Benlunar - Episode 8
In suspicious circles.
Take the road up through the mystic mountains
Past the fantastic fishing fields and fountains
Three days through the Titan woods
Whose trees glare down through leafy hoods
Crawl in the darkness of the biting caves
It’s more dangerous the other ways
Then finally find yourself later or sooner
In the hidden valley town Benlunar
“Lilian?” Brother Thomas’ voice came from far away. It was audible, but somehow quiet and unimportant. The way the constant sound of the breeze might get filtered out of one’s attention. Lilian knew she should reply but currently had so many questions running through her head that she was busy figuring out which one to address first. The cold weight of the silver brooch in her hand was pulling her thoughts in like a magnet. In a split second, she weighed up her options, she wanted to know why Brother Thomas had an identical brooch to that of the woman who only that morning had tried to assassinate her mentor but she didn’t want to reveal too much about her role in the events. As the small room at the back of Benlunar’s Stave Church came back into focus, she realised that she must have been staring at the brooch for a suspiciously long time. Lilian had to think of something quickly,
“This is nice.” She said, holding the brooch up in front of her. She checked it again to see whether it was indeed identical to the one she’d seen on the cloak of Kissandra the hired killer. There was no doubt. Everything from the arrangement of the fingers, to the polish of the silver was similar to the one she’d seen. Brother Thomas held the box from which it had fallen open in front of him as if to receive it. When he spoke, Lilian paid close attention to his every word and mannerism, hoping he might accidentally reveal something,
“Yes. My uncle gave me that. I don’t wear it anymore though, a bit garish for a church brother’s robes don’t you think?” Lilian placed the brooch back in the box and quickly picked another question,
“I feel like I’ve seen brooches like this before. Maybe one of the tourists from Freedos was wearing one?”
“It’s very possible.” Replied Brother Thomas, turning away to put the box back on the shelf it had fallen from. There was nothing in his reactions that suggested to Lilian any hint of secrecy or wrongdoing, but she couldn’t help but see Brother Thomas in a very different light from only moments before. She began to think back to when she first met him, she had only been a child then, probably around 3 or 4 years old. She didn’t remember much of his arrival in Benlunar, but she did know that he did not grow up in the village. In which case, she thought, who had he been before he arrived? And why did he choose Benlunar in particular to make his home? She didn’t want to push her luck with more questions, but she also didn’t want to drop the subject, making her bringing it up at any later date seem more suspicious. She decided upon a different tactic.
“My parents don’t let me wear jewelry like that.” To add to the innoquous nature of the statement Lilian coupled it with a relaxed gaze around the room, she even briefly considered sitting in the armchair by the fireplace, putting her feet up as if she was in her own room.
“Well I’m sure they have their reasons. Something like that is quite valuable and they might worry you would lose it or worse, someone might try and take it from you. Now, I’m sorry to be rude, but I have a few more things to prepare before tonight’s service.” Lilian turned towards the door, in the few steps towards it she wondered if this was Brother Thomas changing the subject. As she reached the doorway she knew she had one more opportunity to ask about the brooch before her persistence became suspicious. She turned and, in her most relaxed tone possible, said,
“Where do you think I could find a brooch like that?” She watched Brother Thomas turn back to her with his small smile fixed on his face. Before he spoke however, he paused. To anyone watching the scene they would not have noticed it, but Lilian saw that for a fraction of a moment Brother Thomas did not know how to answer the question. He simply smiled, breathed in and then answered ever so slightly too late,
“I’m afraid I don’t know. Silver is heavy and clunky though, much more suited to the city. Besides, I prefer the amber jewelry made here in Benlunar, don’t you?” Lilian smiled in agreement, said goodbye and then left the room. As she walked through the church’s main hall, her footsteps echoing off the stone slabs one thought repeated itself over and over in her head. He’s hiding something.
