He tried to move and found that his wrists were bound, as were his ankles. He was trapped. In the darkness of the mine, he wasn’t sure that even if he weren’t bound that he could find his way free.
The sense of teralin was all around him. It came from the walls of the mines but it also came from something else.
Were the artifacts nearby?
As far as he knew, the teralin throne remained somewhere within the mountain. Urik had some use for it—something that was more than merely for torture. He wasn’t certain what that was, and wasn’t certain that Urik would share, but there had been something to it, some use that he had intended for Listain. It was more than about torment.
He heard a soft scraping and turned toward the sound. A lantern glowed in the distance, the soft white light that he’d attributed to the miner’s lanterns. They were Urik’s creation. Tresten had shared that when they had arrived in the temple in Thealon, a gift of knowledge that Urik had offered.
The figure that approached became clear and Endric glared at him. “How long do you intend to keep me captive?” he asked Urik.
He chuckled. “Is that what you think this is? Do you believe that I’ve captured you to ransom you for something?”
“You waited until my father was out of the city. You used the note from Tresten as a way of summoning me. I think that you do intend to ransom me. I doubt the Denraen will offer much for me.”
Urik chuckled and took a seat across from Endric. He had a lump of bread in his hand and tore off a piece, stuffing it into Endric’s mouth. He had no choice but to chew. It was surprisingly sweet, and his rumbling stomach betrayed his hunger. Urik grinned at him and tore off another piece when Endric had finished chewing the first.
“I don’t have any misguided belief that the Denraen will offer much ransom for you. Perhaps before you went on your little jaunt to the Antrilii lands, your father might have placed more value on you then. Now?” He shrugged. “You have value, but it’s a different sort of value.”
“What sort of different value do I have?”
Urik flicked his gaze around the tunnels. “I told you the truth when I said that you surprised me. I had not expected you to have a connection to teralin. When you challenged your father, you gave me an opportunity. I had not anticipated that you would turn that opportunity into a way of overriding my plans.”
Endric grunted. “I’m sorry that I was the reason that you failed to overthrow the Denraen.”
Urik shook his head. “No. Don’t be sorry. I’m not disappointed that you revealed the secret of the teralin. I’m only surprised that it was you who managed to do so. And yet, because of that, you gained the attention of Tresten.”
“So?”
Urik leaned toward him, a grin spreading across his face. “You don’t know much about him, do you?”
“I know that he is a powerful Mage. I know that he possesses knowledge that few other Magi managed to possess.”
Urik’s grin widened. “Powerful, yes, but perhaps not for the reason that you believe.”
“Then for what reason?”
Urik shrugged. “When we find him, you will understand.”
“You know how to find Tresten?”
He nodded at Endric. “I don’t, but he seems to think that you do.”
Endric shook his head. “I haven’t seen Tresten since we defeated you. Why would I have any way of finding him? I’ve spent the last few months in the northern mountains with the Antrilii.”
“Why, indeed? I admit that it is a bit surprising, and I had not expected you to be the connection to him. I thought that perhaps your father might lead me to him.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You will. I think that you are much brighter than you’re given credit for.” Urik stood and grabbed Endric’s wrists, jerking him to his feet. “Now. I’m going to cut the bindings free from your ankles. You will walk, and if you think to try anything different with me, you’ll find that I’m more capable than you suspect.”
Endric glared at him. This was his father’s fault. He had trusted Urik and allowed him to wander freely. But it was also Endric’s fault. He had answered the summons, knowing that it was from Urik and knowing what he did about the man and the fact that he could not be trusted. That mistake had led to his capture, and now… Now he wasn’t entirely certain what else would happen to him. What did Urik plan?
Urik cut the bindings and Endric staggered forward. They hadn’t been tight—at least not too tight, but now that he was free, he was tempted to kick, to lash out, but he was curious.
What did Urik know about Tresten?
Then again, he wasn’t sure that he wanted Urik to find Tresten. He didn’t know what the man wanted with the Mage, but he had an unsettled feeling that whatever reason it was, it likely meant something dangerous for him.
Urik marched him along the tunnels. The lantern lit the way, guiding them as they made their way. Urik navigated easily, following some unseen pathway, managing to move through as easily as any of the miners would have.
“Where are we going?” Endric asked.
“When you discovered the note, it gave me an idea.” They were descending now, a slope leading them gradually downward. “Your father freed me from my cell and forced me to charge the teralin for him, which I was more than happy to do, especially as it seemed to grant me some measure of freedom. I hadn’t learned that Tresten was missing until much later.”
They turned a corner, veering off what Endric suspected was the primary shaft. “Why did it matter for you?”
“Why? Because with Tresten in the city, I didn’t dare attempt to escape.”
“You fear Tresten more than you feared my father?”
“Feared might be a bit strong. I certainly respect Tresten in ways that I don’t respect your father.”
