by Kay L. Ling
If only she could regain her powers, but the insufferable creatures kept their gems out of reach. Her only consolation was that eventually they would be forced to let her help them. She watched through the window as they gathered around the second grave they had dug this week. Gnomes were pathetic, short-lived creatures even under the best of circumstances, she thought in disgust. They could not use Dark gems for any length of time. Their minds and bodies could not tolerate the adverse effects, and new witnesses served as a constant reminder of that.
Ezar had been the first to die—that is, aside from Pren, burned to death by that meddling gnome, Tyla. Ezar’s health had been failing for weeks, and his insane ramblings had kept everyone awake. Felith had wanted to kill him, but Hoy and Yevin had objected, saying the old fellow would not last much longer, and they had been right. A few days later, Ezar had fallen face-first into his plate of potatoes. After dragging the body outside, Felith had divided Ezar’s unfinished meal among the group, and they had all resumed eating.
Today, they were burying Wem, who had been about the same age as Ezar. The gem masters had started using Dark gems more frequently now, and naturally, the older members were succumbing first. Soon, they would all lose the ability to function effectively, and unwilling to lose the war, they would allow her to use their gems. Sheamathan smiled. She would rule again, and this time, she would control all of Ahmonell, not just the Amulet.
She must be very careful at this stage, she warned herself. The gem masters would become increasingly volatile, and she was vulnerable without her powers.
Felith and Lanimore walked away from the grave and stood a short distance off, carrying on a private conversation. How she wished she could hear what they were saying, or better yet, read their minds. It was dreadful having no gem powers. While she had been a beetle, it had been easy to remember she had no powers, but now that she was a woodspirit, she instinctively kept trying to use powers she no longer had. Nothing could be more frustrating.
The rest of the gem masters left the grave and sat down by the corrustone pit, looking weary and depressed, and a few cast occasional glances toward their leaders. Sheamathan sensed trouble brewing.
When they finished their conversation, Felith and Lanimore started back to the house. Sheamathan hurried from the window, sat down in the main room, picked up a book, and pretended to be reading. Most of the chairs were gnome-size, but this one accommodated her reasonably well, so she had placed it in the far corner by a window and told the gnomes not to use it.
When the door banged shut, Sheamathan looked up. She tried to sound sympathetic. “Too bad about poor old Wem.”
“As if you care,” Felith said, not fooled for an instant.
Lanimore shot him a warning look, always concerned about offending her, probably because he knew she would regain her powers someday, and it would be best to stay on her good side.
“Is that a new lump on your neck?” she asked Felith innocently. “I have not noticed that one before.” It was delightful to watch him squirm.
“I’m not going to end up like Ezar and Wem, so save your breath,” he said, glaring at her. He touched the lump. It had not been there yesterday; she was sure of it. Yesterday, they had used the Focal Gem for hours, knocking out wards at Mierek Fortress and setting up new ones according to her instructions, and it had been the death of Wem—literally. “Your witnesses are multiply at an alarming rate,” she persisted in a mild tone, trying to make it sound as if she were only looking out for him.
“I’m aware of that,” he snapped. “It’s the price we pay to get what we want.”
Lanimore looked uncomfortable with this conversation. He poured himself a mug of raaka and sat down at the table, his back to them.
“As long as you have your mind, I suppose the state of your body is of little importance,” Sheamathan said, returning to her reading.
“I know what you’re doing,” Felith said, coming closer. “You’re trying to frighten me into giving you gems so you can help us, but that wasn’t part of our deal. We agreed to restore you in exchange for training and advice.”
Deals were fluid things as far as she was concerned. Terms should always remain negotiable. After arriving at their headquarters, she had shown them how little they knew and how much they needed her. A few months later, they had taken her with them and gone into hiding, and still, they had not restored her. They had continued to put it off until they’d had no choice. When she regained her powers, they would pay for that . . . and all their other offenses.
“If I joined you in using the Focal Gem, we could accomplish far more in a fraction of the time. Furthermore, it would spare you considerable fatigue—and witnesses.”
