Shey held up her hand to stop him. “I don’t want to know what you did with him. I abhor killing indiscriminately like this.” She looked him in the eye, and he took a step back. “You believe me now? The blood of these men is on your hands. We could have avoided this bloodshed. Now, go get Oria and get her ready to travel. I have heard of Captain Praf. He was a wielder during the War of the Oracle. He will not be so easy for me to defeat, especially if he is accompanied by ten men.” She wondered if she sounded too harsh, but she knew she couldn’t afford to wait any longer. She looked down at the four men on the floor and turned away. Such a waste, five wielders for the life of one.
Del disappeared into the back of the farmhouse to get his daughter.
Del’s farm was located just west of the capital city of Symbor in the kingdom of Symboria. All Shey had to do was lead them directly west to get to the Sacred Land. She was afraid that Captain Praf might be coming from the northwest and would intercept them, so she stayed to the coast as much as possible.
Lady Shey rode her horse next to Del, and Oria rode just behind her father. After a long silence, Del spoke. “I want to apologize, my lady. I was skeptical of your story until the Enforcers actually showed up. I should have believed you.”
“Aye, you should have. I have other duties to perform besides running all over the countryside trying to rescue novice wielders.” She intentionally softened her expression. She could tell by his face that Del was genuinely sorry. “What is done is done. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Wielders that hunt wielders are the lowest of people, in my opinion. I am not in the habit of killing them, but I know from experience that they have no qualms about killing other wielders.” She hesitated because she didn’t want to frighten Oria. She decided to say it, anyway, just phrased gentler. “They would have done terrible things to Oria.”
“I had heard of Enforcers. I thought they were around to protect us,” Del said.
“No matter how barbaric some people thought the magic law was, life continued on after the War of the Oracle in relative peace, so no one questioned the Enforcers’ authority. Their leaders have spent a lot of time and effort to cover up some of their atrocities and rebuild their reputation.
“They only go after potential wielders, then?”
“Not always. There is a select few who display the ability to use mental abilities called the wild magic. They are largely exiled rather than killed, because of their tendency to slay several Enforcers at their moment of execution. Only the weak afflicted with wild magic are executed now.”
“You do not believe Enforcers are here for the greater good?”
“You are remarkably uninformed about the Enforcers to be a child of Symboria. Most Symborian children are taught to hate wielders and magic. In fact, they have been known to turn over their own family to Enforcers when they discovered the ability.” She stopped her horse and studied Del for a moment.
Del let his horse come to a natural stop. “It’s different when the accused is your own. I would never turn over my own flesh and blood.”
Shey considered Oria, who had not said a word the whole trip. The girl looked at her and then at Del and then back to her. Lady Shey pulled out her dagger. She moved between Del and Oria. “Who are you? How did you come across this girl?” Shey could see several horsemen riding from the northwest and a rider coming from behind. “What have you done?”
Del held his hand up, and the girl, Oria, began to choke. She fell off her horse. Shey got off her horse and went to her defense.
“I won’t kill her . . . yet. I just want to make sure you don’t run. You can’t resist, can you? You could ride off right now and be free, but you will stay beside this insignificant novice wielder wench. Pathetic!”
“I should have known! No decent person in Symboria would just sit around and wait for Enforcers to come and take their daughter away. You barely lifted a finger to help when they did come.”
“You just said that some would turn over their own.”
“They aren’t who I consider to be decent people. Who would lead their own children off to slaughter?”
“So you said it to test me, then.”
“I must admit that concerned people are usually shocked when I tell them such a horrible thing, but not you. You said the right words but you showed no emotion, a dead giveaway.”
“I will have to remember that the next time I entrap a lawbreaker.”
The rider from behind came to a stop. It was Captain Vose, alive and well. “Good work, Lieutenant. This wielder has to answer for four Enforcer deaths now on top of charges of harboring wielders.”
Lady Shey cracked a smile. “You really don’t know who I am, do you?”
“Lady, you could be the queen of Symboria for all I care.”
