Finding Refuge: The Marked Ones

by Cathi Shaw

  Kiara stopped herself from rolling her eyes. Bellasiel would be furious to lose Teague. Despite the fact that she insisted he be kept locked in a dungeon, it was clear that he was very important to the Elder and her plans for the Refuge. But Xyrisse was right. If they took Teague from her, Bellasiel would not likely be welcoming upon their return.

  “We need a plan.”

  Xyrisse nodded.

  Caedmon straightened. “Find the others and tell them we’ll meet in my quarters in an hour.”

  #

  They were assembled in less than an hour. From the looks on their faces, Mina could tell that everyone was feeling just as tense as she was. They had left Teague in the dungeon, not wanting to draw attention to themselves or to upset him.

  “So the question is how do we get Teague out of the Refuge?” Meldiron asked quietly after hearing what the girls had discovered with the manach.

  Caedmon nodded. “Bellasiel is not going to just let him go. I think we can agree on that.”

  Kiara stood up and began pacing. “I say we take the children and all leave.”

  “That’s not possible,” Meldiron said irritably.

  Kiara whirled and glared at him. “How do you know? We haven’t even discussed the option.”

  Meldiron stood up and strode across the room, his stance just as aggressive as Kiara’s. “Because I think before I speak,” he said roughly. “Do you think that Bellasiel planned this place herself? She had been able to recruit over 100 Marked Ones and bring them here. And for some reason it appears to be a safe place for them.”

  “He is right,” Xyrisse interjected. “With the number of Hunters scouring the Five Corners, these children should be easy to sniff out and yet … they are safe here.”

  “You call being trained to be soldier safe?” Kiara cried in disgust.

  “Safer than the alternative,” Meldiron reminded her and they fell silent, remembering the countless dead children with the Mark.

  “So we agree that moving the children is not viable at this point,” Caedmon noted. “But Teague needs to get to the Underground and the only safe entrance is to the East Sea.”

  The room was filled with sounds of assent.

  “Thia must come with Teague because she knows this Celeste person and also knows where the entrance is based on what the manach have told her.”

  Again they agreed.

  “I will go with Teague for obvious reasons beyond the fact that he’s my brother.” Caedmon paused and suddenly looked at Kiara. Thia sensed he was going to say something her sister would not like. “Kiara, I think you should stay here.”

  Thia closed her eyes and waited for Kiara’s predictable outburst.

  “What?” Kiara opened her mouth to continue but Caedmon cut her off.

  “You can protect the children. They trust you - more than any of the rest of us. After all you are the one who saved them.” He walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders until she met his eyes. “You are responsible for them now.”

  Kiara closed her mouth and to Thia’s surprise she didn’t argue. Instead her eyes filled with tears.

  Caedmon bent his head and kissed her then murmured something none of them could hear. Kiara nodded. Thia suddenly had the uncomfortable feeling that she was intruding on a private moment. After a time, Caedmon stepped back and turned to them.

  “I think it would be best if our party remained small. The rest of you should stay here, planning for our next move.”

  “I will not be staying.” It was Xyrisse who spoke. Thia stared at her in surprise but it was Meldiron who answered her.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” he said with a laugh.

  But Xyrisse was clearly serious.

  “Meldiron, I am sorry.” She closed her eyes but Mina could see pink tinged tears streaking down her cheeks. “I have lied to you.” Xyrisse paused and took a deep breath. “To all of you.”

  Kiara reached for her dagger. “I knew it.” She moved to stepped forward but Meldiron blocked her way.

  “Don’t.”

  Thia found words leaving her own mouth. “Xyrisse, what do you mean that you lied?”

  She turned to Thia, the pain raw on her face. “Forgive me, Thia. I had no choice. I was desperate.” She turned back to the Elder. “I am sorry, Prince Meldiron. I did lie to you. But I meant no harm.”

  Kiara glared at her but Thia stepped forward and touched Xyrisse’s arm.

  “How did you lie?” she pressed softly.

  Xyrisse turned back to Meldiron before she answered. Thia watched as the Elder nodded to her. “It’s okay,” he said softly.

