“Does it matter?”
Mykal thought it might.
“Nice jump, too. I know how much you hate heights,” Blodwyn said.
“In the darkness I couldn’t see how far the fall might have been.”
“We could be hundreds of feet from the bottom.”
Mykal grinned. “We could be. But that’s far different than being in a treetop looking down. Now that’s crazy.”
“Hey,” Quill said.
“No offense,” Mykal said.
“Really?” Coil returned. “No one followed me? No one.”
Blodwyn said, “Lead on. We’re right behind you.”
Coil shook his head, but walked away. “You know what?” he mumbled, talking to himself. “I don’t care anymore. I just, I don’t care. And I saw magic. Magic! I never thought I’d live to see something like that. I have a wizard with me. A magician. I don’t believe. No one is ever going to believe me. No one.”
Chapter 33
Mykal kept an eye out for snakes, and listened for hissing, rattling, or anything out of the ordinary. If anything sprung at him, he worried he might be too tired to react. He wasn’t sure who he thought he was kidding. There wasn’t enough light. Anything could hide in the crevices, around corners, and get the drop on them. A snake. A Caver. He yawned. Cold air filled his lungs. He saw his breath in front of him. It plumed before disappearing. A dragon. A troll.
He never thought magic and sorcery existed, or that he was a wizard. Why couldn’t other things from nursery rhymes and bedtime stories be real, too?
“Doing alright?” Blodwyn asked.
“Hanging in there.” Mykal shrugged. He kept his thoughts to himself. If he started talking about dragons, they’d laugh at him. He wasn’t sure he could handle that right now. “I do have a question for you, though. You mind?”
Blodwyn arched an eyebrow, and stared at him curiously while twirling the ends of his mustache in his fingertips. “Shoot.”
“Where’d you get all of the coins?” Mykal kept flexing his fingers. He didn’t think it did anything, but hoped it increased his circulation. The more time that passed the stronger he felt. He still needed to sleep, but knew he was recovering just fine from having used magic.
The deeper they went, the more the temperature dropped.
“What coins?”
He knew exactly what Mykal was referring to. Mykal wasn’t sure why Blodwyn was being evasive. “The pouches you’re carrying. The ones filled with enough coins that anybody we’ve run into is happy to do whatever you ask. Those coins.”
Mykal waited for a response while they walked. Galatia had warned him that using magic would deplete his stores of energy. He’d experienced it when in the Cicade Forest, and had thought that had been bad. It didn’t compare to what he now felt after catching and raising Karyn. “Wyn?”
“Yes.”
“Are you going to answer me?”
“I’ve been saving up for a rainy day, you might say,” he said. “I think this qualifies.”
It wasn’t an answer. It revealed nothing at all. “Being on the verge of war, you mean? A potential war qualifies as a rainy day”
“Exactly,” he said.
“And aside from training me to fight for the last ten years and five, what work have you done? I don’t think Grandfather’s been paying you.”
“I wouldn’t take money from your grandfather,” Blodwyn said.
Mykal knew Blodwyn never took money from his grandfather. It was the only potential source of income he could think of, though. “You wouldn’t?”
“I wouldn’t. I didn’t,” he said. “You think my life revolves around spending time training you?”
“I see you just about every day. I can’t really recall a day when I haven’t seen you,” Mykal said. “You’re not going to tell me, are you?”
“Not right now. No,” he said.
Mykal said, “How far beneath the surface do you think we are?”
He looked upward. “We’ve been at descending quickly. It might be easier to judge if we had more light. With how cold it is down here, I’m worried we might freeze if don’t find this dagger quickly and head back. Spending the night could be dangerous. I just wish we had more light.”
Mykal loathed the idea of spending the night. He’d hate to remain this far underground for any extended period of time. The darkness was dense, crushing, and weighed heavily on his shoulders as if nothing could be that tangible. As far as he was concerned, they’d already been inside the mountain longer enough.
Those ahead stopped. Coil held a fisted hand in the air. Everyone was silent, waiting, and listening.
