Story : The road to Hockstow Forest
From Ars Magica
A fine spring morning
The company had far to travel, this much was certain. Evidently, the fastest way for them to reach Hockestow forest was to follow the old road toward Sarop, and then cut across land once the landscape between the road and the forest became less rugged.
This fine spring morning, birds are flitting about the upper story of the tavern, whose windows have been flung wide open. Maids can be heard, going about the business of removing sheets from the cots, and generally tidying after the guests. From the back of the stables, the clatter of hooves and the odd irritable cry signal that the stablehand has his hands full with some steed or other. Otherwise, the morning is quiet and peaceful.
The road is quite busy as a number of those travelling to the church are stood around greeting one another, especially those from different villages for whom the Sunday gathering is their weekly opportunity to trade news and gossip. Several groups of old women are huddled together chatting near the track to the manor, and it is evident that almost everyone you can see is either heading to the Church, or waiting for someone who is.
Everyone is dressed in smarter clothes if they have them, with their hair combed, but otherwise the local folk seem relaxed as befitted their day of rest.
The two mages and the polecat rode in a horse-drawn cart; beside them, Sandor rode alone, eyes wary as he looked around for any impending trouble. This morning, Eirlys wore a stark white feathered cloak over a robe of grey silk, and her hair was tied back with a black ribbon (which looked suspiciously like the one sported by Phaedrus the night before). Aloysius looked as though he had eaten quite too much, as his belly hung a bit larger than the previous evening.
Longinus wore his customary too-white robe with the hood pulled well forward and his hands clasped together deep within the sleeves. Llewelyn walked alongside the cart warily, watching each other traveller or party closely as they pass.
The fey girl turned to Longinus. "So do you know exactly where we're going?" she asked. "The other groups all seemed to secure guides for their sojourns."
"Did they? I hadn't noticed" Longinus replied. "Perhaps you forget my House? Though as a gifted member of our house I do not wear the red cap, I have access to much lore that is... unknown to other houses. I did spend some time researching the general area before coming here. If we travel along the Long Mynd to the north, at the end we head north west. The Hockestow forest should be in sight from the end of the Mynd. It is all but certain to contain some magical sites of significance, though what significance exactly I am not yet ready to speculate on."
"Of course I hadn't forgotten, good Mercere," she replied. "But books tend to leave out important bits like 'this section of road is buried in flowers and is untravellable' or 'rabid redcaps will eat your eyes when you pass here, if you don't give them candy.' Maps usually lack the important things."
"I'm sorry Maga," said Longinus gravely, with a short incline of his head. "You asked if I knew where we are going. Of your 'important' things, along the way, I have no knowledge at all. Just enough direction to get us to the right location is all I have to offer."
A little further along the road... "Maga Eirlys. About what I mentioned this morning at breakfast. Would now be an opportune time to start our little exchange of information?"
A way up the old road
Travelling up the old road was certainly much faster and easier than hoofing it across the hills and dales. Before long, the little company had made its way up a goodly length of the old road, and soon found they had passed the the track that led off toward Caer Caradoc without encountering their sodales.
After riding a while in silence, Eirlys pulled back on the reins, bringing their horse and cart to a stop. "Since we don't know much about the area, I'd like to scout ahead, now that we're far from the village."
Eirlys climbed clumsily from the cart, stumbling a bit before Sandor's hand whipped out to steady her. She nodded her thanks and smoothed out her clothes. With flamboyant gestures and a loud exclamation in a language probably only Aloysius understood, Eirlys disappeared, as the sound of hooves pounding the ground rang out, and the air became very chill as a light frost settled onto the ground.
Aloysius snickered towards Longinus. "Too bad she can only make herself invisible. There's been many a time I've wished a Perdo Imaginem would shut her up. Usually once she gets to drinking, not like that pithy mundane whiskey last night, but I mean REALLY drinking. The good stuff. Nothing like Arcadian ale to turn her into a wailing banshee." He laughed, then his eyes flicked to the ground, and he jumped back, cowering in Longinus' lap. "HEY! I don't know what you're planning, but don't think I can't see your shadow coming over here! You'd better not try anything, or my friend here will have words with you about... about molesting fae!"
Laughter rang out from the space above the shadow. "Well, I'd thought maybe pulling a whisker might teach you to run your mouth," she replied in Welsh. "Now, you behave yourself Aly, and try not to drive the poor man out of his mind. Sandor, will you look out for the two of them while I'm gone?" Then in Latin: "I'll let you know if I see anything of interest, sodalis."
Another loud exclamation in that same strange, foreign tongue followed, and this time the sound of hoofbeats was quite loud-- as though a pair of horses was galloping towards the group at full speed. A bit of snow fell then, settling on the horses, the cart, and their riders. There came a flapping sound, as Eirlys flexed her wings exuberantly, adjusting to the sensation of having wings instead of arms.
Aloysius groaned, and a noxious odour filled the air. "Curses, mum, you know I don't like it when you do that," he complained.
The flapping sound stopped, followed by a scuffling. Eirlys coughed. "Of course I know, Aly. Why do you think I made myself invisible first? I didn't want to scare you," came the reply.
"Whether I can see you or not, I KNOW what you were doing, and I don't like it. It makes me nervous. Those are foul beings, whether our Lady favors them or not," he retorted.
"You know very well I'm not going to eat you when I'm in that shape, nor let anything else eat you." Then, in Welsh: "Please don't be upset with me, Aloysius. I love you better than I love all my brothers combined. No harm is going to befall you so long as I have anything to say about it."
He sniffed the air, then nodded, mollified. "All right Snowdrop. Well go on, change back. You be careful up there, and kill any polecat-eaters you see."
"Thank you, my friend." The strange chanting came again, followed by the hoofbeats and the lightly falling snow. With only the barest sound of rushing wind, the invisible snowy owl launched into the sky, to scan the surrounding area with her keen vision.
She see clearly up and down a good stretch of the Vale. The summit of Caer Caradoc rose above her to the right, with the Long Mynd to her left. The road seemed to be emptying of people as the hour of the main Sunday service approaches. There seemed to be a large number of people gathering in the bailey of the manor house, outside the church, and there was almost no human activity elsewhere in the Vale. The Long Mynd turned increasingly low to the north, becoming a series of foothills that soon gave way to a plain. The road continued north; once it passed the Long Mynd, it turned toward the direction of Hockestow forest, but she could see no further.
Eirlys circled back around a few times, and then began a long and lazy descent. She truly loved taking the shape of her Lady's favored animal; she exulted in the sensation of flapping her strong wings and buffeting high on the winds, and was in no hurry to land. Eventually, though, she came to land on the edge of the cart. After dismissing the spell, she gasped as she pitched backwards out of the still-moving cart, landing on her back in the road.
She coughed a few times-- then immediately had the wind knocked out of her as Aloysius bounded onto her stomach. "AIEE!" she wheezed.
Aloysius grinned slyly. "Well, I knew where you were, I just didn't know where EXACTLY you were. I meant to land on your chest, of course. Anyway, did you see anything interesting?"
"Couldn't you wait until I dust myself off?" Eirlys stood, brushing out her clothes with her hands. Her invisible form climbed back into the cart. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary. I'll take another look once we pass the Mynd."
