((Contains violent imagery.))
It took several days before Mahon was called before Pax's village council, several days in which he was allowed to rest and recuperate, to reconcile with his sister and his son. But it was also several days in which Ember was still kept in what had been his sick room when he had arrived, despite Ethan's insistence on staying in there with her, and Uther's constant appeals for them to release her. The council was undecided what to do with Marka's daughter - on one hand, she was a valuable bargaining chip, even more so now it had been confirmed that she was, indeed, pregnant; on the other hand, they had seen the scars left by a lifetime of her mother's "merciful" punishments. The debate was ongoing when Mahon was finally called to speak with them; five in total, the most respected pillars of Pax's community.
Several days to further heal from his injuries, several days to make him look more presentable, several days to gather his words and his thoughts before he came before the council. And yet, when the time came at last and he was summoned, he could only be himself. He had been no more than a boy when he'd been taken from the village fifteen years earlier, but he was a boy no more. He wore his long hair and beard with pride - symbols of the hardships he had endured in the valley. Let them think he was a wild thing - what did he care" Let them see how the valley had changed him. Let them understand how they would continue to lose sons if something was not done, how their sons would suffer as he had.
And most of all, he was there to make them understand that Ember and Nemone and even young Aedan were not their enemies, and that turning Ember over to Marka would be as good as signing her death warrant. He held his head high as he entered the council chamber, well aware of the eyes that were on him. Though he was no great speaker, he had become the leader of the rebels in the valley, and he had learned what words needed to be said to incite action.
"Mahon Dugan, you are one of our own returned to us from the valley after fifteen years of captivity," he was told, though it was more for the benefit of those from Pax itself who were gathered around the edges of the council chamber to hear what was being said and decided. "Your sister, Brona, has sworn that you are her brother; you have the endorsement of Uther McKinnon, as well. We have allowed you a few days to recover from your injuries, but we are aware that time may well be of the essence. We hold in our custody the daughter of Marka Keel, leader of the Amazons, yet we are unable to reach a consensus about what should be done with her. We need your testimony to inform us."
"My testimony," Mahon echoed, looking deliberately from one council member to the other. Ethan's father was there on that council, but Mahon could not be sure which one he was, and even if he knew, he could not appeal to only one man. He needed all of them to understand and believe the truth. "If you would believe the testimony of a man who has witnessed and experienced for himself Marka's cruelty, a man who has been away from the village for these last fifteen years. If you think it will help you decide what you must do, then I will tell you, but I warn you ....I will not stand idly by while you harm that girl. She is my mate's niece, blood of my son's blood, and no more guilty than he. If you would choose to do her harm, then you are not only blind fools, but no better than those in the valley."
Ethan's father, Joss, it seemed, was sympathetic to Ember's plight. He was the man who spoke next, with authority that no one spoke against. "We are not the women of the valley, Mahon. No harm will come to Ember by our hands, you have my word on it. We need to know what you know, to know the truth as you see it. There are ....some ....on this council -" at this, he looked sideways at the man who had spoken first, who was scowling into the middle-distance, "- who believe Ember is best served by being returned to the valley in exchange for some of the men more recently taken from us. Others, like myself, believe she has a right to remain free. But you are the only one who knows the truth of that place, and of her circumstances."
The big man's expression remained passive, stoic even, as the man who had to be Ethan's father spoke. Mahon remained silent until he was finished, looking once again at each member of the council, before his gaze rested on the man who had spoken first and who was scowling at what had been said. "Have you not heard a word of what anyone has told you? Have the girl's scars not been enough proof for you? Or have you not yet seen the extent of Marka's cruelty given her own child" If you return Ember to the valley, her blood will be on all of your hands, and you will likely have to kill both me and Ethan to do it."
"Not just her blood," a familiar voice spoke up from behind him, evidence that Brona had insisted on staying past the time she had been dismissed. "I've examined her myself, I've seen her scars, I've seen the evidence. She's expecting Ethan's baby come summer time. If you send her back now, she'll likely be beaten until she loses the baby, and worse."
"Keep quiet, Brona," the first speaker snapped, but he wasn't fast enough to keep the villagers from hearing what she'd said. He scowled, turning his glare onto Mahon. "You say you have information for us, but I've heard nothing but grandstanding. Speak up, or leave, Mahon."
"Brona!" Mahon muttered, turning to find his sister behind him. The expression on his face flickered, from anger to sadness to guilt. He had not wanted her to be here for this - he had not wanted her to know all he had been through - but now that she was here, he would not tell her to leave. No, she was the only blood family he had left, and she deserved to hear all of this from him, not from someone else. No more secrets. Just as he had asked her to tell him everything, he would tell them everything. He turned back around to face the council again, his expression darkening as the first speaker first scolded his sister and then him.
