, Lillian could see the bottle more closely too. It was clear cut crystal, with an iron stopper in the shape of a crescent moon. Even without the silver liquid inside it would have been a beautiful thing. Again she found her hand reaching out towards it. As she did so, Attorcop spoke:
“There exist arts in this world that allow folk to channel elements of nature through their bodies and produce wonderous and even dangerous things. If someone was to channel the aspects of night, it would stand to reason that it would have to be night time. However, with this essence, one could channel the night at any time, even in the midday sun of the hottest desert. And thus the possessor would have the advantage. The carrier of lunar essence in the day has power.” Lillian’s fingertips were almost touching the glass, but when they were just a hair’s breadth away Attorcop closed his fingers tightly around the bottle and the Inn was plunged into darkness.
Benlunar - Episode 1
The first episode of Benlunar! Meet Lilian Lausanne and explore Benlunar in this brand new audio adventure!
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
Lilian Lausanne woke up in a foul mood. Her parents had sent her to bed the night before without any supper and she had only managed to sleep for 9 hours. Her hungry stomach growled at her and so she went downstairs to feed it. She was dreading seeing her Mum and Dad, who were probably still cross with her, but they were nowhere to be seen. In their place she found a note on the kitchen table with her Mother’s handwriting on it. She picked it up and read it whilst sloppily buttering some bread: Dear Roux, It said, We’ve gone to the Stave to get everything ready. Please tidy your room and the kitchen before we get back for lunch, we don’t know where the visitors will stay yet so we need to be prepared. Thank you, P.S. Don’t think we’re done talking about yesterday. As Lilian read the note she could hear her mother’s voice in her head. She only called her Roux when she was trying to be nice, “Roux red Roux she said, “Red like the tangled hair on your head”. Her Mum clearly felt guilty about shouting last night, but not so guilty as to not put that little reminder at the end.
Lilian sighed and casually wiped jam off her cheek. Looking around, the old cramped kitchen was in dire need of a scrub. The butter and crumbs from breakfast were falling on to the floor where signs of last night’s shouting match could still be seen. There was a large green splat on the wall where Lilian had thrown her bowl of broth. There were shards of glass on the side table from where her father had accidentally knocked a picture off the wall. Lilian glanced over at the sink, the pile of pans and and dirty dishes was almost taller than she was and her heart sank at the prospect of a very boring morning of cleaning, followed by an afternoon of being yelled at again. She sighed and huffed and puffed but eventually realised that no amount of pouting had the power to clean a plate, so she grabbed the kitchen pale and went outside to collect water from the creek. It had clearly rained during the night, so the short journey down the steps to the water was more treacherous than usual. On her way back up she slipped a couple of times and got angry at herself for losing so much water before even having reached the kitchen. Her temper brought her mind back to the previous day. ‘It was only a bit of paint’ she sulked as she poured a splash of water into the sink and mixed in some lye soap. Her father had called her ‘malicious and irresponsible’, but Lilian didn’t understand how trying to brighten up the Padda Stone with some nice green paint and some blue spots could be seen as malicious. “I mean yes,” she thought, “It is the symbol of the town’s spirit, and everyone loves it. But it’s just a big grey statue of a toad at the end of the day isn’t it? I just thought it could use a bit of brightening up. Stupid smiling rock.”
The Padda Stone was Benlunar’s oldest and proudest sculpture. Some of the townsfolk swore that it was there even before the town was built, and that the buildings had actually been constructed around it. The statue looked like a giant grinning toad, it’s mouth was open wide and water from the mountain flowed out from it and into the lily-padded pools and ponds beneath it. Even Lilian had to admit that it was a beautiful thing and by the time the last plate had been dried and put back on the shelf she could finally admit that she was jealous of it. She knew how ridiculous that sounded. Jealous of a statue? Who’d ever heard of such a thing. But it wasn’t the rock itself that Lilian envied. It was the love and admiration it got from all who saw it. She somehow had thought that by painting or damaging the rock, she could be seen to be larger, lovelier and more admired. At the very least, she would be seen. Her parents were builders and were always working in some far off corner of the town. She didn’t really get on with her class mates, and her teacher, Madame Streng had almost given up trying to teach her anything. She spent most of her time at home reading or hunting flipsies in the creek. And all the while people would flock to see that stupid rock, ‘old toady’ she called it, which never failed to produce a stern look from her Mum.
