Chương 27: Bartlett's Butchery
It was a six mile hike from where we were to the bunny Village. During the whole of the trip the stalwart bunny squadron stole apprehensive glances. I could understand their nervousness, to them I was an apex predator that could kill most if not all of them within seconds. What they didn't understand was that I had no interest in killing them, or eating them, but their fear might be useful so I kept my feelings to myself.
"Grrrrrr!" Grumbled Huxian's belly. After her blood frenzy and our love making, her hunger was returning with a vengeance. Now her shoulders slumped, and she had both her hands on her belly and was stroking herself trying to soothe her aching hunger.
"Could we please stop," I asked the open air so as to not address the Miss Eyepatch Bunny-girl directly, "Huxian needs to eat. I am concerned that if she doesn't then she may do something rash from hunger."
"No," Miss Eyepatch answered sharply without even turning to look back at us, "She can wait until we reach the Village, and should she attack us, we will simply kill her."
"Let's get one thing straight Bunny Bitch," I growled now my tone low and very threatening, "I am willingly letting you play out your façade of having any real authority or strength for your benefit. However, should any of you harm my mate or so much as lay a hand on her, I will kill all of you. Nothing you do, nothing you are armed with will keep me from tearing all of you in half. You live only long enough to watch your own entrails spill out onto the ground or your companion's head ripped from his or her body before you die. Have I made myself perfectly, indelibly clear?"
"What you have made clear, Brute, is that you are clearly a novice," Bunny Bitch retorted sarcastically, "You show your ignorance by making grandiose threats that you can not fulfil. First, we are not rabbits, we are hares, and second, we are the most elite fighters of our village and in the territory. You may be big, but when you are big, you are also slow. Our power is not in our strength, rather it is in our speed and dexterity. Before you managed to harm any one of us you would be riddled with arrows and sliced and speared ten different ways."
Growling, I did my best to rain in my temper before the snarky bitch made me prove to her that none of them stood a chance against me. It would be best to let them believe what they wished for the time being. However, I couldn't let her remarks go completely unanswered, "Just remember what I've said. If any of you lay a hand on Huxian, I will kill you where you stand."
"Make threats when you can actually carry them out," Bunny Bitch retorted.
I was seriously contemplating reaching out and snapping her neck when the sounds of the forest changed. I could suddenly smell smoke from chimneys and food cooking on hearth and grill. Fields appeared and gardens as the forest was fading away to reveal a bustling village. There were children running around and playing, old Animals hobbling around, mothers shopping for ingredients of the day's evening meal, and shopkeepers and callers announcing their wares in front of shops or from behind carts. Out in the fields the men worked gardens while others had shops where the villagers came to have equipment mended or rebuilt.
Just like Mwanje Kottrheim, all of the Animals wore various clothes, or versions of aprons, or loin clothes and breastplates. The men were an eclectic sort wearing whatever worked best for their chosen tradecrafts while the mated women and mothers wore slightly more conservative clothing than the young virgins, and the elderly were usually, for most part, the most conservative and seemed to also carry a certain air of authority that came with seniority.
It didn't take long before Bunny Bitch and her squadron were spotted and their detainees. A grandmotherly groundhog hissed when she realized I was carrying a very dead Noama on my shoulder while a jittery squirrel female screamed just at the sight of me. It didn't take long before someone was sent off in a rush to fetch the Council. By then Bunny Bitch had led us to the center square where she got up on a raised platform and called the crowd to order, "Friends! Neighbors! As many of you know I was sent out to fetch Noama, again. However, when I arrived she was dead. Killed by this hussy. This vixen. This fox, named Huxian! She was passed out from her rampant sexual intercourse with this...other beast, named Viridian Vale! They killed Noama and then proceeded to copulate on her body!"
As she spoke the crowd began to murmur and point at Huxian and I. I couldn't help but feel embarrassed by Bunny Bitch's accusations. It didn't help that what she was saying was somewhat true if not contextually accurate. Either way, if her objective was to bias the crowd and agitate them, then she was very effective. The murmuring was beginning to strengthen into cries for justice, while others shouted that we should be killed by various graphic means. Much quieter were the ones that shook their heads and asked questions like, "If we kill them, are we any better than them?" And, "What about the Law?" Or, "Why was Noama out in the forest alone?"
