Ossendar: Book Two of the Resoration Series

by Williams, Christopher

  Shim nodded, “Yes sir.”

  Flare woke with a start, not sure what had disturbed his slumber. He sat up in the early morning chill and glanced at the sky. It must be less than an hour to sunrise, he thought, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He glanced over to where Atock was sitting, as it was his turn to be on guard duty. Atock was leaning against a tree, near the edge of the small clearing where they had made camp, his head slumped forward on his chest, while he was breathing slow and steady. Surprise and annoyance flooded over Flare. They had maintained a guard every night for the last nine days; even though Leela had insisted it was unnecessary. None of them really trusted the wildling woman, but Atock and Philip had been the most vocal in their distrust. Yet, apparently that had not stopped Atock from falling asleep while on guard duty. Rising, Flare determined that this would not be a guard duty that Atock soon forgot.

  He had only taken two steps toward Atock, his brow furrowed in anger, when a soft voice called over to him. “He won't wake, at least not until I release him.”

  Flare turned to the edge of the clearing that was in the darkest shadows, and could barely make out Leela sitting at the base of a tree. His hand slid down and rested on his sword hilt, but he didn't draw it, not yet. He took several slow steps toward the wildling, “What do you mean until you release him?”

  “Do not worry. I do not mean you or them any harm. I simply wish to talk with you, and I don't want them to hear.” She rose and moved out of the shadows, the moonlight was enough to light up her face, strangely, she was smiling. “I would imagine that you would also not want them to hear our conversation.”

  Confused, Flare studied the woman as she approached, “And why is that?”

  Leela stopped several feet from him, “Because unlike them, I know what you are about.”

  An involuntarily fear made Flare's stomach tighten up. “What do you mean by that?” He asked, afraid that he already knew the answer.

  “Flare, Do not be afraid of me, because I am like you.” She moved over and sat down near the fire, motioning as she did so for him to join her. He did so reluctantly. “I am a wildling, called to serve the forest and nature, but until recently, there haven't been any like me for several thousand years. I, and my companions, are a new thing. But in truth, we are an old thing come again. Like you, the world has not seen one like me for thousands of years.”

  The fear now seemed to be completely gone, “You really know what I am?” Flare asked. “And you're not afraid of me?”

  Leela laughed, it was a carefree laugh that spoke of limitless peace. “No. Nor should you fear me.”

  “But the Kelcer prophecy calls me a murderer and destroyer, the like of which this world has never seen. He says that I will bathe in the blood of the innocent, and my name will be a curse until the end of time.”

  Leela, still smiling, reached forward and put a hand on Flare's arm. “I do not know what Kelcer knew, I haven't seen what he saw. But I have traveled with you for more than a week, and the person I have seen is surely not a vile murderer. The people of Dal-Arium have feared me, and those like me, without any reason. I think that people fear your coming without any reason.” He opened his mouth to speak, but Leela talked right over him, “Oh, I know that Kelcer made some pretty nasty predications, but that's the problem with interrupting prophecy, you never really know what the prophet meant until it's happened.”

  Flare shook his head, “It seems pretty obvious to me; kind of hard to misinterpret those lines about murder and destruction.”

  “Really? Well, how about the lines in the Kelcer prophecy that mention healing the wounds of babes, and the sick alike. Didn't he call you the hope of the innocent?”

  Flare nodded, “Yes, but right before, he said that I would kill the innocent.”

  Leela nodded, “That's my point. You don't know what he meant, so you have to simply know yourself. I can see you being the hope of the innocents, but I can't see you slaying them.”

  “Why are you telling me this?” Flare asked.

  “Well, I wanted you to know what I saw in you. Surely, there aren't many that you can discuss this with?”

  He shook his head, smiling ruefully. “No, not many.” He paused for a moment, “Thank you for the encouragement.”

  “You are quite welcome. It's a shame that I will not see you after today.”

  “What? What do you mean?” Flare asked, a little afraid that the woman would be leaving them in this strange forest.

  Leela didn't seem bothered by the urgency in his voice, “We have come far enough to the south. Today, you can safely leave the forest and travel the highway again.”

  “You're sure? Soldiers on horseback could have easily beaten us this far south.”

  “They could have, but they have not. They have not gone farther south than the highway fork. You will be safe.”

  Relief and a small sense of loss settled on Flare. The relief was that they could start traveling the highway again, and leave the forest, that alone would speed up the trip. The loss was that Leela would not be going with them anymore. He had found himself liking the woman, and it helped to have someone around who you felt you could talk to.

  Shortly after sunrise, Flare roused Atock and Philip. Atock had been completely at a loss as to why he had fallen asleep while on guard duty, but Flare lied and pretended that he had relieved him near sunrise. “Don't you remember me telling you to get some sleep?” Even though Atock had not remembered, it had soothed his injured pride.

  Both Atock and Philip had perked up when they heard that Leela would be leaving them, and they would be returning to the highway. Neither had liked traveling in the forest, and they both had openly mistrusted the wildling woman. A quick breakfast was followed by some quick packing, and then it seemed like a short walk and they were standing on the edge of the forest. The highway stretching out to the southwest, and somewhere out there, was Helum.

