The Tales of Calth: Isilorbor and Lendes #3

They had known each other for almost two years now. They had kissed and touched each other, but never shared a night alone together, which was hard on both Isilorbor and Lendes. It was almost unbearable to them both, knowing that at some point, they would have to leave one another for some reason or another. Isilorbor would have to leave Lendes for war, while Lendes had to leave the vain yard to hear about her dreaded wedding. And time was wearing thin for them. The date of their wedding was set. Lendes had to leave the yard to start her married life, and only come to the yard a few times a year. To her, it may as well be once in a few years. It was morning in Lendes’ room in the barn. The sun sent orange beams of light into the windows and sending long gentle shadows across and along the surfaces. Lendes was sitting bolt up right with a long parchment in her hands. She was scanning it all over, taking in all the details that this story was telling her with a cold sense dread in her stomach, which was making her feeling sick. All the people of Calth were linked by a single courier system that called itself Far Criers. They sent news all over the lands with weekly dispatches to everyone who wished to read it. The story today was of a terrible battle. The Fourth Company, 13th Legion, was attacked by a large force of Easterlings and defeated. The casualties were heavy, counting Captain Learchus as one of them many men killed. Command was said to have fallen onto lieutenant Isilorbor Ventris and first sergeant Zelderan Shadowbane, and the two men rallied their Company together into a heroic last stand, but were forced to retreat due to a wounded Isilorbor Ventris. Word on the Company has said that out of one-hundred men, roughly twenty-six made it back alive or wounded. Lendes was breathing heavily. Isilorbor, wounded? How bad? Where is he now? Is he even still alive? So many questions were buzzing around Lendes’ head, that she had not even noticed her bedroom door open. A man walked in carrying her a cooked breakfast of beckon, eggs, mushrooms, sausages, beans and a mug of orange juice on a trey and walked towards her. “I’m not hungry.” She whispered to the man, not looking at him, too deep into the Far Crier. “I had to get up to make you this, Lendes.” Said a voice that Lendes knew at once who it was. She turned around in a heart and gasped, her hands shooting to her mouth as he looked at Isilorbor. Isilorbor was wounded indeed. On the left side of his face, a pink scar ran down from the top of his hair line, to the left side of his nose. Lendes slowly reached to touch it, but Isilorbor turned his head away from her touch. Lendes held back her hand, looking at him softy and shock her head. “Isilorbor.” She whispered to him. “Please, Lendes...I am not worthy of looking at you.” He said painfully low. She gently cupped his face and turned to look at him, deep into his eyes with warmth and care. “That scar had done nothing to what I feel about you, Isilorbor.” As the words left her mouth, she knew she had said too much. Isilorbor held her hands and smiled very slightly. “Truly?” He asked “Truly.” She kissed his lips and held him close to her, resting her head on his shoulder, at once feeling safe and protected. “The scar has done nothing to your looks, in fact, I think its made you more handsome then before.” Isilorbor chuckled and kissed her cheek. “Just don’t come back to me with many more over your face.” She grinned and giggled and looked up at Isilorbor. Strangely, the scar seemed to suit him perfectly. She was not sure if it enhanced his handsomeness, or simple make him more noticeable. The morning stretched on, Lendes ate the breakfast Isilorbor had made for her while he lay next to her and talked to her. They talked about everything and nothing, some things points about the state of Gondor, to rather more playful topics of what they would do if they became very rich. They had just finished laughing when a small knock came on the door in the afternoon, both Isilorbor and Lendes thought it was someone coming to offer them lunch and asked them to come in. Lavinia opened the door and walked slowly inside, seeing her son and friend inside and grinned at a rather unmade bed. Lendes noticed the grinned and sighed loudly. “No we haven’t, Lavinia.” She sighed. She would never say that she had always wanted to her or Isilorbor. Isilorbor blushed slightly and stood up and hugged his mother and smiles. Lavinia run a finger gently down his scar with a sad look on her face. “Never scare me like that again, Isilorbor.” She said slowly. “I will not, mother.” Isilorbor smiled gently “You better not, you had me and your father worried sick.” She threw her arms tightly around Isilorbor’s neck and pulled him into a long embrace. Lendes watched the exchange between the mother and son and she smiled to herself. She had not mentioned the fact that she was