They squeezed through a narrow opening and Endric felt the pressure of the hot teralin upon him. All of it was neutral here, none of it charged, and he was tempted to leave a trail of positively charged teralin to follow if he were to manage to escape. He resisted the urge to do it, anticipating that if he tried it, Urik would know.
“Why now? Why did you wait until now to attempt to break free?”
“It was because of Tresten. When he sent that note, I knew that there was a way for me to use you.”
“I’m not sure there’s anything that you can use me for,” Endric said. “Tresten helped me, but he did so because he was asked…” He wasn’t about to reveal anything about the Conclave, not to Urik. Yet, from the hint of a smile on Urik’s face, he wondered if the man didn’t already know. It was possible that he had already learned something of the Conclave and that he had discovered that there were those who had a different sort of power and sought a different sort of purpose.
“Go on,” Urik said.
“What is there to go on about? You’ve already made up your mind.”
Urik grinned at him. “This has nothing to do with making up my mind.”
“Then what does it have to do with?” Endric asked.
“You will see.”
They continued walking, and it became clear that they were heading deep into the mountain, making their way through tunnels that Endric might have passed through when he had been chased by the Deshmahne. Then, he had run out of fear, hurrying to reach Vasha so that he could warn the Denraen. These mines were supposedly closed and he saw no sign of any miner and no sign of lanterns—not as he had the last time he’d come through here.
What would Senda think of his absence?
Would she believe that he had disappeared? Would she have thought that he’d taken Pendin with him? The timing was terrible. He understood how it would look. Not only would he be gone, now it would be Pendin with him.
That wasn’t at all what he wanted for his friend.
They walked for what seemed an incredibly long time. Urik seemed content to remain silent and barely spoke, only motioning from time to time as he showed Endric which direction
they needed to follow. They made their way steadily downward. Urik navigated the tunnels with expertise, and Endric marveled at how much the man must have had to study to master these tunnels.
Eventually, they reached an opening with light spilling out. Endric blinked against it and rubbed his eyes. Had they traveled all night? It had been dark when he’d gone to find Urik, and he wasn’t sure how long he had been out, lying unconscious after he’d been struck. The throbbing in his head had eased the longer he had walked.
They emerged from the mine and out into the daylight. The air smelled crisp, mixing with flowers scattered in a field nearby. A few of the towering pines that grew along the mountains added their aroma. A cold breeze gusted out of the north and mixed with the warmth that radiated from the teralin, warmth that was both unsettling and comforting.
Urik stood for a moment, surveying the landscape around him. They had to squeeze through a pair of towering rocks to get free, and when they did, Endric couldn’t believe how easy it was to access the mines. They were supposed to have been closed off, but what he saw was nothing closed off. Navigating through the mines would have been difficult, but it was not impossible to reach them.
That surprised him. His father should have secured them better, especially knowing what they did.
“What now?” Endric asked.
“Now? Now we continue to walk.”
Endric grunted. “You won’t make very good time on foot.”
“We won’t have to walk for long. Laurent isn’t far from us.”
“There are regiments of Denraen who patrol in Laurent.”
“I’m quite aware, Endric.”
That was what made Urik dangerous. His knowledge of the Denraen was extensive. He’d served in a role that had granted him access to knowledge and understanding, and he had taken that and twisted it, and now he was using it against them.
He had already used it against them when he had attacked, guiding the Ravers against the Denraen. This time, it was only Endric who was in any danger. None of the other Denraen were at risk.
He would rather it be him than anyone else, and would rather be the one to potentially suffer, than have others—new recruits like Bem—be dragged into a fight that they were not yet equipped to handle.
If Endric ever did manage to regain any significant rank, he would need to improve the training of the new recruits. Too many of them were unprepared for the dangers they would face. They were plucked from choosings, the best soldiers from each country, taken to be a part of the Denraen, but many still had so much to learn.
They walked until darkness fell once more.
When they stopped for the night, it was near a small copse of trees. Urik tied Endric’s ankles, binding them so that he couldn’t walk. He was then secured to a tree, in such a position that he wouldn’t be able to cut himself free. Then Urik settled himself and fell quickly asleep.
Endric lay awake, his mind racing, trying to understand what had happened and how he had been captured, as well as what Urik might want from him.
Answers didn’t come and he fell into a fitful sleep.
16
Endric awoke to a faint streak of light on the horizon. Urik sat upright, running a stone across Endric’s sword, sharpening it. He glanced up the moment Endric awoke, as if he somehow were aware of it.
“I’m sorry if you didn’t sleep well.”
Endric grunted. “You could have cut me free and I would’ve slept better.”
“I’m sorry that I couldn’t do that, either.”
“You have my sword.”
“Is it yours? I seem to recall hearing that you found this blade in my quarters. That would make it mine.”
“You would have had nothing to do with a positively charged teralin sword.”
