The Bowl of Souls: Book 01.5 - Hilt's Pride

by Trevor H. Cooley

  When Beth opened her eyes, the world was blurry and bouncing back and forth around her. She couldn’t feel her face. She could still feel the skin of the viper in her hand, but it was stiff and unyielding. Beth realized that she had the handle of the bow gripped in her fist.

  She blinked a few times, and the world cleared somewhat. She was leaning forward, resting on something. She turned her head and looked right into Hilt’s ear. Somehow she was hanging onto him, her arms wrapped loosely around his neck and he was hiking along, holding onto her legs, carrying her on his back.

  “Hilt, put me downed,” she said. Her lips were numb, but at least they still worked.

  “Beth! You’re awake!” he said.

  “Put me down, Hilt!”

  He crouched and let go of her legs so that she could stand. Once she had her feet under her, she pushed away from him and swung around looking for Yntri. The elf stood not far away, grinning at her. She would have stormed over to him if she had full control of her legs. Instead she stumbled towards him.

  “You!” Beth didn’t know what she was going to do when she reached the elf. She felt like throwing a punch at him, but she was so woozy she was pretty sure she’d miss. Perhaps just throttling him would be better. But when she stood in front of him, she couldn’t do it. “If you weren’t two thousand years old, I’d punch that grin off your face.”

  Yntri just clicked pleasantly at her and held out a quiver made of wood and squirrel fur. She ignored the offering.

  “You didn’t prepare me for that! First thing when I wake up in the morning you say, ‘Here, eat this snake venom?’ You should give a woman some time to get her wits about her before you ask her to make important decisions. And you!” She said, swinging her arm around to point at Hilt. “I can’t believe you helped him talk me into it. ‘Oh, Beth, this is so amazing. He is one of the greatest weapon makers ever!’ You are supposed to be on my side!”

  Hilt watched her tirade with an amused expression on his face. “I told Yntri that you would not be happy when you woke up.” She started towards him with a fist pulled back and he raised both hands defensively. “I promise I didn’t know that was going to happen. When you passed out, I very nearly punched him myself.”

  Yntri grabbed her arm, halting her progress, and twirled her around to face him. He was strong for a wrinkled old elf. He held out the quiver and clicked insistently.

  “Let go of me.”

  “He’s asking you to shoot an arrow first. If you are still angry, then you are welcome to punch him . . . and kick him.” Hilt said. “I added that last part, by the way.”

  She reached for the quiver, but stopped herself. “Is this magic too? I am not eating squirrel brains so that it can bite my spirit. I am telling you that right now.”

  “That should not be necessary. I saw him put it together as we walked and I don’t think it is magical at all.” Hilt said, then paused and looked at the elf. “Right Yntri?”

  Yntri simply rolled his eyes and thrust the quiver into her hands.

  Beth looked at it more closely. The quiver was made of two curved pieces of bark bound together with squirrel skin. The inside had been scraped smooth and held a dozen arrows. They looked to be freshly made. The wood was supple and smelled of pine.

  “How did you find time to make these?” she asked.

  Yntri shrugged and clicked a response. “He’s had a lot of experience,” Hilt explained. “He carries arrowheads and feathers in his pack to make more as he needs them along the way.”

  Beth slung the quiver over one shoulder and drew an arrow. She realized that she was still gripping the bow. It felt good to hold a bow again. The viper skin grip was comfortable and formed perfectly to match her hand. She had to admit the elf knew his craft. She looked around for a target to aim for and froze.

  “Where the hell are we?” she said in confusion.

  They stood on a ridgeline with a steep drop off on either side. The peak seemed much closer, yet there were many trees nearby and at the bottom of the slope to her left was a large and placid lake. The area below was lush and green, very different from any other part of the mountain she had seen.

  “Quite stunning isn’t it?” Hilt said, walking up beside her. “Yntri says that this is a place of new life. Just a few years ago it was a barren mountainside. Now life springs up all around it.”

  “How can he tell that?” she asked.

  “Most of the trees down around the lake are new, maybe five years old. The rest of the greenery is grass and flowers.”

  “You were down there?” Beth asked incredulously.

