Screams, running, vomiting...Colin was knocked aside as the townspeople scattered. He couldn’t tear his eyes from the scene, his limbs suddenly gone numb. Briton stalked back into the Council. Was his plan to murder anyone who disagreed with him? Why was no one fleeing the chambers?
Another shock reverberated through the Deep, a pull so powerful it felt like a thousand men had drawn from the waters at once. But it was singularly focused. How was it possible that one man could do such a thing?
It had to be Briton.
Colin stumbled backward, rage and fear co-mingling so tightly within him that he couldn’t discern where one ended and the other began.
The Brotherhood. They would know what to do.
Two soldiers stalked from the Council chambers, blood dripping from their blades. His heart leaped into his throat. Nearly falling, Colin braced himself against a merchant cart, the owner clearly having fled. Would Briton come after him? Was he trying to kill them all? He turned and ran.
The web. It must come up.
TIBERIUS NEARLY FELL over as the Deep roared to life. The Brothers around him stumbled. Good thing he had his walking stick, or he surely would have landed on his face.
“What was that?” Lily asked, fear tinging her tone. How could she feel that? She was a woman. It was impossible.
“It came from Shroud!” Braille laid a hand on Lily’s arm as if to comfort her.
“Briton.” As he said it, Tiberius knew without a shadow of a doubt that something terrible had happened. Fear sliced through his chest like a boat through water.
“We must go back and help!” Lily started to scramble away but Braille held her fast.
“What do we do?” he asked Tiberius. Walker came close, and all eyes looked at Tiberius for an answer.
This was it, then.
“We must build the web.” Silence. It was as if, now that the time had come that they all feared, it was almost too horrible to grasp. But deep inside of him, the core of who he was, lit up with certainty. It was the right thing to do. For the Jin’tai. No, for all the Lands.
“Quick.” Walker snapped out of whatever reverie had bound him. “He is right. Let’s make our way to the border.”
“What of the others?” Braille asked. “The other Brothers...”
“They will come to the same conclusion I have.” Tiberius marched for the road.
“What are you talking about?” Lily’s voice asked behind him. “What web?”
“I will explain on the way,” Braille said. How odd. Why did he trust her like this?
Tiberius shoved it away. Whatever the reason, it must be a good one.
COLIN CAUGHT UP WITH them a few miles from the border. Tiberius was tired. Not just physically tired, but heart weary. And as he caught sight of Colin, it appeared the younger man felt the same.
“I thought I might find you headed this way.” He held his cloak tight around him as if afraid it would fall off. His eyes darted from one Brother to the next before they landed on Lily. His face softened, the haunted look gone. “You are safe.”
She nodded. “It is good to see you, too.”
“What happened?” Walker asked as they continued on the road.
Colin hesitated, but then he told his story. Dread and resolve warred within Tiberius. Yes. They were doing the right thing. But all those warlocks, dead...They had sought peace and safety with him and his people, and had not found it, in the end.
There was little he could have done. But still, how safe was it really to block Briton here with them? Was it something he was willing to do?
The others seemed to have the same thoughts, for as Colin finished, Braille paused on the road. He laid his thick hands on his ample hips, gazing at Tiberius. “We cannot do this.”
“What other choice do we have?” Walker waved his handless arm in the air. “We must do what is necessary for the greater good!”
“We must do what is necessary for the Jin’tai!”
The Brothers broke into squabbling as Tiberius gazed back toward Shroud. Indeed. That is what it came down to. The Jin’tai, or the rest of the Lands.
“I think I have a way around this.” Lily’s quiet voice cut the arguing like a blade. “I can bend Briton to my will.”
“Lily!” Colin said. “No. It is too dangerous.”
She gazed at him with resolve. “You saw what I can do. How much different would it be for me to control Briton in the same way?”
What were they talking about? Tiberius stepped forward to ask just that, but a glinting of the sun off of steel caught his eye. Down the road, perhaps a mile off, was a fast-moving company of men.
