“Eh good riddance,” said Girwirt from beside Noralim. “It just goes to show you that everything is better underground.”
Noralim slapped Girwirt on the shoulder, but Seph began to speak so Jak didn’t bother to reply to the gnome. “Ultimately, I think this will cause some problems with the verbal agreement you made with the queen. She could see this as an act of aggression, negating her part in the bargain.”
Gabriel nodded. “I agree. Though from what I know of the queen, she might have been looking for an excuse to break the agreement anyway.”
“You think she may be responsible for the lives of her own men?” Jak asked.
“Mm, I don’t think so,” Skellig said. “It wouldn’t make tactical sense. If she wanted to frame us, she would have used something that more obviously tied their deaths to the Fae. This was something strange and new. And you said yourself that mere moments had passed since you left the queen. She wouldn’t have had time to orchestrate something so quickly.”
“Yes, I think this is something else,” said Seph. “But we have to be prepared for her to place the blame on us.”
“Which raises the question,” said Cerai from her place in the column of water extending out of the river. “Did we have anything to do with it?”
“Not intentionally,” said Jak, though she had been thinking the same thing.
“Not intentionally, no. But most of the Fae here were changed against their will by a Relic of unknown power. Could the Pillar of Eternity or some other Relic be responsible?”
“But these men weren’t even changed into a Fae. They were simply swallowed up by the ground.” Jak said.
“I think that might be something worth looking into,” said Amelia beside Cerai. She met Jak’s eyes for a moment, with an embarrassed expression on her face, like she didn’t like the idea of blaming Jak, albeit indirectly.
“I agree,” said Gabriel. “We should look into that possibility, as it could affect many of the other humans in the camp. We know of no Relics more powerful than the Pillars of Eternity, and if it behaves like the other Relics that turned humans into Fae, it warrants further study.”
Jak’s gaze dropped to the Relic in her hands. The polished black shaft gleamed in the afternoon light. Hopefully it wasn’t responsible for what happened to those men out there, but if it was, Gabriel was right. They needed to study it. She glanced at Yewin and her mother, both of whom had remained silent thus far. She caught the barest flicker of a nod in the glowing green eyes of her mother.
Slowly, she held it out towards Gabriel. “I think you are all correct. We need to know more before taking further action. If we are responsible for this, then we must own that responsibility.”
Gabriel stepped forward and took the Pillar from her. A wave of loss came unexpected as it left her hand, and suddenly her weariness intensified. She took a small step back to steady herself from a slight wave of dizziness. Then it subsided. After giving herself the Sleeplessness brand, she had thought such feelings were beyond her now. It had only been a day and already she felt like sleeping.
“I think it’s best if I start my examination straight away,” Gabriel said, turning towards the camp.
Jak nodded, and Gabriel turned to leave.
“Lady Oren!” Elva rounded one of the tents at a full sprint and nearly collided with Gabriel on his way out. When she regained a stable footing, and pushed past Gabriel, she held out her arm to Jak. In it was a small scrap of paper. “Forgive my intrusion, but this just came from the enemy camp.”
Dread stabbed at Jak’s chest like a cold knife. Reaching one arm forward she accepted the note, unfolded it, and read silently to herself.
Esteemed Jak. In light of recent events regarding some of my men on the field, and many others within my camp, it is clear to me that you do not mean to honor your part of our agreement. I therefore have no choice but to assume your hostile intent and act accordingly. Sincerely yours, Queen Telma.
The note ended with the queen’s signature and seal.
Jak took a deep breath and let it out slowly. So that was it. All that talk about peace thrown out the window with the dishwater. She glanced at the rest of the council, and Elva, all of whom were waiting patiently. She read it out loud for all to hear.
“Well, that’s not all that surprising,” said Seph. “I told you she would look for an excuse to get out of any peace talks. I am surprised that she said anything at all. Why not just attack without warning?”
