“Let’s hope you never are,” Cowley said. “That’s terrifying.”
Noah fell back, and they rode in silence for a while. Fen spent the time probing the depths of the Stone power around him, like a man testing the edge on his blade, taking the sense of it, mentally going through the steps of wielding it. The sheer quantity of it was frightening. It was like standing on a volcano that was about to blow. He saw, in a way he never had before, how really easy it would be to trigger, not all of it, but a great deal anyway. The problem with doing that, though, was that what he released would be completely uncontrolled.
He had a mental image of all the land for a day’s ride in every direction just exploding simultaneously. It was a thought that was both horrifying and exciting.
He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t realize Lowellin had ridden back to them until the Shaper spoke.
“Are you trying to get us both killed?”
Fen snapped out of it. Lowellin was sitting there on his horse, glaring at him. “I’m not doing anything,” he protested.
“Yes, you are. You’re poking around in Stone power. If I can feel it, then they can. You’re lucky they’re tired. Otherwise you’d be a burned husk right now. I thought you were smarter than that. Fiddling around this close to them. What’s wrong with you?”
“I didn’t realize,” Fen said.
“That’s a terrible excuse, you know.”
“What about attacking them now, while they’re weak?” Cowley asked.
“They’re not as weak as you think.”
“But with the two of you together…”
“Did you forget about the ingerlings?” Lowellin barked. “The moment I raise a finger against them, those things start chewing.”
“If you hit them hard enough, you might be able to kill them before—”
“But if we don’t—and we almost surely won’t—I’ll be the one rolling around on the ground while those things devour me. I’m not ready for that. We stick to my plan.”
“Your plan seems like a whole lot of doing nothing,” Cowley said.
Lowellin gave him a look like he was a small dog that had started chewing on his ankle. He looked back at Fen. “We wait, and we watch. If there is an opportunity, I will let you know. Until then, you do nothing. Is that clear?” The foppishness he often cloaked himself in was gone then, only deadly seriousness remaining.
“Clear,” Fen said.
“And?”
“And what?”
“My king. Or sire. Something like that. It’s how you’re supposed to address your king, you know.”
“Accept our deepest apologies, sire,” Cowley said, sketching an awkward bow in the saddle.
Lowellin turned back to him again. “Don’t think I don’t know sarcasm when I hear it, pup. I was there when your foolish species invented it.”
“Was it the bow that gave me away?”
“I should have left you in the dungeon.” Lowellin spurred his horse and moved on ahead.
“Angering him isn’t very smart,” Fen remarked.
“Probably not. It’s a problem I have,” Cowley agreed. “I can’t help it.”
“He could crush you in an instant.”
“And yet he didn’t. It makes you wonder, doesn’t it?”
“How you stayed alive this long?”
“Something like that.” Cowley gave him one of his signature grins.
Fen only shook his head.
Chapter 37
It was nearly dark before Aislin finally regained consciousness. Randel had her on the saddle before him, one arm wrapped around her to keep her in place. She stirred and opened her eyes. “Where am I?” Her voice was oddly deep and inhuman.
“I’m not exactly sure. Somewhere on the road to Karthije. I’ve never been out of Qarath before, so I don’t really know.”
“What happened?”
“You…lost.” Randel winced a little at the memory. “Do you feel okay?”
“I am well,” she said gruffly, still in the same harsh voice. She turned her head, trying to see in every direction. “Where is the sea? Why have you taken me away from the sea?”
“Treylen said I needed to take you to meet up with some kid who lives in Sertith, wherever that is. Also, the Devourers were coming out of the sea. I wanted to get you away from them.”
“Return me to the sea at once.”
“Treylen said—”
“I do not care what this Treylen said. Take me back to the sea.”
Randel looked over his shoulder. He hadn’t seen the Devourers all day, but he could feel them back there. He shuddered at the thought of what they would do to the two of them if they caught them. “The Devourers are back there. I don’t think you’re ready—”
“I do not care what you think.” Aislin twisted suddenly, and a wave of power came off her. Randel was nearly knocked off the horse and lost his hold on her. She toppled off the horse and landed hard. Randel jumped down and saw that she was unconscious once more.
It took some effort, but he managed to get the two of them mounted up again. He peered off into the growing darkness, worried that the Devourers might have caught up to them. He saw movement, and his heart began racing, but then he realized it was only two deer crossing the road.
They continued, Randel wondering what he was going to do if Aislin didn’t return to herself. There was no chance he could stop her if she decided to head back toward the coast. If she did that, he had no doubt the Devourers would capture her. He couldn’t let that happen. He wouldn’t let that happen.
Night fell, and the moon rose, casting a strong light over the rolling hills. Randel wondered if he should stop or keep going. Not being much of a horseman, he was sore everywhere, but the real problem was he was getting tired. He couldn’t ride all the way to Sertith without rest. How long could he go before he fell asleep in the saddle and then fell off? And how long could the horse go before she collapsed? The mare was moving a lot slower than she was before. He wished he knew whether the Devourers were stopping or not.
