Aglanthol 1 - The Legend of Khaalindaan - 8. Chapter 8

Magath tried to start a fire. But the wind blew through the chimney and stifled the fire at once. Qildor and Magath wrapped themselves in thick blankets and sat down on the bed.

"What are you thinking?" Magath asked.

"The leader of the Khalindash is not a Khalindash man. He is a foreigner who rebuilt the ancient seaport. They probably import food and goods from the land where he came from," Qildor mused.

"He knows of the legend of Khaalindaan and he promised the Khalindash their old homeland in exchange for their support," Magath continued.

"This man, however, is rather striving for power himself. He is using the Khalindash. They are just a tool," Qildor said.

"He must be powerful already. He managed to come here from a foreign country. He managed to convince the Khalindash. He succeeded in rebuilding an old seaport and he must have a ship," Magath carried on.

"His homeland provides him and his followers with food and goods and probably animals and weapons," Qildor said.

"Which country is powerful enough to send animals and things by ship?" Magath asked.

Qildor shrugged. He was thinking.

"No nation or kingdom has attacked the Aglanthol for centuries. The Khalindash in the north are considered a nuisance. The primitive tribes that live in the south of Aglanthol are not a threat either. High mountains build a natural frontier in the west. And in the east we find the sea. I have no idea where the man came from," Qildor mused.

They looked into the room, both of them thinking. The storm meanwhile was violent and raging. The noise was awful and almost frightening. But Magath’s house withstood the storm.

"I can’t go over to Gwyn today. I’ll go to see her tomorrow," Magath said after a while. "This all sounds very far-fetched. It sounds like a tale itself. Perhaps the wizard Neldor is right. The Khalindash want to retrieve Norlorn’s sword in order to conquer back their homeland. This explanation is simpler."

They sat in silence. An hour or two passed. Then the storm grew less violent. Magath finally rose to his feet and opened the door. Like he had expected, the place in front of the house was covered with snow.

"We need to clear the place of the snow. We need to see to the horses," he said.

~~**~~

The snowfalls continued all through the night. The following morning, Qildor and Magath again cleared the place in front of the house of the snow. Magath’s neighbours had also left their houses. They worked for several hours and they were exhausted when they had finished their work. Qildor wiped the sweat from his forehead. He looked down the street. Apart from them, only one woman was still outside. She was looking at the sky.

"Gwyn," Magath said.

He joined the old woman who was dressed in a thick cloak. She wore a fur cap and her face was covered by a thick woollen scarf.

"Can I help you, Mistress Gwyn?" Magath asked.

The woman turned to him and shook her head.

"No, you all have helped me already so much. I would not have been able to clear the place in front of my house of the snow. I am too old. Thank you, Magath, "she said.

Qildor had meanwhile joined them. Gwyn looked at him curiously. Magath did the introductions.

"Qildor is from the capital. He is a royal soldier. He came here to investigate," Magath said.

Gwyn studied Qildor curiously.

"I think I have seen you already a week or two ago when I was accidentally looking out of the window," she said. "You were riding down the street."

Qildor gave her a smile and a nod.

"You are right, Mistress Gwyn," he said. He could have sworn the old woman looked a little embarrassed.

Gwyn returned the smile.

"You are investigating? What are you looking for?" she asked.

"The king and his counsellors are worried because of the Khalindash attacks," he said. "They sent me here to investigate and find out more about them. This is why I will stay here for the winter. I’m living with Magath," Qildor replied.

Gwyn looked between them curiously. A small smile played on her lips. Qildor was instantly aware of what the woman was thinking. And so was Magath who looked aside. Qildor smiled at Gwyn again. He found that the woman would have been a good scout, if she were a man and younger of age, of course.

"I was planning to see you anyway, Mistress Gwyn," Qildor said.

Gwyn gave him a questioning look.

"Magath told me of the Khalindash. He told me the legend of Khaalindaan. He said you knew many more legends and tales. I’m interested to hear them," Qildor said.

Gwyn looked between Qildor and Magath. Surprise showed in her eyes. It was replaced by pride. The old woman straightened. She gave Qildor a warm smile.

"I’m old. I have heard many stories, yes. Why don’t you come in and have tea with me. I will gladly tell you a few tales," she said.

Gwyn looked at the sky again and she rubbed her hands.

"I fear it will be snowing again very soon and all our work will be in vain," she said. Then she pointed at the door of her house.

"Come in, please," she said and made an inviting gesture with her hand.

They entered Gwyn’s house. It was warm inside. Gwyn had started a fire. The woman took off her cloak, scarf, and hat. And then she pointed at a wooden bench.

"Sit down while I make us some tea," she said. She hurried to the fireplace.

Qildor and Magath sat down. They looked around in the room. It was small but tidy and it was comfortable. Gwyn joined them a couple of minutes later. She placed a tea pot and mugs on the table. The aromatic scent of herbal tea filled the air. Gwyn fetched a blanket and placed it around her shoulders. She sat down on a wooden chair.

"You said that Magath told you the legend of Khaalindaan," she started. "It is indeed an ancient tale. This all happened many centuries ago. But the tale is still told and many believe it is true."

"We were wondering if perhaps the Khalindash attack this part of the country because they hope to find Norlorn’s sword somewhere around here," Qildor said.

Gwyn nodded at them.

"It is said that the place is somewhere around here. But so far nobody has found it. It is said it is hidden from the eyes of men. Only the wise men know where it is located," she said.