Skellig asked to take the note from Jak, who complied. The former Watcher examined it closely. “It doesn’t necessarily say anything about an attack. It just says she will ‘act accordingly.’”
“I made it clear that she cannot win against us. Or against me at least. The power of the Pillar of Eternity alone is enough to grant us victory.”
“You plan to defeat their army single handedly?” Skellig raised an eyebrow at her.
Jak thought back to the weariness she felt from using the Pillar of Eternity. “Well, no, but it certainly gives us an advantage.”
“Yes, well we must assume that she’s planning something, though honestly I’d be more suspicious if she had said outright that they planned to attack. That would likely have been a misdirection, distracting us from her true goal. I’m not sure if this is any better.” She turned to Elva. “Can you arrange for any Sightseers in our ranks to watch the enemy camp?”
Elva nodded and said, “at once,” before retreating.
“So what do you propose we do?” said Jak once Skellig faced her again. She needed the woman’s expertise on this matter. Maybe it was how tired she felt, but her mind was not ready for strategy right now.
“Well regardless, I think it’s clear that diplomacy is over, and it failed. Our only hope is to retreat into the mountains or attack. If we stay here, we only give her time to work out a plan.”
Jak nodded. “Okay then, I say we prepare to leave. With the gnomes and dwarves to guide us, we might find a suitable home among the mountains, though preferably not inside them,” she added with a glance at Girwirt and Noralim. The gnome’s face fell in disappointment.
Yewin spoke for the first time. “I will make sure that my people are ready.”
“As will I,” said Karlona, also speaking for the first time.
Jak nodded. It was good to have the Fae on their side. The rest quickly agreed, though Cerai and Amelia still seemed reluctant. The river extended partway into the mountains, but ultimately it would grow more violent and harder to navigate for the Water Fae. And they didn’t know how long before it disappeared completely. But it was still their only choice right now. And they eventually agreed once Jak pointed out that in a worst case scenario, they could probably swim back down the river unseen.
Eventually the council disbanded and they all went to their separate areas to break camp. They had already begun to do so in preparation, but there was still a lot of work to be done before they were ready to leave. And they needed to work fast in case the queen meant to attack them soon.
Skellig followed Jak since their tents were near each other. The major said little as they moved, seemingly lost in thought. Jak didn’t bother her. She was probably planning their strategy moving forward, and Jak left her to her thoughts.
“Lady Oren,” said a voice from one side. Both Jak and Skellig turned to see Elva running towards them again, this time followed by a young Watcher boy that had accompanied Jak and the Fae out of Mt. Harafast. A quick glance at the Watcher’s left hand as he greeted them told Jak that he was a Sightseer. Had he seen something? Was the queen marching on them already?
Skellig was already ahead of Jak. “What have you seen?” she asked the Sightseer.
“Something is happening in the enemy camp, sir,” said the young Watcher, saluting Skellig and Jak.
“An attack?”
“No, sir. Not on us, at least. It’s something else. We’re not quite sure what it is, but it looks like they’re under attack, sir.”
J
ak frowned. That didn’t make any sense. Skellig seemed to share her confusion. “Say that again?”
“We didn’t get too close, but from what we can tell there are some large...things tearing through their camp. Their army is in disarray.”
A wave of something like relief rushed through Jak. Maybe the queen wouldn’t attack them after all.
But Skellig, if anything, looked even more concerned. Turning to Elva she said, “Bring me a horse.” Elva did not hesitate, but turned and sprinted back the way she had come, towards the front of the camp. Skellig followed at a slow jog, motioning Jak and the Sightseer to come as well.
“What do you think it is?” said Jak as they moved quickly towards the edge of their camp.
“I don’t know, but if it means trouble for them, it will mean trouble for us,” Skellig said without breaking stride. The woman was so tall that Jak had to push herself a bit to keep up.
When they reached the edge of the camp, Elva was unlatching two of their horses. They only had a handful, and they weren’t cavalry horses, but were used mostly by scouts, which was a good thing, as they were usually fast.
