“You were there when it happened, why do you need to hear about it?”
Lauryn snorted. “Really? I wasn’t really watching for most of it. I never did hear how Ky’ara defeated the necromancer. If you recall, I was pretty occupied trying to save my own skin.”
Joran shrugged, absently kicking rocks to the side as they walked.
Lauryn stopped and put her hands on her hips. “What is it, Joran? You’re being so serious. What could possibly have happened in the last five minutes to make you this gloomy?”
Joran turned back to look at her. “Myrnai is dead,” he blurted out, not knowing how else to broach the subject.
“What?” Lauryn looked confused more than anything, so he forged ahead.
“Myrnai sacrificed herself to help Ky’ara escape Death after defeating the Necromancer. Ky’ara had me pull you outside because she didn’t want you to find out that way.”
“So she had you tell me instead?”
“Well, yeah...I imagine she intended me to be a bit more...sensitive.”
Lauryn was silent. Joran stood, nervously pulling at a thread on his tunic. Should he give her a hug? Was she mad at him? “Lauryn?”
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I actually just kinda forgot, with everything else that happened…”
“You forgot!?”
She was angry. Great. How could he fix this? “I know it must be hard to take in…”
Lauryn gaped at him in disbelief. “Myrnai is DEAD. Apparently it’s Ky’ara’s fault and somehow you just forgot?”
“Myrnai chose to die, you can’t blame Ky’ara.” Joran folded his arms across his chest.
“I can certainly blame her for not telling me!” Lauryn retorted.
“We’re telling you now! How would it have changed anything if you’d known earlier? Would it really have helped?”
Lauryn shot him a scowl and pressed her lips into a tight line. Joran immediately regretted having said anything at all. Why couldn’t Ky’ara have done this? He let his arms fall to his sides. “I’m sorry. I can’t change what happened. If you want to know specifics I’m sure you can ask Ky’ara,” Joran said stiffly.
He waited for her to respond, but she just looked away. Fine then, if that’s how she wanted to be, he would leave her to it. Deep down he knew she was just trying to control her emotions, and anger was her way of dealing with the grief, but it was hard not to be mad at her for taking it out on him. He turned and walked back to the command tent, pausing as he lifted the flap and looking back at Lauryn. She stood where he’d left her, staring at the ground a few feet ahead and clenching her fists. Somehow, despite the defiant posture, she just looked lost.
* * * * *
Calistra listened to Ky’ara’s story with growing trepidation. It didn't seem like they'd found the answers she'd been hoping for. Now they knew who the Destroyer was...that was a step up, but they still had no idea how to defeat her. And worse, they had a time limit now.
"Are you sure you aren't leaving anything out?” she asked Ky'ara, "I can't believe you traveled all the way there and still didn't learn how to use the crystal.”
"I don't think the druids even knew how to use it,” Ky'ara said, glancing at Taren and giving the slightest shake of her head. She was leaving out something, just not something about using the crystal. Hopefully he would take the hint and stay quiet about it. "I read some excerpts of their research while I was there, and there was a lot about them looking for answers, but not a lot about them finding answers. Mostly I learned what didn’t work.”
"Such as?"
"Well, the crystal's creation was what caused the darkness that inhabits the Destroyer in the first place, so it stands to reason that destroying the crystal might eliminate the darkness. But they tried destroying it using any means possible—magical or physical—and it didn't work. It can't be destroyed. At least not by any method they tried.”
"Seems like a dangerous thing to do anyways," Calistra said, "What if they had succeeded in destroying the crystal, but that failed to fix the problem? Then they would've smashed their only chance at keeping this world in balance."
Ky'ara nodded. "I know. It was risky, but they were desperate. They tried a lot of things—some that probably hurt their cause more than helped.”
Calistra sighed. "So what is your plan moving forward? Are you going to stay with us and assist with the invasion, or will you be going someplace else to look for more answers?"
"I don't know that leaving would do any good. It’s getting too dangerous anyhow," Ky'ara said. "I need to figure this out, but I think we'll be staying with you for the time being.”
“Good. The people need a bit of a morale boost, and seeing you here with us will help them remember what we’re fighting for.”
Ky’ara nodded, trying to ignore the feeling that she had somehow let everyone down by not coming back with answers. She needed to spend more time examining the crystal. She couldn't help feeling like it was an exercise in futility though—the ancient druids had had decades of magical training and spent centuries of time, collectively, studying the crystal and looking for the key to undoing the mistake caused by its creation. How was she supposed to do it when they couldn't? In the meantime, however, maybe she could help with the more pressing needs of the rebellion itself.
"Would you have time this afternoon to give me an overview of how you're running things and what's been accomplished so far?" Ky'ara asked.
Calistra snorted. "I don't technically have time for anything anymore, seems like. But I can make the time. It'll be a good excuse to walk around camp and let people see you."
Ky'ara made a face. Joran laughed. "Weren't you a member of the Council, Ky'ara? Aren't you used to public attention yet?"
"Usually I'm significantly more presentable," she said, shooting him an exasperated look. "Any chance I could get a bath and change of clothes before then?" She turned back to Calistra, "I've got months’ worth of dirt in my hair, and probably more in my clothes."
