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Chapter 7. Brothers Reunited |
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og sat lazily on the top rail of the high fence that walled in the makeshift sparring ring. The thin split logs that formed the round enclosure had dried out in the warm morning sunshine but the loose dirt and sawdust on the ground was still heavy after the prior evening’s downpour. As a result, Mabane tripped and staggered a number of times as he became mired in it. The boy was smiling and laughing good naturedly despite the awkwardness of being blindfolded. “Stop moving!” he giggled as Pendaran trod silently past him and the boy turned too late to focus upon him. It was amusing to watch the two making play from skills that would eventually prove lethal. Over the course of the hour Mabane had already improved and was detecting Pendaran sooner, but not soon enough to unleash the spell in time. The tall man smiled but said nothing, for his response would only allow Mabane to find him easier. He was glad they had let him come along to watch. The bond between the two warmed Mog’s heart and it was an affirmation that their tragic journey into the Realm of Torment had been worth their suffering. Although Pendaran was a little aloof, Mog was growing to like him, if for no other reason than that Mabane adored the man. Of course Mog was aware of the rumors about the man’s past, but he had long since stopped believing it. Pendaran worked his way slowly past Mabane as the boy’s face hardened with concentration. The technique was new to him and he was currently trying to deliver what Pendaran had labeled ‘the toothless bite’. Mog chuckled when Mabane stammered the incantation and a pressure settled on his mind. A brief flash of magenta limned the youth’s wiry form and the boy fell back with a start. “I got you!” Mabane panted triumphantly. “You attacked an ally,” Pendaran said. “Oh,” Mabane mumbled awkwardly, “Sorry, Uncle Mog.” “I’m fine, lad, t’is part o’ learnin’ th’ Art.” Mog smiled broadly, a little knot of emotion catching in his throat at being called uncle. If only it were true. Unfortunately, he had been a rover for far too long, never staying in one place, never settling down. His time with this strange bunch of people was an anomaly and he kept telling himself not to get too attached. The wandering bug was sure to bite. “I can’t find you!” Mabane grumbled after another failed attempt to mentally seek his father. His frustration was palpable and Pendaran relented, going to the boy’s side to talk to him softly and offer reassurances. Mabane’s raven hair fluttered untidily in the wind as he nodded and Pendaran backed a few steps away. “Try now,” the man said, standing still as Mabane stumbled around to face his voice. Biting his lip, the boy concentrated and a faint shroud of chaotic energies gathered around him until Pendaran winced and praised him. “I got you!” Mabane announced, relieved. “Yes, very good. I think we’ve had enough for one day. We’ll continue tomorrow.” “But I want to try again,” the boy protested as Pendaran approached him and gently released the blindfold. The boy’s pale visage was flushed with exertion and his sapphire eyes blazed with determination as he looked up at his father’s face. “It is better not to over do it when you’re first learning to focus,” Pendaran replied evenly, “Besides which, I can smell breakfast and your mother will be disappointed if we’re late.” “I don’t care,” Mabane grumbled, “She’s always grumpy.” Pendaran put an arm around the boy’s lean shoulders and guided him toward the gate. “Your mother has a lot on her mind right now. That’ll be enough.” “You’re makin’ good progress, lad,” Mog said, hopping down to join them. “I’m sorry I bit you,” Mabane mumbled, blushing. Mog could sense the boy’s disappointment that he had not been successful that day. Ah, the impatience of youth. “Ye’ll get it, lad, don’ sweat it, an’ I weren’ th’ least bit offended by yer spell.” “I should have known it was you, though,” Mabane complained, “What if I hurt a friend in combat?” Pendaran patted his shoulder gently. “You won’t be seeing combat for a long time yet, especially if I have anything to say about it. You had to learn each letter before you could read a word, yes?” Mabane nodded, sighing. “Same with magic, my son. It will come in time.” Mog smiled to himself as the boy’s expression turned mischievous and he bolted on ahead up the path. “Last one there has to give me their strawberries!” Pendaran chuckled and raced on after the boy, leaving Mog behind startled and insurmountably behind. Mabane gave out a cackle of delight as Pendaran caught his arm and the two of them wrestled in the leaf litter as Mog dodged past them. They were still half a mile from the walls of the fortress and Mog was gasping for breath as he pounded up the steep rutted road that wound toward the gate. “He’s going to beat us!” Mabane protested some distance behind, winning free of Pendaran, “You’re going to lose!” “No I’m not,” Pendaran laughed. Mog glanced back to see the two of them covered in forest duff and moldy leaves bolting toward him like a pair of rowdy dogs. Spurred on, Mog made a dash for the gate moments before Mabane went by in a burst of giggles. Pendaran stomped past Mog gasping for air, his face flushed to match his chestnut hair. “Your strawberries are mine!” Mabane hooted. “Guess so, you little scoundrel. Go wash up and tell your mother I’ll be along shortly.” Mabane waved at the two of them and dashed toward the towering great hall. Workers were already climbing the scaffolds to resume work on the once abandoned structure. The lower floor was already completed and many of them, Mog included, had slept in the communal hall to get out of the prior evening’s downpour. He had been glad to abandon the soggy tent he shared with Sister Lemony. “I bes’ be gettin’ ready for breakfast. Thanks fer havin’ me along.” Pendaran flashed him a wry smile and Mog realized