The Stolen Herd Read online

  Mandamus shrugged as he trudged towards the cave.

  “Well, did you see any males at the Eternal Fountain?” asked Hengist, shadowing his hoof steps.

  “No.”

  “That is because there are no males in that herd. As soon as that little mare is with foal, they will eat you.” Hengist trotted up beside Mandamus and regarded him with serious eyes.

  “What?” Mandamus whispered, his blood turning to ice, “that can’t be.”

  “Oh, it is,” Hengist nodded, his face as stern as stone. They had reached the entrance of their cave and, using his shoulder, he pushed Mandamus inside. “I’ve seen those mares attack males with my own eyes. I watched, helplessly, as Marushka killed a young stallion who I herded with before I met your mother. He was innocent too, and like you, full of curiosity. There was nothing I or anyone else could do to stop her. Now, for love of Epona, the Mother of all Horses, you go to the cave and stay inside until we tell you that you’re allowed to come out.”

  The message that Mandamus was dreading was delivered the next morning by the Forest Council’s messenger, a hummingbird named Scobi. The herd was having breakfast when Scobi came zooming up to Mareva.

  “Queen Mareva,” he squeaked, his wings a blur as he hovered at her nose. “Your son has been charged by the Queen Marushka of the Diomedes herd. Trial is set to occur in three suns and court will take place at the Grass Circle. You and your son, and your sister are required to attend.”

  “What are the charges?” Marva asked.

  “Speaking to a mare without permission, spying, and attempted theft,” Scobi announced.

  “Attempted theft!” Daleth screeched, snapping at him. “Theft of what?”

  Scobi darted out of Daleth’s reach then paused. “Theft of her daughter,” he called over his shoulder before zooming off.

  Mareva paced anxiously for the next three days, refused to eat, and bared her teeth at anyone who approached her. She refused to let Mandamus out of her sight. For Mandamus, the days crawled by and were made worse by his mother’s constant worrying.

  On the morning of his trial, Mandamus awoke before sunrise. The cave was silent. He peered out of the horse-head shaped opening at a silent, grey dawn. His sleep had been fitful and filled with dreams of long teeth and bottomless red eyes. He wearily shook the sand from his coat and ambled out of the cave. He followed the path, past the gnarly old oak, down to the beach and stood at the edge of the surf, breathing deep the salty air.

  “Little one,” his mother said softly, trotting up behind him. “You’re up early today.”

  “I’m scared,” he confessed. “I can’t sleep anymore. I just want this to be over with, I want to hear my punishment and be done with it.”

  Mareva nodded wisely. “Waiting has always bothered me too,” she said, giving her coat a judder, “And waiting to hear about a punishment, well, that’s probably one of the worst things there is. There is something I need to talk to you about before we go to the Grass Circle though.”

  Mandamus pricked his ears. “Of course,” he said. “What is it?”

  Mareva’s sigh seemed to come from the bottom of her hooves. “Marushka and her daughter, Albethia is her name, right?”

  Mandamus nodded.

  “They called you an ‘Alsvid,’ didn’t they?”

  “Yes,” he said, eagerness washing over him. “Here it is,” he thought.

  “And,” his mother continued cautiously, “you know that you look different from the rest of us. Your coat and mane are black and your eyes, well, your eyes are uniquely your own.”

  He nodded. His pale eyes didn’t match the soft brown eyes of the rest of the herd.

  “You’re also much smaller than I am too. Though, I know you’re not fully grown,” she added, seeing the indignant look on his face, “but you will never be as big as a Harena.” She smiled at him, softly bunting his neck with her muzzle. “And you run much, much faster.” She nibbled his mane.

  He nodded again, thinking how what took the rest of the herd twenty gallops, took him ten.

  “You are not of my blood,” she said softly, looking closely at his face. “You are not of the Harena herd by birth. You are an Alsvid horse.”

  “Not a Harena?” Mandamus felt as though all the air had been sucked from his lungs.

