Valbore (Tasks of the Nakairi Book 1)

by K. E. Young

  The last bit of flight was over the small delta that used to be the terminus of the river. It was a salt marsh now, rank with garbage. That bit could get ugly. Maybe a real mage could help. Most of it was clearing sand and mud, but there was no way to tell from above what lay beneath it. We needed something touching bedrock all the way and not all rivers did that. I decided to leave the marsh for last. Maybe natural water pressure would clear that part out once I took the channel all the way to the Silver.

  We landed above the marsh and Kaio retrieved a map from one of Thorn's baskets. "You saw the path we need to take? Where do you want to start?"

  I gathered my thoughts and explained, pointing out where everything needed to happen. "I'll start down here. All that sand, rock, and debris needs to go someplace so this is what I'll do…" I explained about the walls along either side of the river with stairs down to river level walkways and bridges at regular intervals.

  "When we get above the town I need to put a barrier up then continue until I reach the Silver. The sand and debris I pull out at that point will have to go on the riverbank for now. Maybe I can compact it down into sandstone so it doesn't wash away and muddy up the river again. Once I have that part cleared, I'll remove the barrier. It will wash down the river and clear a path through the marsh. We will still need to do cleanup in the marsh, but I'm hoping the water itself will do most of the work."

  Kaio looked concerned. "That's a lot of effort. Maybe you shouldn't waste it on building walls?"

  "Kaio, all that stuff has to go somewhere and it'll be the same effort to haul it far enough away it doesn't fall back into the river as it would be to do something useful with it closer. It might take more attention, but I've always worked better with details to occupy me. Besides, the slope up from the old riverbed to the slums is too soft to keep a river in place. The hive is a floodplain, it's just sand, clay, and gravel. We need the construction to define the river. I'm footing those walls on bedrock. Besides, it will give me a place to terminate sewers serving the slums after this is all over."

  Kaio was quiet for a moment then smiled and kissed my forehead. "All right. As long as you're sure, just be sure to use as much donated energy as you can. We should have plenty of donors when you need them. Let's get you to the starting point and begin. Sano, his men, and the soldier trainees have been clearing Dead Water Road since dawn." He turned to a guardsman. "Fly ahead and let them know we're starting. The first section needs to be clear in less than ten minutes. Thorn, Sano has ordered his men to keep the crowds away from us, but you know it won't necessarily keep Sara safe so keep a close eye on the crowds."

  Thorn acknowledged orders as the guardsman bolted for the skies and flew ahead. We loaded up again and followed him. It was a short flight for me since we weren't going far. The Captain was the first to step up to share his power. Kaio reminded me, yet again, I was to use as little of my own power as possible as there were more dragonkin arriving to help. I was getting a little tired of his broken record impression. I was a little ashamed of my impatience a moment later when I felt a trickle of anxiety from Kaio. He was just worried about me.

  I surveyed the map one last time to make sure I knew what I wanted to do but remembered the differences in Sano's office map. Placing my hand on the earth, I felt for the bedrock. I lost myself in the feeling for a few minutes, but it told me I needed to make a slight change in plans. "Kaio, the original riverbed has changed. Dead Water road follows the new path and the bedrock's broken up there. There's a section right around here," I pointed it out on the map, "where I need to take it back past the old waterfront in order to properly foot the river on bedrock. They will need to clear that quickly, this section shouldn't take long. There's less debris over the bedrock here than I thought. In fact, I must dig into the bedrock to get the water to flow. That's part of why it dried up."

  I checked my programming notes to make sure my 'programs' would work the way I thought they would. Fortunately, this was relatively simple. I wasn't transmuting anything, just rearranging it. My trials with tunneling gold coins had taught me a few shortcuts. I was pretty sure I could re-use the static energy it would generate too.

  Kaio nodded and signaled to a guardsman as I sank back into my land trance. Captain Blas's energy was rough but powerful. It bent to my will easily and I began my work. I closed my eyes so I could focus. I had work to do.

