The worn, wooden buildings gradually improved to stone. The structures grew immense with each one they passed; sprawling right up to a brown rock mountain flecked with gray, the same color as the buildings. Codar veered from the back streets only when a huge coliseum blocked the way forward, which proved to be their destination. Codar swung onto a wide walkway lined with tall, robed statues keeping a stern eye on those bold enough to pass below. Male or female, the carved, stern faces displayed no mirth.
Garn found their dour moods fitting. He had no mirth lurking inside, either.
GROTTO
Jade pushed upward when she felt something solid beneath her feet. Breaking the surface, she blew water from her mouth, gulping a ragged breath. A fit of coughing forced her lungs clear, giving her eyes time to adjust to the dim light. Large boulders loomed on both sides. Nearby, water swirled shoulder deep around a massive rock before draining away gurgling, as if someone had pulled a huge plug.
A loud clatter caused her to turn. A hole was opening up above a series of benched rocks stacked like an uneven staircase, meeting the hole she fell through. Clumps of rocks and grass splashed in front of her, twilight flowed in. Hopping tranquilly down, Burl moved from bench to bench, stopping at the bottommost one to peer at her with his yellow-orange eyes. She smiled at him.
Camoe shoved his head into the hole upside down. “Are you injured?”
“I don’t think so. I’m thoroughly soaked, though.”
“Can you get to your creature? I am coming down.”
She pushed through the frigid water, discovering an underwater slope, which made it easy to climb beside Burl. How could Camoe still call him a creature? He’d been so lifesaving to have close by.
Burl made as if to pull her bag from her shoulder with his surprisingly dexterous hands. Curious to see what he wanted with it, Jade didn’t resist. Lifting it gently away from her, he set the bag on the edge of a dry, flat rock, and then hopped into the subterranean pool, twisting to flip the black bag open. Removing the nearly empty water flask, he set about submerging it underwater.
Camoe climbed down in the hole, stopping beside her. “Would you look at that? Your Dark Creation does not drink—there is no mouth—yet it fills your flask.”
“He’s not a creature.”
“Have it your way,” Camoe said, cheerfully. Squatting, he began to fill his own water bag. “He certainly found the best way down to you after bringing it to my attention you had vanished. Check for wounds;, the water is cold enough you may not feel anything right away. The drop is longer than I had first thought.”
Close by, a tall rock beckoned as good place to take the weight from her tired legs. Sitting, she felt what she could of her wet body. Nothing seemed to be broken or bleeding, not even, where the branch had ripped her jeans. “No wounds but I’m freezing.”
“Yes, that is going to become a problem. We do not have enough sunlight to risk climbing down the next ridge. Perhaps we should remain here for tonight. It is well-hidden and protected from the wind, though the humidity is high. Starting a fire may prove to be difficult, but it is critical to get you warm. We have to risk it. Hopefully the smoke will not be spotted before full dark has fallen.”
Jade wasn’t about to argue. Cold, wet and weary, a fire did sound critical. “Where do we get the wood?”
Camoe set his bag and bulging water flask next to a rocky bank of debris. “It is closer than you think. With luck, I can dig out enough.” Climbing partway to the surface, he pulled several wrist-sized branches from the tangled mess around them. Dropping the armful in front of her, he returned to pick through it for dry flower tops and splintered wood chips.
Watching his every move, she was beginning to shiver. Can’t he move faster? Sometimes he could be too methodical.
Camoe balled up a mass of long, dry weed stems, pressing down on one side to resemble a bird’s nest. Breaking several smaller sticks to length, he set them to one side.
Her teeth began to chatter. Jade opened her mouth to keep from vibrating her skull and everything it enclosed. I’m going to die of exposure while he builds the perfect fire, she thought. “Can I help?”
“I do not believe so. The first part is tricky; I have to cultivate the right ember.” Removing a flinty stone, a rounded piece of metal, and a charred cloth from a tin in his bag, he carefully placed the cloth in the center of the nest. Striking the metal against the flint, a spark flicked downward. After the third pass, he leaned in close and blew on the nest. A tiny flame sprang to life. Adding a twig at a time, the druid coaxed the flame higher. The flame joined others, feeding on the wrist-sized branches. Camoe sat back, satisfied with his handiwork. “You did well in finding this place. I would have sauntered past without ever knowing this underground hut was here,” he said, a soft smile playing at his lips.