  How could that be? He couldn’t remember living anywhere else or having a different mother. She had always been there, chewing the long tough grass so he could nibble the tender roots or drinking downstream so he could have the freshest water. She was the one who licked his wounds and tickled his ears before he went to sleep. Not of her blood?

  “I don’t understand,” he said at last, his head swimming with confusion. “If I’m not your son then whose son am I?”

  “Now wait a minute! Not once did I say that you are not my son,” she said, laying back her ears. “Family and blood don’t have anything to do with one another.” She paced around him, flicking him with her tail. “Your herd, the Alsvid, were captured by the Rakhana Army. You were hidden from the soldiers and I was told to go and get you.”

  “Who told you to get me?” he asked sharply.

  “That doesn’t matter,” she said, turning away. “I took you and that was that. I meant to keep you safe, and I failed.” She hung her head. “I failed terribly.”

  “Oh, enough,” Daleth cut in gruffly, as she joined them. “No one failed at anything. He got spooked and ran into the woods; it’s not a matter of who didn’t keep him safe.” She gave Mareva a friendly nip on the shoulder.

  “I suppose,” murmured Mareva, looking as if she didn’t agree.

  “And as for you,” Daleth said turning to Mandamus. “You never had any inkling that you came from somewhere else? Your eyes are blindingly white, ours aren’t. Not to mention, you’re certainly not as large and clumsy as we Harena.” She gave him a loving butt with her forehead.

  Mandamus thought back to a cold winter’s day when a herd of wild cattle had visited the seashore. Daleth had reared in excitement and galloped off to chase them for fun.

  Mandamus recalled the look of exasperation on the lead bull’s face as he hollered at Daleth for being disrespectful. Mareva had also scolded her, but Daleth had argued that herding other animals was the Harena way.

  Mandamus couldn’t remember feeling anything but a friendly inquisitiveness at the large beasts and would have gone to meet them if he had been allowed.

  Snapping back to the present, he realized that occurrence, along with many others, set him slightly apart from his mother and aunt as well as the rest of the horses. He tried to swallow the large lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat, but it wouldn’t budge. Not one of the Harena? Not one of his own family?

  “I’m sorry I never told you about this before, Mandamus,” Mareva said.

  “It’s alright,” he said, giving her a nuzzle. Not your mother, a tiny voice inside him whispered. Mandamus wished it would go away

  “Now, as for your trial, the rulers of the Council are fair,” Mareva told him. “They will decide your fate with just and logical minds, of that I am certain.” Daleth murmured in agreement.

  “What if they don’t?” Mandamus asked, remembering with a dull thump that aside from finding out he was an outsider in his own herd, he had bigger problems to face today. “What if I have to marry Albethia? What if she eats me?”

  “Shh,” Mareva cut him off. She tucked her head over his and pulled him close. “All we can do right now is deal with this trial and all that it will mean for our future. We can stand here and ‘what if’ all morning, but it won’t help. We’ll just have to wait and see what the Forest Council says.”

  “What if I just went and kicked Marushka’s hindquarters?” Daleth suggested, a mischevous glint in her eyes. “I should have done it the other day when I had the chance.”

  “It wouldn’t sol
ve anything, Sister.”

  “Who said anything about solving something?” Daleth snorted. “That was a good fight we started there, and I wouldn’t mind finishing it.”

  Mandamus wished he had his aunt’s spirit, but all he could do was worry now that his fate lay with animals who did not know him and might not understand.

  Chapter 5

  The Trial

  The Grass Circle was a perfectly round meadow that lay smack in the middle of the Green Forest. It was typically used for parties, weddings, and meetings. Today, it was serving as a court of forest law.

  “Animals take your places,” announced Minegard, a tall grey horse with a black mane. “As Forest Council Head, I call this meeting to order.” He had to shout for the treeline was packed with animals. Everyone in the forest seemed to have heard about the trial and they had shown up to watch the action. The air was thick with excitement and the gossip was loud. He glared at the noisy crowd of creatures. “Attention, now, quiet down,” he called loudly, stomping his hoof.