When Lilian finally wiped the last trace of soup off the wall, she turned to have a look at her handywork. The kitchen almost sparkled with cleanliness. Lilian wanted to shut the door quietly and never use another plate, so that her work would not be ruined. The patch of sun from the skylight in the kitchen ceiling told her that it must be nearly midday and that her parents will probably be back soon for lunch. Lilian decided to head towards the Stave and meet them on their way back, she knew she would have to apologise to everyone eventually, and, much like cleaning a kitchen, the sooner she started, the sooner it would be done.
Lilian breathed in the fresh mountain air as she closed her front door behind her. It was shaping up to be a sunny Spring and although the air still had a slight winter chill in it, the snow along the path banks had all but melted. The snow on the mountain top above the village was of course still there, and would likely stay there until the middle of Summer. Lilian’s house was down stream, towards the bottom of town so she had to walk up the muddy, wet path up towards the town centre. She didn’t mind though, she enjoyed spotting the snowdrops that were beginning to appear underneath the newly flowering trees. It was nice to see such bright colours in the canopy, thought Lilian, the end of winter is always so dreary and dark. Gradually, the tall wooden spire of the stave church got closer. It was by far the biggest building in Benluner and one of only 3 of its kind. The Stave Churches were old and wooden, built in tiers and layers by carefully arranging planks of wood, not a single screw or nail could be found in the whole building. Inside, the townspeople would gather and sing songs and pray to which ever God was being celebrated that time of year, or just one they thought might be lacking attention.
The front of the Stave looked out onto a small square where there were sometimes markets, or puppet shows or even Summer dances. This day however was a visiting day and Benlunar was preparing to welcome a host of strangers that would have travelled up from various cities. Some came to relax and drink the healing water, others came to touch and pay respects to the Padda Stone. What ever the reason, everyone in town was busily preparing for their arrival. Cityfolk were known to have fat purses and would pay a little extra just for something to remember their trip by. Lilian saw Xander and Liny piling some pies onto a table, the co-owners of Benlunar’s only Inn, The Fox and Octopus, Liny’s keen business mind was only matched by the deliciousness of Xander’s famous pies. Their smell beckoned Lilian forward.
‘Ah ah’ snapped Liny, noticing Lilian’s eyes widening, ‘you can have one if there are any left over’
‘But there are never any left over!’ complained Lilian
‘Well then you’ll have to buy one’ smiled Xander as his hands deftly positioned each pie so that it caught the sun in the most appealing way. Liny kept a keen and cunning eye on her merchandise whilst her husband worked.
‘Have you seen my Mum and Dad?’ Asked Lilian. She noticed Xander and Liny glance at each other before answering. “They’re in the Stave” Said Liny, “They told us what happened yesterday, you know Brother Thomas has been cleaning the Padda Stone all morning..”
Lilian felt her stomach turn, she was embarrassed and quickly looked away.
“Here” Whispered Xander “For Brother Thomas” He handed her a delicious looking pie that smelt of rhubarb and cream. Lilian wanted nothing more than to eat it there and then, but she knew what Xander was doing and she thanked him before heading towards the large wooden doors of Benlunar’s central Stave Church.
The Large church hall wasn’t just a place of worship, it was where important town decisions were made and various people were voted for into positions that Lilian didn’t really understand. The walls were covered in tapestries, large colourful carpets that showed the mountains and the moon, the river and the valley and even one with the gormless toady face of the padda stone. The carpets softened the echoes slightly but the circular nature of the main hall meant that even the slightest whisper could be heard as clearly as the churches bowl bells. So when Lilian poked her head round the large wooden doors covered in carved frogs, she could hear the words of Brother Thomas, who was talking to a couple in the middle of the hall.
“I’m just thankful it washed off easily, she might have used iron based paste, and then we’d all be in trouble!” To Lilian’s surprise, he was smiling.
