by Bill Albert
She heard someone calling her name in the distance. She realized it was Blinks and Jakobus urging her to fight on.
The skeleton stood up and came at her with only the flame sword ready to strike. She stood defenseless as it approached, and her thoughts were suddenly cast back to the night in Primor when she saw her blood covered face reflected in the water. What had she asked herself that night?
“Why do I survive?” she asked in a whisper.
“I have to survive!” she said as her thoughts became sharp again. With clear and precise moves she put the points of the swords together and impaled the approaching skeleton. The chest shattered completely, its backbone split in two, and it fell apart. She watched it fall but was unprepared as the sword it had been carrying flew wild. The heavy handle struck her hard in the temple and she dropped to the ground barely breathing.
She kept her eyes open as long as she could but only saw the skull of the skeleton laying on the ground directly in front of her. As her vision blurred she could have sworn it was laughing at her before everything went dark.
FOURTEEN: INSIDE THE STREAM
She looked at Veret, her little brother, and thought of all the miserable things she wanted to do to him. Sure, she thought, he’s only five, a few years younger than her, but she’d spent a whole week in school making the clay figure of a Giant Lord. She had measured, carved and painted it in great detail. The teachers had given her a special ribbon and told her she should enter it in the school contest. She’d carried it home as if it were the most valuable and fragile item in existence. She had propped it on the table in the kitchen for Mom and Dad to see when they came home from working the fields. Then, when she went into her room to get some colored charcoal and paper to make a sketch, her little brother had come into the room.
She’d come back just in time to see him jump from the chair, slip when he hit the loose rug, and fall to the floor sideways. His landing was followed less than a second later by the clay figure. The boy had survived untouched, but the sculpture had not. Whether the boy was going to stay in good shape was now a serious question.
“Gallif,” their mother called from the door. She had seen the first incident and wanted to prevent a second.
Gallif watched the memory stream flow past and was surprised how much she remembered of the day. She remembered mother’s explanation of “That’s what little brothers do,” to get her to understand that it was an accident and get her to laugh about it. She also remembered the frantic search for Veret’s wooden toy horse a week later and wondered if he was told “That’s what older sisters do,” to get him to understand.
Gallif was unsure of exactly what was happening to her now. Once before she believed she was experiencing a dream but the ability to focus from one stream to another was unlike any dream. She knew this was something different, something started by someone else. She suspected that someone may still be inside her mind.
She let the memory go and watched others flow past her. She saw herself at age eleven celebrating her birthday with family and friends. Her first reaction was to smile but then she realized what was coming next. Desperate not to relive the fire she kicked away from the stream and searched for a better pool she would enjoy. She spotted one and quietly dove in.
Maura had appeared standing on top of the stone wall with bow and arrows in hand. She had changed the balance of the fight with a strike and, with Tome and Kavelle; they had defeated the aquilus that surrounded them. Gallif watched as she proudly introduced Maura to the other two. She smiled softly at the feeling of safety and confidence she had felt that day.
Her smile faded with the sudden feeling that something was wrong, and she looked at the area around them with the suspicion they were being watched. No, not that, not that they were being watched, but that she was. She turned to see if someone was behind her but suddenly the feeling was washed away.
“Gallif? Your very name is druid in nature,” the dark-skinned man said.
Gallif suddenly found herself in a new stream. They were back at the camp where they had tried to convince her that her true heritage was druidic in nature.
“Yes,” the woman in the robe of flower petals said. “Your name does lead us to believe that our friend, Alparadis, is correct. My name is Terra.”
Gallif clenched her fists as she watched the stream flow. She did not want what they were saying to be true. She wanted her family.
In the confusion of emotions she felt something nearby. It was stronger than a suspicion and she knew she was being watched.
She turned to one side and saw an image that shimmered as if it were a reflection in water. She looked again and tried to focus, but it waved slightly. Though it felt like it didn’t belong here there was a familiarity about it. It felt as if something from another memory stream was leaking over in to this one.
Yes, she knew it when she caught the wave again. She couldn’t place it exactly, but she knew this belonged someplace else. She concentrated hard on the image, finally said “I know you,” and watched it evaporate.
Gallif was desperate for safety. Confused and feeling like she was being hunted she dived into the brightest memory she could find. She was in the private room at the Bitran estate encouraging Maura to go to the school.
“You’ll be okay. You’ve got more actual experience than almost all of the students had when they started. You’ll learn quickly,” she told Maura without looking at her.
Maura watched her back and finally stood. She walked to the door and was about to open it when Gallif’s handheld it closed. They were face to face and knew what was going to happen next.
“NO!” Gallif yelled at the figure of the old woman who was watching them. “You can’t come here! I don’t want you here,” she cried, and the old woman was swept away.
She tried hard to remove herself from the streams. She fought against the pull and used everything she had to go against the current. She knew that this time, just like the first, the brightest would be followed by the darkest and she wanted out before the panic of drowning took her.