It didn't take long for the more aggressive agitators to start shouting down those that disagree with them. A few fights broke out when disagreements led to open hostility. For any of those in the crowd open to clear thinking and non violence, they quickly shut up and let the aggressors stir up the crowd to a mob.
"Coella! Get down from that platform," An old badger shouted as he walked up with a group of four other older men and women, "You have nearly started a riot, and you are disturbing the peace! If it weren't for our respect for your father…" The old badger closed his mouth as if he were going to say something but then thought better of it as he visibly reigned himself in, "Get down now girl and shut up!"
"Me?" Coella answered in an outraged shriek before pointing to Huxian and me, "They killed one of our towns folk! They killed Noama, and you are chastising me?"
"You are on thin ice girl!" The old badger warned again as he stepped up on the raised platform and patted the air for the crowd to quiet, "Neighbors! Citizens! We, your duly elected Council can indeed see that Noama is dead. However, we do not know the circumstances. So, please go home and let us investigate what has happened, and then we your Council will render a fair and unbiased judgment."
There were calls for justice, and denunciations of murderers, and shouts for summary execution, and very patiently the Council explained that they would judge the matter and if an execution was warranted then indeed there would be one. However, they begged for peace until such time as they could examine all of the facts. It took several minutes to calm everyone and send them on their way. The old badger gave Coella a withering glare, and then he approached me and laid a hand on Noama's calf, "If you don't mind," He asked in a tense whisper, "Carry her to Bartlett's butchery and we will examine her there."
I gave him a curt nod and then followed the bunny squadron to the said butchery. Huxian followed on my heels, and as we moved through the village the Council quietly followed and watched Huxian with interest. Only once we were halfway across the square did an old female beaver approach Huxian and enquire, "Pardon miss, but I couldn't help but notice that you and your mate are differ species. You're obviously a vixen, but what is he?"
I could feel Huxian's loving gaze on my back before she finally answered, "He's a Druid."
There was a deafening quiet that settled over the Council members that overheard, and then much whispering as the title Druid circulated between them. An old bunny whispered in the old beaver's ear and with a nod she turned and asked, "Druid or not, we have never heard of two differing species procreating. Are your babies his?"
"Yes," She answered simply with a nod, "I was a virgin when we mated and bred, and he is my only lover. So yes, he is the father of my children."
"He wasn't a lion or a cat when we found him," Coella accused, "He is a Prime. A Villralfar Druid. His name is Viridian Vale. He is the son of Summerset Vale, Lord of the Valelands."
"Summerset Vale," Several of the Council gasped.
"Still," The old beaver mused with a shake of her head, "That complicates the revelation of this vixen's crossbreeding even further. There is no lore or stories in all of our history that indicates that two differing species can procreate. However, it is a documented and proven fact that it is impossible for Primes to breed with Animals."
"Not anymore," Huxian answered, "I am proof of that, and not just me. Several of my companion-wives are pregnant as well."
"Companions," The beaver female asked, "Are they vixens as well?"
The beaver's squirrel companion's big brown eyes lit up as she nodded her head vigorously, "Yes, maybe this is an anomaly quarantined to the fox species in particular!"
Huxian's eyes narrowed and she pursed her mouth as she shook her head, "No, my companions," nodding her toward me she continued, "My husband's other wives and mates are not vixens. Leandra is a cat from the Lion Tribe, Burza is an avian from the Eagle Tribe, and Sequoia is an Elm'drya. Our ability to have his offspring is not a defect in us Animals, rather it is a blessing given to him by the moon goddess Seline. He is the only one of his kind, even among the Druids." Looking back at the old beaver and squirrel she suddenly asked, "Why are you so concerned and hopeful that this is an anomaly?"
"Don't you get it," Coella answered with a rueful laugh, "What do you think the Primes would do if they found out Animals were now able to breed with them? You and your companion-wives are physical genetic proof that Primes are not superior to us Animals. What do you think they would do to keep that secret?"
Cutting her eyes to me fearfully, Huxian gasped, "They'll kill him!"
"Not just him," The beaver warned, "They'll kill you, and the babies. Then they'll raze the village or town you come from and kill anyone and everyone that knows about you."
