by David Ekrut
“I could eat the rabbit whole and two more, besides,” Feffer said.
“I am pleased that you are pleased,” Daki smiled. “A little while longer.”
For several moments, the only sound was that of the crackle of the fire and scraping wood as Daki turned the skewer.
“I have to ask you something,” Feffer said. “You look to be our age. Why are you in the woods all on your own?”
“These woods are a part of my Plauo Tu Patwah, path of proving. A boy must become one with his Patwah. Once he finds his path and masters it, he may return to his people a man. For some, the path is long, for others the path is short. If one does not master his path, then it masters him. Either his disgrace will be his end, or he will wander the world alone, forgotten by his people.”
“But you’re our age,” Feffer said, again. “And your parents abandoned you to fend for yourself in the wild?”
Daki smiled. “I do not expect one from the soft lands to understand the ways of my people. Nature is not nearly so wild as that of the men of cities. Are there not men amongst you that kill each other simply to take what he wants or for pleasure?”
An image of Zeth came to Elwin’s mind. And of the burning village that had once been Bentonville. “There are those type of people amongst us.”
“Ah. You see. Animals kill out of necessity for sustenance, or in defense, trying not to become food for another. My people are closer to Nature. Our ways are not yours. My parents did not abandon me here. I chose this for my Patwah. More accurately, it has chosen me.”
Daki’s gaze settled on Elwin. “Can you not feel that we are one? Our destinies are connected despite our choosing. Despite your … taint.”
Elwin nodded his agreement. There was something. He could feel it in the same way he felt his essence. He still wasn’t sure what it meant.
“I do,” Elwin admitted. “I’ve felt it since the Stones of Seeking.”
Feffer scowled at Daki.
Daki stood and turned the rabbit. “It won’t be long now.”
“What would you have done,” Feffer said, “if we hadn’t let you come with us?”
“That was not our fate. I was fated to travel with you.”
“Do you ever give a straight answer?” Feffer said as if not expecting any answer at all.
“I gave you truth,” Daki said. “What other answer should I have given?”
“I will take that as a no, then.”
“I like you Feffer,” Daki said. “You seem to always hear the answer that you need. You are wise.”
Feffer’s scowl only deepened.
Daki pulled a piece of the meat off the top of the rabbit and tasted it. Some of the juices dripped from it into the fire, causing the flames to sizzle and pop.
“It is good,” Daki said. “We can eat the outer layers.”
Feffer didn’t hesitate. He reached for the rabbit and began to peel off pieces, but he juggled the meat back and forth before shoving it in his mouth. “Mmm. Good.”
“Elwin,” Daki said. “You should try to eat.”
His stomach lurched at the thought, but Elwin began to take strips off of the rabbit. Although the heat stung his fingers, the meat peeled off with ease. He shoved the first bite into his mouth and moved it around to keep from burning his tongue. As the juices touched his tongue, he felt a chill move up his spine. His queasiness vanished, and he began to chew the meat. He felt a moment of pain as the bite went down and filled his empty stomach.
Feffer’s look suggested, he felt much the same. He drank on the waterskin and passed it to Elwin. “This will help.”
Elwin took a sparing gulp. And the water did ease the pain. Then, as if he had never taken a bite, hunger took hold of him. He peeled off another bite and took a sip to cool the meat. After taking his turn to peel off meat, Feffer reached for the waterskin and Elwin handed to him. After taking a drink, Feffer handed the water to Daki. This rhythm continued until the rabbit was almost gone. Each bite tasted as good as the last. In moments, the rabbit became mostly bone.
Feffer pulled the skewer from one of the ends and held it up.
“We can’t get past the bone until it cools.”
Daki stood and kicked dirt onto the fire.
“We have many hours until we meet my friend,” Daki said, “and it appears as though the Darkness will not come for you just yet. Let us be off. My friend will have more food for us.”
“Then you two don’t mind if I have the rest of this?” Feffer held up the rest of the rabbit.
“I can’t eat any more,” Elwin said. “My stomach doesn’t seem to hold as much as it did a few days ago.”
“Can you eat it while we travel?” Daki said.
“After you,” Feffer smiled. “Can you help Elwin into his saddle?”
His legs still wobbled as he stood, so Elwin took Daki’s help into the saddle. The other man took the reins and guided Haven north. Feffer blew on his skewer as he trailed behind, gnawing to get to pieces of meat.
Plains of grass gave way to copses of trees in thick patches. If cleared, these lands were flat enough to yield crops. Elwin envisioned a farmhouse between the collection of trees. Instead of a porch swing, he could tie a hammock between those two small redwoods, both good for climbing.
How long had it been since he climbed a tree? Part of him wanted to drop from the saddle and run to the tree. He would have to jump to reach that lowest branch, but it wasn’t too high. Though it would have been a challenge the year before.
His fantasy shattered, and he had the sudden feeling of being watched. He looked over his shoulder, but the field behind him was empty. Shaking off the feeling, he looked back to the tree. Zarah would call him a country bumpkin just for thinking about climbing trees. He had no need to climb trees, when he could fly to the top.
