The Children of Calm (10 page)

“It is absolutely amazing and confounding to me,” she said, “that you are not twice the size you are. I have never seen anyone put away so much food.”

Rylek stopped long enough to smile at her. “Aren’t you proud of me, mom?” he asked with a full mouth.

Clarina merely smiled and shook her head.

After breakfast, she and Faltir handed out birthday gifts. Faltir handed each of the boys a sword. “You both have proven you are worthy of these,” he said. “Use them well.”

Rylek looked questioningly at the blade. “But isn’t this your sword?” he asked.

Faltir nodded. “It was my sword. Just as it was my father’s, and his father’s, and so on. Faldrahil it is named; a most worthy blade for a deserving swordsman.” He smiled and looked at Rylek proudly. He then turned to Tresten. “And this sword,” he said, “belonged to my great-uncle, and his father, and his father. He named it Silran.” He paused and put a hand on each boy’s shoulder. “I could not be more pleased with how the two of you have matured and developed. My hope is that these blades will serve you well in whatever tasks are set before you, just as they have served their previous masters.”

Smiling profusely, Rylek examined Faldrahil closely. Its blade was of the finest wrought steel, and there were engravings on its base. In a fine script were these words:

for the children of Calm

He noticed the same words were engraved on Silran also.             

His father caught his silent observation. “A small, ever-present reminder,” he explained to them, “of the only reasons you should ever use these swords: to help the helpless, to defend the defenseless, and to protect the innocent.”

Below the etched words was a picture of a sunburst. Glancing quickly towards Tresten, Rylek noticed there was a picture of two crescent moons on Silran. One was sitting mirrored within a larger one. The scabbards likewise were marvels to behold. Rylek realized his was not the same one that his father had used. It was dyed black, and woven from a very tough but flexible material. Emblazoned on the mount was the same sunburst that was on Faldrahil. Likewise another was on the shoulder strap. He looked at Tresten’s and saw again the two crescent moons.

“What’s with the engravings of the sun and moons?” he asked.

Faltir smiled. “If you do not know now,” he said, “you will discover soon enough.”

Tresten was playing with his scabbard. “What is this made of?” he asked.

“I wove it from dried starpod skins,” Faltir said.

Tresten groaned. Lana and Selenor laughed. “Tally one more point for the starpods!” Lana said.

“It’s still not a medicinal use!” Tresten stressed.

Faltir picked up Rylek’s scabbard. “Starpod skins are amazingly endurable,” he said. “They are light and thin, yet when dried and treated are tougher than leather. Of course the steel throats and tips will help reinforce the most worn areas, but these scabbards should outlast the two of you.” He paused for a moment as Clarina politely coughed. He took the hint. “Well, I probably shouldn’t be discussing your deaths on your birthday…”

Clarina interrupted him again. “Moving along from my ever pragmatic husband, I now have gifts for my two lovely ladies.” She produced two small white packages, each tied up with a deep purple ribbon. Inside Lana’s package was a short-length necklace with a pendant. The chain was of white gold, and the pendant was small, consisting of a round jewel set in intricate latticework. The jewel itself was a brilliant ruby, which caught the morning sun and sparkled in Rylek’s eyes. He thought he made out a sunburst design in the ruby, but figured his eyes were playing tricks on him.

“Oh mother!” Lana stammered.

Meanwhile Selenor had taken a ring out of her package. It too was white gold, with a solitary deep-blue sapphire set in it. Rylek again saw some shapes in the gemstone that reminded him of the double crescent on Silran. He figured either someone must have etched the shapes in the stones, or he was going crazy.

“Aunt Clarina…” Selenor started.

Clarina sat down between the two girls. “These pieces of jewelry,” she said, “are likewise old heirlooms, passed down to the oldest daughters from their mothers, starting many generations long ago. And now they are yours; beautiful gems adorning my beautiful women.” She hugged them both tightly. “You can see what looks like a sunburst inside the ruby, and two crescent moons inside the sapphire.”

“I thought I was going crazy,” Rylek said. “I saw those shapes in the stones. How did they get there?”

“They are natural occurrences,” Clarina said, “which make the value of these gems immeasurable. The ruby has traditionally been called the Dawnstone, and the sapphire the Twilightstone.”

Lana was dumbfounded. “But how did our family ever get jewelry like this?” she asked.

“That is a long tale that deserves to be told in its entirety when time allows,” Faltir said. “Sadly, it will not allow us to do so presently. For now I must leave so I can help Ronas set up a few things for tonight.”

“I am so excited!” Clarina said. “The four of you are going to have so much fun tonight – I can hardly wait!”

Rylek shook his head. “I can’t imagine it getting much better than this. Thank you both so much.”

The other three likewise offered their thanks, and there were embraces all around. After Faltir had left, the four prepared to go out themselves for a leisurely walk. Rylek was about to go out the front door when he looked back at his mother. She was sitting by a window watching something he could not see. The sun shone on her flowing red hair, giving it a soft luminous glow. Her hands were crossed in her lap, and her posture, as always, was perfect. There was a look of pride on her face – not of the selfish arrogant kind, but of assurance. He wondered at that. But the pride could not overpower the warm kindness in her eyes. Suddenly he was struck that his mother looked very regal, like a queen in her own way, despite the humble clothes she wore.

“Are you coming?” Tresten suddenly called to him.

He was snapped out of his thoughts. “Yeah,” he answered. Then turning back to Clarina he said, “Thanks again, mother.”

She turned to him and smiled, and then Rylek understood her pride. He could see in her eyes that she was proud of him. Before he got a chance to think anymore on it, Tresten pulled him out the door.