"Oh Seline, protect us," Huxian prayed in a mournful sigh.
Having overheard the whole conversation I had to admit I was scared too. I had a very strong desire to run home to Valeheim and make sure Bastet, Leandra, and Burza were okay. I wished they were here with me, and I was scared for Sequoia's safety since she was rooted to her tree.
As I contemplated my worries the old Councilman Badger led the way inside Bartlett's Butchery. Once we were inside he led the way through the shop front to the butchery in the rear where he motioned for me to lay Noama's body on a table. Complying with the request, I laid her down and oriented her body so that she looked like she was sleeping on her back.
Bartlett arrived a few seconds later. He was almost nine feet tall. Even taller than me. Long brown horns protruded from the sides of his head announcing that he was a Bos-Taurine. He was a bull of a man and fierce looking, but as soon as he saw the Council he smiled before frowning as he looked down and tenderly caressed Noama's cheek, "It's a sad day today. Noama was so special. She was so fascinated with herbs and alchemy. Never could stay put or have the patience to wait for the safety of numbers. I will miss her dearly."
"As we all will," The badger agreed with a nod, "Bartlett we need you to examine her and establish how she died."
He nodded and then began probing her body to find her wounds. It didn't take long before he stepped back and announced, "These are my findings. Noama has several lacerations from a struggle on her belly and breasts. However, the most concentrated damage to her body is at her neck. I can't tell without cutting into her, but it appears that her carotid artery is punctured or severed and her esophagus is crushed. After this damage was inflicted she died within minutes. It was not painless, but neither was it brutal or maliciously prolonged."
The badger and the rest of the council nodded their acceptance of the findings while Coella looked like a thunder cloud ready to unleash her fury. Turning to me and Huxian, the badger, the obvious leader of the Council asked, "What was your intent when you killed Noama?"
"Simply to eat," I answered, "We were foraging and hunting. We had to leave to come here on short notice and didn't think we would be living in the wild for as long as we have, so we were not prepared for a long stay. We needed food."
"What brought you out here from the Valelands," Another Councilman asked.
"We were warned by the Moon Goddess to come out here so as to stop a Svartalf attack on the Valelands," I answered.
"Svartalfar!" Someone hissed.
"The Illtalfar!" Another hissed.
"Order! Order everyone," The old badger commanded for control of the room, "What brings the Flaralfar here, so far away from their home?"
I shook my head, "I don't know. It's possible that my mother may know, or may be able to divine the answer as a priestess and the Oracle of our goddess Seline."
"Where is your mother now," The beaver asked.
"She's back at the roadside awaiting Huxian and my return with food," I answered.
"What are we going to do, talk these murderers to death," Coella hissed in agitation, "They killed Noama!"
"Yes, of course, we have gone far away from the main topic," The badger agreed then looked back over Noama with a sad expression. When he turned back he gazed at me then Huxian and lastly Coella before he rendered a verdict, "Coella, as a leader of the village guard you of all people know the law. Every Animal, wild or domesticated, may kill for two reasons, and two reasons only. To eat, and to defend one's own life or that of his family. This young male, Viridian and his mate Huxian were exercising their right to hunt and kill for food. Noama had been given many warnings of the dangers of roaming the forest alone, and yet she repeatedly dismissed them and went out anyway. She knew the dangers, and consequently carries the responsibility of her death on her own shoulders. Therefore, the accusation of murder against Viridian and Huxian is dismissed. However, Coella, knowing all of this, you arrested Viridian and Huxian, forced them to march all the way here, and then brazenly stirred up trouble in the village square to bias the populace and thereby us, the Village Council, from making a fair and impartial judgment. These would have been grievous abuses of your authority if it were just this one time, but that is not the case. You make a habit of stirring up trouble that we have forgiven because of the memory of your father, but no more! Henceforth you are banished from our village."
Coella's mouth fell open and she looked truly shocked. By the time Councilman Badger was halfway through his judgment she was shaking her head in denial as tears welled up in her eyes, and by the time he finished she was silently crying and she set her jaw and sniffled as she gave them a stiff salute before turning on the balls of her feet and stomped out of the butchery.
