Nárilethál: the Song of the Forgotten One

Urth
21

Nepámir then began to walk east, towards the Cliff. Right after he left back the parade’s multitude, he witnessed Toré deprived of any inhabitants. When he had left the last house behind, the night was hegemonic, and he then proceeded to light the torch so he could see beyond the shadows. He picked a branch from one of the many bushes in that windy area, a bigger branch of dragon tree he had picked from his house, and placed his body in order to protect the sparkle he was about to bring into life. So he did, rubbing the little branch with both hands as he had learned in childhood from his father, until he could see smoke arising. He then moved the torch in, and it was lit, at the expense of the boy’s left hand getting burnt as well. He let a little scream of pain out, and for a moment wished to return back, alone in the dark and deprived of his parents’ safety, but then, he could hear a familiar voice behind him:

‘For Hwésta’s sake, Népa! Do you really need a torch? This night is one of the brightest I remember.’

‘Káril!!! You could have said hello at least!’ answered Nepámir, now staring at the young Hwéstale and his companion.

‘Pardon me, lord of blisters’, replied Káril. You will be filled with them in your hands tomorrow, attending to the scream you have just let out. Thankfully, your beloved Káril Hwéstale is here. Show me your hands.’

Qúnsir whispered to Káril: ‘Sir, you have just revealed your identity to him’.

‘That should be no source of worry to you anymore. He knows fully who I am.’

Nepámir gave the torch to Qúnsir, and showed then his palms to Káril. He grabbed them, and, to the surprise of the fisher boy, Káril asked him to put them onto his chest. Something nobody should in any way do to a son of Hwésta.

‘Come on Népa, touch my chest with the burnt area of your hands. Trust me, once more.’

To his amazement, Nepámir felt Káril’s chest cold as the eastern tides, near the depths of the sea. He then felt calmed again, as he had not been in a long time, and he could not find pain anymore in his wounds. He took his hands off Káril’s chest and could see them unpolluted, deprived of aches he had now discovered he had for the first time. Káril now moved his hand to Nepámir’s shoulder, and laughed at the panic in his friend’s face:

‘What on… Káril, did you just… Cure my wounds?’

‘Did you really think that the Hwéstaler are only blessed with the utter boredom of ruling a country? Sometimes, and I would say, most of the times, tales are true. Yes, we have the power of healing. So take off the horror in your face, and let’s continue walking. My friend is probably awaiting on the Cliff, she always arrives early.’

He indeed knew that Hwésta was the master of healing, but Nepámir was completely ignorant on the ability of her successors. He did not stop looking at his friend’s chest, but did not see anything out of the usual in it. Káril could not stop laughing while Nepámir was staring at him, and the fisher alternated between admiration and annoyance towards him, blushing consequently.

‘Here we are, esteemed friend. Look, I told you, she has already arrived.’

Nepámir recognised the way Káril’s friend walked. When she was nearer to his torch, he opened his eyes widely and, to his own surprise, called her by a name he had long ago not called anybody by. One he thought he would never link anymore to anyone he would meet, and even less to a friend of the heir of Matorélik:

‘Anqáli?’

22

‘Yes?’ said Anqáli in her confusion.

‘Don’t you know me anymore, friend?’ asked Nepámir

‘I…’

‘I guess it has been a long time since I last went fishing, the smell must be gone. But look…’ Nepámir took his left hand to his chest.

‘Hold on… You? Befriended with Káril?’

‘You have not even said my name, Anqáli.’

‘But I am about to. Come here, you fool sweetheart: I want to hug my oldest friendship, whose appearance has changed but still goes by the name of Nepámir.’

Nepámir could not feel or think for a moment, since the sudden amount of feelings in his chest had blinded his senses. Even when his still recent childhood had been a nice one, his memories were starting to fade in his teenage. What once was yesterday, now were glittering shadows confused in his inner timeline. Anqáli’s shape had survived the challenge of time; so had done the memories with her, and the strongest of them, the amber shell only him and Anqáli had in their chest. Nepámir first saw it, and then showed his necklace to his friend. Anqáli realised immediately who he was, and they hugged each other for the first time in years.

‘About your question: yes, I can call Káril my friend, and a good one’ replied Nepámir.

‘You could have been a bit less direct to the point, Anqáli’ Káril joined the conversation.

‘I could have been if Anqáli was not my name’ she answered. ‘Get better at learning.’

Nepámir could not avoid a little laugh.

‘Why should Népa be laughing now?’ Káril said, walking towards Nepámir. ‘Perhaps he should not say a word?’

‘I will say every word I want’ answered Nepámir. ‘Seems like Anqáli already knows about your impertinence. You cannot escape from us both.’

‘Unfortunate, truly.’ Káril let out the mixture of a sigh and laughter.

