Sorcery, Schemes and Skelt: The Kinowenn Chronicles Vol II

by Rachel Ronning

  “Do you think you are up for this?” Justin asked.

  “I think so. I’m getting better at creative problem solving under pressure. With all of you around, I’m bound to be okay. Besides, it shouldn’t take too long to gather information. Then, we will come back here and I’ll work with Quinn more. I like working with Quinn.” Justin gave her a questioning look considering her current state. “I’ll admit this afternoon was an exception. Most days are better. It’s challenging, which I like, and I’m learning a lot quickly.”

  Justin nodded in agreement.

  “Do you think I’m up for this?” asked Lucy.

  “I’ve always thought you were up for anything,” said Justin with a reassuring smile. “Yes, I think you can handle this. You don’t even talk in your sleep anymore. As long as this doesn’t take too long and as long as you aren’t forced into blowing up mass amounts of people, you should be fine.”

  “Do you feel like packing tonight?”

  “Not even a little,” replied Justin with a smile. “Let’s go to bed.”

  Chapter 26

  Lucy woke up the next morning still unsure of her decision to go. She chided herself. That’s not the way to go about this. She had to be sure. She had to be confident. Otherwise, she shouldn’t go. She needed to embrace her power and use it to help her friends. She could do that. With those positive thoughts in mind, she rolled out of bed. It was then she realized that she didn’t have to detangle herself from Justin. He wasn’t there. She was used to waking up before him lately. She was surprised he had got out of bed without waking her. Usually, she was a light sleeper. She got dressed and went into the other room. Justin had breakfast sitting for her at their table.

  “Good morning,” he greeted her.

  “Good morning,” replied Lucy. “Thanks for getting me breakfast,” she sat down and took a bite of a blueberry muffin.

  “It saves time. This way we can talk while you eat and I pack.”

  Justin had a large amount of supplies laid out on their floor. He was sorting through rope, travel food, tinder boxes, writing supplies, empty bottles of various sizes, mismatched socks, tunics, boots, and climbing gear.

  “What do you think we will need?” he asked Lucy.

  “We will need travel clothes and supplies to get to Lerramorre. After that, I think we will need more dress clothes. Things we would wear to diplomatic functions. If we end up as emissaries, we should look our best. However, Joss should be able to supply us with anything else we would need once we get there. Probably no on the climbing gear.”

  “No climbing gear?” asked Justin appalled.

  “Are there mountains between Taran’s cabin and Lerramorre?”

  “No, but there are other uses for climbing gear.”

  “Rope should suffice.”

  “Not if we need harnesses, quickdraws, or carabiners,” replied Justin.

  “Yes, and we will need them for what?”

  “I don’t know right now, but I’d hate to need them and not have them.”

  “Bring them,” said Lucy, starting to feel exasperated already.

  “Then, what else can I leave behind?”

  Lucy was beginning to feel this conversation had no good solutions. She did not want to argue over every item that did or did not get packed.

  “Perhaps packing is something we shouldn’t do together. You pack what you think you need. I’ll pack what I think I’ll need. At lunch, we can go over lists with Gavin and Maya. Between the four of us, we should be able to cover everything we need. After talking to them, we can get rid of any duplicates. Besides, Taran is packing too. Relax.”

  Justin nodded. He sent a quick smile her direction and then began sifting through his rope pile. Lucy ate another muffin, wondering how many different kinds of rope one man needed. After eating some strawberries, Lucy went to her wardrobe, pulled out her pack and began to put clothes in it. Lucy hoped Maya wouldn’t show up at lunch with a bag full of new clothes for her. She already had enough to fill her pack.

  Lucy spent most of the morning packing and repacking her pack. She couldn’t decide if she was packing enough stuff or too much. There were some things she had packed the last two times that she had never used. Still, that didn’t mean she wouldn’t need them this time. She was relieved when it was almost lunch time. It made her take a break from packing. She could stop agonizing over the same items, and give her mind time to remember the one thing she always forgot. Also, they were going to compare lists at lunch.

