First Comes The One Who Wanders

by Lynette S. Jones

  “We should be safe enough here, until your lady friend is better,” said Garabaldi, dropping his burden on the floor of the cave, near the back wall. It was a small cave, with only the one opening. Leilas and Erion looked around in approval. Placing Kai near the back wall, Erion covered her with his cloak and hers.

  “I’ll take the first watch,” said Leilas, moving toward the opening after she dropped her supplies next to Garabaldi’s. “No fire tonight, I think.” She spent some time fussing with the bushes in front of the cave, so they hid the opening better. Then, she stood next to the door and watched.

  When Erion was satisfied Kai was resting comfortably, he came to stand next to Leilas. “She’ll be fine,” Leilas told him, not taking her eyes off the forest in front of her.

  “What happened to you during the fight?” asked Erion, barely keeping the accusation out of his voice.

  “I don’t know,” said Leilas, turning to face him. “I couldn’t move. None of my spells had any effect. If it weren’t for Garabaldi, I might be lying there still.” Leilas tried not to show him how much his distrust hurt.

  “It was actually Kai’s fault she couldn’t move,” Garabaldi piped in from his spot near Kai. “It was that coi-ya. It’s a little bit too strong for humans or crafters to consume on a regular basis.”

  Erion turned away from Leilas. “I should have known it was something. I know you wouldn’t stand by–,” he didn’t finish his thought.

  But didn’t know her well enough not to have to ask, thought Leilas, turning back to the opening. “Good night, Erion.” He hesitated as if he wished to say more, then turned and went to sit by Garabaldi.

  “We should be able to press on sometime tomorrow,” remarked Garabaldi to no one in particular. “The elf girl should be awake by then.”

  “Her name is Kai,” said Erion, a warning in his voice.

  “So it is,” replied Garabaldi, innocently. “She was lucky Leilas was here. I don’t know many healers who could have saved her.”

  Erion looked over to Leilas, who was standing with her back to him, then back to Garabaldi. “I’m grateful she was able to save the daughter of the Sea Elves’ king.”

  “Not to mention our guide. Our journey would have become quite a bit more difficult without her to lead us.”

  “Are you always this encouraging, gnome?”

  “I do try,” murmured Garabaldi. “I do try.”

  Leilas smiled into the darkness. It would take a miracle to keep these two from coming to blows before this journey was over.

  Garabaldi came to relieve her at midnight. Dropping down next to her pack, she wrapped herself tightly in her cloak and let her thoughts drift toward Barat. The feeling of fear still surrounded the city, but seemed to have lessened within the fortress. Leilas could feel Joshuas’ magic at work along the outer walls. There were still hundreds of troops outside the gates, but Leilas didn’t bother with them. She was looking for Joshuas. She found him standing in the guard tower, looking out toward the west, where she was. Could he see her, too? “Hello, my love,” she sent the thought out softly on the wind. Joshuas looked around as if he’d heard something then went back to his thoughts, shaking off the feeling. Leilas reached out in her mind and touched his face as she had before. Her hand tingled with sensation. Joshuas’ hand went to his cheek. Feeling her strength begin to ebb, Leilas gathered her thoughts once more and gently kissed Joshuas’ lips. The vision faded, but the sensation lingered on her lips for a long time after. Leilas fell asleep, strangely comforted by the feeling.

  CHAPTER 35

  Leilas woke to Garabaldi’s rough nudge. Erion was already standing poised ready to fight by the door. Kai was still unconscious on the floor. “They’re back,” whispered Garabaldi, moving toward the opening.

  Leilas loosed her sword and stood next to Garabaldi. It probably was too much to suppose they’d leave after one unsuccessful attack. She could hear the darklings talking. Although she couldn’t understand what they were saying, she could tell they were nearing the cave. Erion held his finger to his lips and they all stood, barely breathing as the darklings came closer and closer.