That evening Lilian and her parents visited the Stave Church for the service. They had insisted on making her wear one of her least favourite dresses. A pale green thing that barely fit but that was made for her by Kilde’s mother. Apparently she had hinted a few days ago that she had never seen Lilian wear it so here she was fulfilling her neighbourly duty, one ugly dress at a time. Lilian would normally have put up much more of a fight against wearing the dress but she had more important things on her mind. As the Benlunar locals and the visitors from Freedos mingled and took their seats in the Church hall, Lilian kept an eye out for any suspicious activity. She spotted Mr Attorcop who was too busy talking to the woman next to him to pay her any attention. The stalls and seats in Stave Churches were conveniently laid out in a large circle. It was supposed to represent community or togetherness but Lilian found it most useful when having to spy on everyone around her without having to crane her neck. She spotted the man in orange, the judge that Mr Attorcop had helped a few days ago. This time though he wasn’t wearing orange, but instead was dressed in a wonderful blue doublet decorated with pearls and what Lilian thought must have been dried flowers. Lilian and her parents took seats on the third tier round to the left as they entered the hall. This was where they usually sat for Church services, only they weren’t usually surrounded by outsiders, like the young couple behind them dressed in matching grey or the elderly man to their right who sported a rather fantastic looking feather in his hat. There were a lot more visitors in attendance than Lilian had thought there would be, Brother Thomas would be pleased she thought.
Just as everyone found their seats, the echoing murmurs died down and Brother Thomas entered the central space and addressed the crowd. He was wearing formal Church Robes and greeted everyone with his signature smile and welcoming nature. The circular hall and the wooden walls meant that he did not have to raise his voice very much to be heard.
“Friends new and old,” he began, “I would like to welcome you to tonight’s gathering, which I see as a celebration of connection. For hundreds of years Benlunar has been host to visitors from around the world, each come for a different reason, and it is our pleasure to welcome them all and try our very best to make sure their stay is enjoyable…”
Lilian began to feel tired. Perhaps it was her body’s natural reaction to sitting and listening to someone talk, or perhaps the rigours training was finally catching up with her. What ever it was, she had trouble keeping her eyes open almost as soon as Brother Thomas began to speak. If it hadn’t been for that afternoon’s discovery, she may have succumbed to her tiredness and drifted off as she had done in this church so many times before. But now she paid extra attention to Brother Thomas’ words as well as his manner. It was as if she was looking at one of Benlunar’s many tourists, a new man she had yet to meet and talk with.
“If your God is not depicted on these walls or in our songs,” he continued, “please do not let that make you feel unwelcome. Our Gods are closely connected to our stories and the world around us but that does not mean we cannot learn from your stories and your experiences and indeed, your Gods.”
Gaining nothing of interest from Brother Thomas, Lilian decided to scan the crowd around her. She was looking for silver brooches, for suspicious faces or for anything that might be out of the ordinary. But after wondering if a man sat on the back row opposite her was signalling to someone or merely picking his nose, Lilian realised that she was probably just bored.
It was half way through the local choir’s first song, just before Lilian was about to shut her eyes and settle into a cosy sleep, when she noticed it. A dark haired woman, in a deep blue gown and a fur stole glanced directly at Lilian, looked back at the choir, and then moments later, glanced again. Lilian had caught eyes with her when everyone had sat down earlier, but she assumed that this was merely because everyone was looking at everyone else. The woman was sat to Lilian’s right, not directly opposite her in the circle so it was difficult for Lilian to be sure of the woman’s glances without obviously turning her head and looking at her. Lilian shifted her weight slightly so that her body was facing slightly to the right and then employed a similar trick to the one she did that morning, closing her eyes so that to anyone looking at her, she would seem to be asleep, but all the while keeping them ever so slightly open so that she could peer through her eyelashes. Luckily this didn’t make her stand out too much as some of the older church occupants had shut their eyes only minutes after sitting on the cushioned benches. In the low light of the Church hall, Lilian found it difficult to see in this manner but it only took her a couple more songs to be sure. The blue woman was looking right at her and was now barely looking away at all. Lilian felt nerves creep into the the pit of her stomach. Surely another attacker from Bana House wouldn’t strike within the sacred walls of a church? Would they? Lilian remembered that all her family and friends were inside as well and she felt her heart quicken. She opened her eyes just in time to catch the blue woman look away towards the choir. Lilian found Mr Attorcop in the crowd and saw him looking at the floor near the choir, his eyes also half closed in weariness. It would be impossible for her to get his attention and signal to him that she was being spied on. In fact, Lilian realised that while the service was happening it would be impossible for her to do anything without drawing unwanted attention. She resolved to wait until the end and then try to find Mr Attorcop to warn him about a potential second threat. She thought about how useful a bottle of Lunar essence would be at this moment. She could plunge the church in to darkness and then sneak away unseen, if she knew how that is.