Del pointed to the riders in the northeast. “Is that Captain Row Praf and his men?”
“Your guess is as good as mine. I did, however, send for reinforcements.”
“I thought you said Captain Praf and ten men were on their way.”
“I was bluffing.”
A few moments later, the men arrived. There were four men led by a captain, all in dark grey cloaks.
“What do we have here?” the captain asked.
Captain Vose grabbed Shey’s arm. “Enforcer killer, and worse, a wielder. She brings this girl with her to teach her the dark crafts.” He reached into her cloak, found her daggers, and disarmed her.
“You’re a fool, Vose. This is Lady Shey of Lux Enor. She has the eyes and ears of the highlord. She can have your head on a whim,” the captain said.
“Not if we take hers first. If we leave her bones out in the Sacred Land, no one would ever know.”
“Put her back on her horse with the girl. The Sacred Land isn’t far.”
“Aye, sir.” He poked Shey. “You heard him—mount up.” He grabbed the girl who began to whimper until Shey calmed her with a caress of the girl’s face and a shake of her head when the girl looked up at her.
The Enforcers led Lady Shey and the girl across the border into the Sacred Land and kept riding for a few more hours. Shey knew they were not far from the Defender outpost where she was planning on taking the girl anyway by the time they stopped.
The captain ordered her down from her horse. “Rope?” he asked one of his men.
When he had the rope in hand, he began to tie up Lady Shey. He slipped a small stone into the palm of her hand instead of tying the rope. He tapped her on the forearm to let her know he was ready. She pushed him back into her horse, flung open her cloak, and called her daggers to her. They ripped their way from Vose and returned to their sheaths on Shey’s waist. She gave Vose a wicked smile, grabbed ahold of the girl, and used the dragon stone the captain had given her. She appeared at the Defender outpost a moment later.
The girl was stunned. “What happened?”
“That captain was really my friend, Lyrrath. He had a personal Lora Daine, a dragon stone.”
Shey could see Oria didn’t know what a Lora Daine was. “It’s a small stone that dragon knights use to transport themselves over short distances. It’s dragon magic, the only magic that will work in the Sacred Land. Usually, one this size can only send one person, but you and I are small enough it was able to send us both. Don’t worry about it. Just be glad I had my friend check on us.”
She took the girl and walked into the wooden outpost building. Once inside, she helped herself to some bittering tea, which was boiling on the small metal stove. A woman in blue robes sat at the desk, writing on parchment.
“I see Lyrrath found you,” the woman said.
“What was that?” Shey said, still pouring the dark, fragrant liquid into a small tin cup.
“The Lora Daine. You used the stone.”
“Aye.” She handed the stone over to the woman. “You will see Lyrrath gets it back, won’t you?”
“Certainly.” She stopped writing and motioned for Oria to come to her.
“Go on. Oria, this is Enowe
ne. She will instruct you.”
The girl went to Enowene. “You will never have to worry about anything as long as you are in my care.”
Lady Shey bent down to the girl. “You will be okay now if I leave you with Enowene?”
The girl nodded and gave Shey a hug. “That man. He wouldn’t let me talk. He did something to me. Will I be able to do that too?”
“That and more if you study hard and listen to Enowene.”
“I will. No one will do anything like that to me ever again!”
Shey blew on her bittering tea. “Before I travel back to Lux Enor, you want me to go to the ruins of the Temple of the Oracle?”
“Aye, something is stirring up the Sacred Land. The Defenders that occupy this outpost are out patrolling an area where the dead are said to walk again this very moment.”
“Is there any truth to it?”
“I came from my old tower in Old Symbor and traveled here across the middle of the Sacred Land and saw nothing out of the ordinary.” She reached into her knapsack and produced a blue checkered cloth and handed it to Oria. “Are you hungry, dear?”
The girl nodded and took the cloth. Inside was bread, cheese, and dried, seasoned beef.
Shey took another drink from her cup. “Why do you want me to go to the ruins?”