  If they found the cave, they’d only be able to enter one at a time. But if they managed to get inside, it would be close quarter, hand to hand fighting. Leilas half-expected Garabaldi to reveal their location, but he stood as silent as Erion and as ready to do battle. The darklings paused briefly when they reached the forest in front of the cave. There was a great deal of discussion and then they hurried off in the direction from which they’d come.

  “They think they have us trapped,” said Erion, sliding his sword into his sheath.

  “Do they?” asked Leilas, putting her sword away, as well.

  “Erion stepped to the door. “There are six watching the cave. We should go now, while we have a chance.”

  Leilas began shouldering her pack and Kai’s. Garabaldi opened his mouth to protest, then changed his mind and began collecting his gear. Erion took charge of the unconscious elf, slinging her over his shoulder. Leilas took the lead and stepped out the door. Garabaldi came next and took a different direction. Erion waited at the cave entrance.

  It didn’t take long for the darklings to react. Three went for Garabaldi and three for Leilas. While they were occupying the enemy, Erion slipped from the cave and started up the mountain with Kai in tow. Luckily, these darklings didn’t seem as well trained as the last few groups they’d encountered and soon they were no longer a problem. Garabaldi joined Leilas and they began to follow the trail Erion had left, obliterating the marks as they passed. Erion had propped Kai against a rock and was anxiously looking for them.

  “I was about to come looking for you,” he said, relief in his voice.

  “You know I’m not the best rock climber,” replied Leilas, bending over to catch her breath. “You could have tried not to go straight up.” Garabaldi cackled, as he wiped the dust from his clothes.

  Garabaldi looked at the unconscious elf after he finished removing most of the grime. “Perhaps you should look at her wound again,” he said to Leilas. “I would have thought she’d be awake by now.”

  Leilas had been thinking the same. She must have missed something. They moved Kai to a location that afforded more protection and then Leilas knelt and began to look for what was keeping Kai from regaining consciousness. Leilas knew she couldn’t hurry the process, even though her mind was telling her they needed to leave this place as quickly as possible. Slowly and methodically, she went back over each wound, checking and probing for the dark poison. Woven deep in two wounds, she found the poison. Calling on all Trion had taught her, she began to unweave the very nature of the poison, taking it back to a form that wasn’t dangerous.

  Kai’s eyes flickered open as Leilas ceased speaking. Bowing her head, Leilas tried to regain her strength as Kai struggled to a sitting position. Erion handed Leilas beer and bread, then bent to help Kai to her feet.

  “I was afraid we’d lost you,” he said softly to the sea elf.

  Kai looked from Erion to Leilas then back to Erion. “You would have, had the Chidra not been with us.” There was a new respect in Kai’s eyes for the young crafter she was to guide to Solein’s temple.

  “This is all very touching, but we really do need to get moving,” said Garabaldi, sarcastically. “I don’t want to have to fight any more of those half-breeds tonight.”

  Leilas would have liked to lie down and sleep, but knew Garabaldi was right. They needed to put as much distance between themselves and the darklings as they could. Stumbling to her feet, she shouldered her pack and trudged after the others as they started up the rock face of the mountain.

  It was difficult. Kai hadn’t misrepresented the trip up the mountain. There wasn’t a trail. They were moving up the rock faces, finding handholds in the broken cliffs. Kai, Erion and Garabaldi moved over the cliffs like mountain goats. Leilas fumbled for each step and handhold.

  Halfway up the second cliff face, she felt the r
ock beneath her right hand give way. All her weight dropped onto her left hand and she dangled in space for several nerve-wracking moments until she could find holes for her feet and then reposition her right hand. Her arms were aching and she could barely breathe. Leaning her head against the rock, she tried to rest and calm her beating heart. She had no idea where the others were. At this point, she didn’t care. All that mattered was getting off this rock without great bodily injury.

