Letters

"Serafina,

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to leave like this. I know a year is a long time.

Please wait for me.

Yours,

Roland."

It seemed hurriedly scribbled, but Finn looked at each word as if it had been carefully and specifically chosen. She blinked and read it again. And again.

Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Wait for him? He couldn't possibly mean what it sounded like. She began to logically talk herself out of her initial emotional reaction.

'Yours' was simply a common ending to a letter. It may not mean anything at all. But he had apologized for leaving her suddenly.

What did she do now? Just wait?

She looked out the window next to her bed. Mrs. Sherman had explained during the night shift that Dr. Sherman strongly believed in the power of sunlight and fresh air to heal. Whenever possible, he liked to have patients near a window. Also, Mrs. Sherman confided, it kept people entertained and they bothered the doctor less.

Finn pondered the note again as she watched a lonely pigeon fly by. A small fountain had been placed outside the window to attract various birds so that the city occupants could enjoy watching them. Finn watched the pigeon as it drank. One of its legs looked a little awkward. Weren't pigeons flock birds? But this one seemed alone.

As Finn concentrated on the bird, it took off, heading toward the rear of the city. The funny-seeming leg had something tied to it on a string. How very strange.

The Doctor entered the room with a smile, "Good morning, Serafina, and how are you today?"

"Better all the time," said Finn with a smile, "whatever medicine you're using, I know a healer who would do anything to get her hands on it."

"Honestly, it's the same mixture I've always used, but once I switched to... a new supplier..." he said vaguely, "It's all gotten incredibly more effective." He pulled the bandage away from the wound and blinked twice. "You see there?"

Finn looked at the wound. It was a shocking change to happen overnight. The red streaks around the wound were gone. The scabs on the smaller marks had come away, leaving only small pink spots behind on her skin. The deepest puncture, the one which had become infected, was scabbed over as if it had never been anything more than a scrape. Finn realized that she no longer felt feverish at all, now that the sleepy medicine had worn off.

"Doctor, that's practically miraculous." Finn couldn't overstate how much she appreciated the doctor's help, but was also amazed at the change itself.

"I don't totally understand it myself." Doctor Sherman admitted, "but you can be up and walking any time you wish. Just take it easy for another day or so." His face changed into a worried expression, "I have an errand to run and it may take me a few days."

"A few days? Where are you going?"

The Doctor handed Finn a letter in the same handwriting as the one she'd read earlier.

"Doctor,

I regret I could not Provide more information to the Council. Keep an eye on things while I'm gone. I'm eager to get back, no matter what's Waiting.

Roland."

"But what does this mean?" Serafina asked. The letter made little sense to her, other than the reference to Waiting, which is what Roland had asked her to do in his letter.

"I've put some of it together. I gather the Provider is behind something, and Roland wants me to watch him." The Doctor shrugged. "So, I guess I'll have to go get another message."

"Message." Finn whispered. "Do people use birds for messages? I saw a pigeon with something tied on its leg outside not long ago. It could have been a paper message or something inside a little box. It flew towards the back of the City."

"Only the General uses carrier pigeons." Replied the Doctor. "They would be needed in time of war, and so only he is allowed to use them. No other Council member has the same need to send messages quickly over long distances, and I certainly wouldn't be entitled to use one for a personal query."

"So how are you going to get another message?" Finn tried to concentrate back on what he'd said before.

"Easily," replied the old doctor, "I'm going out to the army."

___________

Roland's march began at noon. When they said he would leave, he imagined horseback or crammed into the back of a wagon, not marching with a dozen other recent recruits.

He was by far the eldest; some had volunteered the moment they turned sixteen. Roland learned the recruits were gathered and sent out once a week; he just happened to be there the very morning of departure.

He had gotten leaner and more fit during his recent weeks of riding and walking, but he had not prepared himself for a trek like this in the beating sun during the heat of the day. On departure, each recruit was issued a small ration of food and a skin of water. Not told how long the journey would be, it was up to their own guesses how to ration the two. A captain rode behind them on horseback to urge them to keep up the pace.

Roland looked around. One young woman was amongst the recruits, surprising him. It was unusual, but not unheard of, for a girl to volunteer. Mrs. Sherman was the only woman he knew that had undergone the training. He wondered how easy they would go on her. So far, she was having to do exactly the same as all the male recruits.

He turned back forward. Probably best to concentrate on what was ahead. One foot in front of the other. They might be marching for hours, days, or longer. The training camp was moved often, so some recruits had a much shorter march than others. Time would tell.