23

Anqáli grabbed Nepámir and Káril from their arms: ‘come here, you both, and take a seat! You have arrived late enough so that I have been able to make a bonfire already. Qúnsir! Come with us too, don’t stay behind.’

The four sat around the splendid bonfire Anqáli had prepared. It was not a cold night, but the wind was strong and cold that night, so Anqáli was sitting with her back facing the wind’s direction in order to keep the fire alive. Nepámir could not avoid to think about the situation he was in: suddenly, he had found his childhood’s friend again, and she was apparently friend of his teenage’s friend. After a moment of silence and funny looks between all of them, Nepámir asked a rather serious question, but one he needed to address urgently:

‘What has happened with your life during all these years, Ánqa? I thought I would never see you again’

‘That is the issue: nothing at all’ answered Anqáli.

‘I’m not joking. I still keep on asking my parents if they know anything about you or your family. I thought you had moved out of the island or even that you were not alive anymore and that it was the reason why nobody told us anything about you.’

‘Well’ Anqáli started, ‘one can suppose I did not die, since I am here, speaking to you. However, didn’t I? Time has passed by me during these years and has taken anything similar I had to what we understand as “life”. Anything remotely near of happiness was answered by denial. My parents’ death left me uncapable of speaking for weeks: all I did was playing alone, ignoring the presence of my grandparents, and I was punished for it.’

Anqáli met the concern in Nepámir’s face, so she continued: ‘Now all this is very far away in time and I can speak without trouble about it, but for a year I limited myself to do whatever my grandparents ordered me to do. You know how I hate that, and it got worse since I was growing up. I hated my grandparents, they could not replace my parents. No one will.’

‘And that is when I understood I had made up my mind enough to escape and live by myself. One night I left the prison my grandparents’ home was, and I wandered around the island for around a week. I had never felt so happy: I was finally embracing my loneliness, and I got to see many places of Toré I had never known of. I explored the forests around the mountain, slept with the only company of the útair’s chant* and discovered this cliff we are in now: Péqo’s Cliff.’

‘I did not have much problem with food: as you, Népa, know well, I was very capable of fishing on my own, and I am quick in lighting fire, but I was turning ill. A tick attacked me and, when I took it off, it was for the worse of the wound it left me. The last night I slept here, two people appeared in the distance, the same two people with us both now. Káril explained me how this cliff is consecrated in honour of Péqo, the god who takes care of our emotions and senses. I am not good at retaining knowledge of these sorts, so Káril, you are welcome to explain this whole thing to Népa’

24

‘Sure, Ánqa’ answered Káril, and then proceeded to explain: ‘Péqo, as you may know, is the god in charge of our emotions and senses. In this cliff you can see the sunrise and the sunset, and then contemplate all the lights of the past above; you can watch the entirety of Toré if you turn your back, and if you look ahead, some people with more knowledge than I can provide say that the sea will communicate with you. Ánqa told me that the night she spent here, she was able to perceive lights in the horizon and a rumour of their voices.’

‘Indeed, friend.’ Anqáli continued: 'When Káril and Qúnsir arrived, I was putting my efforts in understanding those rumours. I am not sure if the illness was starting to affect my sanity so nothing of what I perceived was real, but I managed to get a word from that formless noise:

“…the arrival…”

When Káril and Qúnsir arrived, the first thing I did was asking them what were those voices in the sea saying. They did not answer (and they should have, with at least one word!)’

‘Are you still reprimanding me for not answering you?’ Káril interrupted. ‘I was rather shocked, Ánqa! You were unknown to me, you were dirty after days out of home, and you were speaking to me about voices in the sea. You should be thankful that my first impulse was curing you! How am I supposed to…’

‘Enough, Káril’ whispered Qúnsir, and Káril stopped his ranting. Nepámir stared at the scene and listened to the continuation of Anqáli’s story:

‘You keep on surprising me when you, the ultimate joker, get so offended with certain stuff. Regardless; as Káril was saying, Népa, he healed the wound with his only touch, and took me to his palace. I was definitely amazed by how I had just been cured in such a way, how it had been the Mórna’s son himself, and how he had taken me to his abide, but somehow I saw in him someone I could trust fondly. You know well how I dislike liars and how well I can distinguish them, so I can congratulate you for choosing to be with Káril. This lovely friend provided me good food and clothing, and later he explained me how what I saw and heard in the cliff could have been the action of Péqo intensifying my senses.’

25

‘So, have you stayed with Káril all this time?’ Nepámir asked, amazed by all he was hearing from Anqáli.

'Yes, I was getting there. I stayed around two weeks in the palace, Káril accepted me solemnly as member of the court, and I started to attend the morzhán as members of my age from the court are supposed to. It was, however, a real source of boredom. I appreciated Káril’s fellows there, but when I got the opportunity, I just left it. Káril and Qúnsir tried to stop me, but I did not realise the trouble I was getting into, so I ignored their warnings and stopped attending the morzhán.

