The sundering, p.1
The Sundering, page 1
part #2 of The Hundred Series
Contents
Copyright
Dedication
Character List
Places
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
THANK YOU
ALSO BY THE AUTHOR
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
THE SUNDERING
The Hundred - Book 2
Vanessa Nelson
Copyright © 2019 Vanessa Nelson
All rights reserved. This is a work of fiction.
All characters and events in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to any real person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Reproduction in whole or in part of this publication without express written consent is strictly prohibited.
Click or visit:
http://www.taellaneth.com
For my brother, G, and my sister-in-law, C. A little bit of armchair travelling for you.
With love.
Character List
Note: to avoid spoilers, some names may have been omitted, and some details left out.
Adira - human, senior head Sister in the Stone Walls
Annabelle - human, one of the Hundred
Baldur - warhorse
Brea - goblin, wife to Thort and mother to Jesset
Cressin - human, tanners, from Silverton
Dundac - human, one of the Hundred
Elinor – human, deceased at start, formerly of the Hundred
Ella - wulfkin, in Sephenamin’s range
Firon - human, one of the Hundred
Frida - human, dressmaker, from Fir Tree Crossing
Grayling- human, head of law keepers at Fir Tree Crossing
Guise - goblin
Handerson - human, potter, from Fir Tree Crossing
Idal - human, apprentice Hunar
Jesset - goblin, Brea and Thort’s daughter
Joel - wulfkin, one of Yvonne’s wards and Mariah’s brother
Keffle - human, potter, from Fir Tree Crossing
Lothar - Yvonne’s horse
Mariah - wulfkin, one of Yvonne’s wards and Joel’s sister
Mica - human, one of the Hundred
Modig - mixed heritage, hotel manager in Three Falls
Renard - wulfkin, of no range, horse trainer
Pieris - human, one of the Hundred
Sephenamin – wulfkin, cerro in Fir Tree Crossing, owns The Tavern
Sillman - human, one of the Hundred
Slayer - leader of the Ashnassan
Suanna - human, one of the Hundred
Thort - goblin, Brea’s husband, Jesset’s father
Ubel - human, deceased at start, merchant
Viola - human, herbalist in Fir Tree Crossing
Yvonne - human, one of the Hundred, legal guardian of Mariah and Joel
Places
Abar al Endell – southernmost city, at the edge of the desert, near the Forbidden Lands
Coll Castle - part of Kingdom of Valland
Fir Tree Crossing - busy trading town on the Great River
Forbidden Lands - desert territory beyond Abar al Endell
Hogsmarthen - closest city to the Sisters in the Stone Walls, on the Great River (upriver from Fir Tree Crossing)
Karoan’shae Palace - goblin palace and territory a short distance from Fir Tree Crossing
Kelton - artists’ town on the Great River between Hogsmarthen and Fir Tree Crossing
Royal City - home of the Valland Kings, furthest upriver on the Great River
Silverton - small trading town upriver from Fir Tree Crossing
Stone Walls - home of the Sisters in the Stone Walls, a high-sided mountain valley not far from Hogsmarthen
Three Falls - city state near Valland
Valland - largest Kingdom in the lands, holds the Royal City, a lot of the Great River and Coll Castle
Willowton - Elinor’s home town
CHAPTER ONE
Yvonne stood on the front step of her house, feeling the remnants of the cleansing spell working its way over her. At least she no longer had purple beetroot juice on her hands, and the flour was out of her clothing, even if the kitchen was still cluttered with the partly-assembled ingredients for the cake she had been trying to make. She did not think she was going to get to finish her baking. It had been an eventful afternoon so far, and it seemed that was going to continue.
She watched three of her oldest friends ride towards the house and walked forward to meet them. After the revelations of the afternoon, it was soothing to see familiar faces and feel the world settle around her again.
Sillman, the unofficial leader of the Hundred, was slightly in front, as he usually was, white hair a sharp contrast to his dark, beautifully made, clothing. He was followed by Suanna, tall and stately in her usual dark clothing, and Mica, his head barely reaching Suanna’s shoulder even on horseback, clothing a colourful collection that did not quite match. As they drew closer, she could see that they were all wearing unusually serious expressions. The Hundred only met on solemn and awful occasions, and she braced herself for whatever it was they needed her help with. It must be something terrible to require at least four Hunar.
She braced herself, as well, against dealing with more unsettling information after an afternoon of shocks. Firstly, Guise’s unexpected arrival, the goblin lord unexpected sheepish, swiftly followed by his mother’s. The actual star of the Karoan’shae, ruler of goblin kind, had been in her house not that long ago. That in itself was extraordinary, and yet it paled, in her mind, against the news, delivered by Guise, that, somehow, less than a dozen days ago, in a space of time that she still could not remember, she and Guise had formed a bond that was a lifetime commitment amongst goblins, with the closest equivalent in human terms being marriage. She had told Guise, just before he left, that she did not want to be married. Not to him, not anyone.
