Bastions
Chapter Fifty One: Toil and Woe
Part 2
Prelude:
Trade was the life blood of many of Europe's states. A small country at strategic cross roads could find itself very wealthy and a large country without trade could find itself floundering in need. But the presence of trade also draws the attention of the enemy. For Prussia its soft underbelly was its Black Sea coast where Rome could easily cut trade and if needed even raid the great port of Morcárgrád. To prevent this Prussia made sure to keep the Black Sea Fleet strong enough to fight the Romans without the help of the main fleet up in the Baltic. In 1392 relations between the Romans and their neighbors were cool at best. She was quick to forget the allies that kept her nobility from being executed and quickly isolated herself from Armenia and once again, Prussia. Historians are quick to point out that isolating herself from Armenia, at the time a barely Muslim country with a mostly Orthodox population, was probably the worst that Constantinople could have done. Had the two countries put their differences aside a re-united Anatolia would not have been a far cry. Instead, Armenia would stay more closely tied to the Persians and would eventually resume raiding the porous eastern border of the Roman Empire. Meanwhile, never to be outdone, when Prussia got wind that she was to be ignored again, she shut down all trade to the Roman Empire and began the long process of finally snuffing out the poor and crumbling Empire.
August 3rd, 1389
Kenric lay on his back looking up at the stars. His feet were completely numb and his voice completely hoarse. The last two days had been a terrible swirl of activity and shouting. He had done his best, but he couldn't help but feel it wasn't good enough. Maybe had his feet not hurt quite so much he could have smiled more, shouted louder and more clearly. But it was all behind them now. Everyone else seemed happy. Not too far away the rest of the group had built a bonfire and crowded around to share in food and coin. They laughed and shouted and patted each other on the back. The men knocked back pints and the women played with each other's hair. "Doing better?" asked a quiet voice.
The Harrower looked over and saw the auburn-haired woman. She carried with her some perfumes and oils which she carefully put down around his feet. She carefully worked his ragged remains of shoes off and carefully dabbed the bleeding blisters with a clean cloth that had been soaked in water. It stung terribly but she was gentle and Kenric saw that she was very sure of what she was doing. He sat there in silence as he watched the beauty work silently and purposefully. Eventually the stinging began to subside and she then rubbed the oil into the skin, working his feet over carefully. Kenric found himself lost watching her and when she looked at him he quickly and shamefully looked away, trying to look like he had been distracted by something else. But his flushed cheeks gave him away and the woman blushed as well while she worked; leaving him to his new-found interest in a twig.
"How long have you been doing this?" Kenric asked, "Wandering around, I mean."
"Since I was a young woman," she answered. "When I was very small I was part of a small clan outside of the city of Vilnius, where many Liths lived. One day my people were scattered in order to make room for the faithful. We took to wandering the country side and performing. It keeps us fed and it seems no one has a problem with us so long as we don't linger long and they don't catch doing anything sketchy."
"So you don't mind wandering around like this?"
"Not at all," she said quietly with a comforting smile.
"But it is so much work! Wouldn't it be easier to build a stage somewhere and you know... let them come to you?"
"No, when you are a Lith you must go to the customers. Would you have walked all the way from Krakow to Danzig to see me dance?"
Instantly Kenric's face turned apple-red. The woman giggled while she collected her things and stood up. She left him there watching her skip back to his employer. After a few moments Kenric shook thoughts from his head and saw that the two had disappeared. "You should join us for dinner, Harrower," a voice called. It was the ink-covered muffin-giver.
Kenric's head snapped to the source of the voice and made several people laugh. "Try not to fall too deeply into the Queen's spell," a black-haired girl cooed. They motioned for him to come over and join them around the fire. The troop had several children about his age, though they operated no differently from any of the adult of the clan. They each had a role and they stuck to them well.
"Why? Are you afraid you won't be able to put him under your own?" another girl said mockingly. The black-haired girl got flustered and in her anger threw a wad of flower stems at her rival.
"Spell?" Kenric asked.
"Aye," the muffin boy said, "The spell of the women-folk from communing with the gods. Astiya is the best at it. No man can resist but there is only one man she would be with and that is the dirty Priest."