  Kaio: 33rd of Hunting, 3837

  Kaio watched as Sara closed her eyes and took up her self-appointed task. For a few moments, nothing happened. Then the ground underfoot quivered and the air filled with static. Slowly at first, then with gaining speed, the ground around the starting point Sara had chosen downstream wavered and flowed.

  The streams of sand, mud, and gravel collected to each side of the river's proposed path, condensing into smooth swirling stone. This new stone flowed like water and what was once broken and fragmented became whole. Abruptly, the bedrock itself split down the center of the river path and swelled in high waves to each side. They paused there for long heartbeats before settling into smooth seamless walls of beige stone the same height as the streets.

  The progression swept slowly upstream, the waves of stone gaining height until they towered over the little group and Kaio heard the guards gasp. Kaio couldn't help the feeling of awe that crept over him as the waves of stone towered over him then settled into place. It was one thing to see the works of the Mage-Kings and know the kind of power that went into their creation. It was another thing entirely to see it happen with his own eyes. After the wave had passed Kaio realized a loud, deep, singing, hissing roar filled the air. The voice of the earth. The smell of ozone and damp, hot stone tickled his nose.

  Further upstream, water-level walkways appeared, or what he assumed would be water level. At intervals, Sara linked the walkways to the streets with stairs.

  When the construction came to the now abandoned buildings and huts, something new happened. Long tentacles of stone carefully grasped them and took them apart then stacked the pieces of wood and timber on the riverbank. Kaio watched as a threadbare looking fellow directed people to take the stacked material and carry it further into the Hive for reuse.

  As Blas signaled to one of his men to take over, a new facet of the construction presented itself as Sara gathered stone into a thick berm crossing the river path. She paused a moment then the whole of the berm vaulted up, defying gravity into a graceful bridge. As the bridge settled into place an earsplitting crack snapped out and puffs of dust rose from each end. The ends of the bridge had separated from the walls and rested on the bed prepared for it. Kaio gaped in confusion. Why not leave it all of a piece?

  It took him a few moments to realize if the bridge had been a single piece, it might have interrupted the shielding. A riverbed of a single piece worked since the river itself acted as an interrupt, but a bridge would tie the land together without an interrupt. It would have made a gap in the path the magic took. Kaio relaxed. His mate knew exactly what she was doing.

  The people were gathering beyond the reach of the construction slowly sweeping upstream, crying out in their excitement and wonder. Kaio heard one of Sano's guards telling people about how Sara had fixed the stone pillar in the palace. He wondered if it was under orders or if the guard volunteered the story for his own reasons. One woman herding two small children towards the new bridge was smiling and laughing as tears rolled down her face and Kaio realized Sara brought them hope. While she may still be in danger from the lords, she had nothing to fear from the people.

  In their time of fear, Sara's actions were so far above what most mages could manage, the fact she was female was no longer important. She had mended the stone whose breaking they believed had corrupted Therys, and now she was working to protect them from the valbore in a way no one had done in over a thousand years. All the stories and legends of this land told of the Mage-Kings feats, and now they were seeing one first hand. She was a Mage-King brought to life, one of their heroes.

 
; Hope.

  Sara: 33rd of Hunting, 3837

  When Blas's energy faltered, another took his place. After that, I stopped for a snack and we moved locations. The construction was exactly as I had imagined in my mind as I built it, just muddier. The river would wash the mud away though. I had carefully checked the levels of the Silver River before putting the walkways in place. I wanted to make sure they were at the right height so I didn't have to redo them.

  Spectators watched from a distance, but Sano's men had caught up to us and kept the crowd at bay. The people didn't seem upset over having to evacuate. This surprised me, but Kaio explained Sano had told them why they had to move, and the fact we were trying to set up protection from the valbore for them made the move palatable. I hoped they liked the improvements I was putting in place as I went.