with her and Isilordil when word came back about the battle, and how she was hysterical with worry. Lendes was as well. Lavinia let go on Isilorbor and looked at him and Lendes and took a deep breath. “I have something that needs to be done…I need the two of you to go into the woods and unplug a blockage at the spring.” To the east of the vain yard was a small wood to which a small spring and stream flowed down. The stream was easy to walk to from the yard and supplied it with all the water it would ever need. However, the wood was always lurking with wolves and bears, and to go unarmed was foolish. A blockage happened from time to time, sometimes an animal had died and its body would be pushed down the stream and block the water off, or a storm that blew many things, there list was endless. Isilorbor and Lendes shared a look and nodded. “I will get my sword.” Isilorbor stood up and walked out of the room without another word, leaving Lavinia and Lendes alone. Lendes looked at Lavinia and bite her lower lip in worry. Lavinia smiled and sat down next to Lendes and smiled warmly at her. “Do not worry….Isilorbor will look after you.” “Its not him I’m worried about.” Lendes confessed in a dreaded voice. “What is it then?” She asked in a low voice. Lendes nodded towards the where the wood would be and Lavinia nodded very slightly. She stood up and walked out of the room, casting a look towards Lendes, and spoke the words she knew she did not want to hear. “This is your last chance to tell Isilorbor, my friend…” Lendes looked up at Lavinia and swallowed slightly. “Tell him what?” “How much you care about him…I know you do, Lendes…Tell him.” Lavinia walked out of the room and left her words and Lendes alone. Isilorbor and Lendes set out along the road towards the wood. It would take an hour to reach the tree line and maybe half an hours work, with yet another hours walk back. Isilorbor held his short sword at his side and wore a simple tight leather armour, white and gold as he loved so much to wear. He carried an iron pickaxe resting on his shoulder and smiled brightly at Lendes. She was wearing a short dress, only finishing at her knees and was bare armed. The two of them walked towards the woods, laughing, joking, singing even in the bright sun until they reached the woods. Lendes was wiped a tear from her cheek as Isilorbor told a tale of his training. “Stop it, Isil! I can’t breath!” Isilorbor cackled and nudged Lendes gentle with his shoulder. “Just for you then, I will let you be.” The trees were close together and the green leaves broke the sun beams along the ground, it looked very peaceful and dream like, the two walked close together and were following the sound of the stream close by. Lendes took Isilorbor’s hand as she heard the snap of some twigs near by, Isilorbor looked around them and slowly took his hand off his sword hilt, Lendes was surprised to see that she did not even know he had his hand on it. She breathed out a small sigh and held Isilorbor’s hand tightly, now was the time to tell him. “Isilorbor…How long have we known each other?” She asked lightly. Isilorbor looked at the leaves in thought for a moment. “Two years, I would say.” “Two years…They have been really fun two years, Isil.” She said happily and rested her head on his shoulder. He gently placed an arm around her and held her close. “Indeed they have been.” He said with a smile on his face. Lendes looked up at him and smiled sadly. “My times up, Isil…I am leaving the yard in three days time to go and marry.” They stopped in the tracks and Isilorbor turned his head slowly towards Lendes. His eyes and face showed a deep hurt and saddens that made Lendes want to kiss him. He opened his mouth to saying something, but Lendes placed a finger to his lips, slowly shaking her head. “I know what you are going to say…Oh Isilorbor, I want to stay. I really, truly do. You, your mother and your father have been so kind to me for there’s two years. My father sent me here to learn how to manage in being a house wife and running the lands of my husband when he is away...” She spoke in a gentle whisper, always looking at Isilorbor’s chin. “I know the name of the man I am to marry…His name is Risthir, from what else I have been told by me father and mother, when I marry him, a feud with our families will be settled… I’m sorry, Isilorbor…But don’t wait for me to become free from him…As I won’t be.” No words could describe how crushed Isilorbor felt. All he could do was no, what else was there to do? He was starting to remove his arm from Lendes, when she looked deep into his eyes. That look was enough to keep his arm there. There was dread, saddens, and regret there, something Isilorbor knew that if he removed his arm, or even stopped talking to her, she would be a shell of herself. They walked down the dirt road arm over the other, until they reached the stream. There was a small pool with a barely trickling waterfall with