“Well,” yelled Ben down at Riverpaw and Evercloud. “Kill it!”
Evercloud turned to Riverpaw and smiled. “Watch this.”
Evercloud ignited himself like an inferno and took off into the air, soaring around the preoccupied heads of the giant beast.
“He can fly now!” exclaimed Riverpaw. “That isn’t fair; I’m the one who flies.” Riverpaw launched himself into the air and pummeled one of the heads of the Farsider. “He’s not taking all of this fight for himself.”
Evercloud took his opportunity and followed the bear like a comet, severing the creature’s battered head. The Farsider lurched and squealed, unable to fend off the barrage. Evercloud found another one of the heads within his reach as a spear struck the beast, causing its legs to buckle. Only two heads of the beast remained and they swung wildly, releasing jets of fire. Riverpaw barreled into the creature’s legs and the flames abated as the monster stumbled and fell to the floor.
“Take the heads!” Tomas yelled. “Take the heads!”
Evercloud never heard Tomas’ cries as he was too focused upon his task. The man on fire came down upon the beast, slashing ferociously at the monster’s necks. The creature writhed upon the ground and struggled to escape Evercloud’s burning claw, but its attempts were futile. Evercloud spun, and in a burst of black dust, the massive serpent was no more. His companions cheered and Evercloud stood upon the floor of the arena victorious, an inferno of light, the enemy of the cold darkness.
Chapter 13: Visions
Dean and Prudence sat in a hallway of the castle upon Gray Mountain. They sat watch in their chairs outside of a room that had previously been used for storage, but had been cleared out, so that the woman who had fallen into the Farsider trap could have a place to rest.
“Is she inside?” asked Evercloud, walking up to Dean and Prudence.
“She is,” answered Prudence. “But she sleeps now.”
“Is she all right?”
“Iolana healed her leg. She will be fine. She’s just scared and confused.”
“I can imagine,” said Evercloud, rubbing his hands together. “Would it be all right if I saw her?”
“I don’t see why not,” answered Prudence. “Try not to wake her, she has been through a lot.”
Evercloud walked to the door and began to push it open, before stopping short and looking aside to Dean and Prudence.
“Are the two of you always together?”
Dean stopped whittling the small piece of wood in his hands and looked at Prudence with a knowing smile. Prudence smiled back at him, and then, looked to Evercloud.
“We enjoy each other’s company. Don’t you have anyone whose company you enjoy, Evercloud?”
“Umm…I…” Evercloud was caught off guard by the question. He hadn’t expected Prudence to turn the focus around to him. “I should probably check on our guest.” Evercloud pushed his way into the room and quietly closed the door behind him, relieved to have escaped the awkward question.
The room was rather stark, a single torch burned on the far wall. The woman stirred at Evercloud’s presence. She had been sleeping on a small mattress that was piled with blankets and pillows. The woman rubbed her eyes and sat up.
“I wanted to see how you were doing,” said Evercloud. “I hope I haven’t overstepped my bounds. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”
The woman stood from her bed, still fully clothed with the exception of the black cloak and boots that were piled in a corner of the room. Her trousers were short and did not extend past her knees. Evercloud looked at her bare leg, where her wound had been, and noticed there was no longer any sign of damage.
“What is your name?” asked Evercloud.
“Annie.”
“I’m glad to see that you’re all right, Annie. My name is Evercloud. If there is anything I or anyone else can do for you, just ask.”
“What happened to Jared?”
“Jared?”
“The man who fell into the pit with me.”
“I’m sorry, he…”
Tears welled in Annie’s eyes. She wiped them angrily from a face that had been washed clean of dirt and makeup. “I’m alone now,” she said, more to herself than to Evercloud.
“I’m sorry,” said Evercloud uncomfortably. “This man was your–”
“No,” said Annie. “Jared was a member of my group.”
“Your group?”
“Yes. The other member of my group died on our journey to this mountain. We were attacked by that beast…whatever it was.”