Urik chuckled. “Perhaps you’re right. I’ve never been able to benefit from the positively charged teralin. I suppose that says something about me, though it could be only that I haven’t yet learned the secret.”
“Do you intend to change the polarity of it?”
Urik stared at the sword, running the stone across the blade. “I would never have guessed that the polarity could be changed. It was my understanding that once the metal was charged, it was permanent.”
“Novan seemed to think otherwise.”
“Novan always was the best historian.”
He said it with a hint of disgust. What had happened between Urik and Novan?
“Do you intend to reach Laurent today?”
“We’ll reach Laurent, and then we’ll secure horses, and from there…” Urik grinned. “From there, you will have to wait to find out.”
“Do you intend to torment me the entire time?”
Urik frowned. “Other than when I struck you to secure you, I’ve done nothing to torment you.”
“Yet.”
Urik smiled. “Perhaps you’re right. Yet.”
He stood and grabbed Endric by the wrists, jerking him to his feet again. They started off, walking through thick grasses, damp morning dew brushing against Endric’s boots, darkening them. The air had a fragrance to it, one that was pleasant and familiar. He wished he’d brought his cloak and noted that Urik had one.
“Tell me about your family,” Endric said.
“I don’t talk about them,” Urik said.
“You know about mine.”
“Because I served with them.”
Endric resisted the urge to call him out and resisted the urge to say something that he might regret. “Why won’t you tell me about them?”
“I’ve tried to forget them.”
“You’d forget your family? I would think that you would want to honor them and that you would want to do anything that you could to remember them.”
Urik’s jaw clenched and they walked for a while in silence. Endric was tempted to push him, to see if he could coax him into revealing more, but he didn’t want to anger the man. Urik had proven himself deadly with the sword, and he was at a disadvantage, bound as he was. He needed to wait for the right moment, and when he found it, he would attack.
“You had two children?”
Urik glanced over. “Is it your intention to continue to question?”
Endric shrugged. “You’ve got me captive. What else is there for me to do?”
“Silence.”
“Consider this my way of tormenting you.”
“I could stuff cloth into your mouth.”
“I think you enjoy talking to me,” Endric said.
Urik snorted. “Enjoy might be a bit strong.”
“How old would they be?”
Urik let out a frustrated sigh. “Josiah would have been twenty-two. Camira would have been twenty.”
“And your wife?”
“She would be the same age as me.”
“What happened with them?”
They passed a stream and Urik paused, leaning to take a long drink. He stared into the water, as if watching his own reflection. What did he see when he did? Did he see a traitor? Did he see a man who had betrayed the family that he sought vengeance for? Or did he see nothing like that? Endric couldn’t imagine such betrayal, living with it day after day, and how that must have changed him.
Perhaps that was the reason positively charged teralin would not respond to Urik. He had changed himself, which in turn, changed the way that he could respond to the metal.
“I’ve told you. The Deshmahne.”
“You’ve told me that the Deshmahne were responsible for their deaths, but you haven’t told me how.”
Urik wiped his arm across his mouth and stood, looking over at Endric. His eyes had hardened, taking on a dangerous glint. “And I won’t. Do not ask me about them again.”
Endric held his gaze and then shrugged. He leaned forward and cupped water to his mouth, taking a long drink. His stomach rumbled. The bread that he’d eaten in the tunnels had only been enough to take the edge off his appetite, but barely more than that. He needed more food. When they reached La
urent, would Urik get them anything to eat? Did he have money for supplies?
How much had he planned for this?
“Why are you so determined to reach Tresten?” Endric asked after they had walked for a little while further.
Urik glanced over. The hard edge to his eyes remained, but it had softened somewhat. “Tresten holds the key to something that I need.”
“How?”
“So many questions. I would have expected that you would know the answers by now, but perhaps you were not as close to Tresten as I believed.”
Endric laughed. “I could’ve told you that we weren’t particularly close.”
“Yet he left Vasha to help you. That tells me you were closer than you realize.”
“Believe what you must, but I’m not sure that I know anything that will help you find him.”
Urik grinned. “Perhaps you know more than you realize. We will see in time.”
They walked in silence. In the distance, Endric saw the shape of Laurent come into view. He wondered if Urik would bring him into the city. If he did, Endric suspected he could raise enough noise to get himself free.
Urik answered that by tying Endric to a tree near another stream.
He hurried into the city, leaving Endric bound by himself. He tried to break free of the bindings, but Urik had tied a secure knot, and there was nothing that Endric could do to get free.
He watched the sun continue to climb in the sky and ticked off the time as he sat alone, waiting. Either Urik would return or some other traveler would come by. If they did not, he could linger here. How long could he last if Urik decided to abandon him here? Endric suspected that it was no more than a few days.
Late in the day, Urik returned, guiding two horses. One of them had a heavy pack and Endric couldn’t help but be impressed with Urik’s ability to obtain supplies. Had he paid for them or had he stolen them?
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