“Sounds like your people have strange bedtime tales as well as customs,” Lucindur said.
“Greater truth ain’t never been told!” Brouben said. He strode forward and grabbed Sora by the hand. “Ms. Sora, on behalf of my people, I’m sorry for how ye been treated.”
Sora thought back to all her encounters with dwarves, starting with Grint. Most of them weren’t memorable for good reasons. But then she regarded Tum Tum, standing by the window. Since the moment she met him in Winde Port, he’d been kind and helpful. He took care of her while she sulked on Kazimir’s ship.
“You’re not all bad,” she said, placing her own hand atop his. “Thank you.”
“We’ve got to find Whitney and get out of here,” Lucindur said, breaking the moment.
Tum Tum swore, looking out at the city beyond. The chaos had stopped, but now, the streets filled with dwarves prattling on about the event, cleaning up the results. Guards marched by in a constant flow.
“No way we’re goin out there right now,” he said. “The thief’s on his own.”
“Anyone sees him, he’s dead on the spot,” Brouben said, joining Tum Tum at the window.
“He is not dying,” Sora said matter-of-factly. “I’ll lay waste to this place if I have to.”
“She’s scary,” Brouben whispered, though loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Sora, dear,” Lucindur said, “are you all right?”
Sora thought back to the feeling she’d gotten just before unleashing her fury on Gargamane. How she’d done it without even hesitating. Brouben was right. She was scary. It scared her, too. However, she also knew that without her power, the chances of them ever getting out of Balonhearth were slim. And what if they did?
Out of the frying pan. Into the fire, she thought.
“All right?” Sora laughed mirthlessly. “I think ‘all right’ is the last thing any of us is, don’t you? What are we supposed to do, Lucindur? We’re stuck inside a mountain with an army after us. Whitney and Aquira are out there without even the knowledge that they are being hunted down—“
“Some things are just out of our hands, Girly,” Tum Tum said.
“Not this,” Sora said. “This is my problem, and I’m going to fix it.”
“Your problem?” Lucindur scoffed. “Last I checked, this was all our problems when we agreed to take on Nesilia, together.”
“You weren’t the one possessed by her. Made to look on while she slaughtered the Strongiron—“ Sora noticed Brouben in the corner of her eye and stopped herself. Luckily, he was focused on the window while they argued amongst each other.
“But it isn’t your fault,” Lucindur said. “None of it.”
“That’s right,” Tum Tum added. “Not even what happened on Kazimir’s ship. That wasn’t even yer magic.”
“I know,” Sora said. “Whitney told me it was the Sanguine Lords. But, I just can’t help thinking I could’ve stopped it.”
“I saw them Lords—nothin but mist and smoke. Wasn’t no stoppin it ye could’ve done.” He took a seat beside Lucindur. “Ye know what’s the worst?”
Lucindur and Sora eyed him suspiciously.
“When someone fightin gods and yiggin goddesses thinks they’re weak for havin lost. Ye know what makes em gods, eh? They’re shog-shuckin gods!”
Sora chuckled again. This time, she felt a little relief, but it was gone just as quick.
“I fell right into her hands, again,” she said. “That vile woman, Freydis… she was the one he saw. Nesilia sent her here already, and we just walked right into it.”
As if having a sudden realization, her attention snapped to Brouben. She stood, hands balled into fists. “Did you know Freydis was here?”
“No idea,” he said.
“Are you playing us?” Sora demanded.
“I swear. She must’ve come when I was on me way back from White Bridge. How could I not’ve seen this?” He groaned.
“Stop all this blaming,” Lucindur said, placing her hand on Sora’s shoulder to sit her back down. “You didn’t ask for Nesilia to possess you, Sora. None of us knew she’d sent the Drav Cra warlock here.”
Sora supposed Lucindur was right. There was no way for any of them to know that King Lorgit had been turned. And he had been. Even if he thought staying out of things was his choice, Sora knew the fear that Freydis could inflict upon people, and it was evident in his eyes when he spoke of her.
Even if they’d known Freydis had been here, what could they’ve done anyway? The Brike Stone was their only hope.