“The Warlock Army!” Braille pointed.
“We must make a decision, and fast!” Walker pronounced. No one argued with him.
“I can hold them off,” Lily said, voice filled with resolve. Colin started to protest, but then stopped.
They had no time to hear her out. It was believe her and run, or not believe her and bring her with them to the border.
“What say you, Braille?” Tiberius kept a firm hold on his walking stick. “Can she?”
“Yes.” The answer came from him like a sigh. “She speaks the truth.”
“Then she stays.” Tiberius struck out toward the border. “Colin will stay with her, the rest follow me.”
THE WARLOCK ARMY WAS on them in mere minutes. Colin paced the road, waiting. It was as if he was waiting for water to boil over a fire. Then, the distinct sound of hooves on the dirt road, the muffled voices of several men, and they swept into sight. Briton was not with them.
Lily seemed to gather herself and then stepped into the middle of the road. She held a hand out, and with a small voice, said, “Stop.” The force of her command melted Colin’s resolve. Even though the directive wasn’t meant for him, he still wanted to obey here as surely as he wanted anything in his life.
The men pulled up, horses stamping and blowing.
“Who are you?” A man kicked his horse toward her on the road, head cocked to the side.
“That’s far enough.”
He stopped.
“My name is Lily. Who are you? And where are you headed?”
“I’m Captain of the Warlock Army, Trenton Whitecap. We are headed to the border to fulfill our orders from Briton the Brown.” He cast a glance toward Colin.
“What orders are those?”
“To bring him back.” He threw a hand toward Colin. “Apparently he was supposed to die along with the others.”
“You will leave the Scrape Lands and never return. Cross the border, and keep going, bothering no one, until you reach the Broken King.”
Her words settled on Colin like a weight, and the desire to obey her filled him yet again. With great effort he kept his feet still as the Captain slammed his fist into his chest.
“To hear is to do!” He kicked his horse’s flank and they raced by. The road rumbled with their passing, dust swarming the air. Colin took a further step back, covering his face with his elbow. Finally they were gone. What had just happened?
“Now what?” Lily asked, looking at him through the haze of dust.
“You...” Colin stopped, wiping his face with his hands. What was there to say? Who was this woman?
She sighed, shaking her head. “Stop gaping and think. Should we go find Briton? Or go to the border to help build whatever it is that needs building?”
That was the question, indeed. There was the right thing to do, and then there was the cowardly thing to do. What type of man was he, down in the core of who he was? He knew, though. Right? He gathered his courage. “You go to the border. I will go find Briton.” He squared his shoulders and made to move down the road toward Shroud.
“Wait, Colin! Are you sure?” She stepped up and laid a restraining hand on his arm. Her eyes were weary yet full of light.
“Yes.” He took her hand and moved it from his arm. The touch of her fingers was warm. “If anyone can speak sense to him, it is me.”
&nb
sp; “But you heard the soldier! Briton wants you dead!”
He was tired of being afraid. Tired of hiding. Tired of wondering when the sphere was going to burn. “Goodbye, Lily. Stay with Tiberius. He will care for you.” Colin gazed at her a moment longer and then trudged away. It was as if he could feel her watching, but when he turned to look over his shoulder after several paces, she was headed the opposite way.
“HERE.” BRAILLE STOPPED, looking about the landscape. Tiberius heaved in a breath, the air seeming to clog his lungs instead of fill them. Getting old just was not worth it. Wisdom came with age, yes, but so did decay. Why must that be the way of things? Silly question, really. With death came life. The circle of renewal, as the ancients called it.
“You have the artifacts?” Walker turned to the other Brothers. They laid down the sacks over their shoulders to the ground. Tiberius waited as the grun-breth’s were pulled out, already glowing blue. He counted to make sure they had enough. In total there were ten stones and ten Brothers, too. Perfect.