For a moment, Jak paused. Perhaps she should go back and find the Pillar of Eternity. With that, she could arrive at the enemy camp in no time. Then again, she had just agreed to let it go for a time, so they could make sure it was safe. She didn’t want to unwittingly cause any more disruptions. Instead she would have to rely on her brands. Jak followed Skellig, climbing onto the second horse while the Sightseer hoisted himself up behind Skellig.
With a swift kick, Jak guided the horse away from the camp, with Skellig at her side. It only took a minute or two to find the two mounds of earth where the earth had swallowed up the assassins hours before. Nothing appeared to have changed. Moving just beyond the small mounds, Skellig pulled up short. Jak followed suit. They didn’t want to get too close, depending on the situation.
Jak peered in the distance. She didn’t have the eyes of a Sightseer, though she could clearly make out the individual tents from this distance. And she could hear.
Shouts echoed from the enemy camp, shouts and screams, the clink of metal on metal, and a strange bellowing sound of some sort.
She squinted, trying to make out what was causing the commotion. There was a lot of movement, but a few lone shapes stood out to her. They were taller than the rest, darker, and there was something not quite human about them. They looked...lumpy. Jak couldn’t find another way to describe them from this distance. What exactly were they? A demon attack perhaps? If so, those were incredibly large demons.
The strange figures appeared to be the source of the chaos. They swung what must have been enormous arms, and with each swing Jak saw the glint of metal armor in the sunlight as soldiers went flying. Skellig was right, whatever was happening, it probably wasn’t a good thing for them either.
“What the…” Skellig trailed off as she too squinted in that direction. A faint rumbling sound came from behind them, momentarily distracting Jak, though Skellig seemed to take no notice. Jak turned to see what was causing the noise and immediately found its source.
The mounds behind them, the ones that had swallowed up the assassins earlier, were moving. The earth was clumping together, moving supernaturally upward and outward, forming what looked like two structures of some kind. It wasn’t just dirt anymore, it was made of hard stone, or what looked like stone at least. And as it moved, Jak could see small flashes of purple light emanate from between the different stones. Like some invisible force holding it all together.
“Skellig?” she said, not taking her eyes off of what was happening. Skellig gasped. She must have turned and seen what Jak was seeing.
The Sightseer also yelped as the rocks continued to pile upward, defying gravity and eventually forming what appeared to be large creatures of some kind, vaguely human in shape. Their dark, earthy forms rose several feet above Jak and Skellig, even while they sat on horseback.
Then one of them began to move.
It turned, and Jak could make out two pinpricks of a bright purple light in the area that must have been its head. The light was strange, unlike the constant green light of the Shadow Fae’s eyes, this light danced and flashed erratically. It reminded Jak of the light called by someone with a Thunder brand. The light of a storm.
Those strange eyes fixed on Jak, Skellig, and the Sightseer. For a moment, nobody moved.
Then with speed uncharacteristic of their huge bulk, the two monsters sprang at them. Skellig immediately spurred her horse, which lunged forward and to one side, missing the giant arms of the rocky forms as they lashed out right where the horse had been moments before. The horse whinnied and began galloping away, with Skellig and the Sightseer barely hanging on to the spooked animal.
Jak was not as quick. With a bellow that shook the air around it, the second beast barrelled into Jak’s horse. She went flying, tumbling to the ground. She was on her feet in an instant, and it was a good thing too, as the two giant arms of the monster came hurtling down. She leapt backward to avoid it, but her horse was not as fortunate. Still lying on the ground and unable to get up, the rocky arms slammed into it. The horse gave a pained cry and Jak heard the sickening crunch of its bones breaking.
She couldn’t mourn for the horse now. Already the beast had noticed her and began stepping over the horse and coming at her. Even with Strength, that thing would swat her like a fly if it got too close. She feinted and dodged to one side, the giant lumbering form carried by its momentum past her.