Then a thought hit her.
“Why did she do that?” Sora asked.
“What?” Lucindur said.
“Why did she send Freydis here, of all places?”
“What are you getting at?” Lucindur asked.
“Ye think she knew about the lot of ye bein after the stone?” Brouben asked.
Sora shook her head. “I think if she knew that, she’d have just taken it herself.”
“Or destroyed it,” Tum Tum added.
They all nodded in agreement.
“She might have sent her followers all over Pantego to gain more,” Lucindur said. “To build her army.”
“Mmm, perhaps,” Sora assented her agreement.
“However,” Lucindur said, “I don’t think there’s any help to be had by questioning such things or worrying about who’s on her side now. We need a plan.” She took a seat across from Sora and removed the salfio, her enchanted musical instrument, from her back.
“Right, but what if she’s expecting this? All of this? What if we are just enabling her plan?” Sora bit her lip. “You think Whitney is okay?”
“He’s always okay,” Tum Tum assured her. “Like a plague ye can’t rid yerself of.”
Sora closed her eyes and took a breath.
“It was a joke, Lass, I swear,” Tum Tum said. “Truth is, if that dirty thief’s successful, his little plan might’ve saved the whole yiggin world.”
“When,” Sora said. “When he is successful.”
Tum Tum left his post by the window and placed both palms against the table.
“Right, so that be it, huh?” he said. “I say we move forward like he’s already done it.”
“What do you mean?” Sora asked.
“I mean he ain’t failed none of us yet, has he? Yiggin Exile, I bet that quake was his causin too! The next step be to find Nesilia, aye? Well, how were we gonna do that?”
Sora’s stomach sank. She knew everyone would be counting on her to somehow tap into the Buried Goddess’ thoughts and find her, wherever she was. But even in the time it took for them to travel from Glinthaven to Balonhearth, Sora hadn’t seen any signs of Nesilia. Even her dreams had been pleasant.
They looked to her, nonetheless.
“She’s in Yaolin, right?” Sora said, thinking it out for herself.
“She was in Yaolin,” Lucindur corrected. “That was weeks ago. If we were able to make the trip here, she could have made it halfway across Pantego by now. Probably further with her abilities.”
“Restricted by the upyr host, though,” Brouben offered. “I’ve seen her.”
“Right, so she can’t go out into daylight,” Sora said. “But when she was… me, she traveled from Winter’s Thumb to Brekliodad completely underground. We have to assume she could do the same now if she wanted to. Maybe that’s why she wants the Three Kingdoms on her side.”
“Damn,” Tum Tum swore.
“I’m sorry,” Sora said, head bowed. Then, looking up, tears forming, she said, “I’ve got nothing.”
She could see the disappointment etched on their faces, but like any good friends, they comforted her. Brouben, too, even after she’d snapped at him, telling her they’d figure something out.
But what if they didn’t? Part of her wondered if her fear of Nesilia was keeping her from being able to tap in. It was a genuine concern that, by allowing her mind to be totally freed, she would find herself right back in Nowhere a
nd under Nesilia’s control. It might’ve been selfish, but Sora would rather be dead than be back in that place.
Then, she realized that it wouldn’t just be her that would be dead if she couldn’t find Nesilia. Whitney would die too. And Aquira. All of them. Everyone in all of Pantego and anything beyond—all dead because of Sora’s fear.
“We could just wait,” Tum Tum said. It sounded like a question.
“For?” Lucindur asked.
“Beats me. Her to strike, or attack, or whatever she’s plannin?”
“We can’t do that,” Sora said. “By then, it might be too late. By all accounts, she’s already gathered her army. She has Queen Bliss and all the demons. There won’t even be a fight.”
“She’s right, it might already be too late,” Lucindur said. “We will need a solid plan in order to get close to her.”
“Didn’t ye say she came to ye in yer dreams?” Tum Tum asked. “Can’t ye do that again?”
“I can’t control it,” Sora said. “And what if she can see into my mind and learn about the stone? What if opening up to her like that lets her take control of me again? I…”
Lucindur gave her arm a comforting squeeze. “We can’t risk the unknown.”
