As Evelyn thinks back at her mother, grandmother, and even great-grandmother, she thinks about the long lineage of ‘Mothers’, and their great accomplishments. What will she be remembered for? For starters, she was the first ‘Mother’ to give birth to a future King, and her youngest became the Captain of the Kain’s Guard, and could possibly be King himself one day. Her husband came from an ancient and extremely wealthy House, and she is still the wealthiest woman in all of Kain. But what has she done to ensure that the legacy of the ‘Mother’ would live on? After her husband, father to Daane and Ayden, died, she couldn’t bring herself to remarry, and she is now too old to bare children. All these thoughts constantly dwell on her, but now was not the time to do so.
She walked into the long stable row as all thoughts left her mind. Passing each stall, she unlocked the doors. One by one, the stabled Trueborns walked into the shed row as they followed their ‘Mother.’ As she walked down, she started to sing a song. All around her was silent, except for her voice and the faint hoof beats behind as she sang the song that every ‘Mother’ sang to the horses as newborns. Though these horses are full grown, they still remember the soft melody. Evelyn led them out of the stables and into an open field to the east. Once there, she turned around and stood still. All the horses that followed her came to stop in a half-circle in front of her. They then bowed to one knee as a sign of respect. Evelyn gazed upon each one. Cheyanne approached from behind her as their eyes started to illuminate in the legendary blue light. Cheyanne’s eyes shined white as she bowed back. The dance then began. Using specific motions, Evelyn directed the horses as they loped in a circle, alternating directions. The understanding between the horses and their ‘Mother’ was like no other humanly bond among the creatures of Kranos.
After a few minutes of dance, Evelyn motioned for the horses to stop as she spoke, “My children, gather around. Soon your masters will be arriving to the city to reunite with you. You will be riding to war, and must be brave for your masters. Do not fail them in their time of need. Prove to the rest of the world that the Kain and the Trueborns will not be so easily conquered. Raise your heads to our Lord Kaidian, and show your devotion and trust.”
As she said this, all the young Trueborns raised their heads to the sky. Cheyanne also looked up. She wasn’t just raising her head to Kaidian, who blessed her with her powers, but also to her master, and friend, Kale. Although the White Mare wasn’t able to speak her feelings, you could see it in her eyes. Every tear that fell through the mare’s lower eyelashes yelled the words that she was unable to speak. The company of horses and the ‘Mother’ stared into the sky while Evelyn led them in a silent prayer. The following day, she would prepare for their departure to the capital.
As morning arrived, the slivers of light streaming off the slowly rising sun pierced through the many stone buildings within the city of Riverton. There was not a sound to be heard within the city walls. The ‘Mother’ was the first to rise as she summoned her scribes. She instructed them to start writing parcels to the masters of the stabled Trueborns. The parcel spoke of the war in the north, and the command of the King to summon every able-bodied man to the city of Riverton to march on the capital. After the parcels were all written and addressed, the ‘Mother’ and the scribes traveled to the Aviary outside the city to the east, near the stables. The Aviary held hundreds of black-tailed hawks, the most of any Aviary. The hawks of the southern forest were faster and more precise in their flight than any other messenger bird. Pieces of parchment were tied to each one of their legs. As each one was tied, the ‘Mother’ would whisper in the bird’s ear their course. After each hawk received their destination, Evelyn opened the large iron gate and released the many hawks into the sky. They flew in a blackish brown cloud out of the Aviary. As they exited, the birds separated to the direction of their errand, thus beginning the Mustering.
