by C. K. Rieke
Zaan’s eyes opened and let out wisps of blue smoke. His body relaxed and he went over, sat on the stone wall, and drank a couple gulps of cold, crisp water. He wiped his brow with his shirt sleeve and smiled up at Zelestiana, who smiled down on him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
“HURRY, we have to move,” Gogenanth yelled back at his companions behind him.
“We need to stop,” Ezmerelda called back from behind. Gogenanth and Wollen both paused, and breathed heavily.
Ezmerelda and Yule caught up to the two, and Yule knelt over to catch his breath. Yule then stood tall and took deep breathes, trying to calm himself. Ezmerelda grabbed her canteen, and took a swill, then handed it over to Yule, who poured it into his mouth— most of it ran down his face and chin. “Thanks, we don’t need long.” Gogenanth looked down the White Passage. “We just need to catch our breath,” she said, giving her a moment to look around the tunnel. “Is that gold?”
“Looks like it,” Wollen said, impatiently.
Ezmerelda walked over and began to run her fingers over the gold-speckled walls. She began to dig her fingernail in.
“Maybe, maybe we shouldn’t do that,” Yule said between breaths. She ignored him, and began to put more force behind her fingers.
“You should listen to your mate. This is a magic place, don’t know if you should be taking things,” Wollen said to her.
“Ugh,” Ezmerelda let out a grunt as she forced a small pebble of the gold substance off the wall and she held it up to the torchlight. “It’s pretty.” She put the stone into her pocket and smiled. Yule gave a concerned look and Wollen rolled his eyes. Gogenanth remained staring forward.
“Ready?” he asked.
“You ready, Yule?” Ezmerelda asked, and Yule nodded.
They shifted their feet and began running down the corridor. “How long does this go?” she asked.
“Not much longer, if I remember—” Wollen said, “—but, it does all look the same in here.”
As they ran, Ezmerelda caught up to Gogenanth at the lead. “Once we get to your friend in Barrier Cliff, what do we do then?”
Gogenanth continued gazing forward as they ran. “If we have time, we warn them, and set up defenses.”
“And if we’re late?”
“Hopefully, that is not the case,” he said.
“Well, have you thought of it?” Ezmerelda asked.
“We fight. And if we are later than that, we bury.”
“We bury?” she asked with her eyebrows upturned, and grim expression on her face.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
SINCE his training session with Zelestiana, Zaan felt good about the day. The sun was warm and the air was crisp in Barrier Cliff. The view was clear; one side the Rion rolled off into the horizon, and on the other the snowy peaks of the Cascades reached to the heavens. Below, the green, lush forests swayed with the refreshing gusts of warm wind. He smiled as he stood and watched, taking in the beauty. Only a few months back, he had escaped from the darkness of the Black Cave, and stood, on the high walls of an ancient fortress with his friends. He felt the letter from his mother in his pocket.
He had gone to see Elindrill at his normal time, and she had left a note saying that she had an urgent matter she needed to attend. So Zaan had the afternoon to dally around and enjoy the sunshine. In a few hours, he would have his scheduled appointment with the Major, but until then, he decided to go sit on the beach and enjoy the day.
Zaan walked down the market on his way out of the city. He gathered up a fresh loaf of bread loaded with whole grains and warm olives. He purchased a small flask of olive oil, and traded half the bread for a golden melon. He placed his lunch in his bag and made his way down the winding trails of the city, and found himself at the front gate of Barrier Cliff. Just as he approached, the soldiers were closing the giant, steel doors. Zaan stopped and was puzzled. That’s strange.
He stepped closer, “What’s going on, why shut the doors before twilight?”
“Orders,” one of the soldiers called out.
The other soldier called out from the other side. “If you want to get out, you need to use this door.” He pointed over to a small door to the side of the gate.
Zaan walked over to the soldier. “It’s an unusual time to be closing the gate. Do you know why they are ordering you to shut them?”
