Mellia — Away With Venlar Xiiii
1627, Sea Season, Death Week
Context
Sea Season, Death Week, Waterday. [[[s02:session-33|Session 33]]]
Events
Mellia does her best to get the body back to the horses. The body can go on Mellia’s horse and she will walk.
The cat is considerably less hostile towards Yamia than Venlar. Yamia asks why the change of direction, however.
“I can bring him back if we get him to the shrine .”
Yamia looks at him and asks, “How long has he been… gone?” She steps aside and lets Venlar and the thralls do the work.
Mellia studies the body again.
Cold, but then, he was lying on cold stone. He has probably been dead a day, or a little under.
“About a day. We can bring him back.”
“I can’t help you,” Yamia says. “But I will not hinder.”
Venlar offers Mellia a thrall’s horse.
“Thanks, Yamia.” Mellia accepts the horse and tries to get everyone to Blue Tree.
Yamia keeps up – Venlar falls behind, but calls out, “Do go on!”
And Finarvi – up to him really. People are being dramatic and Orlanthi, or generous and merciful.
Mellia goes on to Blue Tree in a hurry.
There is a lot of fuss, of course, when she arrives with a dead body. For a few minutes, people assume that Yamia has killed someone.
Mellia sets them straight, but wastes no time in healing the body, so he can be resurrected.
The ritual begins. Sosa and Tathia look on in amazement. Mellia’s singing of the story brings her into a world in which she walks beside a path, and a hunter walks on it, sprightly, and eager. “My friends are ahead,” he tells her.
“Your alynx friend is behind,” Mellia tells him. “He misses you so much that he brought me to help you.”
For a moment, he falters, and Mellia can see him trying to decide, but then he goes on, and a little something drains from them both.1Drew first round of spirit combat.
“There’s a hunt ahead,” he says. “And I would join it!”
“There’s hunts behind. I never heard of hunts in Grandmother’s house. “
That jolts him, and she can take his hand, and lead him back. She wakes beside a sleeping man, in a tiny shrine, with two initiates watching her, wide-eyed.
“I am tired. Has anyone seen the alynx? I need to talk to it.”
The door is opened, and the cat slinks in. Nobody tries to stop a killer from entering the holy place – it counts as a guest.
Mellia says to the alynx,”He’s back, but could use some rest. Be a good friend to him and take him on lots of hunts.”
It does quite a lot of purring, and then settles down by its master’s bed. Sosa cracks an egg for it, into a bowl, and puts down water.
“You two might want to stay here and help these people. The harvest was poor and they are friendly.”
“He owes you a life debt,” Tathia points out. “So he can stay and help the Temple. But we can’t eat meat.”
“So we’ll give it away,” Sosa finishes.
“That’ll work. Will anyone be angry if Venlar and I stay one more night?”
“Angry? You’ve just come and shown them what Chalana Arroy can do!” Tathia looks amazed.
“She means about the food,” Sosa whispers. “His thralls eat a lot.” So does Venlar, to be honest. He has a warrior’s appetite.
“One night will make no difference,” Tathia says.
Mellia smiles. “Thanks. I will go find Venlar.” Which she does.
“Sweetheart, I’m tired. Mind if we leave in the morning?”
He is outside, waiting on a camp stool, because of course he packs such things when he is travelling. He stands with a look of awe, more than a look of love, like he had forgotten Mellia has that power in her. “I gave some guest gifts to the people here,” he says. “I hope you don’t mind – just a little food and so on, as we arrived unexpectedly.” He takes her hands like he expects her to perform miracles right then and there.
“Of course I don’t mind! Are we camping out?”
“Camping?” He looks around at the things he brought to make his stay more comfortable. “No. I was just waiting. Of course the Chief has asked us to stay. You’re the talk of the tula.”
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Mellia resurrects a dead hunter of no political value at all
- 1Drew first round of spirit combat.
