The Mountains Rise

by Michael G. Manning

  Or is she dancing? He wondered. The girl’s movements were too disordered to be sure, but it hardly mattered, for she was enjoying herself.

  Later, tired and sweaty despite the cool breeze, Brigid sat down, leaning into him. He talked to her, studying her hair and dirty face, marveling at the sparkle in her eyes while she answered him enthusiastically. According to her, Lacy was probably the bravest dog in the world, and certainly the smartest. Before he knew it, she had fallen fast asleep.

  Not daring to disturb her, he gave Lacy a nod and a command, making sure she knew to warn him if the sheep needed him. Then he lay back and relaxed, watching the blue sky even as he pondered the miracle of the small girl nestled under his arm. He measured each breath she took, and his heart seemed to slow, trying to match her rhythm.

  ***

  His mind drifted lazily while the clouds sailed past. No longer quite awake, he wasn’t asleep either. Daniel was in the place between asleep and awake, a place where the spirit meets reality and dreams begin, and where they return to die when finished. There he felt at peace, as though he were part of something greater. The world was alive, and he was a small but happy piece of it. The heart of the earth was beating beneath him, dreaming of things too large for his small mind to comprehend.

  A small figure was running, coming uphill toward him. It was a curious animal, racing awkwardly on two legs. Four would have been a better choice for that sort of terrain. His mind came into better focus, and he knew then that she was human, and humans only used two legs. I’m a human too, he thought idly.

  “Oh, it’s Kate,” he heard himself say, and then he felt the world fall into place. He was having trouble understanding the state his mind had been in, but that hardly mattered now. Kate was winded, trying to run up a hillside. She wouldn’t be making such haste unless she had a good reason.

  Sitting up he nudged Brigid, “Wake up, it’s time to head back to the house.”

  She sat up, looking around blearily and rubbing at her face. “Mmmhh hmmm,” she answered.

  “Climb onto my back, and I’ll give you a piggyback ride,” he told her.

  It didn’t take much to convince her, Brigid loved piggyback rides. As soon as he knelt, she hopped on, stretching her legs around his hips and wrapping her arms around his neck and shoulders. “Go!” she commanded.

  He couldn’t help but chuckle to himself at that, and so he dutifully took off. Moving downhill at speed was tricky, especially with a child on his back, so even though he made haste, he was careful not to take risks. He met Kate halfway down.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked her, even more worried when he saw her face.

  “It’s your dad,” she answered, heaving to catch her breath between each word. “He’s hurt.”

  “Where is he?”

  “At my house,” she replied. “The men from the town brought him back.”

  “The men?” he asked suspiciously.

  She nodded, but she was still too out of breath to elaborate.

  “I want you to follow me back with your sister,” he told the girl on his back, easing her around and helping her down. Brigid nodded in agreement and took Kate’s hand.

  “Daniel, wait!” shouted Kate as he began to run.

  “You’ll have to catch up,” he told her. On his own now, he shielded himself and used one of the tricks he had learned in the arena. He extended and shaped the shield beneath him, forming it into a large concave disk. From his arms, he sent out long pole-like extensions, using them to push himself downhill, and he began to slide, skidding at ever increasing speed.

  Once he was in motion he didn’t have to worry about propelling himself, he just used his arms to push and shove to either side, to guide his disk around obstacles too large for him to slide over. It was a wild frenzied way to travel downslope, but it was far faster than the alternative. Since the disk beneath his feet was attached to his body shield, it was impossible for him to fall free, so balance wasn’t an issue.

  Stopping, now that would be a greater concern.

  As he neared the bottom, where the river and a number of jagged rocks awaited, he changed the shape of his disk, widening and flattening it to create more resistance. That alone wasn’t slowing his descent enough, though, so he began to send long streamers of force out behind himself, grasping weakly at small trees and rocks without trying to grab on to them too forcefully.

