Fair Semblances: An Allegorical Fantasy (Chapter 5)

Mishael followed the young woman to the center of the camp, and looked around. At first glance, he was a little surprised at the bare simplicity of the little gathering that had just wielded such an astonishing power, turning wyrm-fire to harmless smoke, and stopping a squadron of terrifying sanguinors dead in their tracks. To all outward appearances, this was only a modest and very normal encampment, with three tents pitched in equilateral points around what seemed to be a makeshift courtyard: in the middle, a small fire ring was still smoldering, and scattered about the ring were various pieces of luggage, which apparently doubled as makeshift benches, in lieu of any real chairs.

Behind the central courtyard, on the other side of the circle of light into which the harried riders had entered so opportunely, was an open, grassy area, in which Mishael counted seven horses picketed and grazing contentedly. Mishael also saw five squat, powerful-looking beasts of a kind he had never seen before, grazing there with them. They appeared to be no more than four or five feet tall at their highest point, which happened to be the center of their backs, for their small, round heads dropped naturally beneath their massive shoulders, and never seemed quite able to reach above the level of their huge backs, even when lifted up as high as their short, powerful necks could accommodate. They were almost oval-shaped, and the widest part of their backs extended perhaps four or five feet across, so that they really were quite as wide as they were tall. They were scaly, and had a fringe of small, thick horns extending across the entire circumference of their backs, about midway up, just where the back joined with the softer belly underneath; and they had short, thick tails, just barely reaching the ground, likewise fringed on either side with the little horns. The more Mishael examined them, the more he thought they looked quite like massive, irony eggs, just a little flattened out. At any rate, they appeared to have immense strength, and he suspected that they were used to carry all the supplies, while the horses were used for riding.

Just as he was observing them, one of them began to move up a small slope, in search of greener fare, and he was surprised at how agile the great creature was: it moved almost like a lizard, with its squat legs moving rapidly outward in a semi-circular fashion, so that the level of its back did not rise and fall, as with a horse, but rather shifted from side to side in an even plane.

Mishael heard a movement behind him and, turning away from his observation, he saw another man, to whom he had not yet been introduced, walking towards him. He appeared to be a very ancient man, with a long, white beard; but in spite of his apparent age, he still moved quickly and with ease, although with something of a dignified, unperturbable air. He was clothed in a very long, gray robe, with a hood that was, at the time, thrown back from his head; the robe had no ornamentation of any kind. In his hand was what at first appeared to be a common torch, made of a small faggot bound together with scarlet cords; but it was a little different from most torches in this respect, that it had not been covered in oily rags, or else dipped in some sticky, flammable substance, to facilitate its burning a long while without consuming itself; it was, to all appearances, nothing but wood, and an exceedingly bright flame leapt up from it vigorously, but for all the intensity of the fire, the wood was not at all consumed. Mishael understood at once that this torch was the source of that unusual light which the wyrm and the sanguinors could not bear.

The aged man set the torch in the crook of a pole that had been erected near the center of the camp, apparently for that sole purpose, and approached Mishael. Ariel, still standing by Mishael’s side, stepped forward and, motioning toward the man, with what seemed to be a great deal of respect or even reverence, said to the young adventurer, “This is our Overseer, Lebbaeus; he is the Keeper of the Light”.

Lebbaeus continued to approach the two of them, only stopping when he was directly in front of Mishael, whom he scrutinized for some seconds, with a gaze that was a little intimidating, perhaps, but not at all hostile or discourteous.

“So you are he who escaped from Fair Semblances,” the old man said pensively.

Mishael was once again a little taken aback by the usage of this term “escaped,” but he said nothing in reply.

“Tell, me, in brief, how it was that you came to be in the western mountains, where our Tobiah found you,” the dignified Overseer continued in a calm, commanding tone.

“Well, we tried to go into the Impenetrable Thicket, that is, my friends and I did, and we almost got lost, but we followed the voice of the nightingale out again, and the Grand Proprietor gave us a lecture (he’s the Facilitator of the Divertisement), and when I was walking back from his office I saw the picture above the Divertisement, and I realized it was really a map, and I copied it down with the Old Characters above it – you can have it, if you’d like, it’s in my bag – no, I gave it to Tobiah –”

Here, the Overseer cut Mishael off, who was obviously disconcerted, and realizing how badly he was telling his story, he was becoming more and more frustrated, and in his frustration he was babbling more rapidly and less coherently all the time.