Sora swallowed hard. She knew what needed to be done. Instead, she just didn’t want to do it. Thoughts of Nowhere tortured her. The thought of getting stuck there again, so close to Nesilia—it was more than she could bear. But everyone was counting on her.
“This could be our last chance,” Sora said.
“For?” Lucindur followed Sora’s gaze to her salfio.
“Let’s find her.”
“And risk her and her army of monsters finding us first? What about all these people?”
“You mean the people who just tried to have us killed for trying to save them?” Sora asked. “They can take care of themselves… or not.”
Sora couldn’t believe her own words. It was that feeling again inside of her, that new, ruthless version of herself that she could only imagine was leftover from when Nesilia was in there. Or… was Nesilia still in there?
She pushed the thought away. There was no time for it. Whether she liked it or not, this was the way.
“My fire didn’t cause the distraction we needed,” she said, counting off on her fingers. “Whitney is sneaking through the vault with no idea that if he’s found, they’re going to kill him on the spot. King Lorgit thinks Nesilia will leave him be.”
“And?” Lucindur said.
“So let’s show him that she isn’t and bring her monsters here.”
“Oh, I like this one,” Tum Tum said.
“What’s this about monsters?” Brouben asked.
Lucindur pointed toward the city. “You are really going to let these people fend for themselves? We know what my power does. This place will be crawling with her slaves in seconds.”
“We’re running out of choices.”
“It’s not so simple,” Lucindur said.
“None of it is,” Tum Tum argued. “Don’t mean we can’t try.”
“The clanbreakers won’t be able to stop us in the chaos. And maybe, just maybe, it’ll convince Lorgit to help us.”
“People will die,” Lucindur said.
“They’ll die anyway!” Sora argued.
“Stop,” Tum Tum said firmly, standing on the chair and drawing all of their attention. “This ain’t yer home, or mine any longer. If we do this, knowing what it’ll bring, then it be up to Brouben to decide.”
Sora and the others all looked to the Prince, whose attention had returned to the many dwarves roaming the streets outside the window. He watched his people with a thousand-meter-gaze.
“Yer sayin ye have a way of finding Nesilia, but it’ll reveal where we be?” Brouben asked.
“Yes,” Lucindur said. “It draws her creatures like moths to a flame.”
“Goblins. Grimaurs. Probably worse,” Sora added.
“And she’ll wanna come get ye?”
“Without a doubt.”
He exhaled slowly and scratched his beard. “So, the Three Kingdoms can either wait around for her to turn on us or maybe, join the fight today.”
“Nesilia only cares about getting to me,” Sora said. “All she’ll know is that we’re hiding here. She won’t have to know your people are even involved.”
“And yet, we should be,” Brouben said. “Ye say Nesilia slaughtered the Strongirons to send a message, and for whatever reasons, I trust ye. We dwarves pride ourselves on bein excellent judges of character, me father excluded.”
“I tried to tell em that,” Tum Tum chimed it.
Brouben took another long moment of reflection, then nodded firmly. “If this be what it takes, then I say, find her. We dwarves are built for fightin. Let her monsters come, and we’ll show them the might of the Dragon’s Tail.”
“Perfect,” Sora said.
“Are you sure?” Lucindur asked.
“Ye keep forgettin, I saw what Nesilia can do,” Brouben said. “Only reason I’m back here is to warn me father, and he threw me out like the trash. We’ve gotta stop her, no matter what it takes. We either fight today or die tomorrow.”
Tum Tum slapped Brouben on the back. “Glad to be back by yer side, brother!”
“Glad to have ye back. Just wish it were under different circumstances.”
Lucindur shook her head. “I don’t know. We should wait until we were in a more defensible position before showing our cards. Until we have the stone, at least.”
“I’d think in a mountain like this, surrounded by warriors like these dwarves,” Sora said, eyeing Brouben, “we won’t find a more defensible position.”
“She ain’t wrong there,” Tum Tum said.
“Nope,” Brouben agreed.
