(Chronicler's note: "What is of greater importance and considerable historical interest is the fact that news of the rebellion reached the Halidem Mountains so quickly. The clan Lords who sat on the Council of Ku quickly saw their opportunity to distance themselves from the situation and began arrangements that, in the long run, would prove to be a first line of defense against the Tyrant-King's plans for them." HISTORY OF THAELIA, Vol. IX.)

~~~~~~~~~*

"Lord, Jarid is back from his trip to Tharea and wishes to see you." Borg, Lord Harryhl's chamberlain, looked uncharacteristically disturbed. "He says it is urgent."

Harryhl waved his hand impatiently. "Show him in, Borg. Show him in." He turned to his wife sitting beside him. "It's about time he returned. It's been two weeks since he left. Perhaps the Master-Healer has been found since I came back, and she wants you in Tharea."

"It would be none too soon, Harryhl," Rhia answered, moving awkwardly in her seat, "but I don't particularly want to travel all that way this late." Harryhl chuckled and patted the large mound that was Rhia's stomach fondly. "Our son grows larger by the day doesn't he?"

Rhia smiled back at her husband and was about to answer him when she saw his face harden as the swarthy chamberlain escorted the bedraggled young man into the hall. His clothes were tattered and filthy, his hair so matted and dusty that its color was indistinguishable. His face wore a look of exhaustion that Rhia had never seen before.

"By all the spirits, man! You look as if you had passed through Chan's eighth hell!" Harryhl exclaimed.

"I just managed to get out of Tharea before fighting broke out in the streets. I had a few tangles myself in getting far enough away from the city to head for the foothills. There is civil war down there!"

Harryhl's eyebrows met above his eyes in a scowl. "I knew that Hariki was having trouble, but I never suspected that it was this bad. Have you any idea who was attacking the city?"

"None, Lord, but there was an army large enough to be going just about anywhere they wanted without much difficulty. I would estimate that I personally saw at least a thousand."

"Small wonder that we have had no messages from the King then." Harryhl stroked his braided mustache thoughtfully. "How long ago was this; how long since you left the city?"

The young man eyed a short stool beside the wall. "Could I please sit? I've been traveling all the last three days since I got to the mountains." Harryhl motioned for Borg to bring the stool closer, and Jarid collapsed into a sitting position. "Well, I tried to leave six days ago, when the fighting started, but had to hide in a burri-shed the first day. The rebels, whoever they were, were killing anyone that made any movement outside the buildings. I waited that night, and then somehow managed to sneak out of the gate in the confusion when the first fires were lit. It took me two days to cross into and through the foothills, and then three days here."

"What of the King's forces?"

"Lord, I didn't stay and ask questions. I have no idea what the outcome of the battle was except that the street fighting got worse when the rebels started searching the city for someone. But I did hear that the Palace was taken. I heard some of the soldiers of the rebel forces talking in front of my hiding place before I left the city."

Harryhl arose from his seat and started to pace the floor. His walking brought him in front of Jarid, and he placed a gentle hand on the young man's shoulder. "I will send word to your father that you are safely returned. He has been worried now several days. Go now, and rest and refresh yourself." He motioned his chamberlain to take the tired young man out. "Hurry back, Borg; I have several things you will have to take care of immediately."

After the two men had left, Harryhl turned to his wife with a deeply concerned look on his face. "You realize that we can't put off our trip to Rhyls'hyl any longer. If the Master-Healer can't tend to you, as she's probably been killed in the fighting, I had best get you to Rhyls'hyl as soon as possible so Falina can take care of you. I want you to start your preparations to leave tonight so we can get an early start tomorrow."

"Of course," Rhia patted Harryhl's arm comfortingly. "I understand, and I'm glad to get to a Healer of our own people. But Ku Rachul is more than three weeks away; how will we justify coming so early?"

"I need to meet with the Council of Ku about these latest developments in the lowlands, and so I'll clear it with Byrol then. I'll leave you at Korans'hyl to visit with your sister while I attend the meeting. It won't be more than three days before I'll be on my way back and we can go on to Rhyls'hyl from there." Harryhl looked long at his lovely wife. Her midnight-black hair hung in long braids to her waist; and tiny ringlets framed a small, round, intelligent face with dancing hazel eyes. Her pregnancy only accentuated her tiny build, and Harryhl felt a spasm of fear for the welfare of his beloved wife and their long-awaited child.

Rhia didn't miss the fleeting look that passed over her husband's face, and patted his arm again. "Don't worry so, Haru," she comforted, using her pet name for him tenderly. 'I may be a bit ungainly, but I know all will be well with us, your son and me." She leaned carefully over and planted a gentle kiss on Harryhl's cheek. "I'll see you later. I'll have my girls start packing right away, my husband." Rising slowly, she walked out of the hall, passing the returning chamberlain on her way. Both men watched her exit from the room; and then Harryhl cleared his throat, calling his man closer.

"Get me five of the fastest messengers and bring them to me at once. I am calling a special meeting at Bothas'hyl for three days hence. Then have my steward start packing for me. Go now!"

