Bones of the Empire

by Jim Galford

  Turess smiled and nodded at Estin before marching into the tunnel ahead of the others.

  “What was that all about?” Estin asked when Yoska and Raeln caught up, and Feanne helped Dalania across the rough terrain at the entrance to the mines.

  “I think this has to do with something he said other night that made no sense,” Yoska told him. “He say something about everyone being too poorly trained to do what is needed of them. You get whipped into shape, yes? Maybe next comes jogging and other exhausting things?”

  Raising the light somewhat, Estin peered into the entrance of the mine, where smooth walls marked the change from the broken exterior to the well-constructed interior. Turess went on ahead, stopping only when reaching the end of the light’s reach. Outside the mine, Dalania whispered to their horses, gently removing the reins from each before sending them off toward freedom.

  Glancing down at the ball of light Estin held, Raeln commented, “Always hated those things. My sister used to cast them on my tail at night so I couldn’t hide from her. I think I was about the only thing she didn’t accidentally light on fire.”

  Blinking in surprise, Estin looked at Raeln as though he were joking, but he seemed serious. “You can cast these on something? I only learned to make them float over my palm.”

  “Poorly trained, he says, yes?” noted Yoska, heading into the mine.

  “Ignore him. He’s still upset that Turess told him he was an idiot again this morning,” Raeln explained. “They were arguing about whether we should turn around. Yoska lost. Again.”

  “How did you know? Am I the only one here who doesn’t speak Turessian?”

  Raeln snorted and began walking, with Estin keeping pace and the women following them. “The gypsy couldn’t keep a secret if our lives depended on it. He muttered for an hour in our language. I think he forgets that we understand his accent after this long.”

  The group continued into the mine, passing support beams every twenty feet or so. After the first few, Estin studied them as they went, trying to determine how the wood had held up for centuries. Soon he spotted engraved symbols in the wood, which likely would keep the mine intact until their magic faded completely. That made him wonder if the Turessians used magic for everything, if even slave-mined tunnels used this much. Altis had far less magic in use, and it was one of the largest human cities in the region where Estin had grown up.

  The tunnel wound around and descended into the hills, quickly destroying Estin’s sense of direction. Their group adjusted, leaving Estin and Raeln in the lead, with Turess and Yoska right behind them, occasionally indicating a turn in the passage or which part of a fork to take. At the rear of the party, Feanne helped Dalania, whose poor vision in the dark made it all too easy for her to trip or fall. Estin knew full well Feanne would have preferred to lead the way into danger, but she seemed to take turns mothering Dalania and Estin. This time it was Raeln’s turn to babysit Estin.

  “Are you ready if they find us?” Raeln asked in a near whisper, as the tunnel turned sharply again. “When, I should say. It may not be in here, but they will find us sooner or later. I don’t want any of us to let our guard down.”

  “Like you said, run and try to meet back up.”

  “We both know if it comes to that, we’ll keep running until they hunt us down. If the two of you get away, keep going. Don’t come back. I already told Feanne the same thing. Do not wait for us.”

  Estin stared at Raeln in surprise and nearly tripped over some fallen bits of stone that scraped his toes. “The prophecy…”

  “You will keep running. Get Dalania out with you if you can. Yoska and I will find our own way out with Turess.”

  “Expecting things to go that badly?”

  Raeln scowled at Estin and did not reply. From what Estin had gathered during their travels, Raeln did little more than expect the worst.

  “I’ll do what I can,” Estin offered. The tunnel leveled off and straightened, giving them an easy path ahead. “No promises out here. I won’t run while you die, Raeln.”

  “I wouldn’t expect anyone to promise anything. Just start running and I’ll be fine. I won’t let myself die unless everyone stays behind.”