lily pads and rare flowers on the waters surface. Both of them knew that the water was slowly disappearing, and who ever ran back to the yard did good to tell Lavinia right away of a blockage. Isilorbor looked around and saw a few rocks had fallen out of place and was blocking the water off, not much rain had fallen in the past months and every drop of water was needed for Calth. He lead Lendes to the dry clay waterfall and looked around for some rocks to grab onto. “Stay here.” He said to Lendes and grabbed a rock and started to pull himself up towards the blockage. He grunted a few times, digging his foot into the clay to make foot holes for himself and used the pick axe to pull himself up with. It did not take him long to reach the blockage and waved down at Lendes. She waved back, and they were not even ten meters apart. He tapped the iron pickaxe head on the rocks and tried to find the weak spot, until his axe fell between a sip and he smiled to himself. He slowly raised the head and brought it high and started to swing the tip down onto the rocks. The sound ringed over the wood as he mined away the rocks, Lendes kept one eye on the water now starting to flow down the dry clay wall, and another behind her. A large crash sounded next to Isilorbor and the rocks finely gave way, letting a large torrent of water out down the pit, the torrent only lasted a few seconds, but it was enough to set the put flowing with water once me. Isilorbor jumped down from the waterfall and landed easily, smiling at Lendes and looked towards the water pool and took a small flower head from the water and walked towards Lendes. He dropped the pickaxe and tied the flower head into her hair. She smiled warmly at him and looked up at the white-gold flower in her hair. “Its beautiful.” She said in a low voice. “Not as beautiful as you, Lendes.” He kissed her on the cheek and took her hand gently and grabbed the pickaxe and started to lead her out of the woods. Then the growling started. “Isilorbor…” Lendes whispered in fear. “I heard.” He dropped the pickaxe and placed a hand on his sword hilt and spread his feet, warming up his body and looked around for the sign of the growl. Then, out in front of them, blocking the way out of the woods, a great black bear moved slowly out of the trees. Its jaw was open and letting out a consent growl, get gobs of saliva dropped from its mouth and its great claws were out. Isilorbor placed an arm to Lendes and slowly pushed her behind him, keeping his eyes locked on the bears. Both animal and man looked at each other, waiting. The bears eyes were as dark as coal, cold as night, its fur sanding on edge like a shadow over a nightfall. Great muscles moved with every inch it breathed and a sudden silence fell over the woods, as if everything was holding its breath. The bear let out a massive roar and charged towards Isilorbor. He drew his short sword with a sharp ring and pushed Lendes away from him, she landed off the track and looked back in time to see Isilorbor and the bear meet face to face. The bears claw lashed out at Isilorbor’s head, he ducked and rolled under it, bring his swords tip across its side. The bear snarled in pain and lashed its back leg and Isilorbor’s back. Its black claws ripped Isilorbor’s leather armour and tore flesh from his bone. Hot pain lanced up his back and he yelled, spinning his back away from the bear. It send its claw at him again, he moved away from it and brought his sword to parry the claws. The blade edge cut the bear’s claw, when another claw lashed across Isilorbor’s chest. He yelled in pain once more he felt his flesh numb and turn cold as the bed lashed at him. He tried to keep moving back, bring his sword to block each of the bears attacks, but he was thinking wrong. He was thinking the bears claws were swords, and not its own arms. It was costing him his life to learn this lesson as the bear tore Isilorbor slowly to pieces. His left kneecap almost shattered as the bear lashed its paw at him, sending Isilorbor staging into a tree, dizzy with the pain. Its jaw tried to clamp on his neck, he moved just in time to see the bear take a massive bite out of the trees bark. He was under the bear now, and he leaped forward, his sword aimed for its heart. The bear reared up and his blade sunk into the bears stomach, slowly driving deep into it, but not hitting its lunges or heart, just enraging it. Claws lashed across Isilorbor’s chest and he was threw off his feet and landed hard on the floor. The breath was knocked out of him, he gasped heavily as he saw a great shadow loom over him. This was it, he thought to himself. The bear’s head jumped forward and bite Isilorbor’s head off, when something crashed into the bear’s skull. It was a pickaxe, it entered the bears ear and shattered its bear and left eye, leaving half a bloody head and skull. The bear rolled to the right and twitched slightly as the body died. A beam of light shone on