by Bob Blink
The meeting with Daim concluded, the threesome went in search of Tomas. Daim had indicated where he usually spent his time, and within a short while, they had encountered the older wizard. Rigo had considered looking up Jeen, but Daim had said she had gone with her consort to relocate her children. She would be back in the morning. Once he confirmed that Tomas knew Bertrack, there was little reason to delay, so the four of them set off.
The Outpost maintained a medium sized stable of horses. Many times the wizards were headed places where they would need to have transportation. After selecting four mounts and filling saddlebags with a few days food and water, Tomas created the Bypass that would take them into Bertrack. While he knew the village, he wasn’t familiar with where the Wanderers might camp. They would have to ask someone once they arrived.
They rode through the Bypass and exited into mountainous countryside under clear blue skies. The mountains were thick with trees, and the village nested in the valley between two ranges of tall peaks. A large river flowed through, and what flatland was available was used for livestock. Rigo couldn’t see any signs of farming. Bertrack was larger than Rigo would have guessed, yet Tomas knew where they wanted to go. Suline carried her staff in her left hand as she guided her mount with the right. She looked comfortable doing so, as though she had spent many days in the saddle before. Rigo had his staff in a special holder strung over his back, much as Kaler often carried his broadsword.
Within a short time they had ridden into the center of the village where the town leader had his office. The office of the chief constable was immediately next door. It took only a few moments to discover where the camp was located and that the Wanderers were still in residence. Rigo thanked the constable, and as they walked back outside to their mounts, thanked Tomas as well. There was no need for Tomas to stay with them any longer, so he would be returning to the Outpost.
A quarter glass later they rode into the Wanderer camp, and asked where they might find Torusk. Over the years Rigo had visited any number of Wanderer camps with Daria, but even though he could guess where the headman’s wagon was likely to be, he knew it was considered proper to ask. The young woman they had questioned, smiled and led them into the center of the parked wagons, and pointed to a colorful wagon.
Torusk was in his mid fifties, a short but heavyset man with a beard that was losing its battle with gray. He wore the usual colorful clothes common to the Wanderers, yet Rigo suspected he had spent some years away from the group pursuing a lifestyle that wasn’t condoned by the People. Something told Rigo that Torusk had seen a bit of fighting, and that the powerful frame would serve him well in an altercation.
“Who is it you are seeking?” Torusk asked.
Rigo had asked about Daria, not knowing if she would use that name among the People.
“I don’t know anyone by that name,” Torusk replied after rubbing his heavy beard and watching Rigo as he replied. Torusk didn’t know Rigo, and Rigo didn’t see anyone he could recognize from visits he had made with Daria to various camps in the past. Torusk might honestly not know the name, or he could be playing dumb because he didn’t know Rigo. The Wanderers were notoriously close with information to outsiders.
“You might know her as Nuiz,” Rigo said. “Daria is a name she uses outside the camps.” He thought he saw a slight flicker in the man’s eyes at the mention of Daria’s birth name, but still he was getting no help. “KalaBhoot is another name that she goes by,” Rigo said finally, wondering if he should reveal this secret and how Daria would react when she learned of his indiscretion, but knowing that a number of leaders within the Wanderers were aware of who she was. The Wanderers had always been her information network.
The mention of the KalaBhoot had caused Torusk’s eyes to widen noticeably, but still he wasn’t willing to say anything. He shook his head slowly, and was about to deny knowing who Rigo was asking about when Rigo spotted someone he thought he knew walking toward the campfire.
“Nadine,” Rigo shouted, and was reassured to see the old woman’s eyes raise up and seek out the origin of her name. She saw Rigo and the two women speaking with Torusk, and walked over to greet him.
“Master Rigo,” she said formally. “What brings you to visit the Wanderers?”
“I need to find Nuiz,” Rigo said, remembering when he had met Nadine and knowing that she was one who had always used Daria’s birth name.
