The names slammed into Catrin, and sudden memory overwhelmed her. Once again, in her mind, she entered the clearing where Peten, Carter, and Chad were attacking Osbourne. In her mind she saw Peten charging down on her then the world flying away.
"I'd wager they are scared," Strom said. "I would be too."
Catrin came back to herself, and in a moment that seemed to prove she would someday heal, she laughed. "We're going to scare the wind out of 'em."
"First," Benjin said, "we have to get there. I suggest we get some sleep. It's going to be an early start."
* * *
Knee-deep, crimson snow blanketed the landscape, giving everything a surreal appearance, which made Catrin feel as if she were walking in a dream. She pulled her hood closer as the wind blew, and drifting snow clung to everything. Beyond a large rock overhang, though, the wind died, blocked by natural rock formations.
Not far ahead roared a swollen, red waterfall, and Catrin recognized the plateau from afar, suddenly realizing that she was now approaching it from the same direction as the Zjhon army had, so long ago. Most of them had died here.
Looking around, Catrin noticed large mounds on the valley floor, and she no longer had to wonder where those she killed were laid. A great sadness welled up in her as they passed the gaping wound in the plateau, though it was already partly overgrown by bushes and trees that poked out of the snow.
Beyond, Catrin saw the terraces for the first time. Like giant snakes, one on top of another, following the contours of the land, the low, stone walls made for a mind-bending view. As soon as she saw them, their design made perfect sense; by creating narrow but level platforms down the slopes, they gained much valuable land for planting.
The roadway ahead was obstructed as a crowd of men worked with hammers and picks to finish the construction of a terrace. Two men argued in the middle of the road, and they seemed oblivious to the group as they approached. Then one of them looked up and saw them. "Whoa! You folks stay as far to the right as possible. Look out for falling rock." He shook his head and started to turn back to the other man, but when his eyes passed over Catrin, he stopped and watched her walk by. "Hey! Wait!"
Catrin was tempted to simply keep walking; she had no time for interruptions, but something in his voice made her stop.
"Where'd ya get that coat?" he asked. "I had one just like that. It even had the same tear on the shoulder."
"Rolph Tillerman gave it to me," Catrin said. "Are you Martik?"
"Yes!" he said, his eyes going wide, and he grabbed Catrin by the arms. "You saw my father? How was he? And my mother? And Jessub?"
"Yes," Catrin said. "I spent time with all of them. They're fine, though they miss you dearly. Wait. I have something for you." Catrin reached into the coat pocket and pulled out the drawing Jessub had given her. It showed Martik with Catrin hovering over him, protecting him.
Martik received it with wonder, and when he opened it, he was stunned. He stood for a moment with the look of a man whose thoughts were far away.
"I promise I'll tell you more when I return," Catrin said, "but I really must be--"
A loud cracking sound filled the valley, followed by shouting. As Catrin turned to look, she saw a large section of rock dislodge itself and roll forward until it crashed to the ground.
"Need help over here!" someone shouted, and everyone scrambled to help. Catrin watched as people lifted rocks away from where a man was trapped, but her eyes were drawn away, lured by a far more ghastly sight. Revealed by the fallen rock were flowing lines and graceful curves lit by an inner glow. Catrin recognized it immediately from the image that was burned into her mind. It was a Statue of Terhilian.
Chapter 18
There is permanence in every action and inaction; each is a choice and cannot be undone.
--Enoch Giest
* * *
"We were just working at the base there," a man said. "Then the whole rock face got unstable and collapsed on us."
A crowd gathered after all the men were pulled from the rubble. Women and young people, who had been nearby preparing lunch for the workers, now tended the wounded. All other eyes were drawn to the glowing curves of Istra's dress.
Catrin moved to stand before it, and she turned to face the crowd, pulling her hood down as she did. "Many of you know me; others may only know of me," she said. "I'm Catrin Volker, and this land is my home. I mean no one any harm. I only want us all to be safe. Right now we are not. What you see is part of a Statue of Terhilian, and it's an immediate threat."
