“What happened?” The crow’s voice was so much like a caw that her words could barely be understood.
“We’re still trying to figure that out, Krita. It seems the speaking stone was also a focusing crystal capable of drawing on Aniel’s power. A mage got ahold of it. We think he used it against Aniel, though I don’t know what he did.”
“A mage?” Ravous asked, his single eye widening. “A human mage did this to Lord Aniel?”
“Not just a mage,” Jez said. “A demon in human flesh. He was the same one who summoned the demon that possessed you.”
Ravous hissed, his forked tongue tasting the air. “What do we do?”
Galine looked like he was going to say something, but instead he gave Jez a hard look. Jez wanted to take a step back, but he held his ground. To his surprise, Galine inclined his head. Silence followed as everyone understood the implication. Galine was giving Jez authority. Ravous grinned and inclined his head as well. Welb snarled, but the rest just looked at Jez.
“Can you search the valley?” Jez asked
Ravous nodded. “Yes, we can search through the entire area in a day.”
“Ravous...” Galine began.
“We are of Aniel,” Ravous said. “Nothing can remain hidden if we wish to find it.”
Jez nodded and gave them a quick description of Sharim. “Find him, but don’t attack him. Come back to find me.”
“What can you do that we cannot?” Welb asked.
Jez was about to answer when Ravous put a hand on Welb’s shoulder. Welb looked at the snake man.
“It’s not what we can do.” Ravous said. “It’s what can be done to us. If this mage turns Aniel’s power against us, there is nothing we will be able to do.”
CHAPTER 34
The beast men went out from the town in a rush. They flew through the air and ran on the ground. They burrowed in the earth and swam in the streams. Even Toden joined the search. Jez wanted to go with one of the search parties, but the others convinced him to stay in town. It wouldn’t do any good if Sharim were found while Jez was out in the jungle with no one knowing where he was.
Jez paced back and forth in the council house. He and his friends had decided to take shelter from the sun while the others searched. Lina and Osmund were leaning against a wall, and Galine, though unbothered by the heat, had joined them and stood near the door.
“You don’t think they can do it in a day?” Jez asked.
Galine shook his head. “It’s possible, but I doubt it. We’ve never searched the entire valley, and for all Ravous’s confidence, he has no idea what that entails. It could be a long time, maybe even days or weeks.”
“That’s a lot longer than I would’ve hoped.”
Galine shrugged. “Ravous overestimates us. There is no part of the valley that they couldn’t reach in a day, but that’s not the same thing as a systematic search. Sharim could’ve already left the valley, and we’d have no way of knowing.”
“No, I don’t think so. He’s had plenty of time before now to leave if that was what he wanted.”
“Before now, we didn’t have a trio of powerful mages on our side. He could be afraid of you.”
“But aren’t you all mages?” Lina asked. “You bound our power when we first met.”
Galine smiled. “You have no idea how hard that was. We almost retreated when we realized all three of you were mages. It’s extremely difficult to work any magic outside of the dominion of beasts, and many of us have forsaken even that.”
“Why?”
Galine shivered and walked to the window. He stared into the town for a few seconds before turning to Jez. “It’s uncomfortable to use. Perhaps it reminds us, on some level, of what we left behind when we were human.”
“I hate just waiting here,” Jez said. “Isn’t there anything we can do?”
“Perhaps. Lord Aniel was able to find Sharim before. He might, at least, point us in the right direction.”
“Do you know how we get him to understand what we want?”
“Maybe we don’t need to,” Galine said. “We didn’t last time.”
“I thought the whole point in bringing him here was to keep him out of danger,” Lina said.
“We don’t need to follow him to Sharim,” Galine said. “We just need an indication of where he is.”
He walked through the door and into town. Aniel had been left to wander the center of the settlement. A group of Welb’s wolves, including Grita, stayed near him, ensuring he’d be safe, though he seemed not to notice them. He was apparently content to examine all the dwellings in the town, though as soon as Jez neared, Aniel looked to him.
