The Lead Crown: Ch 3b, The Prodigy (Pt 2)
Tranquil Waters: The Lead Crown Ch 3-2, The Prodigy
Friar Arlowe stood quietly by Cruffington's side, saying nothing as they witnessed the quick ceremony performed by Brother Rhys. Although the rat was not traditionally a speaker at funerals, the monk could think of no one better for it, and the priest was happy to do what he could. The ritual and accompanied words were no longer than the time it took for Sister Aurelie and Aodhan build a bonfire.
Although it was tradition to bury the dead, it had always been said that God understood the need to burn bodies if a holy site was not accessible. While a funeral pyre was usually reserved for battlefields and sailors at sea visiting desert islands, Friar Arlow would have liked to have thought that God would have an understanding for their situation, and silently prayed that Vic would find peace.
The fox-coon had been a fine young man, and there was no reason that Friar Arlowe could see as to why he deserved such a fate. Of course, the monk was not above the understanding that people did not always get what they deserved and, on far too many occasions, what they DID receive was certainly not fair. Life, he acknowledged, was not fair, and, as he remained by his son's side, Brother Rhys finished his prayers and set fire to the collection of wood that held the body of Vic Ventor.
Cruff, the monk noted, held his own council, simply staring at the flames that engulfed the body of his companion. The young raccoon dog did not whimper and did not weep; he stood passively, watching as the purifying flames scoured Vic's mortal coil. Even when everyone else looked away, Cruff continued to stare and, nearly an hour later, as the fires finally began to die down, did he speak up, barely a whisper, "The Church just keeps taking."
During the time the two raccoon dogs stood watching Vic's pyre, Aodhan and Brother Rhys took the time to build a second bed of wood while Sister Aurelie did her own version of the Last Rights, somewhat different than the ones the monk had learned, most likely the version more normally used among those from Trevossier. Once the wooden platform was constructed it took Aodhan, Rhys, AND Aurelie to heft the enormous gorilla atop it. Although it was the responsibility of speaker of the last rights to administer the flame to the pyre, Sister Aurelie collapsed into tears and so Aodhan took over. Arlowe was surprised when the wolf even managed to recite the final lines on Aurelie's behalf. The wolf had continued to astound the raccoon dog on many occasions, but it didn't register as strongly as it might have; the monk was approached by one of the deer.
The tribesmen had remained patiently with the group as the last rights were spoken, but the older buck addressing him hinted in his tone that they didn't plan to remain around forever. He motioned to the bodies of the church's hunters, all joined together where the tribals had placed them in a large flame, "There are more of these men not far from here... they will see the fire." The man spoke with a distinct accent, but his grasp of common was good enough.
Aodhan had spoken with the deer on the party's behalf and had somehow convinced the tribals to take the group to safety. As the monk looked around at the many warriors, he suddenly realized that their numbers were dwindling; during the prayers some of them had probably left, "Just a few more minutes..." the raccoon dog requested, "We will be ready to go soon."
Aodhan came over, leaving Brother Rhys to console Sister Aurelie. The wolf cleared his throat, "No... we should now."
The deer with graying fur regarded Aodhan and spoke to the wolf in the tribal tongue. Aodhan shook his head in response, offering up some words of his own. Although Friar Arlowe knew scarcely more than a pawful of words in the strange language, he had a feeling that the two were discussing what would come next. Glancing to his son still standing beside Vic's pyre, the monk shook his head and interjected, holding up a paw, "Just five more minutes... please... just five more."
Aodhan exchanged another set of words with the buck, who nodded, and went back to his men. The wolf regarded the monk, "I am sorry, Friar Arlowe... but if we stay any longer more people will be at risk... we MUST go."
The raccoon dog nodded and sighed, "I will get my son."
* * * * * *
The group was on the road two minutes later; they had barely had time to pack and their campsite was left completely abandoned without even an attempt to clean it. The majority of the tribals still with them led the way, followed by Aodhan. The wolf spread his time between talking with the deer closest to him in the strange tribal language and comforting Sister Aurelie, who leaned against him for support in ways more than physical; the cat was still completely inconsolable, and changed between issuing soft, mournful words, and being overcome with tears.