CHAPTER 12
AN ACT OF TREASON
Many dark dreams filled the unconscious mind of the young Drykan lost in the woods. He saw the image of his father over and over, telling him to be strong. They flashed to leaving the comfort of his village by the ocean, and flying to the defeated capital of the Kain. He didn’t want to leave his drake he named Finn. He named him that because of the large flap the drake has on his neck that reminds him of a fin. He rewound the image of seeing the undead Drykan soldiers roaming the bloodstained streets of the city. Then, his dreams grew even more dark as the image of his mother appeared several times, filled with disappointment and sadness. Briev was only five years old when she died, so the image of her was hazy and indistinguishable, but he knew her nonetheless. He knew deep in his heart that she wouldn’t have approved of his father’s decision to go to war, even though they were forced. He sees the high General Calthrog talking to his father within the Kain’s throne room, telling him of a task that they must complete before they could return home. Then, back on Finn, flying away from the capital in search of the Prince of Kain and his young love. Suddenly, the Keeper of the Staff arrives, bathed in power and authority. Finally, the image saved for last, was that of his father and siblings being captured by the winged man and his warriors. Everything after that was like a fog-covered swamp, dreary and damp. Was this it? Is this how he was to spend eternity? Repeating the final weeks of his young life, over and over? But then, there came a sensation that the Drykan teen did not expect… the wet slime of a tongue on his cheek. As his dreary eyes began to wake and take in splinters of fractured light, the cringing feeling on his face became more present with each lick. He felt his head turn as his eyes tried to focus. Once the blurred and fuzzy image allowed itself to sharpen, he saw the panting smile of a dog standing over him. Just then, his entire body and mind awoke. As his newly rejuvenated body tried to quickly shuffle backwards, he realized that his hands and feet were bound. He pushed with his feet as a coarse blanket fell off his unclothed shoulders. As he looked down, he also noticed that he wasn’t wearing any shoes, yet he did not feel cold. He pushed back as far as he could until he hit the base of a large tree. The dog just continued to smile and pant as her tail eagerly wagged with excitement.
“About time you woke up,” said a woman, stoking the well-lit fire, “I was getting ready to just leave you.”
The sight of the woman startled Briev, for she clearly belonged to the Kain. He doesn’t remember being captured by her, or losing his shirt and shoes. The last thing he remembers was his father having a cloth bag placed over his head, and then being dragged away by the winged man.
Briev struggled to control his exasperated emotions, for he has been in this situation before. He has woken from a prolonged lapse in memory many times, and knew how to act. He quickly calculated the many scenarios that could have taken place, and acted accordingly. First, find out who she was, and why she has taken him captive. Be smart and collective… ask the right questions in the right manner.
“Whh… who are you?” asked Briev in a shaking, yet forcefully controlled voice. “What do you want with me? Why have… yyy… you… why am I tied up? Who are you?”
The woman, who’s stoic face softened in response to the teen’s obvious fear, replied in a stern, yet caring voice, “I didn’t take you captive, I saved your life. My name is not important, so for now, you can call me Huntress.” She revealed a subtle smirk as she added, “I’ve always wanted to be called that.”
As he looked at his bare chest, he asked, “Where are my clothes, aa… and my things?”
The woman walked and knelt down as she replied, “You really don’t remember?”
Feeling embarrassed and ashamed, Briev said, “No. Last thing I remember is seeing my family taken away by the winged man.”
“Winged man?” asked the woman, becoming more intrigued. “Do you mean one of the Angels of Ela?”
Suddenly realizing that the winged man was indeed an Angel, Briev replied, “Yes… I guess so. They took my family. I was able to escape, then… then I got… confused.”
“What do
you mean, confused?” asked the woman.
Brie’s face grew sour as he said, “It doesn’t matter. I need to find them! They need my help!”
The woman stood up as she replied, “Well, I’m sorry, but I did not sign on to a rescue mission when I saved your life. I am heading west to get as far away from this war as I can. You can… and I can’t believe I am even saying this, but… you can come with me if you would like.”
Tears began to well in the boy’s eyes as he quietly said, “I… I have to find my family.”
Annoyed, the woman then took out her knife as she bent down and grabbed the boy’s hands. Startled, Briev tried to shuffle backwards, but was stopped by the tree behind him.