“It’s Morgoran. I know his predictions mostly do not come true, but he has been spouting something about the Oracle of late. He says the Sacred Land is regaining its essence and with it, the Oracle will return. Ianthill believes you should go there and look it over.”
“Why didn’t Ianthill come and see for himself?”
“Ha! You really think that one of the great First Trine would do something so trivial? Your master, my brother, has far more important things to do than chase after Morgoran’s visions.”
Shey put the empty tin cup back where she found it. “All right, the ruins of the temple it is. Is there a horse for me in the stables?”
“Aye, there is.”
“Enowene, those men we escaped from, they are not far from here. The man, Del, he can sense her. Lyrrath might lead them away, but it’s possible they will come here.”
“The Defenders of the Sacred Land will have something to say about that. They are due back at any moment, and if they find Enforcers anywhere near here, there will be blood. Don’t worry.”
Lady Shey kissed Oria on the top of her head. “I will see you soon, child. You listen to Enowene. She trained me, too, once upon a time.”
“I will,” Oria said between bites.
Shey gathered her cloak about her and left for the stables.
Chapter 2: The Sacred Land
Lady Shey bent down to one knee and scooped up a handful of earth. She let the dirt filter between her fingers. The Sacred Land doesn’t feel different than any other dirt, she thought. The low, heavy clouds made the Sacred Land appear sinister as far as she could see, which was fitting given the land’s history. Still, her horse had been acting spooked since the moment they left the outpost. Leading her steed by the reins, she walked along the barren wasteland. No trees grew anymore in the Sacred Land, and the ones that had been there before were like twisted, dead fingers reaching desperately for the grey sky. The further she entered the Sacred Land, the more the dirt beneath her feet felt dead and colorless. Still, she soldiered on.
About midday, she stopped to have a bite to eat. She had to carry food for her horse since there was no grass for it to graze on. She sat down on a dead log and opened up the food pack she had brought. The day’s lunch consisted of dried beef and a hefty portion of cheese. The sheer desolation of the Sacred Land took its toll on any weary traveler. There were no animals, no plant life, no sign of people as far as the eye could see. It was also difficult to mark distance and time once one traveled far enough into the interior. Lady Shey didn’t want to spend any more time being idle than she had to, even to eat.
Once again on horseback, Lady Shey decided to make better time to her destination. It was midafternoon by the sun’s position when she caught sight of her journey's end. She reached the site and dismounted. The ground and surrounding area didn’t appear any different from the greyish, lifeless earth she’d been passing on all day. A lone marker signified the difference; this was the spot of a great sacrifice. Lady Shey went to her saddlebags and removed a single red rose and placed it at the foot of the marker.
“I miss your face,” she said.
“I’m sure she misses yours too,” a male voice from somewhere behind her said.
Startled, Lady Shey bounded into a defensive position until she saw who was speaking. “Gondrial. You know better than to sneak up on people.”
“I didn’t realize I was sneaking. There isn’t a person around for miles. You can practically see the ocean from here it’s so flat.”
“I was preoccupied. There wasn’t anyone around to worry about, or so I thought.”
“I have to admit, I did travel here as fast as I could. Traveling across the Sacred Land alone requires one to be of particularly strong will.” He found a fallen log nearby to sit on the ground and lean on.
“That’s why I asked Enowene to send you on to meet me here,” Shey said.
“Oh, were you planning on traveling with me to Brookhaven, then?”
“Brookhaven? I thought you were going to return with me to Lux Enor.”
“You know how I feel about Lux Enor. Too many aristocrats and snobs.”
“You mean too many angry husbands?”
Gondrial folded his arms. “I think you might be jumping to conclusions.”
“Aye, the right conclusions!” Shey said.
“I’ve hardly angered any husbands in at least a few months.”
“A few months? I would put all the gold in my pocket on a wager it was more like a few days.”
“I see your opinion of me is as high as ever.” Gondrial unfolded his arms and produced his smoking pipe. “It’s of little matter.” Gondrial stuffed his pipe with tabac and lit it afterward, puffing clouds of white smoke as he did. He leaned back against the dead log. “The light is fading. It might be a good idea to unpack our camping gear, assuming you’re wanting to set up camp here.”