Next in line was Friar Arlowe himself, accompanied by his son. Although the monk was able to travel under his own power, he had to admit that the lack of a night's rest was starting to take its toll, but he was far more concerned for his son. Cruffington trudged along beside him, looking nowhere but forward. In one paw he clutched what appeared to be a ribbon bookmark, one he'd claimed several days previous had been a gift from Vic-- his other paw carried the branch that the fox-coon had been using as a walking stick. By all accounts, Cruff looked like he was in shock... or, hopefully, just lost in his own thoughts.
Behind the two raccoon-dogs was Brother Rhys, accompanied by one of the young tribal bucks... the only one who didn't appear to carry any weapons. He had introduced himself to the rat as Ulit Amih, and then explained it meant 'Runs-on-Air' in the common tongue. The two spoke quietly as they traveled, and seemed, by all accounts, to get along well enough.
Although the tribal's grasp of the common tongue was not perfect, the two made due, partly because of Brother Rhy's patience as much as Runs-on-Air's enthusiasm. Their conversation got MUCH deeper when the buck inquired about what a priest did, and asked about Brother Rhy's god. The rat's answers were from scripture and prayer, and ones that Friar Arlowe had heard hundreds of times, and so the discussion ceased holding his interest.
What the monk DID find interesting, however, was the group of deer following along behind them. While they were not always visible, the raccoon dog was able to catch sight of them now-and-again, running into and out of the moonlight, using the forest for cover. It was during one such study of the deer that Aodhan joined him, and surprised the monk by asking a rather simple question, "Are you alright, Friar?"
Arlowe turned to regard the wolf and slowly shook his head, "I have not been right for some time, Aodhan... no."
The wolf matched his pace, continuing the conversation, "The Church is doing wrong."
The raccoon dog shook his head again, "No... MEN are doing wrong. Whether a man is a cobbler, a tailor, a sailor, or a priest, we all have the capacity to do wrong... but the men who are responsible for this are doing so at levels beyond all reason."
Aodhan walked with him in silence. The monk looked back to the deer following along behind them. Despite having watched them for over an hour he still couldn't figure out exactly how many were out there. The wolf caught his attention with what came across as something similar to a chant or a single line out of a missal, "Like the spirits of the forest, I am one."
The raccoon dog turned again to Aodhan before spekaing, "That sounded almost like a prayer... what is that?"
The wolf glanced back to the deer, "The men following us are scouts, called 'Nyeora', or 'Phantoms'. They pray to the gods every time they leave the villages. I do not know the entire prayer, but that is the final line... at least, that is the best way to translate it." his eyes found their way back to the monk, "The most skilled among them could walk right behind you without you ever knowing that he is there."
Friar Arlowe nodded, letting the reference of the pagan gods go without rebuke, choosing instead to focus on a different thing the wolf had said, "They say spirits, which is plural... many-- and when they say they want to be like the spirits and be one... what does that mean, or is something lost in the difference in languages?"
Aodhan smiled at the question, "They mean to be one with the land. It is like how there can be many trees, but when we talk about them all we talk about the forest... one thing is actually many things brought together."
Cruff spoke up from the side, "So... they want to blend in?"
The wolf nodded, "Yes... and no. They want to become part of the forest like a tree, so yes, they want to be able to hide... but it means more than that; they want their spirit-- their essence to become PART of it."
The younger raccoon dog smiled without humor to the expression, "Might want to keep your voice down if you keep talking about stuff like that... Brother Rhys wouldn't be too happy hearing it, I'd bet."
Friar Arlowe rested a paw on his son's shoulder, " 'Answer all questions truthfully-- it is no man's place to decide--' "
Cruff sighed, finishing the recitation of the verse for his father, " '--what another man wants to hear.' I know... I know..."
Aodhan smiled at the exchange, "From my time learning with the sisters one of the greatest lessons was that we must be able to find the wisdoms taught to us in all things... while I do not agree with everything the Church has to say, its books are filled with much knowledge... it is just a shame that those who claim to teach it are not themselves its students."
The two raccoon dogs looked to one another, and then to the wolf. They ended up speaking in unison, "Amen."