“Relax,” said the woman as she began to cut the rope around his shaking hands, “if you want to go and get yourself killed, be my guest! I didn’t want your burden anyways!”
After she cut his feet loose, she called out, “Come on Cami, let’s go!”
She grabbed her pack and started to walk away from the Drykan teen. Noticing that her dog was not coming, she turned around. The teen pulled his legs up against his chest and wrapped his arms around them as he desperately tried to keep his tears from falling. Cami, her dog, laid down next to him and started to whine.
“Cami, I’m not going to tell you again, if he wants to go, let him! Now, come on!”
The dog wouldn’t budge, as if she was sworn to protect the Drykan teen.
“Ugh! I don’t have time for this!” said the woman as she rushed over to force her dog to obey.
As she got close to the teen, Briev didn’t cower, or show any signs of fear, only profound sadness. Cami continued to whine as she moved closer to the teen. He looked defeated, ready to give up, but refused to leave. She could see in his moisture-filled eyes that he would rather die than abandon his family. She could also see that he knew that he was helpless, for he didn’t know the way. She now had the choice of leaving him to die with his prideful sorrow, or help him find his family. She knew that winter was coming, and she didn’t have time to travel to Riverton, which was most likely where they would’ve taken the captured Drykans. Her dog has never showed this much affection to someone other than her, and that spoke volumes. Although she couldn’t explain why, she trusted Cami’s judgement, and knew that this meeting wasn’t just by chance… she was supposed to help this Drykan, by reasons she doesn’t yet know.
“Look,” said the woman, now knelt down in front of the emotional Drykan, “the only reason you are still alive is because of this dog, and the only reason I am about to do what I am about to do, is because of THIS dog!” Briev looked up and into the woman’s eyes as she continued, “We only have a week or so before it starts to snow, and I don’t want to be stranded in the Karn Mountains when it does. If I am going to help you find your family, or least find out what happened to them, you CANNOT slow me down, you understand?!”
Briev wiped his eyes as a smile grew on his tired face, and shook his head yes.
“I will lead you to Riverton and ask if any Drykans were recently captured, but I can’t do any more than that, for I don’t have the power to have them released if they were. Do you understand Drykan?”
“Yes,” softly replied the teen, “my name’s Briev, by the way.”
Still trying to justify her actions in helping the Drykan, the woman replied, “Well, I guess it’s nice to know your name, Briev. Now, come on, we need to find you some shoes and clothes, or you’ll freeze to death. It’s a two-day journey to Riverton from here, and we should leave right away.”
As the woman stood up and turned to gather her pack, Briev said, “Thh… thank you, Huntress, I never expected you to help me. It means more than you know.” The woman said nothing as Briev added, “Is there any way I can know your real name? That is, seeing how we will be spending more time together.”
The woman froze in her preparations with her back turned to the teen. There was a moment of silence between them as she decided what to say. Strangely, she felt like she could trust the boy, even though his race was trying to eliminate hers.
She finally turned around, and said, “My name… my name is Anabel.”
Back in Riverton, the Captain of the Kain’s Guard is slowly awakening from his deep slumber after a night of passion with the Keeper of the Bow. Ayden owned two homes, one in Menethiel, and one in Riverton. Though it is small and modest, it suits his simple needs. As he reaches to his right, searching for his new love, he was only met with empty sheets. As he blinks his tired eyes open, he searches the room, but she was not there. Although he wanted nothing more than to get dressed and find her, he knew that she was a woman of her own, and she clearly needed space, for her feelings towards the mortal Captain were new and confusing to her. Instead, Ayden just laid back, rewinding the previous night over and over. After he met with his mother Evelyn, Ayden did what he said he was going to do, and found the Keeper. He tried to console her on Kale’s death, but instead, she insisted that they go to his house. Once there, she barely spoke a word as she ripped his clothes off before they were even through the door. Ayden, surprisingly, tried to slow her down and talk, but she had no interest in talking. She covered his mouth with her hand as soft tears begged him to say no more. Accepting her wish, Ayden gently took her by the shaking hand, and walked her to his room. Not another word was spoken as they made love well into the night.