  That made the difference, and by the time he reached the river he was moving at a pace comparable to a fast walk. He shifted the shape of his shield then, changing the extensions from his arms into long claw-like appendages. The disk beneath him vanished, and he began using the shield around his feet to create stilts, projecting them outward to give him a boost with each step upward.

  Climbing toward what he still thought of as the ‘Sayer House’, he surged upward in long bounding steps while the claws extending from his arms reached out to brace and balance him. He was able to ascend almost as quickly as he had flown down the other slope.

  His magesight had already found his father, long before he was close to the house. Alan Tennick lay in the back of his wagon, his body still and his breathing shallow. Seth was with him, easing a towel under the back of his head. A bucket stood to one side, filled with water. It looked as though he planned to use it and a second cloth to clean some of the blood and dirt away.

  Why is he still in the wagon?

  Daniel knew it was a bad sign. His father had to be badly hurt if Seth didn’t want to try to move him into the house. He covered the remaining distance in a frantic rush.

  Seth was startled by the odd manner of his arrival, but he pushed his shock aside, “They brought him just a few minutes ago…”

  Daniel was already in the wagon, examining his father, his magesight probing within and without. Years in the arena had taught him much about basic anatomy. He had learned to seal wounds and stop bleeding arteries when necessary, and he had spent a lot of time exploring the inner world of his body. He was by no means a great healer; the She’Har that tended to wounded victors could manage feats of healing that seemed to be nothing short of miraculous.

  If you won and survived long enough for them to reach you, they could restore you from almost any wound. After a quick examination, he immediately wished that one of them was here.

  Alan’s ribs were broken in several places, and one fragment had lodged in his left lung. His right femur had snapped, and the thigh was purple with bruising from whatever had broken it. One of the larger veins there had ruptured and was causing the leg to swell. His father’s face was dark and swollen so badly that if he had been conscious, he would have been unable to see. The lower lip had been cut through by his teeth, but somehow his nose remained unbroken.

  Alan Tennick had been beaten within an inch of his life.

  In fact, given a short period of time, he might not survive. The injury to his lung might prove fatal by itself, and the leg could lead to dangerous complications later on, assuming the bleeding stopped before it killed him.

  “Who did this?”

  “I’m not sure,” said Seth uncertainly. “Mr. Stiles brought him back, along with John Hedger, but I don’t think they were in on it. I think they were trying to help.” Mr. Stiles was the town blacksmith, a fairly decent man as far as Daniel knew, and one without any reason to hate him. John Hedger was Billy Hedger’s father, but aside from fathering a bad son, Daniel didn’t think he had any reason to hold a grudge either.

  Kneeling beside his father, Daniel closed his eyes; they would only distract him from his task. “Seth, I’m going to need to concentrate for a while, so try to stay quiet. Keep the water and towels handy. When I’m finished, we’ll move him into the house.”

  “I don’t think we can, Daniel. Look at his leg!”

  “Trust me,” said Daniel, and with that he shut out the outside world, focusing purely on what was occurring inside Alan Tennick’s beaten and bruised form. The lung needed his attention first, and he used his mind to r
emove the bone fragment and reseal the lung before it got any worse. There was some blood in it already, but he wasn’t sure how to get it out without creating more problems, so he left it alone.

  He wanted to realign the bones and fuse them together, but the bleeding vein in his thigh was more urgent. He stopped that temporarily, until he could find the other end of the torn vessel and reattach it. Sealing it off would have been enough, but he knew that it would make it much more painful later if he didn’t reestablish the pathway for blood flow.

  Alan began to move a bit, moaning as Daniel’s activities began to become more painful for him.

  He ignored that, ready to use his aythar to hold Alan still if necessary. Then he began realigning the ribs, getting them into their proper positions before fusing them together. Apparently that was an exceedingly painful operation, for his father began to thrash wildly. Using his power, he restrained the older man forcefully, locking him rigidly in place.