  They walked on in silence for hours, until Estin had to open his mouth to pant as the magic of the light continued to sap his strength even more than the hiking. Sometime after that, as he gasped for breath, the glowing ball flickered and faded to less than candlelight as his head pounded from the effort. Before Turess could say anything about it, Feanne brought her own hand up and created a soft green light that floated over her palm-pad. Estin was thankful for her help, even if he dearly wished he were not still so weak. He let his own hand drop, extinguishing his magical light and easing the strain on his body.

  Pushing on, they made good time through the twisting tunnel, with Yoska and Turess stopping every so often so Turess could relay information about one family or another that had mined that area and for what. Estin tuned most of that out, not really caring much about the mine or the metals Turessians had claimed from the depths.

  Estin felt as though he would never stop panting until they stopped to rest, which had become his only real focus as they went on. It was all a blur of endless stone and wooden supports. Turess droned on and on about things Estin could not have cared less about, even if he could understand the man without Yoska’s aid.

  Eventually, Raeln brought the group to a halt when they came to a larger chamber that appeared to have been set up for a stopping point of mine carts or possibly a resting area for the workers. Whatever its original purpose, Raeln demanded they stop and threw down his bedroll, leaving little room for debate. Turess looked ready to object, but after glancing at the faces of his companions—stopping a little longer on Estin—he relaxed and nodded, sitting down at the edge of the chamber.

  Estin practically collapsed, putting both hands to his head. The headache and dizziness from using magic for so long was nearly enough to make him sick. He dreaded looking at the others and seeing the pity on their faces. They were all either skilled spellcasters or warriors, and Estin alone was helpless in the group. It made him want to scream some days. Once he had been as strong as any of them, but he had made his choices and these were the consequences.

  “Drink some water,” whispered Feanne, kneeling beside Estin and offering a small canteen they had filled with melted snow earlier in the day.

  “I’m fine!” he snapped more sharply than he had intended.

  Estin did not need to look up to know Feanne’s temper nearly took over. He could feel her body tense beside him, ready to pin him down and force him to drink if needed. Arguing with her was pointless, and he was not mad at her to begin with. Sighing, he took the canteen from her and drank deeply.

  Lowering the canteen, Estin saw Yoska was helping Dalania clear a space on the uneven floor for her to rest, where she could be behind Raeln and Turess. She appeared uncomfortable letting Yoska help her, but he insisted and would not back down. Estin had already overheard Dalania asking Raeln to make Yoska stop being “overly nice” to her, but Raeln was not intervening. He likely would not until Yoska overstepped some line that Estin did not fully understand. When that happened, Raeln would probably beat Yoska half to death.

  Shaking his head at the odd group he was a part of, Estin passed the canteen back to Feanne, who had not taken her eyes off him. He tried to avoid meeting her gaze, but the intense stare was impossible not to notice.

  “We will rest until you are able to travel again,” she told him, spreading some of their blankets on the floor. “I will keep first watch while you—”

  “Feanne, stop treating me like I’m crippled,” Estin told her, regretting it instantly as her expression hardened again. “I’m not as weak as you think I am. Please don’t coddle me.”

  With a quick snarl that was his only warning, Feanne slammed Estin down on his back and rolled onto his chest to pin him there. She held him firmly, and when he tried to push free, she du
g her claws into his thick shirt, right over the tender skin that had only recently healed over his heart, where a Turessian had tried to tear open his chest. As her knee came down on his ribs, he felt the pads of her toes press against his stomach even through his thick clothing.

  “Do not tell me how to treat anyone from my pack,” she warned, her voice low and eyes narrowed. “The pack may be reduced to the two of us, but you swore to trust your life to me. If I say you are weak and need rest, you will rest. I will not have you dropping dead because of pride, Estin. You will rest and I will tell you when we walk again. I will stop coddling you when I do not think you need to be coddled and not a minute sooner. Am I understood?”

  Trying to cling to what little self-esteem he had left, Estin hissed back, “Feanne, stop. The two of us fighting won’t change anything. Get off of me.”

