Ten Crescent Moons (Moonquest) (48 page)

In answer, Swiala
held out both arms. And Adalginza melted into the hug.

"You
are quite the celebrity now on the Prime Continent, dear."

Swiala examined
her granddaughter approvingly.

"You
captured the fancy of the royal courts when you were there with me. Now, you
have cast aside your heritage as a lady of the Fifth and First Houses to be
declared leader of the entire savage nation. Such scandal! The publications are
now filled with sketches of your likeness."

"No!"
Adalginza was truly horrified.

"Yes!"
Swiala sounded, in contrast, thoroughly delighted "Part savage. Part lady
of the Crescent Houses. You spared the prisoners at Faradera Island, which won
you much praise. And you have those darling indigo eyes. The Prophecy has been
published in its entirety. And now strangely attired musical groups are singing
it in those hideous, dark little tea houses."

"No!"
Again, Adalginza was horrified.

"Yes!"
Again, Swiala sounded delighted. "Not all Crescent House citizens on the
Prime Continent are your fans, of course. But all are certainly fascinated by
your antics. And your words."

Polyper then
spoke up from one of the shadows outside the lantern light.

"They
listen only because you have the blood of the Crescent Houses. Their ingrained attitude
toward the savages remains unchanged. This is why we must do something drastic.
And this is why we are gathered tonight."

The others gathered
there then also stepped into the light. Sagawea, who was much thinner now that
she had given birth. Adalginza also recognized Ginrel, who she first met at the
Dome of Archives on the Prime Continent.

Adalginza
exchanged hugs with each of them, pausing to inquire about the health of the
infant girl so recently born to Sagawea and Polyper.

"We are
all family now," Sagawea said. "All of us here live in the same
household in Sola Re."

Adalginza
gave Kalos a puzzled look.

"It is
part of the plan," he said. "We are laying the groundwork to establish
a founding clan of the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon."

"Can
you do that?" Adalginza asked.

She could
not help a twinge of resentment that the citizens of the Crescent Houses were
now boldly claiming the last of the ten crescent moons as their symbol.

"The
question is can
we
do it," Kalos said. "This new House will
include all the savages and all the tribes of the frontier. We ourselves will
relinquish loyalty to our own Crescent Houses, and swear allegiance to the new
one."

Adalginza watched
them cautiously.

"I told
you before. My people will not give up their ways to adopt yours."

"Exactly,"
Polyper said. "There will be no forcing. Those from the Prime Continent
who wish to live in the frontier and retain allegiance to their own Houses may
do so. Those who wish to belong to the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon may do
so. And any among the savages who wish to acknowledge or accept the new House
may do so."

"My
people wish only to continue with the lives they now have without
interference," Adalginza said cautiously, wondering what plot was afoot
here. "They have no need of your Houses."

Ginrel then
spoke up.

 "It
matters not what the savages do. It is important only that the people of the
other Crescent Houses see the savages as aligned with the Tenth House."

"Truly,
I do not understand," Adalginza said.

This time,
it was Kalos who answered.

"Under
our rules of moral conduct, no Crescent House may raise a sword in warfare
against another. If this were to happen, all the other Houses would be allied
against the offender. Do you understand now? Establishing a Tenth House means
the end of warfare."

"I
understand only that you speak of your rules and your ways," Adalginza answered
crisply. "And I say my people will not give up the frontier. Nor will they
be aligned with any Crescent House."

"My
wife, this is where you must be reasonable."

Kalos was now
speaking as negotiator, not husband, as he gestured toward a collection of
rocks.

"Let us
sit and speak more of this."

They all
took their places among the scattered rocks. Kalos then reached up and placed
the lantern in an alcove high above his head, so that all present were encircled
in the light.

"The frontier
is vast," he said. "It can be shared. And it should be shared. The savages
certainly have the right to lay claim to the traditional homelands of their
respective villages. But they will be given these rights only if they are
members of a Crescent House."

And so it
began. The first meeting of the Council of the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon.

It was
established at the beginning of the session that each of the six present had an
equal voice and an equal vote. Adalginza agreed this was acceptable for now.

But future
meetings must include tribal chiefs, with each entitled to a vote if the choice
was made to become allied with the Tenth House.

On this eve,
there were arguments as heated discussions continued into the early hours of
the next morning.

Sagawea
asserted the need for establishment of public institutions of education, with
mandatory attendance required among all the savage children. Education, she
declared eloquently, was the key to understanding among the cultures of the
Crescent Houses as well as the savages.

Adalginza
finally yielded that point, but only if the savages from each of the villages and
tribes had the say in how to devise a curriculum of learning.

Swiala
expressed her desire to establish courtly society, preserving the traditions of
royalty and good manners. She and Kalos clashed on that point, until finally
the others insisted negotiations progress to more important matters.

And so it
went.

How would
the land be divided? Which tracts would be declared open for settlement?

Finally, and
at the point of exhaustion for the delegates, something occurred to Adalginza
that she wished she had thought of sooner — before they had invested so much wasted
energy in talk.

"But
how does anything we have spoken of here tonight matter?"

She directed
the question at Kalos. At his puzzled look, she explained.