  Alan tried to scream, but his damaged lung and broken ribs made it impossible for him to do more than let out a soft airy howl. Daniel ignored it and continued fixing the ribs. Seth, meanwhile, had taken a seat on the ground. The sight of Alan Tennick helplessly screaming in half-silence while Daniel worked on him had made him light-headed.

  Daniel finished the ribs and then removed the excess blood from his father’s leg before closing up the torn skin and muscle there. Once that was finished, he went over the older man from head to toe; closing every small cut and abrasion, making sure his skin was whole and unbroken.

  He could do nothing for the swelling, and Alan would still have a long painful recovery, but he wouldn’t be crippled. Daniel released the restraints on his father and motioned Seth to bring up the wet towels. “Let’s clean him off.”

  Kate had arrived by then, a wide eyed Brigid beside her. “How is he?” she asked.

  “He’s going to be sore as hell for a few weeks, but I think he’ll be alright if he doesn’t get a fever,” said Daniel. “He would have died, though. They beat him half to death, Kate.” As he spoke he created a shield under his father and lifted him into the air, moving him gently toward the house.

  Kate ran to open the door, and Seth followed him, wide eyed.

  Once they had him settled into the bed in what had once been Kate’s room, Daniel headed back outside.

  “Where are you going?” asked Kate. The alarm in her voice was poorly hidden.

  Daniel ignored her, and Seth went with him. “There’s never been any trouble like this before, Daniel,” said his friend. “Things were tense, but nobody ever did more than curse or swear.”

  “They probably found out I came back,” said Daniel. “They might be hoping I’ll come to town.”

  “Don’t you even think about it, Daniel Tennick!” said Kate from behind them, her voice loud and commanding.

  Daniel glanced at her over his shoulder before meeting Seth’s eye. “I’m sorry,” he told them, and then he began to walk toward the road.

  “I’ll come with you,” said Seth.

  There was no hesitation in his old friend’s voice, and the pronouncement sent a shiver through Daniel’s heart. He had been alone for so long that he had forgotten what friendship meant. A painful lump formed in his throat, but as much as he yearned to accept the offer he knew he couldn’t.

  “No,” he replied. “I don’t want them associating you with me any more than they do already. It might cause you trouble in the future. I couldn’t forgive myself if something ever happened to you or Kate.”

  “Piss on that,” said Seth with venom in his voice. “What they did wasn’t right.”

  Kate put her hand on her husband’s shoulder, “He’s right, honey.”

  The familiar gesture and the easy endearment, ‘honey’, sent a twinge of regret through Daniel. That could have been me. He started walking again.

  “You shouldn’t go either, Daniel,” she said sternly.

  He didn’t turn around, “It’s too late for that.”

  “They’re probably all waiting for you. That’s what they want you to do!” she yelled as he got further away.

  “You know how much I like to make people happy,” he answered sarcastically.

  “What are you going to do?” said Seth loudly.

  “I’m going to hurt them,” said Daniel in a tone almost too low for them to hear. I’ve had five years to learn all about pain. If they think they know how to hurt me—they’re about to discover the real meaning of the word.

  “That won’t make anything better!” shouted Kate.

  Something in her tone finally made his anger flare, and he stopped, turning for a moment. “I don’t give a damn. Hurting people is the only thing I’ve ever been good at.”

  Her reply was quiet, without hope, but his ears caught it anyway, “That’s a lie.” There were angry tears on her cheek, and Brigid was watching her, unsure why she was so upset. Kate hid her face against Seth’s shirt to conceal her anguish.

  Dappled sunlight from the late afternoon sun ran over his shoulders and flickered through his hair as Daniel followed the road to Colne. He walked alone except for his anger, but it stayed close beside him, whispering words of death and vengeance in his ear.

  Chapter 40

  Daniel kept a normal walking pace rather than use his abilities to speed the journey. One thing he had learned from Thillmarius, whether intentionally or not, was that pain was better when it wasn’t rushed. The walk gave him time to cool his temper, letting it change from rage to an angry simmer. It also gave him time to plan his response.

