The Huntsman laughed easily at this. “Foolish and valiant. All the way until the end,” he said as he offered a sharp whistle. Soon the Huntsman was joined by several of his abominations. “Before my pets devour you alive, maybe I will let you live long enough to see your failure in protecting this girl. That would make the moment even sweeter.”
"Not while I still stand," said Marro as he limped toward the Huntsman.
"Then let us remedy that," said his enemy, before procuring the rifle slung upon his shoulder and shooting Marro in the chest.
"Marro!" Kaysa screamed as she rushed to the mercenary. Marro faltered back some steps before collapsing into her arms. A newfound pool of blood streamed from his chest and lips as he looked painfully at Kaysa. Each breath was now a battle, and it was clear that Marro would lose within moments.
Kaysa clutched the mercenary to her, willing him to not die. Yet the gravity of his wounds and the reality that enveloped them conquered her spirit. Her tears soon fell on Marro's cheeks. The mercenary choked once before offering her a gentle smile and closing his eyes. Kaysa could feel both his life and spirit seeping from Marro as he lost consciousness.
"I would advise you to step away from him quickly, child. My creatures shall feed soon and I do not wish you marred. For while he now belongs to my pets, you most assuredly now belong to me," said the Huntsman. It was clear by his eyes and the grunts and hisses of his creatures, that both in their own ways were hungry. The elf then licked his lips as he walked slowly toward Kaysa, clearly enjoying the building anticipation.
"I'll remain where I am," uttered Kaysa, not removing her eyes from Marro. "Better to share his fate together than be thrust into yours."
"It is laughable that you think you somehow hold a choice, darling," said the Huntsman.
Kaysa said no more to the Huntsman, still clutching to Marro. She could feel the last remnants of his life force fading, and the feeling crushed her. At the moment, she didn't care about her fate. All Kaysa wanted, all Kaysa desired in fact, was to save Marro and her friends. She wanted to stand against the encroaching inevitability and do something.
The Huntsman raised his hand to stay his pets a moment longer. The scent of blood was making them almost uncontrollable, yet their master understood their limits better than anyone. He had a few more moments to relish his victory and make his reward even greater, for the prize he sought was not wealth. The Huntsman required little in that regard. It was the pleasures that swelled in him now, like a thirst that needed quenching.
And now he would make his claim.
As the Huntsman reached for Kaysa, he paused just before grasping, noticing a change in the wind. The rock and dirt below him slowly trembled. Even his fearless creatures yelped and hissed at the wind as the restraint upon them became unbearable. Retreating, the Huntsman watched his prize as she trembled with the land, appearing to be the very cause of the disturbance. Not wishing to take chances, the Huntsman reclaimed his rifle and began reloading the weapon.
The power of the trembling increased, rising in Kaysa like a fever. The young elf was lost in concentration, emotions claiming her reason and narrowing her thinking to the most simplest and primal. All that remained of her thoughts were her loved ones and those that threatened to steal them from the world. Kaysa was tired of it all, but mostly she was tired of being powerless to stop it.
But no more.
Kaysa finally looked up to the Huntsman, opening her eyes. The Huntsman gasped at the sight, for all he could see from them was light, shimmering and growing. Slowly Kaysa stood, never relinquishing her gaze and her anger toward the Huntsman. Wisps of magic danced from her eyes and being. The young elf opened her hands to reveal rising clouds of mystic power. Her hair raged on a magically conjured wind.
Quite quickly, the Huntsman's desires fled him as he pointed to Kaysa. "Feed, my children. Feed!" he commanded.
The creatures under the Huntsman's yoke rushed their quarry hungrily and without hesitance. With poisonous fangs and sharpened claws they charge, prepared to fight over scraps of flesh and muscle. The creatures, having Kaysa surrounded, used their honed reflexes and instincts to swarm and leap at Kaysa and Marro. It would only take seconds to have both elves utterly devoured piece by piece.
Drawing her hands back, Kaysa then pushed forward with both of them. A furious fount of underground water spat from around the young elf, shielding her and pushing the rushing creatures away. The water was forceful enough to halt the advance completely, and in some places break bone and tear at flesh. The creatures shrieked in pain and surprise as they were tossed back roughly by the surging waters.