"Be careful you do not become that which you despise, councilman," he warned. "I have spent the last fifteen years in slavery, and it will take more than a few minutes to tell you all of what I witnessed in that place, but more importantly than that, I have news of an uprising that is to to take place very soon. There are those within the valley who are tired of Marka's rule, even those who bear Marka's blood - like Ember, like my own Nemone, like Uther's mate, Gia. If you would free the slaves in the valley and ensure Marka's defeat, then you will need more than the militia. You cannot do this alone. You will need the help of the Amazons - as you call them - the women under the hill. Those who despise Marka and her cruelty and would put an end to it. You want information, councilman' Then be quiet and listen while I tell you all I know ..." The murmuring behind him died away as he spoke on, passing comment turning to curious attention. There was no one there who had not been effected, one way or the other, by the presence of the valley, be it in the loss of a husband, father, or brother, or in the gaining of a baby boy to be raised in freedom. Despite her brother's scolding tone, Brona stood at his back, daring the council to punish her for speaking up on behalf of the one person they had not interrogated in this way. She might not want to hear the whole story, but she needed to hear it, to understand what was going on behind those forbidding mountains. They all needed to know.
There was no better place to start than the beginning, and so Mahon related his whole tale to the council and to all who were there to witness, including his own sister. He did not dare leave any details out, though he was as concise as possible. Perhaps it was cruel subjecting them to the details, but they needed to know in no uncertain terms what was at stake, not only for themselves, but for their children and their children's children, both those who were free and enslaved, both those in the valley and the village. He told of Marka's cruelty not only to the slaves, but to her own women, her own daughter, her own sister, her own niece. How she was still in power?
Of that, he couldn't be certain. Fear, perhaps. But the time for fear was over. Their time had come, and with the help of the villagers, they would seize the day and overthrow the tyrant and her soldiers forever. But that was not all he told. He told of the plans he and Nemone and Gia had made, without Ember's knowledge. And just so they did not doubt what he said, underscored it all with his own proof of Marka's cruelty. He tugged the plain linen shirt he wore over his head and let them see for themselves as he told them the story ...
It took several days before Mahon was called before Pax's village council, several days in which he was allowed to rest and recuperate, to reconcile with his sister and his son. But it was also several days in which Ember was still kept in what had been his sick room when he had arrived, despite Ethan's insistence on staying in there with her, and Uther's constant appeals for them to release her. The council was undecided what to do with Marka's daughter - on one hand, she was a valuable bargaining chip, even more so now it had been confirmed that she was, indeed, pregnant; on the other hand, they had seen the scars left by a lifetime of her mother's "merciful" punishments. The debate was ongoing when Mahon was finally called to speak with them; five in total, the most respected pillars of Pax's community.
Several days to further heal from his injuries, several days to make him look more presentable, several days to gather his words and his thoughts before he came before the council. And yet, when the time came at last and he was summoned, he could only be himself. He had been no more than a boy when he'd been taken from the village fifteen years earlier, but he was a boy no more. He wore his long hair and beard with pride - symbols of the hardships he had endured in the valley. Let them think he was a wild thing - what did he care" Let them see how the valley had changed him. Let them understand how they would continue to lose sons if something was not done, how their sons would suffer as he had.
And most of all, he was there to make them understand that Ember and Nemone and even young Aedan were not their enemies, and that turning Ember over to Marka would be as good as signing her death warrant. He held his head high as he entered the council chamber, well aware of the eyes that were on him. Though he was no great speaker, he had become the leader of the rebels in the valley, and he had learned what words needed to be said to incite action.
"Mahon Dugan, you are one of our own returned to us from the valley after fifteen years of captivity," he was told, though it was more for the benefit of those from Pax itself who were gathered around the edges of the council chamber to hear what was being said and decided. "Your sister, Brona, has sworn that you are her brother; you have the endorsement of Uther McKinnon, as well. We have allowed you a few days to recover from your injuries, but we are aware that time may well be of the essence. We hold in our custody the daughter of Marka Keel, leader of the Amazons, yet we are unable to reach a consensus about what should be done with her. We need your testimony to inform us."
