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The Year Of The Bear - Ep.6

ButonflyAug 28, 2018, 2:22:20 AM

(Start at the beginning)

Climbing roofs and straddling rafters was not the most elegant of jobs for a young lady going about her business, but business was what Julia had been tasked with going about so climbing and straddling she would do. Circuitous though it was, she hadn’t been able to conceive of any alternate way to get close. Not without forcing her way in through the front door, to which she surmised she’d be promptly repelled. That meant putting on her breeches, tying back her hair, and finding a pocket to carry her essentials while on a mission of subterfuge. It was no small feat for a commoner with common decency and an iota of common sense. Fortunately, Julia was no meer commoner, had training to see her through just such an occasion, and could dispense of common sense when and if need be.

The Bears, as she had come to learn their name, had dispatched in a flurry after the chaos in the Ipswitch market. She’d witnessed the whole thing from her standing amongst the sideline of bayful townsfolk. The Yos had been branded as enemies after a swaying of opinion by the Bears leader, known now to Julia as Papa Bear. It had taken the remainder of the day for things to fully settle, over which time Julia had engaged just about every man and his dog regarding information on everything that had transpired, and everyone involved. Documenting was her life and reporting back to her Mistress the reason for it all, and so for the first time since her arrival in town she’d finally felt alive.

Talk of strange happenings were also in the air, none of which Julia had been able to substantiate. The girl at the center of the final conflict had been dragged into isolation, someone Julia wished to speak to but had been unable. Then there was the mother, now rumored to have fallen ill and not long for this world. For what she had presumed to be a far away, sleepy, rustic town, it had certainly made an unexpected turn and thrown her through a loop..

The Bears reconvened as dusk fell. The light was rapidly draining from the world. Sconces and candles now lit the interior of a longhall, furnished comfortably for two-dozen, with tapestries and a roaring fire with which to cook on. Below Julia, the bears were loosely scattered about, talking and drinking, happy by the hearth of the fire as they waited for all to arrive. Julia counted eighteen, most of whom she had identified by name. Papa Bear was present, along with Kodiak the Cursed, Brown Beard, Coddington, Dayna, and Based. Men and women of note in these parts, who looked every bit as wild as she’d imagined people of these parts to be. Whether tall or short, male or female, they appeared hardy, seasoned, and continually armed. A fearsome sight to her eyes and the sort to whom she’d only expect the worst. She made notes in her notebook, scribbling away with the etchings of a pencil about all in attendance, and the general mood of the audience.

The door opened and in walked a man. Nobody knew his name and it was remarked that he’d never been seen in the town of Ipswitch. He was a northman, that much was clear, and from peoples estimations he might have come down from the High Northern Wilds. He wore thick, well crafted hide, crude to the eye but conducive to heat, and also built to last. He carried a blade at his side which he’d wielded earlier in the day with thick grizzled arms. He had a strong jaw on a block head, the lower half covered in a short mask of beard, while on top he wore a thick mane of dark brown, shoulder length hair. He stepped forward confidently, looking about as though searching for a space to take upon the world. In his hand he clutched something that trailed off behind him.

Julia saw two other figures entering.

“Did you bring her?” Brown Beard asked.

Carmel moved to the left, revealing the girl from the square, bound by the wrists and being led by a rope. The girl shuffled forward, while behind her, Dolev stepped to the right, letting the door swing shut behind them.

“Good, we’re all here then.” Brown Beard grunted loudly and waved his hand, signalling for everyone to come.

The maul of bears gathered around the central table while Julia looked down from directly above. The girl was forced to take a seat while her captor stood by with his arms folded, though he’d relinquished the lead. There appeared no concern for escape.

“What of the girls mother?”

Dolev shook her head. “It was peste, or some other trick of the Yos. There was nothing to be done.”

“Will they burn her?”

“Already buried. Six feet. She will do no harm.”

There was a moment of silence in which Julia studied what little she could see of the girl whose mother they were speaking of. She sat still, straight backed, almost defiant. Julia sensed no emotion from the talk of her dead mother, though she wished she could get a better look at the girls face. She noted down what she could with her pencil.

“Now what of the girl?” Kodiak the Cursed broke the silence, staring and baring his teeth as though he were looking at an enemy. The girl stared back.

“You should have let her go.” Papa Bear, who had been seated quietly at the table the entire time, was picking his way through a plate of mutton. He set down a bone and straightened his back. “They tell me you’re called Carmel.”