~~~~~~~~~*

"I'm afraid I'm too old for this, Gyrl," Hariki groaned as he tried for the third time to make himself comfortable. "I don't remember ever being so tired and the ground being so uncomfortable before. This snarking wound doesn't make it any easier either."

"You have just forgotten what battles are like and how it feels to be wounded, Sire. And what is worse, so had I!" Gyrl looked down at the reclining figure of his old friend from his seat on a burnt beam. Hariki's own right arm was bound tightly to his body in a sling, and his garments bore witness to the amount of blood he had lost. "At least we were able to find this shed before that patrol rode by, or we would be on our way back to Tharea to decorate the walls with our corpses after facing Chlin." He groaned and put his left hand on his own right shoulder.

"I know I hurt as if Chan himself had struck me with his fiery war-club; does yours bother you much?" Hariki asked gently.

Gyrl shook his head. "Not as much as if the sword had cut deeper. It seems almost healed until the night gets cooler, and then it begins to ache."

Hariki looked about. In the muted light of only one moon, the burned and ruined walls of their shelter seemed to reach out at him mockingly. Suddenly, he struck the ground beside him with his good hand in fury. "Why? Was I such as bad King that my own son could rally such a force to overthrow me? Did I so mistreat my people that they would allow such treachery?"

"No!" Gyrl replied sharply, effectively ending his companion's tirade of self-recrimination and self-pity. "You were - are - not a bad King. There are always those who wish their tax load lighter, and both you and they have been and will be the victims of an exceedingly clever and greedy young man who would go to any lengths to wear the crown - even to the extent of destroying his kingdom in the process."

"Perhaps I was too trusting of Chlin not to see him as he actually was," Hariki commented to himself.

"Perhaps," Gyrl conceded, "but you are not the first father to be blinded by love and pride. I should have been more suspicious when I caught him in the treasury." Gyrl scuffed his toe in the dirt. "After all, security was my responsibility, so I suppose you could say that it was my blindness also that allowed things to go this far."

Both men fell silent for a few minutes, each feeling their respective guilts. Hariki spoke first, breaking the uneasy silence. "Well, what we have to decide now is where we go from here without getting ourselves killed or captured in the bargain. We can't stay here much longer, that much is certain."

"Gyrl nodded in the darkness. "No, we can't stay here, nor can we stay anywhere on the plains. Believe it or not, I think the only place we have left to escape to is the Halidem Mountains. Thara knows we wouldn't be very welcome there either should anyone find out who we are."

"The Halidem," Hariki breathed. "I don't know if I can make it there."

"You really have no choice. Besides, at least we stand a chance of living a while longer up there than we do here in Thaelia. We might also get a chance to fight Chlin again, if luck and Thara decide we are worthy."