As the creatures recovered, the conjured waters dissipated, but not before saturating the ground. The wet grounds surrounding Kaysa soon sprouted green life and budding flowers. Still the swelling magics rushed through Kaysa as she looked on the regrouping creatures. The Huntsman was frozen in place, staring fixedly at Kaysa and the new life forging at her feet.
Hissing again, the creatures prepared to attack Kaysa once more. The young elf clenched her fists before her though, and as she did, the ground surrounding the creatures thundered to life. Thorny vines spat through the rock and dirt, wrapping and subduing the creatures before constricting like snakes. The creatures howled for their master as the thorns continuously tightened.
The Huntsman was frozen as he watched. He could sense the agony from his ilk as the vines tore and cut to the bone. Soon the Huntsman was laced with blood as streams gasped from his creations. The vines ceased to rest until each creature lay dead and torn to pieces.
"What are you?" demanded the Huntsman of Kaysa, yet the young elf said nothing as she settled her raging eyes upon him. The Huntsman trained his rifle upon her head and fired instinctively.
The bullet never reached Kaysa, for a rise of magic swelled and caught the bullet. Kaysa watched it as the magics discarded the spent payload. The Huntsman, fearing fear for the first time since his youth, fought the trembling that threatened to overwhelm him. Drawing his long knife, he yelled defiantly before charging Kaysa.
Kaysa watched the Huntsman passively, for no fear clawed at her then. Holding up a hand before her, the nature and dirt around the elf rose to challenge the Huntsman. Rock and vine ensnared the man, swallowing him completely up to his chin. Unable to move or fight, the Huntsman bellowed in panic as the soils and plants that ensnared him pressed on his flesh and clothes.
"Release me," croaked the Huntsman, still struggling for freedom and for air.
"That was my intention," said Kaysa. Her voice was still her own, yet it echoed with a power like never before. Turning her hand upward, Kaysa drew her arm toward her as she made a fist.
Whatever protest the Huntsman held to his lips was extinguished completely in those seconds. The elements that ensnared him constricted quickly, collapsing the Huntsman's body. The Huntsman croaked once, choked by his own blood before his head fell from his compressed body. Blood spat skyward in a showering font before the land swallowed the remains of Kaysa's enemy completely.
Still surging with power, Kaysa looked down to her dying friend. Marro watched her with faded eyes, torn between relief and horror. Before he could speak though, Kaysa's hands directed upon him as the coursing magics hit him fully. Marro grunted and screamed as his body was wracked with pain. Kaysa continued the pressure as the magic attacked the mercenary's wounds and restored him. Soon he was healed and Marro breathed once more, looking at Kaysa with curiosity and fear.
It was then, triumphant and spent, that Kaysa fell to the ground, willing again for the nothingness that gladly claimed her.
12 Rebirth and Revolution
Kaysa’s senses rushed back to her, flooding her being and pulling her to wakefulness. She gasped for breath as she sat upright, her vision slowly clearing through a foggy haze. The young elf had no way of knowing how long she had been out, but she remembered quickly her thoughts and heart as she searched about frantically. Her heart was troubled and aching for answ
ers.
“Marro!” she cried out as she fought to focus her senses. Immediately she realized that she was no longer outdoors. A comfortable bed rested under her and a warm blanket rested atop her legs. She calmed herself as she absorbed her dark surroundings. A smell of familiarity crept into her nose and she realized that she was back in Onzlyn’s home of Faeth.
“I must say, Kaysa of Quenthell, I am deeply touched by the sentiment,” said a cheery, all-to-familiar voice.
Kaysa grinned as relief swelled her spirits. “Marro! You’re alive!” she said as she reached her arms out to the reclining mercenary.
Shaking his head, Marro stood and took her hands, squeezing them for assurance. “All thanks to that goes to you,” he said with a nod. “Much to the dismay of Vienda and Lokus I’m certain.”
Kaysa searched the room. “They are here? Are they well?”
