by David Wind
While Mikaal thought on The Speaker’s words, he glanced at Areenna, who remained joined with him. When she nodded, Mikaal turned back to The Speaker. If we find her and stop her, she will not be in the future you saw. If she is not there, then the future in the vision cannot be.
Think you her mentor did not warn her of you two...that The Masters would leave her unprepared for you to destroy?
Areenna squeezed Mikaal’s hand. “She will not be able to stand against the two of us. What other choice is there? It is the first step only.”
The Speaker opened her mouth to talk, but Jalil interrupted. “She speaks wisely. It may or may not change what will happen, but to not try leads to setting that future more solidly. Every action determines what follows. If there is no action taken, the vision remains true. If action occurs, it creates a deviation. I believe they must face this woman, this black sorceress, to create a deviation from the vision.”
“And what if the reason neither are in the vision, is because they faced this woman and were defeated? What say you to this?” she challenged Jalil.
Jalil’s thin lips cut into a smile. “If such were true, how would Areenna have seen past that time? Past her defeat? Could this be a manipulation of The Masters—they have the power. And think of…”
As Areenna watched and listened to the two debate possibilities, her anger peaked. She heard Mikaal’s warning to be careful, but she shook her head. They talk on like children.
Stop! The mental shout was harsh enough to break into The Speaker’s and Jalil’s droning. You play at guessing games, and your philosophy does nothing but waste time. Mikaal and I will find this woman. We will stop what she is doing. When that happens, the future will change.
“If indeed the vision is a true one, how much change,” Jalil intoned, “is what must be carefully watched.”
There is little choice, Mikaal interrupted. We must stop her.
“There is much danger to this,” warned Master Jalil. “Much danger.”
“And little choice.” Areenna repeated Mikaal’s words. “What I have learned from you,” she addressed Jalil, “and from you,” she turned to The Speaker and the others, “has shown me that there is nothing truly set about the future. What we do today can change what the vision shows for tomorrow. But we cannot ignore what must be done.”
The Speaker pointed at Areenna then Mikaal. “You are powerful, each of you, more so than any other, but deceit can yet undo what you attempt. Your powers may be able to hold Nevaeh safe, but in order for that to happen, you must do more than survive, you must stop this dark woman before anything else is accomplished.”
“Is there another way?” Mikaal cut in.
The Speaker moved her head from side to side. “There is but one way, and that is to stop this woman. “
“And the spies she has infiltrated into the domains?”
“Darkness is always visible if you know how to see it. You have faced this before, and can prevent it, but unless you stop the woman Lessig, she will send out an unending supply of spies. Too many to find all.”
“Then we must find a way to defeat her,” Areenna resolved.
“Which seems to be what always happens,” Mikaal responded dryly.
“The woman Enaid is close,” The Speaker announced. “She is in a boat at the far Landing. It is time for you to go.”
Areenna held still. “How strong is this sorceress?”
The Speaker placed her hand on Areenna’s temple. “Join us,” she told Mikaal
A picture arose within Areenna’s mind of a woman, tall, and broad. Her face was surrounded by hair so deep red it was almost purple. Her eyes, wide and deep-set, held large mottled ochre irises with almost no white showing. Her thin-lipped mouth was set in a hard unyielding line, emphasized the darkness of her spirit. Areenna did not recognize her, but a strong sense of familiarity about the woman teased at the edges of her mind.
“Strong she is, Child, but her power lies in the cunning of her magic, not in physical strength. It is the deviousness of her mind, of which you need be wary. Unlike the Afzaleem witch who is no longer, she is less controlled by them and smarter than her mentor was; she wants control, and she wants to rule. She is an enemy to be watchful of at all times.”
“And we will be just that,” Mikaal promised as the vision faded.
“Be careful, Man, we can afford not another one of your foolish sacrifices—neither hers, nor yours!”
Mikaal adjusted his sword, drawing inner balance from the touch of the steel before meeting The Speaker’s eyes. “I have a question, Woman.”
I have the answer. “Ruth. Never use it…Mikaal.”
For the first time, Mikaal’s smile held warmth. “Thank you.”
CHAPTER 8
A GROUP AS strange as any who walked the face of Nevaeh moved through the deteriorating maze of the Island’s streets, toward the Landing and the waiting skiff. Anticipation built within Areenna who strode the streets with Mikaal at her side and Gaalrie riding her shoulders. The Master Jalil moved, hunched and limping between the younger ones while the eight snuck-bodied sorceresses trailed behind. When they reached the landing, Areenna turned to Jalil. “You are coming?”
The shadow of a smile quirked his lips. “Across, yes. With you, no.” He turned his hands palm up. “I have no Staff to support me on such an adventure.”
“You will find one in Tolemac,” Mikaal predicted.
“Of that I am certain.” Jalil turned to The Eight. Watch everything.
The Speaker, her head partially obscured within her cloak’s cowl, nodded. We wait with hope.
Areenna, Mikaal, and the former Dark Master stepped onto the Landing and moved toward the waiting skiff. They’d taken took no more than three steps when The Speaker called out silently.