"I suppose we really have no choice, do we?" Hariki muttered.

"Not really," Gyrl responded wearily. He climbed off the fallen beam and lay down on his tattered cloak. "We'd best get some sleep tonight so we will be in some kind of shape to start for the foothills tomorrow." Hariki didn't answer, and both men quickly fell into a deep sleep that lasted the rest of the night and well into the next morning.

Hariki awoke first, shut his eyes tightly against the bright glare of the midday sun and groaned as every muscle in his body started to ache. His arm felt as if it would fall off at any moment. He caught his breath at the stabbing pain. Gyrl roused at the sound, and cursed softly as a shaft of pain lanced his shoulder. He stood up slowly and rubbed the sore shoulder gingerly as he took in the position of the sun.

"Do you suppose we dare start out while it's light? We could be seen," Hariki said softly behind him.

"We run a risk whatever we do, whenever we decide to start. You know as well as I that there are patrols at night as well as during the day." Gyrl stumbled over a board on his way to a gap in the charred wall. "Thara be praised," he exclaimed, "we aren't so far from the forest as I had feared."

Hariki made his way to Gyrl's side. The dark grey line denoting the dense forest lay beyond the prairie to the west. "It's far enough," he commented with a snort. "There isn't even much grass to hide in if a patrol should happen by." Gyrl looked at Hariki and then down at his feet. "Our clothes are dark to begin with and," he paused and bent down to pick up a piece of soft charcoal from the ground, "if we wait until sundown, this should finish the job of hiding us from all but the sharpest of eyes."

