Chapter 38: More babies

The next morning we say farewell to Adelita, Elodia, Whina and Emere as they set off upriver to the Tribu settlement. Their craft is laden with a variety of goods that they have traded for the metal they brought here. Ikaroa had spent nearly an hour with Whina and Emere, ensuring they both understand the consequences of their choice to stay with the Tribu. They will effectively become outcasts from the Atenex race, making a return to Atene almost impossible should they change their minds. However they were already banished from their home village, so in practise that transition had already occurred before we left Atene.

Once they have gone Cassandra and I meet with Ikaroa, Ihapera, Makareta and Defina35 to discuss our own situation. Cassandra and Ihapera are due to give birth any day now, and Marianne has already offered her services as midwife when the time comes. We have already agreed that further travel must wait until both Cassandra and Ihapera have given birth and are fit to travel again. What is less certain is whether we wait the extra weeks until after Makareta and Defina35 give birth. So far, the Mariners have been helpful, but whether their hospitality will extend for another two or three months remains to be seen.

Rawiri is now starting to walk, so he is in need of almost constant supervision. Fortunately, Marianne has a younger sister called Coral who has been co-opted as our child minder for the duration of our stay. Coral is ten years old and she has the same wavy brown hair, round face and wide grey eyes as her sister. She knows a few words of Thurnian, but not enough for a lengthy conversation. Fortunately she seems well versed in child-minding and Rawiri responds well to her.

“I still don’t understand how so many young Mariners know our language, albeit an outdated version of it,” says Cassandra to me.

“Nor do I,” I reply. “But if we decide to stay here until after Makareta and Defina35 give birth, then we may get the opportunity to find out more.”

The next few days are relatively uneventful. I watch the two ships in the harbour unloading and loading supplies. The harbour-master is patient with my numerous questions. He confirms Marianne’s statement that the Mariner settlement was originally built as a port linking sea going trade with the long navigable rivers stretching inland. The volume of trade has varied over the years, particularly once the Potiora races started gaining ascendency, and the previous inhabitants of the region moved elsewhere. These days the settlement earns more as a neutral transshipment point for trade between distant peoples who aren’t on the friendliest of terms with each other.

I ask the harbour-master about the source of his knowledge of the Thurnian language. He simply replies that it his duty to be able to speak all of the languages used by sea going peoples. Although no Thurnian vessel has come this far south in decades, the invitation to trade remains open. However, I strongly suspect that there are few Thurnian sea captains with the necessary skills to navigate this far south. Besides, unless you know where the Mariner settlement is located, you could sail past without noticing anything.

Cassandra and Ihapera are under orders from Marianne to rest as much as possible. For once, Cassandra doesn’t object. Consequently Ikaroa takes the lead in exploring the settlement. Many of the buildings we could see from the harbour are no longer occupied. The Mariners never bother with a census as their population varies by season. Many sailors spend winter in the settlement while savage storms rage out at sea. Even during spring and summer, arriving ships invariably discharge some of their crew and take on new sailors. Mariner children spend two or more years at sea as part of their education, and some ships are crewed by whole families. Consequently, relatively few Mariners regard the settlement as their permanent home.

Governance of the settlement is a strangely informal affair that follows Mariner customs and traditions. The harbour-master and the local watch commander are the only two people who could be regarded as civic officials. The quayside is home to a range of warehouses and chandlers, each run by their own cooperative of workers. Trading is generally conducted in the market square by independent merchants and stallholders. Despite the chaotic appearance of their daily lives, the Mariners somehow make it all work.

Cassandra and Ihapera both give birth to healthy baby girls within a few hours of each other. Although it won’t be obvious for another few years, Ihapera’s girl is a clone of her mother. I’m almost certainly the father of her child, but nothing of me has contributed towards the child’s make-up. Even now, you can see the slightly elongated ears that label her child as Atenex.

That’s not so in the case of Cassandra’s and my as-yet-unnamed child. She’s a pure-blood Thurnian conceived by parents of the same race. When Rawiri was born, we agreed to follow the elven custom of allowing the community to decide on a name for our child. However, that was when we were in the company of Makareta’s tribe. With only six adults in our party, a traditional Atenex naming ceremony is going to be problematic. Perhaps it’s an issue we should have considered before. Ikaroa is keen for her sister to follow the Atenex custom, but I think Ihapera is more realistic about the practical difficulties that organising a formal ceremony would present.

While we are made welcome by the Mariners, I’m mindful that we have yet to provide anything in exchange for our food and accommodation. If we decide to stay until Makareta and Defina35 give birth then we need to offer something in exchange. Cassandra and I have offered to teach the Mariners the modern version of Thurnian, and Defina35 has taught a couple of adolescent Mariners some of her metalwork skills. But these are lightweight offerings for the substantial help we are receiving. However, nobody is putting us under pressure to pay for our keep.

“I have offered to join one of the shore-watch patrols,” says Ikaroa to me. “There are several jobs around the settlement that rely on volunteer labour. When Cassandra and Ihapera feel ready, there are opportunities they may wish to consider. If we help where we can, then I think we will have earned the right to stay here for as long as we want.”

“Staying here until Makareta and Defina35 have given birth will certainly help,” I reply. “That should give us plenty of time to get you back to Atene before you are due to give birth.”

“I am in no particular rush to return to Atene,” says Ikaroa. “I am perfectly content for my child to be born outside of Atenex lands. If that makes my child an outcast, then it is something I will address with the Rangatira in due course.”

Ikaroa’s comments remind me of the different customs and attitudes of Atenex elves compared to elves of Thurnian origin. Atenex custom holds that only elves born in Atenex territory can claim the right to be called Atenex. Even those born in Atene can lose their Atenex citizenship if they leave their homeland for any length of time. Whina’s and Emere’s decision to live with the Tribu means that they no longer have an automatic right to return to Atene. It also means that elves born in Thurn may never be able to fully merge into Atenex society. Thurnian elves will always be considered to be a separate race in Atenex eyes, despite their identical biology. I begin to think that rigid customs are what are holding all our races back from achieving progress.