Feffer threw the remnants of his rabbit bones aside and frowned. “How much farther?”
Daki never slowed his trek. “After this large thicket, we will reach a round clearing. It is not more than two leagues beyond this. We will be there by nightfall, if not before. ”
Feffer groaned a complaint, but his face became resigned to the task. He walked on the other side of Haven and patted the mare’s side. Feffer reached to take the reins from Daki but stopped midway, using the same hand to wipe at his mouth. Elwin could almost see the thoughts passing on Feffer’s face, as he studied the Chai Tu Naruo. Daki had given him a meal, so he couldn’t be all that bad. Elwin almost laughed. Apparently, the way to Feffer’s heart was through his stomach.
Daki continued to lead the horse, and Feffer fell into step on the other side, scanning the countryside as they walked. As promised, they stepped into the clearing where white peaks loomed on the horizon. In the distance, Elwin could make out the beginnings of a forest that stretched as far as the eye could see in both directions.
“Just a little farther,” Daki said.
Elwin glanced up. The sun had little more than an hour left before it disappeared in the western sky. The feeling of being watched returned, even stronger than before. He looked around trying to find the source, but it seemed everywhere just like …
Elwin held his breath. Just like when he left his sanctuary in the shadow realm.
“Good,” Feffer said, “I am not sure how much farther my legs can carry me.”
Daki began to angle them east but still veered mostly north. By the time they reached the forest on the other side of the clearing, the sun had touched the edge of the horizon. As the light began to wane, the feeling of being watched became more intense.
Night would be upon them soon.
Elwin felt a giggle coming to his throat, but he stifled it. What had gotten into him? He shook off the feeling and ignored the unseen eyes. He tried to focus his thoughts on his surroundings, but his vision kept blurring. Even with his eyes closed, Elwin knew the
moment when dusk became night, because the unseen gaze seemed tangible.
A thin fog appeared in the trees, but he could see the waning moonlight begin to trickle through the trees to guide their path. Shadows moved through the trees.
Haven must have sensed something as well, because she began to fidget and dance.
“Alright,” Feffer grabbed the reins and pulled Haven to a stop. The horse stamped and moved as if wanting to run. “We need to make camp. You said we didn’t have much farther, and I can’t see where I am going any longer. I can barely see Elwin and Haven right in front of me. I have lamp oil, but we should stop. I don’t want Haven to step into a hole and break a leg.”
“We are here,” Daki said.
“Where?” Feffer said, “I don’t see any shelter.”
“That is a good thing, don’t you think? Our shelter is well hidden. Look through that copse there.” Daki pointed ahead, just a few paces in front of them.
“I can’t see anything,” Feffer said. “It’s just more trees.”
Through the growing fog, Elwin could see the grouping of trees. The copse rustled as a large, dark shadow emerged making a deep groan. Haven reared, and Elwin clung to the saddle to keep from being thrown clear. He grabbed a hold of her rein in time to keep her from bolting. His shoulder throbbed from the effort and his vision began to blur.
Feffer unsheathed his sword and stepped in front of the dancing horse.
“Wait! This is my friend!” Daki moved in front of Feffer and raised both arms as if in surrender.
The large figure lumbered forward on all fours and stepped into strands of moonlight. Its brown fur was clean and tasseled around the neck with rope made from bark. It moved up to Daki, sniffing his hair. The massive bear plopped down onto its rear and opened its mouth into a massive yawn.
Daki scratched with both hands in between the bear’s shoulder blades. “This is my friend, Taego. Taego, this is Elwin, Feffer, and Haven.”
Feffer sheathed his sword with a little too much force. “You could have told us your friend is a thumping BEAR.” He moved to take Haven’s reins and whispered soothing words in her ear.
The fog began to thicken, and his shoulder throbbed from exertion.
Daki shrugged. “Well, we are here. Come. He has fish. Tomorrow we must begin our journey through the mountains. We are near the Jojindun tribe of mountain giants. They are aggressive. I can lead us past most of the dangers, but we must work as one if we are to survive.”
“Thumping great, Elwin did you hear …”
Elwin tried to focus on Feffer’s face, but the black fog filled his vision.
“I need to rest,” Elwin heard himself say.
Then, he leaned from the saddle to climb down. But, the fire in his shoulder spread to his other muscles, and he could no longer feel his grasp on the pommel of the saddle. Before he could fall, he felt strong hands around him. He fought to remain conscious for as long as possible.
Daki’s voice sounded strange. “Let us get him inside.”
Chapter 25
The Darkness Awaits
Upon entering the shadow realm, Elwin did not move away from his body. But he opened his eyes and looked around.
The foggy moonlit haze of the shadow realm lit up the small cave. Feffer and Daki stood over him.
Somewhere in the distance, he heard echoes of a deep-throated laugh.
“What is happening?” Feffer demanded.
“It is happening,” Daki said.
“What? This Darkness of Spirit? What do we do?”
“There is nothing we can do. It is up to him now.”
The echoes of laughter grew closer.
“Dragons take your thumping soul. What is up to him?”