“Aniel,” Jez said. “Do you know where Sharim is?” Aniel cocked his head, not seeming to understand. Jez let out a breath. “The one who did this to you. The one who shouldn’t be here.”
Aniel inclined his head and took a step. By the time his foot hit the ground, he had transformed into a sleek black panther. He looked over at Jez and let out a low rumble and bounded into the trees, leaving his minders stunned. Some of the wolves followed him into the trees. Jez took off after them, followed closely by his friends, but by the time they’d reached the tree line, Jez was afraid he’d lost the trail. He went into the woods blindly. After a few minutes, another roar made him look up. Aniel was in the trees, his golden eyes gleaming.
Strangely, Jez realized he could hear the wolves moving through the woods behind them, and he suspected it was Aniel’s doing. None of them sounded close. As soon as Jez stood under Aniel’s tree, the pharim lord leapt to another one. It went on like that for nearly an hour, and the wolves fell farther and farther behind.
Eventually, they came to an isolated stream. A red-tailed hawk swooped down and landed on a rock. Aniel’s eyes locked onto Jez and his friends, somehow conveying that they should be silent. They watched as the hawk’s form writhed and transformed into that of Welb. The wolf man bent down and started lapping up water from the stream. Aniel jumped from his branch and landed a few feet away from him. Welb looked up and growled but stopped when he saw it was only an animal.
“I don’t suppose you’ve seen this demon, have you?” Welb asked the panther.
The panther cocked his head in a very familiar gesture. Welb’s eyes went wide, and Aniel’s body became liquid and flowed into his familiar shape, with six wings and curved horns.
“L...Lord Aniel.”
“How?” Galine said as he stepped out of the trees. Welb looked from Galine to Aniel. He showed his teeth in an expression of shock. He coiled his leg muscles as if preparing to strike. It was with a visible effort that he calmed down.
“I’ve been practicing,” Welb said. “It’s not so hard to do it again once you get the hang of it.”
“He’s lying,” Lina said.
“Are you sure?” Jez asked.
Lina narrowed her eyes. “I did spend all of my life learning the politics of the nations. I know when someone is lying to me.”
“She does have a point, Welb,” Galine said. “It was a lie and a clumsy one at that. What are you really doing here? Why is it that you can change?”
Welb looked from Galine to Aniel before letting out a breath. He opened his mouth to speak, but at a glance from the pharim lord, he sighed.
“I can change because I was never forced into this form.”
For a while, they all just stared at him. Lina understood first.
“You never came under the influence of a beast mind.”
“No.”
“You were worried about Aniel seeing you. You thought he would know what you are.” Welb hesitated for a second before nodding.
“You’re a mage?” Galine asked. “Why would you hide that? It rarely happens, but we’ve had mages who tired of human life join us before.”
Welb’s head bobbed. “Yes, I...I was embarrassed that I had not left my human side behind.”
Lina pursed her lips and shook her head. “You’re lying again.”
“What
? No, I’m not.”
“You were ready to attack Galine for being too human. Do you really expect us to believe you couldn’t stay in wolf shape for a few weeks?”
“Don’t judge him too harshly,” Galine said as he moved to stand beside Welb. “To fall under the influence of the beast mind is essentially to die. It’s not such an easy thing to do.”
“Yes.” Welb latched onto the excuse. “That’s it.”
He responded just a little too quickly, and his words sounded hollow. An idea began to form in Jez’s mind, and he walked up to Welb. “You don’t like humans very much, do you?”
“I’ve been in your cities before. I find nothing appealing about them.”
“And the Keep of the Hosts?”
