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Literature Text
A Secrets of Marfath Story
"While I am reluctant to send you to this cursed town, there are few other options. No matter what may come, keep faith burning in your heart. Like a fire, it will keep the beasts at bay."
The carriage shook with every stone and dip in the road, making the words on the page jump. Josef barely noticed, his attention riveted on the last lines of the letter as he read them once more. What had the old priest meant? Surely the town wasn't cursed. It was just remote; a small town full of uneducated, small minded people. Father Josef had been to many places like that.
Villages on the dark continent where haggard women danced naked in the moonlight, trying to work their will against neighbors. Hamlets in icy mountain ranges where people hung garlic above their door to ward off the dead. City districts where the forgotten poor made idols of their most wicked denizens and worshipped them in foul rites beneath city streets.
None of those places held any evil greater than what lived in the human heart and the largest part of that was ignorance. Still, the holy man felt unsettled. He folded the letter and placed it back in his pocket. Father Tomas was dead and re-reading his final words did nothing to clarify. The priest would find out soon enough what waited for him in Marfath.
As the carriage came round one of the tight curves, the wild bouncing took on a new, grinding note and then came to a shuddering halt. Josef pulled back the dark window curtain to peer out. He hadn't bothered with the view for most of this journey. There was little spectacular in the rocky coastline and dwarfed twisting trees. The priest was not disappointed in that here, for there were a surfeit of those tortured limbs and on the horizon, the brown and grey of rock and sea. But stretching off to either side of the raised roadway lay wide salt marshes the likes of which the priest had never seen.
Yellow flowers mounded atop stinking mud, their delicate petals swarmed with thick bodied flies; pools of dark water rippled with shifting colors; patches of earth covered in swaying golden grass that floated across open spaces, dancing through the marsh to a music no human ear could catch. Josef suddenly wished he had not been so quick to dismiss these lands, but done was done. He peered around, trying to catch a glimpse of his taciturn driver.
The man startled Josef as he came around from the back, his expression grimmer than usual. "Rear axle snapped." The driver spat and put a fist to his hip, glaring at the priest.
"That's unfortunate. What should we do?"
"Fix it." The driver gave him a thin smile.
Clearly the man did not intend to provide any useful information. The priest sighed and opened the carriage door, stepping out onto the road. The gravel bit at his shoes, pressing unevenly into the soles of his feet through the thin leather. A cold breeze tugged at Josef's hair, pulling it from the ribbon to lash at his face like dark spider webbing. The holy man took a moment to tie it back again as he considered his options. "How far are we from Marfath?"
"'Bout two mile. Maybe three." The driver shrugged.
"Perfect. I'll take one of the horses. You can stay with the cart and I'll send someone back for you."
"A cartwright." The driver spat again, his weathered face pinched with displeasure.
Josef nodded. "Yes, a cartwright." Assuming the village had such a person. If not, he supposed any strong arm would do. You couldn't be too picky when asking for help.
The driver went ahead to release one of the horses from its traces. "No saddle," he mumbled as he undid the buckles.
Looking at the animal, Josef wasn't at all sure riding had been such a good notion. It was a drafthorse and at least nineteen hands high at the withers and broad as a barrel round the middle.
"Name's Saul." The driver led his horse around and gave the beast a pat. The horse snorted and stamped its hoof.
Josef had a feeling this was not going to be the easiest of rides. He had always loved riding but he was used to the old, docile horses of the church stables. Kindly beasts, usually donated at the end of their long, hard-working lives. They didn't mind being ridden, as a saddle and priest were so much lighter than a plow or a cart. This horse, this Saul, looked of an opposite temperament.
With a deep breath, Josef grabbed hold of Saul's mane and using the coach step, he leapt onto his back. The horse pinned back his ears, clacking his large, flat teeth.
"I don't think 'e likes ya much," the driver guffawed.
"Yes, I-" The priest had been about to volunteer a walk instead, but Saul had other ideas. The horse set off down the road at a gallop. Josef tried tugging at the bridle, but his mount refused to slow. Saul tossed his head as he ran, and kicked his feet out in jarring leaps. It was all Josef could do to hold on.
The village came into sight in no time as Saul raced along the narrow, raised road. The horse didn't slow a jot as they drew nearer, not even when they passed a boat with two gawping, flatheaded fishermen. Saul blasted past the village gate and down the main street, sides heaving, froth on his lips.
The few people out and about in Marfath jumped to the sides of the streets, too stunned to shout. They stared after the horse blankly as Josef called out garbled apologies. This was not the dignified introduction he'd hoped for. At this point, the priest thought, he'd be lucky if they let him stay. The mad priest on his wild horse. Oh Lord.
Saul made it through most of the town, and ahead Josef could see the docks. Did the beast intend to take him right into the sea? Again he tried to pull back on the bridle. "Jesu Christo! Saul, please, stop! Stop! God's blast it you foul tempered-"
A woman stepped out from the shadows of a fine two story house. Out into the road, right into the mad mount's path. The priest went into a panic. Saul would trample right over her!
She stopped and looked up as they drew closer. Josef had the space of a breath to notice the graceful curve of her long neck and the way her dark hair curled against pale cheeks. The woman's eyes were blue like the sea, and deep.