"What can we do?" someone shouted from the crowd.
"I believe I know a way to neutralize the statue," Catrin said. "It will be dangerous to everyone nearby. Please take the children back to Lowerton. I wouldn't want them to be endangered or frightened." Women gathered the children, and soon only adults remained. Catrin wondered a moment that she, Chase, and the others were now adults, but that thought was driven out by what lay ahead. "I'm going to attempt to drain the negative core, but I need more rock cleared away. Here. We need to expose the base."
Despite the danger of another rockslide, men worked feverishly to clear the stone away from the statue, and Catrin waited, drowning in frustration. She couldn't leave the statue behind. She could get killed south of the Wall; then there would be no one left to destroy the statue. It was too dangerous to use her powers to remove the rock since she might set off the statue in the process. With tears in her eyes, she knew she had to choose the needs of her people over her desperate desire to save her father; she had to wait.
When a large, squared corner became exposed, Catrin rushed in to run her senses over it. Her staff in one hand and Koe in the other, she opened herself to the flow, and energy surged through her. With effort, she moderated the flow and kept her balance. Like the others, this statue had positive and negative cores kept apart by a thin layer of insulating material. Remembering how the positive charge had overwhelmed her with its energy, Catrin quailed. Barabas had attacked the negative charge, and she decided to do the same.
Using her staff to establish physical contact with the statue, her fingers resting in the grooves created the last time she attempted to destroy one of these statues, she reached out to the negative core. Slowly her flow of energy penetrated the crystal-like stone that made up the statue and, as it drew close, there was an enormous pop and a flash of light. In the next instant, Catrin was drawn to the statue like nails to a lodestone. Irresistible force pulled her closer until her flesh pressed painfully against stone, and she thought she might be crushed.
The negative core ravaged her with its insatiable appetite for energy, and she felt herself slowly being drained of life. Drawing from her staff and Koe alike, she did what she could to satisfy the core, but still it demanded more. It all happened so fast, Catrin could hardly catch up. Prios reached her side and latched on to her, trying to pull her away. Then, in what must have been an effort to help, he sent his own energy surging through her. Just as it had done with her, the negative core greedily pulled him closer.
With Prios now pressing against her, also trapped, Catrin felt certain she would die. Slowly, though, something was happening to the negative core. The outer edges were beginning to break down, and the deterioration began to take place more rapidly. Drawing a ragged breath, Catrin used every energy source around her, and some in the crowd were shocked to find themselves suddenly hurtling toward the statue. With the last of her will, Catrin flooded the negative core with a positive charge, and the chain reaction reached a white-hot zenith before it vanished without a sound.
Those drawn from the crowd caught themselves before they collided with Catrin and Prios, and everything grew very silent. Catrin did her best to remain standing, but Prios fell backward, still gripping her, and she fell. Prios grunted as she landed on him, and she rolled away. For a moment she rested. Her body had been drained, and it quivered with weakness. Standing was impossible, and speech was difficult, but she managed to grunt Benjin's name.
"I'm here, li'l miss. I'm here."
"Carry me. South."
* * *
Between a pair of oversized guards, Wendel sat, waiting for his fate to be decided. As soon as the red snow had begun to fall, fear spread. Edling had pounced on the opportunity, and Wendel went from peacemaker to traitor in a matter of moments. They said Catrin was back on the Godfist, but he didn't believe them. It was all just a ploy to be rid of him. Jensen had been right.
"In an act of cowardice and indifferent malice," Master Edling said, addressing the other members of the council, "Wendel Volker and his daughter, Catrin, have inflicted our home with a blood scourge. We had hoped the memory of its creation had been lost to time, but the Herald has found a way. You see it all around you. What further proof could you require?"
Master Edling sat, looking smug. Wendel looked at the other council members, but none of them would meet his eyes, and he knew he'd already lost.