  I got back to work. As I drained each helper, another took their place. I stopped to rest and snack whenever we moved locations. All day long, I worked. Despite all of the donations, I was still nearing the limits of my strength when Kaio and Sano joined with me for the last section. The barrier was in place and all I needed to do was clear out the divergence. The sand was the hardest part. It slipped from my grip because of the water. Sano did his best to help with the water, but it still took more of my energy to control than it should have. Eventually, my frustration got the better of me. I dug down to bedrock and swept it up and to the sides to clear away as much of the muck as I could.

  The channel to the Gold would be a little deeper than I had planned, but it should be fine for now. Many rivers have holes in them, you just don't see them because of the water. I could fuse the sand on the riverbank into stone and fill the hole. Later, when I had the energy.

  I pulled out and rested for a few moments before I dug into my snack basket and pulled out the last of it. Thorn had refilled the basket at least once during the day because I didn't remember seeing this variety of fruit when I poked through it this morning. Maybe it had come from Drakken. Whatever it was, it was tasty.

  "I like this." I waved the remains of the fruit. "That's it for the moment. We need to make sure nobody is in the riverbed because as soon as I take down the barrier, water will rip through. They'll see a drop in water level on the Silver. We'll need to dredge it and I can feel the swamp between the city and the mountains will start draining. I think the Gold River silting up created the swamp. We may end up with more farmland and fewer insects from this." I looked over at Sano who had dropped and was snoring softly.

  Kaio tiredly nodded and turned to a wide-eyed teen boy I didn't recognize. "Go down the river and pass the word. When it's clear, come back here and we'll drop the barrier." The boy snapped a salute and transformed. His dragon was smaller and a good deal leaner, whippy rather than muscular.

  Kaio answered my questioning glance. "Military trainee. Urash sent all the military that could move on short notice to help organize efforts against the valbore. They'll stand watch on the borders of the shield if the valbore breaks loose. Right now, they're evacuating the lords to a ruined fort in the Waste. A group of mages is already setting up the spells. After your description of how you would clear that last part by the marsh, I suggested they have a few mages use the sea to clear the sand and dirt. They got the worst of it during high tide so I don't think there will be much of a problem there."

  "The lords will still be a problem won't they?"

  He gave me a sly smile. "Not all of them. You didn't notice when Lords Sendan and Varlis fed you their strength. They weren't happy it was a woman doing the work, but they couldn't argue with either the reasons or the results. The sheer scope of what you were doing rattled them. They saw an earth mage at the height of her power doing what no one has done since the fall of the Mage-Kings, helping a people not her own. You opened more than a few eyes." He chuckled. "The troops evacuating the lords took care to make a close pass over us to see your work up close on their way to the Waste. More of them will turn to us now. It's always hardest to get the first few."

  I sighed. Politics. At the moment, I didn't care in the slightest. I just needed to finish before Dagresh's friends freed the monster. "I'm tired down to my bones Kaio."

  His brow creased in sympathy and concern. "Not much more and if I'm not mistaking my eyes, the Emperor himself will be here to help you drop the barrier. Urash arrived earlier today. He's been organizing the mages in getting the trap spells set up and ready. He agreed our plan to seal the valbore in the city is the best option for now. Dragos, Girru, and Arhis got the vault-library moved and workers have been packing up the palace and moving it all to the fort. Since the pillar anchoring the spells is in the palace, we must include it in the area the spells cover. So, since we don't want you near the valbore, you get to stay at the fort with the library instead of the palace."

  I felt disappointment spike. "I won't get a hot bath will I?"

  He smiled and said, "Of course you will. It takes a little more effort to arrange is all. No one can say you haven't earned it."

  The arrival of a dragon a shade larger than Kaio's delayed further discourse. It was a pearly silver with green shading on the tips of the scales, emerald green eyes, and black tiger stripes on his flanks. Pretty, but I liked Kaio's bronze, purple, and gold better. A tired looking Captain Blas and a handful of others accompanied him.

