by B. T. Narro
Because the akorell absorbs it, he realized. He could see from here that the glow to the metal where he’d poured the substance faded as quickly as a smothered lamp. Soon there was only a little light left, like a single ember of a once lively fire. Desil wondered whether this meant he needed to pour more of the melting substance for it to work.
He went back and poured a tiny amount, crouching low so as not to splash and holding his breath so he wouldn’t pass out. He could see the other members of his party taking the same precautions, covering their faces with their shirts and looking away.
The last glow at the corner faded, leaving only the unlit akorell metal that Desil clearly saw from the light around it. It was as smooth as the flat end of a steel sword, glistening wet. He didn’t know why it seemed to form in this manner, while the rest of the rock around it was somewhat uneven, but it made the process of melting it easier as he poured more of the substance onto the surrounding akorell.
He continued to watch the Marros as he poured and moved away, repeating the process a few dozen times. The creatures never stirred.
A little later, Desil heard something from behind that startled him. A Marro tumbled down the rocky hillside. Desil waited for it to wake up and see them, but its only movement was a slight lift of its long neck to settle its head back onto its body. It rested there rather than trying to make its way back up.
Hopefully that meant it would be hours more before any of them were strong enough to fight. Would it be wise to take this opportunity to kill them?
No, as much as Desil feared the creatures, he felt no anger toward them anymore. Even though his father’s death was somewhat their fault, he had none of the fury that would be necessary to kill so many. There just wasn’t room in his heart for such animosity.
If they attacked, though, it would be different.
It only took a few more minutes to pour enough of the melting substance to completely cover his designated section of akorell. Soon nearly all the metal of the large field was as dark as the rest of the ground. Desil and the others gathered around Basen on the other side of the field, away from the Marros and far enough from the melting substance not to smell it. It was another ten yards before the drop behind them, which Desil walked over to investigate. He had some difficulty seeing exactly what was there, but it looked to be a long, mostly vertical slope of the mountainside they stood upon that reached all the way to water a long ways below.
He came back and described what he saw.
Basen said, “We should know if the potion’s working within an hour. The akorell will appear soft and start to spread out. We should be able to risk a tiny amount of light to check later. For now, we wait.”
“Who was supposed to melt that akorell?” Adriya pointed at the strip of glowing white across the ground at the farthest end from them, between where Basen and Desil had worked.
“No one,” Basen said. “I figured we should leave some illumination so we could better watch the Marros. And if they do wake up early, they might be drawn to it rather than us, giving us a better chance of escape.”
Leida asked her father, “Do you think they can see us here?”
“I don’t. If I remember accurately what Desil’s father told me, they never hunt during the night, most likely because their eyesight is at least as poor as ours in the dark. Hopefully much, much worse.”
Desil had another fear in addition to the Marros. “What is our plan to obtain the eppil plant we need?” he asked Basen.
“It’s unlikely for us to find any in Ovira. The Slugari destroy any eppil vines they come across, though that may change depending on the Elves.”
“Why?”
“What do you know about these current Elves?”
Years ago, Desil’s parents took him on a long trip to the Elven home on this continent, in Merejic. Like humans, the Elves came here from Greenedge, the much larger of the two continents, a couple hundred years ago. Desil believed his father had told him this, but he couldn’t recall exact dates. It wasn’t that long ago that Krepps invaded the Elves’ home and forced them to flee in ships back to Greenedge. In a rare twist of fate, two Slugari had led this army of Krepps against the Elves.
Normally the slug-like creatures feared the Krepps because of the lizard creatures’ taste for Slugari flesh, but these two had feasted on eppil vines for years.
Toxic to humans, the eppil vines had a different reaction in a Slugari’s body. The creatures were known to grow to be five feet long normally but never grew to be taller than a few feet. However, the two Slugari that led the Krepps were gargantuan, taller than Krepps and three times the length of a normal Slugari. Those creatures always had a strong grasp over bastial energy, but these two became more powerful than even the strongest human mages.
Desil couldn’t quite recall the reasoning behind the invasion of Merejic, but he believed it had something to do with the Slugari wanting to use the Elvish psychics. There had never been any psychics among the Krepps, who had no control over bastial energy, a necessary skill for a psychic.
“I know some of the old Elvish history, but not much about the Elves who came back to Ovira after they were forced away. Were any of them alive during the attack on their home, or were these younger generations?”
“Some were alive at the time, but many are the offspring of those who survived the attack. They despise Krepps. The Elven leader, Fatholl, especially hates the savage creatures.” Basen paused to glance away. “He and I don’t agree. Never have. Unfortunately, the Slugari favor the Elves over the humans these days because the Slugari queen agrees with Fatholl’s attitude toward Krepps. Both of them want to rid Ovira of Krepps. I believe the queen and Fatholl share an alliance. If not, they are at least in contact.”
“So that’s why the Slugari will help the Elves locate eppil vines, but they won’t help us,” Desil realized.
“I believe so, if there are any eppil vines still growing somewhere on this continent. But even if they’ve all been destroyed, they find ways to grow again. The Slugari know better where to look than we do, though. It’s unlikely we’ll find any unless they happen to grow close to human civilization, where Slugari have fled.”