“They never tell us anything,” the soldier said. “Usually, when we are ordered to close the gate this time of day, it’s just an exercise.”
Zaan looked up into the clear sky and saw nary a single cloud. “How does this door work?”
“It’s concealed into the wall on the other side,” the soldier said and reached around and put his finger on an unremarkable stone the size of a marble. “Push and twist,” he said as the small door cocked open, “and don’t let anyone see you, Zaan.”
“Push and twist, got it,” Zaan said as he walked out the side door to the entrance of the old fortress of Barrier Cliff. He carried his food in one hand, and the Tiger’s head hilt of the slaver’s sword under the other. On the rocky dirt path, he continued down the trail and stepped off into the short grass to his left and continued down to the sandy shore of the Rion Sea.
Once foot hit sand, he pulled his pack down from his back and laid out a cloth on the warm sand. His feet began to burn in the heat of it, and he quickly jumped up onto the blanket. He sat and brushed the undersides of his feet off, wiping the fine dust off into the breeze.
Laying back, he squinted to look up into the blue sky, Zaan had to cover the direct sunlight with the palms of both hands. Keeping his eyes open only just enough to catch the enchanting blue of the sky, he struggled to stay awake. He shrugged the drowsiness off and sat up. He lay out his meal in front of him. There lay his fresh bread, with the light flask of olive oil and an aromatically-sweet melon.
Looking up and around the skyline, he could count the clouds in the sky on one hand. He ate casually— he delicately poured the olive oil in droplets onto the bread. When it dripped onto his hand, he would lick up the juices. He cut the melon with the edge of his sword carefully and ate it as if he were famished. He placed the seeds in a pile next to where he sat. The sweet smell of them wafted in the warm air.
After he ate, he stood up and brushed off some grains of sand that had landed on his lap. He walked in easy strides towards the water, but then ran faster as the heat of the sand built up quickly on the bottoms of his feet. Running in large strides, he rushed into the cool, salty water, instantly relieving any pain he felt. He rolled up the legs of his pants, and stepped further into the water.
Zaan stood there for a few minutes, breathing in the warm air and looked back up at the high walls of his new home, Barrier Cliff. Looking down, he saw the water washing back behind him and out to sea, and he could feel the sand rushing back through his toes. Quickly his shins, and then ankles showed, and he looked out to the sea. His eyes widened as he saw a wave approaching, with thick, dark clouds above. Not only was the wave approaching quickly but it was gaining in size. He began to run back towards the shoreline, worry set in as shadow rushed past him. He noticed he was walking in wet sand, and the sea water had receded back many meters behind him. Zaan felt a sense of panic as he saw the lightning, and felt the thunder boom overhead. He began running as fast as he could towards the city. Lightning struck again in the distance behind him and the crack of thunder echoed loudly around him.
He looked back over his shoulder and saw the great wave approaching, he was running as fast as his long legs could carry him, until, droplets fell onto his head. The wave was upon him. He thought about calling on his Azulūz, but there wasn’t the time. What could it do against the force of water?
He felt his feet lift up from underneath him, and he was soon at the mercy of the giant wave. He looked up above him and the lip of it surged in front of him. Soon, he was lifted up off the sandy shore by many feet and fell back into the salty water of the sea. He s
truggled to take one last giant breath before he was completely submerged.
Moving at incredible speed, he flew back out into the ocean, at a depth he did not know. Using all of his strength to kick and swim towards the only light he saw, he assumed it was sunlight, although he did not know which direction was up. His lungs began to burn, and he knew he needed to find air soon. He kicked as hard as he could, and pushed his arms harder in front of him.
After minutes of fighting and clawing for new air, he breached the surface. He let out most of the air in his lungs in a mighty burst and drew the salty air into his lungs. Breathing heavily, and trying to regain his senses, he looked out and saw he had been drawn out to sea. He began his swim back towards the direction of Barrier Cliff. It was laborious work, and he struggled to remain calm as more giant waves came up from behind him. The water itself made it difficult to breath, as his heart raced from the freezing water. Lightning lit the sky and the thunder was deafening.