Stop! The command reverberated like a shout within their minds. They spun to face her, and as they did, The Speaker extended her upper torso toward them. Areenna, a warning chill racing through her, stiffened as the heat in her belly flared instantly. In the next heartbeat, Mikaal joined with her.
The Speaker’s serpentine move ended when her black-skinned, wrinkled face was within an inch of their faces. Glowing, orange-red eyes probed their faces, moving slowly back and forth while she continued, You have the power, the abilities. You are, each of you, man and woman, stronger than any Women of Power , as strong as any single Dark Master. Together you are stronger than any! Forget that not, for you will be hard pressed in the coming days. Whatever you do from this moment forward creates or destroys Nevaeh’s future.
Mikaal tensed at her words, but Areenna’s gentle grip on his arm held him steady. Areenna drew herself to her tallest, and leaned so close to the Sorceress’s face, her breath washed back at her. Still think you I am a child that you can put this on my shoulders…upon our shoulders? How dare you walk away from your responsibility, from the duty you have held close through millennia, and toss it like garbage upon us! When we need you, when we call for help, if we must, then heed us or not for equally upon your shoulders does rest the future! Do not forget that, woman!
With a strange but knowing smile on his lips, Master Jalil, watched the two women, one young and the other ancient, both powerful beyond comprehension.
“You do not speak to us in that manner,” The Speaker hissed. Raising her hands toward them, she released a flurry of whirling sparks. Areenna flicked her wrist and the sparks blinked out of existence. Mikaal’s hands erupted in flames, but he moved not.
The Speaker gave a grimace that Areenna guessed was a smile. “Good. You have finally shown me that you are ‘Child’ no longer. And you, Man,” she said, looking from his face to his flaming hands, “your restraint tells me you have indeed learned the real control of a woman—the ability to let go, to let another do what is necessary—only now can you become the man who stands above all others. Fail us not in our belief in you, Mikaal, Son of Roth, Son of Enaid. And Areenna, Daughter of Nosaj and Inaria, Daughter of the line Ailish—for
I no longer can call you ‘Child’—we stand with you as always we have.”
The Speaker blinked. Forget not the child of the chosen. Together, she completes you, as it was destined so long ago.
Mikaal’s eyebrows rose. Neleh?
Ignoring the question, The Speaker pointed a long, black finger at the waiting skiff. Go now, quickly!
<><><>
Unlike the last time Areenna and Mikaal crossed the waters from the Island to the Landing, the trip was quick, smooth, and uneventful. Even so, neither Areenna nor Mikaal could not help but scan the skies, looking for the dark shapes of wraiths.
Nearing the western Landing, Areenna’s inner powers stirred. The heat grew strong within her belly, churning and spreading through her, not in preparation for anything; rather, it was a warning.
What is it? Mikaal asked, feeling the escalation of her powers.
“I know not. I…” Shaking her head, she pushed upward to where Gaalrie flew. Joining with her aoutem, she gazed through the treygone’s eyes as Gaalrie searched everywhere. A moment later, Areenna withdrew.
There is nothing, yet... She closed her eyes and directed her senses outward, seeking and searching until she touched a faint thread of darkness and realized it was what had called up her powers. She gasped, and then exhaled slowly. In the ruins, they wait. She uses them to find us.
Mikaal took one of her hands in his. Who waits?
Lessig’s creatures.
So it begins, Mikaal thought.
“She knows we come after her,” Areenna explained. “The sense of her increases, the closer we come to land. Can you not feel it?” she asked in surprise.
Mikaal shook his head, “A rise in your powers is all. Nothing more.”
“Join with me.” An instant later, Mikaal settled comfortably within her mind.
I feel it now, he agreed. Strange I could not sense this.
She turned to Jalil. Join us.
He joined and found the disturbing sensations. This is unfortunate.
Which means what? Mikaal pressed, his mental voice sharp and tense.
Jalil withdrew from their joined minds and spoke aloud. “When you fought Fasil Abdul-Mu'eid in the Frozen Mountains and later upon the sea, he captured your mental essence—both of your essences. Having this, he can sense you, wherever you are. He has transferred some of your essence to the sorceress so she can do the same, only her ability is weaker, so she cannot track Areenna as closely as does The Master and must use other ways.”
Mikaal stared at Jalil for a few seconds before saying, “Why did I not sense her?”
“Your essence is male, but unlike The Masters of the Circle, she cannot sense you in that way…on the ethereal; only a female can she sense.”
Before Mikaal could speak, a wave of emotion froze him to the spot. At the same instant, from the Western Landing, Charka let out a cry. Mikaal held himself still as his aoutem’s call ran through his mind. Closing his eyes, and like a starving man, he drew his aoutem’s warmth within. Then he felt his mother’s welcoming thoughts and mental embrace.
Mikaal used the tiller to turn the skiff and ready it for docking. Areenna, following his lead, went to the bow.
Welcome, came Enaid’s thought. We have been…concerned.