Time went by peacefully in the palace. I helped to paint new scenes in the walls; one of them was about your granddad’s adventures, Népa! I did not know if we would meet again, but I believed that way I could make that story everlasting in a palace of the Hwéstaler.’

Káril interrupted again: ‘Wait, are you referring to the Grand Expedition’s depiction, Ánqa?’

‘Yes, indeed’ answered Anqáli.

Káril stood in silence for a few seconds. Nepámir felt a sudden flame burn all around his body.

‘Who was your grandfather, Népa?’ asked Káril. ‘If only he was…’

‘I will tell you,’ answered Nepámir, ‘but only if you three promise to not reveal it to anyone. I do not wish this information to be known, neither do my parents.’

‘For Hwésta’s sake… I can’t ever keep my mouth shut’ said Anqáli, with a face worried to the extreme. She came next to Nepámir and grabbed his arm: ‘Sorry for getting you into this situation, Népa. What a way to meet again with you; please accept my apologies. I did not know it would suppose an issue.’

‘You are fine, Anqáli. Now,’ Nepámir insisted, ‘I beg you all to keep secrecy about this topic.’

‘You have my word, old friend’, Anqáli promised.

‘I wish you deposit your trust in me’, Káril continued. ‘I will not open my mouth.’

‘And neither I will’, Qúnsir said.

‘Alright…’ Nepámir proceeded to reveal his grandfather’s identity, but could not continue for a while. He was completely paralysed.

‘Népa? You don’t need to do it if you don’t wish to’, Káril said.

A minute passed until Nepámir pronounced his grandfather’s name with a trembling voice.

‘Alég Mainéas.’

26

Nepámir started to sob inconsolably after he revealed his father’s identity. Káril moved fast in surprise and put one arm over Nepámir’s shoulder, while he tried to calm his friend with the following words:

‘Népa, I have spent years asking who Alég Mainéas was and what was his fate. I considered impossible that such a key piece in our family’s history suddenly disappeared from all records. Anqáli was the only one to tell me she used to be friend of a Nepámir who was descendant of his, but I did not know you were that same Nepámir! The other answers I have got, especially from my mother’s end, have been silence. I will keep the secret, if that is your wish, but I want you to know how exciting it is for me that I have befriended the grandson of Alég Mainéas himself!’

Káril saw the tears all around Nepámir’s face and hugged him. ‘There’s no need to keep this conversation alive. I am definitely curious to get to know the fate of such an important figure, but I will not feed this curiosity anymore.’

‘I am deeply thankful, Káril. I agree with you: it is time to speak about any other topic but this.’

Anqáli sat next to Nepámir too, deeply concerned for what she considered a mistake on her side. Nepámir wanted her to feel better, so he asked her the following:

‘What was, then, the issue about abandoning the morzhán?’

'Oh, yes, that was what triggered all of the previous conversation. Right, so when I left the morzhán I broke with the duties of my position inside Káril’s court. We decided to let it be since it did not suppose any issues with my presence in the court for the following times, but that changed when my grandfather found me. I knew that would eventually happen, so I rarely let myself be seen in the streets, but, despite not seeing him, my grandfather recognised me next to Káril in a visit we made to the market. Two days later he visited the palace and requested the presence of Káril and myself, since he claimed that his granddaughter had been taken unfairly by the Hwéstaler. We had to come up with a quick solution: I did not want to return to his house, but I did not have any duties in the court so my grandfather could claim his family rights over me, as he did when your parents, Népa, tried that I could join your family.

Then, Káril and I met with him. He revealed that my grandmother had just died of an illness in her stomach, and reprimanded me with loud words for not trying to return and not caring about their situation during these years. Of course I didn’t want to return to that prison! It does not matter how old he is, he has not learnt anything. He kept me in that house as a servant, when I was a kid and needed the attention your family would have provided me instead…

In any case, the proposal we agreed with him was that I was to become Káril’s wife in the future, but it would not be announced until the next visit of the Mórna to Toré. In exchange, he would get protection and any help he needed from the Hwéstaler. He has not cared that I will definitely be gone from his side, if that way he can get any good for himself. I do not want to mention this individual anymore, at least with my own mouth.’

27

Nepámir stared at Anqáli silent for a moment, unsure of what to say. That had been a dense story to store in his mind.

‘I did not wish to bother you with such a narrative, Népa’ Anqáli said. ‘I am sorry.’

‘Do not be, Ánqa’ Nepámir replied. ‘I am just uncertain of what to answer, given the considerable amount of events happening to you during these years. I can take a favourable conclusion for you, and that is how you will stay where you wanted to and with the people you love. And… are you and Káril truly in love with each other, or is it just to ensure your position in the court?’

Káril replied: ‘No, our love is not of the kind that can make people marry each other. That is something we are both sure of, but it is a price I am willing to pay so Anqáli has the life she wants at last.’