"That isn't very respectful, Ramondas!" the black-haired girl said, "Werna is very polite and has done a lot to help us, you should be thankful he is here. Plus Astiya was so sad without him! She would just mope and pine all day, now she is so happy and that makes everyone else happy. Everyone but you."
Ramondas rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "So can anyone cast these spells?" Kenric asked skeptically.
"Only those who have been trained: the card readers and the soothe-sayers. It is women's work, men don't need spells," Ramondas said.
"So they are real?" Kenric asked, "I was always told that witches and spell-casters were agents of the devil... but I thought they were just boogey-men, just there to scare little children."
"Yup, we're real!" The black-haired girl said, "Here to kidnap small children and then cook and eat them!" The Harrower could not tell if she was being honest.
"Shut up, you aren't a soothe-sayer and you know it," the other girl said. "You couldn't predict the future of a mayfly let alone another person."
"Not everyone sees the future; some of us are just good at getting people to do what we want."
"Good luck with that," the girl responded.
The black-haired girl pouted, "I'll show you!" She turned and faced Kenric directly, with a little pout and a little puff of her breasts she asked the Harrower, "She's wrong right?"
Kenric sputtered a bit and turned red before hiding his face in shame.
"He doesn't count, Godi" Ramondas said flatly. "Stupid and easily fooled. You might as well be holding meat in front of a starving dog."
"Yeah, and Astiya doesn't need giant saggy milk-bags to get whatever she wants, she is different and you know it," the rival girl spat. Blood rushed to Godiwa's face, turning her red, and she tugged up on her dress's top to cover up.
"I don't get it. Are you guys friends or not?" Kenric asked, eyebrow peaked.
"What do you mean?" the rival girl asked.
"You guys are very mean to one another," Kenric pointed out, "Why?"
"Just poking a little fun," Ramondas explained. The Harrower could tell there was a little anger in his voice. It was clear to the new-comer that the tattooed boy was in charge among the children of the clan, whether through force or actual station was not something Kenric had gathered upon. "That is the way clan life is, you get used to it or you get left behind. Especially if you are a little slodð like Godi."
"I'm Muslim, not barbaric," Kenric said, "That is language one does not employ around women."
Ramondas scoffed before standing up and cracking all of his knuckles one fist at a time. "Are we really going to play these games, Harrower?"
Kenric stood up and tossed his shoulders around, "I already killed one person, what is number two going to do?"
"Hahaha," Ramondas laughed, he relaxed his stance and put a hand on Kenric's shoulder. "Ʒes you are a determined little man, but I like your principles."
Kenric stood silent and motionless for a few breaths, "Wai... what?" he asked.
Godiwa grabbed Kenric's arm and hugged it tight against her body, "My chivalrous knight, Kenny!"
"I'm still confused," Kenric said blankly.
'That's okay; that is where I want you," Ramondas said sitting back down and putting his hands behind his head. Godiwa's rival got up and sat on his lap, sticking her tongue out as she passed the other two. "But we need more people with a bit of decency and common sense, recently we've just been picking up trash."
"Trash?"
"Werna and Astiya know what I mean, they'd agree with me. When we pick up a person like you or Werna the clan is stronger, but when we pick up people like those two, we get a little weaker." Kenric followed Ramondas' eyes to a pair of muscle-men who were talking quietly in a foreign tongue.
"What language is that?" Kenric asked.
"Not sure, don't care. I know they are up to no good. I've watched them pick pockets and steal from the clan. But the elders... Astiya's mother and grandmother, they decide who is in and who is out. They like them, so for now we are stuck with them."
"You don't actually think that, do you? You intend to do something."
"Yes. I intend to get you to convince Werna the time to do something about it is now. He'll listen to you because you are new and unbiased. If he threatened to leave with Astiya... then the elders would listen to us. Without Astiya we are nothing. No one comes to have fortunes told or watch men swallow swords. They want to see her, they are drawn to her," Ramondas said, slowly drifting out of his own thoughts.
"Oi, back to me," his girl said, gently slapping his face. Ramondas giggled but the girl did not seem to find it as nearly as amusing as he did.
"Anyway, it smells like dinner is done, Kenric, why don't we get enough for everyone here?" Ramondas asked. He easily picked his girl up and put her down beside him. "Don't worry, Godi will be here when you get back," he said with a friendly wink and a firm hand to help the Harrower up.