Felith planted his hands on his hips and frowned at her. Perhaps he thought he looked intimidating. It was all she could do to keep from laughing.
“If we let you use the Focal Gem, you might overpower us.”
“How? You far outnumber me. Do you think so little of your powers?”
“It’s not that. It’s just—”
“You could crush me like a bug. And I know a lot about bugs.” She realized it was a bad joke. He did not smile.
“If you didn’t harm us while you were linked with us, using the Focal Gem, you’d do it later,” he said. “Once you infused gems, you could attack us anytime.”
“If I tried to harm you, you need only join forces against me with the Focal Gem,” she said reasonably, hoping it would not occur to him that before they could do so, she could incapacitate the entire group. “And why would I want to harm you? I wish to be on good terms with Ahmonell’s new rulers.”
“You want to rule,” he said in an accusing tone.
“That was my original intent,” she admitted with a shrug. “But I cannot rule all of Ahmonell alone. It was hard enough controlling the Amulet.”
“We aren’t about to settle for being your helpers while you rule the world,” Felith sneered, “especially after what you did to our ancestors.”
She did not try to defend herself. It was pointless. “I have resigned myself to letting you rule. I must content myself with being your advisor.”
“That’s right. You’re lucky you aren’t a bug. We’re your superiors. You’ll serve us.”
An angry retort formed on her lips, but she bit it back.
The door opened, and the rest of the black-robed gem masters came in, tracking in dirt from the gravesite. Yevin strode up to Felith, a determined look in his eyes, and the others formed ranks behind him.
We need to talk,” Yevin said.
“Talk? About what?”
Sheamathan watched from beneath hooded eyes. This should be interesting.
Yevin lifted the hem of his robe, revealing his right leg. “Look. I have half a dozen new lumps. And there’s one in the middle of my back that woke me last night. It hurts to lay on it, and I can’t lean back in a chair. I’m going to burn that one off, but I can’t burn them all off.”
“I have new lumps, too,” Felith said. “What’s your point?”
“It ain’t just the lumps botherin’ us,” Vink said, stepping forward. “Me and Gragg were diggin’ the grave, and part way through I stopped and asked why we were diggin’ a hole. I couldn’t remember.”
“We’re all under a lot of stress,” Felith said.
“I’ve had memory lapses, too,” Yevin said. “And so have most of the others. It’s not from stress. It’s the gems, and you know it.”
“We knew there would be unpleasant side effects,” Felith said.
Lanimore got up from the table and joined Felith. “Fellows,” he said calmly, “I hope you’re not losing heart when we’re so close to our goal.”
“Of course not, but we have to be realistic,” said Yevin. “What good is it taking over the fortresses if we’re sick and insane and can’t rule?”
“You’re overreacting,” Felith said. “We’ll get through this.”
“We’re not so sure,” Narrod spoke up.
Amik,
who was now the oldest member, said grimly, “Some of us aren’t likely to make it.”
Sheamathan cleared her throat. “They have a point, Felith. You have lost two members this week.”
“Stay out of this,” Felith snapped. “We shouldn’t be discussing any of this in front of you. Why don’t you go for a walk?”
“No. She should stay.” Yevin glanced around the group, and most nodded in agreement. “We think you should let her use some of our gems. Not our entire hoard, but ones we use with the Focal Gem. Let her help.”
“Those gems are giving us a lot of witnesses and affecting our minds,” Amik said.
Felith threw up his hands in disgust. “Dark gems are affecting your minds, all right—they’re making you stupid. You’re worried about witnesses?” He gestured at Sheamathan. “She turned some of our ancestors into breghlin, and not only are breghlin uglier than we are, they’re dim-witted besides. If she seizes control from us, that’s what you have to look forward to.”
Sheamathan let out an aggrieved sigh. “Do not let him frighten you. In the past, I made a number of mistakes—errors of judgment that I regret to this day. I have learned from those mistakes.”