Hariki made a wry face. "I'm sure it won't make us look any worse than we already do."

~~~~~~~~~*

Harryhl gazed around the council table at the faces of the other Halidu Lords, each of which mirrored a combination of curiosity and worry at the summons that had brought them. "I'm sure many of you are wondering why I called this meeting. I have had some news that I feel you all should know, and that we should discuss."

Sharhl Saranth, the aged and embittered Lord of the Saranth, gave the Lord of the Jedh a disgusted look. "This had better be good, Harryhl. You have no idea what this meeting interrupted."

Forl Khyrh snorted in derision. "We all know what your diversions are, Sharhl. I'm sure, even if you aren't, that Lord Harryhl wouldn't call a meeting of the council this close to Festival if he didn't have a pressing reason." He turned to Harryhl. "Go on, we're all listening."

Harryhl cleared his throat. "You all know that my nephew, Jarid, had been missing for four days, being late returning from the lowlands on a trading trip. He arrived at my hall with a very interesting tale three days ago. It seems that the lowlanders are in the process of rebelling against Hariki."

"What else is new," Sharhl snorted. "There have been minor peasant uprising in the past that haven't caused us to have a meeting of OUR council."

"Shut up, Sharhl," Byrol snapped. "If you can't say anything except to complain about your being here, don't say anything at all."

"Thank you," Harryhl bowed to Byrol gratefully. "For your information, Lord Sharhl, this is no peasant uprising, and our old friend Hariki may be in serious trouble. Jarid claimed that an army of no less than a thousand men strong was assaulting the city of Tharea itself, and was at the gates of the Palace when he left seven days ago.

"Needless to say, this offers us an opportunity to do what we all have wanted to do for nearly a generation: namely, to close off all routes into the mountains from travel up from the lowlands. If the situation is as bad as Jarid claims, the King well be able to do nothing about it at all because he would be too busy taking care of his own yard, as it were."

Krom Franith scowled, deep in thought. "That would be ideal, Harryhl, but what if Jarid were mistaken? Could we afford another Conflict in our lifetimes? Our people were nearly all massacred the last time. Hariki could have just been waiting for them to get close enough to strike down with one blow."

"No, I don't think so, Lord Krom. You forget that I was there myself not all that long ago, and there were serious problems that the King was seemingly unable to deal with at the time. It is logical that things have progressed to the point that someone has decided to do something about it," Harryhl pointed out. "He was even at the point of adopting someone else's son to be his heir when his own son was discovered in the Treasury, stealing the Royal Seal. Now tell me if you think a King with a disinherited son, a starving populace which is required to send the greater portion of its crops into royal warehouses rather than feed their children, and an army whose morale is nearly gone could organize an effective counter to our closing all the roads into the mountains so we could again pursue our own destinies?"

"Those are fine ideals, my Lord. But is there a chance that we could be causing more trouble for ourselves than we can afford at this point?" Mysil Chinth, who usually said little at any meeting, asked quietly.

"I admit that there will be always a chance that we will be biting off the portion of a thatz, but if we never take the chance, we may never get free of the rule of Thaelia."

Byrol rubbed his hair into a more disheveled state than it was in at the start of the meeting. "Is there no way we can wait? The winter usually isolates us from the lowlands anyway, quite effectively. If I might make the suggestion that we wait with any decision on this until the snows are done, we might be able to get a clearer picture and form a more informed line of action, if any."

"I agree with Byrol, Harryhl," From piped up. "We have never had any trouble with visitors from the lowlands during the snows. Those chulos don't know how to prepare for cold-weather travel Halidu-style and freeze to death most of the time. So why not let the snows close the roads for us for now, and then we can decide if we really want to isolate ourselves when the thaw comes."

Harryhl looked around the table. "Are you all in agreement with this? Should we wait until the thaw to decide if we want to make a bid for freedom from Tharea? All in favor..."

The five hands slapped the table in unanimous agreement. Harryhl nodded. "Then we are decided. We wait. I want all of you, however, to think about ways to close off your lands from access from below during the snowy season. In this way, when the council season opens again and we decide for independence, we know what all we have to do to accomplish our ends."

Sharhl snorted and stood up. "Well, if that was all you had in mind to discuss, I have things to attend to at home. Personally, I think this was all a waste of time."

Byrol shook his head in exasperation. "You and Lord Bothyl never do see anything worth coming to meeting for. The only thing that makes you a better Lord than he is that you, at least, attend the meetings and offer your opinion. He doesn't even make the effort to have a voice in the decision that effect him."

"Gentlemen, please!" Harryhl intervened for the seemingly hundredth time. "Sharhl, at least, has a point. If there is no other business that any of you wish to bring up at this time, I adjourn this meeting." At the silence from the other men, Harryhl nodded. "I apologize for interrupting your festival preparations and hyl-openings, and I will see you all after the thaw." He turned and placed a restraining hand on Byrol's arm. "Could I speak to you for moment before you leave?"

The two men waited for the rest of the Lords to leave the council chamber. Harryhl rubbed his hands together nervously. "I was wondering if it would be possible for Rhia to come to Rhyls'hyl early, since there obviously is no chance that she will be able to see the Master-Healer before the baby is due. I know she is less nervous about it than I am, but I would appreciate it if she could have the services of a Healer nearby as her time nears."

Byrol shrugged his shoulders. "I see no reason for her not to come. The spirits know that we have enough room for her, and your unease about your first child is perfectly normal. Of course she may come. Will you be staying as well?"

"No, I'll leave her there and return to Jedhs'hyl until just before Ku-Rachul. There are quite a few clan matters I have to settle before festival itself that I should see to personally and not leave to hirelings. Would four days hence be too early for you to have time to prepare, or would you rather that we wait for a few more days?"

"Falina will be happy to have Rhia there, whenever she arrives. As a matter of fact, she would probably give me no peace if I made you wait." Byrol chuckled softly, "Besides, we have an extra Healer in my hall right now; and there would be no extra burden for Falina if we can convince the visiting Healer to stay on for a while."

"An extra Healer!" Harryhl exclaimed. "How in the name of all the spirits did you manage to come up with an extra Healer in these days when Healers are a rare breed?"

"It's a long story, Harryhl, one I will tell you when you get to Rhyls'hyl. Now I'd better be on my way so that Falina will not be surprised at another unexpected guest."