  Lucy took a slight detour on the way to the dining hall. She wanted to stop by the apothecary to let Ted know she was going on another quest. She entered, inhaled cinnamon and sage, and found him standing on his head.

  “Ted, what are you doing?”

  “Resting,” he replied, blinking at her.

  “Upside down?”

  “Of course. It’s the best way to truly rest.”

  “I’m not sure I understand.”

  “If I sit down on a chair to rest, I see things that need doing. It is easy to do things while sitting. It is also easy to get up. It takes more work to stand on your head. Once you are there, if you see something that needs doing, it is easier to decide that it can wait until you are done. Besides, most of the place is arranged with the intention of being visible to people standing up. I see fewer things that need doing. The whole time I’m down here, blood is rushing to my head. It feels amazing when I get up. Yes, the best way to rest.”

  Lucy wasn’t sure Ted’s explanation made sense, but it didn’t sound any more unreasonable than most of the things he came up with so who was she to judge. However, she was still going to rest sitting or lying down.

  Ted blinked up at her. “It is too early in the day for you to be here. You must be going again.”

  “Yes, our friend, Joss, asked for help. We are going to go see what we can do.”

  “Helping a friend is very important. Yes, very important. How are you? Better, but still hurt in the head. We do not always get to choose when to fight hate and evil. Hate and evil sometimes find us. Helping is good. Though sometimes the best way to help those we love is to fix ourselves first.”

  “I know I need more time and practice. I do understand. I plan to come back and train with Quinn as soon as this is done,” replied Lucy.

  “Good. Also, come here more often. You could use some more time with the ferlecctuala. You will find balance quicker if it finds you. Running around and searching for it will not help. They will be blooming soon. You should stay and see what color the flowers will be this time. Always very pretty. The ferlecctuala like you.”

  “Thank you, Ted. I will come back. I’d love to see the ferlecctuala bloom. I’ll see you soon.”

  “Soon. Such an odd word, soon. It means something different to every person. I never count on those who use such words. It shows a lack of attention to detail. Come back with a better vocabulary. Go now, I’m resting.”

  Lucy left. She thought about the different things Ted had said. Not everything Ted said made sense. Not everything he said was useful. But most of what he said was thought provoking. He said you couldn’t run around searching for balance. Well, you couldn’t sit in a field counting blades of grass waiting for it to stumble by either. Even if you were standing on your head.

  Lucy joined Maya and Gavin at the lunch table. She didn’t know where Justin was. Much to her relief, Maya had not brought her more clothes to pack. That didn’t mean she hadn’t packed them with her own things, but at least there was no added work for her. Gavin was eating his way through what looked like a whole duck. Between clothes, weapons, and food, Gavin probably didn’t worry about packing much else.

  “How did packing go?” Lucy asked.

  “Great,” said Maya, “I’m all done. We can leave after lunch if you guys are ready too. Or tomorrow, if now is too soon.”

  Gavin swallowed, “I’m done. I thought I’d better bulk up on food in case you wanted to leave this afternoon. The sooner we get to
Lerramorre, the sooner we find out what’s going on, and the sooner we can help.”

  “I agree,” said Lucy, “And I’m all packed. I am supposed to meet Quinn for another training session this afternoon.”

  “We’ll leave tomorrow then,” agreed Maya. “Is Justin ready?”

  “I’m not entirely sure. The last time I saw him, he was debating how many carabiners to pack. I thought he was meeting us at lunch.”

  “I’m sure he’ll be ready. He always is and he’s just as concerned as the rest of us,” said Maya. “What does he think we will need carabiners for? There aren’t any mountains in the way.”

  “I have no idea,” replied Lucy. “I just live with him; I don’t claim to understand everything about him. I suggested he leave them here, but his look of horror at the suggestion made me decide to leave him to his stuff and pack my own.”

  “Every couple has at least one thing they should not do together,” joked Maya.