"Find Jenie, she'll take care of all that. She's essentially taken over as the camp organizer," Calistra replied. She looked down at the paperwork on her desk, sighed, and then glanced back at the others. "We're pretty much done here...unless there is anything else you think I need to know?"
Ky'ara shook her head. "I'm sure details we've left out will resurface over the next little while, but that's essentially all that happened to us.”
After they left, Joran went to find Jenie while Ky’ara walked back to their sleeping quarters with Taren. He was silent for a little while, and she looked over at him questioningly. “What’s on your mind?”
“Why didn't you tell her what Arys told you about delaying the transition?" he asked.
"Because I don't want to even consider that option. And telling her something I refuse to do seems more or less unhelpful."
"Don't you think she has a right to know? In case we can't come up with anything else, at least she could have a backup plan..." He trailed off when he noticed Ky'ara staring at him. Confusion and anger and disappointment warred for a place in her expression. He met her gaze and folded his arms against his chest. "We have to face the possibility that we might not come up with another solution in the next five months, Ky'ara."
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it then," Ky'ara replied, struggling to keep her voice level. She should have known he'd agree with Arys in this instance, but the thought that he would consider killing an innocent child, even to save the world, made her chest feel tight. Sometimes she forgot how different their upbringings were. “Just, please don’t tell anyone about that yet, ok? I don’t want someone to decide to take matters into their own hands. It’s my decision, no one else’s.”
Taren nodded slowly, if that's what she wanted, he’d keep it a secret. After all, they had five months left. They'd just have to find another way...and if they didn’t, well, that was a decision he would make when it came.
* * * * *
Norika looked up as the tent flap pushed open. It was the man she'd wasted the last month tracking through the forest. He didn't look as smug and hateful as she remembered. The rebels said she had been under the influence of some sort of magic, and now she was just being held until they could be certain she was free of any lingering effects. She felt different than she had for the last couple of weeks, but she didn't know if that was due to the lifting of a spell, or the placing of one. She'd tried to think back to when she possibly could've been enchanted, but she couldn't remember any particular incident where anyone would've had the opportunity to do so, other than after her capture. The only thing to make her consider that they were telling the truth was that she had trouble remembering much from the last week in the forest. Her mind felt a little fuzzy whenever she thought about tracking them. Of course, that could all be part of an enchantment laid by the rebels. Though trying to come up with a reason why they'd want to was proving troublesome.
He was just standing there, watching her. Probably congratulating himself on capturing her...not that he'd actually done anything.
"What do you want?" she asked finally, feeling irritated by his odd behavior.
He shrugged. "Just interested in your story."
"And staring at me helps you satisfy that curiosity?" She said scathingly.
"You can learn a lot from watching someone. For instance, I can see that you're troubled."
"Wow, you must be so proud of yourself for figuring that out. The woman being held captive is troubled, fancy that!"
"Do you always waste so much energy being scornful, or just when I'm around?"
Norika didn't dignify that with a response. The man smiled faintly. "So you can control your temper. I'm curious, do you feel any different now that Ky'ara removed the Darkness from your mind? Or do you still think I'm the epitome of evil?"
"What do you think?" Norika replied angrily, thinking about everything this arrogant twit had lost her.
"I want you to actually think it through, rather than giving a knee-jerk sarcastic response. And I'd bear in mind that your freedom depends pretty exclusively on my assessment of whether you're back to normal or not...I'm Sukylar, by the way. You may as well have a name to put with the focus of your hatred."
Norika tightened her jaw, of course they'd placed her fate in his hands. She closed her eyes and took a slow breath, centering her thoughts. Keep calm, answer honestly. Those trained in Luoth were usually experienced at telling whether someone was lying or not.
"I do feel different. That may have something to do with your friend hitting me in the head though. And don't get any ideas, I still hate you, I'm just not as motivated to attack you anymore."
Sukylar raised an eyebrow. "Those are pretty strong emotions for someone you hardly know."
Norika gave him an appraising look. "What else do I need to know? You ran away instead of facing the aftermath of Vivek's death and cost me my position. Even if you weren't a condescending, self-centered, coward I'd still have plenty of reason to hate you."
"I didn't leave because I was afraid of dealing with the lawkeepers, you know. I didn't even think about how that would affect anyone else—"
"Self-centered," Nori interjected scathingly.
Sukylar gave her a hard look before continuing, "I was afraid my companions might be attacked by the same creatures that tore Vivek apart, so I went to warn them. I didn't have time to deal with Brume's exit protocols or trying to explain what happened."
Norika stayed quiet, not sure how to process this new information. He didn't seem to be lying. When it became apparent that she wasn't going to respond, he shrugged. "I'm sorry it turned your life upside down. If it was any other time I'd go back with you and explain what happened, but I just don't have that luxury right now."
"What's so shades-cursed important to you all right now?" Nori burst out, ignoring the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Somehow she'd started to hope that he might actually agree to come back with her. Stupid.
"We're taking over the kingdom, I thought you knew?"