Rendill said, “We’ve all made mistakes.” He held up his two-fingered hand. “I’ve made a few bad choices, as you can see.”
Several gem masters nodded.
“I used to resent what she did to our ancestors,” Gragg said quietly. “But I’ve gotten over it. That was a long time ago, and the past is the past.”
“Is it?” Felith asked. “History often repeats itself. I don’t trust her, and neither should you.”
Yevin folded his arms. “You have a lot of nerve talking about trust—you who neutralized Havinth and Sethan and appointed yourself our leader.”
Murmurs of agreement rose from the group. Sheamathan hid a smile. Felith looked decidedly uncomfortable.
“Lanimore, I don’t see why you support Felith,” Vink said. “He left Tabik behind at the hideout, and he would have abandoned the rest of us to save his own skin.”
“I was merely being practical,” Felith said. “I believed our enemies were on the way, and we weren’t prepared to fight a large force.”
Now, more than ever, Sheamathan wished she had her powers. It would be easy to manipulate the group by increasing their misgivings about Felith and making herself seem like the solution to all their troubles. A few months ago, if someone had projected emotions and tried to control them, they would have detected it, but now, due to the ravages of Dark gems, she doubted they would.
“Emotions are running high,” Lanimore said. “We need to discuss this after we’ve cooled off.”
“There’s nothing to discuss,” Felith said stubbornly. “I refuse to give her gems.”
“It isn’t up to you,” Yevin said. “They belong to all of us, not just you. We’ll decide if she can have some.” Many of the gem masters murmured in agreement. “I say we give her a few and see how it goes.”
Sheamathan’s hands were trembling with excitement. She clasped them tightly, hoping the gnomes wouldn’t notice.
“Over my dead body,” Felith growled.
Yevin shrugged. “That can be arranged.”
A couple gem masters laughed unpleasantly.
“I never liked you,” Yevin said. “And I like you even less after what you did to Havinth and Sethan. I’d be more than happy to bury you next to Ezar and Wem.”
Yevin and Felith glared at each other, and Sheamathan thought with gleeful anticipation that it might come to blows. A physical fight released tension as effectively as fighting with Dark gems and left no witnesses. When she had ruled in the Amulet, she had enjoyed watching breghlin fight. They were so delightfully savage. Sometimes, she had projected volatile emotions, ensuring a fight. Other times, she had created situations to pit them against one another and then let nature take its course. Alas, these gem masters were somewhat more civilized than breghlin. Felith, seeing the group was against him, backed down.
“Do what you like. If we all end up breghlin, you’ll be to blame.” He left and slammed the door behind him.
In the uncomfortable silence that followed, the gem masters looked at one another nervously.
“What do you say?” Yevin asked. “Shall we give her a few common gems to start with?”
Sheamathan held her breath, trying not to look eager. Seconds passed. It felt like an eternity.
Finally, Narrod said, “Those that think we should, raise your hand.” He lifted his, and several others raised theirs. A majority, Sheamathan thought with relief.
Yevin took a few gems from his pouch, walked up to Sheamathan, and held out his hand. It was all she could do not to snatch them from his palm.
“Thank you for trusting me,” she said, keeping her voice steady with an effort. When she held out her hand, he placed the gems in her palm. She closed her fingers around them, drew their power, and sighed with pleasure.
At last, she felt whole.
Chapter 58
Kaff was last in line. His teammates, no doubt as tired and discouraged as he was, trudged in gloomy silence through the network of caves. They’d worn their canteens, but they hadn’t taken food, never expecting to spend two days hiding in caves while breghlin and Outcasts searched for them. Thankfully, Olissa had pocketed some lightgems and healing gems when she’d buried the gem pouches. She led the group, holding a lightgem.
Kaff was hungry, tired, and totally disillusioned. He’d looked up to Olissa as he had Elias and Ertz, thinking she was as clever and resourceful as they were, but she wasn’t. The team had been ambushed and forced to fight, and Olissa had let them down.