There had been no time to think. First Guise, then his mother, and then her children. Her ears were still ringing with Joel and Mariah’s laughter. Apparently, they found the idea of her and Guise being married highly amusing. It was perhaps a better reaction than most, but it was still unsettling.
She tried to push all of that to one side and focus on the people in front of her as her three fellow Hunar drew their horses to a halt. Sillman dismounted with slow, careful movements. He was getting old, but usually had more grace and it caught her attention, and concern.
She moved forward to meet them, smiling. Amongst all the other madness, and everything else that was going on, she was Hunar, and so were they. Oath-sworn to help those in need. However different they were as individuals, they had a common goal.
“Sillman, Suanna, Mica, it’s good to see you again so soon. Will you come inside? I’ve been baking this afternoon.”
Sillman turned from his horse, and whatever else she might have said died on her lips. She had rarely seen him look so grave.
“This is not a social call,” Sillman told her. “We are here on a matter of great importance.”
“I did not imagine otherwise,” she said, a trickle of unease growing. The last time she had seen Sillman look so serious, they had been at an open mine, made by slaves who were mostly children, the mine being dug down to the burial site of the first Hunar’s ancient enemy. That had been not that many days before. She could not imagine what had happened since to bring that expression back to his face. “What is it? Please tell me.”
“Word has reached us of a serious matter,” Sillman began. “I can hardly believe it. I can hardly believe that you would do such a stupid thing.”
“Sillman,” Suanna scolded, “you’re making a mess of this.”
“I am,” Sillman acknowledged. He straightened and drew in a breath, blowing it out whilst keeping his rigid posture, the lines of age around his eyes and mouth deeper than she remembered. “We have been led to believe that you have formed a bond with the goblin, Guidrishinnal de’laj Krejefell.”
For a moment, Yvonne could not say anything. She had only found out about the bond herself that afternoon. Not long enough to understand what it meant. She could not understand how the Hundred could have heard about it so soon.
“Is this true?” Suanna asked.
“I am told it is,” Yvonne answered, her face stiff.
“How could you?” Sillman asked, the words pulled from him, rigid posture flowing into anger. “Hunar and goblins should not mix.”
For a moment, Yvonne forgot about her own issues and remembered the expression their fellow Hunar, Pieris, had when he was talking about the winter he had spent in the northlands, with a goblin lord who had taught him a lot about their magic. Judging by Pieris’ face as he remembered, s he did not think he would agree that goblins and Hunar should stay apart.
She had no time to protest, or gather her thoughts, as Sillman was not finished his speech.
“It is not possible to be a Hunar and to be bonded in that way. A Hunar must be able to act where there is need, with no thought of the consequence. Family ties are an inconvenience.”
A small spark of anger lit inside her. She was the only one of them, as far as she knew, with any sorts of family ties, with the children who were even now somewhere inside the house, keeping out of the way, which was unusual enough that she should have noticed it before now.
“I do not recall this being part of our oaths,” Yvonne said. The oaths were simple, and focused on providing service to those in need.
None of the rest of the Hundred might have children, or husbands, or wives, but they had entanglements nonetheless. Elinor, her mentor, had enjoyed her lovers, and had been one of the most warm and generous people that Yvonne had ever met.
“You cannot be a Hunar with this bond,” Sillman told her, straightening a little more.
“What?” Yvonne heard her voice, thin and breathless. She felt as if she had been punched in the stomach. “That is not in our oaths,” she protested. “I can recite them for you, if you have forgotten.”
“We are bound to service. And only that.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Yvonne protested, anger in her tone. “You are telling me that no Hunar has ever been married? Or had children? Or been in love?” Elinor’s face rose in her mind, the heat in her gaze when she looked at Adira or Renard. No one had ever questioned Elinor’s life, or the love that she had.
“It does not matter,” Sillman said, dismissing her words and her inarticulate protest with a wave of his hand.
That hand wave made her more furious. He was treating her as the lowliest apprentice, not fit to hold an opinion.
“I have sworn my oaths. I have upheld them. I have been one of the Hundred for nearly a decade. The highest calling of a Hunar is service. It’s in the name,” she told him, hearing the flat tone of her voice and unable to do anything about it. Hunar meant servant, in the ancient language that they used for spell casting. A dead language no one apart from the Hundred knew. She felt her jaw tight, forcing words out through stiff lips. “There has been no complaint about my service. Not one. I have put the service of the Hunar above my family and above myself. I have fulfilled my oaths.”
“That is not how the Hundred see it,” Sillman said, voice as hard as hers. His face could have been etched in stone apart from the blaze of his eyes. He was furious.