“Why was your group coming to this mountain?” asked Evercloud. “Were you looking for Steven Everheart?”
“Who- no, I don’t know who that is.” Annie folded her arms, obviously uncomfortable with all the questions.
“I’m sorry,” said Evercloud. “I know this is hard for you, but it’s important that I know why you were coming to the mountain. This isn’t exactly a common destination.”
The last thing Annie wanted to do was to reveal that she had visions. In her experience, most people didn’t react well to someone who could see events in the future. Annie thought of the first reason she could that didn’t sound strange.
“One of the men I was with was searching for his cousins. He thought they might be here.”
Evercloud furrowed his brow. “What was this man’s name?”
“His name was Terrence Floyd.”
Evercloud started at hearing the name Floyd. He thought that he recalled either Ben or Tomas mentioning that they had a cousin named Terrence. He stared deep into Annie’s blue eyes, trying to figure out the mystery standing in front of him.
“Were Terrence’s cousins named Ben and Tomas?”
“How did you know that?” said Annie, honestly astonished.
“Annie,” said Evercloud, extending his hand. “I need you to come with me.” Annie was far too tired and confused to argue, and she allowed Evercloud to lead her out of the room. “Find Riverpaw,” Evercloud said to Dean as he and Annie exited the room. “Have him find my father and the Floyds and meet me in the council room, immediately.”
Dean and Prudence nodded without question, and rushed down the castle hallway.
“Do you mean to tell me,” began Annie.
“Yes,” interrupted Evercloud. “If you were looking for Ben and Tomas Floyd, you’ve found them.”
•••
Annie and Evercloud watched as Riverpaw, Eveneye, Ben, Tomas and Iolana filed into the council room and took seats with great concern on their faces. Evercloud quickly addressed everyone around the table.
“I’ve asked you here to introduce you to Annie, if you’ve not already met. Annie, this is Iolana, who healed your leg, Ben Floyd, Tomas Floyd, my cousin, Riverpaw, and my father, Eveneye, King of Gray Mountain. Annie has informed me that her group, of whom she is now the only member, came to this mountain searching for the cousins of a man named Terrence Floyd.”
Ben shot forward out of his seat and Tomas grabbed the table to stabilize himself.
“Terrence?” asked Ben.
“He fell to the black beast,” said Evercloud. “I am sorry.”
“His body?”
“Gone,” said Annie with tears in her eyes.
Ben slowly took his seat with shock etched across his face. Tomas’ eyes were red and he looked confused, unable to believe that his cousin could be gone.
“I brought Annie here, as soon as she told me about Terrence.” Evercloud turned his attention to Annie. “Annie, I, nor anyone here, means you any harm or ill will. You must believe us, for it is imperative that you tell us why Terrence Floyd was trying to find his cousins, and how he could have possibly known that they would be here.”
“I don’t know,” said Annie, trying not to make eye contact. “It was his plan.”
“Wait,” said Eveneye gruffly. “Young woman, hear me, and listen well. I echo Evercloud’s sentiment that you can trust us, but if you will sit there, as a guest in my kingdom, and lie to me
, you had better think twice. You are in the presence of bears who speak, and you, a human, have no fear. You don’t even seem shocked. Your leg was healed by means you have never known, and you react to it as commonplace. Your life was saved by a man who can control fire and wind as if life were a dream, and you accept it as if it were the sun rising upon another day. Who are you? Where are you from? And what are you doing here?”
Annie looked at the faces around the table, their eyes boring into her with scrutiny. She was confused, scared and alone. She knew that her visions had led her, Jared and Terrence to the mountain. She blamed herself for the men’s deaths. The last thing that Annie wanted to do was reveal that her visions had brought death to Ben and Tomas’ cousin. Would they make her a prisoner? A slave? Would they kill her? Her eyes flooded with tears as she searched for a reason to give that was anything but the truth, but she just couldn’t. She was exhausted, physically and mentally. The truth was the only thing she could manage to say.
