The Druids' Legacy

by Trenna McMullin

  Nori considered him thoughtfully. He seemed sincere. That almost made her feel guilty for the trouble he was going to get in when they found her gone. But what else was she supposed to do? She wouldn't let herself be locked up forever, or constantly regarded with suspicion because they thought she was a spy. The last month had given her a taste of how it felt to really be accepted, respected. She didn't really want to go back to life without the camaraderie she'd found here. Not that being on her own would give her that either...

  "What are you thinking about?" Sukylar asked, a worried look on his face.

  "I—" Norika wasn't sure how to answer that. She couldn't tell him the truth. He'd try to stop her from leaving, and she'd rather not hurt him. That thought startled her. When had she stopped hating him? Even once the anger at his part in her dismissal from the Scouts had dissipated, she'd still chafed against his irritating way of hovering over her. He was her jailer, even if she was given freedom to be out in the wild...except that he hadn't acted that way. He was irritating at times, true, but he also made her feel...safe. It was a feeling she wasn't familiar with, having grown up in a rough and tumble place like Brume. She wanted to stay here. But how could she stay if they all thought she was a traitor? As long as Iregh was gone, they'd never trust her. The beginnings of a plan started to form in her mind.

  Sukylar waited for her to continue, then his expression softened. "Sorry, I should have realized you're still a little addled from hitting your head. I'll let you rest."

  Nori nodded carefully, closing her eyes—partially so he wouldn't guess her thoughts, but also because the light was making her head pound. She heard him stand and hold a whispered argument with the nurse over whether she had woken up.

  “I’m not asking you to disobey orders...just wait till she’s had a chance to rest a little longer before you call them up here to interrogate her. She was barely awake for a minute anyways. That hardly counts.”

  The nurse made a few feeble excuses, then gave up and agreed to wait till she woke again before alerting the Elders. Norika resolved to keep her eyes closed as long as possible, so she’d have a chance of regaining her strength before they decided to imprison her somewhere more secure. Somewhere in the midst of this thought, she fell asleep.

  * * * * *

  Iregh stopped to rest for a moment, feeling a certain grim admiration for the rebel leader. Her spell should have lost effect a long time ago, but apparently her range was further than most mages. He still couldn’t use the Ancient Language. He’d had to hide his trail using crudely crafted spells that only required other methods of channeling power. Sooner or later, a rebel patrol was going to find him.

  * * * * *

  “Absolutely not!” Calistra looked at Ky’ara with complete bewilderment. “I know I pressured you to come up with a plan to defeat the Destroyer, but I didn’t mean you had to run off to confront her immediately!”

  “I’m not ‘running off’ Calistra. I’ve waited for too long to go after Taren. Amischel helped me see that I need to trust that the crystal will do what is necessary...maybe you need to as well.”

  “You’re talking about going to a fight with the source of Darkness in this world, without any clue how to win! That isn’t ‘trust’ that’s insanity! It’s not just that you could be killed, you could provide Il’esandra with exactly what she needs for the Darkness to transition, and become the Destroyer yourself!”

  “We don’t know that for certain. And if I wait until Iregh rejoins her, I’ll have them both to fight. It makes more sense to go now, while we might still have the advantage of his absence.”

  “I cannot allow you to go, not without a plan or at least an inkling of one!”

  Before Ky’ara could respond, someone knocked urgently on the post outside. Calistra sighed, stomping over to the door and pulling the flap aside. “What?” The messenger who stood there looked startled.

  "The healers said to let you know that the Elysian woman regained consciousness. She fell back asleep again, but she could be woken easily, if you wish to question her."

  "I don't see any reason to wake the girl up, she's recovering from a head wound. Tell Julaine thank you for sending the message." Calistra said, dropping the tent flap and turning back to Ky'ara. There was another tentative knock.

  "Was there something else?" Calistra asked shortly, reopening the flap.

  "Er...I just thought you should know she sent me to Gertrude and Filluk first...they seemed to indicate that they would be questioning her right away." The messenger said, looking a bit uncomfortable.