  Feanne’s paw shifted, and Estin felt her toe-claws press into his belly, poking through cloth and fur. He knew full well that she could disembowel him if she wanted to from that position. Deep down, he wanted to think she would never consider doing it, but when she brought up the pack…

  Looking away and forcing himself to relax, Estin surrendered, and after a second, Feanne eased her weight off of him, sliding into a squat beside him.

  “Get some sleep,” she told him, all anger already gone from her voice. That had always been her way, letting go of anger as swiftly as it arose. “Raeln and I will take the first watch. Yoska and Turess the second. You and Dalania are in the worst condition and will rest until we travel again.”

  Biting back the growl he wanted to let loose, Estin reluctantly nodded and settled down on his blankets. He looked over at Feanne, realizing she would not be joining him for hours, and then noticed Dalania’s beaming smile at Feanne. In that moment, he realized she had not been attacking him. She had been reexerting her role as the pack-leader that Dalania knew. It was a show of strength and control…though Estin knew there was truth backing it. Feanne might still gut him if he refused to rest.

  Soon Feanne and Raeln took up positions at the two entrances to the room, each sitting at the edge of the hall, Feanne with a glowing ball of magic beside her for light and Raeln likely depending on that same light source, though he kept his eyes closed as he rested. The group would be in good shape with those two watching and listening.

  Lying back, Estin tried to sleep, but the dark made it hard for him to keep his eyes closed. His people, whatever they were, were nocturnal, and the mines made him want to stay awake no matter how tired he was. Even forcing his eyes shut, he simply could not make sleep come. His mind raced with every faint clatter of stones falling in the distance and the slight creak of the leather in Feanne’s clothing, jarring him each time he began to relax.

  A faint scuff along the floor made Estin’s ears perk. Smiling, he thought Feanne had come to apologize or at least take her watch near him, but when he opened his eyes, he found Yoska was sitting alongside him, brushing dust and dirt off his heavy winter trousers. He had always looked uncomfortable in anything that was not made of silk, unless he was trying to impress a female, at which point he could make anything look comfortable, even if he were bleeding to death.

  “What do you want?” Estin asked, glaring. “She’ll do the same thing to you if you won’t rest.”

  Smirking and lowering his voice, Yoska replied, “She wouldn’t do same to me, because she doesn’t love me. Me, she would simply rip the face off if I were to argue so. Big dumb wolf might even clap for her. You, she warns. Very much the thing of love stories, no?”

  Estin glanced over his shoulder and saw Feanne had not looked up, but her ears were twitching. She heard every word. He would need to be careful, or whatever was bothering her might get him in far worse trouble than usual.

  “Is not why I came over, though,” Yoska continued before Estin could answer. “Crazy dead man asked me to bring you questions.”

  “What kind of questions?” Estin looked past Yoska and saw Turess watching from the shadows of his hood, twisting a chain through his fingers. Estin had not even realized Turess had taken the simple iron chain from On’esquin before he had been buried, but like the bracelet he wore, the chain was something Turess had left centuries earlier for them to find.

  “He asks if you are refusing to use magic because you are ashamed or because it hurts you.”

  Estin watched Turess as he answered. “Because it hurts me. I have never been ashamed of learning magic from Feanne’s mother.”

  Yoska nodded at that. “He thought that would be case. He then wanted me to ask if you are a coward.”

  “What?” Estin sat up and glared at Turess, who smirked slightly in reply.

  “I tell him is rude, but he insisted. You keep saying not to make up things he says, so I am being honest this time. Is shocking, I know, but I only do as you ask.”

  “Tell him that I am no coward,” Estin growled in reply. The simple accusation made him want to run across the small room and punch Turess, but he knew that would not help anyone. “I’ve fought beside Feanne enough times—”

  “This I already tell him,” interjected Yoska quickly. “He asked me then why you can endure so many scars, yet you cannot fight through this. He sees the marks from chains on you. He knows you are no weakling and are not a coward in other matters. You are not one who runs from pain. He believes this scares you more than the chains did. He also tells me that until you face your fear, he cannot help. You must want your magic back for it to return, even if there were a way to give it to you. It will be painful and take much time. You will need to work much harder for it this time than the last.”