Everyone watched Coella leave, and then Councilman Badger finally introduced himself, "My lord Viridian Vale and lady Huxian, I am Gregr Honeywell." Gesturing to Councilwoman Beaver he continued, "This is Frnae Damboulder." Pointing to Councilwoman Squirrel, "Mildred Goldtail, though her tail is more white than gold now." The rest he named off but I forgot them nearly as soon as he said them.
Giving Noama one last glance he turned to me and said, "Lord Viridian, Bartlett will take Noama into his charge and prepare her for viewing by her family. Afterward, he will butcher her for you and prepare the meat. We only ask that you let us collect her Well of Mind, Power, and Soul so that the family may have something of her to send to their ancestors."
"What does that entail," I asked.
It was Huxian that answered with a hand on my arm, "Don't make them explain, I will tell you later."
I nodded, and there was an audible sigh from everyone in the room. Clearing his throat for attention, Gregr Honeywell gave a timid smile before gesturing for us to follow him out of Bartlett's Butchery, "If you don't mind following me, since we have you here, one of the fabled Druids of the forest, I wonder if we might be able to seek your help or council on another matter?"
"Sure," I agreed as I followed the short badger across the village square.
He led us to the Council Hall, but along the way I was distracted by the sight of Coella sitting on a rock with her spear in one hand, daggers buckled to her belt in the small of her back, and two swords strapped to her back. At her feet was a large satchel with what I could only imagine was the entirety of her possessions. As we walked by, she looked up and I saw in her one pink eye tears of anger, bitterness, loneliness, regret, and sadness. It made me feel sad for her. When she saw that I was watching her she looked away and stabbed at the ground with the but of her spear.
"Do you really have to banish her," I asked as we went up the stairs of the porch before entering the Council Hall.
"If this were her first transgression, then no, of course not," Gregr sighed with a shake of his head, "But this isn't her first time. It is sad for us as well. Her father was loved by all of us. She was such a sweet girl too, back then, but when her father died...she changed. She's headstrong, overly opinionated, as stubborn as ten mules arguing in a room, and vicious with that mouth of hers. She has been mean to everyone in this village except for Noama. For some reason it was like she saved up every kindness she never had for anyone else, and showered it on that girl. So, now maybe you can understand why she hates you two, and I hope you can forgive her."
"I want to, if she'll let me," I murmured as Gregr led us to a table with a large map on top.
Scanning the map, I immediately found home, the Valeland and Valeheim. From this map I could see easily that Valeheim was built almost exactly where Ellensburg would have been in Midgard, my old world. That was why the terrain and mountains had looked so familiar all my life. Tracing my fingers over the detailed lines depicting the mountain terrain I found Sequoia's Grove far to the northeast where there was a canyon that her hidden Animal and Centaur villagers could escape through should her illusionary barrier ever be breached by the Alfari Inquisition.
"Thinking of home," Gregr asked as he looked over the map, and tapped a location I once knew as Cle Elum Lake, "This is where we are now. Where is your mother, the Oracle of Seline?"
Examining the location I pointed to a small lake at the bottom of the much larger Kachess Lake as I knew it from my previous life, "Here at this small lake, not too far from the road heading to Olympia."
"Oh, how apropos," Gregr chuckled, "That lake is called Tunglvatn, Moon Lake, while we call these three larger lakes the three sisters. To the west, Ashrah. The center, Gaia. And the east, Lauma; with the moon goddess Seline always watching over them from above."
"If Seline is always above them then why is the small lake below them named after her," I asked.
"Ah, you ask a good question. One of the first our children ask when we teach them about the lakes," Gregr laughed, "It is actually quite simple really. It is because when you stand at any of the lakes and look down you will see our lady Seline staring back up at you from her reflection in the water. In this way she is both above and below us all."
"I see," I mumbled even though I really didn't understand at all. Changing subjects I asked, "So what did you need of us?"
Placing his finger on the map to the north of where he had said we were. It was in a valley that connected both Gaia's Lake and Lauma's Lake, "We have a problem here. To the north there are roving wolf packs, and to the northeast are the bear den's. Right here there is another small lake called Golden Tear. There is a massive beehive here. The Queen is generous and usually trades honey with her neighbors in return for rights to pollinate all the surrounding area unmolested. However, recently the Queen has become hostile to any that come into her lands, and she has stopped exporting honey altogether. This has caused tensions to rise at first between the bees and their neighbors, and now it has expanded to all of us growing agitated with each other."