‘In fact,’ Anqáli continued, ‘I doubt I will ever feel with someone the attraction Káril mentioned. For some, the nineteen years we have been alive is already enough to decide who they will marry with, but I have never felt such attraction and I consider it a matter of older people. I want to feel the joy this life has ready for me, I do not want any duties!’

‘You said “nothing had happened” in your life during these years’, Nepámir intervened. ‘I see lies within those words.’

‘If I lied, it was because I did not want this long narrative to start, my dearest!’ Anqáli said, laughing.

‘Alright, we have heard enough sorrows tonight’, Káril said. The next I wish to hear is music!’

‘I am sure Népa has something that at least I have never seen before’, Anqáli said, suddenly.

‘You surprise me with your certainty about something I have hidden so well. But yes, here I bring an innovation over the kólta that I have been designing for some time.’

Nepámir showed the instrument he had designed to his friends: ‘Two weeks ago I had an idea. When playing the kólta, we need to keep a certain amount of air inside our cheeks. However, that air could be kept elsewhere, and that way our efforts would be lessened. I have picked the kólta I had at home, together with a bag I used for water and an emptied old tree branch, so I could do the following: blow my air through the branch into the bag, make pressure onto the bag with my arm, and place my fingers in the kólta for finding the appropriate tunes.’

Anqáli, Káril and Qúnsir could not take the amazement from their faces. ‘How did it happen so you had that incredible idea, Nepámir? I am willing to hear how your kólta sounds’ Qúnsir said.

‘It just happened. I tend to have these ideas, for reasons I am yet to be aware of’, Nepámir responded.

‘Shall we sing along with you?’ Káril asked.

‘As you wish’ Nepámir answered, proceeding to play his kólta.

28

‘Right! That’s Estréle’ Qúnsir guessed the melody Nepámir was playing. ‘Certainly a good choice for this common friendship that this night’s stars are witnessing the birth of.’ Anqáli, Káril and Qúnsir opened their mouths and let their air become symphony:

As the sea grows away and skies rule over
The might of our one will not fall apart.
As the sea grows away and skies rule over
The love of Estré is with us.

He will fabricate links, he will embellish them
We will never be left on our own on the Urçá
He will fabricate links, he will embellish them
They will bring beauty back to our side.

I call him on this crucial hour:*
My love will make me last until I am but ash in the sea.
I call him on this crucial hour:
May I die before I see my loved ones lie dead.

*Úzhema in Cukish: literally, the concept of “cutting” (from the verb -úzh-), hence, “division”, understood in the “crucial moment” or “crucial hour” this translation reflects.

29

So it was sung, and a brief silence filled the air around the bonfire. “There’s some fine night upon us, right?” Káril broke the silence, as usual, but his attempt to generate a conversation seemed to be an utter failure, but Nepámir managed to continue weaving Káril’s thread:

“It is a fine night, but I am afraid it needs to come to its end. It is late, and we have affairs to attend tomorrow. It has been the best night I’ve had in a while, and certainly not a mistake to follow your crazy idea, Káril, after I feared it would be so. Who could’ve known no other than Anqáli would be your friend…”

Káril let a little laugh fly out from his white teeth. Qúnsir had some words prepared:

“Would you all be ready for a libation? I think an invocation to Péqo would be perfect for you three to close this outstanding night before all of us return to our homes.”

“Why shouldn’t we? Pronounce the words and we will pronounce the invocation” answered Anqáli.

Qúnsir proceeded to begin the invocation, which Nepámir, Káril and Anqáli sang it together:

“I invoke Péqo, the one who sees amidst the uncertain, surrounded by the eternal sparkles. If our bonds of love are to be so, may they be throughout the ages, as long as memory of any sort can recall them. So be they crystalline reflection, when doubt takes possession of our existence, of what each of us are able to”.

30

Are you not able to hear it, boy? The Ancient One! It is the Ancient One, they and no other are the one summoning you

31

‘What is the matter, Mórnai?’

‘Why bother with asking?’ Ánfre replied to Qúnsir. ‘There has been too much going on the past night.’

Qúnsir feared the outcome of this conversation. The Mórna’s jokes were never safe.

‘Come. I was about to take a walk to the mountain’s slope. My words make more sense when I’m walking.’

‘What about Káril?’ Qúnsir asked.

‘I have not mentioned him.’

After they left the palace, they were welcomed by the storm. ‘Aréu is getting a new year ready’ Ánfre broke the silence, ‘and cleaning Fóras from the dirt. We will now unravel the secrets that lie beyond our scope.’

‘And we can now begin anew. It is beautiful indeed, Mórnai.’

‘Yes, if you look at it that way. This means that I will declare the new year tomorrow, before we depart to Volésen.’

Qúnsir could not hide a surprised face from Ánfre: ‘What about it, if I may ask, dear Mórnai?’

