The Catastrophe of the Emerald Queen (19 page)

 
Suddenly an angry voice said quietly, “what do you think
you’re doing?” 

Jared jumped and dropped the
rabbit, Bue had just cranked his bow and he glanced around quickly
and then placed the bolt in the firing groove. “Who’s there?” he
snapped anxiously, training his crossbow on the nearby trees where
the sound seemed to be coming from. 

“
I said WHAT
do you think you’re doing?” the voice asked again
angrily.

 
Bue and
Jared frantically glanced around but could see nothing.

 “
Come
out whoever you are,” Bue said turning from left to right with his
bow held ready.

 “
Murdering wretches!” the voice snapped and then a small brown
fox stepped clear of a large clump of knobbly yellow plants. Bue
looked shocked and Jared stared at it. “You killed him!” the fox
said, its tail flicking angrily as it gestured with its head to the
body at Jared’s feet.

 
Before
either of them could react there was a loud snarling and two bears
stepped out on their hind legs from the trees. As Bue turned the
nearest one to him swatted his bow from his hands. He yelped as it
was torn from his grasp, the mechanism triggering and the bolt
firing off into the depths of the woods. “Killers!” The bear
snarled, grabbing Bue around the waist and then throwing him down
on the earth floor. The other pushed Jared down who shouted in
fear. Both bears put one huge foot on the boys’ chests and looked
to the fox. Its face was full of fury and after a pause it said,
“bring them.” Practically spitting the words.

 “
Wh,
where are you taking us?” Jared stammered as the bears began to tie
their arms and feet with twine from the trees.

 “
To the
conclave,” the fox said, eyeing him furiously. “They will deal with
you.” 

The bears
tied them tightly and Jared winced as the twine was pulled taught
on his legs. Bue thrashed and kicked and tried to stand up. The
bear holding him growled menacingly and bared its teeth so he
reluctantly went still.

 
Picking
them up and flinging them over their huge shoulders the bears moved
off after the fox who walked ahead shouting. “Summon the conclave.
Murder in our forest! Summon the conclave!”

 
After a
short journey they came into a clearing and the bears dumped them
unceremoniously on the floor. Jared groaned as he hit the damp
ground and as he squinted in the deepening gloom he saw, before his
eyes, the clearing slowly fill with animals of many types. Badgers,
otters, birds, foxes, rabbits and even one or two wolves plus a
large boar slowly moved into the clearing and sat in a circle
around them. Their eyes staring silently at the two boys and their
captors.

 
As the
glade filled, the fox who had found them moved to a large rock on
one side of the clearing and a badger detached itself from a group
of others and moved to join him. They climbed up onto the rock,
facing the gathered crowd. Jared strained to see what was happening
and could see only what looked like a zoo of different species. His
side was wet where he was laying and he wriggled uncomfortably. He
whispered to Bue. “What the hell is this? What did you
do?”

 
The
bear above him growled so he went quiet.

 
The
buzz of conversation amongst the animals drifted away as the badger
raised its paw and there was silence.

 “
Human
trespassers,” the badger said in a loud voice. “Do you know why you
are brought before this conclave?”

 
Bue
struggled against his bonds and glared sideways at the fox and
badger. “What’s your problem?” he demanded angrily. “We were out
hunting. That’s not a crime.”

 
There
was another angry buzz of talk from the animals gathered and Jared
whispered urgently. “For God’s sake be quiet. You’re making them
angry!”

 
The
badger held up its paw until the silence returned. “It is here. You
are beyond your own lands and in our world now. The rabbit you
murdered was a father and a husband; you leave his family without
him.”

 
A space
cleared slightly to the left of the badger and as the animals
rippled apart Bue and Jarred could see other rabbits. A large one
and four smaller ones. All were crying quietly.

 “
You
leave this family without its male adult. Kanin was a member of
this wood, a loving father and a wise giver of advice to his
friends.”

 
There
was another buzz of angry conversation amongst the animals with
most of them glaring at Bue and Jared, helpless on the floor. Some
were looking at the weeping rabbits and then at the two boys,
disgust creasing their faces.

 “
Do you
have anything to say for yourselves?” the fox asked above the
murmuring.

 
Bue
wriggled and shouted through the wet grass pressing up against his
mouth. “Tell this hulking lump to get its foot off me and I’ll
answer you.”

 
The
bear growled quietly but turned to the fox and the badger. The bear
slowly removed its huge paw from Bue’s chest and dropped to all
fours.

 
Bue
took a deep breath and said angrily. “We were hunting, in my land
this is OK provided it’s for food and not just sport. We didn’t
know we were in your territory.”

 “
Ignorance is no excuse,” the badger answered wearily. “Our
laws apply to everyone.”

 “
Secondly,” Bue snapped. “Jared was only helping me. He didn’t
kill the rabbit, I did.”

 
At the
mention of the deed the rabbit’s family began to weep even louder
and the little ones moved closer to the mother, burying their faces
into her fur.

 
Through
the last rays of daylight the badger turned a solemn face to them
and said. “You have admitted your actions and the fact that your
friend did not pull the trigger is irrelevant. He is your
accomplice and as guilty as you.” 

There was an approving rumble
of conversation from the gathered animals.

 
The
badger turned to the fox and they whispered for a few moments,
occasionally glancing over at Jared and Bue. After consulting they
turned to the boys, the crowd of animals once more going
quiet.

 “
You
are to be taken from here to the borders of our territory and
killed,” the badger said slowly and with complete calm.

 
Jared
winced and tried to stand up, the twine around his ankles digging
in as he struggled.