* * *
A blurred, red and brown landscape slid by, and Catrin tried to get her eyes to focus. After some squinting and eye rubbing, she saw that she was on a sled, Prios beside her. Four large men pulled the sled, and Catrin sat up too quickly, causing her vision to swim and her head to ache. Then she saw Benjin and Chase, who both called for a halt when they saw she was awake.
"How're you feeling?" Benjin asked.
"Better," she said, but she feared the truth was obvious: her body was drained and needed rest.
"We're nearly to Lowerton."
Propping herself up with the blankets and pillows loaded on the sled, Catrin watched as Lowerton came into view. Again word had preceded them, and the roadway was lined with people, only this time there was no fear. Here were the people who knew her best, and they waited in silent tribute, each holding a candle. Catrin wiped her tears as the first few faces slid by. Some she knew, others she didn't, but she finally felt she was home. Around the gentle bend awaited a sight Catrin could not have expected. There, standing taller and wider than any other building she'd seen and constructed out of six huge shafts of greatoak, stood a building with a weathered and chipped sign hanging above its double doors. Even through her tears, Catrin could read it: The Watering Hole.
From the double doors charged two women, their hair flying in the wind as they hoisted their dresses and ran. "Miss Mariss, Miss Bryson," Catrin said as she tried to stand, but her legs refused to support her. Seeing Strom rush to his mother's arms made Catrin's heart ache; it was a sweet ache, but it made her yearn for her own reunion. A moment later, Osbourne's parents arrived at a run. His mother lifted him from the ground and refused to let go. "Stay," Catrin said to Strom as his eyes met hers. "You and Osbourne belong here. I couldn't take you from your parents now. Please. Stay. Live happy lives."
Both Strom and Osbourne seemed torn, but they came to see her truth, and they waved a long good-bye as the sled began moving once again. "Come back to us," Strom shouted.
Farther along, a man stood in the middle of the roadway, his hands on his hips. Chase shouted as soon as he saw his father. He ran ahead and embraced Jensen.
Catrin watched with joy and envy. "Hello, Uncle Jensen!"
"There's my girl," he said as he crouched down by the now stopped sled. "I've missed you."
"I've missed you too, but I have to find my father. He's in danger."
Jensen put his arm around Chase, who now knelt by his side. "I'm sorry, Cat. I didn't want him to go. He thought he'd be safe, but I've been so worried. Can you be certain he's in danger?"
"I'm as certain in this as I've ever been in anything. I have to save him."
"That's good enough for me," Jensen said. "I'll gather those trained to fight, and we'll go get your dad."
"No," Catrin said. "I need to take Edling by surprise. Benjin, Prios, and I will make our way there by stealth. You, Chase, and everyone else stay here. If we don't return, it'll be up to you to keep these people safe."
Jensen took Chase by the arm and led him away, but Chase stopped and turned. "I can't stay here. Not now. Not after everything we've been through. I'd never forgive myself."
Catrin wanted to protest, but the look of pride on Uncle Jensen's face kept her from saying anything more. She hoped she could keep him safe.
* * *
Cruel light poured into the cell, and Wendel shielded his eyes with his hand. Silhouetted in the doorway, his guards waited, and he knew better than to keep them waiting long. Already his bruises and injuries made it difficult for him to walk.
Into the council room they led him, and he was brought to the seat of the accused, a place he'd never thought he would find himself, especially not accused of the highest crime. It seemed a horrible dream. None of this could be real. If only he could wake.
"On the charge of treason, how do you find Wendel Volker?" asked Constable Fredin.
"Guilty," Master Edling said.
"Innocent," Master Jarvis said, despite the glares he received.
"Innocent," Humbry Milson said.
Master Edling looked as if he would explode, but then a guard burst into the room, breathing hard.
He came to Master Edling and went one knee. "An urgent message, sir."
Master Edling's eyes went wide with feigned surprise and fear. He passed the message to the other members of the council and waited.
"I request a new vote," Humbry said, his voice trembling.
"No!" Wendel cried out.