Aislin stirred in his arms. Her head lifted.
“What’s happening?”
He breathed a sigh of relief that her voice sounded normal again. “We had to run away,” he told her. “We’re on a horse.”
“Run away?”
Randel’s heart fell. What if she didn’t remember anything? “The Devourers came, remember? You fought them.”
No answer at first and his fear increased. Then, hesitantly, “It’s foggy. I can only see bits of it. Someone else was there. I think…he took over.” She sounded very small and lost.
“It was Golgath,” Randel said. “I could even see him a little. I thought…I was afraid you weren’t you anymore.”
“He’s strong. And so angry. He hates…almost everything, I think.”
“He’s not as strong as you are, though, right? You’re Aislin, and he’s only some old sea god. You can handle him, no problem.” Randel tried to say it in a playful tone, but he didn’t really succeed.
“I don’t know. He’s there right now, pushing, trying to take over again.”
“But you won’t let him. Right?”
“I don’t know. It’s hard. I feel so tired. I want to get down.”
“We’ll stop in a little while. I want to make sure the Devourers don’t catch up to us.”
“They’re so powerful,” she replied. “It didn’t matter what I did. Even Seaforce didn’t work. Everything—” She broke off suddenly and struggled in his arms. Randel, fearing that Golgath was trying to take her over again, braced for the worst. Then she went still.
“I still have it. I was afraid…”
It took a moment before he realized what she was talking about. “That’s why we had to run,” he said. “It was so they couldn’t get it. Treylen knew the city would fall to them.”
Aislin pulled out the fragment and clasped her hands around it. “All that matters is they don’t get it.” She looked up at him. “No
matter what.”
“You can count on me,” Randel said, drawing himself straighter in the saddle. “I know I’m not good at much, but I’ll do everything I can. I promise you.”
She leaned back against him with a sigh. “I know.”
“Sorry I can’t be more help.”
“You help a lot. When I get…black inside, you say something stupid and make me laugh.”
“You like my jokes? Because you always act like—”
“I didn’t say I like them. They’re dumb, and you’re dumb too. Not always, but a lot of the time.”
“I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or not.”
“Do we have to keep talking about this?” she said with a touch of her old exasperation.
“We could talk about how we don’t have any food and our water is all gone,” Randel said. “If you’d rather.”
“I don’t want to talk about that either.”
“Me either.” Randel’s stomach rumbled right then, and he chuckled. “That’s what my stomach has to say about it.”
“What are we going to do now?”
“There’s a boy who lives in the north. His name is Karliss.”
“I heard Mama and Rome talking about him.”
“We’re going to meet him. Together you’ll be able to beat those Devourers.”
“How are we going to find him?”
“That I don’t know. I guess we can ask people we meet if they are him.”
“That could take a really long time.”
“Not too long, I hope,” Randel said.
“There’s supposed to be another boy who has power over stone,” she said. “I wish we could find him. I think I’m going to need lots of help against the Devourers.”
“I don’t know where he is. Maybe Karliss will know.”
Silence for a bit, then, “I bet Mama is worried. She always gets worried.”
“I’m sure she is.”
“Do you think she’ll come looking for me?”
“I don’t know. A lot of soldiers came with the Devourers. They’ll probably try and stop her.”
“They’ll be sorry if they do. When she gets angry, she gets pretty scary.”
“I’d never want her angry at me.”
“I hope she doesn’t hurt too many of those soldiers.”
“I’m sure the king will stop her from doing anything she’ll regret later.”
“No, you’re not. He can’t stop her if she doesn’t want to be stopped.”
“I know.”
“Then why did you say that?”
“I don’t know. It seemed like it would make you feel better.”
“Getting off this horse would make me feel better,” she said irritably. “I’m sore.”
“We should keep moving, I think. We don’t want the Devourers to catch us.”
She was silent for a bit. It almost seemed to Randel like she was listening for something, so he stayed quiet.
“No,” she said finally. “They stopped.”
“How do you know that?”
“I don’t know. I can feel them back there, sort of.”
“Do you want to stop right here?” Randel asked dubiously, looking around. He didn’t see any place that looked good for camping. Of course, since he’d never even spent a night outside the city, he didn’t really know what to look for in a campsite. He supposed they could simply sleep on the road. “Maybe let’s just go a little farther.”
They rode on. “I wish we were at the sea,” Aislin said. “I’d swim so deep they’d never find me.”
Randel thought about this. “Running only works for so long. Sooner or later they’d catch you. You’re going to have to fight them.”
“I can’t! You saw what happened. Even with Seaforce I couldn’t stop them.”
“It will be different next time.” Randel wasn’t sure it would be, but it seemed like the right thing to say.
“Randel,” Aislin said softly.
“What?”
“I’m scared.”
Randel had never heard her admit she was scared before. It jolted him. “I am too. I have to tell you, Aislin. I’m not the hero type. It would be better if you had someone else to help you.”
