Part the Fiftieth
In which: Another dialogue begins, and then goes on and on and on. Gods, why won’t it stop? Please, can’t we hit something?
The first sign that they have arrived is the change in sounds. The soft rustling of people moving through the woods is slowly joined by murmuring voices. The occasional clunk of wood on metal. The sounds of many more feet than have been with them thus far. They also notice the smells: campfires and roasting meat.
Eventually, the party is brought into a small teepee. Here their blindfolds are removed. An elf instructs them to wait. They are also asked to surrender all weapons. Eva considers keeping a hidden knife, but rapidly rejects that suggestion. If the elves try to kill her, a single knife isn’t going to do much good, and if they discover that she has kept a weapon, they are that much more likely to try to kill her. She turns over all of her weapons. The others appear to do the same.
The party waits for some time before two young men enter, each bearing a shallow bowl of water. Reyu informs the others that these are to allow them to wash before they meet with the Council. Wash they do. It does little to alleviate the dirt and grime of the last weeks’ travel, but a little is better than nothing.
“So, um, what is this Council we’re meeting with?” Thatch asks.
“The Council is the Voice, Head, Heart, and Hand of the Nation. Or… whatever they are now called here,” Reyu answers.
“But we’ve already met with the Voice. The Breath, right?” Thatch asks.
“No. That was the Voi—Breath of the Eechi Tribe. This will be the Council of the Miyen Tribe, which… serves as the Council for the entire Miyen Nation. There is no higher position of honor to an elf than to sit upon the Council of her Nation.”
“Oh,” Thatch says, and he scrubs a little harder behind his ears.
Finally, the party is lead from their teepee. They are not blindfolded this time, and are able to catch a glimpse of the village around them. There are many tepees scattered about, and a central circle in the middle. Firepits have been set up there, where several elves can be seen cooking. Most of them ignore the humans moving through their midst. Or, at least, they try to look like they’re ignoring them. Several shoot the occasional glance their way. Some looks are hostile. Some just curious. Only the children look openly, hiding from behind tepees or their parents.
They are lead to another teepee, a much larger one, with beads and knots decorating the outside. Inside the teepee is a small fire, mostly burning embers, and four elves, two male and two female. The younger of the two females sits slightly forward.
Reyu studies the Council, taking in what she can learn of them from their postures and their beads. The first male is UlAneya. He is marked as the Hand of the Nation, though like the LidoMana, his bead is strangely modified. No longer the hand, Reyu mentally notes I wonder what his new title is.. His beads indicate he has no children, but they also denote his skill as a hunter. The fine furs and feathers he wears support them. His eyes are flat and suspicious, but otherwise reveal little of his thought.
Next to him is a rather plump woman, AitteTaru, the (modified) Heart of the Nation. Her beads indicate that she is a mother of four, grandmother of twelve, impressive progeny for an elf. Her beads also indicate that she is a healer of skill. She greets the party coolly, but with interest. Still, it the warmest greeting they have yet received.
Next to her is an ancient elf, thin and wrinkled. The beads in his long white hair call him RemanKotu, the equivalent to the Head of the Nation. He bears three father beads, from two different women. He is teacher, thinker, stargazer, poet, songwriter, and lorekeeper. His younger beads indicate a great deal of travel as well. His look, however, is one of pure hostility, as if it was a struggle to even get him to sit in a tent with outsiders.
The last of the Council, the one sitting forward, is a young woman, AinaRoto. Her beads indicate that she is the Voice of the Nation. The Breath, Reyu reminds herself. But Reyu can hardly believe she is even that. She can’t be more than a few decades older than Reyu herself, incredibly young for a Voice. She has no children, and though she is an accomplished weaver, she bears few other notable achievements. She wears a look of challenge on her face, sitting tall and proud in the face of these outsiders. But around her eyes, Reyu can see how nervous she is.
The party sits.
“The Miyen Council is gathered,” the Breath says in Elvish. “We are united in Breath, Thought, Blood, and Finger.”
Reyu hears the strange version of the familiar words. Breath, Thought, Blood, and Finger instead of Voice, Head, Heart, and Hand. How… very strange. There is no hesitation as the Breath says these words, though it seems that the Finger scowls as he is named.