Welb’s eyes widened for a second. If Jez hadn’t been looking for it, he would’ve missed it. A heartbeat later, Welb was shaking his head. Before he had a chance to speak, Jez drew his sword and delivered a quick slash. Welb jumped back and snarled. He raised his claws, but Jez had already put his sword away. Green motes of light bled from his wound. The wolf man looked down, and the light changed into blood, but seeing that the deception was pointless, he allowed the blood to returned to motes of light a second later.
“You’re a Beastwalker,” Galine said.
Jez shook his head. “If he were a Beastwalker, he wouldn’t have been afraid to see Aniel. I think he was a Beastwalker, a long time ago. You’re an afur, aren’t you?” Welb started to shake his head, but Jez cut him off. “Did you rebel because you hate humans so much?”
“Because you think yourself so superior,” he spat.
His words silenced everyone. Even Jez took a step back. Welb’s teeth seemed to sharpen, and his eyes focused on Jez. Osmund moved to his side, embers flickering around his fingers, but Welb’s outrage only lasted a second. Then his shoulders slumped and he lowered his head.
“We were set to watch over the world and given power to do so, and the one thing, above all else that we had to respect, was mortal choice. Human choice. On top of that, humans were given power over the beasts.”
“Humans were also given power over other humans,” Jez said. “It’s how Sharim took control of the king.”
Welb shook his head. “That’s different. I’m not talking about crafting a working to force your will upon another being. Even beast magic doesn’t allow one to do that. I am talking about claiming one being as your own to do with as you will, with no one having the right to say otherwise.”
“Some human kingdoms keep slaves,” Jez said.
“And yet in few is a slaver thought highly of. In many, they are considered evil men. Who would think the same of a farmer with his horses? You take the wool of sheep for your clothes and slaughter cattle for food. You keep birds in cages. Even your insults reflect it. If someone is messy, you call them a pig. If they simply follow others and make no choices of their own, you call them a dog.”
Jez glanced at Osmund, remembering when he’d said that very thing about Aniel. The larger boy loosened his collar, and Lina glared at him.
“Because of that, you rebelled?” Galine asked.
“You make it sound so petty.”
“Wasn’t it?”
“You don’t understand. My task was to watch over the beasts. If a Lifegiver’s charge was fed a poison drink, the Lifegiver could heal him. If a human tried to free a demon watched over by a Shadowguard, the Shadowguard could interfere.” A chill ran down Jez’s spine, but Welb went on. He knelt down and allowed a lizard to crawl on his hand. It looked up at him and hissed before plopping back on the ground. “But if a human claimed an animal I was watching over, I could do nothing. It was my whole reason for being, and I was powerless to prevent it. Of course I rebelled.” He practically shouted the word. In the distance, a wolf howled. “How could I do anything else?”
“Are you working with Sharim?” Jez held his hand at his side, ready to summon his crystal sword.
“What? No, of course not.”
“You rebelled against Aniel and the Creator before.”
“In order to fulfill my task., not to create animals possessed by demons. Though he may banish me from this valley, I want Aniel restored as much as anyone.”
Jez looked at Lina. She stared at Welb for several seconds before nodding. “I think he’s telling the truth.”
“Galine?”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure how much I trust one who lied about what he is. We are the children of Aniel.”
“So was I,” Welb said. “Once. I simply wish to be one again.”
“We do not hate humans.”
“You don’t interact with them. Does my dislike of their kind really matter if I’ll never see one?”
Galine raised an eyebrow. “Is that why your challenges always felt so half-hearted?”
“You must deal with the beast masters of the Carceri Academy. They maintain kennels and stables, and yet they are highly respected. You must treat them with honor. I want no part in that.”
Jez glanced at Galine. “What do you think?”
“He’s been here for longer than I have, and Lord Aniel must’ve intended something for him. He did lead us here.”
“Aniel whose mind is gone,” Lina said.
“He led us to Sharim as well,” Galine said. “Perhaps Welb could be useful.”
Jez’s eyes went from Welb to Galine. He didn’t trust the wolf man, but Aniel walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder and smiled. Jez nodded just as a man with hawk wings landed a few feet away. His eyes flicked to Aniel, and he inclined his head before he looked to Galine.