  When he transformed he turned into a handsome young man who made my heart pound with terror. Kaio bolted to his feet in alarm as horror swamped my mind.

  "Sara, what's wrong? Urash, stand back. Something is wrong."

  Once more, I struggled and shrieked in Kaio's arms, this time as the memory of flames licked my flesh. Kaio's presence in the bond helped me fight past it, but it took longer for me to recover this time than it had when Kaio rescued me from the basement dream.

  After I had calmed a little, Kaio pressed a small cup to my lips and I swallowed the liquor in a gulp. It burned in a different way than the memories had and I welcomed it. "Sara. What happened?"

  I panted as I felt the panic rise again. "It's Carlos. It's Carlos…"

  "Calm down, my love. You are safe. You said that name before. Who is Carlos?"

  I looked up at Kaio. "He left me to burn." Kaio blanched and I burst into tears again, burying my face in his chest.

  I could hear him relaying the explanation as I continued to sob. "Urash, it seems you are a twin to the man who raped and tortured her, then left her to burn when he set the shack on fire. She escaped, but it left her crippled and severely scarred. The Goddess removed the scars when she brought Sara here."

  A deep voice murmured something I didn't catch and Kaio froze for a moment. "Sara. My One. Urash says he can help you. He can blur some of the details of your memories. While he can't rid you of them completely, he can make them less terrifying. He asks what memories would be best to blur."

  My mind snatched for meaning before it settled and his words made sense. I thought back to what terrified me most. "My step-father's scent, Carlos's face, the little girl's screams as they fed her to the valbore."

  The deep voice I had heard before came from behind me. "And the valbore itself?"

  "No! Not yet. I need to remember it so I know why I have to destroy it."

  There was a long pause before he said, "Close your eyes and focus on your stepfather's scent. This will feel — odd."

  Long fingers threaded themselves through my hair to lay tight to my scalp. At Kaio's encouraging smile, I did as he requested. My heart raced as I recalled his cologne. The smell of it drifting down the steps as he slowly came down the dark stairs. I felt a wave of disorientation and all at once, I couldn't quite seem to recall it. When I focused on the scent, what drifted through my mind kept changing. It wasn't a single smell anymore, but a plethora of them and I could no longer pick out the one that had terrified me so.

  "Good. You have a strong mind. Your memories are sharp. Now think of Carlos's face."

  Once again, my heart raced as I drifted into a flashback. Carlos's face in t
he crowd after I thought I was free of him, seeing him in my apartment waiting for me, his laughter as he swung the tire iron that shattered my arm and kicked me in the back. The sweet peaceful smile as he said goodbye and set fire to the gasoline he had splashed around and over my abused and broken body. The disorientation took longer to hit this time, then I couldn't seem to recall the face. His features morphed and wobbled. Again, I found I could no longer pick out the face that had frightened me.

  The voice wasn't so smooth anymore. "I see why you found him so terrifying. He was evil in the purest sense. I'm sorry you suffered so much. Now think of when the valbore fed on the little girl. I need you to recall it as clearly as you can so I can blur the voice without blurring the valbore. Are you certain you don't want me to blur the valbore? It's not too late to change your mind."

  "I need to remember. For now anyway. Maybe later."

  "As you wish. Begin."

  I remembered the trek through the tunnels to the round room with all the other tunnels branching off it, the smell of the incense, and the shadowed figures standing along the walls. The little girl's fearful crying and pleading and her terrified screams as the shadow monster showed itself, then her agony ringing out as Dagresh skinned her alive, letting the blood and her soul flow into the basins to feed that thing.

  Once more, I lived through screams echoing off the walls to come at me from every direction, surrounding me in mortal fear and agony as a child died in the most horrific way possible. The blessed silence a relief as she finally ceased breathing. The deep, twisting pain when it drank my blood and the horrifying feel of its hunger and rage in my own mind. Dagresh's satisfaction when he told me I would be the monster's steed at the next red moon and the Arboren would claim their birthright.