She managed to flash a quick smile though her teeth clattered as soon as they touched. Any other time she might have laughed at his dry humor, for it didn’t come very often. Right now though, she was convinced she was going to freeze solid where she lay.
The little underground grotto soon heated. Jade’s soaked body warmed quickly, but her clothes stayed moist. Though he stayed back from the flames, Burl brought enough wood in one load that Camoe didn’t have to do anything but keep it going. To her, the fire felt better than the heat of the midday sun.
Before long, her eyes felt as heavy as her sodden clothes, so she lay on her side with her bag under her head, giving in to her fatigue.
Jade woke in the gray darkness of pre-dawn light. The fire had burned down to tiny embers, glowing with a last stubborn light. Her clothes had dried except for a few persistent damp spots on the seams of her jeans. The grotto still radiated warmth, but it was cold on the side of her body farthest from the fire. Camoe would need to rebuild it soon.
Though still sore, she decided to do it herself. The heat would do them good. Stifling a groan, she sat up. A sound made her freeze. Snuffling drifted down from the entrance hole above and echoed softly throughout the grotto. Fear stole through her. Suddenly, the tiny embers seemed terribly bright. Animalistic by the sound of it, the snuffling grew louder. She heard heavy breaths mixed with guttural grunts, then the sound of padded feet coming to a standstill straight above them. A hand gripped her elbow. Jade stiffened, too frightened to cry out, nor gasp with relief when she realized it belonged to the druid.
After an interminable time, the padded feet moved to the cliff edge, which Camoe had looked over the sunset before. A commotion of snuffles intermixed with soft whines floated down. There are several of them, she realized. Milling back and forth, the whines mixed with deep-throated growls. Without warning, amid savage snarls, the sound of padded feet faded rapidly into the distance.
They sat in silence, Jade scarcely recalling the need to breathe. Finally, Camoe spoke, his voice low enough she strained to hear. “I believe they are gone. At least, I hope so. I have no idea what manner of species the Dark Citadel has sent to track us. From the sounds of them, I have never encountered their like in my seasons of infiltration. Nor would I want to. We shall have to use caution from this point on, keeping a sharp lookout and making no noise.”
Jade was numb. How could she hope to travel quieter? She was already putting forth her best effort. “I thought we’d been careful.”
Camoe stood. “We have to keep better watch from now on; I have been too lax in favor of keeping our strength up. Come, the night is drawing to an end.”
He was right. The outer edges of the stepped ledges peeked out of the darkness, but something was missing. “Where’s Burl?”
“Blast it!” Camoe swore. “Your bloody Dark Creation has run off, gone back to his Dark Master. He shall bring enemies upon us!”
“Burl!” she called, a bit louder than they’d been speaking.
“Jade!” Camoe said his voice hoarse. “We must be quieter. Those animals—or whatever evil creations they are—could still lurk close by. Let them get some distance away bef
ore we get moving. The best we can hope for is to avoid them and stay ahead of the pursuit.”
Jade didn’t trust herself to speak. She grappled with Burl’s disappearance. He’d been watching over her without fail for days. Why would he leave now?
“Drink your fill of water; it will become scarce from here,” Camoe whispered, unstopping his leather flask. “I want our water flasks topped off, too.”
She glanced around the grotto. “Where’s my bag?”
Camoe lowered the flask from his mouth, glancing around. “Blast it all to dust! Now we only have one pack and one water bag. The fault is mine for allowing us to sleep at the same time and trusting that creature to wake you at the sign of trouble. I am a bloody fool! Here, drink this until you feel sick.” He thrust his flask in her direction.
Despite her worry, she did as instructed, draining two-thirds of the flask in one pull, surprised at her thirst. She upended it again. Finally, she couldn’t swallow another drop and handed the nearly empty vessel back.