  Not daring to look down, she moved her feet one at a time then hunted for higher handholds. She moved several times before the rock gave way beneath her feet. The last thing she remembered was falling through the air.

  ~~~

  Erion looked over the cliff at Leilas’ strangled scream. All he saw were arms and legs flailing in space. He heard the sickening thud as she hit the rocks below. Scrambling over the edge, he made his way down the cliff as quickly as he could. What had he been thinking? Had he been thinking at all? Even though Leilas had managed the small cliffs of the pass, that didn’t mean she was ready to tackle these rock faces unaided. Why had he left her to fend for herself when he knew she was already tired from healing Kai? Because he’d been too concerned with Kai’s welfare, He answered himself bitterly.

  Dropping to his knees when he reached the unconscious crafter, he quickly assessed the damage. Her left leg was broken, as well as ribs and her right wrist. Garabaldi reached her moments later. He ran his hands over her, humming and leaned back on his knees with a sigh. “She has quite a bit of internal damage, as well. It’s good she is a crafter or she would be dead. We need to find a place to hide while she heals. This cliff won’t afford much protection.”

  “Can’t you heal her?” asked Kai, dropping to the ground behind them.

  “I could heal her leg and arm,” said Garabaldi. “There’s only so much I can do for a light crafter. She will heal on her own quickly enough. All we need to do is keep her safe.”

  Kai nodded, her face grim, and looked around to get her bearings. “There’s an old fortress not far from here. It has been abandoned for many years. Although we haven’t checked on it since the war began.”

  “It’s not straight up, is it?” asked Garabaldi. “I don’t know about Erion, but I’m not up to scaling cliffs with someone on my back.”

  “We can follow this fault and get to it,” replied Kai, indicating the small outcrop they were occupying.

  “Work on her arm and leg so she isn’t in so much pain the entire trip,” said Erion. “What do you need to help you after healing?”

  “Lichen, fungus, mushrooms. Whatever you can find,” replied Garabaldi, turning his attention to the unconscious crafter. He bent over her and began to chant. Unlike Leilas’ healing song, his was harsh and the words abrupt. Leaving him to do what he could, Erion went to look for the food Garabaldi would need when he was finished. The gnome worked for a very long time, patiently mending the breaks in the bones in her leg, arm and ribs. The healing was imperfect. There was nothing he could do to make it better. Dark crafters were never meant to heal light crafters. He hoped he’d not done more damage than good.

  Erion handed him some mushrooms and moss he’d found. While Garabaldi ate, Kai and Erion fashioned a hammock from cloaks and branches. By the time Garabaldi had finished the small meal they had Leilas on the conveyance and were ready to start for the fortress.

  The fortress was old. It was said, it was the home of Solein before he made his home in Neothera, before the cataclysm. No one had dared brave the magic that surrounded it to try and occupy it. The magic had never affected the elves, but they preferred Nereid to the castle on the mountain. There were no seals, no dolphins, and no sea dragons on the mountain of Seal Haven. Though they respected and honored Solein, the sea elves were loyal to the Sea crafter.

  The fortress was made of the dark stone of the mountain. If Kai hadn’t known it was there, it would have been almost impossible to find. Erion could feel the magic emanating from the structure long before he could see it. The hammock swung between Kai and Erion, but Leilas lay silent as they moved. Garabaldi moved slower and slower the nearer they came to the castle.

  “I can’t go to that place,” he said finally, coming to a stop.

  “You have no choice,” said Erion, “that’s where we’re going.”

  “I’ll wait here,” said Garabaldi, with finality.

  “I can’t allow that,” said Erion, warning in his voice. “You’ve been a good companion and helpful to us, but I can’t allow you to warn the dark masters of our location.”

  “I could have done that already with Leilas being unconscious and unable to stop me,” replied Garabaldi, “had I wished. I won’t betray this mission. But I won’t go to Solaero with you.”

  “No dark creature has been able to enter Solaero,” remarked Kai. “There is something about the magic that drives them away.”

  Erion wasn’t happy with the choice, but he left Garabaldi and continued on with Kai, Leilas between them. He had to wonder how Leilas would do in Solaero if no dark creature had ever entered this place. She was half-dark, half-light. That was what made her who she was.

  The walls surrounding the castle came into view as they neared. They’d begun to crumble and some of the big, cut blocks had tumbled to the ground. Erion and Kai moved through the gate opening. The wooden gates had long ago crumbled to dust. Leilas groaned softly when they passed the gate and then fell silent again.

  Kai led them to the front door of the square, multi-storied building. There were many windows opened to the courtyard. Birds had made their nests in the windows and turrets. Kai spoke a word quietly. The door swung open and they moved inside. They placed Leilas on the floor near the staircase and then Erion straightened and looked around. The interior of the castle was in as much disrepair as the outside, though clearly this once had been a magnificent home.

  “I wonder why he left no one to take care of this place when he left?” asked Erion, walking from one room to the next, viewing the ruined majesty.

  “It’s said he intended Trion and Ariel to live here, but they were felled by the poison of Rengailai,” replied Kai.

  “It’s a safe haven on this mountain,” said Erion, settling down next to Leilas to wait.

  “Let’s hope that’s still true,” replied Kai, coming to sit next to him.

  “How much farther is the temple and is there another way to get to it rather than the cliffs?” asked Erion, pulling his pipe from his pocket and beginning to pack tobacco into it for the long wait he was expecting.

  “We could wind around the mountain on the main trail, and then cut back to the temple. It would be more dangerous. There are many dark creatures that make their homes on this mountain.”

  “I think we’d better risk the enemies. Our Chidra won’t be up to the climb, I think.”

  Kai nodded and fell silent. Erion smoked his pipe and they waited. “You didn’t fail in your task because she fell,” added Erion, after a long pause, “in case you’ve been accusing yourself of that.”

  Kai nodded again silently, but the pained look on her face began to ease. Erion had to admit to himself that she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen and one who did all she could to help. Even though she didn’t believe she was the one who should be burdened with this task, she took it and bore it graciously. If they survived this ordeal, he would offer his heart to her, since it was already hers.