Then she called up the magic of Flamedancing and sent a wave of fire hurtling at the creature. The fire passed right over it like water over rocks. It had no effect other than to make its head turn towards her.
Right, so fire was useless against these things. If only she had Telekinesis, perhaps she’d have a chance. Though she wasn’t sure if even a Telekinetic could hold something so strong. Maybe several Telekinetics together.
Again it bellowed, like the sound of bricks sliding against each other, but far louder. It came at her, and Jak had no choice but to dodge again. It missed once more, but only just. While beside it, Jak slammed her shoulder into its huge form, calling on every ounce of brand-enhanced strength to push against it. Perhaps if she could knock it over, she’d have enough time to run away.
Pain shot through her shoulder as it met with the immovable force of the rocky creature. The momentum of her Strength-enhanced blow knocked it off balance, but did little else. It still stood on both feet. Slowly this time, it turned to face her, its electric eyes flashing even in broad daylight. This close, Jak could see that a similar light surrounded its rocky body, especially at the joints, where rocky flesh seemed to move and connect unnaturally together, somehow held in place by the strange light.
Yet Jak thought she saw something in those eyes, as strange as they were.
Fear. Primal, instinctive fear.
This creature wasn’t attacking out of hatred or for any other motive. It was attacking because it was afraid.
Jak barely had time to register the thought before a stony arm came crashing down to meet her. Just in time, she rolled away, grateful for the training she’d received from Naem during her months with the Watchers and at Skyecliff. She rolled out of the way, and rose just as she saw Skellig come speeding back on her horse.
A spout of fire shot out of Skellig’s hands, enveloping the stony creature attacking Jak. In the distance Jak could see the second figure, chasing after Skellig, though unable to run as fast as the horse.
Jak’s attacker turned to face the new threat. It bellowed and lunged at Skellig, who immediately turned her horse and ran away, leading both of the creatures away from Jak.
Bless that woman. Jak now had a chance to get away. Turning towards their camp, she ran for all she was worth, counting on Skellig to lead the two monsters away and circle around to the camp.
This must be what was happening in Queen Telma’s army. She had mentioned in the note that there were more �
�incidents’ among her other men. Whatever had happened to those two assassins in the field must have also happened to others in the camp. And now there were probably many of those things causing chaos throughout the enemy establishment.
Once again, a pang of guilt shot through Jak. If the power of the Pillar of Eternity was responsible for all this, then it really was her fault for taking it to Telma’s camp and spawning chaos.
Hooves echoed behind her. Skellig must have circled back around already.
“Get on!” Skellig called to her, and Jak did not have to be told twice. Three people on one horse was almost too much, and she nearly fell off the back of the horse several times as they cleared the rest of the distance to their camp. But Skellig did not slow, and Jak did not blame her. A few times she tried to look back and see if those creatures were following them. They may have been, but Jak could not see either way.
“Mobilize!” Skellig shouted as their horse hurtled into camp. “Weapons ready. Fae and combat brands at the front.”
Soldiers began scrambling, knowing that when their chief commander dramatically entered camp like this, it was time to move and obey, asking questions later.
Jak pushed herself off the horse’s rear, landing softly on the ground. Skellig continued circling round the camp, shouting orders as she went.
Instead, Jak ran to her tent, finding her own set of armor and her father’s spear lying inside. With as much speed as she could muster, she threw on the leather and strapped it down. She had a set of heavier armor, but she wasn’t sure it would do any good against creatures like these. Speed would be more important.
She wasn’t sure if the monsters were coming their way, but Skellig was right to have everyone on their guard. If they were coming, they would likely need everyone to take them down.
Dressed and spear in hand, Jak ran back to the front, where all of the Fae, Watchers, and other humans were already falling into ranks. Most of the humans without combat brands stood in the back, holding bows instead.
Jak pushed past them, pushing her way to the front, eventually finding herself among the Shadow Fae, the most numerous of the Fae in their camp, and the most combat ready.
Into Storm Page 5