She wrapped the blanket more around her.

"But who knows," she continued. "Perhaps a wise man joined the Khalindash and betrayed the secret and now they want to retrieve the sword. I had these thoughts also already. But why should they come here in winter? Snow will cover the fields for many months. They won’t be able to find the place in winter.

Magath nodded.

"It doesn’t make sense in the first place," he said. "But perhaps they follow a plan."

Gwyn gave Magath a questioning look. Magath looked at Qildor. Qildor spoke up.

"Magath showed me to Dran yesterday. The Khalindash attacked his house and stole food from it," he said.

Gwyn nodded.

"I know this. They did not take away the food from the bigger pantry, though. And Dran said their horses were well-fed," she said.

"Which means they are not after food and supplies," Magath replied. "They must have enough of it which is truly surprising. Where did they get it from?"

Gwyn shrugged.

"There’s an old town in the north," Qildor said.

Gwyn looked slightly confused for a moment, but then she understood what Qildor was aiming at.

"You want to know if I know more about it, don’t you?" she asked.

Qildor and Magath nodded.

Gwyn turned her cup in her hands. She looked into the room for a while absent-mindedly. She was thinking. Finally, she turned her eyes back to them.

"The legend of Murdock," she said. "The man was obsessed with finding the town. No one was able to say why he was so obsessed with it. He neglected his duties. He stole food from the clan to provide himself for his extended journeys to the north of the country. One day he killed a man who tried to stop him from stealing more food. That was when the clan banned him. They drove him out of the village. Murdock did not care. He travelled north and he never returned. It is said he found the town and he dwelled there until one day the waves of the ocean took him away. This is one version of the story. Others said he sailed off to a far away land."

Qildor straightened and leaned forward. Magath and Gwyn exchanged a brief look.

"This is fairly interesting, Mistress Gwyn," Qildor said. "Did he build a ship? How was he able to rebuild the town and make it a seaport? And how was he able to build a ship all by himself?"

Gwyn took another sip of her tea.

"It is just a tale. No one ever travelled north and looked for the town. Well, actually, it is said adventurers of all kind rode north over the centuries. But only few returned and none of them had found the town. And in these days no one would even dare to cross the northern frontier," she said.

Qildor gave Magath a meaningful look. Magath nodded slowly. Gwyn turned her eyes to Magath.

"We were wondering, Gwyn, if maybe the Khalindash attack our area in order to prevent us from travelling north. They don’t want us to find out about the town in the north that they maybe have rebuilt and turned into a seaport," he said.

Gwyn looked at them for a while in bewilderment. Then she nodded slowly.

"You mean they get their food and supplies by ships coming to the town in the north," she said.

Gwyn placed her cup on the table.

"Only the Aglanthol have ships. Why should the Aglanthol help their enemies? Where would this ship come from then?" she asked.

"Perhaps this ship comes from somewhere afar," Qildor said in a dismal voice. "Perhaps it comes from the land Murdock sailed to. What else do you know about this mysterious town, Mistress Gwyn?" he asked.

Gwyn looked into the room for a while. She was collecting memories.

"This town is ancient. The legend of the town was already told in the days of Murdock and Murdock lived many centuries ago. I heard of a tale when I was still a child. My aunt told me the story one evening. She never told it again and I heard nobody else ever telling it. But I do remember it because it was so strange and frightening," Gwyn said.

She wrapped the blanket more around her shoulders before she started to recount the tale.

"My aunt was a somewhat weird woman. She told many tales that no one ever had heard of. It was said behind her back that she made these stories up by herself. But I do not think she did. She was an odd woman in fact. She roamed the lands all by herself which a decent woman was not supposed to do. I admired her. She was so independent and self-assured. Anyway, she might well have met people who have told her these tales that nobody believed in," Gwyn said.

She cleared her throat.

"She told me of the ancient town one evening. She said that foreigners had come here and had built it. They had crossed the ocean by ship. They had planned to invade the country and settle here. The kingdom of Aglanthol was not yet founded and even the Bre did not yet exist. The country was inhabited by primitive tribes. It is said these tribes still dwell in the south of Aglanthol," she continued.

Qildor nodded.

"They actually live in the south of Aglanthol," he confirmed.

Gwyn nodded slowly. She took her cup, poured some more tea and took a sip. She was lost in her thoughts. Finally, she turned back to Qildor and Magath.

"The foreigners were killed by the plague. This is what my aunt said. The plague stopped them from conquering the country. I don’t know what happened to their ship. Perhaps it was bound to decay or the waves took it with them," Gwyn said.

She raised her eyes and her eyes widened slightly.

"Perhaps Murdock sailed off with it," she said.

Qildor and Magath exchanged a look.

"It makes sense," Magath said in a low voice.

Qildor nodded his agreement. He turned back to Gwyn.

"But how comes that no more ships arrived? Was it the only one? Were the strangers only few?" he asked.

Gwyn shrugged.

"I do not know," she said. "I have never heard of a similar story. Murdock must have known this tale also. That was why he looked for the town."

They all looked into the room for a while and followed their own trail of thoughts. Suddenly, Gwyn straightened in her chair. Her face had turned pale and she looked like in shock. Magath leaned forward with concern.

"What’s wrong, Mistress Gwyn? Can I help you?" he asked.

Gwyn shook her head slowly. She gazed at them with widened eyes.

"Oh, Goodness! I have forgotten about it. I did not give it a thought in almost sixty years," she said. Her voice was stifled.

~~**~~