Blood of the Earth

by David A. Wells

“If Phane opens it, everything is doomed,” Alexander said. “That’s why I’m here. I have to get the keystone before my enemies do.”

  “So that you can open it?”

  “No!” Alexander said. “I want to ensure that it never gets opened by anyone.”

  Rentu nodded thoughtfully. After a few moments, the world shifted again. They were in the same cave as before.

  Rexius truss, possessed by Jinzeri, was there. Phane, possessed by Rankosi, was there. And the Nether Gate was there.

  He and Isabel were there along with Jack. All three of them were in shackles, lined up on their knees with soldiers behind them. Another woman was there with Phane. She was in her early twenties and beautiful, with strawberry-blond hair and deep blue eyes.

  “It’s time, my dear,” Phane said.

  “And you’re sure we can defeat Zuhl with this?” the woman asked.

  “Of course, Zuhl will be crushed and Fellenden will be free. You will have saved your people.”

  She thought it over for a moment longer, clearly struggling with the decision. Alexander saw his future self try to speak around the gag in his mouth as she opened the little magical box that contained the third keystone.

  When the lid came open, revealing the final keystone, both Jinzeri and Rankosi started laughing maniacally. Rankosi used Phane’s magic to unceremoniously hurl the young woman against the wall of the cave with such force that her body fell to the floor in a broken heap.

  “This is the worst possible outcome,” Alexander said.

  “I’m coming to see that the threat is much greater than we feared,” Rentu said.

  The scene changed yet again. It was night and they were on the coast of Andalia. Alexander had gained access to the Sovereign Stone’s Wizard’s Den and the door was open. They had just pulled themselves from the surf after their boat had been sunk by a fleet of pirates. Wreckage was washing ashore as a company of Lancers bore down on them from inland and the pirates’ longboats were coming from the sea.

  Alexander and Jack were in the Wizard’s Den with Chloe, but Isabel stopped at the threshold, snatching the pouch with the keystone from Alexander’s belt and stepping out onto the beach.

  “I’m sorry, Alexander,” she said through tears, “but the darkness is stronger than I am. You’re not safe around me anymore.”

  “Isabel, come inside,” Alexander’s future self pleaded. “We don’t have time for this right now.”

  She shook her head. “Close the door before it’s too late. I love you, Alexander,” she said as she raised her hand and her aura flared with magic. Alexander willed the door to the Wizard’s Den closed a moment before her light-lance spell stabbed out into the night.

  Alexander closed his eyes and shook his head.

  “She won’t betray me,” he whispered. “She’s strong enough to resist Phane’s darkness.”

  The scene shifted again and they were in a chamber deep underground. Alexander recognized it as the place where Phane had the wraith queen imprisoned. The dark, insubstantial-looking creature from the netherworld was trapped inside three metal rings suspended over a magic circle. Each of the three rings was positioned ninety degrees to the next so that one was horizontal and two were vertical at right angles to one another.

  Isabel was there, at Phane’s side. Alexander’s future self was kneeling in shackles with Jack right beside him.

  “All this time, I’ve been trying to hunt you down,” Phane said. “I never imagined that you would walk right into my home and deliver not only the Sovereign Stone to me but the final keystone as well. I guess the right bait makes all the difference.” He pulled Isabel close to him with a lewd smile.

  “It really is a shame, Cousin. We could have done great things together. But alas, you’re too stubborn to see the big picture and now you’ve lost everything, when you could have had it all. Your own island kingdom, your beautiful wife, your family and friends … all you had to do was kneel before me.” Phane shook his head sadly as he raised his hand and called forth his magic. Alexander watched himself die. Isabel closed her eyes as he slumped over to the floor. At least she still had some feelings for him in spite of Phane’s insidious magic.

  “I’ve seen enough,” Rentu said, and suddenly they were back in the forest where they started. “I do not believe that you have come to destroy us. I now believe that you are here to preserve us from those we have seen in our dreams, but your wife will betray you and put your efforts in jeopardy. She cannot be trusted, Alexander.”

