Chapter 2

Perched on a rock high above the seashore, Neseol watched wave after wave crash over the shore. The wind whipped back her waist length black hair revealing her slender body. Her skin was lighter than most of the islanders she lived with and was made even lighter by the salt in the sea spray. Her face was narrow and almost catlike with high cheekbones and crooked nose. Her bright green eyes sparkled as she watched the sea. She sighed thinking that she ought to get back home before her parents missed her. She stood up carefully keeping her balance and stretched. She had on thigh high lace up leather boots that covered her soft deerskin leggings. A calf length cloak was pulled over a white cotton lace up tunic. Neseol looked regretfully at the tall snow capped mountains surrounding the island before she began to pick her way across the cliff face. She was moving faster than she should have and slipped several times, but she was hoping she could get to her family’s camp before the sun was up too high.

She found her horse, Illiea, and mounted her. Her group would be packing up now and would need her help. She turned Illiea south and traveled on a well worn path towards their encampment, her family and some other people from their village came down to this area once a month to pick up the gems the miners found; if Neseol and her brothers were lucky they got to come with. It took her about an hour of hard ridding until she came in sight of the camp. It was a hasty constructed collection of large wagons and mismatched tents, surrounding it all were crates of all sizes; in the distance she could see the horse corals, hazy in the already blistering heat. Neseol could see people loading the crates into wagons, she had made it back just in time; she road into the camp and put her mare with the other horses and ran to go find her parents and brothers. She found them by their wagon lifting the heavy gem laden crates into the back of the wagon. “I’m back!” She breathed trying to catch her breath. Her brother Falcum jumped from his place in the back of the wagon.

“Good.” He said, “I need a break. ”He smiled a wide and mischievous smile while his brown eyes sparkled. He looked a lot like their father, the same dark skin and wavy hair. He was tall for his ten years and very gangly. He looked up at his twin. “Calcum let’s go get some water.” He suggested happily. Calcum looked pleadingly at their mom. He was almost the exact opposite of his brother; his skin was as light as Neseol’s, with eyes that were such a pale brown they were golden, and he had straight black hair cut close to his head, but the most startling difference between the boys was that Calcum was calm and passive, where Falcum was outgoing and aggressive. They both looked at their mother begging with their eyes. Veseol looked at her sons and sighed.

“Neseol, do you mind? They have been working since the sun came up. ”She looked at her daughter. They were very similar in looks, same catlike face and slender build. It was she who Neseol got her green eyes from.  Neseol looked at her brothers. Falcum pushed out his lower lip and widened his eyes; Calcum just stared at her, somber.

“I guess I don’t care. She decided after a moment “It’s not like I’ve done a lot of work while we’ve been here. She hoped up into the newly vacated place in the back of the wagon.

“Yes!” her brothers cried in unison. They ran off through the wagons as Veseol called after them to be careful and to be back before they pulled out. Neseol could hear them shout their response before they ran out of sight. She looked around the wagon; her family had been able to get six boxes into the wagon before she had arrived. She noticed something on top of one of the crates. She climbed on top of the other boxes to get a better look. They were her brothers cloaks discarded in the early morning heat. She sighed one more year and they wouldn’t be able to do that. Her brothers’ cloaks were made of white cotton to indicate they were still children, around the bottom ran two stripes of light green. The color showed their rank and gender while the presence of two stripes meant they were twins. She looked down at her own cloak; it was dark green, the color of a lower class woman, all children get a full color cloak on their eleventh birthday. Neseol received hers only four years ago. She grabbed the cloaks and threw them down to her parents.

 “They forgot their colors again.” She said. Her father closed his eyes and sighed.

“They must learn to take them with soon. They only have two more months until they turn eleven.” Veseol put a hand on her husband’s arm.

“It’s alright Falium.” She said gently. “They will learn; they’ll have too.” She placed the two cloaks on the wagon wheel and then stooped to lift the next box, her husband followed suit. Neseol moved back into the wagon and waited for her parents to lift the crate up to her. This mine they were at was mostly an emerald mine. They were the most prized and most expensive of all the jewels on the island. Neseol liked them because they matched her eyes. Her parents hoisted a crate onto the wagon and let it crash to the floor in front of their daughter. Neseol sighed, she regretted letting her brothers go because now she had to move the heavy crates all by herself.  She pulled the wooden box to the back of the wagon; she was already sweating from the exertion and that was only the first one. Neseol walked to the opening in the wagon. She raised a hand to shade her eyes as she looked at the sun, it was still very low, she sighed, it was going to be a long morning.

 

It was another two hours until the twins returned, by that time Neseol and her parents had managed to load another twelve crates onto their wagon. “Where have you boys been?” Veseol demanded. “I thought you were just going to get some water.” She looked at her sons expectantly.

“Um well” Falcum began. “We did get some water, but on our way back we got a little distracted.

“We stopped by Ox’s wagon and played with him for a little bit.” Calcum finished. Their mother’s face softened.

“I should have known if I let the two of you go out on your own you would stop by his wagon. Well while you were there did you have a good time?”

“Yes we did.” Falcum said grinning at his brother. Neseol laughed out loud causing her brothers to glare at her. Veseol gave her a questioning look. She covered her grin with a hand and turned around; she knew that, although Ox was her brothers’ best friend, they usually played at his home because of his older sister Asha. Her brothers had liked her for as long as she could remember. She was a pretty girl and very nice but not exceptionally bright; Neseol had spoken to her several times and liked her a lot; they were in the same class at the school.

