Ghosteria Volume 2: The Novel: Zircons May Be Mistaken, Tanith Lee [classic fiction txt] 📗

they do not make choices, surely, being entirelymindless. Every and anything they do, even should it appear to be, momentarily,evolved from a strategy, is merely accidental, a coincidence without meaning.They did not even eat the fruit they tore from the trees in the autumn. Whatthey desire to eat is human flesh, or so the visions on the Tvie boxes showedus. There are no living humans here among us. And we have, as Elizabethstresses, nothing to be alarmed at. Yet all of us, I think, are apprehensive.

The knight bears it worst, Ibelieve. He will, as Laurel has said, be used to meeting wicked violence withcorrection, and now, obviously enough, he cannot. But then, he will sit andwatch Elizabeth for hours on end, or follow her about, a lean, noble and loyaldog, in chainmail, walking upright, and the wind not blowing nor the raindamping his long pale hair. He says very little. And when he speaks we do notunderstand him. Or, I do not. But then. I understand none of it.

The sun has gone. Everything isshadows. It is time for me to pray.

5

The Warrior

Thenwill I to tell of that I see in the efore,

in my day of life, as when I amhe that efore I am,

as at this hour I am that now Iam, and he another –

for I am smoke and air,

that am then the hot clay ofcreated living Mann.

Inthe first I am of no wurth,

and by two twelvemonth she thatgive me life does her go with death.

Amid churls and sad to nine yearsI am, likn the worm, knows no thing.

Crawler in dirts, so I.

Then he is by. He that is myLord.

On that hour is he aged, so I amto think, of ten years and six.

On horse big as an house is heriden.

Blac the hors, and he is of blachair

and eyen of him are dark,

and likn the paur fol I gape, buthe sees me

and I think he say, but in a sortof words I am not full to grasp, Him, then, paur him.

And they takn me up but I am notcry, I am in lesson by then to cry makn no altering.

But too I am sworn to him in thathour, heartsure. And gottn by him I am makn new.

In whiles I am growen and learndeven somewhat to scan words across a booke.

But most I am learnd to feight.

And so do I, for to be his man,to be among his husmen and guarde of him, a cnight.

As of then I am that you see me,and, when at war, a heaum on my head and scield by, and bladed sweord to hand.

One fine surcot for a feast, andone for battail.

The castel my haome, I that neverefore has awhiht save mud or cauld or to be beatn with stick.

Averus, he I am is happy.

For elevn of years then I, and Ithen of twenty twelve- months, and he of seven and twenty such.

And I of his men, and feight byhim, both in some smallr disputins and once, when my Lord is called to aid busynessof the King’s own.

But my Lord is as my Father, ormy brother.

Or he is, tho I must not say it,as my God.

For I have never seen the Christ,nor do the Christ ever touch me or talk to me, or sling his arm about me, norgive me his hand to kiss, nor speak so well of me after some blood feightn.

Nor does the Lord Jesu keep me inlife, in food and shelterd, in despite of that the priest may say, so far as Imay grasp it.

But my Lord Hroldar does so, andall and much and more.

Wyvmann I have too, girls to layby me.

Sweet are all, but one very much.

But her babe that is mine comefrom her stilled. From which then she do not stay byen me. Such passes.

And he say to me then, Letn go,she.

But he gift her so she do notsofre more.

But we of his men, in peace days,we drinkn with him, and singen and meyri.

Like a sweord, a banner, he.

To follow him is to live.

I will not speak long of this.

There come about a querel betwn aneyhbour of powr and my Lord.

To castel then come these dogs.

It happen that efore, in thespringn months when fever rise, fever takes me too. I was a great whiles sick

but by the hour the asseg begin Iam myself hale again, and go to stand with my Lord on the rampart.

The foe many,but our stonesstrong. The grey time of the year too draws in, the cauld and dark.

They will weakn and slink onway.

But rather than such, one in ourwalls betrays my Lord Hroldar,

and by nightdark they in steal,our enemi.

A while that has not time wefeytn. We are red from heel to heafd in flame and blood.

I by my Lord and one comes tomurdr him

so I afore my Lord, and I striketrue but aswill I takn the enemi blow.

Cloven I am and down I fall. Butmy lord lives through my act.

After then I hear a bell thatrings, but then I go a whiles in shadow.

And when again I am in thisplace, others are here I never kno, nor myself they never see.

So it is I bide alone here, andwould be no otherwhere.

My Lord Hroldar, though gone bymy return, have then his life throu me, as I at first had gotn my tru life ofhim.

Averus, there is juste in this. Imak no querel.

The Enemi

Thereis the other enemi now at our gate.

They are uncumly and fuwl, normenn, neither wyvmenn.

Things from out the old talesthese.

I nevr see much and many creatursbut such as this never til this time.

Yet of the alterons of thecastel, its ruiner and loss,

and the build then risn of thehouse,

such to me as ifn I clomb andstand aloft the wurld and gapen in at God-His jest.

Yet they that Eliseth namesSub-umbris

of Hell, they.

I would slay them everyone, butmay not.

I am air now, and smoke.

When first I or my wraeth, thatis all that is remained of me, see Eliseth,

I am takn one breath again oflife.

As with my Lord, so she.

From her, my third life is.

Gottn of her,