Rise of the Elder

by D. K. Holmberg

  What would happen if he managed to reach that crystal?

  He wished that he had looked around when floating from above to see if he could find the missing crystal. If he could see it, he could Slide to it. Instead, he had to rely on what Luthan Saw, and hope that they were able to find it.

  The sense of the presence near him pressed even harder against him, this time forcing him down toward the crystals. Toward the center of the ring. Each time before when he’d come to the crystals, he had stood outside of them.

  Did the Great Watcher want him to stand in the middle of the crystals?

  What would happen if he did?

  Slowly, Rsiran settled, surrounded by the crystals.

  With another flash, a vision so brief he couldn’t track what he was seeing, he was back in his body.

  Rsiran jerked his hand back.

  Alyse still stood next to him, her hand gripping the crystal where he’d forced her to touch. She trembled slightly, and her eyes were open, but rolled back in her head.

  He waited, knowing that he couldn’t do anything to disturb her while she was holding the crystal. What did she see while holding it? Had she been made aware of the Great Watcher? Would she return changed, able to use abilities that she had not before?

  She started to tremble harder.

  Rsiran reached for her then, not wanting the same thing to happen to her as happened to Brusus, fearing that she would start convulsing as he had.

  When he touched her hand, she settled.

  Light streaked from him and arced between the remaining crystals before fading.

  Alyse staggered back with a gasp. “Rsiran?” she asked. “What happened?”

  The light from the crystals began to fade. When they had first arrived, he thought that they had seemed dimmer than before, but now it was clear that they were.

  “I don’t know,” he answered. Alyse didn’t need to know about the visions he’d experienced while touching the crystal, or about the presence that he’d felt behind him, the presence that made him think of the Great Watcher, but also something else that was there, that seemed to be tied to the crystals.

  Regardless of what happened, he knew what he needed to do now more than ever. After the visions that he’d had, he recognized the need to recover the crystal. If he didn’t, more was at stake than he had previously believed; all of the crystals could be lost.

  If that happened… he feared the darkness he saw in his vision.

  Chapter 31

  The landscape outside of Asador had an undulating quality, rolling from a gentle hillside as it swept toward the sea. The air here carried with it a hint of filth, the stink of the city that reached far beyond its walls. Clouds obscuring the nearly full moon spoke of rain, as did the distant rolling of thunder and the occasional flicker of lightning in the sky.

  Rsiran stood with Brusus. Jessa and Alyse remained behind for now. This was only to be a chance to scope out where they would go, not to see his mother or recover the crystal or attack Venass were they to appear.

  “I wish you hadn’t let her reach the crystals,” Brusus said.

  Since returning, Brusus had been silent about the fact that Rsiran had taken his sister to the crystal chamber. Rsiran hadn’t told Della or Luthan that he had touched another one, worrying about what that might mean. If he managed to reach the missing crystal, and if he managed to hold it, what would happen—other than the fact that he would become the first person in Elvraeth memory to have touched each of the crystals?

  “She needed to. We share the same bloodline, only she has abilities of the Great Watcher, unlike me,” Rsiran said. A ribbon of smoke rose in the distance, but Rsiran couldn’t tell if it came from within the city or outside. The city was too far away for him to easily tell. “And… well, it’s Alyse.”

  Brusus breathed out and shook his head with a laugh. “I know how your sister can be. The stubbornness. The way that she gets something in her head and thinks she has the right of it, but this?” He pointed to Asador. “She’s never left the city, Rsiran.”

  “Neither had I before all of this started.”

  “You had ways to protect yourself.”

  “Because I can Slide? She has Sight, and she’s a Reader, and the Great Watcher knows what else she’ll be able to do now that she’s touched that crystal.”

  “Maybe nothing,” Brusus said.

  “Has anything changed for you?”

  “Not that I can tell. I’ve always had strength with my abilities, but…” He shrugged, but Rsiran could tell that it bothered him that he wasn’t able to do more now that he’d held one of the crystals.

  “Like I told Alyse, it took time for me to realize that my connections changed.”

  There was another concern that Rsiran had, one that he feared might be tied to it. What if all the crystals had to be together for something to change?

  If that was how they worked, what would happen to Rsiran when they were brought back together? Yet, he didn’t understand why that would matter. Why would it matter if all the crystals remained together for their influence?

  Did Venass understand they might need to be together to be effective?

  He’d given up hoping that Venass might have overlooked something. With Danis—and the other “scholars” of Venass—he suspected they had thought through all the angles. If so, then what else would they do?

  Rsiran suspected they would somehow drain the crystal of its power, and if it was connected to the others, then they ran the risk of Venass managing to drain all the crystals having only acquired one.

  That gave even more urgency to finding the crystal.

  “You don’t really think she should come with us to Asador,” Brusus said.

  Rsiran shook his head. “I don’t, but since she told me about your other piece of news…”

  Brusus sighed. “Look, I’m sorry I wasn’t the one to tell you.”

  Rsiran smiled. “You don’t have to apologize for anything. I’m happy for you and Alyse.”