  They took their leave of Leela on the edge of the forest, she nodded at Atock and Philip's words of thanks, but she seemed focused in on Flare. “Be careful,” she said simply.

  Flare smiled warmly, “I will, and you too. Don't get too near Dal-Arium. Okay?”

  She nodded, “We'll meet again, I think.”

  Surprised, Flare opened his mouth to speak, but Leela turned and silently disappeared back into the forest.

  Several moments later, slowly riding their horses along the highway, Philip said, “It sure feels great to be back on a horse. I was getting so tired of having to lead it through the trees and bushes.”

  Flare was a little irritated with Atock and Philip. He hadn't understood their deep mistrust of Leela, and had been annoyed with their joy at seeing her go. However, he too found the feeling of the saddle exhilarating, and returned the smiles of the other two.

  “Flare, how are we doing on our schedule?” Atock asked.

  “Fine. We're not supposed to be in Helum for another two weeks. We should make it in plenty of time.”

  “So the detour through the forest didn't slow us down, then?” Philip asked.

  Flare closed his eyes, enjoying the early morning sun on his face. “Oh, it slowed us down some, but we were way ahead of our schedule anyway, and now were just a little ahead.”

  “I hope the others are doing as well.” Atock said quietly, effectively ruining the mood for all of them.

  Chapter 17

  Derek reluctantly kicked dirt over the coals of their campfire. The eastern sky was a beautiful pink, and it wouldn't be too long before the sun was fully up. It was time to get moving, but he still hated to put out the fire, especially when it was so cold. Pulling his cloak tighter at the neck, he knew it wouldn't be too long before he would probably be taking it back off. Once the sun was up, riding along in full sunlight would warm them, but that still seemed like forever and a half away.

  He glanced around at his companions. Enstorion had been his normal quiet self, pretty much right from the beginning of this journey. Every now and then
, he would make a suggestion, or interject an unexpected comment, always taking the other guardians by surprise when he did so. But for the most part, he remained aloof, that's not to say that he didn't do his portion of the chores around camp, he just remained distant as he did his duties. Still, Enstorion had done what was expected of him, and Derek had no complaints.

  Trestus had been the major source of worry at the beginning of the trip, but their time with the entertainers had completely changed the young man's attitude. Perhaps it was all of the attention of the young women, or perhaps it was getting out of Telur that had so lifted his spirits. Whatever it was, Derek was pleased to see the smiling Trestus, laughing and joking.

  Derek's glance moved past Trestus and settled on Kara. Unlike the other three, she was still sitting on a log, on the opposite side of where the fire had been. Ever since they had snuck away from the entertainers, she had slid further and further into quiet depression. Now, she only spoke in response to the questions of others, and then only grudgingly. He hadn't told Trestus and Enstorion about the enchanted bracelet, but they knew something had happened. Trestus had even questioned him about it, but Derek had refused to betray her secret. Things had to change, but he was unable to think of a way to bring Kara out of her melancholy.

  He breathed into his cupped hands, trying to warm them a little. “Okay. We should reach the border with Delamar in a couple of hours. Remember, if we're questioned, I will do the talking. All right?”

  Trestus and Enstorion both nodded, Trestus suppressing a yawn as he did so, but Kara was still sitting on the log, staring into the pit where the fire had been. “Kara!” Derek called over to her. “Are you coming?”

  Startled, Kara looked up and around, “What?”

  Cursing inwardly, Derek repeated himself. “Are you coming with us, or did you want to stay here?”

  She stood up, and moved slowly to her horse. She had been like this ever since that night where she had confessed her betrayal of the church of Adel, but she seemed to be getting worse. Once, if Derek had snapped at Kara like that, she would skinned him alive, but now she didn't even seem to notice.

  They had left the entertainers camp and traveled south for about a mile, passing the road that they planned to take eastward. Then they had hid in the forest until the entertainers rode past, and then they had waited for several hours, before they had emerged from their hiding spot and traveled back north to the eastward road. Road, it had been more like a trail than anything else, but it had taken them all the way to Victory Lake. From there, they had paid a fisherman to ferry them to the southern shore. Then two weeks of riding south through Ontaria, found them here on the southern border of Ontaria with Delamar. Derek had been afraid that the mysterious warriors would appear somewhere in Ontaria, but they hadn't so far. That really didn't make him feel any better, because that meant that Kara had been right about the warriors tracking the bracelet.

  The trip through Ontaria had been uneventful, almost relaxing. The western and southern parts were ideally suited for farming, and it was indeed a bread basket. Food was the chief export of Ontaria, and that helped keep the peace in this region. Makes it kind of difficult to attack Ontaria, when they are providing the food for your citizens, unless you were fairly sure that you can subdue the farms quickly. Nothing like starving people to start a riot or even perhaps a revolution.

  Derek had quickly found himself liking the small farming communities that they passed through. Small, quaint inns and villages, with happy people living in them, made it easy to enjoy the trip. Trestus had found it enjoyable too, as he had continued to enjoy the company of the ladies.

  Two or three weeks to go until they reached Helum, and that was if everything went smoothly. Glancing over at Kara again, he wondered how they would ever make it.