"What would you have us do about this," I asked, failing to see how I could help in any meaningful way.
"By investigating the land of the bees," Gregr answered, "You are a Druid, a protector of the forest. You should be good at such things as this!"
"Okay," I answered but then turned to Gregr and asked, "If I investigate this for you what do I get as payment in return?"
Gregr looked up at me and then turned and motioned for his fellow councilmen to follow him to a corner where they whispered amongst themselves. Their whispering grew fierce as they debated with each other, and then they all reached a consensus, nodded their heads, and returned to the map table. When they returned Gregr cleared his throat before making his offer, "We...are prepared to offer you anything you want, up to and including any one of our unmarried daughters. We will gather them all in the square and you may have your pick, if that is what you wish."
Huxian placed a hand on my arm, but I didn't need her touch to let me know that she disapproved. Hell, I disapproved! But, I was going to use this to get what I did want, "You're willing to give me anything I want up to and including any of your daughters?" I asked.
The entire council nodded their agreement, and so I asked, "But what if I don't want any of your daughters? What are you willing to do instead?"
"We are simple folk of meager means, my Lord Viridian. We do not possess much of anything of any value other than ourselves and our children," Gregr answered, "However, if it is something we are able to obtain for you, we will, and if it is something we can do for you, we will."
"If that is the case," I answered in a warm purr, "Then I have two requests."
"Two," Gregr asked.
"Two," Frnae the beaver chortled, "We are only asking you to do one request for us. How is this a fair trade?"
Glancing from Gregr to Frnae I simply gestured to Huxian before I replied, "You may only have one request, but you are asking the both of us to go investigate the beehive for you. One, two, seems fair to me."
"Agreed," Gregr answered with a nod, "If our daughters are not what you want from us, then please state what it is that you do want."
"First, I want you to rescind your expulsion of Coella and return her home to her. It is all she has of her father," I answered as I stuck up one finger illustrating that it was my first request, and then I lifted my second finger, "And second, I want you to pass a law for your village that can not be revoked unless it is by a unanimous vote by the entire village that you will never attempt to bribe, sell, or pay for any service, property, or merchandise with your sons or daughters ever again."
As I made my second request, the council's mouths, as a whole, fell open from shock. They stood there in silence as Gregr moved his jaw as if he was trying to make his voice work again, then suddenly he closed it and his lips turned up in a broad smile that quickly broke into a hardy belly laugh as he took a step closer and slapped my shoulder as he wiped tears from his glossy black eyes and said, "Oh my goddess, that is the most remarkable thing I have ever heard. What you propose goes against all of the so-called commonsense of this world for the last six thousand years. But, I like it! Finally, someone who is willing to take a stand for freedom. Not just for yourself, but rather for those that are the smallest among us, the weakest, and most often the easiest and readily enslaved or abused."
"My thoughts exactly," I agreed, "Where there is only freedom for the strong, there is no freedom at all because there is always someone somewhere that is stronger. Freedom, true freedom, empowers the weak to become strong, and the strong to be weak. It allows people to live the way they want to live, think, and express their thoughts and opinions, even if the majority of society may disagree, without fear of reprisal or imprisonment. That is to say freedom allows us to pursue our dreams of a better and happier life, but never at the expense of another's life or freedom because they too must have the same freedoms that everyone else enjoys.
"Well said," Gregr agreed as the rest of the Council started clapping and nodding their agreement as well, "Then if this is truly what you want as payment, then we will make all the necessary arrangements while you are out on our request."
"That will be fine," I agreed, "But before we leave, I ask if Huxian and I may eat first. She will need meat, as rare as possible, and I will have anything that is vegetables."
"Of course," Gregr agreed and quickly led us out and back across the square to a small Inn.
As we walked across the square I saw Missus Beaver and Squirrel break from the group and stride over to Coella. They placed their hands on her shoulders and began speaking to her in a soft undertone. They must have explained what had transpired in the Council Hall because she suddenly looked up at me with eyes filled with tears and her expression very open and confused. I gave her a smile and a nod and then I embraced the smells of food and let them lead me to the Inn's dining room.
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