  “I must return to my homeland,” Xyrisse said instead of answering the question.

  “What?” Meldiron asked, disbelief staining his words. “You can’t go back - they will kill you!”

  Xyrisse looked sad. “No. Meldiron. No, they will not kill me. That is where I lied.”

  Thia watched him as confusion filled his handsome features. She felt a pang of pity for him. She was just as confused as he was.

  “I ran away. They did not dump me in the dunes,” Xyrisse said softly.

  “Then you’re not a Hunter?”

  “Oh, no. That part was true. And they did kill my brother. I was one of a handful of the Nasseet of my generation who was gifted with the ability to Hunt. Gifted or cursed.” She swallowed and paused. “But what I didn’t tell you was that I was …” She paused again then met Meldiron’s eye. “I am the Princess of Nasseet.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Xyrisse sat in her chamber gathering up the last of her courage. Returning to Nasseet would not be easy but she could see no way around it. The manach had made it clear that what she feared was true. The Hunters had been unleashed by her father and would not stop until they found her. And they would ruthlessly destroy anything that got in their way. The thought that her new friends might be hurt because of her was too much.

  The return trip home would be easy. She just had to prepare herself to teleport. But she was stalling. She knew it. She had to say goodbye to Meldiron before she left. She had already given her farewells to Thia but she felt she owed something a bit more to the Elder prince.

  And if she were honest she would admit that she didn’t really want to bid him farewell. Xyrisse couldn’t deny that she found the tall, handsome Elder prince attractive. Anyone would. But that wasn’t why she was drawn to him. He treated her like she was a normal person, which was rare in the Five Corners. Everywhere Xyrisse had gone in this land, people had physically recoiled from her. Only Meldiron and Thia treated her like she was a real person. The others either treated her with distrust or looked at her like she was a monster.

  Xyrisse had to admit that it had been nice to have a friend for once in her life. Back in Nasseet, as both a Hunter and royalty, her only friend had been her little brother, Telekles. His murder had been more than just a killing of a sibling but the killing of her closest confidant. The fact that her father had approved the murder just made it that much more painful. Xyrisse had fled her homeland right after it happened.

  Pushing those thoughts aside, she rose and made her way through the Refuge to Meldiron’s chambers. There was no point in putting off her farewells. Standing in the hall outside his door she hesitated once again. Perhaps it would be better for her to just leave. But she just couldn’t bring herself to do that.

  Before she could change her mind, Xyrisse’s knocked on the door.

  Almost immediately it swung open and she found herself face to face with the Elder prince.

  “I …” Xyrisse shook her head, starting to turn away.

  “Xyrisse wait!” Meldiron pushed the door open “Please, come in,” he said gently.

  Hesitating a moment, Xyrisse stepped over the threshold.

  “I don’t mean to interrupt. I just wanted to say goodbye,” she said as she turned to face Meldiron, her words dying on her lips when she saw the expression in his forest green eyes. Pain, sadness and behind that a deep l
onging.

  “You aren’t interrupting,” he assured her. “Please stay for a few moments.” He gestured to the chair beside him.

  Xyrisse sat and looked at Meldiron, trying to ignore the way her heart quickened just a little.

  “Caedmon and Thia will be leaving soon to take Teague to the Underground. Kiara will stay and work with the Marked Ones, watching over them.” Meldiron paused then went on. “But that leaves the two of us.”

  Xyrisse nodded, wondering what they had decided he would do. She didn’t expect what he said next.

  “I would like to accompany you back to Nasseet.”

  Xyrisse was so surprised she didn’t know what to say. She remembered the words of the manach telling her that she had to take Meldiron with her. But she didn’t want to imagine how the presence of an Elder would be received in her homeland.

  “I can’t let you risk that,” she said softly.

  “Xyrisse, I want to come,” Meldiron insisted. “Call it strange but I’ve had a deep desire to visit Nasseet since we were in Sailsburg. You can ask Thia if you don’t believe me.” He paused before adding, “If you don’t take me, I will make my way back to the port city and stow away on a boat. That was my first plan.”