~~~~~~~~~*

Hariki sat down heavily on a boulder on the side of the road, his forehead glistening with perspiration. "I have to rest, Gyrl. I can't go another step. These mountain roads are steeper than I remember! And besides, my shoulder is paining me constantly."

Gyrl retraced his steps and sat down on the boulder next to Hariki. "We can't rest long, Sire. We must get off this road before we are discovered." He pulled three thuli leaves from a pocket in his cloak. "Here, eat these. They will give you strength."

Hariki took the leaves and stared at them absently, then peered at his surroundings. Little more than rocky crags and high cliffs were visible in the twilight. "There's no place to hide anyway," he said, wheezing slightly. Gyrl scratched his head and shifted to a more comfortable position on the boulder. "If my memory still serves me, there is a small stand of forest about an hour's walk away. We can rest there."

"Perhaps you should go on without me," Hariki sighed. "The mountain cold is in my bones, and I don't think I can go any further."

"Nonsense. You've made it this far, and we can make it to the woods together. I promise you we can rest there, gather more thuli and let you get your strength back."

The older man snickered softly, a sound that changed to a wheezing cough. "Now I know why your soldiers hated your soul but were so loyal. You drive them on until they nearly drop of exhaustion, but you lead them to safety."

Gyrl patted his old friend's good shoulder gently. "Eat your thuli, Hariki, and let's be on. The sooner we start the sooner we can really rest."

The moon Ila was high in the sky and her mate, Frolua was peeking over a rocky crag in the distance when the two old men rounded the turn and found themselves surrounded with trees. Even the cold of the night seemed to abate a little under the canopy of leaves. Gyrl led the way off the road a dozen paces to a small hollow where there was some protection from the chilly night breezes.

Hariki lay down in the hollow, totally exhausted and was asleep even before Gyrl had a chance to cover him with his tattered cloak. Pulling his own cloak tighter, Gyrl stretched out next to his King and closed his eyes. He slowly allowed the tensions of the drive from the city and fear of discovery to flow from him. For the night, at least, they were truly safe from all who would harm them. Slowly he sank into a dreamless sleep.

Two long, black shadows floated away from the hollow, making no noise as they slipped wraith-like through the trees. A decision had been reached, and it was up to them to see that it was carried out.

Gyrl came awake with a start. He glanced over at Hariki, who lay as he had fallen asleep. Something had awakened him, some noise. He listened very carefully to the predawn silence. There it was again, a rustling in the leaves a short distance away. Gyrl reached to his belt sheath and drew out his dagger and rose slowly.

The rustling came again, from a little further away. He looked down again at the sleeping man at his feet. Making a decision, he used his empty hand and foot to push leaves over the sleeping King until Hariki was nearly invisible before starting out.

Again he heard the rustling; it had moved even a little further back into the dark forest. Gyrl carefully picked his way, making as little noise as possible. He followed the rustling further and further back, over a small rise and down into a valley.

It was nearly light when he heard the last rustling close by behind some bushes to his right. Clasping the dagger even tighter, he pushed his way through the brush and into a small clearing.

Hariki stirred and came awake slowly. His every bone ached painfully, and his chest hurt with every breath. It was as he sat up that he realized that Gyrl was no longer there. Startled, he gained his feet as quickly as he could. He called Gyrl's name softly in the dawn-lit woods, but was unprepared for the sound of a step behind him. He whirled around to find Gyrl smiling at him. "Chan's bones, man! You know how to add to an old man's grey hair!"