  “Passed it on the way up here,” Hilt said. “I was hoping we might be able to fish, but Yntri said there weren’t any yet.”

  “That’s a long way down. How long was I out?” she asked.

  “Nearly two hours,” Hilt replied.

  “And you carried me all this way?”

  “I promised to get you to the top, didn’t I?” Hilt said with a grin. “Believe me, I had to keep reminding my legs that. My body isn’t what it used to be.”

  She gave him a curt nod. “Very well, you’re forgiven.” Beth leaned in and surprised him with a kiss on the cheek. She then speared Yntri with a steely glare. “We’ll see about you.”

  Beth lifted the bow again and sighted a lightning split tree fifty feet away. As she drew the arrow back to her ear, she could feel the viper coil, ready to strike. The world around her blurred and there was only the target. She released the shot and as the arrow neared her target, her mind’s eye saw not the arrow, but the viper, its mouth opened, fangs bared. The arrow struck with a sharp crack.

  They walked over to the tree.

  “You hit the trunk,” Hilt said with an impressed smile. “Not bad for someone who hasn’t lifted a bow in years.”

  “I wasn’t aiming for the trunk. I was aiming for that knot,” She said pointing to the dark twisted spot where her arrow stuck. When she pulled out the arrow, she noticed a latticework of cracks extending from the strike point. While Hilt examined the knot, Beth walked back to Yntri. The elf gave her an appreciative nod.

  “Yntri, I forgive you.” She bent and kissed his wrinkled forehead. “This is a fine gift.” The elf turned his head and pointed at his cheek and she kissed that too. He smiled and pointed to his other cheek. Beth snorted. “Don’t get carried away.”

  She slung the bow over her shoulder and when she let go, felt a twinge of pain in her forearm. Her hand was clenched and it hurt to spread her fingers open.

  “Ow,” she said, rubbing her cramped muscles. “Was I holding this bow the whole time?”

  “Like you wanted to choke it,” Hilt said. “I tried to take it from you but Yntri said not to try.”

  Yntri whistled to get their attention, then clicked at them, motioning to them that it was time to move along. The elf started off, not bothering to check if they had followed.

  They hiked along the top of the ridgeline, heading towards the peak. The mountains rise had been fairly gradual before, but she could see sharp inclines and cliffs ahead. It would make for a strenuous day, but she wasn’t worried about the climb. There would be a way and they would make it, she was sure. The thing that made Beth’s heart tighten was the thought that the end was near. What would happen once she stood there?

  The ridge ended in a rocky spire that they weren’t equipped to climb. They had to edge around it and climb down the slope a ways to find a better way up. Yntri was as surefooted and nimble as any young elf, and Hilt was confident and deliberate in his movements, but Beth had never attempted such precarious climbs before and Hilt had to reach out and steady her several times.

  It looked as though they were going to have to backtrack, wasting several hours of daylight, when Yntri spotted the waterfall. The mountain stream that poured down from the cliff above had carved down into the rock, leaving a series of landings that looked quite climbable. The only downside was the stiff fall breeze that blew. Already, the mist blown from the falling
water had struck Beth with an icy chill.

  In the end, they had no choice. There was no guarantee that they would find a better place to climb elsewhere. They stepped into the waters flow and found to their relief that the water was not as cold as they had feared. Evidently it fed from a hot spring somewhere above. Yntri started up the short cliff face towards the first landing, making it look easy. Beth was to follow right behind him with Hilt taking up the rear so that he could help her if she got stuck.

  Beth watched as Yntri disappeared over the first ledge. The elf stuck his head back over and motioned her up, but she stood frozen. She glanced at Hilt. “How am I supposed to climb with a river falling in my face?”

  “That’s not a river. That’s barely a trickle. Here,” Hilt pulled the coil of rope out of his bag and tied one end around his waist, then tied the other end around hers. “Now you know that if you fall, I will be able to catch you.”

  Beth’s nose wrinkled. “What are you talking about? I am a grown woman. If I fall, I’ll just end up jerking you down with me.”

  “Then consider it a show of my faith that you can do this.” Hilt said with a grin.