FIFTEEN: RUMBLINGS
“We will wait,” Jakobus said and looked menacingly in to Acrufix’s blank mask. “Between the casting on the armor and her own healing skills she’ll be fine. We’ll just wait until she’s ready.”
“As long as we are going to wait we should be checking things out” Acrufix said. Despite being unable to see his face it was clear by his voice he was ready to confront Jakobus. “While we are waiting for her, we could go back to that junction we found and look at some of the smaller tunnels; see if there are other paths around this area.”
“We stay and wait for her to recover,” Jakobus insisted.
“I have to admit,” Marassa said quietly, “investigating those tunnels while we wait is tempting.”
“Bright thinking,” Acrufix said victoriously. “Follow me,” he said and started to leave. When Jakobus refused to follow, Acrufix turned back on him menacingly. “We can leave one person here, but you are a good fighter and I want you with me.”
“You may be the legend out there,” Jakobus looked at him steely eyed, “but in here you’re nothing. You want to risk your life go ahead, but I will not risk her to protect you.”
There was a dark moment as Acrufix’s hand tightened on the hilt of his long sword. Jakobus kept his hands across his chest but his intent was just as strong. Finally Blinks stepped over to stand next to Jakobus and the moment was broken.
“We won’t go too far,” Marassa said. “Just a bit, to see if there might be something interesting worth checking out later.”
Acrufix held his stance for a moment more and then turned and marched away with Marassa right behind him.
Luvin’s heart was pounding so hard he could feel it in his neck. During the fight he had been unable to concentrate on the thought of attacking even an undead version of himself. He had been hit twice and was losing when Acrufix had come to his aid and started coaching him. The confidence in his v
oice had carried him through. He was looking at the unconscious Gallif when a call got him moving.
Acrufix, Marassa and Luvin quickly marched back to the intersection they had seen earlier. Acrufix did not miss a step and boldly continued down the left-hand path. He kept walking steadily until Luvin finally spoke.
“She’s gone,” Luvin said.
Acrufix instantly turned around and saw that Marassa was not following him. “We don’t need her,” he said. “As a team we won’t need anyone.”
This cave was fairly wide and they were able to walk side by side. There were no paths leading off and they were not worried about anything coming up from behind but stopped in their tracks when they heard something approaching from ahead. It was small but long and appeared to be a wild animal like a dog. As it approached, they heard the panting of an animal and as it closed in, they realized there was more than one. By the time the animals were close enough to identify as ratels they were ready to fight.
The first ratel growled as it launched itself directly at Luvin. The dog-sized rat like animal snapped its jaws at the boy as it lunged. Luvin stepped sideways and swung with his hammer. He missed the fur covered body but had managed to step far enough to one side that the ratel also missed him and collided hard with the rock behind him. The second ratel also lunged at him and another sidestep managed to move Luvin out of the way, but this time he struck the hind end of the animal and it howled in pain.
The third and fourth ratels both went after Acrufix. One jumped high at his chest and the collision knocked Acrufix off his stride and he stumbled back. The other went low for his legs and opened its fanged mouth wide. It’s incredibly sharp and powerful jaws clamped on to a leg, but the armor was strong enough to prevent it from biting him. Acrufix swung his long sword in a low arc and struck it in the side. Ratels have a very thick and strong skin and a strike that would cut most animals in half only sliced open a few inches of its hide. Acrufix drove his sword straight down and impaled the ratel attached to his leg. It twitched briefly and then dropped lifeless. The ratel that had collided with him came back for another attack, but he struck it head on and it died instantly.
Luvin finished off the ratel he had hit before as it came at him from the side. He had to lean over slightly and suddenly felt something heavy and strong jump on his back. The ratels swiped at him with its large razor claws, strong enough to rip through the cast armor on his shoulder. Luvin grunted and fell forward in intense pain and Acrufix removed the animal with a long and mighty slice.
Luvin dropped to his knees but Acrufix caught him before he hit the ground. The older man helped him to the wall so he could steady himself. His face grimaced in pain and his hands were clamped tight.
“Hold on, my friend,” Acrufix encouraged him. “The armor will heal you and the pain will pass.”
They waited silently while the casting cured the wound and repaired itself. By the time Luvin’s breathing had returned to normal the blood on his shoulder had dried.
“You fought well,” Acrufix said as they waited. “I’m more impressed with your skills every time.”
“Thank you,” Luvin said looking up at him.
“I was thinking how there was an occasion, a few months ago, when I wish you’d have been with me. You would have been a great help.”
“What happened?”
“I ended up spending the night at an inn near Bauerent after a great celebration. I had stopped a raid on a coach by a pack of aquilus. There was, I must admit, only six or seven of them but the coach had been carrying the children of a prominent farmer, a son and two daughters, back from Hedle city. I happened along the road at the same time and heard the screams from a mile away. I raced forward at full speed and found the coach on its side,” Acrufix said looking away into the dark. “I jumped from my mount at full gallop and landed on the metal frame bolted to its roof. I climbed up and found an aquilus standing on the door, which was now the roof,” Acrufix spoke using his hands to explain just how close he was to the elf.