  “Phane has infected her with his magic,” Alexander said. “That’s another reason I’ve come here. I know how to help her, but I need to get some very rare ingredients first. One of them can only be found near here.”

  “The dreams show us many possible futures, but in most that we have seen she has betrayed you.” Rentu frowned deeply, shaking his head. “We must help you in order to preserve ourselves. I know of the place you seek, where the ancient tree grows. I can guide you there, but I require that Isabel remain here in our care until you have preserved the world from the outsiders that we have seen. We will care for her and protect her, but she will not be allowed to leave.”

  Alexander stiffened and absentmindedly reached for his sword. He’d gained invaluable insight into the future from Rentu and he was grateful for the experience, but he wasn’t about to leave Isabel behind.

  “You can’t do that,” Alexander said.

  “I must,” Rentu said. “Her betrayal is your doom. Without her, your chances of success will be much greater. I know this pains you, but it is the path that wisdom commands me to follow.”

  “This isn’t wisdom,” Alexander said. “It’s the worst mistake you could make.”

  “It must be done,” Rentu said. “We will wake now.”

  The forest faded away and Alexander found himself sitting in the little hut filled with aromatic smoke.

  “Are you all right, My Love?” Chloe asked within his mind.

  “Yes and no, Little One,” Alexander replied silently. “I was shown several possible futures where Isabel betrays me. Rentu, the chief elder, has decided that she has to stay here for now.”

  “Oh, My Love, what will you do?”

  “I’m not sure yet,” Alexander said silently, “but I am sure that I’m not leaving Isabel behind. Tell Jack what’s happened.”

  “At once, My Love,” Chloe said.

  Alexander stood facing Rentu with his blind eyes glittering. He wanted to rail at the elder, to argue his case with passion and reason, but he knew the elder wouldn’t understand him. Instead he turned and strode from the tent.

  Isabel was waiting for him with Hector and Horace. Surrounding the tent were a hundred men with spears and blowtubes loaded with poison darts. Alexander surveyed the scene and decided that bold action was a sure path to a quick death. Rentu had said he would help Alexander find the vitalwood tree and the cavern where the Nether Gate was hidden. Patience was called for.

  As Rentu emerged from the little hut, the six other elders approached and listened intently to his account of the dreaming. At one point, they glanced furtively at Isabel.

  “What happened in there?” Isabel asked.

  “He showed me a number of possible futures,” Alexander said. “In several, you’re turned by Phane’s magic and you betray me.”

  Isabel stepped back with a stricken look, shaking her head. “I love you, Alexander. I would never betray you.”

  He drew her into his arms. “I know, but Phane’s magic is powerful. You may not have a choice.”

  “I won’t,” she pleaded. “I can’t.”

  “Hush. I know your soul,” Alexander said. “You’ll never betray me of your own free will, but Phane’s magic may overpower you. Right now, it’s not important, but these people want to keep you here to protect me.”

  “What?” Isabel was suddenly alarmed. “I’m not staying here.”

  “I know, but we have to be smart about this,” Alexander said, motioning with a nod
to the armed men arrayed around them.

  “So what do we do?” she asked.

  “We play along,” Alexander said. “When we make our move, we’ll have to do it quickly and they’ll probably be right behind us.”

  She nodded, then looked around. “The odds aren’t exactly in our favor.”

  “They never are,” Alexander said.

  Rentu approached with the six elders and motioned for Alexander and his friends to follow. He led them to a large gathering area where a community meal was being prepared. They were treated like guests of honor and brought large portions of roasted wild boar, berries, and nuts. The fare was simple but good nonetheless. During the entire meal, the hundred armed men remained ever vigilant, standing in a loose cordon around the gathering place.

  Once the meal was finished and darkness began to settle on the Reishi Isle, the elders led them to two huts, motioning for Alexander and Isabel to take one and Hector and Horace to take the other.