“She’s not here,” Nadine said. “She completed her business and has gone in search of those who kidnapped several young women from her stepfather’s caravan. I have no idea where she has gone.” Nadine looked at Torusk as if asking him what he knew.
“You know these people?” Torusk asked brusquely.
“This one,” Nadine said, pointing at Rigo. “He came to a Wanderer camp with Nuiz some years ago. I do not know the others.”
Rigo pardoned his poor manners and introduced Mitty and Suline, explaining that Suline was a Caster, a different kind of wizard than himself, from across the Ruins. That earned the interest of both Nadine and Torusk. They had heard of the land that had been discovered so far away, but had yet to meet anyone from there. The Wanderers were very curious people, and the opportunity to meet someone from so far away was an opportunity to be savored. When they learned that Mitty was Rigo’s consort, and was also from far off Sedfair, they were doubly interested.
Torusk looked upon the unexpected visitors more kindly, and offered them a seat by the fire.
“Why do you seek Nuiz?” he asked.
Rigo explained the unusual Bypass that Daria had created, and the vision of the man within. “I think the man she might have seen is a fellow wizard who became trapped many years ago. It is important that I talk to Daria about it.”
Torusk shook his head encouragingly. “I recall it,” he said. “I was there when she made the attempt. I have little experience with your special travel arches, but I have never seen one like that one before. There was clearly someone inside already.”
This was better than he could have hoped, and Rigo questioned Torusk about the Bypass. Unfortunately, Torusk was telling the truth about the portals, and he had only seen a couple in his life. He couldn’t really tell Rigo anything useful.
“Do you know where Daria went?” Rigo asked finally. “I need to speak to her about the Bypass. Perhaps she can duplicate the strange effect. There may be a chance to rescue the man you saw.”
Torusk shrugged and shook his head. “After we moved the artifacts that the bandits had taken, she returned us to the camp here. She told me there were two men who had purchased the missing girls and she would seek them out, returning the girls when she found them. She did not say where that would take her or what their names were.”
“Would there be any who knew what she had learned? Do you know anyone who can tell us where she might have gone?”
Torusk looked around to see if there was anyone close who might overhear. “The KalaBhoot would not have allowed those responsible to live. I am certain whoever revealed such information is now in the spirit world cursing his encounter with her.”
Rigo wasn’t surprised. Daria would have extracted the information, and sent the men responsible to their deaths. That would have been the case normally, but with the death of her stepfather on their hands, the bandits would have had no chance at surviving. Torusk explained the bandits had been located outside of Fontin, which was a considerable distance from here, and she could have traveled in any direction from there. Finding her was a task that would take considerable time.
“You personally saw the Bypass,” Rigo confirmed.
When Torusk nodded, Rigo asked, “Would you show me this place? Perhaps I can learn what I need to know without trying to find Nuiz.”
Torusk nodded. “If you can make one of your arches, we can go there now.”
“I’ll need your memories,” Rigo said, explaining what he would need the other to do. “I have never been there, but your memories of the place can allow us to go directly to
the place.”
Nadine wished to come along, and moments later they were all standing around the fire as Rigo laid his hand on Torusk’s shoulder, locking in the vision of the cave entrance, formed the Bypass. They would not need horses this time. They wouldn’t be going very far.
They stepped out of the Bypass onto the rocky ground at the base of one of the hills bordering the flatlands that extended into the distance. Torusk pointed back toward the farmhouse a considerable distance away, which was now a blackened heap of burned wood.
“That happened after,” he told Rigo. “When I was here last time, the house still stood. Someone has chosen to burn it down, perhaps so more bandits don’t elect to move in.”
Rigo looked back at the collapsed jumble of burnt out walls. He wasn’t really interested in what had happened there. The cave held his interest. He could see or sense nothing unusual about the place, and peered into the darkened entrance.
“This is where Daria made the Bypass?” he asked.
“We were inside,” Torusk said.
