Book 2

Bluetopaz: The War Years

Chapter 2

It took about two days to gather supplies, arrange for suitable costumes for our deception and most importantly alert our allies of at least the bare bones of our plan. Much would depend on people we didn’t know who lived in a foreign land and according to Lampres, at least, would be willing to risk their lives to help us. It was understandable that we wished others to know where we had gone in the event that we all just disappeared!

It was decided that Erstling would be left in charge of the estate and by default the town which had grown up around it. Myoptus, although advanced in age, as well as The Smith would aid him in decision making. Of course, Paunchus, our font of practical sense and knowledge would be at his side quietly and sometimes not so quietly giving her advice on any situation that might arise.

The majority of Dorus’ troops would stay at the Estate to help in whatever capacity they were needed but their prime orders were to guard Alcmene and the babies. Their acting commander, another relative of Dorus, had strict orders not to commit more than a small fraction of his forces to any hair-brained scheme that Amphitryon might come up with.

This would insure that the Estate and Alcmeme would always have sufficient guards to repel any attempt by Stenalus or anyone else who might think Electriyon’s daughter and two grandsons might make valuable hostages in any future unpleasantness that might be brewing in the south.

We started out early in the morning with a supply wagon drawn by two horses, as well as riding horses for all of us. Lampres confidently led us out the gate and down the lane to the great North-South road. Surprisingly he turned north and we rode leisurely for about a hour as we watched him leave the road frequently checking what appeared to be faint game trails that led back into the Amazon forest. Finally, he galloped back to us and directed us into the trees and along a track that ran back into the woods. “Do you know where you are going?” I questioned him as we went deeper into Amazon territory.

“Of, course!” He answered. “I’m taking a short cut to the sea! But, first,” he continued as he halted in front of a tripod of tall logs lashed together, “We had better stop her and pay our respects to your relatives!”

“I should think so!” I replied, surprised that he knew of my connection to the Amazons. “My aunt will not take kindly to our trespassing. Amazons are rather picky about who crosses their land.”

Hanging in the center of the tripod was an Amazon marker that clearly said keep out! Lampres, however, did not seem troubled by this and after fetching a carry sack from the wagon, he removed several small objects from it, placed them in a smaller bag and hung that from the center of the tripod. “That should pay for our passage and give us the blessings of Artemis for our journey.” He said, as he remounted his horse and led us deeper into the woods.

The others, were curious about what was going on so I explained to them as we rode that the tripod was a shrine to Artemis and that Lampres had done exactly the right thing in leaving his gift there rather than trying to present it to the Amazons. Dorus was smiling widely at my explanation and it was then I remembered giving him the same directions when he first went into Amazon territory to arrange an alliance with Mayruna.

We traveled on and although it was hardly noticeable in the thick forest, we were climbing gradually but steadily upwards the entire time. In the mid afternoon I became increasing aware of a faint roaring sound. It started just on the edge of my hearing but steadily grew louder and louder as went traveled. Finally it dawned on me, it was the river I was hearing and I knew then exactly where we were! “We’re nearing the river!” I called out to Lampres. “It’s the place where we used to come to harvest the fish.” I said with a smile, as I finally figured out why he was bring us here. “Will the water still be shallow enough to cross?” I questioned.

“I think we will have no problems with crossing, my lady,” he replied. “But first, tell me can you read that sign?” He asked pointing to an Amazon marker attached to a large tree on the edge of a small clearing.

“It’s the queens personal sign!” I said recognizing the three raven feathers attached to a sprig of holly with green and purple strips of material. “You’d better leave something nice!” I added. The holly means we can pass but we are being watched.

“Hmm,” Lampres said as he rummaged about in his carry sack, “Which of these would please your aunt, do you think? How about this?” He held up a rather ugly heavy metal pendant on a large chain. It was shaped like a sun disk with metal rays around it. In the center was the image of one of those composite animals with birds wings and head attached to the body of a goat or a cow. It was difficult to tell what it was supposed to be, since it was sitting down like a dog.”

“Not that,” I replied quickly.

“It is supposed to be very valuable.” He said seriously, “The stones,” which were a rather rusty red color, “come for a far away country.”

“It may or not be valuable,” I said with a grin, realizing he was testing me again, “ but, Amazons care very little for the value others place on an object but rather put value on the beauty of the object. This thing, for certain, is ugly and May would not be pleased with a ugly gift.” I said and then asked, “Don’t you have something else?”

“These,” he said, replacing the medallion in the bag and drawing out another object, “are of no great value but I do believe they are beautiful.” He produced a string of green and light purple glass beads and held them up to catch the sunlight.

“Those will do fine.” I agreed and he rode forward to tie the beads to the marker.

“Now,” he said, " we can go down to the river."

What had been, in my childhood, a rather steep trail down to the water had been changed completely! A new road now cut across the cliff at an easy angle and doubled back twice taking us and the wagon gently down to the river where more surprises waited.