Mykal stared at Karyn, who stood beside Galatia. He wondered what the two of them had talked about. Quill and Anthony were directly behind Coil. Both held their bows with arrows nocked.
“Something’s wrong,” Blodwyn said. He angled his staff, grasping it in both hands. “Do you feel it? Can you sense it?”
Mykal tried, but wasn’t aware of anything new or odd.
“Shh!” Coil commanded.
They could be quiet, though doing so wouldn’t hide the torchlight. Mykal wondered if they should put it out, as much as he hated the very idea. He unsheathed his sword, steel scraping the leather scabbard reverberating. He cringed, mouthing the word, “Sorry.”
Coil didn’t look like he’d accepted the apology. His brow furrowed, and without a sound, Coil growled at him, cursing under his breath.
Coil dropped the torch, and stepped out the flame, but Mykal could still see.
Light came from around a corner ahead. Slowly, they proceeded forward, staying close, keeping quiet, and pushing on. They came to a wedge of rocks once they passed the sharp bend. Everyone knelt taking cover behind the waist-high ridge.
The light came from below.
A fire burned in the center of a large pit. Perfectly smooth and round rocks outlined the pit. Mykal couldn’t see anyone around. He wondered if Coil had heard Cavers. If there were Cavers down there, it might explain why the torch hadn’t given their location away. The fire below burned brightly.
Their talking and walking might have exposed their location, but maybe not the torchlight. Either way, Mykal figured if Cavers were close, they knew people trespassed within their domain.
Mykal had questions. He was sure everyone did. No one voiced a single word.
Galatia had her eyes closed, her lips moved, and her hands extended outward.
Mykal remembered what she’d said at the farm. An evil wizard searched for the same items they sought, and that same wizard was also searching for them. Galatia knew because she’d been able to tap into that wizard’s magic, as though she watched the spells cast. Galatia said once he’d used magic, the wizard was able to find him. The same thing could be used to their advantage, he supposed. He imagined that it was about knowing when, and how to tap into someone’s power.
He closed his eyes and listened intently. His ears picked up the sound made by the crackling and snapping fire below. He could hear the others breathing. Somewhere water dripped, splashed into a puddle. He tried listening with his mind, and not his ears. He had no idea how he could do that, but knew it wasn’t his ears that would hear Galatia’s magic.
He just knew it.
He squeezed his eyes more tightly shut. He was tempted to cover his ears with his palms. Doing that would look odd though, and he didn’t want to draw attention to himself.
Her voice filled his head. It wasn’t as complicated as he’d worried. He was able to drown out exterior sounds, block them from his ears. Colors filled his mind. He saw swirls of blue, and purple. There was red, and orange. Strands of mist inside his head moved from side to side, and rose up and down. The colors glowed brightly, the iridescent, brilliant.
The colors came from Galatia. It was her magic he was seeing. He wasn’t sure how he knew this, but he knew it did with certainty. Words joined the colors in his mind, becoming clearer each time she repeated them. He recognized the wo
rds. They were the same she had used in the Cicade. She was summoning the red orb. She obviously felt that they were close to the dagger.
He wasn’t sure how she knew. He hadn’t sensed anything. He wondered if he could learn how to.
Being a Natural Wizard didn’t mean he wasn’t interested in training. There was much he didn’t understand. Galatia could mentor him, should mentor him. They needed a chance to sit and talk.
He shook his head, hoping to chase away distracting thoughts.
He recited the chant inside his mind, not sure if Galatia heard him, or if his doing so even helped. After a few times through the words, he opened his eyes. Galatia was staring at him. Her eyes wide, as if amazed he was inside her head.
Or she was in his?
He couldn’t hold back a smile.
Between them, the red orb appeared.
It just popped into existence. Like last time, it didn’t seem like anyone else could see the orb.
Mykal took a step forward.
Karyn grabbed his arm. “Where are you going?”
Coil looked at them.
“I’m going to retrieve the dagger,” he said. “You stay here. You stay near Blodwyn. He’ll protect you.”