“Tell me more about this Divertisement,” Lebbaeus urged.

“Well,” Mishael began again, “it’s very ancient — people say the seekers invented it – and it’s very respectable too. Everyone in Fair Semblances only wants to be good at the Divertisement, and it’s the most enviable thing of all to become the Facilitator. It’s a great gameboard, where the people all try to fight against Vrak and the rest of the wyrms, only sometimes they just quarrel among themselves,” he added a little bashfully.

“So that’s his game,” the Overseer murmured darkly, apparently unaware of the double entendre he had unwittingly uttered.

“I can assure you, the Seekers did not devise this amusement, although it might have begun very shortly after their time. Fair Semblances has been cut off from our observation for so long that we are now entirely unaware of the activities going on within its borders. Your story is most helpful,” he added suddenly; “Our own Elkanah still understands the Old Characters. Tonight, he will read what you so wisely copied out” (here, Mishael flushed with pleasure at the compliment, for it seemed the only wise thing he had managed to do until that time, in this whole, unusual adventure), “and we will have a counsel. Provide the young man with a place to rest and a little something to eat,” he ordered, turning to Ariel; “No doubt he is both weary and hungry after this day’s adventures”.

When Mishael had sat down by the fire, it was already surrounded by the men he had met a few minutes before. One of them was stirring up the fire, a few were bringing out water and other provisions from the various pieces of luggage scattered about, and the whole camp had that air of joyful and impatient expectancy which attends those moments after a difficult day’s travels, just before everyone is gathered together to eat, relax, and enjoy each other’s company. And in a few moments, in fact, the whole assortment of travelers, with the exception of Tobiah and Lebbaeus, who were earnestly conversing elsewhere, were sitting happily around the fire, some on the luggage and some cross-legged in the grass, with plates full of steaming food in front of them.

Mishael took a few moments to scrutinize the sojourners a little more carefully than he had been able to do in their brief time of introduction before. Sitting a little to his left was the man introduced to him as Elkanah. He seemed very old, only perhaps not quite so old as Lebbaeus; but he did, however, appear to be somewhat more frail than that distinguished patriarch. He had leathern shoes and leggings, and a non-descript, brown outer cloak wrapped around his upper body. His head supported a very shabby leather cap that looked almost as ancient and worn out as himself. He too had a white beard, only not nearly as long and magnificent; it was actually rather sparse and wispy, almost pitiful-looking. Overall, his most striking characteristic seemed to Mishael to be his air of utter contentment and collectedness, so that he looked as serenely confident and happy here as if he were living the life of a king; and he likewise gave the impression that, if he were in the thick of a ferocious battle, or rotting in a miserable dungeon, or anywhere else for that matter, he would still go right along quite as content and unperturbed as ever. Mishael suddenly remembered that it was he whom Lebbaeus had spoken of as understanding the Old Characters, and thought, with a little bit of surprise, that he must be a little wiser and less simple than he seemed.

The next companion, going around to the left, was Ethan. If an exact opposite had been formulated for Elkanah, it would have been he. He was young, strong, and stout, whereas the former was old, weak, and seemed to be wasting away. His hair and beard were anything but wispy; quite to the contrary in fact, they were black and very thick, but rather close-cropped. And then, he exuded at all times an air of strong, almost ferocious passions, which were stirring within him just beneath the surface, and ready to flare up at any time. He seemed to Mishael almost like a bulldog, immensely strong, utterly courageous, impeccably loyal, and ready to fight to the death for those whom he loved. But at the same time, he wondered if he might not be susceptible to performing actions in a fit of rage which he would later deeply regret.