  Minegard stood at the edge of the circle with the other council members, a cougar with crooked whiskers, called Inc, a shaggy bear named Barcus, and a stern-looking hawk named Baz.

  Mandamus stood on one side of the round field wedged between his mother and aunt sneaking glances at the surrounding woods.

  No one worried about being hunted in the Grass Circle for there was only one law here—no killing. Eagles perched in the treetops, surrounded by groups of twittering chickadees. Foxes groomed their scarlet fur beside nibbling rabbits. A wolverine and a skunk got into a heated argument over who could sit under the shade of a large elm tree, but the fight quickly ended when the skunk lifted his tail and threatened to spray.

  All of the creatures shot terrified glances to the side of the meadow where the Diomedes mares had silently gathered. This was the one chance that the animals had to stare at the dreaded elusive herd for to see one of the mares anywhere else would mean certain death. The mares kept to themselves, not speaking to anyone, and staring rigidly straight ahead.

  Mandamus stole a look at Albethia but she too stood at attention with her sisters, eyes locked on her mother’s back. Mandamus was surprised to see a large black bat, dangling from a pear tree branch behind the council. A green butterfly sat on a leaf beside the bat, slowly flexing his wing and staring intently at Mandamus.

  “Mandamus, please approach the middle of the Circle,” Minegard called.

  “Go,” said Daleth, giving him a slight shove. Mandamus left the safety of his mother’s shadow and nervously made his way down the line of watching animals to the middle of the meadow. He struggled to keep from trembling.

  Minegard peered down at him. “Now, young stallion,” he began, clearing his throat. “You are accused of breaking laws that belong to the roaming herd, the Mares of Diomedes. Let’s see, you are accused of conversing with a mare without permission, attempting to steal her away from her herd, and spying. How do you plead?”

  “I plead innocence,” said Mandamus loudly, just as his mother had instructed him. The crowd broke into whispers.

  “He pleads innocence,” Minegard announced. “Let that be noted, Barcus,” he said to the grizzly bear, who nodded. “Did you hear that, Inc?” The cougar gave an agreeing purr. “And you, Baz?” he said to the hawk who confirmed he had with a sharp cry.

  “Now, you say that you are innocent but according to your accuser, you were hiding in the bushes, watching them,” Minegard continued. The audience burst into laughter. “Quiet,” Minegard said, tossing his head at the audience. Turning back to Mandamus he asked, “Did you or did you not set out to seek a Mare of Diomedes when you ventured into the woods three days ago?”

  “No!” Mandamus answered, a little louder than he’d meant to. “I was startled, I was alone, and I was so scared that I just ran.” He hung his head, ashamed of his fear which now seemed so silly. “I took off and didn’t pay attention to where I was going.”

  “I see,” answered Minegard, and Mandamus heard what he hoped was a sympathetic note in his voice. “What scared you?”

  “Well, I was at our watering creek, the wide one that separates the Deep Woods from the Green Forest.”

  “Okay,” Minegard said with an encouraging nod, “So you were getting a drink. Then what happened”

  “I was on my own,” Mandamus told him, knowing this would help his argument for a lone horse is vulnerable and always must be ready to run. “I had just started to take a drink when, out of nowhere, this huge tree came crashing down and almost hit me.”

  “Yes, that was my fault,” called a voice. “Excuse me, budge over a bit, would you?” A fat beaver pushed his way through the throng to the edge of the Grass Circle.

  “Hi there, Mr. Minegard,” said the beaver giving the horse a friendly smile that showed his huge front teeth.

  Minegard stared sternly down at him. “You have not been called to speak yet, Sir Beaver.”

  “I know, I know,” the beaver answered waving away Minegard’s reproach with his paw. “But I’m right in the middle of an epic dam project and I don’t have a lot of time. Keeping the forest safe from floods, I am.” He beamed proudly at the audience.

  “More like causing them,” Daleth muttered.

  “Oh, let him have his say,” Barcus said. “Go ahead, Beaver.”