Coil’s stare intensified. “We’ll all go.”
“I feel like I should do this alone.” Mykal gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. “You see anyone?”
Coil shook his head. “No. The dagger’s around here?”
The orb floated down over the fire below them to one of the tunnel openings, and waited, bobbing slightly up and down suspended in midair. “It’s that way.”
Last time Blodwyn’s help had made the difference between retrieving the mirror, and Mykal remaining curled in a corner cowering away from deadly spiders.
“How do you know it’s that way?” Coil said.
Galatia said, “He has help directing him.”
“Help?”
“You can’t see it. But it is showing me where to go,” Mykal said.
“Like a guide?”
Mykal nodded. “Different than what you’ve done for us.”
“So from here on, this invisible guide is going to show you where the dagger is?”
“That’s right.”
“Then I’m going back, assuming, that is, you don’t need me anymore.” Coil stood, holding only the unlit torch. He looked ready to run. The man was big, Mykal realized, yet again. It hurt his neck to look up at him.
Mykal gave Galatia a look. She pursed her lips, and shook her head.
“We do need you. Without you we can’t get out. There are too many different passages. If we try backtracking, we’re bound to get lost,” Galatia said.
Coil looked all around. “What about this new guide? Let it show you to an exit.”
Mykal knew Coil mocked him. It was the way the man stood, looking around for signs of someone else. He needed to diffuse the situation. “We need you to wait,” Mykal said. “Our lives may depend on it. If you leave, the Cavers will catch us all. Please. You have been compensated.”
Coil resembled a statue. He stood with massive arms crossed over his chest. “Fine. Go and get the dagger.”
Mykal thought Coil had more to say, but for some reason stopped. It didn’t take a mind reader to fill in the blanks. He was thankful Coil left it alone, and agreed to cooperate.
“I’ll go with you,” Quill said.
Mykal glanced over at Blodwyn, who nodded. He wasn’t as sure Quill was the best choice of companion, but realized that trust had to begin somewhere. “Let’s go,” Mykal said, secretly, relieved he didn’t have to venture out on his own.
Coil grabbed Mykal’s arm.
Quill slapped it away.
Coil regarded Quill with a harsh look, eyes narrowed. “Listen, just because we haven’t run across Cavers yet, doesn’t mean they aren’t close. More than likely they’re watching us, and have been for a while. My guess is they’re seizing us up, trying to figure out how much of a threat we pose, or how much effort it would be to take us out. You never know, so just be careful. If you guys aren’t back by morning, I’m leading this pack out of the mountain. We clear on that? Keep your guard up. We’re in their territory. Understand what I mean by that? They know these tunnels better than any. They’ve been moving through them since they were able to crawl.”
Mykal started forward. Quill kept the bow in one hand, a finger wrapped over the arrow.
“Guy’s a few arrows short of a full quiver, if you know what I mean,” Quill said.
“How do you mean?” Mykal asked.
“Legends. Every land has ‘em. The Cicade forest is haunted,” he said.
“It is?” Mykal said.
“No. That’s my point. My men started the rumors. Keeps people away. We’re no more ghosts than you are,” Quill said.
“And the Cavers?”
“Same thing. Legend. These mountains are rich in natural resources. Way I see it, those who own the mines don’t want anyone moving in on his claim. Best way to do that is create something that will scare people away,” Quill said.
“That’s pretty brilliant,” Mykal said.
Quill tapped a finger against his temple. “Got to think things through sometimes, is all. Can’t just assume everything you hear is true.” Quill smiled, as if he’d completed teaching a lesson successfully. “You following that orb-thing again?”
“I am. It amazes me that you guys can’t see it. You know what a ruby is?” Mykal said.
“Of course I know what a ruby is.” Quill grunted.
“Shhh,” came from behind them, Coil most likely.
“I’ve never seen one, so I wasn’t sure,” Mykal said.
“Well,” Quill said. “I’ve never seen one either. But that doesn’t mean I don’t know what a ruby is. Like a diamond, but red.”