Marro nodded. “They are all safe. The alternate route proved fruitful. Delegas was able to keep them just ahead of Vakk and his men. I will send for them,” he said before motioning to the door.
Kaysa lowered her head, grateful for the news. Soon she looked at Marro, and when she did only questions filled her eyes. “What happened out there, Marro?” she asked.
Marro chuckled again, shaking his head. “I was hoping it would be you that held such answers, Kaysa, for you were the catalyst for it all.”
Kaysa thought on this, shaking her head when no definitive answer arose. "I haven't the notion as to what happened," she said before touching Marro's side. "You are completely healed."
"Another thing that can be attributed to you, young one," replied Marro with a shrug. "I am fitter than I have been in some time, and I've been in enough battles to have realized my time was up out there. You saved me. And for that, I thank you."
"Are we certain that it was me?" she asked.
"Oh, of that, I hold no doubt," said Marro. "I am simply still trying to understand how."
"Then we are joined in this quandary," replied Kaysa.
"What is life without some mystery," offered Marro before turning and raising his voice. "She is awake!"
At this statement, the door to the room opened, revealing the others of their party. Kaysa was overwhelmed at the sight of them, and offered her open arms as they rushed to her bed. Soon, Kaysa's arms were around Vienda and Lokus, who both hugged her fiercely. Looking up from the embrace, Kaysa motioned for Onzlyn to join them. The Dynpri looked about with uncertainty before Marro pushed him to Kaysa's outstretched hand. Reluctantly, Onzlyn joined the embrace and it was long moments before Kaysa released any of them.
"It is good fortune that finds us reunited again, Kaysa of Quenthell," observed Delegas from the edge of the bed.
"I thought we had lost you," whispered Lokus, fighting his own emotions as he spoke.
"What matters now is that we are together again," whispered Kaysa as she squeezed Vienda's shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Vienda. I miss Khey too."
With scant emotion, Vienda spoke with drilled precision. "He made it to Faeth with us. We shall pay our respects and put him to rest when the time is right," she said. "But please, for now, I beg you to say no more on the matter, for it will surely break any resolve I still hold to."
"Aye," whispered Kaysa, squeezing to Vienda tightly one more time. She said nothing more of the matter, for nothing else needed to be stated.
At last, Kaysa released her friends as she observed each one in turn. The young elf was satisfied to see them all well. But soon her gaze went to Delegas, for Kaysa held many questions. "What happened after we escaped, Delegas? I should be dead now, along with Marro. Yet we were saved by magic, and through strength that I have never quite seen before."
Delegas nodded to this knowingly. "The seed is awake and quite powerful it seems," he offered.
"No," replied Kaysa, lowering her gaze. "That cannot be it. The pouch was pierced in our escape. The seed is nothing more than dust. I am so very sorry, Delegas, but I have failed."
Delegas smiled softly, shaking his head. "No, Kaysa. You are quite wrong. The seed is alive and well," he said.
"How can that be?" asked Kaysa.
"Because you are the seed now," said Delegas.
Kaysa was robbed of her voice as she looked at Delegas. His words pressed on her chest and spirit as their gravity weighed upon her being. She could feel all eyes on her as she looked at her own trembling hands, still making sense of the knowledge that was just given to her.
“What do you mean she is the seed?” asked Marro finally, breaking the looming silence.
“I mean exactly what I said,” replied the son of Talcoros. “It is why she was chosen by my father. Kaysa is innocent. She is not darkened by years or greed, nor has she been corrupted in any way. She was a natural choice to be seed bearer. The ritual awakened the seed of Tharador, and its essence merged with Kaysa. She is now the seed and possesses all of its power.”
“That cannot be true,” whispered Lokus as he reached for his friend, squeezing her shoulder with disbelief.
“But it is,” replied Delegas. “It is the truth that my father held from you, Kaysa. He knew the gravity of choosing you for this and the burden you would bear. I wonder if he feared your response had you known the truth fully.”
“And what truth is that?” demanded Marro.