"Those
of the Crescent Houses believe and are taught that the savages are from different
origins. They do not share blood and are therefore inferior in the eyes of your
clans. No matter what we do here, my people could never be accepted into a
Crescent House under any circumstances."

A brief
silence followed, as the other five exchanged guilty looks.

"We
have already managed that problem," Kalos said, looking slyly over at
Polyper and Ginrel.

"How?"
Adalginza asked.

Ginrel then
explained.

"We
have documents found here, in this cave and tunnel, which prove that the savages
are descended from those of the missing House of the Seventh Crescent Moon."

"Oh?"
Adalginza eyed them suspiciously. "Lady Redolo spoke often of her
findings, and she never mentioned any such documents."

"Yet,
we have found them."

Polyper's
lack of conviction was Adalginza's clue that something here was terribly wrong.

"And we
do have the artifacts from near the cave of the Place of the Circles to confirm
the existence of the people of the Seventh House in the long ago," Kalos
pointed out.

For one
brief moment and for the sake of her people, Adalginza wanted to continue the
lie she and Benfaaro had created together.

It was a
very convenient lie. But she was now sworn to tell the truth.

"The
artifacts were falsely placed there." She gave Kalos an apologetic look. "I
had forgotten them, or I would have told you sooner. They were taken from
Medosa's abode and then planted there. To give you a reason to take me with you
into the frontier, so that I might show you the way. And become — closer to
you."

"Deceived
again," Kalos said with a wry smile.

"Only
in the past," Adalginza corrected him. "You know I will never take
that path again. You may be assured of my loyalty to the truth."

Swiala
looked thoughtfully around at the others.

"So the
only real evidence we have is this tunnel, with the symbol of the Seventh
Crescent."

"I
thought you said there were documents," Adalginza said accusingly. "And
that these were conclusive."

They all
looked so guilty that it was easy for Adalginza to discern the scheme for
herself.

"I
see," she said. "The documents are false. You created them, and you
plan to present them as a falsehood to the Prime Congress. In this way, they
will accept the savages as clan members from a Seventh Crescent bloodline of the
distant past."

"The
blood bond is sacred," Sagawea said reasonably.

"The
blood bond very well could be true," Ginrel added. "After all, the
tunnel with the Seventh Crescent symbol is here and does exist. And who knows
where Medosa originally found the artifacts? He never mentioned them in his
writings."

"The
artifacts were not from the Dome of Archives."

This time,
it was Polyper who spoke quietly.

Adalginza
regarded both of the gnostics with new eyes.

"You
are sworn to uphold the truth."

"We are
sworn to many things," Polyper answered. "Above all, we are sworn to preserve
harmony, as well as life itself. This is a perfect way to do so."

Adalginza stood
slowly and looked around. She placed her hand on one of the smooth walls,
almost reverently.

"This cave
and this tunnel are timeless, beyond our understanding. In our hearts, we know
this sacred spot has nothing to do with the savages. Or even the Crescent Houses.
I believe this symbol was placed here long before the tribes and the Crescent
Houses even existed."

"This
is the symbol of the House of the Seventh Crescent Moon," Kalos insisted.

"Exactly
the same," Sagawea agreed. "See the crater? It is no other moon but
the Seventh. That is good enough evidence for me."

"For
me, also," Polyper agreed.

"And me,"
Ginrel and Swiala both said in unison.

"It
will not be good enough for the Prime Congress," Adalginza said. "You
know that."

"That
is why we have the documents," Polyper said reasonably.

"Which
are false."

Sagawea
reached out with her own hand, and absently ran it across the smoothness of the
tunnel wall beside her.

"We never
said they were false. It is you who accuse us without evidence."

"Let me
see the documents."

"They
are gone," Ginrel said innocently. "Already sent to the Prime
Congress. They will be presented at the next regular session, where establishment
of the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon will be debated."

Adalginza
and Kalos regarded each other for many long moments, almost as if communicating
silently. He smiled, almost sadly, and then nodded at her.

Adalginza
turned to the others.

"I will
consent to establishment of the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon. I will commit
my people to its jurisdiction — as long as they retain their tribal homelands
and are not called upon to give up their ways."

Then she
boldly regarded each one of them in turn.

"But I
will not condone a lie."

"Nor
will I," Kalos said.

In the end,
the newly formed Council of the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon put the matter
to a vote.

Four were in
favor of and two were against continued sanctioning of the documents.

"I will
not uphold your evidence, if I am asked." Adalginza warned.

"You
have never seen the documents sent to the Prime Continent. How could you speak,
either for or against?" Polyper inquired.

"I have
not seen them either," Kalos said quietly.

"But we
know they are full of lies!" Adalginza protested.

"How do
you know?"

This time,
it was Lady Swiala who stood and took her granddaughter's hand.

"Have
you heard any among us say for sure that we falsified the documents?"

"No,
but..."

"Then
it is settled," Swiala said smoothly. "You have your suspicions, but
no proof. So let us go forward. I have much influence in the Prime Congress.
Lady Sagawea has now joined our side as well. The measure
will
pass."

And so it
was that the House of the Tenth Crescent Moon came into being.

***