  “What does he want from me, Yoska? I’ve fought it, and it makes me sick ever since I brought Feanne back from the dead. I’ve already done things no healer has done in centuries. Losing my magic is a small price.”

  Yoska nodded and looked back at Turess, who said something softly in his native language. The two spoke for a few seconds before Yoska translated. “Crazy dead man says the wound is deep but not fatal. Once we see the day again, he will help you reclaim your strength. It will take many weeks to bring back what you had, and may require help from others. You do not bear the marks of a learned man, but you are worthy of great praise and can be again, he adds. He even say you are greater than he was. Far greater.”

  Estin looked to Turess in surprise, and Turess bowed while still sitting, touching his palm to his chest. It was possibly the most respectful Estin had ever seen a city-dweller regard him in his whole life.

  “Tell him…” Estin began, trying to think about how he wanted to answer. “Tell him thank you. I may take him up on that.”

  Yoska turned to relay the message, but Turess put a hand up to stop him. Bowing again, Turess closed his eyes and went to sleep, leaning against the wall.

  “Crazy dead man is learning our words faster than I like,” Yoska muttered before patting Estin’s knee. “Get sleep, so Feanne does not punish me for keeping you awake. Much as rough women can entertain, I do not think I would live through your Feanne’s scolding.”

  Lying back down as Yoska headed toward his own blankets, Estin rolled onto his side in hopes of avoiding looking at anyone until it was time to march again. Doing so left him staring at Feanne’s back as she sat cross-legged, watching the dark passage, her tail slowly wagging along the floor. She was still angry, that much he could see from the way her tail moved and the arch of her back, but she was no longer as tense. That was a good sign.

  Sleep did not come until Feanne returned to lay beside him, putting one arm over him and nuzzling the back of his shoulder to let him know the argument was over.

  *

  A few hours after they had all gotten up—Estin wanted to call it midafternoon, but time had little meaning in the mine—the group walked on, following the bobbing green light Dalania had summoned. She had insisted on taking the lead to give others a rest. Since they had begun marching, the dull light of the orb drifted lazily beside her, casting long
shadows.

  Sleep or walking seemed hardly different to Estin, with the unchanging scenery. The few times the passage did curve or dip, he, Yoska, and Dalania had stumbled and had to blink to keep from running into the walls. It was disorienting and mind-numbing, making Estin wonder how Raeln and Feanne managed to be immune to it. Turess kept one hand on the wall at all times, seemingly using the touch to maintain his focus.

  When Turess spoke, Estin jumped, as no one had talked in hours. Even Feanne and Raeln flinched at the sudden noise.

  “Uh…he…um,” Yoska murmured, staring intently at Turess as he continued in his staccato language. “He say we come to fork soon. We will take right-hand passage to see daylight again. Will be only for a short time, but he thinks it will improve spirits so vixen does not disembowel anyone…oh…he adds that this part was not meant to be translated and calls me idiot. I do not like this man, even more than I did not like him the last time he called me that.”

  Chuckling at Yoska’s ongoing muttering, Estin followed Feanne to the front of the group, using her own magical light as she moved away from Dalania. They hurried ahead, neither of them needing to say they were eager to see daylight again. It had been too long and would be even longer until the next time, if there would be more tunnels in the coming days.

  Getting about twenty feet ahead of the others, Estin and Feanne slowed as they reached a split in the tunnel. The left-hand passage continued on into darkness, its uneven walls narrowing shortly after the fork. From what Estin could see, the passage was far older than the one they had entered through, with fallen stones every few feet.

  He was thankful they were taking the other path, even just for a little while. Any more of the tight confines would have escalated tempers even further. As if agreeing with him without knowing he had been thinking about it, Feanne took his hand in hers and squeezed as they continued up the passage toward a faint light, keeping ahead of the rest of the group, giving them a small semblance of privacy.