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Tova's Four Kingdoms Taff
TOVA The pain in my head threatened to cause me to lose consciousness the moment I regained it. I could feel the blood trickling down the side of my face, and I realized that they had hit me much harder than I had originally thought. I carefully opened my eyes. I was bound to the center pole of a meager hut. Huts in this part of the country were built raised since the ground is permanently frozen eight inches under the topsoil. A log is driven into the ground, eight inches deep, and then cemented into place with a combination of animal hair, saw dust, gravel, and tree sap from the Bidor tree. Then a hut is built around the log. First, stones are laid on the ground as a foundation. Animal hair, wool, dried grasses, and branches are put on top of the stones as insulation and then a floating wooden floor of halved logs are laid on top. Depending on the riches of the person building the hut, the logs may be smoothed and sanded. Walls are built around out of stone and a thatch r
Tova's Four Kingdoms Safe
TOVA I had braced myself for the first lash of the whip. My torturer barely used his arm, instead flicking his wrist to have the tails of the whip dance across my back. I involuntarily screamed, the pain feeling like hellfire had been poured on to my back. He pulled back and whipped again and again, flicking his wrist into a morbid movement of pain and blood. He was right; my blood spattered around the room with each strike of the whip. After the tenth stroke I was standing in a puddle of my own blood, bits of my flesh on the ground around me. My knees were wobbly, my throat was sore from screaming and my vision swam. I thought I heard voices over the thundering rain, but I couldn’t concentrate on anything but the pain. “Get on with it!” I heard Sala scream. I saw the man cock back his arm, this time ready to put his weight behind the stroke and I closed my eyes turning to the pillar with a sob. I knew I would not survive this. The stroke hit with as much force as I had im
Tova's Four Kingdoms Brother
ERIK I watched Tova drift off to sleep. Birgir went to the fire and gathered a bunch of herbs, tying them together in a bundle. He lit the end on fire and then blew out the flame, creating a smudge. He wrapped a stiff piece of bark around the bundle, making a little cornucopia with the smoking end at the large end of the cone. He sat in front of Tova, holding the smudge in front of her face. Her breathing deepened as she drifted into a deeper sleep. Satisfied, he stubbed out the smudge on the dirt floor and then went back to the pot that was boiling on the fire, the herbs and roots inside turning the water to a noxious shade of green. I watched him dip strips of linen into the water and pull them out, letting them cool slightly in the air before bringing them to Tova’s sleeping form. I braced myself for what I was going to see. He removed the light sheet that was covering her body and gently pulled off the used strips of linen, setting them aside to be cleaned and used again
Tova's Four Kingdoms Punishment
ERIK I paused before I went back into the cave, knowing that my arrival with the needle and tendon was just going to cause Tova more pain. I smiled to myself ruefully. If she had been any of my men, I would have sewn it up myself and judged them for making any sort of noise. I did have to give her credit. She has barely made a sound even though the pain must be intense. I went into the cave and saw Birgir bending over the fire, tending another pot that was starting to smell delicious. I realized he was making a soup to feed the girl and probably ourselves. I silently handed him the items he requested and then left the cave again. I began walking towards the village and I was soundlessly joined by two of my guards. Once on the outskirts of the town, I pulled the hood of my cloak up over my face. I had left my seal skin cloak back at the cave and was wearing a very modest cloak made of wool that would easily pass for one of the villagers. I looked at my guards and they unders
Tova's Four Kingdoms Rumors
TOVAWe spent a week in the cave. Erik came and went, speaking quietly with his guards, but Birgir never left my side. He was an excellent nurse, even helping me with my personal business and cleaning me afterwards. I never knew what King Erik talked about with his guards; he gave Birgir the updates after I had gone to sleep.After a week my back was scabbed, but nothing was bleeding and I wasn’t in an undo amount of pain. I was starting to get restless and said as much to Birgir when the opportunity arose.“How much danger is King Erik in?” I asked. Birgir looked up from his concoction of herbs that he was boiling. “King Erik can take care of himself. There are many that are loyal to him that will help keep him safe.” He looked at me curiously. “Why do you ask, my lady?”“Are we here, then, on my account?” I didn’t understand why we were hiding in a cave instead of trying to figure out who the traitor was and hunting him down. “Yes,” he admitted. “When King Erik realized t
Tova's Four Kingdoms Wash
TOVAErik came back a few hours later bearing packages. He tossed a parcel at Birgir and then put a larger one on the pallet that I slept on. I looked at him questioningly. “A dress, cloak, and some toiletries. We are returning home in style.”“Thank you,” I said, fingering the package. He inclined his head and spoke to me softly.“I would be honored, my queen, to help you get ready.” He chuckled softly. “I am no lady in waiting, but I can help.”I looked at Birgir with a little bit of alarm, but he refused to meet my eyes, busying himself with the package that he was given. “Oh, okay,” I said in the silence. Birgir tried to hide his smile of amusement and I let out the breath I was holding, looking Erik in the face. “I would like that, your grace. I am moving slowly and raising my arms is still a little hard.”Erik suddenly got serious. “When we return to the castle you will move into my chamber and only Birgir and I will attend to you. I do not trust anyone there right n
Tova's Four Kingdoms Cloak
TOVAFirst light brought Erik to the cave entrance, looking nervous. Birgir threw both of us an amused look and then disappeared, all of his things packed into a knapsack that he threw over his shoulder.I pushed myself up off my pallet, trying not to wince as the new skin pulled on my back. I was still wearing my undergarments and I could see that the king was a little confused and perhaps hurt.“I was eager to wash,” I explained with a smile. “The soap you brought was scented beautifully and I felt putrid in comparison. It took a long time, but I was able to get clean.”He smiled back at me, an expression I was not quite used to. “I am sorry I was not here to assist,” he stated, reaching for my gown.I turned around and held my hands over my head like a child and he slipped it on, tying the stays and rearranging the fabric around the corset area. His hands splayed on my waist, resting on my hips for longer than was necessary, but it felt nice. I leaned a little bit back into
Tova's Four Kingdoms Plan Change
TOVAThe forest was thick but one of the guards had commandeered a horse from a nearby farm. I was lifted up on to its bareback, sitting sideway. King Erik walked beside me, hand on the horse’s neck. Another guard led him by the rope through his halter.We trekked through the forest for about three miles before it began to thin, and we saw the beginnings of a few farms and pasture lands. The nine of us were silent; the guards were too well trained to chatter and I’m beginning to notice that King Erik prefers silence. Birgir and I had nothing to say so we went along in the quiet.I noticed that some of the villagers were coming out of their huts, standing at their doors, watching us walk into town. No one said anything, but all the men and young boys were saluting the king and the women would curtsy as we passed by. Erik moved his hand to my leg underneath the cloak and he would occasionally give my calf a light squeeze. I was confused as to what that meant.We passed through t
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