After what seemed like an entire season, but was in fact just over an hour, the service ended. Brother Thomas said a few final words, reminding everyone to be friendly with each other or what ever and Lilian could finally stand up and put her plan into action. She waited patiently until her row emptied out and then ducked her head low so as to easily slip in and amongst the crowd without being seen. Once she had made it out of the door and to the square she turned back to see if she could spot Mr Attorcop or her parents. She had assumed they would be right behind her but in her haste she had left them behind. There was no commotion or disturbance happening in the church so Lilian assumed her parents were fine for the time being. To her left there was a small birch tree, planted into the ground beneath the square, the stones were carefully placed around its base so that it looked like part of the design. Lilian leant on the tree and kept an eye on the crowds exiting the Church. After a large group of visitors in their city finery came out stretching and chatting about the wonderful singing, Lilian saw the woman in blue step into the open and look around. She was clearly scanning the faces of everyone around her, not hiding the fact that she was looking for someone. Lilian wondered if she might spot her and pinned herself to the papery birch trunk. The trunk was not wide enough to conceal her completely, but it did hide her form and size enough to confuse anyone that might be looking out for her. Now that the tables were turned, Lilian watched as the woman in blue walked through the crowd alone, still scanning each face as she went. Just then, a small dog that must have belonged to one of the Freedos tourists as Lilian had never seen it before, sidled up to the tree and began to sniff around it. The dog was fluffy black and white with a pointed snout and it looked as though it could easily be accidentally stepped on, it was so small in fact that Lilian barely noticed it sniffing around her feet. She managed to dodge out of the way just in time as it raised its leg. This frightened the little creature and it began to yap and bark and fuss at Lilian who vainly tried to shush it at the same time. She had to look down to avoid stepping on it and when she looked back up she saw that several people were looking over at her to see what the commotion was and the woman in blue had disappeared.
“I’m so sorry.” Lillian looked up to see a rather large woman in a pink bodice and white skirt hurrying over to her, “He’s just fussy because he’s hungry.” She leaned forward and spoke to the little dog, “Marco come here. Marco, here. Here Marco.” The little dog paid her no attention and instead continued to sniff Lilian’s foot.
“Come here Marco, come come pet. Come here my prince. Stop bothering this young lady, he doesn’t bite he’s very friendly.” Lilian didn’t see a bite from this animal as being something she might have to worry about. Losing her patience she bent down, picked up the dog which promptly stuck its tongue out in surprise and handed it to its owner.
“Thank you my darling.” She said before turning away and fussing over her dog some more.
