Day 25 (3rd day together)

Day 25 (3rd day together):
By now, we were getting into a routine of sorts, getting up, having breakfast, talking, discussing what we should do, etc. As we were getting dressed to go out into the city again, Mara, our servant, returned to get the dishes. She seemed very pale and withdrawn today. She shook as she picked up the plates. I touched her hands and made her put them down. I locked eyes with her. She fell into my arms and began weeping. We huddled around her as I sat her in a chair.
"Mara, what is it? I see many emotions at war within you. Fear, sadness, a lot of pain, and hopelessness fight in you. Please explain. You are among friends."
She regained some composure and poured out her story.
"I came here from a country on the other side of Cassabla. For as long as history has been written, the Baalocs have terrorized us and my people. They wear armor to make themselves look like demons. Few have encountered them and lived. My country began to prosper when we built walls around our cities and wizards of the elves grew massive forests across what was open plains. The Baalocs are horsemen. They need open space to charge and fire arrows and other launching weapons. In close quarters, they are easily matched. Unfortunately, few get close enough to find that out. When I saw that drawing last night, my old nightmares returned. I knew the Baalocs would gain strength enough one day to be bold enough to march on great cities and whole countries. My only hope was I was far enough away that I would never see them again. I nearly died when they attacked my home. One of their arrows pinned me to the wall and I stayed that way for many hours. Somehow, I managed to pull free and escape as they looted my home and killed anyone they saw. I was still a child, barely ten years old, when I left. I have not seen or heard of any of my family since and I came to the conclusion that they were all dead. By charity and hard work, I made my way here and Lord Carmon took me in as a servant to attend his baby girl when his wife passed away."
We comforted her as she broke into sobs again. I do not know how long we stayed with her as she told of the horrors she had witnessed. She even showed us the scar from the arrow that pinned her arm to the wall. It was not until she had been quiet for a while that we noticed Lord Carmon and the historian just inside the door. The historian was finishing was I could only guess was Mara's last few words. When she saw them, she jumped up and began gathering the dishes. Lord Carmon, in a very touching move, made her put them down. In a low voice, he told her to have Tess do this, that she had the day off, and he thanked her for her hard work. Mara shyly nodded and left. Alice was close to tears at the kindness her father displayed towards someone she thought he never paid any attention. Lord Carmon cleared his throat and addressed us.
"Since you know their name, I don't have to tell you that. The historian has uncovered some history of our own with the Baalocs. You may read it at you leisure. However, it is not history we are concerned about but present and future. My messengers returned this hour with accounts of the boldness of the Baalocs and, importantly, their leader, Maalicus."
Our swords vibrated at that name. We heard them whisper to each other. Finally, I asked, "Do you know how long Maalicus has been their leader?"
"Our information says for a number of years, why?"
"Maalicus is the name of one of the first missionaries of the new faith. He was the most militant. He forced many conversions by the point of a sword. The Baalocs may be a corruption of that faith, killing those who will not submit. It is hard to know more," Vanity informed them from my lips.
"If he has taken that name, they may see this as holy war, a renewal of that faith but corrupted over the centuries. What can we do so Vanity and the others can find out more?"
More humming, vibrating, and whispering commenced. After a while, we answered.
"We need a place of power, where old magic is very strong."
"A place undisturbed, natural, with very little human activity."
"Preferably a hill, ridge, or some natural rise in the terrain."
"A place with no history of conflict, bloodshed, or destructive activity."
"The fey, fairies, and all like creatures must give us permission to be there. We cannot go against them."
"All of the elements must be there. Fire, water, earth, and air must be present in that place."
"And if we can do this on the full moon, it will be complete."
The historian took down our instructions. He said he would search and left. Tess arrived to take the dishes. We told Lord Carmon we were going into town. He agreed. He said he would find us if they found out more that we needed to know. We finished getting ready and went out, letting Tess know we would not be in for lunch.
We had a hard time enjoying ourselves in the city. With so much on our minds, we just wandered aimlessly. We did accomplish a few things. Lisa diagnosed a man outside a clinic with lead poisoning. Sarah identified the illnesses of everyone else at the same clinic and helped the physicians with the appropriate cures. Gretta helped shut down a con who was peddling fake amulets and talismans. Callie told a group of engineers where to shore us a new house to keep it from leaning over the years. Alice stopped an argument between a couple about to get married by letting them know that they had no relatives in common for the past three hundred years, even though many had the same names. They were elated and invited us to attend. We had a nice time and were able to put the Baalocs out of our minds for a while. While there, we were able to see other rituals in weddings that we hadn't seen in our home villages and that the swords told us dated back thousands of years.
Our enjoyment was cut short when Lord Carmon's men entered and told us we were needed at once. We returned to the castle with our escort.
Back inside the palace, we were taken to a meeting room instead of our suite. As we entered, five men rose. Lord Carmon was at the head of the table. To his right were a cleric and a wizard, both of whom had tested us yesterday. To his left, two men in military dress, neither of which were the colors Lord Carmon's men wore. Seven empty chairs waited for us. We arranged ourselves and Alice ended up at the foot, directly facing her father.