"My testimony," Mahon echoed, looking deliberately from one council member to the other. Ethan's father was there on that council, but Mahon could not be sure which one he was, and even if he knew, he could not appeal to only one man. He needed all of them to understand and believe the truth. "If you would believe the testimony of a man who has witnessed and experienced for himself Marka's cruelty, a man who has been away from the village for these last fifteen years. If you think it will help you decide what you must do, then I will tell you, but I warn you ....I will not stand idly by while you harm that girl. She is my mate's niece, blood of my son's blood, and no more guilty than he. If you would choose to do her harm, then you are not only blind fools, but no better than those in the valley."
Ethan's father, Joss, it seemed, was sympathetic to Ember's plight. He was the man who spoke next, with authority that no one spoke against. "We are not the women of the valley, Mahon. No harm will come to Ember by our hands, you have my word on it. We need to know what you know, to know the truth as you see it. There are ....some ....on this council -" at this, he looked sideways at the man who had spoken first, who was scowling into the middle-distance, "- who believe Ember is best served by being returned to the valley in exchange for some of the men more recently taken from us. Others, like myself, believe she has a right to remain free. But you are the only one who knows the truth of that place, and of her circumstances."
The big man's expression remained passive, stoic even, as the man who had to be Ethan's father spoke. Mahon remained silent until he was finished, looking once again at each member of the council, before his gaze rested on the man who had spoken first and who was scowling at what had been said. "Have you not heard a word of what anyone has told you? Have the girl's scars not been enough proof for you? Or have you not yet seen the extent of Marka's cruelty given her own child" If you return Ember to the valley, her blood will be on all of your hands, and you will likely have to kill both me and Ethan to do it."
"Not just her blood," a familiar voice spoke up from behind him, evidence that Brona had insisted on staying past the time she had been dismissed. "I've examined her myself, I've seen her scars, I've seen the evidence. She's expecting Ethan's baby come summer time. If you send her back now, she'll likely be beaten until she loses the baby, and worse."
"Keep quiet, Brona," the first speaker snapped, but he wasn't fast enough to keep the villagers from hearing what she'd said. He scowled, turning his glare onto Mahon. "You say you have information for us, but I've heard nothing but grandstanding. Speak up, or leave, Mahon."
"Brona!" Mahon muttered, turning to find his sister behind him. The expression on his face flickered, from anger to sadness to guilt. He had not wanted her to be here for this - he had not wanted her to know all he had been through - but now that she was here, he would not tell her to leave. No, she was the only blood family he had left, and she deserved to hear all of this from him, not from someone else. No more secrets. Just as he had asked her to tell him everything, he would tell them everything. He turned back around to face the council again, his expression darkening as the first speaker first scolded his sister and then him.
"Be careful you do not become that which you despise, councilman," he warned. "I have spent the last fifteen years in slavery, and it will take more than a few minutes to tell you all of what I witnessed in that place, but more importantly than that, I have news of an uprising that is to to take place very soon. There are those within the valley who are tired of Marka's rule, even those who bear Marka's blood - like Ember, like my own Nemone, like Uther's mate, Gia. If you would free the slaves in the valley and ensure Marka's defeat, then you will need more than the militia. You cannot do this alone. You will need the help of the Amazons - as you call them - the women under the hill. Those who despise Marka and her cruelty and would put an end to it. You want information, councilman' Then be quiet and listen while I tell you all I know ..." The murmuring behind him died away as he spoke on, passing comment turning to curious attention. There was no one there who had not been effected, one way or the other, by the presence of the valley, be it in the loss of a husband, father, or brother, or in the gaining of a baby boy to be raised in freedom. Despite her brother's scolding tone, Brona stood at his back, daring the council to punish her for speaking up on behalf of the one person they had not interrogated in this way. She might not want to hear the whole story, but she needed to hear it, to understand what was going on behind those forbidding mountains. They all needed to know.
There was no better place to start than the beginning, and so Mahon related his whole tale to the council and to all who were there to witness, including his own sister. He did not dare leave any details out, though he was as concise as possible. Perhaps it was cruel subjecting them to the details, but they needed to know in no uncertain terms what was at stake, not only for themselves, but for their children and their children's children, both those who were free and enslaved, both those in the valley and the village. He told of Marka's cruelty not only to the slaves, but to her own women, her own daughter, her own sister, her own niece. How she was still in power?
Of that, he couldn't be certain. Fear, perhaps. But the time for fear was over. Their time had come, and with the help of the villagers, they would seize the day and overthrow the tyrant and her soldiers forever. But that was not all he told. He told of the plans he and Nemone and Gia had made, without Ember's knowledge. And just so they did not doubt what he said, underscored it all with his own proof of Marka's cruelty. He tugged the plain linen shirt he wore over his head and let them see for themselves as he told them the story ...