“Does anyone wish to back out?” Tiberius asked. He wouldn’t blame them. But he would try to convince them if they wished to run. The whole of the north depended on the web for safety.
No one said anything.
“Good men,” Tiberius said with a nod. “Form the circle.”
Braille gathered the stones into a pile and they spread out in a circle, holding hands. Braille on his left, Walker on his right, Tiberius closed his eyes.
The Delving Circle was there, like a beehive. They were all one mind, with one purpose. Tiberius could sense each of their currents running through their brains like it was his own. The link intensified as each of the Brothers Delved, pulling in the Deep and focusing on the Circle itself. A hum filled the air, and Tiberius opened his eyes as blue light raced from man to man. A shock jolted through him as the last Brother Delved, and then every single one of them focused their attention on Tiberius.
There was nothing else like it. Their combined Delving surged through him, and he grabbed hold of their currents. It was probably painful for them. No. Not probably. He knew it was. Walker moaned, but stopped. Braille’s hand trembled, and Tiberius tightened his grip. They couldn’t stop now.
He looked at the globes, which glowed so bright blue they were almost white. Frost appeared on the surface, and Tiberius sent the Delving into them. First one Brother, then another, then another...
The men started falling, but Tiberius gritted his teeth and took their Delving into himself, then into the stones. The last two standing were Walker and Braille.
“Do it!” Walker snapped.
Sadness filled Tiberius, but he pushed it aside. Instead, he forced the link into the stones. Walker collapsed. Just like that the man who had saved his life was dead.
Braille was pale, sweat falling down his face. Tiberius would miss him the most.
COLIN’S FEET ACHED but he didn’t stop. Not yet. Where in the Liar’s teeth was Briton? He was going to wring his neck, not just for murdering innocent people, but for making Colin gallivant around after him. And as dark descended, no less.
When he finally made it to Shroud the village was quiet. A funeral pyre had been lit, but no one had stayed around to watch. Colin stopped, anger and grief surging forth in a wave of violence that nearly knocked him to his knees.
His brethren. The greatest of the warlocks. Murdered.
He filled with the Deep and settled it into his chest, soothing. He could grieve later.
“Master Warlock?”
Colin whirled around, almost losing his hold on the Deep. But it was only a boy, no older than ten winters. “What is it?” Colin asked, turning back to the pyre. The smoke drifted away from him, thank the Creator. The stench was already overwhelming enough.
“The Women’s League bids you come. They have urgent news.” The lad gestured a hand, and Colin sighed, following. The dirt path they traversed led to a small hut under a grove of trees, perhaps a quarter mile out of the village. By the time they arrived, the pit of anger, dread, and sorrow in his gut had increased tenfold.
Krysta, Ven, Swell, and the other women of the League were gathered in the front yard, seated on the ground and surrounding a fire. Eight in all, each one looked up as he approached.
“Where are the Brothers?” Krysta asked, not even greeting him.
“They are building the web.” Colin fell down onto the ground beside them, strength suddenly gone. He had nothing left to give. Could things get much worse? He should have stayed in the cave. He had what he needed to build Grole’s House, something he had always dreamed of building. A perfect hideaway from the sphere’s troubles.
“So. We are stuck here with a madman.” Ven rubbed a hand across her face. “But from what I could tell, Briton had the very Liar on his heels as he ran.”
“What do you mean?” Colin raised weary eyes to her face. “Where did he run?”
“Further north.”
“Not south?” This was odd, indeed. Briton had no desire to escape?
Ven’s eyes filled with tears. “Something snapped. He was a man possessed, I tell you.” She waved a hand. “With all those warlocks murdered...are you the only one left, Colin?”
“There are some scattered about the other Lands. But not many. These were the last of the great warlocks.” His throat clogged. “The only thing I know to do is find Briton and kill him.”
“It would be just!” Krysta snapped, and the other women nodded their heads in agreement. “The death of the warlocks demand retribution. And now the Brothers sacrificing themselves to protect the Jin’tai? That can be laid directly at Briton’s feet, too.”