“Let’s go,” Rigo said, and stepped into the cave, triggering his mage’s light as he did so. Torusk followed him, then Mitty, Suline and Nadine. The interior was larger than Rigo would have guessed, and he could see the remains of a broken chest back in a far corner.
“We were standing here,” Torusk indicated, and she created the arch there.” Torusk pointed toward a side wall of the cave.
Rigo looked around, but could sense nothing that might have disturbed the creation of a Bypass. Of course, even in the Ruins one couldn’t often tell, even after years of becoming familiar with the distortions of that place. Motioning everyone to stand back, he created a Bypass that would take them back to the Wanderer camp. Expectantly, he watched as the arch formed. It looked perfectly normal, the usual yellow color defining the edge, and the opening looking transparent showing the wall beyond.
“Curse it!” he muttered under his breath.
Then he closed the Bypass. After a moment’s thought, he attempted a second Bypass, this time making one that would take them back to Daria’s orphanage. That was where Torusk said they had relocated the artifacts. Perhaps there was something about the choice of end point that might affect the portal. Unfortunately, his second attempt looked every bit as normal as the first one. Once again he closed it.
After a moment of thought, he looked at Suline. “Daria is not a wizard. She is a Caster, like yourself. Perhaps there is something in the Casting approach that is different. Could you attempt to make a Doorway? Make it between here and the Orphanage.”
Suline nodded, and raised her staff. A moment later a third perfectly formed arch stood waiting. Like the ones Rigo had made, the arch looked entirely normal.
“We need Daria,” Rigo said. “It is either something she did, or her Bypass was affected by the items that had been in the cave.”
“You don’t think it was simply a fluke?” Suline asked.
“I hope not,” Rigo replied. “If that is the case, we might never be able to duplicate the effect.” Rigo was concerned that Suline might be right and he would be unsuccessful in his attempts to reach out to Koess.
“There is little to be done here,” Rigo said finally, and lead the group outside. He made a Bypass back to the Wanderer camp, where they bid farewell to Nadine and Torusk, and collected their horses for the return home.”
“What now?” Mitty asked as Rigo sat upon his horse thinking.
“I can’t help wondering if something among the artifacts was responsible for interfering with Daria’s Bypass,” Rigo said. “We need to go back and see what was there. Jeen is due back later today. I’d like to wait for her. In the meantime, there is someplace I’d like to go.” He looked at the two women.
“Lead the way,” Suline said. “I am finding this exploration interesting.”
Rigo looked at Mitty who nodded as well. Then summoning memories he had tried to bury a long time ago, he formed another Bypass, and lead the others through it.
“Where are we?” Mitty asked as they stepped into bright sunlight with orange sands all around.
“The Ruins,” Rigo said. They dismounted and left the horses in the small patch of shade nearby. Rigo led the way around the blocking hillside, and the two women gasped when they saw the vast chasm stretching out in front of them.
“I have never seen the like,” Mitty said. Then she looked at Rigo. He had told her about his adventures. “Is this where it happened?”
Rigo nodded. He walked toward the edge and peered into the depths. “Right here,” he said. “I can recall the spot clearly. We couldn’t go down, and we checked for a way around. It was go back, or make a Bypass to the far side.” He pointed to the ledge of rock they could barely see in the distance.
“Unfortunately, we couldn’t come back. The Ruins blocked us from making a Bypass over there. Even worse, Koess didn’t appear with the rest of us.”
“What do you intend?” Suline asked.
“I want to make the Bypass again. See if it looks unusual.”
“You aren’t going through it?” Mitty asked worriedly.
Rigo shook his head. “I’ve done that before. Hopefully I’m smarter now.”
Rigo pulled the staff out of his carrier and walked back from the rim and planted it in the sand. He didn’t want one of the offsetting staffs to be involved in his efforts. He hadn’t had one of the staffs the last time, so the attempt should be made without it. Concentrating on the distant ledge, he created the same Bypass he had made so long ago. Once again, an arch formed not too far away.
