Victims of Nimbo Page 4

  “It’s all right,” he said. “I’ll help you.” He came back and took her by the hand. “Now you hold onto the rope on the other side, and I’ll hold you on this side.”

  Sarah wished she were anywhere in the world but in the land of the Cloud People. But she had learned to face danger in many forms, and now she took a deep breath and gritted her teeth. “All right. But don’t let go of me.”

  Teanor led her to the swinging bridge, and his hand was tight on hers. “Don’t be nervous,” he said. “You won’t fall.”

  Sarah grasped the rope and stepped out onto the bridge. It swayed under her, and she took short steps. She was afraid to look down. Instead, she kept her eyes on the bamboo house that was built on the far side.

  Then she heard Abbey saying from behind her, “It’s all right, Sarah. This is fun!”

  That gave Sarah new determination, and she started to move across the swinging bridge more quickly.

  “That’s the way. You see. There’s nothing to it.” Teanor smiled.

  They reached the other side, and as soon as she planted her feet on the platform, Sarah felt better. The whole platform was swaying, but it was not as precarious as the bridge itself. She looked back to see Abbey walking across as easily as if it were a cement sidewalk.

  Abbey leaped onto the platform and cried, “This is wonderful, Teanor!”

  “I’m glad you like it. Now, this is not my house, but all houses are about the same here. These are visitors to Cloud Land—Sarah and Abbey,” he said to the man who stood at the door, watching with amazement. “Do you mind if we show her your house?”

  “No, not at all. Come inside.”

  Sarah and Abbey stepped in. It was much like a tree house, Sarah thought. The floor was of saplings covered with a rough brown mat made of vines. The furniture, what there was of it, all seemed lightweight. There were windows on every side, and she wondered what it was like when it rained. Very wet, I would suppose.

  Over to one side was a small fireplace where the cooking was done, and a woman with long hair stood there, shyly watching them.

  It did not take long to look at the house. Teanor thanked the man, and they went out.

  “His name is Guntor,” he said. “He’s a very good fisherman.”

  “What was his wife’s name?”

  “Oh, the female? I don’t recall.”

  Something about all this troubled Sarah. Guntor himself seemed to make nothing of the woman. It looks as if he could at least introduce her, Sarah thought with displeasure. She glanced at Teanor and started to speak, but by that time they were already about to cross another bridge.

  She now saw that bridges connected different platforms built on the wide spreading branches. While she was crossing the swaying bridges, which seemed as fragile as spider webs, she did not think of anything except holding on. The ground lay far beneath, and she resolutely did not look down.

  However, each time they reached a different platform, she would look at her surroundings. As far as she could see, there were houses and other buildings at the tops of the mighty trees. People were moving around easily from one tree to another. Sometimes people swung on vines that connected various structures. They seemed to be as unconcerned about their safety as if they were walking down a solid road on earth below. There was an airiness and an ease about all their movements that amazed Sarah.

  “They’re like trapeze artists,” she said with amazement.

  “What is a trapeze artist?” Teanor asked.

  “Well, it’s hard to explain. They–they are people that swing and catch each other for the entertainment of others.”

  “Entertainment!” Teanor frowned. “All we want is to get from one place to another.”

  Abbey was as wide-eyed as Sarah. “Just look, Sarah,” she said. “Even the smallest of them have no fear at all.” She pointed to several little children, some of them barely walking, who were playing right on the edge of one of the platforms. They seemed to have no concept of height at all. Abbey shook her head. “I’ve never seen a place like this.”

  Another thing that Sarah noticed was that almost every house had plants growing around it. She stopped once to look and saw that a tomato plant was growing out of a clay pot filled with dirt. “That’s very clever to do up here,” she said to Teanor.

  “Oh, we have some very good gardeners among our people. We bring up only the best soil, and there’s always plenty of rain and sunshine. So we can grow all the vegetables we need.”

  The cloud city seemed to spread out over a considerable distance, farther than a village on earth. Some trees held as many as a half dozen small houses, but often there were only one or two.

