Chapter Twenty-Two: Horizon

Chapter Twenty-Two: Horizon

It took them another half an hour to ride up the gently sloping river valley to Horizon. Tom could tell Rosa chafed at the delay, and yet they could not gallop down the road without alarming both the workers tending the fields and the guardsmen.

Soon they reached the gates of Horizon. The city had only one entry. The massive red wall that stretched from one side of the valley to another was interrupted by a single, enormous gate.

In the style of many of Horizon’s doorways, it was narrow for its size, sweeping upwards at the top to a delicate pointed arch. For all its beauty, it was no less impressive however. With the afternoon sun low in the sky, they still stood open, and Tom noted the daunting thickness of the steel-reinforced timber as they approached.

There was a full platoon of guardsmen posted there, and one stepped forwards to hail them as they arrived. The woman looked hard-bitten, the dark olive complexion typical to Horizoners was faded with the wrinkles and wear of decades of soldiery. Her uniform, in Horizon’s muted purple, was crisp and clean. Two gold stripes on her shoulder indicated she was the platoon leader.

“Ho there!” she called sternly. “There is not many travellers coming to Horizon of late. What is your business here?”

For a brief moment, the competing interests in their small party forced an awkward pause from them all as they each waited for someone else to talk. Tom slung his leg over Sesame’s back, slipping to the ground and walking a few paces forward.

“Greetings,” he began. “We come from Wayrest. We have news from there that we believe would be of great import. We would be grateful if you could convey our arrival to the King.”

The guardswoman stared him down. “I see.” She barked at one of the men behind her. He, in turn, beckoned a younger boy to him. The lad had been lazing about just inside the gate, but listened attentively to the guard, then took off running. Through Sus and Sol, Tom noted a few other young figures pelting off into the city.

The guard eyed Darius. “You are a monk, if I am not mistaken. Where are your robes?”

Darius bristled. “This is not a matter for the Horizon guard,” he said haughtily. “We are not subject to you.”

Flint sparked in the guardswoman’s eyes, but Tom headed off the coming confrontation. “Please,” he asked. “We are also looking for a family come from Wayrest. They would have arrived some months ago. Do you know them?”

The guardwoman eyed Darius for a moment longer. She turned to Tom. “As I have said, we have not been having many travellers lately. There have been some, though, and maybe one was yours. None have been leaving, though. If they arrived, they will be in the city, yes?”

Tom could feel Rosa itching to get inside. “Our thanks, then.” He nodded to the guard.

She looked over their group once more, her gaze lingering on each of them. She spat off to the side of the road, then clicked her tongue against her teeth. Two guardsmen stepped forward.

“These two will follow your to your lodgings. We have many inns, you can take your pick. They will convey to us where you choose. Wait there for your summons.” The party began to move forwards. The leader held out a hand. “Dismount and subsume your familiars. No summoning inside the walls.”

The cold stare she levelled at them made it very clear she would brook no argument on the point. Tom hitched his trouser leg, and Sesame nudged his nose to the tattoo and disappeared with an odd zipping noise. His saddle and barding stowed themselves in his wisp, courtesy of the complex automated runes Scriber had enchanted them with.

Sus and Sol swooped to him and were subsumed as well. The last handful of Sere’s bodies he had summoned were subbed too. Though his body thrummed with strength and speed, and his reflexes and senses jumped in acuity, he still felt naked without them. Horizon was going to take some getting used to.

The rest of the group subbed their familiars too, and they passed through the great gates and into Horizon proper, each of them murmuring words of thanks to the guard’s leader. Their two escorts trailed behind them to either side.

They came into a broad plaza, dotted around with the last of the day’s farmers in to sell produce. Horizoners pottered around, their staccato accents making even friendly bartering sound like fierce haggling.

In the centre of the plaza a statue of Goddess stood in the centre of a large fountain. In this, as in so many other things, Horizon differed from Wayrest too.

In Wayrest, the Church of Truth always depicted Goddess as benevolent. Always, she appeared in scenes helping people, dispensing alms and blessings, raising people up. At most, she was depicted as stern, and even then that was controversial.

Here, she cut a martial figure. Armour-clad, a fierce expression on her face, and a spear striking down into the form of some horrible, twisted beast. Water sprayed from the beast’s corpse into the fountain, mimicking blood.

Tom took a moment to sort through his feelings on the scene. He had been raised religious, as most nobles in Wayrest were, but along the way he had lost faith. Being exiled to the Hunters had only cemented that. Still, he felt a second’s instinctive rejection at this bloodthirsty rendition of the most holy.

Then he pushed it aside. This version of Goddess was far better. She was determined, capable, strong -not that Wayrest’s version was not- but this Goddess was a true warrior. He could only approve.

“Oh, you like our Goddess, do you?” Darius murmured to him. “The Monastery is always happy to take in more monks.” He grinned and nudged Tom with his elbow. Tom smiled back as Darius chuckled to himself.

Suddenly, Tom heard the sound of running footsteps on cobbles. They were coming straight towards them. He tensed, immediately reaching out to Sere and the owls, then chided himself when he remembered he’d subbed them. The only reason he could hear the approaching noise was due to subbing Sus and Sol, and the exceptional hearing they granted.