“We fought, only a few brief jabs, and I smashed the door frame and it fell inside,” he laughed at the idea. “I looked over the edge and saw the family fighting beneath me. They were cornered between the wheels and couldn’t retreat any further.”
“What did you do?”
“I jumped, a powerful jump, and landed between the aquilus and the family. I quickly got rid of the menace but, just as the last one fell, I saw another standing off holding a spear.”
“Oh, my,” Luvin said and took a deep breath.
“I wish you would have been there. You would have saved me and stopped what happened next.”
“What was it?” Luvin asked as he forced himself to stand. The pain had lessened but he was still sore. “What happened?”
“I knew I only had one choice to do whatever was necessary to save the family.” Acrufix walked to the center of the tunnel and spread his arms wide and puffed up his armor covered chest. “The elf threw the spear, quite a throw for a small animal, and I watched and waited and at the last second struck at the projectile.”
“You knocked it out of the sky?”
“Not completely,” Acrufix said slowly. “I changed its course, but it still struck my left arm. My elbow was broken.”
Luvin came forward and faced him wide eyed.
“I was in pain, but there was still a threat, so I went after the last elf. It came at me ready to fight but, in a great moment, my own loyal horse cut it off and trampled it. She’s a good companion.”
“I was taken back to the house where I was given potions to heal my arm. I keep thinking how, had you been there, it would have been much less painful.”
“I would have watched your back,” Luvin said.
“I know you would,” Acrufix said. “I spent two days and two nights before moving on.”
“That long? Even with potions?”
“Well,” Acrufix paused and let out a short giggle and putting a hand on Luvin’s healed shoulder. “There were other reasons to stay longer. The daughters were most grateful to the man who saved their lives.”
Luvin’s eyes widened as he considered the possibilities. He remembered his experience at the inn and just how good it had felt to be intimate with a woman. The feeling was lost as he looked at the hand on his shoulder and suddenly had an odd thought. “How come your arm is covered?”
“My friend, I’m not sure I understand your question.”
“We all leave our arms bare,” Luvin said pointing out his own. “It’s to honor and show we are not hiding ourselves from the Giant Lords. Yours is covered.”
There was a long pause broken when Acrufix finally looked to the right and to the left. Luvin got the impression he had been checking to make sure no one was listening.
“I work directly for the Giant Lords,” he said slowly. “I am a special agent for the Third Minister and do it with their permission.” Before Luvin could speak Acrufix put a hand up to silence him. “Luvin, I am risking so much telling you this. You must never tell anyone. If you stay with me you will learn more about my special mission.”
Luvin said nothing, felt nothing, and just nodded.
“Come on; let’s find out where Marassa has gone.”
***
“Would you like a drink of water?” Jakobus asked Gallif after she opened her eyes and slowly sat up. He held out the skin of water he carried and put it away when she shook her head.
“No, I think I better not,” she shook her head. She was thirsty and wanted something, but her stomach warned her against it. She slowly got to her feet and asked, “What happened?”
“We each managed to take out our own…opposite? Future opposite? Possible future opposite?” Blinks bumbled not sure of exactly what it was they had fought. “Luvin took his out with some help from the shiny guy. Jakobus took the longest.”
“My fighting style is somewhat methodical,” Jakobus said. “It turned out to be quite a challenge. In the end I had to improvise.”
Gallif smiled kindly at him and said, “Anything you can learn from makes you stronger.” She looked around the area and suddenly realized who was missing. “Where are Marassa and the rest of them?”
“They went back to that junction we passed on the way here to check out some of the other tunnels,” Blinks said with his eyes flapping.
“Damn,” she spat angrily. “What the hell does Luvin think he’s doing?”
“The shiny guy told him to follow and he went. I’m not near as impressed with him as I thought,” Blinks said sadly.
Gallif turned and headed towards the tunnel but paused and put a hand to her stomach before she left the arena.
“You okay,” Jakobus asked.
“Just feeling a little rumbling in my stomach,” she admitted.
“Oh, I get that after eating spicy food,” Blinks said calmly. “Either that or if I sleep with my head pointed south. I can usually get rid of it with a really good burp. If that doesn’t work, I-”
“Let’s get going,” Gallif interrupted and started walking.
Jakobus sighed in relief and followed close behind her.
They were met at the intersection by Acrufix and Luvin.
“Where’s Marassa?” Gallif asked ignoring Luvin’s question about her health.
“I’m not sure,” Acrufix admitted. “We turned left, and she turned right. We just checked out that tunnel but we couldn’t find her.”
Gallif locked her green eyes on Acrufix’s mask and was about to speak when Marassa appeared out of the cave she had been exploring.
“I’m okay,” Marassa said. “I was just taking my time because the passage gets pretty tight in there. It’s really just a dead end.”
Luvin coughed and was about to say something when Acrufix nudged him to be quiet.