  ~~~

  Leilas moaned and tried to move, but it was too painful. She desperately needed food and water. Gritting her teeth, she struggled to a sitting position. She found herself alone in a large, stone room, with a lofty roof, near a staircase. Her pack and canteen were near to hand and she crawled to where they were sitting and dug through the supplies until she found some venison. Then sitting back against the stair, exhausted, she began to eat and look around this strangely alluring room.

  She could feel the magic. It was light. It was pure. It was old. Still, it felt familiar. She tried to place where sh
e had felt this magic before as she started on her second piece of meat. She had no idea where she was or how she’d gotten here. The last thing she remembered was falling. Kai and Erion must have brought her to this place, though she couldn’t imagine Garabaldi coming here. But where were they now? She was in no condition to go looking for them. Instead, she contented herself with the bottle of beer she found in the pack and studying the room she was occupying. Checking to see that her weapons were still handy, she checked on the pieces of the staff as well. They were still wrapped around her waist and none the worse for her fall. If someone did come to attack her, she wasn’t sure her weapons would do her any good. She was fairly certain she couldn’t lift either one.

  It was rather a boring room, she decided. One where people were greeted then shuttled off to more welcoming rooms. The light of the day played on the walls and she let her mind drift with the patterns for a while. The venison and beer were having an effect and as the afternoon passed, she managed to gain her feet, with the help of her axe to steady her. In her mind, she knew she should stay where she was and wait for Erion and Kai. But her curiosity got the better of her and she made her way slowly and painfully into the adjoining room.

  This room must have been an amazing place, once. The fireplace filled the entire east wall. Couches and chairs surrounded the hearth, a harp stood near a large window that looked out onto the sky. It would be a beautiful sight when the stars were shining in the clear sky. Tapestries covered the stone walls and kept the room warm. Wood planks made up the floor and once richly-colored rugs covered the floor. The tapestries and rugs were covered in dust as were the couches and chairs. Everything seemed to have been abandoned abruptly and left to decay.

  Leilas was beginning to worry about Erion and Kai. It wasn’t like the elf to go off for an extended period without leaving some kind of message. Going back to her place by the stairs, she opened another packet of food and ate, hoping Erion would return. When she finished, she packed up the belongings by the stairs, left a note written in magic for the elf then went up the stairs in search of her friends.