‘I will need more help than Aréu’s storms to solve a riddle. There is something going on, and I do not enjoy it. Do you?’

‘Why should I, Mórnai? I am unaware of what you are implying here.’

Qúnsir stumbled on a thick tree root, as they both were starting to cross the Forests of Nákel. The Mórna reacted by smirking.

‘That is what you say. The Mountain demurs, and I agree with it. I was well aware of everything even before my arrival.’

Qúnsir glanced at Ánfre with a bright interest in his eyes.

‘The Páte of Volésen. They are not just the ruler of that land, but a prophet too, as you already know. In my childhood, they predicted for me as follows:

“Fóras wrought sixteen years for you”

The Páte stricken us with such a strangely specific sentence. For a long time, we were afraid of my death at sixteen, but I am still here. Many people do not believe in their predictions, and most in the palace decided not to after that.’

‘I am inclined to agree as well, Mórnai’ Qúnsir interrupted. ‘Where are you leading us?’

‘To Nákelet Tavíti*. And to my own. This Aréu’s storm marks my sixteenth year of reign, and it would be wise to make sure everything is working the way it should, not the way a prophet marks. Regardless, out of my good will towards the Páte’s affairs, I also took my child to their dwelling. And the Páte’s words this time were “Fóras wrought that he gave way for the Lower.”

Qúnsir looked surprised. Káril always joked about the Páte’s predictions, and now it all seemed to make sense. Yet he was still missing something.

‘Qúnsir’ Ánfre continued, ‘you have served the Mórna with all your good will. I trust you will still do it for a long time. I have always distrusted my subjects for a good reason, as the Páte has shown and as you can now understand. It is for Hwésta’s sake that I rule, not for theirs, and as much as one may try to empathise with them, our plains are distinct enough for them to hold any appreciation for our works. They have their goals, we have our own. Of course one need not to make them clash: they shall coexist, but not mingle.’

The Mórna paused a moment and picked a large durína** branch to cover her face from the rain. She continued: ‘And I have not liked his friendship with Anqáli. She will distract him, together with this new friend he has made at the morzhán.’ Ánfre looked at Qúnsir and asked: ‘I want to know his name.’

‘I am afraid I do not know him yet, Mórnai.’

‘Do not lie to me, Qúnsir!’ Ánfre replied with a disturbing, inexpressive face. ‘I am very aware of your presence on the Cliff. I tolerate Káril’s tricks, but I will not let yours pass before my eyes.’

‘I would never lie to you, Mórnai, the most when I know the consequences it would bring.’

They both moved their eyes from each other towards the sky. They had arrived to Nákelet Tavíti, and Toré’s mountain rose before them and above the trees, covered by the new year’s storm.

‘I will not await the consequences of the Páte’s prediction, whether they end up taking place or not. I will take any decision that guarantees every single thing stays the way it must be. Káril may ignore me and play smart with me, but I am always a step ahead of him. And of you. And of Nepámir. For the good of us all.’

The growl of Aréu was followed by her lightning. It struck near the mountain’s hollow summit, bringing silence to their conversation until their return to Toré’s palace.

*Nákelet Tavíti: “Nákel’s Grief” in Old Cukish, an elevation in Toré’s slopes which rises from the forest and allows a magnificent view of the Mountain. The it was the last Nákel could see after Fóras claimed their life in exchange of founding Toré’s settlement. Ánfre plays here with Nákel’s grief and her own grief about the Páte’s predictions.

**Durína: a small Toréi tree with leaves larger than half of the average height.

32

‘Wake up, Nepámir!’

‘What do you mean? There isn’t any light outside yet’

Before Nepámir could close his eyes again, his father stood still in his place, not taking his look away from his son. Nepámir could not ignore him anymore.

‘Oh, can you just not… Please, I hate it.’

‘And it worked!’ Bórta laughed, only making Nepámir’s sleepy countenance more bitter than the northern waters. ‘You’ll wake up to no light today. Aréu’s storms have arrived, happy beginnings!’

Nepámir could finally stand up by himself and look for some of the food they had stored for breakfast. He could not find Nézhwa around.

‘Where’s mum?’ Nepámir asked loudly to his father, in the opposite corner of their house.

‘She departed some moments ago, to the dock. She was waiting for you to wake up and go with her, but you did not.’

‘In that case, I’ll catch her quickly.’

‘Népa, come back! You haven’t eaten ye-’

Everything turned into white in the blink of an eye. Then, the loudest of sounds invaded Bórta. He found himself running out his house’s door, and found his son lying on the ground, before the old tall tree next to the building, which was now covered in the spiralling red of flames.

‘NEPÁMIR!!!’

33

Are you not able to hear it, boy? The Ancient One! It is the Ancient One, they and no other are the one summoning you

34

After watching it, Nézhwa arrived running from the dock. ‘MY SON!! Népa stand up for the love of all the Sártor!!!’