  “Very well,” grumbled Minegard. “Carry on.”

  “Well, like I said, I’m in the middle of a big build. I was out felling oaks that day and boy did I find a doozy,” he rubbed his paws together gleefully. “It was just perfect for a bracing log. You know, bracing logs are really important and—” But his words were cut short by Minegard’s impatient nicker. “Anyway,” the beaver continued, “I had just finished gnawing my way through its trunk and I was just about to yell ‘timber’ when suddenly, that horse,” he pointed a chubby little claw at Mandamus, “came tearing out of the woods and with a mighty leap, headed straight into the Deep Forest. I have never seen anyone run that fast!” He turned to Mandamus with an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  “It’s alright,” mumbled Mandamus, burning with embarrassment. Now the entire forest knew he had been frightened by a beaver.

  “Yes, well, thank you, Sir Beaver,” said Minegard. “You may step down.”

  “You’re quite welcome,” said the beaver with a small bow. “Well, I’d better be getting back; plenty to do, you know.” He gave the council another toothy grin then shuffled off.

  “Well,” remarked Minegard with a raised brow, “let’s get on with it. So, you ran into the forest and found yourself in the same area as the Mares of Diomedes. Why didn’t you just turn back when you saw them?”

  Mandamus hung his head. “I didn’t know how to find my way back,” he said.

  “I see,” replied Minegard. “So, when you saw the Diomedes princess, you got excited and asked her to run away with you?”

  “No! I only asked her if she knew her way to the beach.”

  “So, you made no suggestions to this young filly about running off?” Inc the cougar interjected, cutting his green eyes at Albethia. “Nothing about leaving with you?”

  “No,” Mandamus said with a firm shake of his head. “None at all.”

  “All right, well, that is all for now,” Minegard, told him, amongst the mutters of the watching animals. “You may return to your place.”

  Mandamus hurried to rejoin his mother and aunt.

  “This Council now calls Daleth of the Harena,” Minegard announced.

  Daleth charged to the middle of the meadow, showing her teeth at Marushka as she went past.

  “Now, Daleth,” Minegard began, shaking his mane. “How is it that you came across upon your nephew and Queen Marushka arguing in the woods?”

  “They weren’t arguing,” Daleth answered indignantly. “She had him cornered and
was terrorizing the poor kid.”

  The animals in the audience began to chatter again and Mandamus heard a squirrel mutter, “No surprises there.” His stomach did a slow flip.

  “Tell us what happened,” Barcus said as he ambled over to a nearby tree and, standing on his hind legs, scratched his back against its trunk.

  “Well, when I woke up and saw that he was gone, I was livid,” Daleth said, turning to give Mandamus a nasty look. “He often goes wandering off by himself, but I told him not to the day before because the mares were in the area. We didn’t go for our nightly drink, so I woke Mareva and we figured he’d just gone to the creek. We also figured he would be back any minute.”

  “And when he didn’t come back,” Baz, the hawk asked, his voice high and reedy, “What did you do then?”

  “When he didn’t return, Mareva got worried and sent me out to look for him. I found his scent. It was strong, so I knew he must have been panicked about something. Anyway, I followed it to the Eternal Fountain and, sure enough, there he was, surrounded by that bully of a queen and her ghastly little herd of she-devils.”

  The crowd exploded into furious gossip.

  “That’s enough!” Minegard shouted above the din. Everyone quieted.

  “Did you hear what they were saying?” asked Baz. He spread out his wings and gave them a good shake.

  “I sure did,” answered Daleth. “Marushka was going on about him breaking laws, and what she should do with him, even though she was breaking the most well known one of all! She was threatening another herd’s young. She should have just told him how to get home, or even shown him the way.”

  “You liar!” shrieked Marushka, rearing and punching the air with her forelegs. “You nasty, wretched—”

  “Alright, alright,” Barcus rumbled. He finished scratching himself then lumbered back to his place in the row of council members. “That is quite enough, Queen Marushka,” he growled. “You’ll get your turn.”