Lord Carmon began, "Ladies, I introduce Father Cedric, the wizard Thoric, whom you briefly met yesterday. Over here are Major Kendar of Cassabla and Commander Lehand of Raval, the country on the other side of Cassabla. Gentlemen, as two of you know, these are the Seven Sisters of the Swords."
Before another word was said, Commander Lehand jumped up, sword drawn, and pointed at Lisa, who was immediately on his left.
"The swords are evil abominations! How dare you girls claim such? This is not a thing to play around about!"
Lisa's military training kicked in. Before he knew it, she kicked his feet out from under him, taken his sword, and tossed it to a far corner of the room. Placing a foot on his throat, she politely asked that he not draw his blade against them again if he valued his life. She removed her foot and offered a hand to help him up. He took it and got to his feet. As he sat down, his sword floated and settled on the table in front of him.
Gretta said, "It is a nice blade, please keep it sheathed."
Commander Lehand replaced his sword and settled down. Major Kendar took this all in silently. I could see the whirl of emotions below his stoic exterior.
Knowing we would be dancing around it all day, I started, "You are here because of the Baalocs and what our swords have shown us. A friend told us that another country, I'm guessing Raval, has a long history with them. That is why the commander is here. The major is here because his realm was the one being torched in our viewing. So, why else are we assembled?"
"You are straight forward," the Major began, "I appreciate that. What seers still live in Cassabla have also seen the Baalocs' burning our country. They claim no power short of the divine can stop them."
"We know from many sources that their leader, Maalicus, is obsessed with those swords. He has sent troop after troop to find them. The tales his men have told of their locations are nothing short of ridiculous," Commander Lehand stated firmly.
"Like being impaled in a dragon's leg? Or being frozen in ice that never melts? How about above an altar in a church of carnality?" I asked sarcastically.
All of the men blanched. It was obvious they had discussed these tales before our arrival. They leaned together and whispered. Mentally, all of us laughed at how easily these worldly men could be confused by the truth.
"Every man that returned with a story like that was killed for lying. He, as we, refused to accept them for the sheer strangeness of the idea. You are saying it is all true?" Major Kendar asked rather stiffly.
"Yes," I replied, "all are true. Vanity was frozen in dragon's ice, Sloth was embedded in a monolith, Wrath was impaled in a living dragon's leg, Greed was imprisoned by an obsessed wizard, Lust was chained in a church, Gluttony was entombed under enchanted rubble, and Envy was still in the hands of her last guardian who had been turned to stone."
Again, they huddled together. Through my sight, I could see all of the emotions and attitudes shifting between them, a melding of colors and shadows. It was almost too dizzying to watch.
Finally, I interrupted, "What does he believe about the swords? Do you know that, sirs?"
Major Kendar looked up at me, he armor thoroughly broken. He decided to be honest.
"He believes they hold great power. He is convinced they are evil. He believes that Andros and Barcabas were not wizards, but gods. He believes the original Seven Sisters were goddesses, divine offspring of Andros. He believes that the entities of the swords were minor gods who displeased Andros, Barcabas, and /or the Seven Sisters. He has been quoted as calling the swords the 'seven lost lovers' of the Sisters. He gathers young girls together, looking for anything that might mark them as guardians, for some texts claim that they are 'marked from birth for their special duties.' He claimed to have found three, but all died before claiming their swords."
"By mark, " Callie asked, " do you mean like this?"
She stood and revealed her right shoulder. On it was the birthmark I had known all of my life, a compass-like sun about the size of a gold coin. The men stared. Lord Carmon raced around the table to Alice. Lifting her hair, he revealed the wave-like pattern at the nape of her neck. It was as dark and distinct as Callie's sun. He looked back and forth at the rest of us. One at a time, we revealed our marks.
I, triple moons on my left shoulder.
Anna, a mountain with a snow-capped peak above her left ankle.
Gretta, a wind-blown leaf with whirls to show the wind on her right shoulder blade.
Sarah, a scalloped-edged heart above where her real heart resided.
Lisa, a flame inside of a circle on her right thigh.
The five men examined them thoroughly, each making sure they were not temporary, man-made, or otherwise artificial. Many of us still had scars from frightened parents' attempts at removing them. Only Sarah and Lisa bore no scars. Sarah said the nuns saw it as a blessed sign. Lisa said her commander, whom she now knew as her father, called it a warrior's mark and left it alone. The scars Callie and I had were old enough to be almost unseen, while Gretta had a fresh one and a few old ones. Anna's scar gave her mountain a slight foothill. Alice's merely rippled a part of her wave.
The men sat down after their examinations. We all noticed it was getting late and none of us had eaten in many hours. We all retired to our respective rooms. Tess had an ample supper waiting on us. We thanked her, inquired as to Mara's health, ate, talked, then went to bed.