‘Beloved parents! I am alive, but I don’t know what just happened. It made me fall down.’

‘Now stand up, son.’ Nepámir grabbed his father’s arms with both his hands, and felt his head in pain. ‘The tree!’

Nézhwa hugged his son, as did Bórta next. They were now surrounded by most of their neighbours, looking worried at Nepámir and inspecting the tree. ‘From the distance, I’ve been able to distinguish it. It was lightning, and it seemed as if it had hit our home or one of our neighbour’s. I am glad it has just been the tree.’

Despite the constant rain, the flames would not stop devouring the tree. ‘We ought to get some Protectors here and stay away from the tree’s flames. Go, Nézhwa.’

‘I am already here, Bórta’ a neighbour answered. ‘I used to be a Protector, and this tree is safe from hitting any house. It will just continue to burn.’

A few moments later, one of the branches fell and rolled next to the neighbour’s house. ‘Glad that we are getting more than Protectors here…’

A small committee of Hwésta’s Lovers appeared in the distance. The Mórna was there, together with Káril, whose eyes’ shape became round when he saw Nepámir standing next to the burning tree.

‘Aréu has struck this place. Her word is declaimed, and Hwésta will judge.’

Káril stepped forward, ignoring Nepámir in presence of his mother. He took his hands off the sleeves covering him from the rain and touched the trunk without any hurt from the fire or the smoke. Both of these seemed to avoid his touch, as did Aréu’s water: each teardrop fell across his cloak and all of them were absorbed by the tree. Soon, there were no more flames left, and the fire seemed to have left no ashes at all.

‘No danger is left for you, beloved Toréir’ Ánfre spoke up. ‘It is time now for the Mórna to speak with Nepámir.’

Nepámir and his parents, together with Káril, were struck by the Mórna’s knowledge of Nepámir’s name. Before any of them could even react, one of Hwésta’s Lovers advanced towards Nepámir and grabbed him harshly from the arm. His parents ran next to them both:

‘I have said “Nepámir”!’

Nézhwa got the Lover’s arm away from her son, and shouted: ‘we are going with him!’

Ánfre answered: ‘I have said “Nepámir”!’

‘We implore you! What is the reason for this???’

Two of Hwésta’s Lovers grabbed their axes of obsidian in the air. Káril could not believe what his eyes were witnessing: ‘HALT!!’ he ordered.

They did halt, and stood still, only after the Lover escorting Nepámir fell to the ground. The guard had been hit by an obsidian arrow.

‘Your feign words shall be no more, Ánfre!!! Pay due respects to Alég Mainéas and the Toréir, or face the consequences!’

‘After that one!!’ Ánfre ordered the Lovers. Nepámir and his parents grabbed the opportunity and ran away with all their strength.

35

‘If anyone sees Nepámir Maineásele around the place, be it known that the Mórna will provide three years of supplies to his captor! He has ignored the Mórna’s ca-’

The crier’s life was swiftly taken by the unknown figure who had turned into Nepámir’s saviour. ‘She has chosen the path of obsidian, and I am not yet ready to allow what she wants to do to you.’

‘Wait, I know that voice’, Nepámir halted from running and stopped behind the walls of the last Toréi house.

‘Of course you do…’

The individual began taking off the clothes covering their face.

‘Qúnsir!?’ Nepámir stopped breathing for a moment. ‘Why are you willing to do this? The Mórna will deprive you from everything’

‘Even my life if she wills’ Qúnsir replied. ‘You would think I have not been waiting for this moment. I was born alone, and so I will die, not before revealing and accomplishing my true purpose: the fall of the Mórnaship, as demanded, by Carjada’s rule. Call me Stózh from this moment, and forget Qúnsir ever existed. We will have the time to talk later, now run!’

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36

The four rested for a moment after they had bordered the coast enough to see Toré in the same size as a finger’s tip.

‘Where are you taking us?’ Bórta panted. ‘Stózh?’

‘Out of this island. Ánfre does not know what she has done, she thinks very dearly of herself but she has the vision of a starfish. She will drag everyone around her to a fate she invented for herself.’

‘Out of this island??’ Nézhwa interrupted.

‘Hold on until I get there’ Stózh continued. ‘In short terms, Ánfre believes the Páte’s words, which foretell that Káril will “give way for the Lower” this year. Ánfre has learnt about Káril’s friendship with Anqáli and Nepámir, and she thinks they will mislead her son. Káril has never been as attached to his family’s tradition, also considering how Ánfre treats him and how he avoids her at all costs, so in any case, it would be Káril who should carry the blame of the Páte’s prophecy, not Népa. Her obsession will make her burn this city to ashes if needed: we need to go back to my land and inform the Kerzhád, to grab the Mórnaship’s debt with her own hands and to end with this madness.’