Lilian looked back at the crowd and saw her Mother waving at her. She was about to head towards her when one final look round revealed something. Across the square in between two houses she noticed a flash of what looked like blue material disappearing into the alley. Lilian ran over to her mother and said something about seeing her back at home before sprinting away. Before she reached the alley however, Lilian had a flash of conscience. Was pursuing a strange woman a good idea? Night was slowly falling on the Benlunar and Lilian glanced up to see the first few stars peering through wispy, pink clouds. Only weeks ago she would never have dreamed of putting herself in this much danger, but something about her training with Mr Attorcop had emboldened her. She felt as though if she did encounter any danger, she would be able to defend herself easy enough. And so she dipped carefully into the alleyway and made her way down it. The buildings were so close together here that it was as if night had already taken this part of the town. The alley lead to a small side street which Lilian knew well, although she hadn’t been there in several months. Going left would take her to the outskirts of town while going right would bring her to the back of the Fox and Octopus Inn. She glanced in both directions before having her mind made up by another flash of blue material to her right. Conscious of the noise her smart sandals were making, she slowed down and made her way quietly towards where she had just seen the dress flick into a doorway. Lilian hugged the wall as she approached, staying low so as to keep out of sight. The doorway up ahead was the back entrance to a house but Lilian couldn’t remember who lived there. As she approached it she heard voices, a woman’s and a man’s but she couldn’t make out what they were saying. As she edged closer to listen, she considered turning back but thought that even if she gained even a little bit of information on the silver hand brooches or Bana House or anything, the risk would have been worth it. The voices were very low, despite being so far from any crowds so Lilian had to step further and further forward. She was practically at the doorway, almost able to lean out from the wall and peer in when the unthinkable happened. Lilian had been so focused on hearing what was being said that she hadn’t noticed the dark puddle beneath her foot. The soft slap of water as her foot went in was enough to cause the voices to stop. Lilian considered turning to run but didn’t have time to put any sort of plan into action before the face of a tall man appeared in front of her. He’d almost jumped from the doorway into the alley in an effort to catch whoever had made the sound and when his eyes fell on Lilian they widened in surprise. This quickly turned to anger,
“What in the seven stars are you doing sneaking around?” Lilian froze, ready to fight, ready to run, but not ready to deal with questions. The man was dressed in dark grey and had a round, rather handsome face. Lilian had seen if before but it took a second before she could place it in her memory. He was the man who had been sat directly behind her during the service at the Stave Church. Before she could answer his question, the woman in blue came out from beyond the doorway to see what was happening. The light was low but Lilian could see that her cheeks were flushed. Lilian looked at the couple, she couldn’t see any suspicious brooches but something about the meeting still felt, conspiratorial.
“Well?” the tall man spoke again and this time Lilian knew she had to answer, so she lied.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb I just… I’m going to the Fox and Octopus to meet my parents and I thought I’d take a shortcut.” The tall man weighed her answer,
“Why were you tiptoeing around then?”
“I heard voices and I got scared.” The man clearly still had his doubts but thankfully, at that point, the woman in blue, stepped in to ease the tension.
“William,” she said to the tall man, “she’s only young, it’s ok.” She put an arm on his shoulder and Lilian watched him relax and breathe again. He mumbled an apology, Lilian had clearly scared him, which was strange, she thought, as he was almost twice her height. The woman in blue smoothed her dress and approached Lilian cautiously.
“My Lady,” she began, “Please excuse my, friend, he’s a gentle giant really. Please, don’t let us keep you.” Lilian found herself smiling at her manner. She spoke as if she was reading a story and her voice floated on the gloaming like silk in the wind, and when she said, ‘My Lady’, Lilian almost blushed. Instead of replying, Lilian just smiled and bowed and lowered her eyes as she fumbled past them in the small street. Before she was quite clear of them the woman in blue spoke again,
“Oh and, if I might ask a favour.” Lilian turned to come face to face with the woman’s large, brown eyes.
“Yes?” Said Lilian, the words almost catching in her throat.
“If anyone should ask, not that they would.” Lilian saw the tall man cast a sideways glance at his friend, she continued, “we would very much appreciate it if you kept this meeting to yourself.” The woman smiled sweetly whilst nudging her friend in his side. Catching on, the tall man reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiny gold coin and placed it in Lilian’s palm. The two strangers then just looked at Lilian and waited for her to react. Lilian wasn’t quite sure how to react so she reverted back to what Kilde would do in this situation.
“Thank you Sir, thank you my lady. Please, there is no need to worry. Consider the meeting gone from my memory. I wish you both a pleasant evening.” And with that she turned around and darted down the alley towards the back of the Fox & Octopus.