The others picked up on the noise not long after him. Tom saw a group of figures running full tilt towards them down the street to the market square. Suddenly, Rosa was off, sprinting towards the group.

The flow of people in the market this late in the afternoon was not heavy, but Tom still had to crane his neck about to see. He caught glimpses of faces, two women who looked very much like Rosa, and relief and happiness for his partner swept into him.

Darius clapped Tom on the shoulder. Tanya and Markus were grinning ear to ear. “Looks like your Rosa has found her family,” Darius said.

“Should we go join them?” Tom asked. Tanya and Markus nodded, but a cloud passed over Darius’ face.

“I should not. I am thinking it is time for me to go back to the Monastery,” he explained. “They will not be happy, but there is no point in making things longer.”

“I’d wager they’ll be alright when you let them know about your collective familiar!” Tanya said with a smile.

Darius flashed a handsome grin back at her. “This is true. Not to mention a whole new Ideal! No, I will be fine. I am more sad to be leaving you all. I have had fun, despite everything.”

Tom grew serious. “It has been my great pleasure to meet you, Darius Gallo. I hope we meet again soon.”

“And you, Tom Cutter.”

The two clasped arms and shared a smile. Darius said his goodbyes to Tanya and Markus, then strode off with a wave.

Tom felt a moment’s overwhelming fondness for Darius. Rosa was his partner, and what they had ran deeper than simple friendship. He had been close with Scriber, but their age and tier difference had been a gap difficult to bridge. He was comfortable with Val, and trusted her with his life, but she was also his mentor. Cub and Markus were friends, but there was always an ease with them that was missing.

He thought he had found that with Darius. The ephemeral difference between an acquaintance, even ones he thoroughly enjoyed the company of, and a true friend.

The monk was gregarious, and always appreciated Tom’s drier humour. He was also able to share a comfortable silence. They shared many interests.

But it was more than that. Darius had no judgement for Tom as a noble-born son of the Cutters. He didn’t care that Tom had been a Hunter. He made no fuss about his Ideals. He simply liked that Tom liked to fight and could fight well. Things were as simple as that for him.

Tom worried for him. He hoped the monks would not treat his lapse too harshly. Though if they prized healers as much as he said, he should have no trouble returning with the Ideal of Healing and a new collective healing familiar.

Tom swallowed his sadness at the parting and mustered his joy for a reunion. Then he strode over to meet Rosa’s family.

Three women had come sprinting down one of the roads leading into the market square, and another, older woman, had followed at a more stately pace with a man.

She was currently being accosted by the four women. The man was standing a few paces away, regarding the scene with evident fondness. It was him Tom made for.

“Lord Raventos?” he queried.

The man, Rosa’s father, the venerable Lord Raventos, turned to him. Although the women in the family all shared a strong commonality, Tom could pick out Rosa in his features. Where the women all shared the same high cheekbones, the same oval faces, hooded eyes and raven hair, there was something in this man’s smile that sang through his daughters.

“Ah!” he said, his recognition flashing in his eyes. “Young Master Cutter, is it not..? I had not expected to see you here. And not with my daughter. I take it I have you to thank for her presence?”

Tom chuckled. “To an extent. We both journeyed here, surely, but it was her who wouldn’t be kept from you.” His eyes widened as he realised how that sounded. “Not that I didn’t want to meet you, sir.” His stomach dropped as he realised they would not have even known they were an item, and he had just put his foot in it.

Lord Raventos eyed him for a long moment, his face utterly serious. “It’s like that, is it?” He grasped Tom by the shoulder. “We have a lot of talking to do then, but I do know how the Raventos women get when they decide they want something.” He paused. “Or, someone.” He winked at Tom.

“No, Tom Cutter, I am glad you have found us. We were becoming more than worried at the lack of news from home. It is well that you are here.”

“My thoughts exactly, sir. There has been a lot happen since you left, and we’d had no word from Horizon either. We feared the worst…”

Lord Raventos rolled his hand, waving away the concerns. “Ah, this is a joyous occasion. There is time for such discussions later. I think we are ready to head to our home here.” He gestured at the women, who had stopped talking over one another at a million miles an hour and were now all four of them watching Tom with predatory expressions. A slight smile played about Rosa’s lips.

Lord Raventos beckoned the two guards over. He gave them some quiet instructions, and the pair strode off back towards the gate. Lord Raventos murmured to Tom at his side, “Good luck, Master Cutter.”

“Tom Cutter, is it?” said a stately older woman. She looked exactly how he imagined Rosa would in thirty years. It was unnerving.

“It is, Lady Raventos.” He made a small bow. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you.” He forced himself to make steady eye contact with her as he stood. She appraised him for a few, long seconds before taking his arm.

“Good, Tom. We have much to talk about.” She led him away down the laneway, flanked by Rosa’s three sisters.

Tom dredged up every memory of any single thing Rosa had mentioned about her family. He armed himself with the information.

And he prepared for battle.