“This is as good a spot as any,” Lady Shey said. She joined him at the fallen log. “I want to thank you. I know it isn’t easy traveling through the Sacred Land. You didn’t have to come.”
Gondrial puffed his pipe and let out a cloud of smoke. “Please, sit down.” He patted the ground beside the log. “I’m still not sure why you wanted to make the trip into the Sacred Land. When was the last time you came here?”
“It has been a while. I didn’t really want to come here, but Ianthill wanted me to. Morgoran has been having visions. I also met a Defender patrol earlier today.”
“What did they tell you?”
“They said there have been strange sightings at night, reports of people wandering around, unexplained lights as if someone is carrying a torch around. There have even been reports of unknown flying creatures. They thought now would be a good time for me to investigate.”
He coughed out a puff of smoke. “And you’re just telling me this now!”
“Oh, relax, Gondrial,” Shey said nonchalantly. “I’ll protect you if something strange should appear. You needn’t worry.”
Gondrial rolled his eyes. “I should be so lucky.” He put his pipe back into his mouth and took a deep pull, idly gazing into the distance. Suddenly, he removed his pipe from his mouth and squinted, then he froze.
Shey could see in Gondrial’s far-off gaze that he had spotted something. She peered in the same direction. “What is it? What do you see?”
“Something on the horizon. Do you see it?”
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to see. What is it? You are seeing things based on what I just told you.”
“If I knew what it was, I would tell you.” He stood up and put his hand to his forehead to block the light from his eyes. He was looking almost directly into the
setting sun. “There’s something silhouetted against the sun, but I can’t make it out. The sun’s too bright.”
Shey squinted. “I think I see it, but it’s too big to be a man silhouetted at this distance. Could it be a horse or a rider on a horse?”
“It’s too far away.” He looked away from the sun. “It’s probably nothing. It can be as little as blowing dust accentuated against the sun.”
“I wonder if this is the sort of thing that has been reported to us as being peculiar by the Defenders?”
Gondrial went to his horse and started to inspect his saddlebags, pulling out items to set up camp. “At any rate, there’s nothing we can do about it way out here.” He unloaded his sword and gave it a swing. “We’ll just have to be vigilant and keep watch.”
She found Gondrial swinging a sword comical. “Do you even know how to use that?”
“I had some training when I was younger. I still remember.” He jabbed the point of the sword into the ground beside the fallen log. “The question is do you have any way of defending yourself without being able to draw essence?”
Lady Shey brushed aside her cloak and produced her two wicked silver-plated daggers. She began twirling both daggers with masterful skill, finally lodging them in the ground at Gondrial’s feet. “Will these do?”
“I forgot about those. All right, I’ll take first watch,” Gondrial said. “I usually stay up late, anyway. You should try to get some sleep.”
Lady Shey looked at Gondrial as if he had lost his mind. “Whatever we saw on the horizon, it’s worrisome enough for me to stay awake for a few hours. If it doesn’t bother you, why don’t you go to sleep and I’ll take the first watch.”
“Suit yourself. I’m sure it was nothing but dust blowing in the wind, now that I think about it. Besides, I could sleep.” He produced a flask out from under his leather vest. “Just as soon as it gets dark.” He took a drink from the flask.
“How quickly your worry has faded. Don’t you think you should lay off the drinking tonight?”
“I don’t worry about matters that are out of my control. We are both in the middle of the Sacred Land so we can’t draw essence to use magic, we have meager fighting skills, and night is falling. Whatever will happen will happen, and there’s nothing we can do about it. So, a little drink to take the edge off is warranted in this situation.” He held the flask up in the air to accentuate his last statement. “I just remembered that the last time I was in this wasteland, all sorts of dirt was blowing around.”
Defenders of the Sacred Land: Expanded and Re-Issued (The Sacred Land Legacy Book 1) Page 2
