Deals and Dangers

by Kay L. Ling

  “Now, picture Olissa’s face, and think about things you’ve done together,” Zeetha said.

  Tyla thought about the day Olissa had shown her the zannamap. As she relived the excitement of that moment, she was dimly aware of Zeetha in her mind, a silent observer to the remembered scene.

  “Good,” Zeetha whispered, “You’re doing fine.”

  Olissa had touched the Aberell City mark. A view of the city had appeared, and Olissa had realized that they were looking at modern day Aberell. The map was showing them current events, which meant it was far more useful than they had imagined.

  The scene disappeared, replaced by total darkness. Zeetha gave Tyla’s hand a reassuring squeeze.

  Thoughts flashed through Tyla’s mind that weren’t her own, and she was quite sure they weren’t Zeetha’s, either. Tyla was in someone’s mind . . . but whose? She could read fragments of the person’s thoughts, and she felt panic and frustration as the person looked for something with no success. Was this Olissa? If so, what was she looking for?

  Zeetha whispered, “I must continue alone,” and let go of Tyla’s hand.

  The woodspirit’s forehead was furrowed in concentration, and her lips moved silently. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and said in a trembling voice, “We found her.”

  “It was Olissa,” Tyla said, relieved. “What is she looking for?”

  “Gems. It took me awhile to figure that out. Her thoughts were chaotic.”

  “Gems,” Tyla repeated. That didn’t make sense. Why would Olissa be looking for gems, and why was she feeling panicky? “Do you know why she hasn’t contacted me and why I can’t reach her?”

  “I don’t think she has the pendant. That’s what she’s looking for.”

  “How could she have lost it?”

  “There’s been trouble,” Zeetha said hesitantly.

  “What kind of trouble?”

  “They got into a fight with Outcasts and breghlin. Maybe the Outcasts took the pendant.”

  “Olissa might be looking for the Outcasts, hoping to get the pendant back, but when I was inside her head, it didn’t seem like that. I got the impression she was searching for something she’d misplaced, not something that was stolen.”

  Zeetha pursed her lips. “Yes, now that I think about it, I believe you’re right.”

  When the team had raided The Emanicus hideout, they had dug a hole and buried their gems rather than risk losing them if things didn’t go well. Had Olissa done that again? Had she buried the pendant and gem pouches? Tyla ran that theory past Zeetha and added, “Any number of things could have happened to make it difficult to retrace their steps and find the buried gems.”

  “I frightened the enemy with a display of gem powers. They knew I was one of The Eight and let me pass. Someone else might not have gotten away so easily. If Olissa is looking for the gems, she can’t be a captive. Let’s hope she finds the gems and brings the team home.”

  Tyla felt guilty for thinking Zeetha would be more nuisance than help. Nothing could be further from the truth. “Thank you for finding Olissa. I’m glad Marrid asked you to come.”

  “So am I,” Zeetha said, patting Tyla’s hand. “It’s nice to be useful.”

  Chapter 56

  Tyla woke early the next morning to the sound of someone banging on her door. She threw on her robe and ran to see who was there. When she opened the door, she found a very distressed Maggie Ann, and after listening to the breghlin’s incoherent plea for help, all Tyla could make of it was that it involved Tina Ann. Maggie Ann towed Tyla down the passageway, begging her to hurry.

  Tyla began to suspect where they were going, and her fears were confirmed when they rounded a corner and found Tina Ann frozen in place with her ear near Zeetha’s door.

  “Oh no,” Tyla groaned.

  “Ya gotta help her,” Maggie Ann said in a furtive whisper.

  Tyla didn’t have an immobility gem, so Zeetha would have to reverse the paralysis. Tyla gave an inward sigh, not looking forward to asking her.

  Just then, the door opened and Zeetha looked past Tina Ann who was partially blocking the doorway, and her gaze fell on Tyla and Maggie Ann. Maggie Ann let out a frightened squeak.

  “It’s foolish to spy on someone who’s known for oracular powers,” Zeetha said dryly.

  “I’m so sorry,” gushed Tyla. “It won’t happen again.”