“All the same” Lilian recognized her Mother’s voice, “She’s gotten worse the past few weeks. Restless, argumentative and the language she uses, well let’s just say I don’t think she learned it from school”
Just then, Brother Thomas looked up and saw Lilian, creeping forward. Her parents turned to look at her, they both wore concerned expressions and didn’t seem to have gotten much sleep last night. Lilian’s father saw the pie and understood.
“Lilian. I think you have something to say to Brother Thomas”
Lilian suddenly felt very tired herself. Her throat began to hurt and she could feel tears building in her eyes. She held out the pie like a shield and whispered,
“I’m sorry Brother Thomas” The Church fellow looked as though he was ready to forgive her, but her mother’s face told her that wasn’t going to be enough. Lilian went on.
“I didn’t mean to break the Padda Stone, I just, I didn’t think, you know? I wanted to paint it, so I got the colours and thought it might look funny but now I know, you know, I know really that it’s precious and important and so yes I’m very sorry I promise I won’t do it again” The pie began to get very heavy in her hands and she was thankful that Brother Thomas knelt down to take it from her.
“Now now,” he said, his kind eyes reassuring her “The stone is not broken, it was merely decorated for a while”
“It was vandalised” Lilian’s father interrupted
“I wouldn’t go that far,” replied Brother Thomas, “How about we all agree that it was spruced up without permission, I think it’s clear that Lilian is very sorry and if it meant that I got a pie from the the Fox & Octopus everytime I had to do some washing, well let’s just say this church would be as clean as gold piece and I’d be too big to fit through the doors”
Lilian smiled, she looked at her Mum and saw that even she was beginning to soften, although it might take more than one joke to calm her Father.
“Why don't we all have a sit down this evening and we can talk about what Lilian would like to do over the coming weeks. I think she’s becoming a little too clever for Ms Streng’s class and it might be time that she joins in in helping around the town.” On this last note Lilian’s parents both seemed pleased but Lilian’s stomach was doing somersaults. What did he mean ‘helping around the town’? Was Lilian going to be given a job? She was too young to be put to work, she had things to learn, games to play and books to read. Not to mention that she hadn’t even caught one flipsy!
Just then the wooden doors flew open and Brother Ulnar stumbled through them. No one knew how old brother Ulnar was but Lilian remembered her Mum saying once that he had been an old man even when she was a baby, so Lilian thought he must be at least 104.
“They’ve come Brother” He croaked, almost tripping over his tattered robes in excitement. Brother Thomas turned to Lilian’s parents: “Edward, Polly, I’ll see you this evening. Goodbye Lilian thanks again for the pie.” Lilian watched as the pie seemed to disappear into Brother Thomas’ long sleeve as he walked towards the doors.
She followed him, not wanting to talk with her parents just yet and in seconds she was back in the Spring sunshine. In the short time she had been in the Stave Church the little square outside had transformed. Whereas before there had been just a few townsfolk setting up stalls, there was now a great many people milling around, inspecting the various wears of the Benlunar locals, buying pies and sweet caramel honey combs. The little wind up wooden toads resembling the Padda Stone seemed to be a particular favourite amongst the newcomers. Every 3 weeks from now until the end of Summer Benlunar would look like this. “I suppose that’s the price we pay” Thought Lilian “For living somewhere so beautiful”. Lilian looked around for Brother Thomas but he had already been swallowed up by the crowd. She walked amongst the visitors, admiring their bright city clothes. Occasionally she would see someone dressed more like her, but they were usually servants or vallets responsible for looking after the many horses that brought the cityfolk up through the hills and forests.
“I’ve been travelling for almost two weeks!” She heard one portly gentlemen say, dressed in a bright orange doublet, “I swear, one more day and I would have thought our guides were leading us off to be lost, ransomed off to our loved ones like cattle.” Lilian smiled at his exaggeration but just then a cold shiver swept over her. She turned to see who the gentleman was speaking to and she found herself looking at an older man dressed in a dark, shimmering cloak. It looked like a lake reflecting the night’s sky. It even had the occasional pearl or silver button that looked like stars in the darkness. He didn’t wear any jewelry but he had a white beard, and a bald head and his cold grey eyes were looking directly at Lilian.
