Chapter 84: Vivianne
Chambert looked like a sand castle. Vivianne had to touch the wall to believe it was solid. She crossed the gates and turned on her heels, leaning on her crutches, nose up, admiring gigantic Chambert.
It was Joanna’s idea that Pierre and his ‘mongrels’ moved to Chambert.
‘I love having you here at the Plume,’ said Joanna, ‘but I think Pierre needs a castle.’
The inn keeper had lost some of her vitality and she didn’t laugh anymore. A few days ago Maurice had cleaned the counter with her. He had said:
‘Cleaning this counter is the bravest thing I ever did in my life.’
The next day he died.
‘Pierre needs a castle,’ Bojet agreed.
Germon and Gaul of Tuen nodded; Thaila and the Eslariano followed Pierre to his new home.
‘A place like this will need a lot of bread,’ said the Eslarian. Chambert was almost the size of Tuen.
That fortress was much larger than Lune, bigger even than the Halls od Snow (Vivianne had seen a map of Patirean royal castle, but never one od Chambert). Lune had been built before the Empire. Even with all the expansions made under Satironese influence and after, Lune’s architecture remained simple and Franish. Chambert, on the other hand, had been built during the Second Empire, after Gorgath was accepted by Sátiron. Vivianne didn’t have to see inside to notice the Gorgathian influence in the building: the rocks used to make the wall were evidence enough.
The Franish used big blocks, all of the same size, while the Gorgathian used rocks of different shapes and sizes that connected to one another like a huge puzzle, forming patterns, illusions — Chambert’s walls made one thing of sand dunes. Besides, there were all the ornaments: a stone eagle at the top of the western gate, delicate leaves sculpted at the corners like fossilized ivy. Anywhere you looked there was art. Except the towers. Those were simply Franish. The splendor of Gorgathian architecture mixed with traces of Franish pride.
The result was splendid. Vivianne felt a twinge of guilt for being so excited about the fortress. The War and Fulbert at their door and Vivianne delighting in architecture. But what else could she do?
‘Do you like it?’ Pierre was standing beside her.
Vivianne turned around again, trying to grasp all of Chambert with her eyes. She nearly fell and held on to Pierre’s arm. One of her crutches clanked against the floor.
‘This castle,’ she shook Pierre’s arm, ‘is a treasure.’
She opened her arms to Chambert and dropped her other crutch.
‘I promise to discover every hidden passage.’
‘Hidden passages?’
‘Chambert may have Franish towers, but it is essentially Gorgathian,’ she explained. ‘And the Gorgathians didn’t build castles, they build mazes. You know, this could explain why people think Chambert is haunted.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘A gorgathian structure of this magnitude could hide a small army in itself and we would never be the wiser.’
Pierre studied the towers and the first inner wall.
‘In that case, maybe it isn’d wise for you to explore Chambert alone.’
‘I agree,’ said Vivianne. She took hold of Líran’s hand, who had just dismounted hear the gate, and summoned Coalim with a gesture.
The three of them disappeared inside a building. Pierre picked up the forgotten crutches and looked out of Chambert’s gates. Where was the dragon Chelag’Ren now?’