  “I should let her spend the day like this, but it wouldn’t be good for her health.” Zeetha waved a hand and restored Tina Ann who gave a yelp of alarm when she found herself face-to-face with the woodspirit.

  “I want a word with you,” Tyla told Tina Ann sternly. “But at the moment, you and Maggie Ann are due in the kitchen.”

  Both breghlin disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving Tyla to placate Zeetha. This was a terrible start to the woodspirit’s first day. Tyla was surprised to find Zeetha’s lips twitching with amusement. “I see you have your hands full with that one.”

  “That’s for sure,” Tyla murmured. “I’m sorry she disturbed you.”

  “When she didn’t encounter any wards, she assumed it was safe to listen at the door, but little escapes my notice even when I’m asleep, and I wasn’t asleep. I was speaking to Marrid. She reached Mierek City yesterday. Come in and I’ll tell you what she’s learned so far, then we’ll contact her.”

  The guest room was furnished with a bed long enough to accommodate a woodspirit, a chest of drawers, a wardrobe, and two upholstered chairs drawn up to a small round table where Zeetha had placed her dendrite ball. They sat down at the table.

  “She visited Anatta yesterday afternoon. Anatta realizes she’s missing more memories than before. When family and friends talk about things she should know, she has no recollection of the people or events. Varkandian is the only other member of the Eight in Mierek, and he tried to help her, but there’s nothing he can do.” She made a noise in the back of her throat, something between a moan and a sob, and fell silent.

  Tyla wasn’t sure what to say so she nodded sympathetically and waited for Zeetha to compose herself. Finally, Zeetha took a deep breath and continued. “Marrid doesn’t think Anatta, or any of the rest of the Eight is under Emanicus control, except Kitana.”

  “This should convince all of you to do whatever you can to protect yourselves.”

  Zeetha ran her fingers over the bracelets on her left arm. Tyla suspected most of the gems were rare.

  “The newssheets haven’t said what became of Mierek officers and staff. Has Marrid heard anything?” Tyla asked.

  “Rumor has it that no one in the fortress survived. Commander Darrath and the officers who fought in the city are using the High Council building as a temporary headquarters.”

  “They can’t get into the fortress to see what happened?”

  “No. Outcasts held the fortress until reinforcements came. Reporters saw black-robed gnomes entering two days ago. I think The Emanicus may eventually use Mierek Fortress as their seat of operations.”

  That was the plan, according to Rimwick. “I’m sure Kitana will have a front page story about this soon.”

  “No doubt. And I think most woodspirit newssheets copy information from Woodspirit News and Views.”

  “She’s obviously in contact with The Emanicus. She knows what’s happening before everyone else. Has Marrid offered to help fortress officers yet?”

  “No, she wants to assess the situation first. If you ask me, she might be better off handling the situation alone.”

  “But it’s their fortress and their problem,” Tyla reminded her.

  “Oh really? The Emanicus is allied with Sheamathan. They removed Anatta’s memories, and they’re using Kitana. To some degree, that makes it a woodspirit problem, don’t you think?”

  Tyla couldn’t argue with that. She had complained about woodspirits not getting involved during The Great Upheaval. Now, one of The Eight was willing to help, and even though Marrid’s assistance might take a different form than Tyla would
like, she knew she should be grateful for any help at all.

  “I didn’t mean to bite your head off,” Zeetha said. “It’s just that I’m worried about Anatta, and I’m even more worried about Marrid getting involved in this.” Zeetha placed her hands on the dendrite ball, and after two or three minutes an image formed. Tyla saw grass and trees but no Marrid. Had Zeetha contacted the wrong person? Even if she had, they should see someone.

  “Marrid?” Zeetha said.

  “Yes, I’m here.”

  “Why can’t we see you?”

  “I’m invisible.”

  “Where are you?”

  “Outside the perimeter ward, in front of the fortress. I’m keeping an eye on the place while I decide what to do. I’m sure The Emanicus set up wards after disabling Darrath’s, but they’re not using the mist ward.”

  “Can you get through the perimeter ward?”