“Neseol,” Her mother’s voice breaking her from her thoughts. “Would you like to have a break now? You’ve been working very hard.” Veseol put her hand above her eyes and looked up at her daughter. A wide grin spread over Neseol’s face accentuating her cheekbones.

“Thanks.” She said gladly “I’ll be back in an hour. She grabbed her canteen and jumped gracefully from the back of the wagon. She winked at her brothers as she walked by, and waved to her parents, then set off to check on her horse and find the well. When she stopped by Illiea’s picket she talked to her for a while and checked her for sand ticks. That done she headed off in the direction of the well. She passed Asha’s wagon and raised her hand in a wave. Her friend smiled and absently waved back. Neseol would have stopped to chat but she wanted to get to the well before too many people got there. She passed several more of her friends on her way but did little more than wave to them; they were all helping their parents load the wagons.

She came to a junction in her path a little ways past the wagons where several other paths met hers; just up a head she could see the stone structure of the well. She picked up her pace hoping she could reach it before other people came around. She glanced quickly to the path on her left as she passed it and almost fell; walking up the path was Kheen, one of the few boys in the village who towered over Neseol’s five foot ten inch height. He was wiry thin and athletically built. A thin layer of sweat on his dark tan skin reflected the sun, making him appear to glow, his long wavy brown hair hung loosely around his head and reached right above his shoulders, his ears stuck out almost comically from the sides of his head.

Neseol walked on pretending not to see him.  As she went, she watched him come closer from the corner of her eye. She slowed her pace a little hoping he would see her; Neseol was rewarded when she saw him look up and raise his hand to her.

“Neseol!” he called jogging a little to catch up with her. Like most of the islanders he wore knee high leather boots, and deer skin pants. His cloak was a deep blue, which looked almost purple in the desert light. The deep blue telling everyone he was a man of upper class.

“Kheen” Neseol smiled. “I didn’t know you came with the mining group this month. I thought you went hunting on the mountains with some other men.” She and Kheen had been friends as far back as Neseol could remember, he was one of the few men her age she didn’t feel uneasy around. Her friends often told her how lucky she was; they all found him good looking and charming. Kheen smiled.

“I had plans to go, but they already had twenty men so I decided to help the mining company instead.” He smiled his wide grin at her. He is rather good looking when he smiles. Neseol thought to herself.

“Helping?” She said skeptically “I find that hard to believe, you’re always trying to get out of work.” She looked at him “Mores likely that you were flirting with all the pretty girls.” He grinned guiltily at her.

“Of course.” He said smiling good-naturedly. They walked in comfortable silence the rest of the way to the well. “So did you hear the news?” He asked Neseol as they heaved a bucket up from the depths.

“No I haven’t.” Neseol panted as she lifted the bucket full of water down. “What kind of news is it?” She took a long drink and passed the bucket to Kheen. He took a drink.

“A runner came through about an hour ago. Some mainland ships were seen beyond the mountains. Our village elder thinks they mean to dock here.”  He looked at Neseol over the rim of the bucket. “Apparently the village is in a frenzy getting ready.” Neseol was stunned. This was unusual. Ships from the mainland were very uncommon; the last one had been over one hundred years ago. Neseol smiled.

“This should be fun, visitors usually mean a feast. I wonder if they brought anything with them. Maybe we can trade for some things before the traders and merchants show up.” She looked up thoughtfully. Kheen didn’t look as excited as Neseol.

“I’m a little bit worried.” He said quietly and looked at Neseol solemnly. “You’ve heard the same rumors as me that the mainland is preparing to wage actual war against the rebels.” She had, everyone on the island knew that there were rebels trying to get rid of the current King. Neseol didn’t know much about it, but she knew that the King had been ruling for over sixty years and some people didn’t like him. The King was trying to rid his land of those who opposed him, so he sent his soldiers out to kill anyone who was associated with the rebels, in an unofficial war. “I just hope this visit isn’t about the war.” Kheen finished quickly. He looked at Neseol waiting for her response. She considered him for a moment.

“I hadn’t really thought of that.” She said. “I hope our elder thinks more like you. But if not we have to remember that the empire has not come to us before. They have always left us out of their fights. Why should now be any different?” Kheen handed her the bucket and watched as she dropped it back into the well.

“I don’t know.” He said. “I just don’t like this, I feel…strange.” He sighed and sat with his back against the well; Neseol slid down next to him. They sat like that each lost in their own thoughts until the distant call of a hawk shook them back to reality. Neseol stood up and massaged the cramps from her calves.

“I have to go back to my family.” She said “They will need my help if we are to leave in the morning.”

“I’ll come too.” Kheen Decided. “My parents will wonder where I’ve been, and my wagon is near yours.” He stood up and brushed the sand from his legs. Neseol waited patiently as Kheen checked his knives and daggers. She noticed that he carried upwards of six weapons hidden on him plus his normal bow and sword, which he hadn’t brought with him. She herself carried only three daggers plus her bow and sword; she didn’t have her bow with her. When he finished they began their walk back to the wagons.

“Where is your sword Kheen? I thought you always carried it with you? Neseol commented.

“I left it at the wagon with my family.” Noticing Neseol’s confused look he said “My mother doesn’t like when I carry it everywhere; she says I’m not going to be attacked walking from our wagon to the well.” Neseol nodded in understanding. She knew that Kheen hoped to become apprenticed to the fighting arts trainer; he practiced every chance he had and was one of the best swordsmen in the village.