“What does Fatholl mean to do with an explosion?” Desil asked. The last thing he wanted was to worry about the Elves on top of Jimmin Rofters, Allephon Estlander, and Micklin and Erwal, but it didn’t seem as if Desil had a choice.
Basen shook his head. “I doubt he’ll use it on humans, but even that might be a possibility. I think it’s more for protection. He believes humans will eventually come for his land. It might not be in this century or the next, but he seems confident it will happen eventually. He’s overprotective of his people, a commonality between Elves that I hope you never have to discover firsthand…” Basen cut himself off as he glanced toward Adriya. “I hope you know I don’t mean you or your mother when I speak of these Elves.”
“I know,” Adriya said. “My mother doesn’t trust Fatholl, either, even if she is half Elf.”
“Because she’s smart. I haven’t heard anything about your uncle in some time. Do you know if Vithos is going to spend the rest of his life living with them in Merejic?”
Desil had heard the name Vithos from his mother’s stories. He was Reela’s half-brother, a full Elf, though he had always sided with Reela and the humans during the small disputes between the races throughout the years. Desil didn’t know he’d been living with the Elves or for how long.
“She hasn’t spoken to him in years,” Adriya answered. “She became too busy with the Wind Knights to travel to Merejic.”
Too busy even to visit the tavern, which is a hundred times closer than Merejic.
“I think she’s disappointed he hasn’t come to the Academy in that time,” Adriya continued. “I’m not sure if we can rely on him to help us if anything happens with Fatholl.”
“I asked for him when I went to Merejic, before leaving for Kanoan,” Basen said. “Fatholl wouldn’t allow him to come
with me and my wife, sending Rhy instead. Perhaps that means he doesn’t trust Vithos completely, which would be a good sign for us that we might have an ally among them in case we need one.” The headmaster turned up his palm toward Desil. “My point in all of this is that the eppil plant will be too hard for us to find here, so we will have to go elsewhere.”
“I hope you’re not referring to Kanoan,” Desil said.
“No.”
A dajrik roared. It sounded akin to a deep-voiced human, only with more base and power than any human throat could muster. A few in Desil’s party cursed. Other dajriks replied with shouts that sounded to be laden with anger or annoyance. The commotion was loud, but far.
Desil watched the Marros. He could see little more than slight movement, but at least there was no flap of their wings. Their outlines made them look like little more than bushes swaying in the wind.
The dajriks calmed, their voices dying out until there was no sound left. Desil had to admit he understood next to nothing about these creatures. He did know they’d lived for thousands of years, eventually going mad, but was that roar from one verging on insanity, or was it a simple reaction to an unpleasant dream? Was it possible they cared what happened to this akorell metal? One thing was for sure. They didn’t appreciate humans near their home. They’d made this clear by chasing Desil and the others out of their territory with intentions to kill.
The akorell began to fizzle and bubble, like a pot of boiling water above a high flame. Everyone stared silently ahead as fumes of alcohol filled Desil’s nose.
Adriya was the only one who didn’t step farther away as she looked at her hands.
“I think there was a hole in my glove. I feel my finger burning, and it won’t seem to stop.” She took off her glove and wiped her finger across her pants.
Basen took her by the wrist and sniffed her hand. “Hold it out.”
She did, and he rinsed it with water, then dried it with the bottom of his shirt. He smelled it again.
“Better?”
“Yes, thank you.”
Desil smelled his gloves and regretted taking a big whiff. He made a mental note not to touch his skin or anywhere near his face while he wore the gloves.
They waited for what felt to be an hour, catching small whiffs of the fumes. Eventually the akorell stopped fizzling. It seemed to be time to begin.
Holding one of the empty collecting bottles from his bag, Basen walked to the edge of what was once a bright field of glowing akorell. Desil could hear him sniffing the air.
“Still strong.” Basen coughed. He tried to collect the akorell in front of his feet, but he didn’t rise for some time. The rest of the party came to his sides for a look.
“It’s not quite liquid yet,” Basen said as he held up his bottle. “But I managed to capture a chunk of it.” There was no more than an inch of the partially melted metal at the bottom, little pieces sticking to the sides of the bottle. “We’d better wait longer and hope it becomes more like liquid, or getting all of it will take longer than we have.”
It wouldn’t be an issue if we didn’t have to worry about the Marros.
They returned to their spot near the cliff to wait some more. Desil listened to Leida and Adriya speak about how they missed the Academy. Adriya would’ve liked to have spent time with her parents outside of Tenred, even if it was brief. Kirnich asked Basen several questions that showed the warrior was nervous. He wanted to ensure that Basen thought this would work. The headmaster was certain it would. Kirnich wondered how long it would take. No more than another hour. Kirnich asked how many akorell stones the headmaster had brought for portals. He only had two because there hadn’t been time to set the akorell metal they’d gotten from these mountains into a bracelet that could protect him from the metal’s heat.