  “That should be no problem, but I’m sure it will trigger an alert.”

  “They can detect an invisible intruder,” Tyla warned. “We learned that from Kaff.” She moved her chair closer to Zeetha so Marrid could see her. “Zeetha said I could sit in on your conversation.”

  “Good. How is everything there?”

  This wasn’t the right time to discuss what was happening with Olissa and the team. Marrid had enough worries. “We’re fine.”

  “Is Olissa back?”

  Now, she couldn’t avoid the subject. “No, the team hasn’t returned.” She quickly changed the subject. “Do you think more Emanicus gnomes are on the way to Mierek?”

  “I think so. They’ll take control of this fortress and try to intimidate the others into surrendering.”

  “The others won’t surrender without a fight,” Tyla said, hoping that was true. Losing Mierek was a terrible blow, and The Emanicus had managed it with little effort.

  “We need to reclaim Mierek before more Emanicus gnomes arrive,” Marrid said. “Darrath may not want my help, but he needs it after losing so many officers.”

  “Don’t do anything rash,” Zeetha said. “Even if more Emanicus gnomes are on the way, they may not arrive for days.”

  “I’ll try to identify the current wards. Once I know what we’re up against, I’ll go get Darrath and his officers.”

  “Let’s hope they’re willing to work with you,” Zeetha said. “They may think it’s a trap.”

  “Then I’ll proceed without them, but I hope it doesn’t come to that. Watch the grounds with the zannamap while I try to reach the fortress doors. If I trigger a ward and get into trouble, you won’t be able to help me, but you can warn others.”

  “Maybe you should take Anatta with you,” Tyla said. “She’s lost some of her memories but not her gem powers.”

  “She knows what I plan to do, and she didn’t volunteer. I’m not asking her to go with me.”

  “We’ll go to the library and watch. Be careful,” Zeetha said.

  “I will. I’ll contact you once I’m finished and outside the perimeter ward.” The scene broke apart into fernlike dendrites.

  “I hope she has a ward-detecting gem, but I’ve heard they don’t detect the most sophisticated wards,” Tyla said.

  “Don’t worry. Marrid knows which gems to buy and can afford the best.” Zeetha stood and picked up the dendrite ball. “I don’t know how much we’ll see with her being invisible, but I’ll feel better watching.”

  They went to the library and spread the map on the table. Arenia set aside the book she was reading and joined them when she heard about Marrid’s mission.

  “What an amazing find,” Zeetha said. “I’ve only seen two zannamaps, and one was in the Pantirek City Museum.”

  Tyla had become quite adept at manipulating the map. She brought up a view of Mierek Fortress.

  “How will we know where she is?” Arenia asked.

  “We probably won’t unless she sets off a ward.”

  “So, we hope we don’t see anything,” Arenia said.

  “Exactly,” Zeetha replied. “After inspecting the grounds for wards, she’ll retreat outside the perimeter ward and contact us.”

  Tyla wondered if Marrid would have to leave the dendrite ball behind, then realized she had probably put it in her invisible woven bag.

  The group watched for several minutes in tense silence.

  “She must be in by now,” Arenia said.

  “I imagine so,” Zeetha agreed. “If only we could see where she is and know she’s safe.”

  Tyla continued to scan the grounds even though there was nothing to see. She knew Marrid could take care of herself, and yet she couldn’t help thinking of all the things that could go wrong. Marrid should have taken someone along. It was infuriating to think Anatta hadn’t volunteered to accompany her. How could she let Marrid face the dangers alone?

  A few minutes later, Zeetha gave a high-pitched moan, and Tyla stiffened in alarm. “What’s wrong?”

  “I don’t know, I don’t know,” Zeetha said, wringing her hands. “Suddenly I feel ill at ease. She’s in danger!”

  “A premonition?” Tyla asked. The scene remained unchanged.

  “If she triggered a ward, I see no sign of it,” Arenia said.

  “If it involves dark powers like negative energy gems, there would be nothing to see,” Tyla reminded her.

  “Look!” Zeetha cried. “The vines are moving! They’ve been dormant till now.”

