18, Fire

“He’s a good man,” Sinhera said.

“He is,” Ayya agreed. “That doesn’t mean I’m interested in him,” she then quickly added, making both Sinhera and Jakobi laugh.

“Relax, Ayya, I’m not Firlea. I’m not trying to set you up with every available man. And for once, I don’t think he is interested in you like that either,” Sinhera told her.

“I think you are right. I think he likes Miri, but something is keeping them apart,” Ayya agreed.

“Those two have been close since they were kids. We have all been waiting for the announcement that they decided to marry, but now things just seem tense and strange between them,” Jakobi said. 

“If they both have feelings for each other, they will figure it out,” Ayya reassured him. He nodded, and they moved on to other, lighter subjects. The celebration just kept going. Around midnight, Ayya felt tired. She tried to push it aside, as she knew that if she showed she was tired, Sinhera would insist the two of them called it a night. Most of the riders would probably join them. Ayya didn’t want to spoil the fun for the rest. But half an hour later, she could barely keep her eyes open. 

“I think I’m going to bed,” she told Sinhera.

“I’ll come with you.”

“No, you and the others can stay if you like. The danger is over. I’m just going to go straight to bed and sleep.”

“I’m coming with you,” Sinhera said, standing up.

“Fine,” Ayya agreed, and the two of them said good night to the chief and headed off towards the inn. As Ayya suspected, one after one, the riders joined them. She was too tired to argue and just accepted it. 

“It’s been an amazing day, terrifying in some ways, but mostly good,” Ayya said, as she and Sinhera were in bed. 

“It was a good day,” Sinhera agreed.

“Tomorrow we should prepare for the journey home. How soon do you think we can leave?”

“If we get supplies together tomorrow and there are no outstanding issues, I think we can leave the day after tomorrow,” Sinhera said.

“Good. I still have the ointment you gave me. I’m hoping that will save me,” Ayya told her friend with a giggle. Sinhera chuckled and soon Ayya was out like a light. 

Ayya was abruptly awakened by Sinhera shaking her. 

“What?” Ayya mumbled as she tried to get her baring.

“You need to wake up Ayya, there is a fire,” Sinhera told her. That got Ayya’s attention, and she got out of bed and she could smell the smoke in the air, making her cough. 

“Where?” she asked. The village was mostly made up of wooden houses. A fire could devastate it in a moment.

“Down stairs,” Sinhera told her and tossed her a blanket. “No time to get dressed. Just wrap that around your nightgown.” Ayya did as Sinhera told her, and Sinhera did the same. They both ran out onto the landing outside of their room. The other riders were waiting for them. Ayya did a sweep to make sure they all were there. Then her attention was drawn to what was behind them. Looking over the railing, down on the first floor, there was a sea of fire with thick smoke billowing up towards the second floor and the ceiling. 

“We need to get down and out,” Sinhera said. Ayya looked at the stairs and saw that there was no way they could use them as the fire was eating its way up to them. That made her realise the same was probably true for the pillars that supported the second floor. It was likely that they would plummet into the sea of fire soon. Ayya’s eyes turned to look at two figures that stood in the doorway leading to the kitchen on the first floor. It was their hosts. They were trapped by the fire. The front door to the inn flew open with a thud and Kahane, Minio and Jakobi pushed inside. They looked at the sight and then saw Ayya and the riders standing on the landing.

“Water is coming,” Kahane shouted. It would take too long, Ayya thought. Before enough water had been poured on the fire, both her group and the innkeepers would be dead. 

“Go back outside,” she shouted down to the three men. “Hold your breath,” she then instructed their hosts, and she looked at Sinhera and the riders. They all nodded and tried to get air into their lungs without coughing from the smoke. Ayya used her magic for the third time in a day and sucked the air out of the inn. The fire immediately shrank down to a smouldering pile of burned timber. Ayya released the magic and had to grab for the railing. She had not recovered all her energy from before, and now she had drained herself again. But rather that, than doing nothing and watch everyone die. Sinhera helped her downstairs. The steps were fragile on the lower part of the stairs, but they made it down and out on the street. Sinhera had her sit down on one of the benches that still stood in the village square. The celebration seemed to have ended, but it was still dark outside, so it had to be the early morning hours. Ayya made sure that everyone she knew was in the inn had come out unharmed. Most of them were coughing and wheezing a little. But they all were alive and without physical wounds. 

“What happened?” the chief asked. He looked like he had come straight from his bed. 

“I don’t know how the fire started. I thought we checked everything before we went to bed. We must have missed something,” Gian told the chief. 

“Is everyone alright?” the chief asked.

“Yes,” Sinhera said. 

“I’m truly sorry. We will sort this out. I take full responsibility for it,” Gian insisted.

“It wasn’t your fault.” The voice made everyone turn toward it. Ayya saw a man standing a little to the side, one of the council members, she thought. He had his hand on Miri’s shoulder. 

“Miri?” Kahane asked. 

“Tell them,” the man told Miri. She refused to look up and shook her head. 

“Mirdan, what is this all about?” the chief asked.

“Father, please don’t,” Mirin almost whispered. The man looked at his daughter, sighed, and then looked at the group of people in front of him.

“On of the sheep had triplets last night. As usual, we took her and the lambs into the barn to make sure she could handle all three. I was looking in on them after the celebration ended. When I was walking back home, I saw Miri coming out of the inn. I followed her to ask what she was doing. I thought she might have been trying to sneak into the liquor storage. But when I caught up with her, she was carrying this,” Mirdan said, tossing a pottery jar at the feet of the group. It was one of the jars they had used to store the rendered fat for the ditch in. “I asked her what she was doing with it, but before she answered I heard the commotion and realised the inn was on fire. I think my daughter has something to do with it.” Everyone looked at Miri.

“Miri?” Kahane asked again. Miri refused to look up or speak. 

“Is this true, Miri?” the chief asked. Ayya could see a slight shiver run down the woman’s body. Whit a sob, she nodded, and a gasp was heard from the people that had gathered around. “Why?” the chief asked. Ayya had never heard him use such a hard tone of voice. Miri didn’t respond. She just looked down and sobbed. 

“Chief, maybe we should revisit this in the morning. We are all tired and in need of sleep. Let’s look at this with rested eyes,” Ayya said. The chief starred at Miri for a moment. Ayya thought he was going to refuse. But then he nodded.

“That is a good idea, your grace. I will offer you my bed for the night, and we will find beds for your companions as well,” he told her.

“I am grateful for the offer, but that is unnecessary. Just show us someplace where we can lie down and maybe a blanket each and we will be fine,” Ayya said. After some discussion, Ayya and the riders were shown to the barn and the hayloft. Blankets and sheets were placed over the hay, and Ayya snuggled down. It was surprisingly comfortable, although a little prickly. But Ayya didn’t care. She was at the point where she could have slept on rocks.