Next to Ethan was Tahath, who seemed to be almost another Ethan, but stepped down a notch or two in every respect. He was not quite so big and strong, not quite so outwardly passionate, and with hair not quite so black and coarse. He seemed to be very affectionate of Ethan, and Mishael suspected that the two were inseparable companions, and that, as is almost always the case in such a relationship, there was one a little more dominant, who was the leader in every situation; who would naturally be Ethan. The two of them were even attired similarly, both with the leathern shoes and leggings that seemed to be the common dress for the camp, and both having thrown off their outer cloaks, and displaying only their inner shirts, made of some rough but durable fabric, and both of almost the same shade of green, which also happened to be the green of the pine trees in the forest several hundred yards away. Only their caps were different: Ethan’s was leathern, and Tahath’s was made of what seemed to be wool, and was died a deep red, almost the color of the clay abounding in the northwestern hills of Fair Semblances.

“They are remarkably alike, are they not,” Ariel whispered to him laughingly; “In fact, they are cousins, and closer than any brothers could be”. Mishael realized that she had been watching him observe the companions all this time, and flushed slightly.

The next traveler, sitting almost directly across the fire from Mishael, was Azariah. He was quite different from the two cousins, small, wiry, and a little shy and withdrawn. He seemed to have passions and emotions of no less depth and color than Ethan’s, but all kept carefully inside, so as ever to give him an entirely smooth and consistent outward aspect, no matter what sorts of things he might be feeling within; which Mishael supposed must actually vary considerably. The thought struck him that his passions must be like the tides, which move more slowly and imperceptibly than waters stirred by the fiercest storms and gales, but are nevertheless as powerful and irresistible, and possess every bit as great a capacity to help or destroy. Unlike the cousins, he was still wrapped up in his outer cloak, and was gazing in turn at all the others just as silently and carefully as Mishael, although he certainly knew them all very well already.

“And that,” Ariel whispered again, “is Elkanah’s son. Singularly intelligent, perhaps as much so as Lebbaeus even, but rather inclined to be a little moody at times. Still, we all love him as a brother.” Mishael, for some reason, flushed again, and thought how nice it was that Ariel was so forthright and honest, and yet managed not to be a shrew or a gossip.

Finally, sitting just next to Ariel, was her brother Gilead. When Mishael had pondered him a moment, he decided he was something of a cross between the easy-going, impetuous cousins, and the intensely brilliant, but rather gloomy son of Elkanah. He seemed rather more thoughtful and less given to hasty action than Ethan and Tahath, but not quite so withdrawn, and perhaps somewhat less brilliant than Azariah. He was also built less powerfully than the two stout cousins, but much more substantially than the secluded thinker. His hair was a light brown, straight and fine – not coarse and black, like that of the two, nor yet blonde and wispy, like the other’s. And he was even attired at something of a middle point, not having thrown off his cloak altogether, nor yet wrapped up in it, but having it open and slung back across his shoulder, so that his shirt, a deep crimson, almost like Tahath’s cap, was visible from the front.

Ariel, seeing that Mishael had finished his survey, attempted to begin a conversation with him:

“It has been many generations since any of us has seen a citizen of Fair Semblances. The elders think it might be very significant; for one thing, you may help them understand much more fully what has been going on in there – and besides, there are the prophecies.” She paused, considering whether or not to elaborate, thought better of it, and then continued in a different vein.

“We are seekers. Fair Semblances was first built by the seekers, but Vrak later deceived its inhabitants. There are few seekers left anymore, for many have become impatient, and now wander about killing and plundering; and some have even sold themselves to Vrak. But you have seen them already,” she said, shuddering. Mishael guessed at once that she must have been speaking of the sanguinors. He tried to think of some pleasant and appropriate thing to say to this young woman who had so favorably impressed him, but could think of nothing. Fortunately, he would not have to, for just at that time, Lebbaeus and Tobiah came up to the circle of travelers, and called for their attention:

“Our fellow seekers, the time has come for a solemn council!”, Lebbaeus called out authoritatively.

“Elkanah,” he continued, turning his attention to the old man sitting by the fire, “come here and read before us all the old characters copied out here by our young companion, and give us the sense in the Common Tongue”.

Elkanah arose, a little stiffly, and walked over to where Lebbaeus and Tobiah were standing, next to the torch which was still giving them light, and began to read the Old Characters on the rough map before him in a slow, strong voice.

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