A bond with a goblin that she did not remember making. That she had only just found out about.
And it seemed enough to cancel out her years of service. Not just as Hunar, but the apprenticeship she had served before that. Nearly two decades in total. The greater part of her life.
She opened her mouth. Nothing came out. Dozens of words choked each other. She shook her head, unable to believe what he was saying.
“Yvonne of Fir Tree Crossing. By order of the Hundred, you are sundered from our ranks. Your name will be struck from our records. You are no longer Hunar,” Sillman pronounced. “Hunar Suanna. Hunar Mica. Will you bear witness to this sundering?”
“We will.” Suanna and Mica spoke with once voice. Yvonne realised that they were just as stony-faced as Sillman. Just as determined.
The anger disappeared, crushed by ice that formed through her. It did not feel real. She could not feel the ground under her feet, the air against her face. Nothing was real. No longer a member of the Hundred. No longer a Hunar.
“You have brought this on yourself,” Suanna told her, face tight. “We cannot have goblins being part of our secrets.”
Yvonne wanted to scream. She was being punished for something she could not remember, and did not understand. And she wanted to shout at Suanna. Guise had more secrets than the entire Hundred put together.
Sillman drew a small piece of parchment from the pouch at his waist. Yvonne recognised the sort. The Hundred used them almost daily. It was a prepared spell of some kind. Her whole body tensed. Sillman had planned this. Brought a spell with him, ready to use. He murmured a word, the activation word for the spell, too low for her to catch, and the parchment dissolved into a cloud of green magic that he blew in her direction.
The green cascaded over her, blasting across her exposed skin, burrowing its way underneath clothes, wriggling across her body to the place on her shoulder where the symbol of the Hunar glimmered faintly in the light. The symbol that sat in the same place on her shirt, no matter what she was wearing. The little spark of magic that identified her to the world as Hunar.
Sillman’s magic caught hold of the symbol, the green flaring and clashing, and she bit off a cry, falling to her knees, as the magic cut not into the cloth of her shirt, but into her skin, bearing into her flesh, and carving out the symbol that she had carried for so long, that she had earned through the training she had endured, and the final test, and the years since when she had fulfilled her oaths. To help those in need. To act where it was needed. To not demand payment for the service that she offered, as a Hunar.
She wanted to scream. Partly in agony, partly in frustration, partly in grief. She held the cry back between her teeth. The three Hunar in front of her were standing motionless, with stern expressions, watching as the magic Sillman had released bit into her. She had begged once in her life before, faced with feral wulfkin in the filth of a quarrel. It had not done any good. She would not beg again. Not ever.
At length, it was done, the agony faded. Her shoulder felt raw. She glanced down to see blood blooming on her shirt and knew that, if she looked underneath, she would find a wound on her skin in the shape of the Firebird, the Hunar’s symbol. Just one more set of scars to add to those she already carried.
“You have made your choice. We wish you joy of it.” Sillman said, voice bleak. He turned with the others and got back on their horses, riding away without a backward glance, leaving Yvonne still kneeling on the ground outside her house.
She was hot and cold and shaking and frozen and hurt and bleeding and numb all at the same time. Her mind spun around and around and around as she tried to comprehend what had happened, wondering if it had actually happened. Had three of her oldest friends, three of the people she trusted most in the whole world, really just ridden up to her house and torn the symbol of the Hunar from her?
Light footsteps sounded behind her. She could not move. She was locked in her kneeling position, staring blindly ahead. Her shoulder was sore. She recognised that, distantly, but could not think what she might do about that. Or even if it was worth doing anything about that.
She was no longer Hunar. Sundered, Sillman had said. Dismissed.
The words did not make any sense. Nothing made any sense.
The sounds echoed inside her, into the great void that had opened up, black and endless. That place where the spark of magic had sat, had always been there. That place where there had been a core of certainty. Where she had known herself, who and what she was. There was nothing there. A gaping hole.
“Kalla?”
For a moment she did not recognise the voice, or the word, or understand that she was being spoken to.
Then a shape appeared in front of her, blurred at first. She was crying. She didn’t know when she had started crying.
“Kalla?”
She recognised the word now. Kinswoman. In a language almost no one spoke.
A bit of her brain was working, then, even if the rest of her was not.
She blinked, and her vision cleared slightly. A slender young woman with abundant dark hair and bright blue eyes. She knew her. She could not place the name for a moment, too busy trying to stay upright.
“Something bad,” another voice said. Deeper. A young man came and stood beside young woman. Taller, broader, with paler blue eyes and blond hair that needed combing. Brother and sister. They did not look anything alike, but she knew that was what they were. And they were not human, either. She should be frightened of that, she knew. Wulfkin had damaged her, badly, in the past. Right now, she could not think about that. Something terrible had happened.
