by Ashley Capes
“I’m saying he’s mad... But still in complete control of his thinking,” Never said. “He needs me for something and I don’t know what, exactly. But there are things he has done – and things I suspect he has done – which go far beyond our shared curse. He knows so much more than I. If he continues on his current path, he could pull the whole world into war. Or worse.”
Luis frowned. “What’s worse than the entire world fighting?”
Never glanced away. “The entire world dead – save for those few he approves of. If any.”
Luis gasped. “That’s possible?”
“I don’t know. But I’m afraid it could be.”
Tsolde was still gaping. “He is mad.”
Never looked from one disbelieving face to the other. “You must both promise me not to anger him, if you encounter him, no matter what, even if you think I am in danger. Let me deal with him; it’s not worth the risk.”
Luis spread his hands. “Never, I won’t let him simply kill you. You’re my friend.”
“And mine,” Tsolde added, her expression firm.
Never swallowed down a surge of crippling fear and a swelling of warmth. How long since he’d had friends who were willing to risk their lives for him? He’d almost forgotten how it felt.
And yet, how long too, since he’d been foolish enough to allow such a wonderful thing to happen?
He couldn’t be responsible for their deaths should Snow lose control.
The best way to protect them was to send them away now... yet how could he? Would they even listen? Or simply trail him? Be taken by the Vadiya to be used as bargaining pieces or to be captured by Jenisan for the same purpose. For now, weren’t they safer with him?
He smiled, unable to keep a little sadness from his voice. “Thank you both, but I wish to protect you just as much and that’s why you must swear it. Both of you. Swear you will let me deal with Snow.”
Luis and Tsolde exchanged a glance, both expressions conflicted. Luis’ shoulder slumped first. “I swear it.”
A weight on his chest eased. “Thank you, my friend. Tsolde?”
She sighed. “I swear it too.”
He clapped his hands together as another knot of tension unravelled. “Grand! It’s settled. Now let’s get some rest.”
***
When they finally stood before the shadowy entrance to the old mine – with a mere matter of days left until the new moon, Never called a halt beneath the rising sun, which was still battling through towering pines. He had to clear his head; he couldn’t stop Snow. Pointless. There was no way to second guess his brother, no way to get ahead. Snow and his secrets were always going to have the jump on him.
He had to catch up, or at least come close.
Reach the Altar of Stars, learn what he could and then decide a new course of action.
Which meant focusing on the trial ahead. The Iron Pass was dangerous enough even when he gave it his full attention.
He pointed to the overgrown staging area. No carts, but in places, grey, rotten wood from tracks remained. No iron either; that had been taken for use in other mines. “The old entrance. If we’d kept travelling, we’d come to the Iron Pass, still suffering the effects of the earthquake or avalanche, all those years ago, the same one caused some cave-ins here. Hopefully there have been no new ones. Our path will dip into the mines before we see the other side of the Folhan Mountains.”
“We’re not prepared, are we?” Luis said.
“Not truly. I hope to find rope within and any tools we might need. They’ll be old but folks made steel true in the past. We’ll manage.”
“What about food and water?” Tsolde asked. “Or proper clothing – I can’t remember the last time I was warm. I’ve got scratches all over my arms and legs from blasted leaves and branches.”
“All good questions,” Never said. He rubbed his temples, closing his eyes as he did. “We hunt before we enter the mines. Sharpen a spear from saplings on stone, Luis. I’ll start a fire again, even if it takes another hour of rubbing wood. We’ll have a warm meal before we leave at least. There are plenty of streams too. Before we enter, Tsolde, your job is to find some way of carrying the water. There will be debris within the mine, I seem to remember something.”
“Fine,” Tsolde said, sounding pleased.
“And what can we expect in the way of danger?” Luis asked.
“Possible cave-ins, unstable floor. The usual food, water and light concerns – though it’s a three day journey, I’m more worried about light. If I hadn’t lost my blue-stone back at the stream... ” He shrugged. “Most people say evil lurks deep within – the reason the Hanik abandoned the mines in the first place.”
Luis grunted. “That’s rather vague, Never.”
“I didn’t encounter it the last time I took this path, nor the first.”
“It’s supposed to be something old,” Tsolde said. “Father used to tell me tales about the mine when I was a child and asked him to scare me. He said no-one agreed on exactly what was down there, only that miners simply began to disappear without a trace – often a man would report a disappearance of someone he had been working beside. All agree that we went too deep and woke something.”
“Maybe it was Black Embers, like the one Darom saved us from,” Luis said.
Never put a hand on each of their shoulders. “Well, my bypass isn’t so deep that we’ll be waking anything up.”
“Good,” Tsolde said.
Luis added his agreement. “So why have you travelled it twice? You didn’t tell us before.”
“One time I was hiding from Vadiya Steelhawks who were most keen to find me. I’d stolen something from them.” Although, he hadn’t done such a good job of stealing Sacha’s heart after all. He kept a rueful smile to himself; what a fool to think she’d love no-one else in the years between. He himself had found others, why shouldn’t she? Only he hadn’t counted on it being Snow. “The other time was chasing yet another dead-end clue. Legends spoke of a silver necklace and clasp, buried deep within the mountain. It was said to pre-date Hanik times.” And now he did laugh. “The amount of times I’ve tracked down something simply because it was old and might be related to my curse, I could have opened a museum.”