Once she reached the back of the Inn she turned around to see if anyone was behind her. She knew that Liny and Xander would have had no problem with her entering through the back door but seeing as no one was following her, she decided to run past it and head further down the alley. This path would take her to the trades quarter of Benlunar, near Jacob’s yard. It was a roundabout way to get home and she’d have to cut through the trees to get to her path, but seeing as it was a warm evening, Lilian didn’t mind the extra walk. When she reached the empty cobbled street that passed between the various yards and smithys she looked down at the weighty coin in her hand. The gold shone brightly even in the low light of the evening. It was a gold Sovereign, Lilian knew it because of the outline of Empress Silvia’s face on the one side, and the crest of Alicium on the other. She had never held a sovereign before, most Benlunar citizens traded with copper heads or occasionally silver bits but with this coin she could go into the Fox and Octopus and buy drinks for everyone in there for the whole night, or she could buy her own horse or a whole wardrobe of new clothes. Her mind was racing at the possibilities, so much so that she only just noticed the slick, scarlett liquid on the floor before putting her foot in it. Lilian stumbled to a stop, confused. One of the cobblestones at her feet was unmistakably wet, the light was very low now but Lilian had the intermittent brightness of the moon to help her. She waited several seconds for a small cloud to pass in front of it before she could tell for sure what it was she was looking at. A small patch of what looked like oil was splashed on the stones. The strange liquid was laid out in patches that formed a trail in front of her. Making sure not to tread on any of it, Lilian followed the strange splashes and drips down the street. They lead her to a stone wall, round the corner from Jacob’s yard. The liquid was plentiful here and seemed to end at the base of the wall. Lilian brought her hand up to her mouth in a gasp. She hadn’t wanted to believe that the liquid was blood, but there was no denying it now. At the base of the wall was a mass of black and white fur, eerily still in the darkness. It was roughly the size of a large rabbit or… or a small dog. No. Lilian thought, it couldn’t be. Just then she heard a sound from down the street where she had come from. A cooing and calling. She turned to see the light of a torch coming from the other end of the street and the shapes of several people walking towards her. Lilian hastily put the gold coin in her shoe and started walking towards the group. If the pile of fur and blood behind her was what she thought it to be, she couldn’t bring herself to let its owner discover it without warning.
“Marco!” A woman’s voice cut through the darkness followed by that of a man’s. The small group had yet to discover the first splash so Lilian broke into a run, to catch them before they did.
“Where could he have got to?” She heard the woman’s voice again. Lilian could clearly see them now, the large woman in the pink bodice was being flanked by two men, clearly friends whom she had asked for help in tracking down her runaway pet. All eyes fell on Lilian as she entered the circle of torchlight.
“Oh hello miss,” Said the woman, clearly not recognising Lilian from their earlier encounter.
“I don’t suppose you’ve seen a little dog run through here? He’s white with black spots and he’s oh so precious.” Lilian could see the worry in her eyes and hear it in her voice. She didn’t know how to put in to words what she had to say so she just tried to keep her voice as calm as possible.
“I did Madam. But I’m very sorry to say, I think there’s been an accident.” The woman looked at her, confused.
“An accident?” She repeated.
“Yes. I… your dog is over there but he’s seriously injured, I…” She tried to continue but at the mention of her dog being hurt the woman rushed past her.
“What’s happened? Where is he?” Lilian could only watch along with the two men as the woman in pink ran into the darkness to investigate. Moments later, a scream pierced the night and the two men ran towards the scene of carnage. Lilian was left alone, she looked down to see the still slick stones at her feet, glistening eerily in the moonlight. Lilian felt angry. How dare such a horrible thing reflect the beauty and grace of the moon. She felt a tightness in her throat as she heard the woman’s sobs in the distance. She was at a loss. A loss of how to help, a loss as to what to say or do. Lilian could only stare at the floor. She found her eye being drawn to a crack between the stones where something reflective caught her eye. At first she thought it was just more blood, but then she realised that the light it reflected was different. As she bent down to have a closer look, the object seemed to shift and change in nature. She almost couldn’t get her fingers between the cobbles to reach it, but when she finally managed to extract the thing she saw that it was only a small clump of fur. Just as she was about to throw it away however, the fur changed colour.
Over the next few days, many questions were asked, teams of men were assembled to track or trap the thing that had killed the dog, but nothing was found. At one point, even Lilian was suspected of doing the deed, but the accusation was quickly quashed. Lilian of course showed Kilde the fur she’d found on the scene and the two came up with their own theories as to what happened, most of which involved the mysterious Feinhound. All of the chaos and commotion eventually calmed down and the event was replaced by new and more pressing problems and daily demands. This was of course, many weeks before Kilde died.