Norika blinked. She wasn't sure whether to laugh or take him seriously. Aside from the condescending remark at the end, he seemed earnest. Of course, she'd heard of the organization before. Everyone in Brume knew about the rebels, many had contemplated joining them. But, much as the people of her city hated the King and his government, they preferred to stay out of the conflict. Laying low and staying out of sight were more their style. Even with the ultimate goal of changing the government, no one had ever thought the rebels would actually stage a real invasion.
"You know," Sukylar said, tilting his head a little to the side as he looked her over, "It may not be the same as going back to the Scouts, but we could use someone with your tracking and stealth skills."
Was he...offering her a job?
"You wouldn't be able to go out on your own of course, not at first. But you'd get your stuff back, and I'm sure in time we might trust you with more responsibility."
Norika was silent. Sukylar waited for a reply, and when none was forthcoming, he raised his eyebrows, seeming mildly amused. "I hope you realize you're lucky to get this chance at all."
"And if I don't accept your generous offer of the opportunity to repeatedly endanger my life?" Nori asked. The sarcasm sounded a little weak even to her ears.
Sukylar smirked, clearly recognizing that he'd caught her interest. Insufferable know-it-all.
"You'll be put to work in the camp like all the other prisoners—digging and burying latrines, washing uniforms, scrubbing pots, and the like—all under close supervision."
Norika wrinkled her nose in disgust. Sukylar smirked again, probably laughing at the thought of her discomfort. He knew she'd choose relative freedom with danger over hard labor. She should refuse, just to wipe that smug look off his face.
"I'll give you a day to think about it." He turned and walked out of the tent, leaving her to decide whether irritating him was worth weeks—maybe months!—of sore hands and nasty smells. It was definitely tempting.
* * * * *
Ky’ara listened distractedly as Calistra gave her the most recent statistics from the towns they’d conquered. It’s not that she wasn’t interested in the rebellion’s progress. The way the rebels were gaining people’s trust by offering free healing and providing other magical services in exchange for supplies was positively brilliant. She just had the strangest sense as she watched the prisoners working. One of them, a middle-aged man with dark hair and a round face, looked familiar somehow. She couldn’t quite place him though...he looked up, seeming to feel her eyes on him. It was clear the attention made him uncomfortable, and he turned back to his work, nervously running a hand through his hair. The gesture felt even more familiar...why though?
“Are you even listening?” Calistra’s irritated question interrupted her contemplation.
Ky’ara shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts, but Calistra took it as an answer. “You’re the one who asked to be kept up to date. If this is boring you, I’m sure I have better things to waste my time on.”
“I’m sorry Calistra—I feel like I’m constantly distracted lately. Ever since Eléirathös my mind just won’t focus. It’ll catch hold of the smallest thing and dwell on that forever, instead of what it should.”
Calistra nodded, looking only mildly placated. “And what’s distracting you right now?” she asked in somewhat clipped tones.
Ky’ara indicated the worker. “I know him from somewhere, I think. He just looks so familiar…”
Calistra raised an eyebrow, looking as though she wanted to scoff at the statement. Then her expression turned contemplative, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “If you do recognize him from somewhere, it is likely that you saw him in the capital, as a guard, maybe? Which means he lied to us.”
Ky’ara looked at her questioningly, and Calistra hurried to explain. “Like most of the other captives, he was taken when we passed through Kaltor. I remember, because
Jenie asked me to be lenient on him since he’d treated her family more humanely than the other soldiers who captured them. I interrogated him myself, and he claimed he’d just joined the army a few months ago, during the King’s most recent recruitment campaign...some sob story about his brother disappearing and being unable to keep up the farm work by himself. Would you remember a random farmer even if you did encounter him last year?
Ky’ara shook her head. “But why would he lie?
“So we’d trust him more, watch him less, give him a chance to sneak off and sell information—he could’ve been planted as a spy intentionally.” Joran chimed in for the first time, eyeing the man darkly.
“Weren’t all the prisoners from Kaltor captured under pretty unexpected circumstances?” Ky’ara asked skeptically.
“Doesn’t mean he isn’t a spy,” Joran countered.
“You really think the King sent a spy with his soldiers on the off chance that he’d end up being captured—not killed—and still have any modicum of freedom to collect information?”
Joran shrugged. “Might not have been the King. The Destroyer could have sent him. Do we know what Il’esandra is capable of? She could see the future for all we know.”
Calistra stepped between them before Ky’ara could answer. “I sincerely hope she does not have that ability, and it seems unlikely, given previous events. But I think we need to look into this either way. YOU!” she barked suddenly at a nearby guard, “have that man brought to the command tent immediately.”
“You’re going to drop everything and interrogate him right now?” Ky’ara asked.
“I’m not...you are.” Calistra replied matter-of-factly. Ky’ara looked at her in surprise.
“If I can’t get you to concentrate on anything important till you figure out why you recognize him, then let’s go figure it out.” Calistra steered her back through the maze of tents, a hint of amusement twitching the corner of her mouth up.
Ky’ara let herself be led back into the enclosed area, glad to be able to focus on the distraction, but feeling guilty for wasting Calistra’s time. A few minutes later two guards brought in the man and then took up positions by the door.
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