Death is just another beginning

By Impossible Avenues

"My lady, two men at the gate… they are asking for refuge for the night!" the old woman dragged her rags across the kitchen floor. Aalexia turned around wiping the dirt off her hands on the brownish apron. The tin kettle gurgled inwardly under the cap; the light from the burning logs crept on the old woman's face turning the wrinkles around her eyes into small sand dunes like the ones on the shores of Troy. Her weary eyes urged Aalexia to help her with her demand.

"Let me take a look! You sit right here and watch for the fire not to get too strong! Aalexia smiled as she passed her by, already thinking how to proceed with the strangers.

Old Adrastos came closer as she approached the bid wooden gates. The lamp in his hand was barely shining in the thick darkness. She knew she should've changed the oils in all the lamps! It was too dangerous without light at night! She gently padded her servant on the shoulder as they pulled on the door handles. The creepy sound of the rusty hinges made her quiver. It was very late, what would these strangers want at such an hour in the night?

"Yes…" Aalexia looked carefully at the men standing in front of her. She tried to pierce through the darkness and see whether there was anyone else with them. Or hiding behind them. Her face must've been so blunt and weary that both men felt compelled to take the blue hoods off and let her faces into the light. Aalexia succumbed to a short breath when her eyes lay on the younger man now staring at her with eyes as black as the night. She quickly switched to his companion, a bearded man with a scar above his left eye.

"My Lords, how can we help you at this late hour?" The men looked at each other for a second.

"We've been travelling all day. We need to get to Troy. We were caught in a desert storm out on the Eastern shores close to the lagoon and now the night caught up with us. The horse are wasted and we need shelter for the night. We don't need much, but a rag to sleep on a ball of hot soup, if your mistress approves. We will leave at first light."

Aalexia scrutinized him all the way. She tried to keep her sighing to a minimum, She hated not being of help but there was too much at stake to risk having two strong men that looked more like warriors than average citizens in her house. The younger one probably saw the indecision in her eyes and intervened.

"We are not looking to make trouble. We are honest people."

Aalexia wished she had the entire conversation alone with the bearded man so she doesn't have to look in his eyes.

"I am sure… We need to be careful." She managed a shy smile.

"That storm is probably coming this way. It always does, with the winds in the lagoon… they always push the storms this way!" Adrastos agitated the lamp in a direction outside the gates. The little flame in the lamp almost disappeared.

"Adrastos!..." Aalexia tried to keep his hand steady and the flame alive. "Well, maybe that's more reason for you to continue your journey at night than to be caught by the storm here! It's rather far from Troy"

"Not with a pair of good rested horses is not! But if we go on now we won't last the night. There is no other way and there is not another house for miles" tried to pursue her the older man of the two.

"There is the noble Aeneas a bit further, he is surely much better of a choice than us. We do not have much to offer…"

"We don't ask for much… and I'd rather stay here than… than with noble Aeneas. We would like to try a rural hospitality for a change" His smile made her wish he put his hood back on. Looking at him, Aalexia missed the worried look the younger man's companion gave him. She looked at Adrastos. Adrastos, squirmed an invisible dot on the wooden gate then spoke firmly.

"I say let them in. The storms are bad. Do you have any food with you?"

Aalexia jumped.

"Adrastos! Please forgive him My Lords… we have enough! No need to bring anything" Damn it, she just accepted taking them in! She sighed again lowering her chin to her chest in defeat.

"We have lentil!

Aalexia's eyes sparkled with joy for a moment. Lentil! That meant she could finally cook the meal father loved so much! The kids would be cheerful about it! But she couldn't dare ask.

"Come on in!"

Adrastos opened the gates and the men hurried the horses inside. What beautiful horses, Aalexia thought. She couldn't distinguish much from what was on the horse but they were beautiful specimens! Not a lot of people could afford such a breed! They took them to the stables and tied the strings on an ox cart close to the entry. Then they followed Aalexia and Adrastos inside. The lady inside as spinning the meat chunks in the big rusty pot with a huge wooden spoon.

"Please call on your Mistress so we can thank her for her hospitality! We do not wish to get you in any trouble!"

"She will not mind…" Aalexia watched them hang their hoods behind the kitchen door then sat at the table in a corner. Aalexia noticed the fine blue wool in the hoods. These men were more mysterious by the minute. She passed them by and across the kitchen to take the old woman's place next to the fire.

"Adelia, please bring me some of the parsley we got today."

"But My Lady, we have so little of it…" Aalexia smiled.

"It's all right. We have guests and we can all have a good stew for lunch tomorrow!"

She caught a glimpse of the two men staring at her.

"My Lady we are sorry…" they both stood up at once. "We did not know…"

"No worries…" Aalexia smiled again. It wasn't in her nature to be grumpy. "The stew will be ready soon and then we can all seat down and eat. My… my people, they eat with me. But I will set a special table aside for you in the dinning room so you have some peace and quiet."

"No! We enjoy a good company after such a long and barren trip!" The young man kept her eyes on her with stirred curiosity. Probably wondering how the Mistress of the house ended up dressed like a peasant, with dirt on her apron and under her finger nails. Aalexia took a deep breath at the thought. He looked like a merchant. A wealthy one probably. And with a secret; there was something about him so educated and so calculated. She couldn't put her finger on it. But at least he didn't look dangerous. Not to her.