  Finally Teanor pointed ahead. “And that is the palace. We will find King Celevorn there.”

  He helped Sarah cross the last bridge, which connected to an enormous platform, much larger than any of the others. Once she was on the solid platform, she was startled to see that the “palace” was constructed on several levels. It was of bamboo, as were all the others, but this building was much more ornate. There were windows on every level, and flowers grew everywhere out of small containers. Servants hurried about, all women as far as Sarah could tell, all plainly dressed, and all eyeing them with apprehension.

  “They’ve never seen anybody like you.” Teanor grinned. “Now follow me. The king will be anxious to see you.”

  Teanor led Sarah and Abbey up several flights of steps. Sarah thought she could still feel the tree moving slightly in the breeze. But that may have been only her imagination, for this was the most enormous tree that she had seen yet. Where they were now must be the trunk, she guessed. It must have been at least twenty feet thick at the top and no telling how large at the bottom.

  As they came to a large set of doors covered with a curtain, Teanor spoke to the guard who stood outside with a staff in his hand and a sword in his belt.

  “So you found them, eh, Teanor?” He peered at the girls and asked, “Where are the warriors?”

  Teanor registered some disgust. “They’re on their way—we hope. Is the king receiving?”

  “Yes. He got word that you were coming from our sentinels. Go right on in.”

  The girls entered and found themselves in a spacious room. Several women servants were moving about, and it was obvious that the king had just enjoyed a meal. He was sitting at a table covered with dishes and cups and several wooden platters of food were still before him.

  “O King Celevorn, I have found the Seven Sleepers,” Teanor announced, and he bowed deeply.

  King Celevorn had a goblet in his hand. He set it down, then took a look at the two girls. “Seven Sleepers! I see only two females.”

  “Yes, sire. The males were gone. But they will come as quickly as they can. This is Sarah, and this is Abigail.”

  King Celevorn was small, as were all of the Cloud People Sarah had seen. His auburn beard was streaked with gray. He was still strong looking, however, and his eyes were clear as he studied them. Then he turned to a young man sitting on his right and said, “I am disappointed. I expected more.”

  “This is Jere, son of King Celevorn,” Teanor explained quickly.

  Jere was a handsome youth, lean and strong as was his father. His hair was rich with glints of fiery red in it, and he grinned in a friendly way as he stared at the new arrivals. “I see I will have to write a poem about this.”

  “A poem!” King Celevorn snorted. “That’s what we need—more poetry!” He looked angrily at his son. “If you would stop writing poetry and singing songs, we might get some defense against the Earth Dwellers.”

  “Well, Father, battles come and go, but a poem lasts forever.”

  Sarah was rather shocked at the son’s attitude. He seemed totally unconcerned with the people’s problems, and his face was unlined with worries of any kind.

  King Celevorn frowned in apparent disgust, then rose and approached the girls. He was very little taller than Sarah, but his eyes were sharp and penetrating a
s he looked at her. He looked then at Abigail and finally threw up his hands. “Two females, Teanor! I send you out to get warriors, and this is what you come back with!”

  At once Sarah began to explain. “Sire, I ask your pardon. It was my fault that the boys were gone, but we left a map, and they will be here soon.”

  King Celevorn listened politely, but disappointment was etched across his face and in his eyes. Finally he held up both hands in a gesture of helplessness. “Well, we must wait, I suppose. Find the females a place to stay, Teanor.”

  “Yes, do,” Jere said quickly. “And then I’ll be glad to hear the adventures of the Seven Sleepers.” He got to his feet and came over to Abbey, smiling at her. “I will write an ode to the fair Sleepers, for, indeed, I had not expected such beauty.”

  Sarah was aware that a good-looking boy was never a matter of indifference to Abbey. She was probably wishing her hair was arranged better and that she’d had time to put on her makeup.

  But Abbey smiled back at the prince. “I will be happy to tell you what I know, Prince Jere,” she assured him.