_____________________

The General sat in his study following the morning's Council meeting. He reviewed maps, looking for the place the doctor's apprentice had mentioned as being the location of the alleged army.

It didn't make sense. There was no bordering nation anywhere near there. It was forest, then scrubland, then desert. As far as he knew, no large nations or even towns were out that direction. Maybe on the other side of the desert, but who would cross such a distance just to invade a well-defended land? He puzzled. The apprentice hadn't seemed to be a liar, and he'd known Dr. Sherman many years. He wouldn't put forth a liar on purpose.

"Sir, Dr. Sherman is here to see you." A lieutenant reported from the door.

"Ah, thank you. I was just thinking about him. Please, send him in, I'd like to talk with him." The General waved at the soldier as if doing so would speed along his visitor's entrance.

The General watched as his old friend entered the room, followed by a young lady who was slightly limping. He frowned at the lieutenant for not mentioning the second visitor, but dismissed him anyway.

"Doctor." He stood and greeted the man, "Come in, sit down, you and your friend."

"Good Afternoon, General, and thank you." The doctor responded. "I had hoped you would find time to meet with me."

"I need to know more about your apprentice's story. Is there any more to it? The tale seemed bare bones but I thought there might be a reason not to press." The General got straight to business. If what was about to be said should not be overheard by the young lady, the doctor wouldn't have brought her, he assumed.

"Yes," Dr. Sherman mused, "It is an interesting tale, isn't it?"

"So what was left out?" The General leaned forward.

"Well, the reason my apprentice was sent on the journey in the first place is probably something within your knowledge." The Doctor hedged.

"Hm. Yes, I recall you wanting to go yourself." The General stroked his beard. As an already imposing man of great strength and stature, the full beard almost seemed to make him a caricature of manliness.

"My apprentice confirmed what I feared; medicinal herbs are all but nonexistent in many parts of the lands. He said that in many locations they seemed to have been dug up and taken. I think it may be related to the mysterious soldiers, but I'm not sure how."

"And the wolves?" The General asked. It was rather far-fetched.

Dr. Sherman turned to Finn. "I'll let this young lady tell you about the wolves."

The General turned his head to look at her. His gaze was intense, but not unfriendly. He was intimidating, and she forgot how to address the man.

"Hello, Sir, um, General," She began haltingly. "I'm from, as far as I know, the village furthest West. Just a short way from the scrublands. Roland saved me as well, though he didn't mention it. I was attacked by the wolves."

The General's eyebrows rose, but he didn't speak, allowing her to continue. "They weren't normal. They hunted a group of village children out in the open, in the middle of the day. It was unnatural. They didn't look skinny or hungry enough to attack out of dire need. It's never happened before in our village." Finn finished her tale and looked at the General nervously.

He turned his gaze back to the doctor. "Anything else?"

"Perhaps. I treated a young soldier not long ago for a mountain lion bite under similar circumstances. Bold, vicious attack in broad daylight. No discernable reason."

The General continued taking in this information. "I see."

"Is there any way to learn if this problem is in more places?" Finn asked timidly. "Maybe the birds that carry messages?"

The General waved her off. "The carrier pigeons are only for urgent matters. I haven't used them in months."

Finn blinked. "But I saw one this morning."

"What? Where?"

"It drank from the fountain next to the window at the Doctor's house. It had something tied to its leg... it went towards the back of the city." Finn shrank as she reported this to the now-brooding giant in front of her.

"And you're sure it had something tied to its leg?" He glowered, but not directly at her.

"Yes." She answered, softly but confidently.

"I must investigate this." He said to himself. Something happening under his nose was far more concerning to him than strange goings-on outside the city.

"Before you do," Interjected the doctor, "I have a request."

"Yes, what?" The General was already preoccupied with evaluating who would be using the pigeons without permission and contrary to protocol.

"You may not know that Dr. Jameson's wife just had a baby girl." began Dr. Sherman, "I just spoke with him before coming and the lady had a difficult time. He would prefer to stay home and care for the pair instead of going out for his usual inspection and evaluation of the new troops. I'm here to volunteer to go in his stead."

"Does this have anything to do with your apprentice? Not going to declare his health unfit for service, are you?" The General would think this was out of character, but the question was there.

"Roland is in perfect health, he will of course pass the medical evaluation with flying colors. I would, however, enjoy a brief moment to bid the boy farewell. We did not expect to be parted so urgently this morning."

The General's eyes did not soften, but the corners of his mouth did not hold their frown. "That is acceptable. I suppose this young lady may also want to bid him farewell?" The General glanced at her with a mix of sternness and amusement.

Finn had not expected the question. "Is... is that allowed?"