  "Oh for the love of—I'd better get there before they tear her apart.” Calistra turned back to Ky'ara. “Don't do anything stupid...we're not done discussing this."

  She pushed her way through the flap and dragged the messenger down the path, questioning him about precisely when he had delivered the message to the Elders.

  Ky'ara sighed. Calistra had taken things about as well as she had expected. But her mind was made up. She was going to leave and no amount of waiting was going to change things.

  'Joran, meet me at my tent. We have some packing to do.'

  * * * * *

  Nori’s hands shook as she threaded straps through buckles and checked to be sure the saddle was on straight. She rested her head momentarily against her mount’s neck, wishing she could just lie down for a while. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. She’d overheard the healer sending a messenger to the Elders who thought she was to blame for all of this. If they thought she was guilty of betraying them, who knows what they might determine her punishment should be? At the very least she’d be moved to a more secure spot and any chance of escape would be gone. She gritted her teeth and tugged one last time on the girth to make sure it was tight.

  “Are you sure this is wise?” a familiar voice said from behind her.

  Nori spun around to face Sukylar, instantly regretting the movement, as it made her head pound. He looked at her with undisguised concern, as well as a certain amount of wariness that hadn’t been there since the first few days after her capture.

  “How did you—” Norika started to ask. A second figure walked in behind Sukylar, and her question was answered. It was the blonde girl from the healing tent. She must’ve seen Norika sneak out.

  “You are in no condition to ride...what makes you think you’ll be able to escape?” Sukylar asked, striding calmly over to where she stood and nonchalantly grabbing the reins of her horse. Nori saw through the action in a heartbeat. Though he looked relaxed, she knew from experience that if he chose to, he could tighten his grip in an instant and prevent her from leaving. She ignored that, however, and continued packing the saddle bags, her eyes focused on the things she was loading. “I’m not escaping.”

  “Oh really? What else do you call it when a prisoner—even a wrongfully accused one—sneaks away on a stolen horse?”

  “I’m not stealing—I’ll return him as soon as I catch that wizard and clear my name.”

  The blonde girl looked startled. Sukylar cocked his head to the side and relaxed just slightly. Apparently he hadn’t been as certain of her loyalties as he’d let on.

  “This is becoming a pattern for you,” he said lightly, “only last time it didn’t work out for you so well. Let’s get back to the infirmary, before anyone else notices you’re gone.”

  “No.”

  Sukylar’s calm facade broke. “Shades woman! Don’t you know that leaving only makes you look guilty?”

  “Not if I come back with the scumbag in tow.”

  “And how exactly do you propose to do that, if you can’t even stay on your horse?”

  Nori hesitated, another wave of dizziness passing through her. He had a point.

  She unhooked the half-packed saddlebag and slung it across her back instead, then headed for the exit.

  "You can't just go off on your own Nori!" Sukylar said, for once sounding entirely earnest.

  Nori rounded on him. "And what do you expect me to do? Sit
around while they determine whether to lock me up for something I didn't do?" She glared, her eyes meeting his briefly and then focusing a spot above his left ear. Holding his gaze felt too...intense. "I'm going to prove my innocence, even if it means going alone!"

  "You won't have to," the blonde healer stepped forward, looking at Sukylar apologetically. "I'll come with you."

  Sukylar gave her a hard look. "Lauryn..."

  "My father has hurt enough people already!" she said defensively, "I sort of feel like it's my responsibility to help catch him. And besides, she clearly needs medical supervision."

  Nori raised an eyebrow, setting off another wave of dizziness. The girl had a point. "Ok. But you'll have to keep up. I'm not stopping for you."

  Sukylar looked between the two of them, then set his jaw. "I suppose I'd better come keep you both from getting killed. Calistra is going to kill me for this."

  Nori turned back toward the exit. "Hurry up then. I've already waited too long...they're going to start a manhunt for me any minute now."