“Be that as it may, my magic only works if I have something that belongs to the one we seek,” Lucindur said. “Being as how she is a goddess, I doubt she left one of her possessions lying around.”
Sora’s stomach turned over. That’s exactly what Nesilia had done. Sora was her possession, and she’d left her, empty and alone. What other choice did she have, but this? She didn’t know how to access their link to each other or the implications of doing so. She couldn’t even be sure if the vision Nesilia last gave her of Yaolin was actually just a dream. Or even if Nesilia was showing her lies. This time, they had to be entirely sure, and Lucindur’s powers would allow that.
“Me,” Sora said, low.
“What?” Tum Tum and Lucindur replied together.
“She possessed me, mind and body. If you can’t use me to find her, you won’t be able to use anything.”
“That seems dangerous,” Tum Tum said.
“And what isn’t dangerous?” Sora asked. “We are talking about gods and goddesses and the end of all life. Brouben is risking his own people for us. This is it. This is our chance. It’s now or never.”
“What about Whitney?” Lucindur asked.
“If he don’t get that stone, we are all dead anyway,” Tum Tum reminded them.
“He’s right,” Sora offered. “And maybe Whitney needs our help for once. We give him a real distraction. If he can’t get out with the stone during this, then what kind of thief is he?”
“She’s right,” Tum Tum returned, grinning.
“So, it’s settled. We find Nesilia, we find Whitney, and cause chaos in the city enough for us all to escape.”
“What if she comes herself?” Lucindur asked.
It was a question Sora hadn’t considered. Until then, she figured it would just be more goblins and the like.
“Let’s not think about that,” Lucindur answered herself, beating Sora to it. “It’s a fine plan as any.”
“Only one we got,” Tum Tum said. “Whitney would be proud.”
“Right. Okay, so how do we do this?” Sora asked.
Lucindur looked nervous. “Tum Tum, we need quiet and privacy.”
It was a simple request said with kindness, and Tum Tu
m took the hint, rose, and grabbed Brouben by the arm. “C’mon, me old friend. Let’s go stand guard. Tell me everythin about yer fight with the goddess, and I’ll tell ye mine.”
Brouben looked around nervously, then conceded. Together, they moved into an adjacent room.
“Maybe me father’s got some of his old weapons still in here. I could use a new hammer,” Tum Tum said as he closed the door.
When they were gone, Lucindur said, “My gift. Lightmancery… Have you ever seen it in practice?”
She hadn’t. However, Wetzel’s lessons, although not comprehensive, were sufficient. She’d learned about all kinds of magics from all over Pantego, both old and timely. There hadn’t been much about the Glintish folk in his books, but enough to know what Lightmancing entailed.
Sora shook her head. “No, but I’ve read of it.”
“Right. Well, in practice, it can be… jarring.”
“I used to cut my hands and arms. I understand the risks, Lucy.” Using the name Whitney had given her provided slight comfort. It was silly, but Sora would accept all the comfort she could. “But what choice do we have?”
Lucindur nodded. “Right you are. Okay, now, I want you to close your eyes and relax.”
After a long, deep breath, Sora closed her eyes, and panic overwhelmed her. Darkness had been taunting her for as long as she could recall since the Citadel. It was almost like she could feel Nesilia reaching out for her mind, teasing her, in control. Her eyelids shot open, and she was breathing heavily.
“Sorry,” she said. “I just need a second.” She didn’t want to let Nesilia in again, didn’t want to give her that power, even if it would help accomplish the same goals as Lucindur’s magic. They needed to be on the offense this time. Nesilia couldn’t be given a chance to deceive.
“Take your time,” Lucindur said, tuning her salfio.
After a few deep breaths in through her nose and out through her mouth, Sora nodded. “I’m ready.”
“Keep breathing and clear your mind,” Lucindur told her.
Lucindur strummed her salfio. The notes were beautiful, reminding Sora of the sounds which echoed through the streets of Glinthaven. Actually, it reminded her so much of Fabian “Feel Good” Saravia, her favorite bard that would frequent Troborough’s Twilight Manor.
Word of Truth Page 31