“Yeah. Exactly. That’s what this orb is like. I imagine it is just like a big floating uncut ruby,” he said. “But alive.”
“Alive?”
“Galatia said that it is a she, but I’ve not gotten close enough to be certain. She always stays just ahead of me. When she stops by the dagger this time, I’m going to see if I can tell.”
“Can you touch it? Her?” Quill said.
Mykal tipped his head side to side. “I don’t really know. I didn’t try that last time.”
“Hmmm.”
“I’m not going to try this time, either,” Mykal said. He thought he knew what Quill was getting at. They weren’t going to steal the orb.
Kidnap was a better word. Any points Quill thought he’d earned, he’d just negated.
The fire pit was to their right.
Quill said, “It’s like we’re at the center of the bottom of the mountain. You see all those tunnels? This is a hub.”
“Hub?” Mykal said.
“Think of a wagon wheel. The spokes all come to the center of the wheel. Their connected. It’s why the wheel can turn.”
Mykal nodded.
“And the orb went which way?” Quill said.
“Follow me,” Mykal said. They entered a tunnel on the left. It was a tight fit. The rocky surface of the wall jetted outward, making it difficult to push through. If it weren’t for the orb, a few feet in front of him, Mykal knew he’d be panicking.
“You can still see the orb?” Quill said.
Sounded like the Archer was nervous, Mykal thought. “Yes. Just a few more feet. We should be through. Stay close.”
“Are we there?”
“A little more.”
“Now?”
“Almost,” Mykal said. He wanted to tell him to stop acting like a child. He didn’t, though. He was too busy struggling with his own breath. The space was almost too narrow for his head to fit through. Sweat coated his skin, and his clothing clung to it. He hated the feeling.
“You don’t like me much, do you?”
“Uncle, why ever would you say such a thing?” If Mykal’s face weren’t tightly pressed between damp rocks, he’d shake his h
ead at the question.
“I think we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot.”
“I believe we have, and we’ve talked about this already.”
“I was a knight. I—”
“Spare me. Please? I need to concentrate,” he said. He didn’t. The orb set a clear path. All he needed to do was follow it. Quill didn’t know that, though.
The confinement became overwhelming. His chest was being crushed. There was barely room for his lungs to fill. Then there was the air. It seemed scarcer. He knew he breathed irregularly; quick and shallow.
“Stay calm, nephew. Don’t breathe in and out. Breathe up and down.”
“I have no idea what you mean.”
“When you breathe in, let your chest go up, instead of out. It helps,” he said.
Mykal tried it, and it worked. It made a major difference. He felt slightly less claustrophobic.
“That helping?” Quill said.
There was no way he’d give the man satisfaction. “You’re crazy, Uncle Quill. Crazy.”
Right before he felt he’d scream, Mykal came free. He nearly gasped. “Don’t move,” he whispered.
“What? Why?”
“I said, don’t move. We’re not alone.”
Chapter 34
The Mountain King walked a step ahead of Ida. They needed horses. The breeze coming in from the sea chased some of the humidity from the day. King Hermon wasn’t used to it. While winters in the Rames could be brutal, leaving roads impassable, fall was more mild and refreshing. He could handle the walk, but not the unseasonable heat.
They were forced to bring the Voyagers with them. With most of his men from The Shadow either dead, mortally wounded, or severely injured, he was left with little choice. They left Mercer, the Voyager carpenter, with the ship. He had been commanded through sorcery to protect the boat with his life.
Ida maintained her control over the Voyagers who followed behind them. They’d been instructed to protect the king with their lives. Hermon saw in their faces that the command revolted them. Ida had explained to him they could feel revolted all they wanted, but they’d behave as directed.
The terrain was grassy, and flat. The road was loose dirt. Their boots kicked up dust with each step. The Grey Ashland Realm was nothing like Osiris. It seemed fitting they were separated by a wide and swift sea. There was nothing neighboring about the lands, nothing similar at all. The farming might be better on this side of the sea, but Hermon preferred home.
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