Luis straightened. “A clasp of silver? Not Aleeta’s Silver Rosebud?”
“That’s the one.”
“And you found it but didn’t take it? Never, the Rosebud would be worth a fortune,” Luis said. “No-one’s seen it in hundreds of years. It’s said to be so beautiful that people who look upon it burst into tears.”
Never held up his hand. “Exaggerations I’m sure. And despite Mal’s help, we didn’t find it, only another dead-end.”
“Besides, it’s supposed to be cursed,” Tsolde said. “I don’t want to unearth it if it’s truly down there.”
Luis started to pace the road. “That’s right. Princess Aleeta was held to ransom for it, wasn’t she? And when everything went wrong with the exchange, the King cursed the Rosebud and sealed the criminals within the mines and no-one has found even a trace of the princess, thieves, or the Rosebud.”
Never grinned. “Let’s worry about food, water, and light first. We need to build some torches and spend a bit of time hunting. I’m hungry enough to eat my own hands.”
Tsolde snorted, but set off into the trees where she bent to the ground, sifting through the pine needles for material suitable for their torches.
“Want to do a bit more hunting?” Never asked Luis.
“I’ll do my best – just don’t expect steak.”
“Understood. I’ll see what I can find in the mouth of the mine.”
“Anything will help, won’t it?” Luis said, then set off with a grin, no doubt thinking about finding the Silver Rosebud.
Never approached the mine and ducked beneath the sinking arch into the shadows. His feet stirred thick dust, a musty scent rising with it. What was once an open space where carts could unload then follow the loop of their steel tr
acks was now scattered with animal droppings, clumps of leaves and grey pine needles.
A short distance within stood a lone cart, pick hanging over the edge, blade rusted.
Never walked farther along, bending by a dark shape on the ground. An abandoned pack. One buckle was missing from the strap and when he lifted the flap and brushed away old spider webs, he found a tin flask and rotting, frayed rope nestled beside flint and tinder.
Rats had chewed their way into the bottom, obviously to eat whatever food had remained within before it was abandoned.
Would the fire-making tools work? One way to find out.
He returned to the bright daylight with a slight frown on his face. Odd that no travellers or scavengers had taken the pack before – a testament to the fear surrounding the mines? Or an oversight perhaps. But then, for any treasure-hunter, it wasn’t much of a find, nor would they be quite so unprepared to need it.
By midday he’d found an old shovel – its handle was hardly perfect but it held together at least, along with a thin chisel. Both coated in rust, but he could clean them a little at least. In addition, he uncovered a lantern but without oil it was useless and he left it where it hung from one of the dust-coated support beams.
Tsolde had bundled together kindling, dried pine needles and resin into tight bunches, tying them with strips of fabric torn from the hem of the prisoner’s grey tunic the Vadiya had given her. Never handed her rope from the old pack. “Un-weave this,” he said. “I doubt it’s strong enough to use for climbing.”
“That’s more like it,” she said.
Luis had stored his findings on a reasonably flat collection of stones; mostly sour rock berries and nuts once again. Even with the added roots in the pile, their prospects were looking grim. Never climbed between the trees toward where he’d last seen Luis searching, slowing when he caught sight of the man crouched before a ridge.
When the stirring of grass alerted him, Luis turned and waved Never closer.
He pointed down below. “Look.”
Someone had set a snare on a thin trail – a grey hare lay trapped within, unmoving. How long had it been there? Had trappers come to the mountains looking for fur? Or travellers in need of food?
“Whoever set the snare could return at any moment,” Luis said.
“And yet, the hare looks to have been there for some time, probably caught earlier this morning.”
Luis nodded. “And if so, why hasn’t anyone come to collect it?”
“How long have you been watching?”
“Long enough – I think they’ve moved on, or forgotten.”
Never rose. “Let’s eat.”
He slipped down the trail and collected the hare, giving its neck a twist when it struggled, then returned to the mine with Luis. Using some of Tsolde’s kindling, he started a fire with the flint and tinder, explaining to her what they’d found while Luis used Sacha’s knife to skin the rabbit.
“So they might return at any moment?” she asked. “Won’t they be upset that we’ve stolen their rabbit?”
“I’m predicting as much.”
“And if they’re nearby – or if your brother changes his mind? Won’t the smoke lead them right to us?”
“We’d know by now if ‘Prince Tendov’ had changed his mind. Just enjoy the meat, Tsolde – it’s the last hot meal we’ll be having for some time.”
Chapter 19.
Once they’d eaten the rabbit – the scant but hot flesh most welcome – and supplemented it with some of the nuts Luis had found, it was time to enter the abandoned mine. Nearly a hundred years had passed since the Hanik fled.
And just what was left behind?
