Bones of the Dragon - Margaret Weis [132]
He found it difficult enough to be around Garn only for the short time he was in Luda. Skylan made certain the two of them were never alone, and he’d left Luda as soon as the Venjekar could be stocked with supplies and ready to sail.
The only disappointment in his visit to his clan was that he didn’t have a chance to talk privately with Aylaen. She was always with her sister, Treia. Whenever Skylan was with the sisters, he would hint more than once that Treia might want to take a walk. Treia would have happily complied, for she made her dislike of Skylan obvious. But whenever Treia started to leave, Aylaen would seize her sister’s hand and detain her with some excuse. If it had not been too absurd, Skylan would have thought Aylaen was avoiding being alone with him, just as he was avoiding being alone with Garn.
Skylan asked his father about Raegar, using an excuse that he’d heard gossip among the Heudjun that once, long ago, his uncle Raegar had been betrothed to Draya.
Norgaard had some vague recollection that this was true, but he could not remember details. Skylan brought up the tale of the eagle killing the adder outside his dwelling on the day of his birth. Norgaard said that might have happened, but he had been distraught over the death of Skylan’s mother and had paid little heed to anything else.
Treia acted as Bone Priestess when the Dragon Kahg took the Venjekar back to Vindraholm. She was silent on the journey, would not talk to him, not even about Aylaen. When he brought up the subject of Aylaen becoming a Bone Priestess, Treia cast him a scornful glance and walked away.
In Vindraholm, Draya and the Heudjun warriors came on board. Draya took over the private cabin belowdeck, which was where the Bone Priestess stayed during the voyage. The cabin was small and cramped, for most of the area below the deck was used for storing the loot seized during raids. Draya spread out fur blankets, making a comfortable sleeping area for herself and Skylan.
He had been cudgeling his brain for days, trying to think of how he was going to avoid having to lie with her, and thus far he had not been able to manufacture an adequate excuse, one that would satisfy her and the Heudjun warriors, who would expect the married couple to behave like a married couple.
Fortunately, the Sea Goddess Akaria came to Skylan’s rescue. She and Svanses, Goddess of the Wind, were waging one of their endless battles. The wind blew strong and, in retaliation, Akaria caused the sea to rise to challenge her. The waves fought the wind, and the Venjekar swooped up and plunged down, swooped up and plunged down. Draya became so ill, she was forced to seek refuge below.
The war between the goddesses continued for days. Draya could do nothing except groan on her bed and puke into a bucket. Skylan promised Akaria a silver ring if she would keep the seas rough for the duration of the journey.
For him, the voyage was a pleasant one. Skylan had selected twenty young warriors to accompany him. He chose young men over veterans, such as Draya’s friend, Sven. The voyage was going to be peaceful, he said, and this would give the young men good experience. In truth, Skylan did not want the older men, who would be more likely to oppose a raid on the druid settlement. Here was yet another lie.
Skylan was troubled by his lies: lies to Draya, lies to his father, lies to his clansmen, lies mounting on top of lies like corpses piled atop one another when a shield-wall crumbled. Torval was a god of honor. He despised liars. Once Skylan had the Vektan Torque, he could stop lying. He would give the torque to the god, and all would be forgiven. Skylan fixed his gaze on