Both Rigo and Suline examined the arch critically. There was no mist or shimmer inside the arch. Rigo hadn’t really expected there to be. He would have noticed something so obvious back then. He examined the yellow glow around the edges, and couldn’t decide if he wanted to see something, or he did.
“What do you think?” he asked Suline, not wanting to bias her answer.
“It looks almost normal,” she said. “Almost. I think there are infrequent specks of red in the border. They are difficult to focus on, but I’m certain it is something I’ve not seen before.”
There it was. A sign that something was different. Subtle, and not something one would pick up on unless he had reason to be checking. But it wasn’t Daria’s arch, and he couldn’t see how it would help. Rigo closed the arch, and had Suline attempt the same thing. Once again, she duplicated his effort.
“I wouldn’t want to step through either of those,” Rigo said as he returned for his staff. “I believe I can consider myself fortunate to have passed through the first time.”
Staff in hand, he created a Bypass back to the Outpost. They would check on Jeen and see what they could learn from the artifacts. Rigo had accepted that finding Daria would be a time consuming, and probably fruitless task. If they couldn’t learn anything from the items Jeen had in storage, Rigo would have to be patient until Daria completed the task she had set herself to and returned.
Chapter 35
Jeen had arrived back at the Outpost much earlier than she had expected, but it was still after Rigo, Mitty, and Suline had set off to chase down Daria and learn what they could of the strange Bypass she had created. She felt somehow uncomfortable walking the familiar halls now that she realized the one time sanctuary was a likely target, and that those who would be attacking might be their friends. She wasn’t certain she was prepared to unleash destructive magic at someone she had known as a friend for years. It was all very unsettling.
Word of the previous evening’s events had spread throughout the Outpost. Jeen could sense the change in the atmosphere. She could hear Daim’s voice coming from his office. He was already giving instructions on how to prepare, and actions to be taken in the event of an attack. That, as much as anything, made the situation real to Jeen. She passed by his office without stopping. She already knew what she needed to do, and speaking with Daim would simply delay her efforts. She noticed Ash’urn in his workshop as usual, his he
ad down as he studied some document on his desk. He was probably catching up on his notes. Jeen recalled from the days when they traveled together that he was often up early, filling his journal with his thoughts on anything he considered important. The hair, which had been white as long as Jeen had known him, was noticeably thinner now. With his head down, Jeen was startled to realize she could see through to the top of his scalp. She debated for a moment going in, but knew she would be seeing him later in the day, and after a brief slowing of her steps, passed by without turning in. She wished she knew what ailed the elder scholar. The changes overtaking him were happening far too swiftly to be entirely natural.
Heading down to the lowest level of the Outpost, Jeen found the solid rock walls comforting in a way that she hadn’t noticed before. Even the powerful magic that Fen and Lyes had revealed the secret to would have difficulty reaching this deep into the mountain. If an attack were to come, she would have plenty of warning before it reached her. She let her fingers trail along the smooth stone, cut by magic so many years ago, and then hardened with magic they no longer possessed. Obviously, there was much they had lost. Even Daim hadn’t been fully knowledgeable of all aspects of magic practiced in his day.
The three assistants she had worked with in the past were waiting for her arrival. She had alerted them the previous evening that they would need to be prepared for an early start this morning, and all had arrived ahead of her. She apologized, and led the way into the large work area, the boxes and sacks of materials spread around the back of the room. Several large desks with old scratched chairs were set up where they would work. The materials from Ald-del had been given a cursory inspection, but that would have to be repeated again today with an eye for items that might prove most useful. The items the Wanderers had found and which Jeen had helped bring back had yet to be looked at.
“We want to divide the materials into four groups,” she told her helpers. “Anything that might require a translation and which is small enough to fit into the readers at the Repository go into one group. Two of the groups will be for relocation, and should try and contain as many duplicate items as possible. These will be relocated offsite so they will be protected in the event of an attack. The fourth group will be items we elect to keep here. They will mostly be items that we don’t believe are of much value.”