  “That’s what I told him,” said Lucy with a smile. “I’ve watched him pack before. I guess watching and participating are two different things.”

  Gavin finished his duck and started on a mound of mashed potatoes. Justin showed up with his own plate of food. He seemed distracted.

  “Good, you’re here” said Maya. “We are all ready to go and expect you to be too. We will meet you at Eric’s room tomorrow morning.” She got up and left.

  “I thought we had a couple of days. When did she decide to take charge?” asked Justin.

  “I think when it started to involve Joss,” answered Lucy.

  “I thought he annoyed her,” said Gavin.

  “He does. That doesn’t mean he’s always annoying. She enjoys the banter too. I think she discovered she misses him when he’s gone. Now that he’s asking for help, she’s concerned,” said Lucy.

  Gavin shrugged concentrating on finishing half a kalliberry pie.

  “It’s going to take them time to find someone to watch Taran’s cabin. At least a day,” said Justin.

  “That might be so,” agreed Lucy. “I think Maya would rather wait there than here. At least that way it will feel like we are doing something. Being packed and at Taran’s is one step closer to Lerramorre.”

  Gavin shrugged again. His job was to use his skills to help the group. He tended to leave the decisions to others. He left to go recheck his gear and grab as many weapons as he could comfortably carry and still maneuver with. Lucy and Justin finished in silence.

  “You seem distracted,” commented Lucy.

  “Worried about Joss and what else may be going on over there. Unlike Maya, I would rather wait here for a couple of days.”

  “Why?” asked Lucy.

  “I would get to spend more time with you alone. Also, you could use another day or two of training with Quinn. You’ve learned so much so quickly, who knows what you could learn in two days.”

  It was an odd situation. Lucy agreed with everyone’s different views. She figured she could work on bored meditation just as easily at Taran’s cabin. She left to go meet Quinn, and Justin went back to their room to agonize over packing.

  “How are you this afternoon?” asked Quinn.

  “Better than yesterday evening,” replied Lucy honestly.

  “I’m sorry. I know it isn’t any fun, but we are making progress. You might never care for certain types of meat, but hopefully seeing and smelling wild boar on a spit won’t bring back nightmares. Sometimes, it is the smells that stick with us the longest,” Quinn looked wistful for a moment and Lucy wondered what smell she was remembering. Before she could ask, Quinn snapped out of her reverie and asked, “Ready?”

  Lucy sighed and nodded fearing what this training session would bring. This time, Quinn focused on the battle she had fought for Lerramorre. The noise, dust, screams, wails, metal clashing, and the fire, always her fire. Lucy broke down crying. She sobbed and she sobbed. Finally Quinn stopped.

  “Battles are a part of life on Kinowenn. You must learn to handle them. What is it that bothers you most?”

  “I’m not sure. I think it’s the whole thing. I mean I can handle each smell or sound individually, but the whole thing together is overwhelming. It’s too much,” Lucy tried to put into words what she felt.

  “How will you handle it again?”

  “I don’t know,” said Lucy honestly. “It all seems so senseless.”

  “It often is. In the many years I have been alive, I have seen many senseless battles. I’ve participated in senseless battles. You are stronger than senseless. You cannot let one battle ruin who you are or determine who you are.” Lucy nodded. “Let’s try again.”

  Lucy focused as the sounds, smells, and images washed over her again. This time, that’s what she tried to let happen. She let them wash over her. Like a waterfall. She wasn’t going to let them drag her down. She was a rock. All those sounds, images, and smells were washed downstream. They were gone now. They were still part of the water but they were downstream. They no longer concerned her. More would come from upstream. There would always be more, but she would let them wash over her too. Don’t dwell. Don’t worry. Let them all run downstream. Maybe that was the issue. She couldn’t run from her memories, but she could let them run away from her. Quinn stopped and studied her.