The rough ford I remembered, had been replaced with large flat topped boulders stacked man high and wide enough to drive a wagon across. The Amazons had carefully arranged spillways in their dam to allow for passage of the fish I remembered netting in the rapids as a child. The upstream side of this low dam formed a smooth pond. Rafts and boats coming down river could easily be unloaded at the dam and then dragged from the water to be portaged beyond the rapids on a smooth log road that ran next to the river. The goods from the boats were hauled by wagon down the same road and reloaded in the calm water beyond the rapids. The Amazons collected a toll for the use of their facilities and the rafters were more than happy to pay for the use with a small part of their cargo. As I had predicted long before, Mayruna had found a way to profit from the trade that moved down the river!

Just as we were about to cross the dam May appeared on the bank. She greeted us all warmly. Evidently the tribe was doing very well in the toll business and she seemed to feel we were owed at least a small part of the credit for her success. I had to complement her on the beads she was wearing.

“Oh, these?” She replied, fingering the smooth colorful glass. “Would you believe I found them hanging from a tree a ways back up the trail? Some people are so careless about their belongings.” She said with a grin. “I suppose the owner is half way to Rome by now. I may as well keep them.” She glanced up at a grinning Lampres and added, “They are quite beautiful, just the sort of thing I would have picked for my self.” Then she winked at me and wished us a safe journey.

The road on the other side of the river was not nearly so grand but, since the bluff was not as high or as steep it served the purpose and we were soon on our way again through the forest. A day later the trees began to thin and the air was thick with the salty tang of the sea. Quite suddenly we topped a small rise and looked down on a perfectly circular body of water which we all took at first, for a lake.

Lampres soon set us straight on that. It was, he informed us, a small bay which had been formed in the distant past by an earthquake, which had caused the center of a seaside mountain to colapse and be swallowed up by the earth. The same quake had fractured a small part of the outer wall of the mountain allowing the sea to pour in to the hole and create the bay. The sea was only accessible from the bay during high tides. At all other times a jagged gauntlet of rock from the broken walls kept boats either within the bay or firmly outside of it on the open sea.

Scattered around the bay were several small fishing villages with warves and docks for ship building and repair.

“Well, you lordship,” Lampres address his uncle with his usual impish grin, “you and your party had better prepare yourselves for you debut as actors. The village people are not curious by nature, given the kind of ships and sea people they routinely deal with, but as we agreed, my crew will be full of questions and they aren’t fools. So have your stories, straight, everyone.” He added addressing us all.

We hastily replaced our more normal traveling clothes with those things we had decided would make us look more like the roles we were playing and then rode down to one of the villages.

“We have about three hours until high tide.” Lampres stated after a glance at the water lapping around the pilings holding up one of the piers. “Just enough time to get loaded and in position when the tide clears the rocks at the entrance.”

We boarded the ship and I remember being very excited that we were finally on our way but also being a little alarmed. I’m used to having solid ground under my feet and even though the ship was still firmly tied to the pier it moved constantly and unpredictably as I walked across the deck. Our supplies were quickly and efficiently loaded and as the sailors undid the ropes that held the ship close to the pier I remember thinking, almost praying, that I wouldn’t be sick!

When the ship finally was set loose from the dock I was disappointed not to see the sails, which were tightly bundled to the mast, set free to blow in the brisk wind. Instead a whole rank of long oars appeared on either side of the ship and laboriously the ship, looking like one of those long-legged water bugs, turned and made its way across the bay. We joined a line of other ships waiting for the high tide to make possible the passage from bay to open sea.

Lampres’ ship had seemed so large when tied securely to the dock Effortlessly it had swallowed all our horses and the wagon and it’s contents, not to mention all of us and seemingly had all sorts of space left over. Now, as it lay close to the massive cliffs that made up the walls that contained the bay, it seemed very, very small next to those giant slabs of rock that reached for the sky. As we looked across the bay to the town we had just left, the mid-afternoon sun shown brightly on it. While we were plunged into twilight in the shadow of the cliffs.

Finally, it was our turn to make the run between the cliffs and out to the waiting sea. “We’ll just about make it.” Lampres remarked as he joined us on at the prow of the ship. “The tide is turning and not many will dare the passage after that happens,” he added with a tight smile.

“You are the captain,” I said, rather alarmed at seeing him joining the spectators. “Shouldn’t you be steering, or something?”

He shook his head, no and said, “For this we trust the skills of a local pilot. No one knows these waters better than they do. They’ve been guiding ships safely in and out of this harbor for generations. I’m good but not that good!” He finished with a rueful grin.

We entered the narrow slit between the cliffs and the rowers propelled us towards the open sea at what I felt was an alarmingly fast speed. Lampres seemed unconcerned and so I also put on a casual attitude as the cliffs on each side of the ship loomed over us. At any moment I expected to see great boulders dropping off those cliffs to smash our little straw of a boat into tiny pieces. What I didn’t realize at the time was that the tide had turned and it, more than the muscle power of the rowers, was carrying us out to the wide open sea.

As we passed the last of the cliffs we turned and cut across the tidal current to head north. But first, a small boat from the rocky beach came along side and took our skillful pilot back to shore. As the line for the small boat was cast off Lampres gave the order to raise the sails and we were at last, on our way North!

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