  “Be ready,” Alexander said to the brothers.

  “Always, Lord Reishi,” Hector said with a humorless smile.

  As Alexander drifted off to sleep, he worried about Isabel. The thought of her betraying him left him sick to his stomach, but it was also a very real possibility that he had to face if he was going to have any chance of defeating Phane.

  Chapter 23

  Jack shook him awake in the dead of night.

  “It’s time,” he whispered. “Hector and Horace are ready.”

  “Good,” Alexander said and then he woke Isabel and they quietly packed their things. He handed Jack a blowtube filled with deathwalker-root sleeping powder and sent his all around sight out into the night. The armed men were still there, but only half as many and they looked tired. “We’re ready,” he said.

  “I’ll be right back,” Jack said, tossing up his hood and vanishing from sight.

  Alexander and Isabel slipped out of the tent and found Hector and Horace waiting for them in the shadows. Hector pointed toward the cave entrance that led back to the forest below and they started moving slowly and quietly toward their escape.

  Jack returned after a minute or so.

  “The guard’s out cold. We have a gap of about thirty feet in their line of sentries.”

  Alexander nodded, motioning for Jack to lead the way. They crept through the dark, testing every step and taking what time they needed to move as quietly as possible. Once through the cordon, they moved toward the cave. When Alexander saw the colors of the two men guarding the cave entrance, he tapped Jack on the shoulder.

  “Looks like we have a problem,” Alexander whispered. “Two guards at the cave entrance.”

  “We can eliminate them quietly, Lord Reishi,” Horace whispered.

  “I don’t want to kill any of these people if we can help it,” Alexander said.

  The brothers looked at each other and nodded. “We can take them quietly without killing them,” Hector said.

  “All right,” Alexander said.

  Hector and Horace faded into the shadows, moving silently and without a trace. Alexander found himself holding his breath as he watched their colors converge with the colors of the two guards. They moved into position behind the guards slowly, without a sound. As one, they attacked from behind, taking each guard in a choke hold that both prevented them from raising an alarm and rendered them unconscious within a minute.

  Alexander used his remaining blowtube of sleeping powder to ensure that the two men wouldn’t wake anytime soon, then he and his friends moved into the caves that led down to the forest below the village.

  They moved through the darkness for the rest of the night, trying to gain as much distance as possible before the tribe of primitives realized that their guests were gone. Alexander didn’t want to fight them. They weren’t evil. They weren’t even working against him, but they’d chosen to help him in a way that was totally unacceptable.

  An hour after dawn Isabel reported that Slyder had seen a hunting party leave the cliff-side village. They were a half a day behind and moving quickly. Alexander picked up the pace. He was tired and his head hurt from the constant concentration of using his all around sight but he pressed on, hoping to reach the hidden fortress before the primitives caught up with them.

  As the day wore on, the terrain became more mountainous and the path became steeper. By evening, they were nearing the limits of their endurance, but Alexander didn’t let up. He pushed them until darkness and exhaustion overcame them.

  He woke in the middle of the night to Isabel murmuring in her sleep, struggling with something dark in her dreams. He could see her colors darken as she fought with her nightmare. It made his stomach squirm to see her like this. Phane’s hold on her was growing. When he shook her awake, she sat bolt upright with a start, then shuddered with relief as she lay back down in the comfort of Alexander’s arms.

  “It’s getting worse,” she whispered. “Maybe Rentu’s right. Maybe you would be better off without me.”

  “Not a chance,” Alexander said. “Go back to sleep.”

  Exhaustion overpowered his worry for Isabel and he drifted off again within a few minutes.

  He woke before dawn, his head still hurting from the day before and the pain was becoming more severe. He started to wonder if Shivini’s attack had actually done more harm than he first thought. His magical vision had saved him from the crippling consequences of being blinded but he was paying a price for constantly using his magic.

  Before they set out, Alexander sat down and drew a magic circle in the dirt. He cleared his mind in spite of the pain and focused on finding the state of empty-mindedness that was his passage to the firmament.