Unperturbed by Feffer’s curse, Daki sat next to Elwin. “Everything.”
Cursing, Feffer sat on the other side of Elwin, fingering the hilt of his sword.
Next to his ear, Elwin heard a low growl.
Without turning to see what it was, he flew straight up through the cave’s ceiling.
Bain sat on the shore in front of his castle. He knew it wasn’t possible, but he could hear her singing. Though he couldn’t make out the words, he remembered the tune. She had sung the song to Elwin.
The Father had not spoken to him in days, but he felt an energy in the air. It was the same as when the Father spoke to him but somehow different. It was pure like She was.
Was he going mad?
She had died. He watched her be consumed. He had felt her life force snuff out like the fire of a candle being pinched from existence. Why was he hearing her voice?
“Elwin will be mine once more my love,” he said to the singing voice. “There is nothing you can do to stop me this time. He will Awaken them, and the world will be mine.”
The laughter followed Elwin out of the cave.
He flew high into the sky. In the shadow realm, he didn’t have to tame Air to fly. Similar to dreaming, one could just move in any direction.
Elwin thought he could hear a woman’s voice. She was singing a wordless lullaby. It made him think of Zarah. The voice was south and east. He followed it.
Below him, he could see shadows moving in the trees. Hundreds of shadows. That’s when he saw that the shadows had eyes. Hundreds of pairs of eyes like fire looked up at him from the tops of the trees. The shadows began to fly toward him.
He could feel his body several miles away. His shoulder pulsed with pain and his heart was beating faster. His breath became labored, and he could feel sweat rolling down his cheeks.
That’s when a thought occurred to him.
“I need to wake up.”
He returned to his body. Then he laid down atop his sleeping form, like he had always done in an attempt to step back into the waking world. But nothing happened. For several moments, he remained inside his body willing himself awake.
But he did not wake up.
Zarah sat across from her mother. She could hear her mother’s voice, but she did not hear her words. There was a fire between their sleeping bodies. They had camped just off the road where the three remaining wagons were parked. The men slept atop bedrolls on the other side of the road.
In a few more nights the moon would no longer wane. It would be dark, then begin waxing. Perhaps this was a good sign. New things to come.
That thought could not take hold.
The image of the guard post plagued her thoughts. There was blood everywhere but no bodies. All of the soldiers would have had chain shirts and the royal crest. The skeletal warriors they had killed all had peasants clothes. That meant there were more of them out there.
Their home was under attack.
To their east was the Carotid Forest. It spanned most of the northeastern part of the island, from Justice all the way to the Goldspire Mountains, stretching to the east coast.
“Zarah,” Mother said, “repeat what I just said.”
“I am sorry, Mother,” she said. “I cannot stop thinking about the guard post. It is difficult to listen to lectures on undead.”
“Zarah,” she said. “This information will likely save your life. You need to understand how each type of the undead can be killed.”
“I know, Mother. But, what if we do not find Elwin? What if Zeth has captured Elwin since we last spoke to him? I cannot just pretend that all is well and listen to lectures. How many people have died? Our country is it war. How many people will die?”
Mother watched her for a moment. Then, she said, “You are becoming the woman I always knew you would become. I am proud of you Zarah. You will be a great advisor to this kingdom after I am gone.”
Zarah felt her cheeks flush at the compliment. “I am worried. What if we lose?”
“I am worried, too, Zarah. But, we must have hope. We have not heard word of attack from any of o
ur major cities. All of them have elementalists in them patrolling the streets for these black savants. Whether we have him or they have him, we must still have hope.”
Zarah nodded. “I do have hope.”
“Good,” she said. “Now, tell me how to kill a vampire.”
Elwin flew through the clouds toward the singing voice. The shadowy forms were moments behind him. He knew that he could not return to the cave again. They would be waiting for him there.
He closed his eyes, thought of his farm, and willed himself to it.
The deep laughter became distant once more, but it would find him again. Elwin went inside the house. The fireplace was cold. A stool by the fire was overturned, and the fire poker had been left on one of the sofas.
His mother had not returned. She would never have left the house without everything in its place.
Elwin looked out the window toward the Carotid Forest. Shadows emerged from the trees and moved toward him with increasing speed.
He took one last look at his parents’ house and came to a realization.
“I can never come back here.”
Elwin jumped into the air, passing through the roof, and he flew toward the woman’s singing voice.
“The Element of Life is the best weapon against all undead,” Zarah said. “But the other Elements work very well if used properly. For instance, the lightning hurl is effective against skeletal warriors.”
“How does Life work as a weapon against undead?”
Zarah sighed. “Undead are abominations to Life. They were created by Death. Healing them with the Element of Life is harmful to them. I still do not see how that would work, but if you say it is true, then I believe you.”
“I admit,” Mother said,“I have not tried it myself. I have not faced many undead. But I have read much lore that speaks of this. The healing power of Life unmakes them. I should have tried it on the skeletal warriors, but I will still have my chance, I fear. ”
“We do not have long before first light,” Zarah said. “Can we take a break?”