As soon as she met them however, he turned to look back at the larger man who was now going on about how he hoped the mountain air might cure his rheumatism.
“My friend,” The old man’s voice cut through the hubbub of the crowd like a knife through butter, “This fresh air might very well do wonders for Rheumatism, but it will not help you in the slightest.”
The orange gentlemen looked confused, “Um.. why not.”
“Because you have gout” The orange man was taken aback. And then, suddenly he began to laugh. “Hahaha I knew I shouldn’t have trusted that quack in Bonneville”
“Indeed.” Said the bearded stranger as he reached into the depths of his cloak, “The air and water here will do you good no doubt but if you wish to rid yourself completely of pain I suggest you take two of these a day.” He handed the Gentleman a small bottle of purple sweets, or were they pills thought Lilian. The Gentleman looked shocked and pleased.
“Why thank you Good sir, what do I owe you?”
“My Lord,” Said the stranger, “I require no payment. Only the pleasure of seeing you back in the city, to check if my remedy has worked.”
“Granted!” said the orange gentleman, pleased with how this conversation had gone. Now he could enjoy his time in Benlunar without the fear of his condition worsening.
Lilian detected no smile or trick from the bearded man, and she was usually very good at spotting when someone was trying to play a joke. Lilian she was so distracted by the conversation the she wasn’t looking where she was going and she stumbled headlong into her mother’s flowing blue skirt.
“There you are!” She said to Lilian. “Come along, let’s go home and eat, there are too many people here and our work in the market is done.” Lilian threw one more glance behind her, but the crowd had shifted once again and the two men were gone.
For the rest of the day Lilian said very little. Every harsh word, every judgement from her parents were like bricks slowly forming into a wall around her. Within this shell the outside world couldn’t hurt her so much.
“See!” Her father exclaimed over dinner, “She’s not even listening.” Lilian looked up from her untouched bread and stew. Her father’s face was red and her mother looked close to tears. Lilian wanted to rage, to shout back, to say that not only WAS she listening that she had heard it all before a thousand times. She wanted to say that she was sorry to be such a disappointment, that she was sorry to not be perfect like Kilde, or one of the Bergren kids, that she was sorry to have ever even been born and why had no one thanked her for cleaning the kitchen!!? She wanted to scream it all but instead she said nothing. She ate nothing. She did nothing but build the walls thicker around her, to hide away alone with her heart. Suddenly a tear found a secret passageway and escaped out of her fortress, making its way to freedom by running down her cheek. Her parents must have noticed it as the atmosphere in the kitchen changed. Her father stopped yelling and breathed out a large sigh.
“I suppose it’s my fault really.” He said, “We’ve been so busy all winter repairing the town, and fixing the upper bridge in time for Spring that we’ve neglected you. I’m sorry if that’s the case Lilian. You know we love you and I for one am going to do better from now.”
To Lilian, this was worse than any argument, she would rather have her Dad rage, roar at the top of his lungs, scream at her send her to her room without food ever again than to see him do this. To watch him deflate and blame himself for something she did. Lilian couldn’t handle it, and she found herself standing up, opening the kitchen door and running out into the cold air, tears stinging in her eyes and the concerned voices of her parents fading and echoing behind her.