“I don’t think I am either.” Aislin thought some more, then said something else unusual for her. “I miss Mama. I wish she was here.”
“Me too.” Randel sincerely meant that. Netra seemed so strong and capable. She frightened him more than a little.
“She’d know what to do.”
“You know what I think we should try to do when we’re feeling scared?” Randel asked.
“What?”
“We should tell ourselves that this is nothing but a big adventure, like the bards sing about or like the puppet shows.”
“What good will that do?”
“I don’t know. Maybe it won’t seem so bad then.”
“That’s a dumb idea.”
“You haven’t even tried it yet,” he protested. “Here, I’ll start. First, we have to give our adventure a name. How about ‘The Brave Adventures of Aislin the Hero’?”
Despite herself, Aislin giggled a little at his words. “That’s a terrible name.”
“Maybe we’ll come up with a better one later.”
“And it doesn’t mention you at all.”
“That’s because you’re the hero. I’m only the foolish—but brave—servant. My role is to get a few laughs from the audience. I think that’s important to a good story, don’t you think?”
“Usually those parts aren’t funny,” she said. “Everyone laughs, but I don’t see why.”
“We’ll have to work extra hard to make sure my parts are funny then. But that’s not important. What’s important is the hero and that’s you.”
“I don’t feel like a hero.”
“And I don’t feel brave.” Randel shifted his position on the saddle, groaning as he did so. “I can’t believe I used to think that riding horses was so glamorous. I hurt in places I didn’t know I had.”
“I like swimming better.”
“I like walking better.”
“How come in the puppet shows they never say anything about being sore and tired and hungry? I’m all those things.”
“I don’t know. I guess they don’t think that stuff is exciting enough.”
A short while later Aislin pointed. “I see a light over there.”
Randel looked and saw a faint flicker a few hundred paces off the road. Probably a farmhouse. The thought of food and a place to get indoors, out of the night, made him feel a little giddy. He’d never really been afraid of the dark, but knowing the Devourers were out there somewhere made him profoundly uneasy. Logically he knew that the farmhouse wouldn’t give them any protection against the Devourers, but it would sure make him feel a lot better.
“I think I see the road that leads to it up ahead,” he said. “Should we go?”
“I think so. I’m awfully hungry. Mama would say I need to eat something to keep my strength up.”
“That sounds like the kind of thing a mother would say. Mine did.”
They rode down a narrow, winding wagon track toward the light. The mare seemed to realize the possibility of rest nearby, and her lagging pace increased.
“What are we going to tell him?” Randel wondered aloud.
“Tell who?”
“The farmer. He’s going to want to know what we’re doing out here. It is a little strange, you know.”
“It is? Why?”
Randel shifted, trying to find a spot on his butt that wasn’t quite as sore as the rest. He wasn’t sure he ever wanted to get on a horse again. “It just is. I’m not your father. Obviously, I’m not your husband. He’ll probably want to know what we’re doing out here.”
“I don’t see why we have to tell him anything. It’s not his business, is it?”
“Maybe not. But if we want him to let us in, we should have something to tell him. A story.”
“You
do that. I don’t know how to tell stories.”
“I’ll tell him you’re my little sister.”
“Not that little.”
“My younger sister,” Randel corrected.
“That’s better.”
“And we’re out here because we’re trying to find our brother, Karliss. That works because then if he’s seen Karliss or heard of him he’ll be sure to say something. What do you think?”
He could feel her shrug. “I don’t care. I just want something to eat. You talk as much as you want. You do anyway.”
“I do like to talk. I’ve always been that way, ever since I was little. That’s what my ma always said, anyway.”
“See what I mean?”
She had that tone she got when he was starting to irritate her, so he shut up for the rest of the ride.
The farmhouse sat in a low spot beside a small stream, with a copse of cottonwood and willow trees nearby, and a dilapidated barn. They were crossing the yard, heading for the front door, when a dog burst out from underneath the porch and launched itself at them, barking frantically.
Fortunately, the mare was as gentle as Rome had promised. All she did was sidestep a little. She didn’t bolt or buck them off. Randel’s heart nearly stopped, and he thought he might have uttered a little shriek in the excitement, but he told himself that was probably Aislin. Either way, he’d never mention it.
The dog was on a chain that brought it up short a few paces from them. It strained against it, barking madly the whole time.
“Shut up,” Aislin said crossly. “I’m too tired to listen to you.”
Randel almost thought he heard a little Golgath in her voice, but whether he did or not, the animal stopped barking suddenly and slunk back under the porch.
The door swung open, and someone stuck their head out.
“Who’s there? What do you want?”
Randel realized the voice was a woman’s, and he relaxed a little. He seemed to get along a little better with women than men. “We’re two tired travelers,” he said. “We’re looking for…we need help.”
“There’s two of you?” she said suspiciously. He realized then that she was holding a pitchfork. She looked like she wouldn’t hesitate to use it. “Come over here where I can get a look at you.”
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