  Sukylar grabbed three already filled packs from the shelf where they kept scouting supplies and tossed one to Nori. "Leave the saddlebag, you look ridiculous."

  She looked down at the pack, which she'd donned numerous times in the last month on prolonged scouting trips. She really had hit her head hard, to have forgotten that they were already prepared for leaving at a moment's notice. Her face grew hot with embarrassment, and she switched out the saddlebag for the more comfortable pack.

  Lauryn ducked her head around the corner, then motioned them over. "This way, the coast is clear."

  Nori followed her out of the stables and past a silent guardpost, feeling Sukylar's comforting presence at her back. Somehow, having him along made her feel more optimistic about their chances. Within minutes they had made it through the outer layers of guards and into the cover of the trees. Norika glanced back once. The camp had become more of a home to her than Brume, though she’d lived here for far less time. For better or worse, she had thrown her lot in with the rebels. Even if they didn’t believe it.

  * * * * *

  “You let her just walk out? She was supposed to be sleeping! How could you not notice a whole person was just gone?” Gertrude berated the guard and medical staff, who looked less and less contrite and more annoyed at her treatment of them. Filluk had a few of the other nurses looking under cots and behind piles of blankets, trying to ensure the girl wasn’t simply hiding somewhere.

  Calistra watched the chaos occurring in the medical tent with an amused expression on her face. She shouldn’t be so entertained by the distress Norika’s escape was causing the representatives from the Elder’s Council, but for some reason she couldn’t quite keep the hint of a smile off her face. Stop being so petty, she chided herself, what if the girl really was in league with Iregh? The idea gave her pause for a moment, but she dismissed it almost immediately. It was ludicrous to believe the girl had helped Iregh escape, been left behind to keep her cover, and then run off again with the barest hint that they were suspicious of her. The fall that had knocked her unconscious would have been difficult to stage without risking real permanent injury. Besides all that, Nori had proven herself a valuable asset with the scouts, and Sukylar swore up and down that she was trustworthy. Speaking of...where was Sukylar?

  She sent one of the guards to go find him. He should know that Nori had run away, though he would probably blame her for setting guards on the girl and making her feel like she was going to be held captive again. Calistra turned her attention back to the argument taking place in front of her. Gertrude was red-faced and loudly berating Julaine, who stood with her hands on her hips and her chin set stubbornly.

  "Enough," Calistra said, walking over to Julaine's side. "What's done is done. It won't help anyone to assign blame for her escape, and keeping Julaine from her patients is likely to do a great deal of harm." Calistra nudged the healer toward the nearest bed bearing a patient. Julaine spun on her heel and got back to work, muttering angrily under her breath.

  Gertrude huffed loudly, looking annoyed, but didn't try to stop the healer.

  "I suppose you're happy the girl's gone?" she said tersely, "Since you can't seem to believe that she could have lied to you."

  "One of the best trackers we've ever recruited is gone because she felt like she was treated as an enemy after getting seriously injured while doing her job well.” Calistra fixed her with a glare, “Of course I'm not happy about it. But yelling at my healers isn't going to remedy the situation, so I'd suggest you find something more productive to waste your energy on."

  Gertrude pinched her lips together disapprovingly and turned to motion to Filluk that they were going. After they'd left the tent, Calistra sat on the empty bed, massaging her temples wearily. Dealing with the Council of Elders always gave her a headache, but Gertrude was among the worst of them. Why did she have to be the highest ranking Elder to have survived ? Calistra felt a bit guilty for the thought, but it was true all the same.

  "Excuse me, milady. But Sukylar is nowhere to be found. Silas said the last time he saw him was this morning, when he came to visit the prisoner."

  "Thank you Ben, go back to your post," Calistra said. Norika was missing, now Sukylar was missing as well...why did that not surprise her? Standing, Calistra made her way back to the entrance of the tent, catching a small bit of conversation as she walked past a couple of the healers.

  "How long ago did Lauryn take her break? Shouldn't she be back by now?" Julaine asked one of the healing assistants.