The night was cold and Lilian panted thick clouds of breath as she stumbled up the path towards the town centre. Nearing the square she could hear the crowds from inside the the church and the Inn, the visitors were always greeted with a big party but Lilian didn’t want to face people just now. She found her feet carrying her away from the noise and down through the back alleys and side streets towards the outskirts of town. Down, around and out through the back of the lodge and up towards the mountain path. By the time she crossed the tree line she was no longer paying attention to where she was going. All she knew as she replayed the events and conversations of the past 3 months in her head over and over again was that she wanted to get away. Her tears were freezing to her cheeks now as she found the last of the winter snow. It crunched under her feet and she realised she had left Benlunar far behind her. She stopped. Looked up. And realised where she was. The snow shone in the moonlight and illuminated the ponds and flowers around her. Above her she saw the mountain from which the town got its name, and above that she saw the moon. The biggest, roundest, brightest moon she had ever seen. It seemed so close it was as if it was balancing on the snow capped mountain peak. The light from the moon flowed down the hills across the snow and into the river and the river flowed through the mouth of the giant stone toad in front her. For a moment, Lilian forgot all her troubles. She was paralysed by the beauty of her surroundings. How could she ever have wanted to damage such a wonderful thing, she thought. For a second she stood still, listening to the trickling of water and the soft scurrying of any nearby woodland creature. In the distance, she heard an owl hooting and she found herself calming down. She took a deep, cold breath and was about to shut her eyes when she realised, she was not alone.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement. Coming out of the tree line, about 100 yards ahead of her, toward the base of the Padda Stone, a shadowy figure emerged. Lilian stood very still, knowing that the slightest movement would alert this person to her presence, the way their motion had alerted her. She was stood amongst tall grass and she realised that the moonlight was making everything around her, including her hair, a shimmering blue/grey colour. She watched as the figure walked towards the stone toad. They were not rushing, nor did they seem to be sneaking around, but the mere fact that they were here in the first place seemed strange to Lilian. The rest of the guests were drinking and dancing in town and the Benlunar locals could visit the stone at any time, so why bother coming in the middle of a cold night? As the figure reached the edge of the largest pond, the one directly beneath the Mouth of the Padda Stone, it knelt down and produced a small black bag. Lilian could hear the slight clinking of glass as they reached into the bag and pulled out a set of what seemed to be empty bottles and vials. Just then, they froze as something had caught their attention. Lilian was worried that she had been spotted but instead the stranger stood up and looked in the opposite direction. They were looking up towards the moon, at the top of the mountain. Lilian followed their gaze and at once saw what had captured their attention. The snow on the peak was now brighter than ever, and the moon was practically touching it. Lilian felt her eyes widen in amazement as she saw what appeared to be liquid flowing off the moon and down the side of the mountain. It was as if the moon was bleeding or crying and the mountain was catching every tear. The liquid was bright silver and flowed slowly over and under the snow on the mountain face. Lilian had never been so still, she realised that she hadn’t taken a breath in ages and slowly breathed in the cold air once more. A strange energy seemed to fill her lungs, like when you breathe in a delicious smell and although she couldn’t put her finger on what the air smelled of, she knew that she wanted to breathe it all in at once. She almost forgot about the stranger and when she glanced back they seemed to be just as taken in by this wondrous sight as she was. Slowly the silver liquid flowed down the mountain and after about 10 minutes it had reached the stream that flowed through the mouth of the Padda Stone. Once it hit the old grey toad Lilian almost wept at the sight. The shimmering light liquid flowed around the stone and into every crack and crevice of its body. It also fell from its mouth and created a cloud of light in the pond below. Once it hit the water, the stranger was spurred into action. They unstoppered one of their many bottles and began walking into the pond. The liquid shone all around them now and Lilian could see them more clearly. She saw a bald head and a grey beard and a cloak as dark as a starry sky. She recognized the man as the mysterious doctor from the market. The silver and pearls on his cloak reflected the moonlight as he held out his hands and started filling his first bottle with the liquid light falling from the mouth of the stone toad. Lilian watched as he filled first one, then two, three, four more and more bottles until all of them were filled and stoppered and placed back in the bag. Lilian counted 18 in total. As he waded out of the pond and back on the bank she saw that he was smiling. It was the smile of a done deed, one that had been accomplished after much planning and patience. The smile quickly faded however when the man looked up and stared directly at Lilian. Lilian didn’t think it was possible to be any more still, but like a mouse in the sights of an owl she prayed that her movement would not betray her position. The man’s eyes seemed to be searching, making sure that his hunch was correct. He was about to take a step towards her, about to shout or say something when the Padda stone opened its eyes.
Benlunar - Trailer
Listen to the original trailer for Benlunar with music by Tom Figgins. First episodes to be released on the 20th of January 2020.