Overlooking the majestic falls crashing through the encased City on the River, stands the Keeper of the Bow at the center of one of the many stone bridges. Her hands rest on the cold stone as she listens to the thrashing waters of the Andwail. Her curly brown hair flows in a soft breeze.
After a moment of silence, she quietly says, “I couldn’t save you, for I did not know you needed saving. Even if you were, you would never tell me. That’s just how you were. Fearless, and unnerved. Why didn’t you seek my help? Why didn’t you reach out? You did not have to do this alone… I would’ve died with you. Instead, I am here, and you are not.” Soft tears began to well in her eyes as she continued with choked words, “I don’t know what to do without you. You have always been there, from the very beginning. You always had the right answers, even if they weren’t. All I can do now is hope… hope that we survive this… hope that one day, we might see each other again, wherever you are.”
She then held up her hand as a mystical blue rose formed. She twirled the magical flower in her hand before gently tossing it in the river below as she said, “Goodbye… my love.”
“I’m sure he heard you, wherever he is,” suddenly came a woman’s voice from behind her.
Alandra quickly turned around to see Kalorah standing there, with a caring and empathetic smile on her face.
Not knowing what to say, Alandra looked the Angel up and down and asked, “Do you ever wear anything other than white?”
Slightly stunned, Kalorah laughed as she replied, “Well, I wouldn’t be called the White Queen if I did, now would I?”
Realizing that her question was inappropriate, Alandra said, “Sorry, I don’t know why I said that.” She paused for a moment before she asked, “How much of that did you hear?”
Kalorah once again smiled as she replied, “Enough.”
“It doesn’t matter, it was a long time ago,” said Alandra as she turned back towards the falls.
Kalorah walked up to the railing next to Alandra and looked at the falls with her.
Alandra then continued, “I never got the chance to thank you and your people for coming to Riverton. It means a great deal to us that you have decided to help overthrow the Generals. I know it couldn’t have been an easy decision to make.”
Kalorah replied, “It was a lot easier after the Shade destroyed my throne.”
Alandra turned to face the Angel with a look of sadness on her face, “The Golden Oak? I… I didn’t know. I am sorry.”
Kalorah turned towards Alandra and said, “I am not. If that is what it took to finally unite our two great peoples, then it had to h
appen. Too long have we ignored the rest of the world, and lived in seclusion in the safety of our forests. They are now, however, no longer safe. Nothing is until this evil is stopped.”
“How do you propose we do that?” asked Alandra. “If the Shade Lord killed Kale, what hope is there for us?”
Kalorah put her arm on Alandra’s shoulder as she replied, “Don’t worry about the Shade, for Teeca will make sure that he is banished from this world for good. I have no doubt that she will be able to convince the Jailors to aid us, for only she can. She is the oldest and wisest Angel from Aya, and the Jailors WILL listen to her, I know it.”
Alandra said with worry in her eyes, “I hope you are right, for the sake of us all.”
Kalorah continued, “We need to focus on the task at hand… reclaiming Menethiel. I may not know you as well as I should, great Huntress, but I know that together, we will be an unstoppable force. The Generals don’t stand a chance if we are united!”
Alandra forced a smile, but worry still crept into her heart. She can’t stop thinking about Kale and how he was unable to stop the Shade’s power. All she can do now is hope and pray that Teeca will be able to do what she set out to, and that the White Queen is justified in her worriless confidence. The last thing on her worried mind was the Captain, and his growing affection towards her. Was she subconsciously using him, or were her feelings genuine? She will need to decide soon, before she breaks his heart, but that can wait until the capital is reclaimed for the Kain.
The Reclaiming: The Keepers Saga: Volume Two Page 20