Carmel, so that was his name. Julia made a note.

“Why’d you stop her. I’m told you’ve come down from the High Northern Wilds, that there’s Malady through the Roaming Hamlets. You must recognise this for what it is?” Papa Bear raised one of his long arms toward the girl. Despite his words, there seemed no malice in them, merely statements of fact.

Carmel shrugged. “They kicked her mother to the dirt. It seemed obvious.”

Laughter burst forth from Papa Bears mouth so suddenly it dislodged a piece of wayward food. “You almost started a fight that could have gotten you killed.”

Carmel shrugged again, “I’ve been told I have my charm.” He answered brusquely.

“Well, now you’ve got yourself a girl nobody wants but the Yos. We need to discuss what we’re going to do with her, and with this Yos menace in general. What’s your name, girl?”

“Kass, and you’re false, there’s nothing wrong with me. I’m a maiden of an age to bare my own rights. Let me go so I can choose my own way!”

“That is part of the problem, Kass, you have been blinded and can’t choose your own path. You simply cannot see that.”

“Lies!” Kass slammed her fists down on the table, making the assortment of bowels, cups, and cutlery jump, and she seethed angrily.

Papa Bear only stared at her. “You probably don’t even remember the girl you were yesterday. But I do. I’ve been watching this town closely for some time, watching all the people within it. You included.”

“Why not put her to the sword and be done with it.” Kodiak cut in, sounding annoyed and brimming with sharp edges, visible in his posture.

Carmel frowned and took a step forward, a threat aimed at Kodiak that suggested a protective standing over the girl. “I came here looking for answers. If the only answer is fire and steel then I came here for nothing.”

Julia scribbled furiously.

“Peace, Bears, let there be peace!” Papa Bear called, though his voice sounded disdainful toward the effort.

“The Yos were right, you’re all just a bunch of murderers and thieves, hell bent on control!” Kass yelled.

“He’s not even a Bear.” Someone else threw in from the sidelines regarding Carmel, not for the sake of controversy but as a simple matter of fact. The intent didn't seem to matter and tensions quickly rose along with a hubbub.

Papa Bear sighed.

A pencil clattered down to the table, bounced, and rattled to a halt. The room fell quiet as all eyes shifted from the pencil to the rafters above.

“Shit.” Julia cursed.

“Spy!” Someone shouted.

The room swirled as a number of men reached for weapons, or moved into action beneath her. A bow was drawn but the arrow stayed as Papa Bear said something about taking her alive. Julia counted that a blessing as she shimmied along her beam at pace, making for the rooftop exit. Below, others attempted to scale the support beams. Carmel watched with a calculating eye as he sought the path, and figured the intention of she who was trying to escape.

She had the height advantage, buying her time, and dared to walk on the balance of her feet to move swiftly toward the end of the hall. Julia was going to make it, easily, and once outside slip away in the cover of darkness. She’d have to leave immediately to not risk being discovered in town, but that was no matter. There were some risk involved to be sure, but she’d sooner take her chances in the wilderness than with a group of people who now labeled her a spy.

Julia glanced down as Carmel charged ahead of her path. He’d swiped up a long handled axe in the motion left leaning against one of the benches. He stopped by the support beam up ahead, and looked up to gauge his time and their distance from one another.

He swung.

The rafters vibrated with the impact.

He swung again, and Julia wobbled through her motions. “Come on, come on!” She chanted, urging herself on.

Carmel swung again, throwing all his might into it and grunting for the effort. The beam had a large wedge out of it but it wasn't splitting fast enough.

He abandoned the axe and tried buckling the beam with the force of his shoulder.

Julia made it to the bracket, and began puzzling her way through the intersection of the beams.

“Come on!” Carmel roared, thudding into the beam which shook and cracked ever so slightly. It wasn't enough. He looked around for someone, “Brown Beard!” He yelled seeing the big man moving toward him. The big fellow broke into a heavy run and the two slammed against the beam with their combined weight.

The beam snapped, Brown Beard went crashing to the floor, and the structure surrounding Julia descended without warning.

Carmel stood with his arms out ready to catch her. She screamed, and the thatching from the roof clattered down on the both of them.

When the dust settled, and the two withdrew their burrowed heads, Julia lifted her eyes from her seat in the Wildermans arms. With her own wrapped tensely around his sinewy neck, she managed one squeak of a word from behind a sheepish smile, and a nervous laugh “Hi.”