“I led them here,” Annie sobbed. “It’s my fault they’re dead. I saw the mountain and all the bears in my visions,” she said to Eveneye. She then turned, red-eyed, to Evercloud. “I saw you in my visions,” and then to Iolana, “and I saw you as well.”
The group was shocked. For all of the sinister plans that had floated through their heads, the truth had been the furthest thing from their minds. The possibility that Annie was a seer seemed shocking to them.
“You have visions?” asked Iolana slowly, trying to speak in a more sympathetic tone to the crying girl.
“Yes,” said Annie, wiping the tears from her swollen eyes. “I always have.”
“Did Terrence know this?” asked Ben.
“Yes, both Terrence and Jared were aware of my visions. One of my visions saved their lives. That’s how we met.”
Evercloud moved to Annie’s side and placed a hand upon her shoulder. “I know this is difficult for you, Annie, but we need to know as much as you can tell us.”
Annie looked up at Evercloud with eyes of red, white and blue, and nodded her understanding. Then she began her story.
It had not been very long since she had met Jared Kane and Terrence Floyd. Annie had been living alone in an abandoned house at the edge of Chreos. She had been asleep when a vision had entered her consciousness and caused her to jolt awake. She could see a terrible fire, a house somewhere in Chreos burning, and voices screaming in pain and anguish. The house seemed familiar to her, in some way, and she had been compelled to leave her bed to find it.
Annie’s vision of the burning house had not been the first she had ever known, and through the years, it had proven foolish to ignore their warnings. However, when she arrived at the house she had seen in her vision, there was no fire. Instead, she had seen Jared and Terrence leaving by way of the front door, and then, they made their way to a nearby tavern. Annie followed the men into the tavern and sat at a table that was within earshot of their conversation. She had ordered a drink, and without drinking it, began to act as though she were very intoxicated. She grabbed her drink, stood from the table, and made her way closer to Jared and Terrence. As Annie reached their table, she purposefully fell and spilled her drink, causing the two men to take the bait and come to Annie’s aid. They asked her to sit with them for a moment, to make sure that she were okay, and Annie used the opportunity to trap the men in conversation.
Annie continued to act like a fool, amusing Jared and Terrence. The two men enjoyed Annie’s company and spent an hour drinking and laughing with her. But when it became too late to stay at the tavern, the two men made to say goodbye to Annie. She had searched her mind frantically for a way to keep the men away from their home, and quickly created a lie about having a brute of a husband. She told the men how he beat and abused her, and went on to relate how she feared returning to him. Being upstanding men, Jared and Terrence had decided to follow Annie home and confront her abusive husband. Once Jared and Terrence had walked inside Annie’s stark and run down excuse for a home, the men quickly realized that they had been taken, but it was too late. Annie took an iron skillet to the back of each of their heads, knocking them out, and then covered them with blankets where they had fallen on the dusty floor. There the men slept in peace for the rest of the night.
Annie hid herself in the morning, knowing the men would be furious with her. After they awoke and searched, without success, for the woman who had attacked them, they left. Annie followed them at a distance as they walked back to their home. The men stood in the street with their jaws slung wide, shocked, as they stared at the burned rubble of what used to be their home. They rubbed their eyes as if trying to wake themselves from a bad dream. That was when Annie stepped out of the alley and explained to the men why she had tricked them.
“Couldn’t you have just told us?” berated Jared.
“Would you have believed me?”
“How did you know?” asked Terrence.
“I saw it happen in a vision.”
“Seriously? I’m in no mood for this. Tell us the truth!” barked Terrence.
“If you don’t believe me, just wait two days,” Annie had said. “The King will give a speech, and by the end of it, you’ll both be slaves.”