Isilorbor’s body, he was breathing and alive, but his body was torn by get claw marks and was bleeding. Lendes dropped the pickaxe and dropped to her knees and cupped Isilorbor’s face, his eyes were closed and his mouth was slightly opened. “Isilorbor!” She cried out loudly, tears running down her cheek freely. “Speak to me, damn you!” Lendes looked over his body and she cried out again, he was unconscious and Lendes felt so helpless. “I love you, Isilorbor! Please! Awake up!” Lendes’s words fell on deaf ears. She threw his arm around her and started to drag him back to the vain yard. He was heavy, and was bleeding. She thought he was going to die, until a passing trading cart saw them and offered his help. They threw Isilorbor onto the cart and rushed back to the yard with best speed. Lavinia ran from the gate and saw her son bloody and broken and screamed. The trader, a man late middle age man, helped the yard workers to carry Isilorbor into a bed and saw to a healer. Days had past, and Isilorbor slowly flicked his eyes opened, and saw his mother and father looked down on him. He was lying with bandages all over his body in Lendes’s bedroom, the bed was set so it would keep him comfortable and cause him as little pain as he could. The sun was bright in the sky, and he had no idea how long he had been asleep for. Lavinia let out a small breath and hugged her son tightly. “About time you woke up, son.” Isilordil said, clasping his hand with Isilorbor and smiled at him. “Isilorbor! I am so sorry! Oh I am so sorry! Forgive me!” Lavinia wept into Isilorbor’s shoulder, he slowly placed an arm around his mother and coughed slightly. “It is fine, mother…” He said weakly, and Lavinia slowly let go of her son. Isilordil walked behind his wife and slowly wrapped his arms around her. Lavinia held his arms tightly and they looked down on their son, Lavinia’s eyes were full of guilt and regret, while Isilordil’s were masked. “Can I get some water, please?” Isilorbor croaked, his throat was very dry and his limps were stiff. Lavinia looked at Isilordil, she nodded to him and kissed her son’s cheek and left the room. Isilordil pulled a chair and sat next to Isilorbor, his elbows resting on his knees and his hands cupped together. Isilorbor slowly and painfully sat up, and fear sat in as he looked around the room. “Where is Lendes?” He said dryly, his throat felt like it had never known water before and he looked at his father with a raised eyebrow. He was hiding something. “My son…She is gone.” Isilorbor blinked. “Gone…?” “You have been asleep for six days, Isilorbor. Lendes left to start her married life two days ago.” Isilorbor let out a very small cry and lay back in his bed, all his strength now seem to have been forgotten. Isilordil looked over his son and offered him a small smile. “She never left your side, son. She did not sleep, eat or drink, until I was called in and put some food and water next to her. She waited until the very last moment to leave you, but, leave she did. She left you a letter, saying that it was for you only.” Isilorbor nodded slowly, looking around and now noticing all the dirty plated and mugs. At his bed side table, he saw a small scroll wrapped with a blue ribbon. He slowly grabbed it opened it and started to read it, small water droplets dotted the page and Isilorbor knew Lendes has been crying: Isilorbor I’ve waited all I can for you, but I have had to go. I fear you won’t be welcome to my wedding, as much as I hate to say it. This is not my word, but the word of my husband. I have told them that you saved my life, and for that, I cannot even think how I could start to repay you. I will send you another letting once I get back to my parents on how they took the news. I will miss you so much, and I’ve enjoyed every moment I’ve had with you, and I prey we will still see each other again soon. Love, now and always Lendes Belegorn. Isilorbor’s face dropped at the letter and it placed it back his side, the scent of Lendes was still on it, and he would keep it. Isilordil saw his son’s reaction and placed a hand on his shoulder, careful not to hurt him. “I will not ask you what she wrote, Isilorbor. Get some rest and take your time in recovering, the Shadowbane’s will want to come and see you soon.” Isilordil nodded to his son and slowly walked out of the room, gently closing the door behind him. Isilorbor laid on his back for a long time, looking up at the roof and sighed. He was confused and lost. Lendes was gone, not likely to return anytime soon, and he was alone more then ever now. He decided to turn his mind to his Company for a time, become a great captain like his father, and think of getting a family of his own later on in life. Isilorbor closed his eyes; he made his choice on his life. War first, family later. But no matter how hard he tried, he wanted the family with Lendes, and that left an ache on his heart far greater then any on his body that suffered.