Shards of darkness (watty awards 2012)

Angers begin

Damn it. Farrez sighed.  It wasn’t even midday but he was suffering with his thick heavy armour. Beads of sweat clung to him like dew. And it was only going to get hotter. To aid his discomfort further, his boots were worn and showed the evidence of many travels, mainly in the holes that brought in all the filth of a travelling army and it seemed like it was always he the stepped in the worst of it, much to the merriment of the men. At the moment it was mainly sand that buried his toes. This was less unpleasant than the ah... grime of a battle field, but now he almost relished a touch of brain to the grit. For it rubbed the skin off his angles and left them raw and bleeding. Still, at least if they became infected, he had the best medic in the land to aid in their healing. Geuda  the Topradath.

The Topradie were an ancient race of jungle dwellers. Geuda was vaguely humanoid in shape and possessed the facial features of a beautiful woman. With eyes black as the night sky, with no way of telling apart the ‘white’ from iris and pupil. They were framed with thick black lashes. Her nose was petite and pointed as her elf like ears. Her mouth, however well shaped, was thin lipped, cruel and cavernously large if she so wished it to be, for she was a witch. It was there that most of her resemblance to a human woman ended.  Upon her head not a hair grew. Instead, vast sucker like pores sprouted. Gently pulsating, they were horrendous to behold! They served the purpose of distinguishing her from the crowds of the army so all in her need would be quick to find her. This was made even more so by her skin. It was languid and shiny with grease that she secreted from the pores on the head, but that was only the half of it. The colour was feverish orange and dappled putrid green in places. It also had the pungent smell of damp and of the forests that within she used to dwell.  Despite all of this, she was easy to like and the soldiers of Kaa treated her though a little fearfully at times (for her biting wit would put a bard to shame) with loyalty and respect.

 She carried along with her all her various spells and potions. Most were herbs used to cure the many ailments of a travelling army or rich flavours to make grog taste like it was to be served to a nobleman. Which was indeed no small comfort.  However, some were deadly poisons that if inflicted would cause a whole manor of grave ills. One, she claimed, was so perilous that one seed would be enough to kill every one it the army thrice over. That, Farrez was quick to doubt for the army scaled thousands and what she did next aided his dubious thoughts;  she opened her mouth and before he could stop her, consumed the fatal berry.  At once vile smelling black gunge began to ooze from her mouth. Farrez remembered how he had panicked, screaming out orders for Kaa. When the watching audience of soldiers did nothing, he grabbed the nearest and had bellowed orders in his face. In way of answer, the trembling man pointed over Farrez’s shoulder. He turned. The dark liquid had disappeared and Geurda was unharmed. In fact she was throwing her head back laughing. She opened her hand and their in her jiggling palm was the deadly seed. It had never passed her lips! The Black substance probably had been nonexistent as well, just an illusion of dark magic. Bloody witch! Farrez had failed to see the funny side and had stormed back to his tent in the mist of laughter from probably most of the bleedin’ army. He sulked for three days, much to the amusement of his fellow comrades. Barely a mealtime went by with out a passing reference to the subject …and muffled laughter followed by gritted teeth and returning to his tent to sulk some more. Still, he had to see the funny side eventually and who would it be but Geuda to make the pleasant jest?

It was evening and he had been assigned to run an errand of giving Geuda a few herbs that had been found and suspected of poison. He had been thinking of not bestowing them to her at all to spite her for her prank, but she would find out and woe betide anyone who meddles with her herbs, even friends! So, grudgingly, he trudged to her stall. He found her muttering incantations in to a yellow pasty stew. Unappetising though her dishes looked, they were better than edible and it was that or go with out, and after a heavy riding, every one was hungry. So all ate her preparations, regardless of their appearance. It was often best to close your eyes while eating or other eye balls in your bowl may stare out at you! Farrez had once suspected that she used a kind of glamour on her food to make you think it tasted more pleasant than reality.

She didn’t even look up from her incanting to greet him. Some might think this as rude and many of the army were uncomfortable about her methods, but Farrez knew that there was always a reason for what she did and knew better than to interrupt her. So, he sat back and waited.  In time, still with out looking up she spoke.

“So, what brings you here to my lordly quarters? Have you come to waste my time to bemoan about my merry jest? Or… Perhaps you have come for a cure for your cantankerous, disgruntled, mumblings.”

“It is you, witch that is mumbling. Speak words which people of mine tongue understand!”

“Now, now” She said smiling. “I only inquired if you wanted a cure to the grump. I warn you, the grump is a grievous aliment that…”

By now Farrez’s face was struggling to hold buck a tidal wave of laughter that threatened to consume him. It was hopeless!

Geuda looked up and gave a Bob-cat grin, her mouth twisted to the side with the mocking smile while Farrez laughter died sown to a tremor.

“So I assume you bring more than an offering of remorse for your former hostility (some thing I expect you to do) and for not visiting me, it has been very boring with out a big mug to believe that I would eat a deadly bean with out due cause.”

“Sorry to disappoint you noble lady but I bring no apology for my actions” Farrez retorted, smiling. “but-”

“Yes I know! Just give me the herbs and make no fuss about it.” Without even looking at the herbs, she threw them into the stew and continued stirring.

“There! I have made a little something just for you. Now be off with yer. I am too busy to deal with impertinent little humans like you. I can not stand another second in your presence. Shoo!”

“The same to you woman!” Farrez reported as he walked out. If that was stew, there was no telling what she had put in it. He sighed. (He had to go with out the next day. However loyal she was to the army, he didn’t quite trust her. So the next day he had to endure hunger while he watched the men cleaning their plates and Geuda’s mocking smile from behind a bubbling caldron.)

“It takes a weak man to birth a weak retort!”

He didn’t even bother turning round. Once she had started an argument, she wouldn’t end it ‘til she won.

Farrez smiled at that memory. Still, smiling never cooled down the sun so he looked around him, soon spotting Guerda a few hundred feet away tending to a customer. Tending used in the broadest possible sense. She appeared to be having a very heated augment with an old man. Unpleasant words drifted over. Farrez’s smile returned. Oh well, he’d better sort out what the old man wanted. His grin slipped from his lips almost as soon as it had returned. Shouts of outrage and curses, even screams were coming from behind him. He caught the edge of the bitter words, much worse than those of Geurda as hers were often fictitious. She had a large supply of inventive choice curse words. He ran towards the source, a lone Horse and rider surrounded by a jeering crowd. As he got closer he at once recognised the animal. It was Epdemise, the imperial horse that his brother often rode. He couldn’t understand why his fellow soldiers were so openly hostile. True, Kaa’s army and Imperia were far from friendly, but… there had to be something more than that. It wasn’t until Farrez got close did he see the true reason for the expressed anger. Astride the back of Epdemise was a girl. A girl with empty eyes. A Festerling.