  “You did much better. You are finding acceptance and balance. Well done. You still need a lot of work, but let’s end on a positive note. I talked to Maya and she brought up something I wanted to discuss with you. She told me it might be about numbers for you. The quantity of people your magic can help you kill.”

  “I think she’s partly right. It doesn’t feel fair. I don’t want to kill that many people.”

  “Most people don’t want to kill that many people,” said Quinn with a half-smile. “Always fight to the best of your abilities. To do anything less is an injustice to yourself and the people you fight with. Get over the idea of fair as well. Anything is fair once combat is engaged unless rules are otherwise specified. Is it fair when a dragon burns a village?”

  “No, but a dragon is what a dragon is. I do not want to be a dragon,” said Lucy.

  “Oh no, a dragon has a choice. Dragons are smart, just like you are,” cautioned Quinn. “They choose to burn villages for fun or out of boredom. You can choose not to be a dragon. Now, if a dragon burns an entire army because he is fighting for one side, is it fair?”

  “I don’t know about fair, but things are different in war.”

  “Exactly! Things are different in war. Accept that. Go on with life and choose not to burn down villages when you get bored.”

  Lucy smiled. Perhaps that was it. Perhaps half of her problem was how she viewed the situation. Things are different in war. But that doesn’t mean they didn’t happen and that they don’t affect you. Lucy was sure she made some progress today. She hoped it was enough. She dragged her feet back to her room. Their packs were lined up against the wall, all ready to go. Justin smiled at her as she entered.

  “How about a hot bath?” he asked.

  “Sounds wonderful,” replied Lucy with feeling.

  Chapter 27

  Lucy woke up the next morning and stretched. She would miss her bed over the next few weeks. She enjoyed living here with Justin. They were reaching a good place to be in their relationship. Who knew what the next few weeks had in store for them. She kissed Justin good morning and got up to get dressed. Justin groaned, not ready to get out of bed. They stopped in the dining hall for a quick breakfast.

  As they walked to Eric’s room, Lucy thought about how lucky they were to be able to use magic. She was sure there was no way Justin would be able to carry everything he had packed without lightening spells, expanding bag spells, or shrinking spells. Maya and Gavin were already there waiting when they arrived. Eric wished them luck, handed them back rings that would allow them to travel to Kinowenn, and beckoned them to his door. They went through and found themselves near Taran’s cabin.

  Taran greeted them briefly and conti
nued packing.

  “Eric thinks he’s found someone that should work. He’s supposed to be here any minute. I’ll explain everything to him and then we can go.”

  They nodded and put down their packs. There was no reason to carry them around while they waited. Lucy wondered who Eric had found to stay at Taran’s so quickly. The people she had been spending time with lately did not seem the type. Lucy was sure Mac would go nuts out of boredom in about a day. Babysitting a cabin and being a messenger was not a good fit for him.

  Lucy could tell that Maya did not like waiting. She wanted to get on the road and get to Joss. Gavin seemed antsy and ready for the journey too. Luckily, they didn’t have to wait very long to find out who Eric had found. Philip appeared out of thin air looking slightly frazzled and weighed down with a pack. Taran greeted him kindly and launched into explaining everything he could to Philip.

  Philip looked nervous and slightly excited about being in charge of anything much less something that seemed important. Lucy was sure he would be okay. She knew he would do his best and perhaps without people around to see him fail, he would find some confidence of his own. Unlike Mac, he wouldn’t get bored with the situation quickly. It looked like the school had lent him a large pile of books to read as well. Taran finished with some last minute instructions on watering his herb garden and picked up his pack. Taran had already saddled the horses and added provisions so they mounted up, said good bye to Philip, and traveled north while the sun held.

  “Should we have left a horse for Philip?” asked Gavin.

  “No, he doesn’t get along too well with them. It would only make things worse if he had to take care of one,” explained Lucy.

  “Yes, I got that impression when we talked. He will be safe enough and fit enough to walk back and forth to the village for supplies. He seems able enough, but shy,” said Taran. “He should be able to handle things and Eric promised to check in on him.”