  Before he arrived he came to the conclusion that he needed to make sure none would escape. The people who had attacked his father had no idea of his capabilities, or they wouldn’t have done something so foolish, but once he showed his power, it was entirely possible they would scatter like rats.

  To that end he left the road a half a mile from town and approached from an unexpected direction. Once he neared the outermost buildings of their small town, he stretched out his hand and exerting his will, he began to carve a deep line as he walked. He circled the town slowly, until he reached the other side where the single road that passed through Colne emerged again. He was worried he might encounter someone there, spoiling his surprise.

  His magesight had already shown him that a number of people were in the buildings on that end of town, but none of them were outside so he continued onward. A boy darted out of one house, however, and noticed him before running further along the road.

  If he alerts them, they’ll come running to this end of town, but I won’t be here when they get back.

  He shrugged mentally and kept moving, following the outer line of buildings on the other side of town. He heard a few shouts as he went, and his magesight showed him a number of people moving through town, back to the place where he had been seen. As he went, he passed the back of the Banks’ house. Larry Banks is probably one of the ringleaders, he noted. I killed his son, and then his daughter killed herself after having my bastard child. He probably has more reason to hate me than any of the others.

  There was no one in the house, though, so he kept going, engraving his trench as he passed. Eventually he reached the road again, this time on the side he had initially come from. As he had expected, a mob of men and women was waiting there. The looks of anticipation and excitement, mingled with anger and hatred filled Daniel with disgust.

  For some of them this was entertainment, the most exciting event to occur in ages. For others it was time for a comeuppance, their long anticipated moment of revenge. He ignored them and walked by; wanting to make sure he completed his circle before facing them.

  “Where do you think you’re going, boy!?” shouted Larry Banks from the center of the mob. He had at least eight or nine other men with him along with a collection of women and children. Tom Hayes and his wife Alice were there, and their son Aston had made sure to come for the show. He also spotted Dalton Brown, John Wheeler, and Brad Harper. Billy Hedger was in
the crowd as well; a grown man, he stood beside his friend Aston.

  “Just a minute,” said Daniel loudly, ensuring that they all heard him. “I’ll be with you shortly.”

  A rock sailed by, missing him narrowly. A second followed it, this one better aimed, but Daniel nudged it with his mind, sending it far enough off course that it missed as well. Don’t do anything to scare them until the circle is finished, he reminded himself again.

  “I knew you was a coward, Daniel!” yelled Billy Hedger. The entire group was moving toward him now.

  “What’s that trench next to him?” said Mr. Wheeler as they got closer.

  Too late, asshole, thought Daniel and extending his arm, he sent his power out, finishing the last thirty feet of his circle ahead of him. He turned toward the crowd and began advancing on them, intending to move the fight away from his line. That way he could wait to use his power on it after the fun had started.

  Several more rocks flew at him, and he didn’t bother avoiding or diverting these, allowing them to bounce off his shield. The people at the edge of the crowd parted for him, until Billy Hedger advanced and threw a punch at his midsection. Daniel just hardened his personal shield and anchored it firmly in the ground, smiling when Billy began howling; the bones in his hand broken.

  More rocks came at him, and someone swung an axe handle, using it like a club. None of them came close, though. Daniel had expanded his shield, giving himself several feet on either side so that they couldn’t crowd him. Billy was inside it now, still screaming over his broken fist.

  Billy was a solidly built young man but he had already lost his will to fight. Daniel floored him with a jab to the stomach followed by an uppercut to the jaw. He knelt beside his stunned opponent and put his right hand over Billy’s face.

  “What was that you called me, Billy? A coward?” he asked, and then he used his right index finger to mark the letters on the mostly helpless man’s forehead, searing them into the skin with lines of fire. The screaming was terrible to hear, and the angry mob watched impotently as Daniel finished the job.