  His friend flushed slightly, noticeable even in the rising darkness. “I’ll tell you, after what happened with Lianna, I didn’t think that I’d let myself get close again, but Alyse… she’s so strong. I think that’s what I like best about her.” He looked at Rsiran, meeting his eyes. “Which is what worries me with her, too. Sometimes, she doesn’t recognize when it doesn’t make sense to get involved. I worry that with this, she’s stepping into something bigger than she knows.”

  “I feel the same when it comes to Jessa.”

  Brusus grinned. “With Jessa, you know that she’s strong enough to handle whatever comes. And you know that with her Sight and training as a sneak, she’s a lot less likely to get into trouble than most.”

  “It doesn’t make it any easier,” Rsiran said.

  Brusus let out a sigh. “No. I suppose it doesn’t.” He surveyed the city lit up in the distance. “What now? We came to scout because you said it would be too hard for you to Slide us all at the same time.” He shot Rsiran a sideways glance. “You think we can figure out where the crystal might be?”

  “Figure it out, claim it, and return it.”

  “All of that?”

  “That’s my intent.”

  “What of the others.”

  “If it comes to more than sneaking in and claiming the crystal, we’ll involve the others.”

  “Your sister isn’t going to like that you left her behind.”

  Rsiran shook his head. “Neither will Jessa, but going with a larger group is more likely to get us caught. Better that just you and I move in, swiftly and quietly. Better chance that we get back out.”

  Brusus nodded. “What do you need from me?”

  “For now, just watch me.”

  Rsiran sat on the hillside overlooking Asador. From here, he could Travel, and it wouldn’t require as much strength, not nearly what it would take if he were to Travel all the way from the Aisl, or from Elaeavn. He didn’t know if what he planned would even work, but he ha
d to try. Would he be able to somehow feel the connection to the crystal from here? Now that he had held the others, he thought that he should be able to find it, but if he was wrong, it meant that he would have to search a different way. It might mean involving Jessa and his sister as they wanted, bringing Luthan with him so that they could use his visions to find it.

  It would be simpler if his connection to the crystals would allow him to find it.

  His hand fell to the hilt of the sword he’d forged at the Aisl smithy that connected him to the Elder Trees. As he did, he separated from his body and Traveled.

  The connection took him above his body. He stayed there for a moment, looking at Brusus and himself. Brusus looked so much wearier than he had when Rsiran had first met him. Though he had willingly chosen to come, this was not a fight that he relished. His posture revealed his anxiety, and the darting glances as he studied the night told Rsiran that he was much less comfortable with these missions than he once had been.

  It was a mistake to have brought Brusus, just as it would be a mistake to bring his sister. Jessa would be better equipped—she hadn’t stopped fighting alongside him—but even she didn’t need to be out here.

  This was a fight he should take on alone.

  If he could recover the crystal, the connection would return. He would then restore the Elder Tree—if he could find the way. And then he would defeat Danis. He was the real threat. Once he was gone, the rest of Venass wouldn’t be easy to hunt down, but it would be easier.

  In this insubstantial form, it was all so clear to him in a way that it wasn’t when he remained in his body.

  He could Slide Brusus back to the Aisl, and return in this form, but he still needed someone to watch over him while he Traveled. Without that, he feared any of Venass finding him, stabbing a knife through him or slitting his throat, injuries that he doubted he’d easily recover from, even with the Elder Trees helping.

  Focusing on Asador, he Traveled.

  Rsiran hovered above the city. In this way, he felt more like he had when he held one of the crystals, looking down at the city splayed out below. Even Traveling, he could feel the connection of lorcith and heartstone, and wondered if he could use it while Traveling. Doubtful, at least not without a body to pull or push from. There came a sense of lorcith and heartstone flickering, and he focused on that, realizing it meant Sliding and Venass.

  How many could he detect?

  As he focused, he realized it was dozens.

  They flickered, moving quickly through the city, but why would Venass Slide so aggressively?

  The same reason that he Slid.

  Venass had discovered the crystal in Asador.

  Rsiran had known they would. They were too well connected, too smart, not to learn where it was. Did they know that he’d captured Josun as well?

  He couldn’t worry about what Venass might do. If he found the crystal first, he could remove it and return it to the Aisl, but doing so required that he force himself away from the sense of the flickering lorcith.

  Was there another way he might find it?

  Without Luthan, and someone Sighted as he was, he needed another connection to find the crystal… one that already existed within the city.

  Rsiran focused on the coin that he’d placed on Galen.

  Finding it was easier than reaching for connections with Venass. The coin didn’t move and flicker like the sense from Venass did.

  Once he discovered it, he Traveled there.

  Rsiran appeared inside a tight passageway. Galen was there, tall and lean and wearing a heavy leather overcoat that hung to the floor. Cael was there, as well, wearing a dirty brown dress that brushed the floor. Her dark hair was tied behind her neck, and as he appeared, she looked up.

  “There’s someone here,” she said.

  Galen stood and swept his gaze around the passageway, a pair of darts clutched in his hands. Rsiran noted that he had a gash on his forehead that had been stitched closed. “I don’t see anyone.”