"I'm sorry, Sire. I think you should come with me, if you're up to a short walk. Thara's grace is back with us again!"

~~~~~~~~~*

"How in the name of the One did you ever find this place?' asked Hariki, looking around the hut in astonishment.

Gyrl crouched down in front of the stone hearth and began to lay a fire. "I don't really understand it myself. I heard some rustling off in the forest-like someone trying to sneak away. I followed the sound, and it led me here." "Are you sure the place is deserted?"

"Look around. If anyone were living here, there wouldn't be this much dust all over." Hariki ran his hand across the table, then brushed it against his pant leg to clean it. "Besides," Gyrl continued, "I had to tie the door in place where it had fallen from its hinges."

Hariki eased himself into the wooden chair by the hearth with a groan. "Well, it certainly is far enough off the traveled way that we probably won't have to worry about unwelcome guests." He gave a wheezing cough that brought a concerned glance from Gyrl as he nursed the smoldering kindling into a small flame. "At least now we can starve to death in relative comfort," the old King muttered to himself.

~~~~~~~~~*

"You mean that Rhia will be here in three day's time? Well, I have to admit that it is better for her to not have to go all the way to Tharea so close to her time. I know she hates to miss Festival, and the roads are always so unpredictable this close to the snows," Falina stated as she brought a steaming mug of cha to her tired and chilled husband. "It's too bad that the Master-Healer wasn't able to see her when she was in Tharea."

Karinna, sitting across the table from Falina, felt a chill start to climb her spine. "Excuse me for interrupting, but who is this Rhia you all are talking about?"

Byrol took a long sip of cha and cupped his hands around the warm mug to bring the circulation back. "Oh, she's the second wife of the Lord of the Jedh clan, the head of our council of Ku. Harryhl had made arrangements for the Master-Healer to see her when they were in Tharea, because he was worried about her and her child. But the Master-Healer disappeared before the appointment took place, and they had to return to the mountains before she could be located."

Falina nodded and added, "And where she is staying right now, the Lord doesn't believe in Healers, so she is no better off there than at home, where her own Healer died almost a year ago."

"You mean that Korans'hyl, or wherever she is, doesn't have Healer either? Don't the clansmen object?"

Byrol shrugged. "The Lord of the Koran follows the old mountain ways, leaving the health of his people to the spirits and the spirit-talkers. The Magic Gift of Healing was brought to the Halidu at the tip of the sword after the Conflict, you see. His clan has developed no Talent of its own, and so they follow the lead of their Lord. The only reason I allowed Darla to be betrothed to Banl, Bothyl's son, was that he is a progressive, and has a respect for Healers and can see their use in our society regardless of the lowland origins."

"You should have heard the arguments when Lord Bothyl discovered that I was in training to be a Healer," Darla chuckled. "He nearly died of a stroke when Banl and I refused to break the betrothal vows."

Karinna looked over at Darla in surprise. Darla was short and stocky and deceptively childlike despite her age and maturity. "I didn't know that you were betrothed."

Larm leaned over and grabbed the last slice of sweet bread from the platter just before a servant removed it. "In the Halidu tradition, a girl can become betrothed upon becoming a woman. And once the vows are taken, only one of the couple themselves can break them-outside pressures are not allowed to have any influence. This keeps family and politics from interfering with a relationship that might be perfect, just the way Bothyl would have meddled for his own reasons."

"Well," Falina remarked as she stood up, "Darla, we have to decide where we are going to put Lady Rhia while she is here and get the rooms cleaned out and aired. Maybe it is well that she comes so soon; it will give us reason to get an early start on the hyl-opening."

Karinna fought a sudden queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach, realizing that there soon would be a person who knew her in the hyl. Somehow, she had to find a reason to get away from Rhyls'hyl before Harryhl got here, a reason sound enough to keep from causing comment among the members of the Rhyl family.

"Karin, are you all right?" asked Falina gently, having seen the woman's face turn ashen.

The queasy feeling turned to a real feeling of nausea. Karinna nodded, but then stood up suddenly. "Please excuse me," she said and bolted out of the room.

Byrol watched her go, then turned to his wife. "What was that all about?"

"I'm not sure. For a Healer, she certainly has delicate health. This is the third time this week she has left the table." Falina motioned to Darla, and the two women went off to find a place for their next visitor.

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