Delegas sighed softly to himself, shaking his head at the truth he had to administer. “That as the seed, Kaysa must be taken to what remains of Tharador and place her hands within the sacred soils that remain. It is she who now holds the power to save Kel’Thara and revitalize the world tree…though such an expense will cost Kaysa her life.”
These words rocked Kaysa as Marro clenched his fists. “And how do we stop that from happening?” he demanded.
“We cannot,” said Delegas. “Either Kaysa dies trying to revive Tharador or she dies succeeding. She is the only way now.”
Lokus choked on these words as Marro bore down on Delegas. Clutching the elf by his tunic, Marro pressed Delegas against the wall firmly. “It would be in your very best interests to undo what you have done before your death is as assured as Kaysa’s, Delegas.”
Delegas did not struggle against Marro as he replied. “It is not my blame to fully bear,” he replied firmly. “I did activate the seed, but it was already bound to Kaysa. My father saw to that. If I could have taken this fate from one so young, I would have. But that was not my choice to make.”
Marro thrust his hands from Delegas bitterly. “Then damns to you and your father,” he spat before turning away from the son of Talcoros.
“For what it is worth, I’m sorry, Kaysa,” said Delegas as he straightened his tunic. “I opposed many of my father’s ways and rituals. I am certain it was a desperate and painful decision for him to make. It is the only way I could fathom forgiving him. But I cannot take this from you. No one can. You are the seed of Tharador. And it has made you more powerful than you can understand. I listened to Marro’s story while you slept. It is you who stopped the Huntsman and his creatures, and it was you who healed Marro completely.”
Kaysa offered no response to the words of Delegas. Instead she burst into tears as she buried her face within her hands. Lokus placed an arm around her as Marro fumed in the corner. Vienda stared grimly at nothing as she processed the revelation. Delegas lowered his gaze under the scrutiny of Marro and Onzlyn.
Delegas could stand the sadness and scrutiny no longer as he spoke again. “You have been given a tremendous honor and burden, Kaysa of Quenthell. What you do next is your choice alone. But it is you who must choose.”
“What choice have I been truly given?” Kaysa asked as she quelled her sobs. “My course is death regardless.”
“But it is you who will decide what will be done with the time you have remaining,” offered Marro.
“Leave her be,” said Vienda almost absently.
Delegas tried to clarify his position. “I simply wish-”
Marro held up a hand to silence Delegas as he bo
re a furious glance. “You have placed the weight of a world upon her soul, Delegas. I think you have done enough for one day. She’s still but a child, no matter what has befallen her. I will state this though. If you so much as refer to her fate as an honor or privilege I swear you will be felled by my hand a moment later. I hope for your sake we are clear on that matter.”
“Quite clear,” said Delegas softly before he returned his attention to Kaysa. “Take the moments you need, Kaysa. When you are ready, there are those that would wish to see you,” he said.
“Who?” whispered Kaysa, her face still in her hands.
“Everyone, I would imagine,” offered Delegas before he turned and left the room.
With Delegas gone, all that remained was silence interrupted periodically from Kaysa’s grieving. The others waited patiently for Kaysa to recover. Lokus fought frustrated tears himself as he accepted the judgment wrought upon his friend. Marro leaned on the wall, arms crossed as he watched the young elf in her pain, angered by the knowledge there was nothing he could do.
At last, it was Onzlyn who spoke. “What is your course, Kaysa?” he asked softly. “You are welcome to stay in Faeth. There is no shame in such a thing.”
“What he means,” added Marro, “is that we are behind you, no matter your decision.”
“Yes, that,” added Onzlyn.
“We can go wherever you want, Kaysa,” said Lokus, squeezing her shoulder again. “Just tell us what you want to do.”
“There is nowhere left to go, Lokus,” said Kaysa as she wiped her eyes. “Not home. Not anywhere that shall sustain life much longer. And not anywhere where we will be safe from the forces of Thorindale. This is my plight, now.”
“Only if you wish it to be,” said Marro.
Kaysa looked sadly at the mercenary. “I’ve learned that sometimes the only choice is choosing how you face the fates thrust upon you,” she said somberly. “And for my friends and for Kel’Thara, I must face this until the end.”
The Last of Kel'Thara Page 18