The druid submerged it in the flowing water. Then, slipping the flask over a shoulder he stood, and moved as close as he could. “What was in your bag?”
Jade thought about it. “My water and quite a bit of food; it will hurt us not to have it.”
“We can make do without the food. The water is far worse.”
Suddenly, Jade felt sick to her stomach. “The water isn’t the worst of it. The white candle is. It’s important I know it! I felt something whenever I’ve touched it. Crystalyn will be so mad that I lost her indenture provider’s artifact.”
Camoe drew a sharp breath, made intense by its low volume. “You had a white candle, a white crystal candle? Why did you not tell me?”
Jade was indignant. “When have I had the chance? It’s not as if we’ve had much leisure time around a warm campfire. Besides, I had to know I could trust you.”
“Can you?”
“Yes, I know that now.”
Camoe’s blue-gray eyes glinted in the dimness of first light. “I would have given much to study the candle. You are correct believing it an artifact. All the crystal candles are, though I have never heard of the white one. Perhaps it is one of the rarest ones, infused with Greater Flow; one that could augment a User’s ability limited only by the User. Infused with any Flow at all, it is still a terrible loss. It is likely the candle is what the Dark Creation’s master wanted all along. If it is of the higher class, it’s a strong possibility your creature’s master was able to perceive it by the creatures proximity to the artifact. Our side has taken a great blow.”
Jade wasn’t thinking about sides, but she did feel bad about losing the candle. And for losing Burl, she missed him already. She couldn’t believe he would take the candle and run off, not him. A thought occurred to her. “Your daughter had a blue one. Was it an artifact? Did it have power, this Flow you mentioned, infused in it?
Camoe paused. “I have not had time to assess the strength of your…ability. It is stronger than I realized. Yes, Maialene had a blue crystal candle, a strong one that augmented her ability quite a lot, though it was not one of the ones infused with Greater Flow. Some of the great artifacts can even negate the need for an Interrupter, but those are extremely rare.”
“What’s an Interrupter? Have we talked about this?”
“I do not believe so. We shall, but not here. Come, we have allowed them to move far enough away by now.”
The rock stairway brought them to the debris mound’s surface. Following Camoe’s lead, Jade glanced around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, in fact, nothing moved at all. Not a single bird took flight. That in itself was disturbing. Now that accessible water was exposed, some woodland creature should have crept out of the forest to investigate.
Halting at cliff’s edge, Camoe paused to gaze around. Jade chose not to think what they would do if the pack of creatures circled back, they were too exposed once they’d moved beyond the grotto.
The druid began the long climb down a last cliff. Automatically now, she let him get far enough ahead to shout a warning in case she kicked a rock loose. Then, concentrating on the descent, she began, avoiding looking below except where required to map out the next step of the path. She’d learned that a glance downward would invite vertigo, the last thing anyone wanted while hanging on a cliff face. Testing each hold, she wondered how Burl fared, wherever he went. Her new world had become harsher and lonelier than ever before. Jade wanted to cry.
NOT HER WORLD
A bright, hot light lanced into Crystalyn’s eyes when she tried to open them, adding to the pain inside her head. Squeezing them closed, the pain lessened, but didn’t flee as much as she wished, though it was some relief. Now, if the wind would stop rocking the bed.
A woman’s melodious, yet commanding voice, cursed. “Blast you, fools! Keep her shaded until you get to the tent! She’s coming around, do you want her blind?”
A paler shade of gray enveloped her. Slow at first, then with a frightening rapidity, the weight of her flesh on her exoskeleton crashed upon her awareness. She felt everything all at once. Like she’d dropped into her own body after driving someone else’s, like the time she’d roamed about inside Lore Rayna, except she ached with pain this time. Pinpricks of the white-hot pain shot through her everywhere. Crystalyn moaned. Was this the price for her callous use of her symbols? She hurt!
Do’brieni, are you here? Concern flowed through link, and surprisingly, much of the pain lessened.
Yes, my dear, sweet Broth, I’m here, again. I’m so sorry for cutting you off. I don’t wish it again. Crystalyn sent love and affection.