  “Both of you, come with me,” Teanor said. “I’ll find you a place to stay.”

  After they had crossed the bridge leading away from the palace, Sarah said, “The prince and his father—they don’t seem to get along too well.”

  “No, they don’t. And the king is right. Prince Jere cares for nothing but play.”

  “But what’s wrong with play?” Abbey demanded.

  “It doesn’t help us with our problem. All these songs and poems he writes. What good are they against the weapons of the Earth Dwellers? They haven’t gotten my brother released.”

  Sarah said nothing. She knew that politics were always rather difficult.

  The girls followed Teanor across several bridges until finally they came to a moderate-sized house.

  “You will stay here,” he said. “I will bring you a female who will help you get settled in.” With that, Teanor abruptly plunged out into space.

  Both Sarah and Abbey let out screams.

  But he caught a vine that was anchored above and swung quickly to another platform.

  “Well, I’ll never go from one house to another that way,” Abbey breathed. “I thought he was going to kill himself.”

  Sarah would not even go to the edge of the platform and look down. It made her dizzy. “Let’s go inside,” she said.

  They found that the place was a house much like the one they had seen earlier. It was one room with a table and chairs. Pegs were driven into the walls for garments. There was a small cabinet, and a place for a cooking fire had been created out of rocks and mortar. The smoke simply rose up and went through a hole in the roof. There were several pots and pans made out of clay.

  “Pretty primitive living, Abbey,” Sarah said.

  “Very primitive. I wonder how you take a bath around here.”

  It did not take long to explore their new home, and both were getting restless by the time a woman entered. She was young and petite with blonde hair and blue eyes.

  Teanor entered behind her. “This is Enid. She will see that you have food. Enid, take care of them.”

  “Yes. I will,” the girl said. She bowed almost slavishly to Teanor, who paid her no attention at all. Sarah quickly noted the way the girl’s eyes followed the youth as he left them.

  “I’m Sarah, and this is Abbey, Enid,” she said as soon as Teanor was gone.

  Enid bowed. “I will help you with anything I can.” Her eyes were still creeping around to the door.

  “You like the young man, don’t you?” Sarah asked with a smile.

  Enid flushed but shook her head. “No. What can I bring you?”

  “Well, I’d like a bath,” Abbey said. “Is there any way we could do that? We both brought soap and a change of fresh clothing.”

  “Oh yes. Come this way. My own home is this one next door.”

  The two girls followed Enid, and as they moved along the platforms, crossing two more bridges, Sarah questioned her. “Are your parents here, Enid?”

  “They are. My mother is Ione. My father is Celevorn.”

  Sarah was shocked. “You’re the daughter of the king?”

  “Oh yes.”

  “But that makes you a princess!” Abbey said.

  “No. I’m merely a servant.”

  Sarah could not understand this, and she shot a questioning glance at Abbey, who also appeared shocked. “Then you are the sister of Prince Jere.”

  “He is my half brother. We do not have the same mothers.”

  “But I don’t understand,” Abbey said. “Why don’t you live in the palace?”

  Enid gave her a questioning look. “Females do not live in the palace. Only men.”

  “What about the women?”

  “We live elsewhere. We serve the men,” Enid said quietly.

  Something is wrong about this, Sarah thought. She said nothing more at the time, but she determined to look into the matter later.

  The bathhouse proved to be quite simple. It was clever, actually. Rainwater was caught in large containers mounted at the tops of the trees. The water ran down hollow joints of bamboo into a large tank overhead.

  “If you get under that, you can release the water by pulling that vine,” Enid told them. Then she waited while they lathered and washed their hair. “That smells so good,” she said. “What is it?”

  “This?” Sarah said with surprise. “Soap.” She handed the bar out to Enid, who sniffed it eagerly.

  “It smells so good,” she repeated.

  “We have some extra, if you’d like some, Enid,” Sarah said in a kindly fashion.

  “Oh, I would! I’d love it!”