“What matter do you have for this Council?”
Reyu looks to the others, only to find they are all looking at her. She sighs, and informs the Council of their business. She tells them of their mission to seek great archmagi, of which they believe the Miyen Kai to be one. She asks their permission to enter the Miyen holy lands, to invite him to come to Dar Pykos.
The Thought is the first to speak. The old man seems outraged, and speaks with a fire Reyu did not expect from his frail frame. “No! It is forbidden for outsiders to enter the holy lands. That is the law of the Nation, and must be inviolate.”
“Then perhaps the Miyen Kai can be asked to come here to meet with us, and we need not enter your holy lands,” Reyu offers.
The old man scowls. “That may fulfil the letter of the law,” he says, “but the Miyen Kai is himself holy. To allow outsiders to speak to him…” He ruminates on the legality of that.
But the Blood speaks up. Her kindly round face is filled with concern. “If the Miyen Kai comes here, he will not be guarding the pit from which come the creatures of shadow. He cannot leave the holy land. He must stay there, vigilant, to ensure the safety of our Nation.”
The Finger speaks. “Many of our hunters are with the Miyen Kai. They can guard the pit in his absence.”
“Your hunters were not able to defend us when the creatures first appeared.”
“They did not yet know what they were dealing with. Now they have seen the creatures defeated. Believe me, we can hold them off."
“But for how long? These outsiders wish to speak to the Miyen Kai to lure him away. What if he chooses to go with them? What if he chooses to leave us?”
The Finger almost smiles. “If he does, so be it. Surely his wisdom is greater than our own,” he says, a hint of sarcasm layered beneath his words. “Is he not the Head, Heart, Voice, and Hand of the Miyen now? Who are we to contradict him?”
All eyes turn to the Breath, the only one who has not yet spoken. She seems hesitant, unsure. “I…I would like to hear more discussion,” she says, finally.
And discuss they do. A long, drawn out debate follows. A very, very long debate. Lira, Eva, and Anvil join in occasionally, getting Reyu to pass on questions and arguments for those who do not speak Elvish. However, Lira isn’t sure if anything said by a non-elf does more than irritate their hosts. The Breath and the Thought cast comprehend languages, that they may understand the humans without the need of a translator.
The Council members argue with the party and they argue with each other. The Blood, though friendliest in attitude, is most vehemently opposed to the party’s request, due to her concern for the safety of the people if the Miyen Kai leaves. The Finger, on the other hand, seems to welcome that outcome. He believes his hunters are up to the task, and is quite willing to let the party speak to the Miyen Kai. The Thought remains hostile to the request, but his primary reason seems to be because it is made by humans. He may be willing to allowing Reyu alone to speak to the Miyen Kai, which is not an acceptable outcome to the party; many of them have been sent by their Churches to personally evaluate these archmagi, and they cannot do that if they are not there.
Two votes against, one vote for, Reyu thinks. But the Breath is still undecided. Since her vote breaks ties, hers will be the crucial decision. Reyu focuses her attention on the young Breath.
“If I may inquire, honored mother,” Reyu says to the Breath, “how did you come to hold a position of such high prestige at such a young age?”
The Breath sits up a tad straighter. “The prior Voice of the Miyen was slain by the creatures of shadow when they first appeared. She had recently asked me to succeed her, though it was though that there would be many years before that need would arise…” She trails off.
She is only barely holding herself together, Reyu thinks. “Clearly, these are difficult times to be thrust into.”
“They have been, yes.”
“My grandmother is the Voice of my tribe,” Reyu says, carefully. “She told me once that, even at her advanced age, there were questions that she could not answer. She has told me of many times when all looked to her, and she did not know the best course of action. But she has also said that there is no shame in admitting that one does not know what to do. If you are torn on this matter, why not let the Miyen Kai himself decide? It is, in the end, his decision. And there is no shame in allowing him to make it.”
The Breath considers these words very carefully. “There is wisdom in what you say.” Reyu looks hopeful. She meets the Breath’s eyes. She can see her leaning in the party’s favor…
…but she can also see the uncertainty.
“I must consider this matter further.”
At which point, Anvil finally loses it.
“You are all cowards,” he says.