"On the charge of treason, how do you find Wendel Volker?"
"Guilty," Master Edling said.
"Guilty," Humbry said.
"Innocent," Master Jarvis said. One more guilty vote would condemn Wendel to death, and he waited without wanting to hear. He wanted so much to wake.
"Guilty," Baker Hollis said.
On the floor lay the discarded message.
The Herald is coming for you.
* * *
Crouched in the snow behind a mighty elm, Catrin waited. Downhill stood a rudimentary guardhouse, and smoke poured from the small hole in the roof that served as a chimney. Occasional conversation drifted on the wind, and Catrin felt some remorse. Despite their differences, Carter and Chad were her countrymen, and she truly meant them no harm. Scaring them was simply the easiest way she could think of to get to her father. Nothing would stand in her way.
From the far side of the guardhouse, where Benjin, Chase, and Prios crouched, Benjin gave the signal. With a deep breath, Catrin prepared herself. Still feeling drained, she relied heavily of her staff and Koe as she drew a trickle of energy. "I know you're in there," she said, her voice amplified just enough to give it a chilling effect.
Shuffling could be heard from within. "Who's out there," Carter asked, his high-pitched voice laced with fear.
"You knew I would come for you," Catrin said. "Both of you."
"You best just be gone," Chad said, "or we'll come out there after you."
"A threat?" Catrin asked as she drew more power and stepped out from behind the tree. Wisps of blue lightning rolled across her fingers, and she moved her hands in elaborate patterns, trails of light streaming from her fingertips. Speaking words she remembered from books in High Script, she did her best to sound like a wizard of legend, incanting some horrific spell.
"I'm not afraid of you!" Chad challenged, but his aura reeked of fear, and Catrin gave the signal.
"Then you will die!" she shouted, throwing her hands back. Both Chad's and Carter's eyes flew wide as her energy began to reach out for them like fingers of death. Horrified, they watched and never saw Benjin, Chase, and Prios coming. In an instant, it was over. Both Carter and Chad were tied, gagged, and left to sit by their fire.
Benjin even tossed a bit more wood on the fire. "Someone should find them before they freeze t'death." Before he left, though, he removed the short sword and scabbard from Chad's belt. Chase took Carter's sword then helped Catrin over the Wall. Benjin helped ease her down the other side. Even that slight exertion taxed her body and her will. Each step was a c
hallenge, and she weaved as they hiked through the trees.
"We need to rest," Chase said.
"I'm fine," Catrin said. "We need to keep moving."
"Passed out or dead, you'll be of no use to anyone, Cat," Chase said. "Take a short nap at the very least. Please."
He's right.
Catrin cast Prios a scathing glance, but then she let herself admit that they were right. No matter how much she wanted to move forward, she was in no condition to travel, let alone fight. Prios was in nearly the same condition, and she could sense his own inner struggle. "Carry us," Catrin begged.
Benjin nodded in submission.
Chase shook his head. "Better than nothing, I suppose." Chase lifted Catrin easily, and she settled herself so her weight was balanced across his shoulders. It was far from comfortable, but sleep claimed her before Chase had taken three steps.
* * *
As her head leaned back, resting against the snow, Catrin's eyes flew open. Not far away, she heard a distinct and undeniable sound: a feed bucket being slammed against barn walls. In an instant her senses collided. Sound, smell, and even the shadows told her the same thing: she was home. She was not just on the Godfist; this was her farm, her home, and the light streaming from around the barn doors told of a new occupant. Suppressed rage, kept sealed away for so long, suddenly burst forth with its fullest fury. Her breath coming in ragged gasps, she sat up. Benjin, Chase, and Prios crouched nearby, listening and watching.
Crawling at first, Catrin pulled herself forward; then she stood. Slowly and unsteadily, she walked to where they were hiding.
"I'm going in there," she said as she swayed on her feet.
"Get down," Benjin whispered through his teeth. "He's just about done pickin' hooves. We wait until he puts the horse in a stall. Then we go in."
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