  They dried off as best they could with the rough cloths that Enid had furnished. They were not thick towels, but they had to serve.

  The sun was shining, so they dried their hair while sitting on the bathhouse platform and talking to Enid.

  “Enid, do women hold any position of importance here in Cloud Land?”

  “Women? Oh no! The men are the important ones. We females only serve them.”

  Abbey gaped at her and started to speak, but Sarah, knowing Abbey’s rather abrupt ways, said quickly, “Back where we lived, women were considered as important as men in most places.”

  Now Enid gaped at the two girls. “I cannot believe it. Females are not on the same level as men.”

  “Whoever told you that?” Abbey snapped. She forgot about drying her long blonde hair for the moment. “Of course they’re as good as men!”

  Enid looked distressed. “Please do not talk like that! No good can come of it.”

  Sarah tried to understand the social structure in Cloud Land. It appeared to her that men had all the rights and privileges, and women had none. They were little more than slaves in the Cloud People’s culture.

  When Enid excused herself for a moment, Sarah said, “This is awful, isn’t it?”

  “Yes. I never heard of such a thing.”

  “I think it was common in certain places back in OldWorld. In some Eastern countries there were harems, and in parts of Africa the women weren’t respected….”

  “But that was something we read about in a book,” Abbey said sharply. “This is the real thing! The women here have nothing. We’ve got to do something about this!”

  “Now, hold on, Abbey!” Sarah said. “We can’t jump in here and change people’s customs in twenty-four hours. Besides, the big problem of the moment, apparently, is the Earth Dwellers.”

  Abbey did not argue. But there was a stubborn set to her lips, and Sarah purposed to watch her.

  When they saw Enid coming to take them back to their house, Abbey said wistfully, “I wish we’d waited for the guys, Sarah.”

  Sarah Collingwood knew in her heart that she had been wrong to act so impulsively. But somehow it was hard for her to admit this. She just said, “Well, they’ll get here soon. Come on. Let’s go see what there is to eat in Cloud Land.”
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  6

  Sarah Decides

  The meal that Enid brought Sarah and Abbey was not bad, although neither of them had enough. Each serving consisted of a small helping of something like carrots, one tomato, and a little fish that Enid cooked over a tiny fire. A small bundle of dry sticks furnished the fuel.

  There was only a meager amount of firewood left, Sarah noted, and Enid said, “Sometimes it’s difficult to get dry wood. We could break off branches, but they would be green and not burn.”

  “There ought to be plenty of dead wood on the ground,” Sarah suggested. “These trees are bound to shed dead branches.”

  “Oh yes. But the men have to go down and gather them. And that is dangerous.”

  Sarah ate her fish. It had a very strong flavor, but she was hungry, so said nothing. She only wished that she had some tartar sauce for it.

  “Do you ever go down on the ground, Enid?” Abbey asked.

  The young woman seemed shocked by the question. “Hardly ever. I’ve been down only five or six times in my whole life.”

  “Is that because of the Earth Dwellers?”

  “That and the wild beasts.” Enid nodded thoughtfully. “We have lost many of our young people to the Earth Dwellers. They become slaves—or else they are sacrificed.”

  Sarah remembered what Teanor had told them. “What happens to them?” she asked, wanting to know more. “Sacrificed to what?”

  “You do not know about Nimbo, the god of the Earth Dwellers?”

  “We don’t know much,” Sarah answered.

  “He is a terrible god. And their chief listens to Nomus, the high priest. When things do not go well in the tribe, he tells them they must sacrifice a person. They do not want to sacrifice their own people, so they capture others for this. My own best friend was sacrificed to Nimbo,” she said sadly. “I have never gotten over it.”

  “That’s awful!” Abbey exclaimed. “It’s probably why your father sent for the Sleepers.”

  Enid’s face brightened with hope. “Yes! Everyone is expecting you to help us. Do you think you can?”

  “Well, we have been of some help to others in time past,” Sarah said modestly. “It sounds like this Nomus is where the problem lies.”