Never paused before re-entering, glancing at his companions. Tsolde had the chisel looped through a belt of rope and a makeshift pouch contained their store of the woody nuts and the berries. She held a burning torch, the sweet pine scent filling the area. Luis carried the pick and the rest of their food slung over his back within the newly repaired pack. A flask of precious water also lay within, flint and tinder too – along with the rest of the torches. Only a dozen, but it would be sufficient to find other supplies; he’d seen enough on the last visit to know there should be something.
With luck.
“Ready?” Never asked.
Luis nodded. His face was apprehensive but there was an excitement below it – the lure of the hunt. Tsolde had been biting her lip but she stopped. “I don’t like this place... but I’ve seen you do some unbelievable things, Never. Get us through, all right?”
“I will.”
He led them within, raising his torch and starting down into the depths of the mountain. For most of the afternoon there was little to see. The tracks wormed deeper and deeper, passing support columns of cold wood and jagged runs of cut stone in the walls, occasional scraps of steel or cloth along with dozens of empty lanterns.
Chill air hung around them, damp in the silence that filled the mine, broken only by their footfalls. They rarely stopped save to light new torches or once, around nightfall as best he could judge, to eat a portion of their rations. Not once did he turn from the main, broad tunnel, bypassing all side passages – some only a few feet deep and others tangled into the mountain.
“No need,” Never had said when Luis asked. “It’s not until we actually leave the new mine that we have to start taking note of passages. Stick to the main tunnel – it’s in the best shape in any event.”
“The new mine?” Luis asked.
“As I understand it, there’s an older mine that had been emptied of resources before this one was dug,” Tsolde explained. “Others say it was the old mine that first contained whatever it was that eventually led everyone to abandon these mines.”
When it was time to sleep a watch was set. Whoever took on the role had two tasks: listen for anything out of the ordinary and protect the fire. His own watch passed without incident – just as it had the last two times he’d been to the mines. In fact, the only time he’d been concerned, even for a moment, had been near the Night Lake. Just as Darom warned.
But it had only been a feeling all those years ago – nothing certain.
Not a pleasant feeling, however.
When he woke to a dark morning and the flickering torchlight, Luis and Tsolde offered similar experiences – nothing to report. And so he took a mouthful of water, skipping breakfast, and led them deeper into the silver mine.
***
Little changed until, near late afternoon, they began to climb – the steel rails leading toward the surface.
“Where are we?” Tsolde asked.
“Ascending to what the miners used to call ‘the air hole’ from memory,” Never said.
“Memory?”
“I once read a crumbling journal down here and that’s what the miner called it.”
Luis switched the torch to his other hand, casting new shadows across the walls. “What was it for?”
Never shrugged. “Respite, I believe. It serves no real purpose from a mining standpoint. The quarries are not close by. I think the miners simply wanted to see the sky again and so they followed a vein up to the surface.”
“And we’ll take it?”
“Yes. It opens into a glade that may have food. There’s a stream there.”
“And then?”
“Back down here.”
Tsolde turned back to him from where she’d been watching the shadows beyond the torchlight. “Why? I thought you said we’re travelling to the old mine?”
“A passage connects them.”
Tsolde frowned. “I thought the mines weren’t connected. Why would they do that? They were afraid of whatever was in the old mine.”
He spread his hands. “Something made the tunnel.” Never glanced from grim expression to grim expression. “You’ll feel better when we can see the sky again, feel the air at the top.”
When they climbed free from the mine, a bitterly cold breeze met them – enough to slice across the skin of his nose. But s
omehow, for all its sharpness, it was better than the damp below. His lungs pulled in the air as if in thanks.
The glade was as he remembered; wide, grassy earth ringed by towering pines.
They spread into it, walking beneath the starry sky, Tsolde rubbing her arms and Luis heading for the trickle of the stream between dark trunks. Never crossed the grass and entered the treeline, foraging for more berries. Each bulb was chill in his palm but he collected as many as he could find in the dark before choosing a suitable clearing to set up camp.
Luis and Tsolde soon joined him and they made a fire within the trees, sitting close. The heat crept through his bones and he closed his eyes. Only the crackle of flames. Soothing, despite his near-empty stomach.
After the meal, Tsolde poked Never’s boot with a stick. “This seems like a good a time as any,” she said. “Have you decided what you’re going to do about your brother?”
He sighed, resisting the urge to stand and pace. Instead, he took out the dice and toyed with them. The question had been troubling him for too long already – and he was no closer to answering it for himself. “His bitterness has consumed him,” Never finally said, shame deep within. For once, in the past, he’d been proud of Snow. His strength, his determination. And now...
“But he let us go,” Luis said. “What is he playing at?”
“He has a purpose, of course. Beyond that which we can guess. He’s working toward something... I don’t know. He told me, while you were affected by his magic, that he wanted an empire.”
“And it will spread from Vadiya,” Tsolde said.
“He appears to have Marlosi added to that – next comes Hanik, it seems.”
“Are you sure it’s Snow behind all this?” Luis asked. “Just as Cog is Snow’s servant, there could be someone directing him.”
Never smiled. “Trying to see the best in my brother? I don’t think he has the temperament to be anything but the man in charge.”
“Perhaps... but we should be careful. I don’t think we should assume too much. Maybe we’re simply believing what Snow wants us to believe?”