  Several hours passed, and Derek was becoming concerned, surely they should have crossed the border by now. Had he miss-calculated the distance? The road just seemed to stretch on an on, with farms and trees on either side.

  Around noon, they crested a low hill and looked down upon a small town. It was the first town that they had seen in days. There had been plenty of small villages, with wooden ramshackle buildings, but this town had several building made out of stone.

  Derek's initial pleasure at the sight of the town, quickly turned to apprehension. To the west of the town, camped in the empty field, were a large number of soldiers. The white tents were in neat rows, and it had the bustle and organization that he immediately recognized as that of an army camp.

  Trestus pointed to the banner flying atop a pole, in the middle of the camp. “Well, they are flying Delamar's flag, so at least we know we're in Delamar.”

  Derek nodded, “All right. Just remember what I said. If we're questioned by any border guards, I will do the talking.” The others nodded their assent, and they began the descent towards town.

  The hill, from where they had first spotted the town, was just a short distance away, so they reached the town after a short ride. The town was called Kin Bellum and appeared to be an ordinary border town with a thriving trading community. On the plain just north of Kin Bellum, was a huge open air market. Derek spotted merchants offering just about anything one would want to buy. That included, he noticed with disgust, slaves. The slave market was off to the east a little bit, but there was a horrible smell hanging over the area, and it seemed to be coming from the slave pens.

  They rode their horses through the throngs of merchants and shoppers with some difficulty. The noise was overwhelming, as the traders shouted offers to buy or sell with the guardians.

  “Hey! Let go!” Kara called out.

  Derek and Trestus turned just in time to see a big man trying to pull Kara from her horse. The man had a hold of her by her left arm, and was close to unseating her. The narrow street was packed with people, who seemed content to watch.

  “I claim her! I claim her!” The big man was shouting.

  Without hesitation, Derek wheeled his horse around and charged straight at the man, drawing his sword in the process. The crowd scattered out from in front of the charging horse. The horse was well trained, and reared right in front of the man, kicking out with its front hooves. One of the hooves caught the man across his left shoulder, and he fell to the ground screaming. An eerie quiet quickly settled over the crowd, except for the screams of the man writhing on the ground, and Derek scanned them looking for any more challengers. “Anyone else?”

  Perhaps it was the man on the ground that dissuaded any others from trying their luck, or perhaps it was the sword that Derek held ready, whatever it was, no one else seemed interested in bothering them.

  “You okay?” Derek asked Kara, without taking his eyes off of the crowd of onlookers.

  “Yeah, I think so.” Kara replied shakily. “He nearly pulled me off.”

  “Well, why don't you ride next to Trestus? At least until we get into the city proper.” Without a word, Kara moved up closer to Trestus. Trestus sat his horse; ramrod straight, his sword half drawn from its sheath. Enstorion was in front of Derek, and seemed to be the only one not bothered by whole situation.

  They didn't waste any time in the marketplace, but instead traveled the shortest, quickest path towards the town. The traders no longer shouted offers at them, but instead watched them with a disturbing fascination. However, they seemed unwilling to test them again.

  They exited the southern edge of the market, moving directly towards the town. The market was separated from the town by about a hundred yards of open space. The open area was hard packed dirt from the countless horses and people that had trekked across it, but it made for easy riding. They made straight for several white stone buildings that were the closest part of the town to them.

  Derek was just starting to relax, when a small contingent of soldiers rode from the west and stopped in their path. Counting the leader, there was ten of them. The muscles in his stomach were tightening up again. Great! Now what?

  “Stop!” The
leader of the soldiers said. His expression was one of boredom, as if they were barely worthy of his notice. “Did you not draw a sword in the marketplace?” He was shorter than Derek, with the black hair and darker complexion that was the norm in Delamar.

  “Yes.” Derek answered quietly, his bad feeling getting worse. “My lady was attacked, and I was forced to defend myself and her.”

  “I see. Did you know that is against the law?”

  “What?” Kara exclaimed. “I was attacked. How can that be..” Her words were cut off, by a back handed slap from the leader of the soldiers.

  “Be silent woman, until I speak to you.” The leader no longer looked bored, now he was wide awake.

  Derek, who was still in the back of the line, was the farthest from the soldiers, but he saw several things happen at once. Trestus immediately dropped his hand to his sword hilt, and the soldiers spurred their horses closer in around their leader. Trestus opened his mouth to speak, and judging by the look on his face, the soldiers would not like what he was about to say.

  “Wait!” Derek shouted, as he dug his heels into the sides of his horse. The horse sprang forward, and he forced his mount in between Trestus and the soldiers. Luckily for them, Kara had been shocked into silence. Perhaps he could stop this before it got any worse.

  “Wait!” Derek called out again. “Remove your hand from your sword.” He said, staring at Trestus the whole time. After a moment, Trestus relented and moved his hand back to the saddle pommel, but he didn't look pleased about it.

  Turning back to the soldiers, Derek smiled, in what he hoped was a placating smile. “I must apologize for her, Colonel. She is a stranger in Delamar and does not know your customs.”