  “Not see,” Cael said. “This is… this isn’t anything like I’ve felt before.”

  She could tell that he was here, the same way that Danis could tell. What was it about Traveling that revealed him to them? With Sliding, he’d learned to pull himself along to avoid detection and influence from those with the ability, but Traveling didn’t have a similar technique, or if it did, he wasn’t skilled enough yet to know how to do it.

  “Where?” Galen said.

  Cael walked toward Rsiran and practically stood in front of him, as if he were there in physical form. “I can almost Read whoever it is,” she noted. “But it’s like there’s not enough for me to Read.” She tipped her head to the side, focusing on where he was. Rsiran remained, curious whether she would be able to detect him or not. A hint of a smile curved her lips. “Rsiran?” she whispered.

  Galen turned quickly. “He’s here?” He reached into his pouch and pulled out other darts, preparing to throw them.

  “He’s here, but he’s not. I don’t understand.”

  “He already claimed Josun, what else does he want?”

  “He wants… the crystal,” Cael said.

  Galen grunted. “Everyone wants the crystal.”

  Cael turned to Galen. “Yes, but I think Rsiran is the only one who should have it.”

  Rsiran returned to his body, grabbed Brusus and Slid, emerging in the passageway.

  When they appeared, Galen stood and held his darts out in front of him. “How did you find us?”

  “The same way I did before,” Rsiran said. He turned to Cael. “Do you have the crystal?”

  “I know that it needs to be returned to the council,” Galen said.

  Rsiran shifted his focus to him. “If you really think that, then you wouldn’t be here. She wouldn’t be here. As I think I have told you, the crystal belongs to the people. All the people. We have to return it or we’ll lose the others.”

  “What?” Brusus asked.

  Rsiran nodded. “I haven’t told anyone that because there’s nothing that can be done other than what we are already doing.”

  “Are you certain?” Cael asked.

  Rsiran looked at her. She had eyes that reminded him of her father, with the same depths and intensity to the gaze, but rather than radiating a cold cunning, she exuded warmth. He understood Galen’s attraction to her. “I’ve held the other four crystals,” Rsiran said.

  Galen stepped in between Rsiran and Cael. “That’s not possible. The crystals can only be held once.”

  “It’s possible, and I have.”

  Galen turned to Cael. “We can’t listen to him. You know what the others have said.”

  “We don’t know whether we can trust the others.”

  “We can trust them more than him,” Galen said, nodding to Rsiran.

  Rsiran didn’t know whether to be annoyed or amused that Galen turned his back on him, almost as if it didn’t matter that Rsiran could Slide and use his knives on him. But then, Galen had seen him nearly die. Without Galen’s help, it was possible he would have died. They didn’t have to agree, but they could work together.

  It only required trust.

  Not only on their part, but on his.

  Rsiran took a deep breath and peeled the bracelets off his wrists.

  “What are you doing?” Brusus whispered.

  “We have to trust them, and they have to trust us,” Rsiran said. He nodded to Galen. “They know where the crystal is. Maybe they even have it.”

  “I can’t tell,” Brusus said.

  Rsiran studied Galen and Cael. “No. I don’t think you’ll be able to Read her, and I suspect she protects him as well.”

  Cael watched him and nodded.

  Rsiran set the bracelets at his feet. “Read me.”

  He lowered the barriers he kept in his mind at the same time, willingly letting someone Read him for the first time in a very long time.

  Cael nodded again.

  There was a presence in his mind. It
was soft, quick, and with a sense of urgency to it.

  Then it was gone.

  “He has held the crystals,” she whispered. “And he must return the last, or more than the crystals will fail.” She watched Rsiran as he placed the bracelets back onto his wrists. Having them on provided him a reassurance that he wouldn’t be controlled and Read, even if he believed that his smith blood protected him from others Compelling him. “The trees. When the crystals fail, so will the trees, and that which powers them.”

  Brusus frowned, but Rsiran was taken back to the vision that he had while holding the last crystal, when he’d felt a presence behind him. He hadn’t been able to see anything, but there had been no doubt that something had been there.

  “They power the trees?” Galen asked.

  Cael walked toward him, and met his eyes. “What did you feel?”

  “I thought… I thought it was the Great Watcher.”

  She nodded. “When I held the crystal, I thought the same. And maybe it is. There are powers beyond the Great Watcher, and I think those are the powers the crystals—and the Elder Trees—tap into.”

  Rsiran had a sudden sense of those powers, almost as if they were sitting behind him, urging him to act. “Do you know where we can find the crystal?” he asked.

  She closed her eyes and nodded.

  “Where?”

  “It will be dangerous to reclaim,” she said. “They have protected it against Venass.”

  “The Forgotten?” Rsiran asked.

  “It’s more than the Forgotten,” Cael said. “It’s always been more than the Forgotten.”

  Rsiran frowned, wondering who else would have an interest in keeping the crystals from Venass. “The Forgotten won’t be able to protect the crystal. I’ve seen how Venass attacks.”

  “But it’s not only them. They sought help, those with other abilities.”

  A fluttering anxiety stirred within him at the memory of the woman who used fire. “What others?”