  Xyrisse gasped in shock. “Stowing away is not something to joke about,” she scolded, “It would guarantee a swift death for you.”

  Meldiron raised his eyebrows, “Well, I guess you will have to take me with you then,” he teased.

  Xyrisse shook her head. “You are an unfair bargainer, Prince Meldiron!”

  He laughed. “But you’ll take me?”

  Xyrisse bit her lip. She shouldn’t agree to this but before he could ask her again she found herself saying, “Yes, I will take you to Nasseet.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  By the time Bellasiel discovered that not only had Caedmon and Thia had taken Teague, but that Meldiron had left with Xyrisse, too, it was too late for her to do more than show her rage to Kiara.

  Kiara wasn’t too concerned. Bellasiel could growl but she didn’t think she would throw Kiara in a dungeon like she had done with Teague. Kiara was important to the children at the Refuge and Bellasiel would do anything to keep those children happy and under her control. And as much as Kiara hated to admit it, it was true that the Refuge was the only safe haven for the Marked Children at present.

  She started to train the children in the mornings and worked on keeping up her own training in the afternoons. Often groups of children would come and watch her as she trained. Kiara was patient and answered their questions, trying to ease their loneliness and at the same time keep her own mind free from worry about her sisters and Caedmon.

  She wasn’t happy about being the one left behind but she did understand Caedmon’s reasoning. For reasons she couldn’t explain she wasn’t worried about Mina. She felt that her sister was where she was meant to be with Arion. And honestly, Kiara truly believed that as far away from the Refuge as Mina could get would be safer for her.

  It was six weeks after the parties had departed that Bellasiel came to see her. The Elder had calmed down about what she saw as the betrayal by Caedmon and Thia. She had questioned Kiara on numerous occasions but Kiara had remained firm in her denial of knowing where they had gone. At first Bellasiel’s rage was so vivid Kiara feared the Elder might resort to torture to get her to talk. But as time went on, it became apparent that she didn’t believe that Kiara knew where they had gone. Or she didn’t care anymore, although Kiara found that hard to believe.

  Lately Bellasiel had taken to coming to the training sessions to watch Kiara work with the children. What she saw seemed to please her. The Elder was warmer to Kiara than she had been in months.

  One afternoon Bellasiel came to Kiara’s chambers unannounced.

  “Kiara I appreciate that you are the only chosen Marked One who has not deserted us,” Bellasiel began, her pale eyes icy.

  Kiara waited silently and couldn’t help wondering where this conversation was going.

  “You know how disappointed we were when the others left.” The Elder paused. “But you’ve shown you are loyal. And I feel I can trust you.”

  Kiara didn’t believe a word of what Bellasiel was saying but she kept her face passive, waiting to hear what the Elder leader was going to reveal. Sometimes one could learn a lot from listening to another’s lies.

  “You know that the Hunters’ presence in Five Corners peaked in the fall last year.” Kiara nodded, wondering if Bellasiel knew that it was Xyrisse’s presence that had sparked the increase in Hunting activity. She had not been pleased to find the Nasseet girl with them when they arrived at the Refuge but Meldiron had spoken to her privately and she had let Xyrisse stay. Kiara was sure Bellasiel was regretting that decision.

  “Our sources now say that the Hunters have almost disappeared from Five Corners in the last 3 weeks,” Bellasiel said her eyes on Kiara. “Surprising?”

  Kiara knew that Xyrisse and Meldiron must have made it to the Island of Nasseet if the Hunters had disappeared. She hoped the Meldiron was safe. Going to an island wholly infested with the Nasseet assassins did not appeal to her. But she kept her face passive. “Very surprising,” she said quietly.

  Bellasiel’s eyes narrowed slightly. Then she forced a smile to her thin lips. “It is good news though. I’m sure you will be more excited that most of us.”

  Kiara looked at the Elder sharply. “What do you mean?” she asked cautiously.

  Bellasiel laughed, the sound brittle and sharp like broken glass. “Well, Kiara, you can start saving Marked Children again. You’ve not brought any new ones to the Refuge since last fall. You must feel that you are failing those children who remain in the Five Corners.”