A rush of deep emotions carried the High Queen’s thoughts to Areenna as well, embracing her as if it were Enaid’s arms hugging her. The soothing hold allowed her to release the tensions and fears she’d locked away in order to keep herself strong since stepping into the wormhole.
Ten minutes later, they stood in a circle on the Landing, their greetings over. Behind Mikaal, Charka’s blue head pressed into his back while Gaalrie rested on the spot between the kraal’s shoulders.
Mikaal spoke first. “There were no problems on the return? The People, they are—“
“—fine,” Roth cut in. “They should be in Freemorn by now. Unlike the two of you, there were no problems on our return.”
Areenna shivered at the thought of the manipulation of the Dark Masters, and hugged herself.
“What is it?” Enaid asked suddenly.
“They invaded our minds,” she whispered. “They made us believe in something that was not real. They…” she stopped, the memory of what had happened…of her desires and emotions for Mikaal.
“It was a trap meant to hold them by making them believe their deepest desires were being fulfilled,” Jalil supplied, stepping in to help Areenna. “Mikaal and Areenna share a vision of what both want for their lives. The Masters found and used these desires to make them believe there was no longer any darkness, and that the wars were long over; Mikaal was High King, and it was their wedding day.”
Listening to the ancient Master, Areenna nodded. “We almost succumbed.” She grasped Mikaal’s hand. “But somehow we found the way to fight them. We broke the illusion and as it fell apart, we were on the Island.”
“And then Areenna sought a vision,” Mikaal went on.
“Sought?” Both Enaid and Ilsraeth spoke at the same time.
“I have gained another ability, I can seek visions.”
“How—” Enaid cut herself off. She let out a long and sibilant breath. “What saw you?”
“Much,” Areenna said, But not enough, she added silently to Enaid.
“Tell us.” Roth’s command was low and gentle.
Areenna’s fingers tightened around Mikaal’s hand. “What comes at us is a terrible force. Hundreds of ships. They carry a hundred times a thousand warriors. Mindless these ghazis may be, but fearless as well.”
“A hundred thousand,” Roth repeated, the words falling from his mouth like lead into water.
“They divide into three. One to the west, one to the south and the other east. They—”
“—they meet at Tolemac,” Mikaal finished.
“At Tolemac,” Areenna whispered, an echo fading into the following silence.
Roth looked from face to face. Then he gave them a soft smile. “This is good.”
Mikaal’s brow creased. “How is this good, Father?”
“They take an army large enough to push us across Nevaeh, from west to east and into the sea. Instead, they split their forces. By the time they reach Tolemac, they will have lost many of their fighters.”
“As will we,” Timon reminded him.
Roth nodded to the Master Boatsman. “Yes, as will we. Think back to the battles we fought twenty years ago and think about what happened in the Frozen Mountains. In every battle between ghazi and our people, there is a balance; for every fighter we lose, they lose three or four. By splitting their forces, we have more than just a chance to survive.”
“There’s more.” Areenna waited until everyone’s eyes were on her. “There is a woman of dark powers, mentored by the Black Witch, and stronger because she is smarter than was her mentor. The Masters will make her an Afzaleem soon. She already controls the creatures of the badlands and of the ruins. She has turned exiles into her slaves, and Women of Power into her spies and sent them to all domains. To survive, we must do more than stop their armies. We must stop this woman.”
“Then we will stop her,” Enaid declared.
Areenna swallowed. Mikaal moved another inch closer, connected now both physically and mentally, joined without trying. “No,” she argued. “It is upon us to stop her. Mikaal and I are the only ones who can.”
“She is in the southeastern outlands, adding to her numbers. We go there now,” Mikaal added.
“You could come with us. It would be faster to reach the badlands by boat,” Timon offered.
Areenna shook her head. “Her creatures in the ruins above know we are here, as does she by now. If we go with you, she will be awaiting us atop the palisades. By land, we have a better chance of blocking her.”
“Areenna is correct,” Jalil supported her. “They have attained new abilities, abilities not yet seen. They carry the Staff of Afzal within them.” Before Enaid could speak, Jalil went on. “I will explain later.”
Roth turned to Areenna. “How much time do we have?”
“Thirty days…perhaps…” Areenna whispered.
Roth stared over Areenna’s head, his eyes unfocused. A few seconds later, he looked at the sky. “It is a little past midday. If we leave now, we can be in Tolemac—” he looked at Timon.
The Master Boatsman shrugged. “With Enaid’s water ability, I can have you to the landing at Llawnroc by morning. It’s a two-hour walk to Obile, where you will find kraals. You will be in Tolemac the next morning.”
“Then we’d best be leaving,” Roth decided. “Mikaal, Areenna, we have your weapons.” He pointed to stairs leading down to the cabin. “If you leave now, you will be through the badlands before dark.”
Master Jalil limped to a spot between them. His cloak, dragging along the wood of the Landing, made a whooshing sound. With his back to Roth and the others, he put a hand on Areenna’s shoulder and another on Mikaal. He straightened as much as he could. His hood fell back, revealing a bald, pale grayish head, his amber eyes fixed on the two before him.