***

The rest of their morning was spent walking together through Calm and around the lake. Their conversations were light and cheery, and everyone they came across stopped to wish them a happy birthday. It should have been the perfect day, but for some reason Rylek could not quite shake off a thin cloak of melancholy that seemed to wrap itself around his heart. As the girls were giggling together and Tresten was lightly whistling to himself, Rylek searched for any reason why he should feel sad. Finally the only thing he could put his finger on was the strange sensation lingering in his mind that there was a note of finality about these last few days – as though something were about to happen that would change his life forever. He counted it as merely anxiety and excitement for The Finding, and leaving for the University.

After spending some time up on The Balcony, they made their way to Penephoni’s house for lunch. It was now after noon, and some clouds had started to make their way over the western mountains. The meal was uneventful, save that Kelni was there, and she kept the table lively with her comical story-telling and gossip. She was certainly of the opinion that Celek had left to go find his long-lost love. Her showmanship allowed Rylek the luxury of partly retreating into himself. He did not feel like wasting the day with idle talk and empty banter. Luckily for him no one seemed to notice he was not taking much part in the merry-making.

With it being his birthday, he realized he could not afford to remain in this state of mind for long, so after lunch was over he excused himself and found his way back to The Balcony. There he sat looking over the entire valley, a sight he had known well his whole life. Not much at all had changed during his lifetime; mostly it was only that some trees had grown larger. As he examined every detail of the valley again, like he had done hundreds of times before, a sudden fear rose in his heart: the fear that this idyllic place would not last forever. He had allowed himself to imagine that Calm could remain untouched by The Outside, but what if that were not the case? What if events from The Outside radically changed the village? Would this be the last time he would see Calm from The Balcony?

Suddenly he stopped. Why was he giving himself over to unfounded fears? He knew he would protect his home at all costs. The Silent Knight would prevail, and Faldrahil would aid him.

A sudden weariness rushed upon his body. Knowing a nap would help reset his mind and emotions, he decided to lie down in the grass. His eyes closed on their own accord as though they were intentionally blocking out any more dark thoughts entering his head.

***

He awoke some time later. The sun had shifted, and was now behind some clouds that appeared to be moving in quickly. Rylek judged it was sometime around three. Sitting up and deeply inhaling the air, he realized the nap did its trick; he no longer felt fearful.

Down below, he noticed some activity in the cemetery. It looked like there were three figures gathered around a tombstone. Rylek guessed what was going on and decided to go down to observe them. Several minutes later he was approaching the group from behind, and found he was correct; the three people were Penephoni, Selenor, and Tresten. He stopped some distance away and watched as they laid flowers on the little plot where Retessa had been laid to rest. Penephoni had made it a point to take the children to her grave every year. When they had been old enough to understand the concept of death, Penephoni would spend the time telling them all she knew of Retessa, which she acknowledged was not very much. They would ask her questions and she would answer them as best she could. There had been much conversation in those early years. But the last few times they had visited were spent in total silence, as the weight of knowledge brought the children to a point of respectful sobriety. Selenor now stood directly in front of Retessa’s grave, with Penephoni on her left. Tresten was several feet behind and to the right of Selenor. No one showed any evidence that they were aware Rylek was watching. The sky had now become overcast, and a chill wind picked up. Penephoni wrapped her arm around Selenor, and she in turn laid her head on her adoptive mother’s shoulder. Rylek longed to stand next to Selenor, but decided he would be intruding and it was best for them to be alone. Fighting against all his heart told him to do, he turned around and silently walked back into the village.

***

There was not much time remaining before the second night of festivities was to begin. Not long after he had gone home, Rylek joined Lana on a walk to the lakefront. They were both proudly wearing the gifts their parents had given them – Faldrahil rested strapped upon Rylek’s back, and the Dawnstone graced Lana’s neck. The lakefront was buzzing with activity: tables were being set and food was being arranged. A large tent had been set up by the Old Sentinel. Not far from the water was a firepit that was now being tended to; the air had grown chill and the sun refused to come out from behind the clouds.

After wandering around for a couple of minutes, politely talking to various people, Caenar walked up to them. “Good afternoon, my dear friends,” he said. “If you will follow me, I will have you join the Evening Children.”

They followed him to the tent, where one long table had been prepared. Eight chairs were all along one side, facing out towards the rest of the tables on the lakefront. Rylek correctly guessed this was the “Table of Honor.” Tresten and Selenor were already seated there, and Rylek saw Selenor’s lyre on the table in front of her. He smiled and nodded at it. “I guess they twisted your arm again?” he asked.

“You know they don’t have to twist very hard,” she said, laughing.

Caenar nodded. “It is always a blessing from The One to hear such a fine voice share its wondrous gift,” he said, as he led them to their chairs. He had Rylek sit on Tresten’s right side – with a chair between them. Lana sat on Rylek’s right, and Selenor was on Tresten’s left. “This chair between the two of you will be for me,” Caenar said, “if you will allow this old babbler the opportunity to sit with you.”

“As though we have a choice,” Rylek heard Tresten say under his breath.

“Now,” Caenar continued, “I will ask each of you at a certain point during the evening to explain to the village your plans of going to the University in Maeon. No one is expecting to hear long-winded, grandiose speeches, so do not worry about going into much detail if you do not care to do so.”

“You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” Tresten mumbled again. Rylek stifled a laugh.

Caenar had apparently not overheard. “However,” he continued, “the people of Calm have invested much in you and care greatly for your wellbeing, and therefore deserve this small trifling thing from you. Please be so kind as to oblige them.

“But for the present, I invite the four of you to relax here in your chairs, and I believe someone will be along presently to bring you refreshment.” He then walked off and left the children to themselves.