‘Why should we trigger an invasion of our land, Qúnsir?’ Nepámir asked.

‘Now, choose, Népa: your death, or the Mórna’s demise and the wellbeing of those who you love.’

‘But answer me!’ Nepámir demanded. ‘Káril! And Anqáli! They will pay for this, they will pay for my escape. Not all those who I love will stay well.’

‘There are stronger fists than the Mórna’s in the horizon. I ought to return to the west and complete my task. And you will have the chance to live if you follow me. My colleagues have secured a couple of ships in a cave nearby, full with supplies for a long journey to the Kerzhád’s seat, Úgrima. That’s where we’ll be heading to.’

‘Can’t we return for a moment and pick both Káril and Anqáli with us? I do not ask for more, they are not attached to their people anymore.’

Stózh gave a second thought to Nepámir’s idea before dismissing it. His feelings overtook his reason.

'That is a risk I wanted to avoid, but we can explore other options…

The city is undergoing chaos right now, but the Mórna is departing with Káril to Volésen after the new year has begun, sneaking away before the revolt gets worse.

We own two ships: we can use one to attack her vessel, and take Káril with us in the process. Then we take Anqáli to our other ship by foot. It is, after all, a good idea to take the Mórna’s heir to the Kerzhád, our pressure on Ánfre will be stronger than launching a war against her. Yes. It is a good decision.’

‘We have all been your pawns in this, Stózh.’ Bórta replied. ‘Nézhwa and I do not like to see our son in the middle of this. He has done nothing to deserve this. I think we three agree on departing with you, on the condition that, once your affairs with the Mórna are finished, we shall return to our home. We have been hiding our whole life, and this is how any expectations of tranquility fade away. Either way, take us to your cave.’

37

The cave was unknown even for Nézhwa and Bórta, who had bordered that coast for decades. It was not long, but sinuous, tall and wide all at once, allowing exactly two ships to anchor there. According to the green oními* painted on their ports, Nepámir could deduce that Stózh and his Kerzhádian colleagues had stolen some Unpáryan ships. It was a delightful view, and he wish he could return and explore the cave without the impending worries. Stózh interrupted his thoughts:

‘You are coming with us, Népa. We need you so Káril and Anqáli follow us willingly.’

‘No!! Stop carrying Nepámir to all these risks! Just stop at once!’ Nézhwa shouted and held Nepámir’s hand. Nepámir’s face exuded confusion.

‘There is no time left for deciding about our plans again, Nézhwa’ Stózh replied, visibly calmed. ‘It will not take us longer than a couple of hours. My colleagues and my own knowledge from Ánfre’s word inform us that the Mórna’s vessel will border the coast up to our cave, and we will not do more than what we plan: take Káril with us, and then return to Toré for Anqáli. The cave is well guarded and the Mórna will not be able to react properly. Everything is ready, and once these two are done, we depart to the Kerzhád.’

‘You will pay all the consequences if anything happens to Nepámir’ Bórta stated. ‘Stay completely sure about that.’

‘I am certain about it, Bórta. I have paid for too much in my time here already. You would not be the only one here missing a child.’

The long moment of silence was interrupted by a rock falling from the cave’s roof next to Nepámir’s feet.

‘I will leave you tonight to get your three minds and bodies ready for what is coming. Do not hesitate to ask me about anything: you can find me in the nearest ship.’

*Oními: a legendary whale, too shy to appear under the daylight but said to be spotted at night shining with different colours when no one watches. According to Nárilethál and to archaeological evidence, green onímir were depicted in trade ships from Unpári, modern day Onpári.

38

Nepámir could not sleep, thinking on what would happen the next day. He had sailed away from Toré before, but not so far away, not leaving Matorélik entirely.

‘Have any of you ever ventured into the Kerzhád’s lands, beloved parents?’

‘No, never. Neither of us’ Nézhwa replied. ‘It is a long distance, and only merchants and people in utter need do so. Many of our goods come from there, plants and living beings, but we have then produced all of it on our own for a while, and for what Stózh lets us guess, exchanges between the Mórna and the Kerzhád have frozen.’

‘Stózh mentioned a debt the Mórna had acquired with the Kerzhád, indeed’ Bórta realised.

‘Yes, we know well the harm debts have brought to us’ Nepámir said. ‘I feel clumsy, I am being led somewhere in all this, but I don’t know yet where to.’

‘That is what you will need to learn from this, Népa’ Bórta replied. ‘In fact, all of us. We have tried everything to escape these paths, but we keep on being led to them. Look what happened with your grandfather.’

‘You went with him to the eastern islands, are they nearer than the Kerzhád?’

‘No, I don’t think so’ Nézhwa replied. ‘Even if they are nearer, the currents are quite a difficult matter to sort out. I do not think anyone before the fool of your grandfather could ever think of sailing there, crossing Vóliok’s heart. Looking at her face, even.’

