The Children of Calm by J Michael Smith Page B

flexible material. Emblazoned on the mount was the same sunburst that was on Faldrahil. Likewise another was on the shoulder strap. He looked at Tresten’s and saw again the two crescent moons.
    “What’s with the engravings of the sun and moons?” he asked.
    Faltir smiled. “If you do not know now,” he said, “you will discover soon enough.”
    Tresten was playing with his scabbard. “What is this made of?” he asked.
    “I wove it from dried starpod skins,” Faltir said.
    Tresten groaned. Lana and Selenor laughed. “Tally one more point for the starpods!” Lana said.
    “It’s still not a medicinal use!” Tresten stressed.
    Faltir picked up Rylek’s scabbard. “Starpod skins are amazingly endurable,” he said. “They are light and thin, yet when dried and treated are tougher than leather. Of course the steel throats and tips will help reinforce the most worn areas, but these scabbards should outlast the two of you.” He paused for a moment as Clarina politely coughed. He took the hint. “Well, I probably shouldn’t be discussing your deaths on your birthday…”
    Clarina interrupted him again. “Moving along from my ever pragmatic husband, I now have gifts for my two lovely ladies.” She produced two small white packages, each tied up with a deep purple ribbon. Inside Lana’s package was a short-length necklace with a pendant. The chain was of white gold, and the pendant was small, consisting of a round jewel set in intricate latticework. The jewel itself was a brilliant ruby, which caught the morning sun and sparkled in Rylek’s eyes. He thought he made out a sunburst design in the ruby, but figured his eyes were playing tricks on him.
    “Oh mother!” Lana stammered.
    Meanwhile Selenor had taken a ring out of her package. It too was white gold, with a solitary deep-blue sapphire set in it. Rylek again saw some shapes in the gemstone that reminded him of the double crescent on Silran. He figured either someone must have etched the shapes in the stones, or he was going crazy.
    “Aunt Clarina…” Selenor started.
    Clarina sat down between the two girls. “These pieces of jewelry,” she said, “are likewise old heirlooms, passed down to the oldest daughters from their mothers, starting many generations long ago. And now they are yours; beautiful gems adorning my beautiful women.” She hugged them both tightly. “You can see what looks like a sunburst inside the ruby, and two crescent moons inside the sapphire.”
    “I thought I was going crazy,” Rylek said. “I saw those shapes in the stones. How did they get there?”
    “They are natural occurrences,” Clarina said, “which make the value of these gems immeasurable. The ruby has traditionally been called the Dawnstone, and the sapphire the Twilightstone.”
    Lana was dumbfounded. “But how did our family ever get jewelry like this?” she asked.
    “That is a long tale that deserves to be told in its entirety when time allows,” Faltir said. “Sadly, it will not allow us to do so presently. For now I must leave so I can help Ronas set up a few things for tonight.”
    “I am so excited!” Clarina said. “The four of you are going to have so much fun tonight – I can hardly wait!”
    Rylek shook his head. “I can’t imagine it getting much better than this. Thank you both so much.”
    The other three likewise offered their thanks, and there were embraces all around. After Faltir had left, the four prepared to go out themselves for a leisurely walk. Rylek was about to go out the front door when he looked back at his mother. She was sitting by a window watching something he could not see. The sun shone on her flowing red hair, giving it a soft luminous glow. Her hands were crossed in her lap, and her posture, as always, was perfect. There was a look of pride on her face – not of the selfish arrogant kind, but of assurance. He wondered at that. But the pride could not overpower the warm kindness in her eyes. Suddenly he was