He clawed his way towards the shoreline, desperate and frantic, to make it to dry land. After what felt like an hour of he could see it in the near distance. He pushed with all his might, until he felt the brush of wet sand under his feet. He skipped ahead and ran up towards the dry sand, with water up to his chest, then his waist, then his ankles again. Zaan stood up on the sandy shore, and placed his hands upon his knees and breathed in heavily.
Standing up, he looked out onto the Rion and saw the giant waves were reaching high peaks in the distance. He had never seen the Aterax on the sea before, it was every bit as temperamental and devastating as he had heard. He watched as the thick, black clouds began to scatter to sparse, grey ribbons. Not seeing any of his belongings on the sand, he quickly clutched at his father’s compass which still hung out his neck, he breathed a sigh of relief.
He walked over to where his belongings had been, his shoes and the blanket were blown into the ocean. In the bright sun’s reflection off of the sand, he caught a bright sparkle. Reaching down, he brushed away a coating of sand to reveal a reflective, silver metal. He slipped his hand slowly into the sand to grasp the hilt of his Slaver’s sword with the tiger’s head.
CHAPTER THIRTY
“PUSH and twist,” he said, as he pressed the hidden button to allow him back within the walls of Barrier Cliff. The doorway was small, as Zaan had to duck down to almost his waist height to squeeze through. He emerged on the other side and stood, barefoot and wet.
“Go for a swim, did ya?” The soldier laughed. “That storm came out of nowhere, huh?”
“Yes it did,” Zaan said as he walked past, back up one of the winding staircases, with the glossy black stones. He wanted to get back to wash up and get the salt water off his sword before meeting with the Major. It appeared that the Aterax came and went so quickly no one seemed concerned by it, although it almost drowned him.
He showered quickly in cold water down in the bathing room before heading up to his room to clean his sword, change into fresh clothes, and get into his spare pair of boots.
Walking back down towards the entrance to the city, and the office of the Major, Zaan stared up at the sky. It was still completely clear of clouds and had an angelic hue of blue. He shrugged his shoulders and continued walking at a quick pace. Once he got close to the door to the office of the Major, he noticed a note pinned to it. He leaned in closer to read it, scribbled in vaguely legible writing was a note that said simply: class canceled.
Zaan stood there a few moments, not knowing what to do with himself. He assumed Gar had either come and gone, or was running late to class and wouldn’t be there for a while still. He knew Gogenanth was still out in the world somewhere, so he figured he would go see what Astor was doing.
Running at a brisk pace he ran up the winding pathways, almost running into an older woman carrying linens. He quickly dodged her as she appeared around a corner, but it indeed startled the old woman. He apologized and continued on. Once he arrived at the humble residence of his friend, he knocked a few times, with no answer. He knocked a few more times, still with no answer. What the hell is going on? Where is everyone?
He turned and sat on the stairs in front of Astor’s home, and thought of what to do. He could go seek out Zelestiana or Tilda. He certainly would not interrupt Mäezer Palanzal, who probably would just want to fiddle with the red stone for another hour. They must be having a meeting. He couldn’t shake the uneasiness he felt about what happened to him at the sea, but he figured he did have the rest of the day off now.
Well, what do you do with yourself now, Zaan?
***
Sitting in the courtyard at the base of the great statue of Gildur, Zaan sat, looking up at the monumental portrayal of his deceased friend. His mind wandered back to the time he strolled into Gildur’s armory back in Auracity, and Gildur sized him up. Zaan wouldn’t admit it then, but now he would say he was quite scared of him at first. The scars on his chest and down his arms, his wiry beard and the rough tone in his voice. He had never met a man like that, someone who could reflect the thrust of a sword, or seemingly catch the flail of a mace in his bare hands. He could breathe fire, and spit it out.
