The Revenger's Tragedy

Why had she not been born a man? Uzza had lost count of the times she had wondered this. Were she a man she could have rode into battle beside her father and brothers and either been slain alongside them, or somehow have saved them from the great slaughter. Only a burning desire to avenge them kept her from falling upon the sword that her father had given her in her youth to indulge her. She had not wept. Better by far to plan revenge than waste energy in futile tears.

She was a big strong girl with no looks that could charm a man, so she had become a darwisa, a wise woman, and  had immersed herself in the study of healing herbs and powerful poisons.

She had come now to the land where her brothers had been slain to avenge them. She was certain their deaths would have been of the cruellest kind. These pale faced Men of the West were savages, who showed no mercy to their captives and slaughtered them to honour the tree that was their god. So she had been told.

She had travelled to the city of stone with a merchant caravan laden with spices and the poppy syrup and seeds, which the war and its aftermath had produced a great demand for. The men tolerated her presence in exchange for her salves and potions. They did not seek to molest her, having brought a pleasure woman to satisfy their needs. Vega was young and still pretty. She bore her lot patiently enough. She was a pale faced slave who had been captured when very young. Uzza regarded her with a mixture of pity and contempt.

Uzza was surprised to find there were a fair number of her folk in the city, mostly merchants plying their wares. She was disgusted to learn that an Ambassador from her land dwelt amongst these Men of the West in some splendour. in exchange for fawning upon their cruel king.

She planned her vengeance carefully. The plans were in her hands alone and she was determined not to fail. At first, she thought to poison the cruel king, but she presumed he would be too well guarded to approach. A better idea came to her. She would poison the god of the Men of the West. Then they would lose heart, and wither and die with the tree that they worshipped. Even gods could be killed, for had not the Men of the West destroyed the Lord of Gifts?

She brewed a poison deadly to all living things when the moon was dark and spoke powerful incantations as she worked.

The next morning, she poured her mixture into a small bottle and made her way to the Court of the Fountain where the god dwelled. She knew it was guarded, but she could bide her time. Something would surely distract the guards for the brief instant she needed to pour out the poison upon the tree. It mattered not to her that she would most likely be caught and put to torment. Her kin would be avenged.

She sat on a bench near the tree waiting to seize the right moment. She was surprised how small and slender it looked, a lovely thing, she had to admit, covered in fragrant white blossoms.

“What fools these pale faced folk are, to worship a puny tree!” she said aloud in her own tongue, secure that none would understand.

“We revere the White Tree, but do not worship it!” said a deep male voice in the tongue of Harad.

Startled, Uzza looked up and beheld a tall man, who bore the emblem of the tree embroidered upon his tunic. He seated himself at the far side of the bench. The guards turned their gaze towards him. Maybe they thought he threatened the god as he spoke in a tongue strange to them?

“I thought it was your god?”

“Some Men call upon the Valar in need, I myself, would call upon Lady Elbereth, or even the One.”

“Why then is this tree guarded and revered so?”

“It is a symbol of who we are and where we come from. This tree is the very image of Nimloth that grows in the Blessed Realm. We thought a living scion was lost to our folk, but behold, a new sapling grows and flourishes! I enjoy coming here to gaze upon the wonder when I have a few moments to spare.”

“But you sacrifice your captives to this tree?”

The man laughed. “You have been told some strange tales, mistress. All of your folk who surrendered were spared and the wounded were cared for. Most of them have been given leave to return home in peace. Sadly most preferred to fight to the death.”

“You slew the Lord of Gifts!” Uzza said accusingly.

“No Man did that great deed, but Halflings from a distant land,” said the man. “Yet. what treasures did this Lord of Gifts bestow upon those who worshipped him in return for the blood of their bravest and best?”

Uzza nodded, suddenly unable to speak.

“You lost someone you loved in the War?”

“My father and all my brethren.” Uzza said tersely. Suddenly, to her shame, she found tears forming in her eyes and spilling down her cheeks. She drew her veil about her face and got up to leave.

The man reached out and gripped her arm. “I grieve for your loss.”

Uzza fumbled with her free hand beneath her robes. This was her chance. The guards seemed strangely interested in the man beside her. He would be the distraction she needed. “You slaughtered them!” she cried breaking free of his grip. “Curse you and all your kind!”

Before she could uncork the bottle, the man had gripped both her arms. The guards moved closer.

“The Men of the West acted only to defend themselves,” the man said. “We desired no slaughter. Had your kinsfolk surrendered, we would gladly have spared them.” He waved the guards away.

She wondered fleetingly who he was. Some off duty captain perhaps?

“You are distressed, mistress,” the man said. “Let us go somewhere more private.”

He looked at her with a piercing grey gaze and for a moment, she felt as if he could see into her very soul. For the first time, she was afraid.

The man led her to a nearby building. It appeared to be a guardroom as several soldiers were lounging there. “Wait outside for a moment,” the man who was almost certainly a captain, said. They left.

The captain gestured to her to sit down and poured her a cup of wine from a flagon on the table, but before handing it to her, he gripped both her hands and looked deep into her eyes. Uzza wanted to look away, but could not.

“You carry such hatred and lust for vengeance in your heart, mistress, that it poisons the very air around you,” said the captain.

Uzza shuddered. Somehow, he knew! She was very afraid now. Why had he sent the men away if not for some nefarious purpose? Her brother had been a captain and he only sent away his men when he wanted to be alone with the women he had captured to have sport with them. She tried to blink back her tears. She was strong. A well- aimed kick could disable a man; one of her brothers had ruefully told her when he had requested one of her potions.

“You need to weep,” said her captor. “Grieve for your kin then live for them; remembering that you will one day meet again in joy beyond the circles of the world.”

Uzza could no longer contain her emotions. Great heaving sobs racked her body. Her captor made no move to assault her. Instead, he placed one hand on her shoulder and the other upon her brow. She felt the band of iron that for so long had surrounded her heart, snap and then dissolve with her tears.

At last her tears were spent. The man smiled at her and handed her the cup of wine. “What is your name?” he asked.

“I am Uzza. In my land, I am considered a wise woman, a healer.”

“Many of your people are settling here in Minas Tirith, Mistress Uzza. Should you wish to stay here, they will have need of such as you. I must go now, stay here as long as you need to recover and drink your wine. The men will not bother you.” He smiled at her again and clasped her hand in farewell. Then he was gone.

Uzza took the bottle of poison from her robes. She had failed. The desire for revenge had left her;it would not restore her kinsfolk to her. For a moment. she hesitated and gazed at the bottle. Should she pour it into the wine and drink it? No, she wanted to live. There was a blazing fire in the hearth. Uzza hurled the bottle into its heart and listened to it spitting and hissing before it was utterly consumed.

Then she drained the glass of wine and walked out into the spring sunlight.