Soon enough the kids were all gathered around the table, the old women herded them all in a corner trying to keep them under control. In vain; it was an endless dispute where the children always won. The elders gathered too facing each other at the table ready to retell the same war stories as before. Aalexia, she knew them all but she loved going through it night after night. The two men set in the opposite corner from her.

"My apologies My Lady for not having introduced us. I am Adrias and my younger companion is Hector. We travelled from Mercca along the coat to check on the merchant roads and see what the Mycenaean brought new to Troy's shores."

"I am Aalexia and these are my helpers here at the property. You've met Adrastos, he is my father's most appraised General and Adelia, without whom I wouldn't be able to make it through the day!"

"Your father was he the infamous General Lorianis! I had the honor to fight at his side in the battles against the Hittites years ago, in King's Priam armies."

Aalexia startled. She looked the Adria in the eye seeking for her hidden truth.

"How is he?" I haven't heard from him in a while and surely I completely forgot about his daughter. Time must've cheated on me, because the last time we met, me and him, he told me of this devilish little child he had, a boyish character he had a hard time taming. Is this that child?" Adrias smiled looking at her.

"Very much so!" approved Adrastos with a mouth full of stew. "She hasn't changed much since!" The few teeth he still had assembled the funniest crooked smile Aalexia had ever seen. She couldn't get mad at him, but she had to keep him from talking too much.

"Not really… I did grow up a bit" Aalexia kept her nose in the ball trying to keep Hector's inquisitive look off her face.

"How is he?" Adrias' question was expected, yet she shivered nonetheless when answering.

"Rather ill. Hasn't come out much lately. He has lost track of time and memories. At times, he doesn't even recognize me…"

"I see. I would've loved to pay him a visit. But given the circumstances it is maybe better than he rests."

"I would very much appreciate your understanding. He is not what he used to be, and it's enough of a shock for us to cause pain to others that remember him otherwise"

"Needen't worry…" Adrias looked sad for a moment but the kids' hustle and bustle at the end of the table soon captivated his attention.

"My lord" Adrastos took over the reins again. "If you fought with My Lord Lorianis you must remember the lentil soup!" Aalexia nodded. Adrastos would never get that soup!

"Ah, but of course! The lentil soup!" Adris seemed as caught into the soup matter as her old helper.

"It's an old war recepy, it's not even the best dish. What's so special about it?" Aalexia expected a different answer from Adris than she always got from Adrastos.

"But it's a memory soup! How many nights did we not dwell on it waiting for the clothes to dry in the camp fire, hidden in the woods! How many times did we not go seeking the lentil in farmer's fields, stole it and then fed ourselves while waiting on the dunes for the arriving war ships?"

"Greatness!" Adrastos had just found his new "lentil soup" partner he had so long yearned for. Aalexia struggled to keep a laughter under control. Hector seemed to have trouble with it.

"Fine. Let us a lentil soup tomorrow. Adrias, you and respectable Adrastos here can cook it for us!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yeyyyy!" at least the kids were pleased.

The answers came at once simultaneously. The two men looked at Aalexia waiting for a reason why not!

"We will have the lentil soup, but I advise that I cook it so that these two warriors have their time to chat over a glass of wine and spin memories from the old days. How is that?"

"She is a deceiving one, I tell you!" Adrastos winked at Adrias slowly chewing on his stew.

"Very much so… but she might be right. Let the ladies handle the kitchen and let us handle weaponry!"

That word pretty much finished the conversation as Adrias and Adrastos never stopped talking about their war memories and souvenirs. The night was warm and pleasurable and Aalexia found herself enjoying herself more than she had in a long time. Hector laid back after cleaning dry his ball of stew and listened humored to their stories. The women took the kids to sleep and soon Aalexia excused herself for the evening.

"Adrastos, please show our guests their rooms upstairs. If you need anything, me and Adelia are at the end of the corridor and Adrastos is downstairs. I hope you rest well."

"Most greatfeul My Lady for hosting us! Very kind of you!" Adrias bowed to her and so did Hector who kept his eyes on her as she went up the stairs following the dim light of the candle in her hand.

Adelia put the fire in the chimney to sleep and with a mumbled excuse she went to her room. Adrastos saw the men to their rooms and before long the house sank in soundless sleep. Aalexia staid up longer not being able to sleep. Half worried about the two men half worried about one man. His features had stuck to her retina like a leaf stuck in the hair after a crazy horse back ride. Frustrated she tossed on the opposite of the bed and closed her eyes. But the memory had its own retina and his image was still there. She rejected it and rocked herself to sleep.

At the other end of the corridor Hector stretched his tired back on the woolen covers. They were harsh and itchy, but it didn't matter. He didn't feel it. The big chestnut eyes glittering in the lamp light still haunted him. And the way she bit her lip when she felt cornered. He smiled thinking how soft they looked; her lips. He supported his head on his hands pushing his chin upwards. He thought he'd get more fresh air like this because he suddenly felt warmer inside. Outside the wind was howling. He knew the storm was getting closer. And he wished it didn't go away by the time woke up.