Surely enough, two days later, the three of them found themselves in the courtyard of Chreos, watching as Annie’s prediction came to fruition. That was when they realized that they had to leave the kingdom. Annie went on to tell those seated in the council room of Jared, Terrence and her escape from Chreos and their decision to come to the mountain.
“Terrence wanted to find you,” Annie said to Ben and Tomas as she ended her story, “but he had no idea where to look. We only came to the mountain because of my visions.”
“How long have you had these visions?” asked Iolana.
“As long as I can remember.”
“And these visions,” said Ben. “They always come true?”
“Yes.”
“Are you the only member of your family who can see this way?” asked Evercloud.
“I have no family. I’ve been alone my whole life.”
“How have you survived?” asked Eveneye.
“It helps when you know what’s coming around the corner.”
“So, this is all just coincidence?” asked Tomas.
“There’s no way this is coincidence,” replied Ben.
Annie placed her hands on her head. “I’m so sorry. I never wanted any of this. I’ve always followed my visions and the results have never been like this. Never.”
“We’ve recently had some experience with messages in dreams,” said Iolana. “Maybe there is a reason why you are here now. Maybe it’s a necessary step in our quest.”
“Maybe it’s for this.” Evercloud took Jared’s map out of his pocket and unfolded it upon the table.
“That’s Jared’s map,” said Annie.
“It fell from his robe as he was being pulled from the hole,” said Evercloud.
“What kind of map is it?” asked Riverpaw.
“I don’t know,” answered Annie with a shrug. “Jared wanted us to follow it. He said that old people used to think that eagle feathers marked entrance into the spirit world. He thought that if we followed the arrows from each of the feathers on the map, that we might find some ancient beings or something.”
“Well that explains what Jared and Terrence were doing,” said Ben. “I shouldn’t be surprised. I wonder why Terrence was in Chreos though? Why did he abandon Yorebrook? We should have tried to find him sooner.”
Tomas placed a sympathetic hand upon his brother’s shoulder. “The village may have burned, Ben. Terrence would be proud of our quest. I know he would have.”
“You’re right,” acknowledged Ben, nodding his head solemnly. “We owe it to him to continue. Tell us, Annie, where did Jared get that map?”
“He said he stole it while he was in Nefas,” said Annie. “He said it must have been important, because to have something like that map in Nefas is considered blas
phemy against the Holy. I didn’t really understand what he was talking about.”
Eveneye stood from the table. “Wait here. I believe I can alleviate some of this mystery.”
Chapter 14: Daughters of the Skyfather
Eveneye returned to the council chamber with a large book in his possession, he then laid the book upon the table and opened it to a page that had been marked.
“This is a record kept by Strongback of his travels, thoughts, experiences, anything that he was compelled to write about. You might call it a journal of sorts. Because of certain things regarding Evercloud’s claw, I thought it would be in my best interest to study the pages of this journal in hope of finding a secret that would help our cause. I remember reading something about eagle feathers in a passage I had marked for further study that dealt with dreams. I’ll read it to you now.”
Upon the first occurrence, I thought that I was amidst a dream. I had been meditating by the river before I took my walk, and I thought that I must have fallen into a dream during my meditation, and the walk was merely a part of that dream. But upon the second occurrence, there was no mistaking it for dream. As soon as I touched the eagle feather, the voice returned. I know that the voice was not in my head, and I know that I have not lost my faculties. The voice, it seemed, was carried upon the wind.
Who are you? I asked, hoping for a response, but there was none. I know that I have not gone mad, but possibly I am spending too much time in solitude.
“There are other entries that I marked for the purposes of studying the theme of dreaming, however, the eagle feather is a common thread in those as well. I’ll continue.”
Another eagle feather I found resting upon a dune, and as I touched it, a voice came to me. This voice was different from the first, yet the feeling that came over me was quite similar. I called out to the voice, as I had previously, but again there was no response. Bewilderment took me, as well as frustration, so I did what I’ve learned helps in those situations and sat down upon the sandy dune to meditate.
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