‘It is exciting, in some way, to make these trips, but I want to rule the boat, instead of letting it sail. And it doesn’t let me. Not even you both are capable of it anymore.’

‘You can control the boat but not what disturbs it.’ Bórta replied. ‘To rule it is to know how to move it through each tide and current. It is very easy to say, more difficult to understand. But I think you know it already, son. You can always turn the rudder and come back to the port, where we will provide you with everything you need.’

‘I don’t want you to think that what is going on is simple’ Nézhwa continued, ‘because it is not. Do only what Stózh asks you to do, bring Káril and Anqáli with us and no more thinking. All you are doing is correct, and when the Mórna is dealt with, we will return home very soon.’

Nepámir’s face asked for a hug. His parents gave him one.

‘Sleep next to us. The cloth will stop any rock’s impact. Close your eyes gently and find yourself safe. Tonight is all that exists, and it is a peaceful moment, surrounded by our care. Let us be the stars enlightening your darkness, and let the boat sail freely.’

39

‘It is time, Nepámir.’

He did not want to listen to those words. He did not want to follow Stózh or to depart Toré, as briefly as it might be. But this was the path he had been moved into, and no thoughts would make that situation better.

‘Beloved parents, I will be back for Anqáli, then we sail away. Stózh says you can watch the sneak from the cave’s top.’

‘Fly swiftly, my little kiwi’ Nézhwa hugged Nepámir one more time, and grabbed his hand, with her face covered in fear. ‘Do only what Stózh tells you, and come back safe’ Bórta said, and hugged Nepámir as well.

‘Remember: rule your boat, no other but you can do so.’

Nepámir let go his parents’ hands, filled with uncertainty and doubt. He joined Stózh’s batch, made of just 13 of his colleagues. ‘Our low numbers are essential: we need quick action. We will make a distraction, and only when I tell you, run inside Káril’s cabin. Tell him that Stózh’s plan is coming to its end and that he needs to come with you to join him. If you are wondering, yes, he knows about everything. He will just be surprised that I need him to come with us.’

Nepámir nodded to Stózh’s words, and shortly after it, the ship sailed away from the cave.

‘Our prediction was correct, there is an enormous ship in our sight. All with me, dear friends!’

40

The ship sailed swifter than anyone could have expected, seemingly pushed away by the waters themselves.

‘Vóliok chants for us this morning, Stózh’ Nepámir noticed.

‘So does the Mountain, friend. It roars with us. It is the moment, ready for us to take it. Earth, water and tide mark the goal.’

As Stózh’s ship was getting closer, louder voices could be heard, noticing the approach of a ship in the Mórna’s direction.

‘Who is out there, closing our path? Direct orders from the Mórna: return whence you’ve come!’

Stózh shouted as follows: ‘Your Mórna has closed her own path, and will not let you continue yours! We have come to take what the Kerzhád was stolen, and you will all pay for it if you do not let us go ahead!’

Stózh’s ship then crashed into the Mórna’s, prompting Hwésta’s Lovers to appear atop the deck.

‘Go, Népa! The Lovers are for us to deal with. Sneak into the cabin and bring Káril with you. Use the scales the Lovers are about to leave here, and use them when they have already landed onto our ship. Once they see we have Káril, they will stop fighting at once.’

As predicted, ten Lovers descended from the scales. They did not say a word, but grabbed their axes and took one of Stózh’s colleagues from the neck. One of them said to Stózh at last: ‘this is what awaits to your Kerzhád if they dare to come to our lands’ and cut the colleague’s neck.

Nepámir saw Stózh’s furious countenance and sneaked up into the scales before the Lovers could react. His eyes were no more for a moment: his only feeling was survival, as everything turned dark around him. He arrived to the cabin, to find Káril… And Anqáli, with hands and feet tied up.

And the Mórna, guarding Káril with two Lovers.

‘If you wish for any explanation, Nepámir, the will of our deities is superior to any of us. I will not let our grace to decay, as you may understand. We did not allow it with Alég, even when his tentacles have taken hold of me and Káril for too long. Even if you do not think so, you, and everyone else —look at the Kerzhád—, desire Hwésta’s love for yourselves. There are caretakers, and the ones who need care. Be careful, Káril, or look where you can end. My own son, tortured with this vision: two friends in their last moments, and another put where she belongs against her will. I am here to restore duty, to restore respect for our people, and your existence demands its own end, for our own sake. Come with me, and take a look back to the Mountain.’

Nepámir was astonished to find an ashen pillar rising from the pinnacle, reaching the height of the stars.

‘I have avoided the Páte’s word, and the Mountain will make me pay for it. I always knew this by heart. Consider yourself fortunate to escape the demise of Toré. You will not escape mine.’

Nepámir’s mind pictured his parents immediately, and he fainted away into the floor.