  Kiara paused unsure what to say. She was positive that any way she answered was going to get her in trouble.

  “It is rather dangerous for me to seek the children on my own, don’t you think?” she asked carefully.

  Bellasiel shook her head. “Is that what Caedmon would have you believe? I know for a fact that it was you who save most of the children.” Bellasiel paused. “And I’ve seen you training. You are more than capable of taking care of yourself.”

  She was watching Kiara closely. After a few tense moments she handed a sheaf of papers to her. “We have received a plea from parents in three different towns to get help for their children. You are still committed to saving them, aren’t you, Kiara?”

  Sensing that Bellasiel wanted her to be gone from the Refuge for some reason, Kiara raked her mind for an excuse to stay. And she came up blank. Given how passionate she’d been in finding the Marked Children the previous summer and fall, there was no reason she could come up with that would seem believable to Bellasiel. Particularly when they had direct requests from parents.

  Finally she just nodded.

  “Good. Then you’ll leave tomorrow at first light. We’ll expect you and at least three Marked Ones to return within a week.” Bellasiel stood.

  Kiara walked her to the door silently. She studied the files Bellasiel had given her. They seemed legitimate. And Bellasiel was right, none of the children were too far from the Refuge.

  Kiara remembered the dead children she’d found on her many scouting trips last summer. How she’d wished she could help them. And she thought of all the children who must have been killed since they’d quit going on their rescue missions.

  While she still didn’t approve of Bellasiel training the Marked children into tiny soldiers, it was still better than letting them die at the hands of Hunters, wasn’t it?

  Putting the papers on her desk, she turned to her closet and began stuffing a few things into a small bag. She would save as many Marked Ones as she could.

  #

  The next day Kiara found herself in a dense forest. She was beyond frustrated. She had left the Refuge at first light, just as Bellasiel had suggested but the first village she arrived in didn’t have any record of the family of the first child that had been in Bellasiel�
��s papers. In fact, there was no sign of any Marked children living in that village.

  The second village she was to go to was not on the map. Instead there was a dark dense forest.

  Kiara, a natural hunter, was used to forests and the wild animals that lived in them but there was something sinister about the forest she’d found herself in this afternoon.

  Her doubts about Bellasiel returned. And for the first time she began to wonder if this wasn’t some kind of trap.

  The thought had barely been formed when five large dark figures emerged from the woods to surround her. Taking up a fighter’s stance, Kiara pulled her sword from its scabbard but before she could engage any of her attackers, a larger figure approached. It said something in a tongue she didn’t recognize and then she felt the sting of something in her right shoulder. She barely processed the fact that she had been struck by a dart of some kind before she felt the darkness overcoming her.

  Her last thought was of Caedmon. He would never find her.

  <<<<>>>>

  THE END

  LIST OF NAMES AND PLACES

  Characters

  Minathrial (Min-ath-ree-al) called “Mina” (Meen-ah) – Sister to Thia and Kiara.

  Elethia (E-leth-ee-ah) called “Thia” (Thee-ah) – Sister to Mina and Kiara

  Kiara (Key-Ar-Ah)– Sister to Mina and Thia

  Brijit (Bri-jeet)– Adopted mother of Mina, Thia and Kiara

  Caedmon (C-ay-d-mon) – Brother to Teague

  Teague (Tee-gue) – Brother to Caedmon

  Arion (Air-ee-on) – Elder

  Meldiron (Mel-dear-on)– Elder

  Bellasiel (Bella-seel)– Elder and Healer

  Eöl Ar-Feiniel (Ay-owl Are-Fen-el) – Elder and Archivist

  Xyrisse (Xy-ris-se)

  Celeste (Suh-leste) – Undergrounder

  Manach (Men-ack) – Monks

  Coimirceoir (Coym-eer-see-oy-ri) – Protector of the Princess

  Draíodóir (Dray-Or-Door) – Druid/Magician

  Places

  Séreméla (Sar-A-Mell-A) – the Elders’ home