with a chuckle that the man was not aloof. He was shy. It was as if he were afraid of the harsh judgment of others. How odd. “Thanks for being a friend to my son. If you’ll excuse me, I need to meet Xiang Yi.” “MOG!” came Lemony’s exuberant voice. Mog and Pendaran simultaneously turned to greet the little monk as she rushed toward them, her loose dun clothes fluttering around her. A tall scruffy figure walked stiffly in her wake, “You’ll never believe it! Guess who I found?” “Oh no,” Mog muttered under his breath, his voice suddenly lost. Pendaran glanced at him quizzically, no doubt sensing the horror percolating through Mog’s mind as he gazed upon his brother for the first time in almost two years. Many blamed their vileness on the Searing, but Belenus had been a bad seed from the moment their poor mother had birthed him. The Searing had just given him more freedom to be a leech and con artist. “Ah, me dear dear brother,” Belenus crowed, the reek of cheap liquor and other disgusting things permeating his shabby deep violet clothes. His taste in couture was as reprehensible as his behavior. Mog cursed to himself, backing away as the stinking liar moved toward him with open arms. Then he blushed to realize Pendaran and Lemony were watching the spectacle with a mixture of bemusement and disgust. “That won’ be necessary,” Mog rumbled when Belenus persisted in trying to embrace him, “I don’ know what yeh tol’ Sister Lemony, but yeh ain’ welcome here.” “But I’m yer brother and I’ve fallen on hard times. I’ve missed ye’ so.” “Ye’ve missed me coin and me woman,” Mog spat, an old fury shaking loose within him as he recalled his beloved Dorothea running away to escape Belenus’ unwanted advances. “Yer still sore about Dotty? Eh, I did yeh a favor, she were a slovenly wench.” “How dare you!” Mog roared. “Oh my,” murmured Lemony, “We should get some breakfast and smooth things over a little. He’s family, Moggie; we should at least take care of his immediate needs.” Belenus smiled pathetically at the monk. Holy gods, he loved Lemony dearly, but she was blindingly stupid in some regards. His brother held out his hand to Pendaran with an obsequious grin on his rough face. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name. I’m Belenus, son of Simagh” “Pendaran Caradec,” the man replied, his voice clipped and his green eyes narrowing when Belenus’ hand clasped his a little too long and a little too tightly. At least one of them had a clue what they were up against. “Pendaran…” Belenus repeated, as if savoring the sound of his name, “I swear I’ve heard of you somewhere.” Pendaran rescued his hand and stepped away. “I apologize, I really must be going.” Belenus watched him leave with something approximating hunger. What in the name of the five was he up to now? “I don’ know what yer up teh, but I’ll bust yer head open if yeh try anythin’ shady while yer here.” “My dear brother, I know I were a low scoundrel when last we met, but I’m reformed.” “Reformed into what, I wonder?” Mog snapped bitterly, “I know how yeh are.” Lemony cleared her throat, her eyes round after watching the exchange. “So..so there’s a place to bathe right this way and I’ll.. umm find you some clothes,” she stammered. Mog sensed a wave of sadness rising in the little monk. Her thrill at finding a long lost family member for him suddenly dashed to be replaced with fear and disappointment. He felt terrible realizing she had only been trying to make him happy. “It’s alrigh’ Sister, I’ll take care o’ me brother. I have some old clothes he can wear once he washes up. No need t’ trouble yerself further on our account.” “Delightful, I’d love some private time with me Moggie,” Belenus snorted mockingly as he repeated Lemony’s name for him. Mog flushed angrily but said nothing, aware that his fists were now clenched so tightly at his sides his nails were biting into the heels of his palms. Oh he could smack the low conniving dog now. How long had be been trying to track Mog down? Sister Lemony gazed up at the two of them forlornly and nodded, biting her lip against a tide of grief before she trotted away. Alone, the two of them were silent for a moment. “I meant what I said,” Mog rumbled, keeping his voice low, “An’ so help me, if anything o’ mine goes missin’, I’ll skin yeh alive.” “I never pinched your pipes, I just took yer coin purse.” ”Then what happened to ‘em?” Mog demanded. “I tossed ‘em behind the barrels in th’ cart,” Belenus growled, lapsing into the brogue of their homeland back in Ascalon, “Don’ tell me yeh ne'er looked. I jus’ wanted some peace n’ quiet.” “An’ me coin,” Mog said pointedly. “Such hostility an' me suffering’ so. What a beautiful home yeh have and all I ask fer is a place t’ sleep and some food fer me poor wasted bones. Can’t yeh put aside yer hatred jus’ for a moment fer yer little brother? Jus’ fer a few days?” “I jes’ hope Sister Lemony don’ come t’ regret given yeh th’ run o’ the place.” “Eh, like I’m the greatest scoundrel here?” Belenus laughed, “Yeh want t' see the bounty on yer posh Penny friend.” Mog was troubled by those words. He knew Pendaran did not leave the island because of his past entanglements with the law. He had never asked the man what he had done to elicit so much unwelcome attention. It was not his business. Sister Lemony adored Pendaran and he was a good father and human being as far as Mog could tell. Better to let sleeping dogs lie, particularly since everyone here had treated him with so much kindness and generosity. These people were his family. He owed nothing to Belenus. Except there was a small stirring of the blood, a little knot of pain in his conscience, that told him he should honor their parents and show Belenus a modicum of respect for their shared ancestry. Very well, he could spare a set of his cast off clothes, a bath, some food, and a few nights of shelter. Beyond that he owed Belenus nothing. “Come along,” Mog said with a resigned sigh, “We’ll get yeh cleaned up in time fer breakfast.” |