Saul tossed his head and reared up on hind legs. His kick missed her face by a hair, but the lady didn't even flinch. She just stood there, watching. The poor woman must be in shock, thought Josef. The horse snorted, hooves clattering on the cobbles in a jarring landing. Saul tensed, ready for another leap, but instead a shiver ran through his mount, twitching down his back and flanks. The horse went still, only his sides moving in deep, gulping breaths.
"I'm sorry. So very sorry," Josef stuttered, sliding down off the beast. His legs wobbled when he took a step, and the woman held out a hand to him. The priest took it, noting the smooth coolness of her skin.
"It's alright. He was just eager to get you here. Isn't that right you sweet thing?" She patted the horse's nose with a smile.
The priest half expected Saul to take a bite of her, but he didn't. He stood there, blinking. Docile, almost.
"Ummm, I see." Josef was at a loss for words. Thankfully, the woman didn't take offense.
"You must be our new Father? I hadn't planned on meeting you until you got moved in, but I suppose this will do. I'm Claudia. Claudia Ainshart."
The priest let go of her hand and straightened, brushing the dust from his pants. "I am Josef Garten. Very pleased to meet you." He smiled nervously. It was such an awkward introduction. "Thank you for stopping my horse," he added lamely.
"I have a way with animals," she laughed, a light silvered sound. "Isn't that right Saul?" The horse dipped his head as if acknowledging her.
It gave the holy man pause. Had he said the beast's name? Father Tomas' warning ran through his mind as he took a step back from the woman. "So you do, Mrs. Ainshart."
"Miss."
"Yes, well." He coughed. "I am in need of a cartwright, if there's one in residence. My carriage broke about two miles outside of town and the driver is waiting. Hence my unorthodox arrival."
She thought about it for a moment, tapping her lips with her forefinger. They were small lips, with rosebud peaks just a shade too pink for nature. "Hmmmm, well we haven't many carters in town, at least, not any more. You might find someone knowledgeable at the blacksmith's?"
Josef smiled. "Thank you Miss Ainshart. If you could point the way?"
Claudia gestured to the street he'd just passed. "Left there and all the way down. You can't miss it."
The holy man nodded his thanks to her and set off toward the road, Saul in reluctant tow. He kept turning his head and ducking his shoulder, certain the mad beast would bite at him, but Claudia's effect was lasting.
The buildings along this street were old. Wood and brick alike were pale, weathered and pock-marked. The homes and shops leaned into each other like drunken men, all odd angles and slanted roofs. Some had widow's walks or balconies that sagged toward the street in slovenly abandon, rotting away. All the windows were either boarded tight or hanging open like gaping mouths.
Josef wondered if he'd been had. Sometimes in these small towns they would waylay travelers, rob them, even kill them. But Claudia had known he was from the church. He was expected! Surely . . . surely they meant him no ill. It was just the feel of this place. It looked empty on this street, but there was a tension to it. A full emptiness like the hum of still air before a summer storm. It set the teeth on edge and left the little hairs on Josef's neck and arms standing.
Saul seemed to feel it too, his whole huge body tensed. The horse's eyes rolled, wide and white. His head swung from one side to the other, trying to see the whole street.
"It's alright," the priest reassured his mount. "We are . . . well, I am a man of god." Despite his bold words, Josef could not help but whisper, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil." "Well, not death," he amended. "Perhaps decay. I will fear no evil." The horse was unimpressed with the verse and to be honest, the priest also felt little comfort from it.
It was with some relief that he finally heard the clamor of the smithy, and smelled the sharp odor of sulfur and metals. Saul was not as pleased, and pinned his ears back in protest. Likely if not for the Ainshart woman's calm on him, the horse would have bolted back down the street and out of this place entirely. It was a struggle to tie Saul to a hitching post out front before Josef went in.
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At the request of his recently deceased mentor, a young priest ventures to the small town of Marfath in the northern marshes. It is a town of secrets, as so many small towns are. A place where spirits of the air make their home and faith is tested. Many mysteries wait for Josef there, and answers too, if he has heart enough to seek them.
Next Chapter:
A Cursed Town Ch. 2
This is the first in a multipart series. More chapters coming soon!
Please let me know what you think of the story! This is a new format for me - rather than posting the story complete or in 12-15 page entries, I'm parting them out in short chapters. How do you like this format versus a longer form? What did you think of the town and characters introduced so far? It's a bit description heavy and slow - do you think it could do with more action? Any critique is helpful!
As always, thank you for reading
Next Chapter:
A Cursed Town Ch. 2
This is the first in a multipart series. More chapters coming soon!
Please let me know what you think of the story! This is a new format for me - rather than posting the story complete or in 12-15 page entries, I'm parting them out in short chapters. How do you like this format versus a longer form? What did you think of the town and characters introduced so far? It's a bit description heavy and slow - do you think it could do with more action? Any critique is helpful!
As always, thank you for reading
© 2017 - 2024 Zara-Arletis
Comments44
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Well, I decided it was time to revisit Marfath, and I decided to go from the beginning, since it's been a while now and I want to appreciate it as an entire work. So, here's to a new start! I enjoyed re-reading this first chapter. Looking forward to the others!