  “That can’t be good,” Tyla murmured. She shifted the scene to get a closer look at the wall, and just then, several vines dropped to the ground and shot off in quest of the intruder.

  Zeetha had started making high-pitched whining noises, but Tyla barely noticed.

  Invisibility would be no protection if the vines could sense where Marrid was. Tyla moved the scene to a different angle, showing more of the grounds. A few seconds later, Marrid appeared, midway between the fortress and the street. Either The Emanicus had turned her visible, or she had abandoned invisibility to better concentrate on escaping.

  The vines were moving impossibly fast. They seemed to be lengthening as they raced over the ground, and they were gaining on her.

  “Can she use an immobility gem?” Arenia asked.

  “She would have already tried that, so it must not have worked,” Zeetha said in a tight voice.

  “What about the Guardian?” Tyla asked. “Will it help?” She wished she knew what kind of dangers activated it. The Guardian might not consider vines a threat.

  “Stop running!” Zeetha wailed. “Fight!”

  Marrid continued to run, zigzagging to make pursuit more difficult. That might work with a different pursuer, but the vines could change course as quickly as she could. Finally, realizing she couldn’t outrun the vines, she skidded to a halt and whirled to face them. A few split off from the rest, coming at her from different angles. If they surrounded her, she’d be in worse trouble than she was now.

  Marrid lifted her hands. The vines erupted in flames. Their leaves shriveled and turned to ash, but the vines kept coming.

  Seeing fire wouldn’t stop them, she swept her arm in an arc, and a wide chasm opened in the ground. She didn’t wait to see what the vines would do. She started running again.

  Some of the vines went into the chasm, determined to go through it and up the other side, staying on course. Others went around it. Either way, it bought Marrid time.

  “If she gets past the perimeter ward, will she be safe?” Arenia asked breathlessly.

  Tyla had no idea, and Zeetha didn’t answer.

  Vines were already climbing out of the chasm. The ones that had gone around it were closing the distance between themselves and their target.

  Tyla wiped nervous perspiration from her brow. If she or Arenia had thought up this scenario in a practice session, what would they do to escape? She couldn’t think of a thing, and it must be harder for Marrid who was in real danger. One group of vines was about twenty feet behind her, and it wouldn’t be long before they caught up. Zeetha was mak
ing whimpering noises, and Tyla wanted to tell her to stop, but she felt like whimpering herself.

  “I can’t look,” Arenia said, turning her head.

  Tyla kept watching. Marrid was clever. She would think of something.

  A vine latched onto Marrid’s ankle, and she leapt, as if hurdling an invisible obstacle. It was an amazing leap, probably enhanced by gem powers. She landed a few yards away, which pulled the vine taut, but it didn’t snap. Marrid took out a knife and sliced through it. The vine stopped moving after that, and the others began to retreat as if sensing they had lost their prey.

  “She’s okay,” Tyla said, nudging Arenia. “I think she’s outside the perimeter ward. That was a narrow escape.”

  “Too narrow,” Zeetha said in a hoarse whisper.

  Marrid took the dendrite ball from her bag. Zeetha picked up her own, and Marrid’s face appeared in the ball.

  “Did you see that?” Marrid asked, breathless.

  “Get out of there before Emanicus gnomes come after you.”

  “I’d rather fight them than their vines,” Marrid said with the hint of a smile. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m leaving.”

  Zeetha dashed tears from her eyes.

  “Chin up, Zeetha,” Marrid said sternly. “I’m okay.”

  “Where will you go now?” Tyla asked.

  “To see Darrath. We may be able to take back the fortress, but I definitely can’t do it alone.”

  Chapter 57

  Sheamathan felt she had been remarkably patient over the last few weeks. It had been so good to be back in her own body that she had tolerated many indignities, but the situation was becoming intolerable. She was not sure how much more she could stand.

  Last week, Team Two had moved in with Felith’s group. This dilapidated building was not suited for a large group. She had a private room, which was more than the others had, but that was little comfort. If she wanted to get away from them, she went outside, but she could not go very far. They had confined her to a warded area to keep an eye on her.