Desil eventually asked Beatrix what would happen if her brother managed to find enough akorell and eppil to make his own explosive. When she didn’t respond, Desil prodded, “Would he use it on Tenred’s wall?”
“Without a doubt,” the princess replied. “The only thing that might stop him from using everything in his army’s arsenal against Tenred is if there’s a chance his troops would disband or turn against him. I always figured the Wind Knights had enough power to cause such a revolt, but now I’m not so sure. I think they would’ve already if they could.”
“They aren’t powerful enough for that,” Desil told her with disappointment. “I spoke to Adriya’s mother about it before the meeting between your brother and Hawthen. They do not have as many numbers as most believe. I assumed your father knew this?”
“He probably did. We didn’t speak much about them.” Beatrix’s voice quieted. “We didn’t speak much about anything other than myself.”
“Because he enjoyed that topic,” Kirnich said. “You don’t recall him indulging Allephon the same way, do you?”
“I don’t, but I wish I had focused more of my time on him.”
“It wasn’t a waste of his time like you imply,” Kirnich insisted.
She glanced up at him. “Do you know this as fact?”
“I know what I saw between the two of you. He regarded you as the son he was supposed to have.”
“You weren’t that close with him. You don’t know.” Although she argued, she lacked conviction, as if hoping to be wrong.
“I was close enough to tell. Why else would he trust you to rule Tenred?”
“Now how do you know that?”
“You told me while you were on caregelow, in the brief moments you were awake. I had asked you why Allephon would go along with the plan to poison your father, and you told me Allephon was jealous. He probably also figured he could take control of the army while your father was sick, proving his capability to lead. You don’t remember this?”
“I thought it was a dream. We…” She paused. “Did I…?”
“Yes, but that’s not important right now.”
Beatrix put her hand over her mouth, her gloved hand. She wheezed and coughed. Kirnich put his hand on her back.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
She nodded as she coughed.
What had they done in the bedroom while Desil was asleep? It couldn’t have been more than a kiss, he figured, because of Beatrix’s injuries.
“Your father planned to give you Tenred to rule at the end of the war?” Desil asked the princess.
“Yes, Allephon found out through Jimmin. My father needed the councilman’s help with many of the details, I assume. But then Jimmin took what he knew to Allephon and used it to turn him against our father.” Desil could hear little else besides anger in her voice.
Basen sounded offended. “When were you going to tell me this?”
“I didn’t think it mattered.”
“It’s the motive we need to prove the truth, in case we can’t kill Jimmin.”
Silence followed. Basen had spoken with the same careful choice of words Desil was used to hearing, but it was still a shock to hear him speak of killing someone.
Leida asked, “Father, do you really plan to kill him…with your own hands?”
“I plan to deliver justice for Beatrix, her family, and Kyrro no matter what form that takes. Jimmin has built a dedicated army behind these lies and proven that he can trick psychics into believing he’s telling the truth. We have Allephon’s motive now and know that he cannot lie without taking a potion that makes him drowsy, but Jimmin can. Allephon we can incriminate, but the only way to incriminate Jimmin is through Allephon, which might turn out to be impossible. That means I might have to resort to killing Jimmin myself. I know this is difficult for you to hear, Leida, but I will never force you to do anything like that yourself.”
She thought for a moment before answering. “If you’re certain, then I’m with you until the end of this. Whatever you have to do, I can do it too, if I must.”
“Is there a plan in place for Jimmin?” Beatrix asked.
“Not yet,” Basen said. “Allow me to speak to t
he Wind Knights when we meet with them right after we collect this akorell. Perhaps all of us can figure out something together.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
It wasn’t clear to Desil when it had happened, but he noticed that he could make out the Marros clearly now, with night transitioning into morning. Clouds were painted red, the deeper the color the closer they were to the eastern horizon. Desil had a beautiful view of the crimson ocean meeting the horizon, where a streak of gold split the water from the sky. He took no more than a glance to enjoy it, so intensely was he involved in his task.
They’d begun collecting the akorell not long ago. The melted metal resembled caregelow, silver and as thick as oatmeal, yet smooth instead of chunky. It pooled in the shallow crevices on the ground. It was easy to collect where it was abundant, but it was nearly impossible for Desil to get some of the tiny remnants into a bottle.
He worried the Academy chemist could be wrong and the akorell would not return to a solid state. Or it would, but it wouldn’t retain its ability to draw bastial energy from its surroundings. He hadn’t feared this until he’d heard Leida and Adriya discussing the possibility. Apparently this chemist wasn’t known for testing anything thoroughly before confirming it was ready.
Desil had no choice but to keep gathering and hoping. There was no way of obtaining this akorell through normal mining, for the noise would attract the dajriks.
Everyone worked in their own section. Desil filled five of the tall bottles in the first half hour and then spent the next half only able to fill two. The dajriks had emerged from their stone enclosures, roaming their grass field the way fish might swim around inside their bowl. They were far away; the only reason Desil could see them was because of their massive size. He took it to mean the dajriks wouldn’t be able to notice Desil and his group. He checked on the creatures often, but not as often as he did the Marros.