  It took longer than usual but he eventually found his way into the endless ocean of potential. He started with their current location, rising high into the sky, taking in the surrounding terrain and looking for a path to his destination. At first he couldn’t see the fortress entrance, but when he focused on Jinzeri, he quickly found himself in the cavern where the Nether Gate was hidden. Before the shade could notice his presence, he drifted through the stone of the mountain until he was high above it. From there, he marked his location and worked backward, plotting a course through the increasingly steep and treacherous mountains.

  Once he was satisfied that he knew the way, he sent his awareness to the hunting party. There were easily thirty men and they were already on the move. Alexander had no idea what they would do to Isabel if given the chance and he didn’t want to find out. He returned to his body and they set out for the hidden fortress. They were less than a day away.

  By midmorning, Isabel reported that the primitives were gaining ground. They moved through the forest quickly, being more familiar with the terrain. Alexander set a fast pace but he feared that they wouldn’t make it to the fortress in time to avoid a fight.

  By midafternoon, he could hear the primitives in the forest behind them. Alexander and his friends ran as fast as their fatigue would allow, but they were being outpaced by their hunters. He estimated that they were still an hour from the entrance to the hidden fortress and he knew they wouldn’t be able to keep up their pace for that long.

  He stopped in a narrow canyon with steep walls rising on both sides.

  “We’ll make our stand here,” he said, breathing hard. “Hopefully, I can scare them off, but if not, then we fight. Make ready for battle. They’ll be here within a few minutes.”

  Isabel cast her shield spell, enveloping herself in a bubble of protective magical force. Hector and Horace dropped their packs and drew the pair of short swords they each carried in crossed scabbards on their backs. Jack put up the hood of his cloak and flickered out of sight.

  Alexander grasped the hilt of Mindbender and settled his nerves. He was in a fight and he had a sword in his hand. Everything else faded away. Before the primitives arrived, he cleared his mind and visualized an image of the beast that had chased them into the cave the day before. He released it into the sword and the en
ormous creature materialized in front of them, facing the direction of the approaching hunting party. As they came around a bend in the ravine, Alexander made his illusionary creation roar. The sound was deafening in the confined space, staccato echoes reverberating off the stone walls.

  The primitives stopped in their tracks, then turned and fled. Alexander breathed a sigh of relief until he heard another roar from the real beast not too far off. His illusion had just alerted it to their location.

  “Just keeps getting better and better,” Jack said with a sardonic smile.

  “It’s never easy,” Alexander said. “Let’s get moving.”

  They moved as fast as their weariness would allow. The occasional roar of the beast from off in the distance and the threat of the hunting party somewhere behind them spurred them on. In just under an hour, they came to a mountain meadow. One side was bordered by a sheer cliff reaching several hundred feet into the sky. Several ravines led into the meadow through the mountains surrounding the other three sides. A waterfall cascaded down one smaller cliff between two of the ravines and collected in a small mountain lake before meandering off in a burbling little stream flowing out of the meadow and down one of the other ravines.

  It was a beautiful setting—or at least it would have been had it not been for the beast standing on the opposite side of the meadow. Alexander quickly scanned the area for cover but found nothing except for the ancient stone archway carved into the base of the sheer cliff. Weather-worn glyphs and runes decorated the entrance to the hidden fortress, giving it an ancient and foreboding look.

  The stone door that had once barred entrance was long ago broken and lay in scattered, moss-covered rubble underneath the archway. The entrance was a good hundred feet away and the beast was nearly two hundred feet behind them.

  It roared and stamped its feet as if making ready to charge.

  “Run!” Alexander shouted as he broke into a sprint with the last bit of his strength.

  The beast charged as they raced toward the safety of the entrance passage. Alexander noticed the hunting party peering out from behind a field of boulders littering the mouth of one ravine. They watched as the beast closed the distance, perhaps hoping that the creature would do their work for them.