“I don’t know if I can.” There it was. The truth. He was so tired of fighting the fact that he was a coward, a nomad, a man who only wanted to be left in peace. That was why he found the north so appealing. They all felt the same, too.
“The Creator will give you the strength to know what to do.” Swell laid a gentle hand on his arm. “For none of us are safe now, if the web does indeed—”
A rumble filled the air. Colin raised his eyes to the south. A blue shield, interlaced with writhing white streaks, shot into the sky. It raced east and west before his line of sight was obscured by trees and mountains.
The web.
“I guess that answers my question,” Swell said. “Will it work?”
“It had better,” another women grunted, one he hadn’t met. She, along with the others, all turned to look at him. “Is it safe to send for Rosa and the children?”
“No. Give me time to find Briton and confront him. I will come and tell you when it is safe. Or, send word at the very least.” He staggered upright. The women watched him with eyes of compassion and thankfulness.
Truth, he was no hero. Yet here he was, striking off to defeat the greatest foe any of them had ever faced. Well, besides the Liar. And his heart pounded in fear with every breath he took.
Lily’s face filled his mind’s eye. Was she safe? Tiberius had no inkling of who she actually was.
If he made it out of this coming confrontation alive, maybe she would come with him to the cave. Funny, but the thought warmed him. He hadn’t ever wished for anyone else’s companionship before her.
TIBERIUS AWOKE, SPLAYED on his back and staring at the sky. He wasn’t cold, like expected. Was this a fur blanket covering him? Was that the crackling of flames?
He sat up. Lily glanced over at him where she stooped before a fire. Behind her, a massive wall of blue and white stretched on, shimmering even in the dark. They had actually done it?
A shaft of sorrow sliced through his chest. If that was the case...
He tried to stand. Where was his damned walking stick?
“Rest, Brother. I buried your friends.” Lily gazed on him with kindness before turning to poke the fire again. Sparks leapt into the air, floating and disappearing.
Hot tears rolled down his cheeks. He raised a trembling hand to his face and heaved in a sob. They had sacrificed their l
ives for the sake of the Jin’tai. He needed to make sure everyone knew their names, generations from now.
Lily didn’t say a word, keeping her eyes averted as he wept. Sniffling, he let his hand fall and reached into his pocket. The stones were cold and hard against his fingers. Ten stones. Ten lives. Hatred for accessors bubbled up in his chest. Never again would the Jin’tai be placed in such a horrible position. Kings could rage and war behind the web and not bother the north, now.
“What does it do?” she asked, gesturing with her head toward the web.
“It protects us.” He wiped his nose and eyes with the edge of his cloak.
“How?”
“The Brothers sacrificed their lives by sending their powers into the grun-breth. If the stones remain in hiding and unharmed, they will indefinitely keep our border and people safe. Anyone who tries to come in who are not of Jin’tai blood will be confused, listless, until they return back where they came from. Anyone who tries to leave will eventually go mad.”
Lily raised an eyebrow. “How can you be certain that it is safe?”
Tiberius shrugged. “As long as it doesn’t affect us, why does it matter?”
“Do you care so little for others not of our heritage?” Lily shook her head. “I thought the Brothers were wise.”
Anger stirred in his chest, shoving out the grief from moments before. “You know nothing about it. Leave things to the Brothers that you do not understand.”
Something sparked in her eyes but soon passed. She looked as if she was going to say something, but seemingly thought better of it and placed a skinned rabbit over the coals of the fire instead. Tiberius sighed. He shouldn’t have snapped at her. It wasn’t her fault she didn’t understand.
“What will you do now?” she asked, sitting with her knees pulled up under her chin.
“Go back home.” He shrugged. “What else is there to do?”
She gazed at him with a soft face and gentle eyes. “I have no home to go to. What is there for someone like me to do, then, if I cannot leave and seek my fortune elsewhere?”
The Tale of Briton's Fury Page 5