Zaan sat there, snapping sticks in his fingers. He glanced at the other groups of people in the courtyard. A mother played with her young boy, she sat as he ran in circles around her. A young couple sat at another bench, closely, and spoke and laughed softly. An elderly man sat with another, they seldom talked, glancing around, and fed seagulls.
Then he saw it, coming out the corner of his eyes, a subtle glimmer. Not the light of the sun, but a more delicate, flowing gold. Lily came up from the ascending stair to the right. She came slowly strolling over, she carried two heavy books, and wore a soft, pearl-colored linen shirt that draped just below her collarbone, and a tanned skirt that danced at her knees. She gave a quick smile and walked over to Zaan. As she approached, Zaan had that feeling of his heart up in his throat again, he smiled back.
“How you doing today?” Zaan asked.
“Mind if I sit?” she asked.
“Of course,” he said and scooted over slightly, making room for her on the bench made of white, aged driftwood. She sat and lay her two books on the bench between them.
“Strange day today,” Lily said. She pushed her curly hair back behind her ears. A single hair flew from her head and landed on Zaan’s face. It tickled and he reached up to grab it. He held it out in the breeze, and left it float off a bustle of wind, that blew in from the north.
“Indeed, it’s an unusual day. Did your class get canceled too?” Zaan asked.
“No, your classes were canceled?” she asked.
“Yeah, two of them. That never happens.”
“Lucky. No, I had class,” she said, looking up at the statue of Gildur. “It was a good class though.”
“Oh yeah, what did you do?” he asked.
“Tilda taught me some breathing techniques and we did some archery,” she said, smiling. He could tell by the gleam in her eyes, she enjoyed archery.
“She is incredible with a bow and crossbow. I’m sure you’ll be great too,” he said, still snapping twigs in his hands. “So, why do you think it’s a strange day?”
“Oh, it’s just, I got a weird feeling in my stomach. It feels like I have this voice in my heart telling me something . . . It’s probably nothing, but things just seem, a little . . . different.”
“That’s a good way of putting it. I just about drowned down on the shore earlier,” he said.
She put her hand to her mouth, and then reached out and put a hand on his arm. “Oh my god, are you okay? What’s wrong with you? You almost drowned?”
“Really, I’m fine. It was a bit worrisome in the moment. I’ve never seen the Rion or the Aterax act like that— that intense, that quickly.” He looked at her. “A strange day, that’s for sure.”
They both sat there in silence for a few brief moments.
“Hey, I was on my way up to the north cliffs to read.�
�� She picked up her books, put them squarely on her lap, and gave a big grin. “You want to come with me?”
***
Far beneath the high peaks of the snow-capped Cascade Mountains, there ran a group of four through a passageway made centuries prior that was illuminated by an unnatural force of golden lights on white stone walls. A shimmer glowed up ahead in the tunnel and Gogenanth saw their reflections running briskly.
“That’s it! The end of the White Passage,” Gogenanth said, with fatigued breath. “Hurry, we have to move!”
“Good. We can’t keep up this pace much longer. Yule’s having a tough go of it, keeping up,” Wollen said.
“Keep pushing! And be ready,” Gogenanth yelled back to the party. “There is no telling what we may find on the other side.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
THEIR walk up the north cliff was peaceful and quiet. They strode confidently next to each other. Their legs moved in unison as they ascended slowly up the curving stairs until they reached the highest peak of Barrier Cliff, aside from the three towers overhead. As they climbed the final stair, Lily’s arm brushed up against Zaan’s, he didn’t move away.
“So what are you going to read me?” Zaan asked, as they both sat on the waist-high walls of the north cliffs. Finally, time with her, alone. To their backs was an amazing drop to the forest floor. A strong gust of wind from the north hit their backs. “Whoa, windy today.” He put a hand on her back to steady her, “You okay?”
“Yeah,” Lily said, brushing hair out of her eyes. “Well, let’s see, what do we have here.” She pulled the first book up in front of Zaan. “First, we have, The Elderberry’s Foil and Footprint.” She held in a laugh.