They had injured a few of the enemy, but they hadn’t killed any. An Outcast had dropped a gem pouch during the fight, and Kaff had pocketed it, glad to deprive the enemy of a few gems, but lost gems were nothing. The real losses had all been on their side. Ferdinand and Danny were dead, and Eneff would have scars on his legs and walk with a limp for the rest of his life. What would have happened if the team hadn’t escaped into the caves? Kaff asked himself bitterly. Would any of them have survived?
They entered a narrow passageway, and the light from Olissa’s lightgem reflected off the walls, illuminating veins of green minerals. This passageway looked familiar. Kaff was quite certain it led outside. What time of day was it? He hoped it was night. If the enemy was still here, they might be sleeping now. He hardly dared hope they had given up and left. He had recognized the female gem master—Eldra from the O.D. She had probably recognized him and Eneff, and she would want to kill them for fleeing from the O.D. rather than fighting for The Emanicus.
The pythanium that had appeared during the fight might be searching for them, too, and that was a problem. The old kind had been bad enough. These new ones that could turn invisible were worse. Here was another example of Olissa’s incompetence, Kaff thought, frowning. At Elantoth, Marrid had projected an immobility gem and made a pythanium fall from the sky. Olissa had tried the same thing and merely slowed the creature down. She wasn’t powerful enough to immobilize something as large as a pythanium, especially from a distance.
Kaff pushed his unpleasant thoughts aside and forced himself to keep up with the group. His feet ached, and he wished he could sit down for a while, but if Eneff was keeping up despite his injuries, Kaff couldn’t complain. Finally, they reached the end of the passageway. He was relieved to see it was dark outside.
Olissa told the group, “Stay here while I have a look around.”
“Gladly,” Kaff muttered. “Don’t hurry back.”
“Don’t let resentment fester,” Eneff said, touching a cut on his face where the blood had dried. “She did the best she could.”
“Well, her best wasn’t good enough. This wasn’t even a major battle. How are we supposed to survive a fight against hundreds or thousands?”
“Don’t forget, we’ll have more on our side, too. The clans are forming an army. Look, if I don’t hold what happe
ned against her, you shouldn’t. I’m the one who was injured.”
Kaff gave a disgusted snort. “You’re nicer than I am.”
“The breghlin aren’t blaming her, and they lost two of their own,” Eneff said quietly.
The remaining breghlin, Barney, Peter, and Clyde, were standing near the mouth of the passageway, waiting for Olissa to come back and say it was safe to venture out. He was surprised they didn’t resent Olissa after being forced to flee, leaving their dead friends behind. He could tell they were grieving, but they kept it to themselves. As soon as it was safe, the team would attend to Ferdinand and Danny, but with no tools, they couldn’t bury the bodies. They would have to cover them with rocks. Tears stung Kaff’s eyes. Ferdinand and Danny were never going home. Suddenly, it seemed less of a hardship that he and the rest of the team were stranded, their cart and maraku stolen by Outcasts.
Olissa returned a couple minutes later. She couldn’t have gone far.
“I don’t see anyone around. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m almost out of water. Before we do anything else, we should refill our canteens at that stream we passed.”
“Then what?” Kaff asked, not caring that he sounded confrontational. “I hope you plan to take care of Ferdinand and Danny before birds and wild animals eat their bodies.”
“Of course we’ll tend to our dead,” she answered sharply. “But first, we have to get our buried gems.”
“Ya think them Outcasts gived up lookin’ fer us?” Clyde asked. He was the oldest of the three and had tufts of unruly gray hair on the sides of his head that looked like a second pair of ears.
“I don’t know,” Olissa said. “We’ll need to stay alert. Don’t talk unless it’s absolutely necessary, and even then, keep your voices down.”
“I’m sorry to hold everyone up, but I need to rest for a few minutes,” Eneff said.
“A few minutes won’t matter,” Olissa said kindly, setting the lightgem on the floor. “How’s the leg?”
“Better than it was.” He sat down and rested his back against the stone wall, and the others did the same.