Greg Bear Songs of Earth 01 The Infinity Concerto

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

acres of sandpaper. Michael shuddered uncontrollably and sat down. Bin looked
back at him and made as if to wipe his own brow, a gesture which endeared him
to Michael enormously. Spart poked Michael in the ribs to get him moving
again.
Only a few minutes later, they crossed over into the grassy prairie of the
Pact Lands, not far from the river. The group made it to the mound by early
morning, and Michael went to his hut and collapsed.
He was shaking. Not until his body had shivered itself free of every vestige
of emotion and tremor of memory did he fall over on his side and sleep.
Outside the hut, Bin stood to face the newly risen sun, holding his small wand
high in the air. He then sat on his chosen spot and his head slumped forward.
He, too, slept.
Chapter Sixteen
Contents - Prev / Next
Michael sat up and rubbed his eyes; he had felt, rather than heard, Biri's
presence outside his hut. "Yes?
file:///F|/rah/Greg%20Bear/Bear,%20Greg%20-%2...wer%2001%20-%20The%20Infinity%
20Concerto.html (69 of 198) [5/21/03 12:42:32 AM]
Bear, Greg - Songs of Earth and Power Vol. 1 - The Infinity Concerto
What is it?"
"My wood was delivered last night," Biri said. "I've built my quarters."
Michael pushed through the doorway cover. A new hut, little different from his
own, sat on the mound about twenty feet away. He was not fully awake and felt
awkward in the Sidhe's presence. "Good."
"Before you, I'd never spoken to a human being. I'd never even heard of the
Pact Lands until my journey began."
Michael's bowl of porridge waited to one side of his door. He bent over to
pick it up and began scooping it into his mouth with two fingers. "Where are
you from? I mean, not that it would do me any good to know___I'm pretty
ignorant about everything outside the Pact Lands."
"Shall we trade stories?" Biri asked. "The
Geen Krona believe if we train together, we should behave honorably, and not
dispute. I am very interested in where you are from, and how you came here."
Michael agreed, and told Biri about his circuitous route to the Realm. Biri
nodded at the key points, and frowned when Michael mentioned the figure in the
flounced dress. Michael put aside his empty bowl and said, "Now, you."
"To the north, across savannahs and beyond
Nebchat Len
that's a lake, almost a sea, very deep there is a forest called
Konhem
. That's where I was bom." He paused, glancing at Michael from the corners of
his deep-set eyes. "Do you know much about the Sidhe?"
Michael shook his head. "Not really."
"We are seldom told who our parents are, especially when we've been chosen
before birth, sometimes before conception, for the priesthood. By tradition,
our fathers are ashamed of showing weakness by loving a female and getting her
with child. That is why young Sidhe are so rare." He turned his gaze toward
Halftown. "I think there are more Breeds born than Sidhe. At any rate, I've
never met another
Sidhe younger than myself. And our mothers return to their clan after giving
birth, leaving the children to be cared for by the
Ban Sidhe
. They are the
Mafoc Mar
, the Bag Mothers, clanless females who serve the members of the
Maln
Page 73
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
, the Black Order." He stopped and sketched a design in the dirt with his
wand.
When he lifted his wand up, the design rubbed itself out. "Do you understand?"
"I think so," Michael said. "I don't speak Cascar much at all, but I've heard
of the
Ban Sidhe
. On Earth, they're supposed to come and claim the dead."
Biri's ears cocked forward slightly, something Michael had never seen a
Breed's ears do. "The Clanless
Bans not in charge of raising young take Sidhe dead to the Arborals, or to
their tombs, whichever is willed."
"Where is this forest, and the savannah? We met in a forest& "
"A small forest, just a patch. The savannah the
Plata
stretches around and beyond this patch, to
Konhem
, the deepest, darkest forest in the Realm. I lived in konhem for a time. Then
I was taken into the mountains called
Chebal Malen
, the Black Mountains. I was given up to Tarax& "
Biri leaned forward and stared into Michael's eyes. An extraordinary thing
happened. Michael's view of the mound and the Crane Women's hut faded and he
seemed to stand before the white-haired, black-robed
Sidhe, peering up from a low angle. Tarax bent down and took a small, slender
hand his own. or rather
Biri's. That faded Michael could vaguely see the hut again and was
replaced by the vista of an enormous flat-topped mountain with jagged slopes
dusted by swirling drifts of snow. Then he stood on a perfectly flat plain,
surfaced with cyclopean blocks of stone stretching for miles on all sides,
cloud shadows flowing over the stonework. Ribbons of cloud flew straight up
from the slopes on the opposite side. "The Stone Field is not on the highest
mountain in the
Chebal Malen
, but it is very cold and harsh there. Tarax built a four-room caersidh out of
stone and I lived there for many seasons while he tutored me. Finally, I was
considered worthy and he took me to the
Sklassa
, the fortress of the Black Order. Until now, I have never known anything
else." He smiled at Michael. "The trip across the forest and savannah
file:///F|/rah/Greg%20Bear/Bear,%20Greg%20-%2...wer%2001%20-%20The%20Infinity%
20Concerto.html (70 of 198) [5/21/03 12:42:32 AM]
Bear, Greg - Songs of Earth and Power Vol. 1 - The Infinity Concerto was
wonderful. I have never seen so much change."
"What does a priest do?" Michael asked.
Bin drew back and sighed. "That I cannot tell you."
"I mean, do you attend Adonna, take care of sacrifices, that sort of thing?
I'm just curious what "
"I cannot tell!" Bin said, standing swiftly. "I've spoken too freely already.
No human must ever know what happens in the Irall." He stalked off to his own
hut, leaving Michael to ponder Sidhe moods and
Sidhe secrets.
If anything, he thought, it was the Black Order, the
Maln
, that sounded like it should be kept secret. Was training novices the only
thing the Black Order did? Even among the Sidhe, Tarax had been impressive
if only for overshadowing and cowing Alyons.
The Crane Women walked up the side of the mound opposite Halftown, pushing
their knobby knees with their hands as if going up some long, exhausting
Page 74 [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

Linki