Agitation and fear flowed in. I have searched long; nowhere in my race’s memory has this occurred. I would not have believed it possible. I, too, do not wish it to occur again. It is a very troubling and aberrant behavior.
Her affection grew. You should know by now, my dear Broth, nothing about me is normal, not in the slightest way. Her pain lessened noticeably. Are you doing something with my pain?
Smugness tinged with pain flowed through. I also have found an ability, which is not normal; in fact, I am certain no Do’brieni has accomplished it in the past. Your hurt is great. I’ve mirrored half of what you have so you do not bear the full brunt. The link will not allow any additional support. It will dissolve as yours does, or worsen.
Crystalyn sent gratitude along with much concern of her own. I am in awe Broth, but do not be so noble to draw in too much. I cannot have anything bad happen to you.
It is a new ability. I will be cautious, my Do’brieni.
The rocking motion ended, replaced by a firm feeling under her back.
“All leave us,” the melodious voice commanded. “Not you, Leven. I need your healing abilities.”
Crystalyn’s eyelids snapped open.
An interior sparsely furnished with multi-colored cushions laid out purposefully upon the floor. A small writing desk sat underneath a squared, clear section sewn into the tents roof, which provided the strongest luminance. A yellow crystal candle beckoned to her from atop the desk, identical in height to her black crystal candle, though differing in design. A woman’s slender fingers cupped a clear orb, made of the same material as Jade’s white candle. The orb exuded a subtle sense of chaste feminine vitality she sensed through her pain. Unique symbols ringed its base.
A woman’s tall, slender form stepped from the side to block her view of the candle. Opening the desks single drawer, the auburn-haired woman busied herself with something. Sliding the drawer closed, the woman turned to face her, slipping a key into the front pocket of her yellow dress. The yellow candle had vanished from atop the desk. “The dim light of my tent will help stave off the pain,” the woman said.
The woman’s voice was the melodious one she’d heard. Now she had a face to match it. The woman’s lovely features were what she’d expected from such a beautiful voice. Wide-set, dark green eyes regarded her from a rounded face. Red lips pursed, the woman clasped her hands to the f
ront with the patient air of someone waiting for a child’s response to some unasked question. Crystalyn wasn’t confident the two of them would get along. “I still feel awful, but the shade most definitely helps. Will someone tell me what happened? How many did I lose, besides…Atoi?” Crystalyn asked though she feared the answer.
A middle-aged man dressed in stark white robes stepped beside the regal woman. “Your little friend is alive…well, not deceased,” he said. The dark-eyed man was devoid of hair. Scalp, facial, or otherwise, not a single eyebrow defined his features. “As for the others, two had severe enough wounds I was forced to draw some strength from those without injury in order to complete the healing process…by their own request. They will require added rest.”
Crystalyn was relieved, yet confused. “So, no one died? How can that be?”
The woman raised a broad eyebrow, a half-smile flitting across her lips. “No, Crystalyn, as impossible as it sounds you and your companions chased a regiment of Dark Users away. My reinforcements showed up, but you’d already forced them to begin withdrawing with your final two…detonations.”
“You know my name. I don’t know yours.”
The woman’s face smoothed. “So, you do not. I am Kara Laurel. This is my companion, Leven,” she added, gesturing toward the man beside her.
Crystalyn nodded, and then grimaced, the pain flashing to new heights inside her skull. Looking down, she pressed her palms over her eyes, waiting for the pain to subside. She didn’t want to add further to Broth’s pain, he already carried a lot. When she could, she looked up to find the man and woman had moved close, one to each side.
“Your headaches,” Leven asked, without preamble, “when did they begin?” His dispassionate face gave no indication as to why he’d asked.
“I’m not sure, but I think they began when I started using my symbols.”
Kara Laurel’s eyes flickered. “Tell me about these symbols. When you create them, do you pull the Flow from around you, or do you think about what you want to accomplish?”
Beyond the Sapphire Gate: Epic Fantasy-Some Magic Should Remain Untouched (The Flow of Power Book 1) Page 28