“Vulen, what is it?” Galine asked.
“We found him.”
CHAPTER 35
Vulen flew overhead, circling several times to allow Jez and his companions to keep up. He led them to a small cave near a stream that was fed by the lake. A flock of bird men had perched in the surrounding trees to watch, and according to them, Sharim had gone into the cave a while ago but hadn’t come out.
“Is there another entrance?” Jez asked.
“We don’t have every cave mapped out,” Galine said. “There could be. There is a rather extensive network of tunnels under the valley.”
Osmund put a hand on Jez’s shoulder. “You know this could be a trap.”
Jez nodded and summoned his sword. He drew more deeply of Luntayary’s power than he normally did, and his flesh started to burn. He could almost imagine smoke rising from his skin. If he kept this up too long, it could damage him permanently, but he didn’t want to take any chances, not where Sharim was concerned.
“Osmund, you should stay here.”
“You could need my help.”
“You won’t be much help if Sharim takes control of you.”
“You can transform too,” Osmund said. “How do you know he won’t be able to do the same to you?”
“I don’t think it’s the same thing. If he could have, he would have last time.”
“Jez, if Osmund is right...” Galine paused.
“Then, I’ll have Lina with me to free me like she did for Osmund.”
“I’m coming with you?” Lina’s face had gone a little pale.
“We already know you can counter Sharim’s mental magic.”
Lina shook her head. “Jez, he just planted a suggestion to attack Aniel in Osmund’s mind. By the time I got to him, Sharim wasn’t actively influencing him. I just undid what he had done, but if I go against him when he’s actually trying, I’ll lose”
“Fine,” Jez said without taking his eyes from the cave. “If I come flying out of there, do what you need to do.”
“You’re going to leave me?”
Jez threw up his hands in frustration and glared at her. “You just said you wanted to stay.”
“No, I didn’t. I said I can’t stand against him directly. That doesn’t mean I won’t go.”
Jez let out a long breath. “Look, I think it would help to have you along, but I’m not going to force
you to come. It’s up to you, but I’m leaving now.”
Jez turned away and started walking toward the cave. Dried leaves crunched as he stepped onto them. A second later, leaves rustled beside him, and he smiled.
“I’m glad to have you along,” he said without turning around.
“Well, you’re hopeless without me,” Lina’s voice said from behind her illusion. “Do you want me to hide you too?”
Jez shook his head. “It makes everything a little dim.”
“That’s because I’m bending light around you. Enough of it gets through that you should barely notice.”
“I do barely notice, but right now, I want to be as alert as possible. If it looks like I’m getting into trouble, hide me.”
“But Jez, you’re always getting into trouble.”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”
“You can’t even see me.”
“It doesn’t matter. I know you were doing it.”
The friendly banter calmed his nerves a little, and his racing heart slowed. He crouched in a bush near the entrance and tried to look inside, but it just looked like an ordinary cave. He didn’t even smell sulfur.
“I’m about to charge in.” His voice was pitched low, and he hoped the noise of the jungle drifting in from behind would swallow his words. “Come in right after me. Watch out for wards against illusions.”
Lina didn’t answer, but Jez could imagine her nodding. He took several deep breaths to calm his thoughts, but it did little good. His heart was racing as he scanned for movement, but everything was still.
“Do you sense anything?” Lina asked.
Jez breathed deeply, but didn’t catch so much as a hint of sulfur. He wove a ward against illusion to banish any working Sharim might have left in place. He’d grown familiar enough with Lina’s power to be able to recognize her working and omit her, but illusions done by anyone else should’ve been dispelled. Nothing happened. Either these were done in a way he couldn’t detect, or there was nothing here to find.
“Let’s try deeper into the cave,” Jez said.
Beastwalker (Pharim War Book 3) Page 12