  Calistra stopped. Norika, Sukylar, and Lauryn? She turned to ask Julaine for confirmation, then decided against it. If Sukylar and Lauryn were missing as well, they'd probably gone after Lauryn's father. Of course, the Elder's council wouldn't see it that way. They'd probably think Lauryn had helped Nori escape and gone to join Iregh herself...or at least, they would if they knew who Lauryn was. Calistra hadn't found it necessary to share that little tidbit of information with them in the first place.

  She sighed. Was it wrong of her to try to hide things from the governing council of the Organization? It was exactly the kind of government corruption she knew everyone hated, but if she disclosed every bit of information she felt like it put good people at risk. She had to have enough leeway to make her own judgements about things, without feeling like her hands were constantly tied by those above her who were too afraid to trust her instincts.

  She closed her eyes, shaking her head. Wasn't that exactly what she kept doing to Ky'ara? The girl had made up her mind to leave. Maybe Calistra should let her. Besides, if they headed out soon maybe she could disguise the fact that Sukylar and Lauryn had left without permission, in case Gertrude got too nosy.

  * * * * *

  “So, are we going to travel normally, or go through a portal?” Joran asked, the nonchalance in his voice an attempt to disguise his anxiety over the impending confrontation with the Destroyer.

  Ky'ara wasn't fooled. "We'll start on foot then portal to someplace a few days from the capital, that way I have time to recover my strength before we go into the city."

  “Is that really a good idea? I mean, what if we emerge right into the middle of a camp of soldiers, or the Destroyer feels your magic somehow and sends soldiers to ambush us before we can even get to the capital? Maybe it would be better to travel normally.”

  Ky’ara gave him a pointed look. “If you’re really so afraid of going, I can do this myself. There’s really no reason for you to put yourself at risk.”

  Joran snorted. “Are you kidding me? If Taren found out I let you go to rescue him alone, do you know what he’d do to me?”

  “From the level of fear you feel, I thought you figured we weren’t going to survive anyways.”

  Joran’s expression turned sober before he turned to continue packing. “Well, there’s always a chance, isn’t there?”

  “I’m serious Joran...you could stay here. No reason for us both to risk our lives.” She hadn’t
considered leaving him behind until after she’d already told him she intended to go, but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense to go on her own. Unfortunately, she hadn’t told him her plan, so there was no way for her to convince him that there was no need for him to go along.

  Joran stood, looking irritated. “Then you’d really have no chance. I’m going, ok? Just drop it. Now let’s get out of here before someone stops us.”

  They stepped out of the tent and heard a commotion from the direction of the healing tent.

  “Any idea what’s going on down there?” Ky’ara asked, shouldering her pack. Joran shook his head. He took a step in that direction, then hesitated, turning back toward Ky’ara.

  “I want to say goodbye to Lauryn, but the longer we wait, the more likely it is that the Elder’s Council will find out that we’re going.”

  Ky’ara laid a hand on his arm. “You can leave a note in the stables. Someone will find it eventually. Then she’ll know you didn’t just leave.”

  Joran nodded, looking glum. “It’s probably better this way...she might want to come, and I don’t want her to be in that much danger.”

  They headed for the stables, trying to avoid the more commonly travelled paths. It only took a few minutes to saddle their horses and lead them from the cloth shelter. They’d made it through the first perimeter of guards and were about to cross the second when Calistra caught up with them.

  “Joran! Joran don’t you dare leave without talking to me first. I can see you, walking behind a tree can’t hide your horse. You look ridiculous. Come out and face me like a decent human being.”

  Joran sighed, meeting Ky’ara’s frustrated look with an exasperated one of his own, and they turned to wait for his sister to catch up to them.

  Calistra left her guards a few paces away and walked breathlessly up to Joran. “Norika is gone. Sukylar and Lauryn are too...I don’t know if they’re with her or looking for her, but I thought you should know.” She handed him a piece of paper, the note he had left for Lauryn in the stables. “I don’t want Gertrude and the others to get wind of their disappearance, so you’d better take that with you.”