 
There
was an approving murmur from the gathered animals.

 “
Your
bodies will be displayed to warn others of the price of killing in
our woods.”

 
The
murmur was now louder and one or two animals were loudly
shouting.

 “
Unless
of course the widow wishes to show clemency. Kirittita?” the fox
turned to the crying rabbit who shook her head and hugged her
children tighter.

 “
Very
well, take them to…,” the fox began as the bears moved to pick Bue
and Jared up.

 “
STOP!”
A loud voice sounded in the glade.

 
All
heads turned and in the dimming light Jared saw a path form on one
side between the animals and slowly another appeared.

 
It was
a large white stag, with huge antlers. The stag picked its way
through the path cleared for it and stood in the middle of the
clearing next to Jared, Bue and the two bears, facing the fox and
badger. It glanced behind at the boys and Jared saw it had brown
eyes that looked old and sad.

 “
Hekima, our old friend,” the badger said surprised. “You are
welcome in the conclave.”

 “
That I
may be,” the stag replied, looking around. “However, I see you have
passed a death sentence on these two boys. May I ask
why?”

 
There
was an excited buzz of chat and the badger replied. “They killed
Kanin, leaving his children orphaned and his bride a widow,” the
fox replied dramatically.

 “
I
see,” the stag replied nodding, “and why did they do
that?”

 “
They
were hunting illegally in our sacred woods and slaughtered poor
Kanin as he was foraging for food for his wife and
children.”

 
Another
murmur and the stag then asked. “So what was their motivation for
killing him?”

 “
They
are from Alegria and in that barbaric place the killing of
defenceless animals is lawful,” the fox said, his voice cracking
with indignation.

 
Another
angry murmur and the boar shouted. “Kill them!” Its tusks waving
from side to side as it angrily shook its head.

 
The
stag asked casually. “Hunting for food or for sport?”.

 “
For
food they say, and we have no reason to doubt that. However, as we
told them and as this conclave and this wood knows…ignorance is no
excuse.”

 
Another
murmur of approval.

 “
I
see,” the stag said nodding. He glanced at Bue, who was glaring at
him and then at Jared who was petrified but unable to look
away.

 “
May I
ask you both a question?” the stag said to the badger and
fox. 

The fox
hesitated but then said. “But of course Hekima, your wisdom is
always welcome.” 

“
If you kill
them, will that bring Kanin back?”

 
A
ripple of confusion and then the fox stammered. “Err…well NO
but…” 

“
So if you
kill them what will their deaths achieve?”

 “
We are
going to display their bodies as a lesson to others…”The badger
began but Hekima interrupted him.

 “
You
know as well as I do that their bodies will be eaten within a
couple of hours by our less enlightened woodland cousins, so I ask
you this. As you cannot bring Kanin back and no one from Alegria
will learn this lesson you wish to teach…then what purpose will
killing these children serve?” 

There was a silence in the
glade now, the moonlight finally holding sway over the extinguished
daylight and everyone’s attention was on the large stag.

 
The
badger stared at him, unable to speak but the fox then found its
tongue. “Hekima this conclave’s laws are just and fair. We agreed
them ourselves. These boys…”

 “
Acted
in ignorance without malice or evil intent.” Hekima interrupted.
“This conclave is young and our laws are not known to all. Their
lack of knowledge of our rules is not their fault, hunting has been
lawful from time immemorial in Alegria.”

 “
Which
is barbaric and should not exist,” the fox said quickly, trying to
regain control. 

“
But
nevertheless exists, whether we like it or not,” the stag said
looking around at the assembled creatures. Some were bowing their
heads and all were silent. 

“
If we murder
these children just to satisfy our blood lust over their crime then
we become worse then they are. Worse I say, because their actions
were innocent. Ours would be premeditated and wholly
unforgivable.”

 
The
stag looked around and every animal in the crowd was now looking at
the floor, even the weeping rabbits.

 
After a
long silence the fox said in a strangled voice. “So what do you
suggest we do with them?”

 “
Banish
them.”

 
Bue
looked over at Jared in confusion.

 “
Banish
them and trust that they tell their people what happened here
today.” 

There was
another long silence and the fox said. “ Hekima you cannot
just...” 

“
If any
animal here believes now that they should be killed then let it
make itself known BUT…let that animal take part in their murders if
it is so eager to see life taken.”

 
The
stag looked around the conclave and none would return his
stare.

 
Eventually Hekima said. “I will take them with me to the
border. Let it never be said that we did not treat others fairly
and with compassion, regardless of what hurt they caused to
us.”

 
The
stag stared at the bears and they bent down to cut the bindings
free from the boys’ hands and feet. Unsure what to do, Bue and
Jared simply lay there, trying to rub some circulation back into
their wrists. 

“
Come.” He
said gently. “Don’t be afraid. Climb on my back. I will take you to
where you came from.”

 
Hesitantly and glancing around the gathered, silent animals
who stared at them, they gingerly climbed on the huge stag’s back
and clung on. Bue had the lead and held to the fur on the back of
the huge beast’s neck. Jared gripped Bue around the
waist.

 “
Now
hold tight,” the stag said and without hesitation leapt through the
undergrowth and the tall grass and into the depths of the wood.
 

After a short time they came to
where they had shot the rabbit. The stag stopped and lowered itself
so the boys could get down.

 “
Thank
you,” Jared said. The stag looked at him with its sad, old eyes and
after contemplating him for a moment it replied.

 “
Don’t
come back here. Do you understand? If you do you won’t leave
alive.”