  Beth nodded and reached for the first hand hold, then turned back. “And what if you fall?”

  “Then at least we die together. Now go already.”

  The first stretch of the climb actually wasn’t too difficult. Hand holds and foot holds were plentiful and there was a slight slope to the cliff face. The only problem was that the warmth of the water allowed lichen and moss to grow in abundance which made for some slippery holds. They reached the half way mark without any difficulties and Beth was gaining confidence in her climbing abilities.

  The next stretch was the toughest. The cliff face was sheer and high and covered with a blanket of red lichen. The falling water was fanned out evenly across the entire surface, making it treacherously slippery. They changed their strategy for this climb. Yntri would go first, followed by Hilt. Then the two of them would stand at the top and hold the rope to anchor her just in case she slipped.

  Yntri started up with Hilt close behind, following the elf’s every movement carefully. The lichen was so thick in places that they had to dig through it to get to hand holds. At one point, Yntri was in lichen up to his elbows. Then it seemed as if the entire cliff face moved. The wall of lichen slid over Yntri, obscuring him from view.

  There was a cry of pain and a series of panicked clicks and whistles. The wall of lichen rippled and shifted, then pieces started flying away. Yntri’s form re-emerged, but the lichen swarmed back over him as if attacking. The elf clung to the rock with one hand while the other whipped about with his bow, knocking chunks of lichen through the air. A few pieces fell at her feet.

  Beth’s hand flew to her mouth as she realized that this wasn’t lichen at all. Tiny legs sprouted from the base of its leaf-like body and clawed at the air trying to find purchase. As soon as it righted itself, the creature promptly crawled back up the cliff face. She looked back up and saw Hilt become enveloped by the shifting mass. A series of shouts and curses erupted from his position.

  “Those are lichen spiders!” Beth shouted. They were fairly common in the tinny woods. “Don’t worry, they leave a nasty bite but they’re not poisonous! You must have climbed into a nest!”

  “You think?” shouted Hilt between swears.

  “Just keep climbing!” she yelled. “And don’t fall!”

  The two men struggled the rest of the way up the cliff face, shouting and grunting, but both made it to the top safely. After a few minutes knocking the spiders off of their bodies they threw down the rope. Beth tied the rope around her waist and took a deep breath to calm her nerves.

  “Sorry, Beth. We’ll pull you up as quickly as we can!” She could hear Yntri clicking and Hilt yelled back down! “Don’t be scared. It’s really not that bad!”

  “They’re just spiders!” Beth shouted back up at them and started to climb.

  She only made it up a few steps before the rope was yanked up under her arms and she was pulled away from her hand holds. The stupid men were trying to be helpful, hoisting her up as promised, but it really hurt. She wanted to shout up at them to stop, but could only hiss as the rope dug into the bruises from the day before. She dangled helplessly, letting out a series of pained gasps as she rose. To make things worse, the wind blew against her wet dress, chilling her to the bone.

  The rope began to sway back and forth. She swung gently at first, then in wider and wider arcs, aided by the rhythm of their pulling. She bumped into the cliff face once, swung away, then slammed into it over and over again as they pulled, sending spiders flying through the air. The swinging steadied as she neared the top, but by the time they grabbed her arms and dragged her over the edge, she felt positively battered.

  When they pulled her to the top, Beth sat down with a splash. The water was much warmer up there. She rolled to her back, letting the water run over her, soothing her battered body. She let out a groan.

  “Beth, are you okay?” Hilt asked in concern.

  “No! That really hurt! ” Beth snapped. “I don’t think there is a single part of me that isn’t bruised right now!”

  “Sorry,” Hilt winced. “We were trying to get you past the spiders as quickly as we could.”

  “I would so hit you if I felt like moving right now,” she growled.

  “How many times did they bite you?” he asked.

  “None. Though you probably smashed a hundred of them with my body,” Beth said. With great effort, she sat up and rolled to her knees. She held her hand out to Hilt. “Well? Help me up.”

  “How did you not get bit?” Hilt asked as he pulled Beth to her feet. He drew back his jacket sleeve to show a series of angry red marks along his forearm. “Yntri and I are covered in welts.”

  “They’re spiders,” she said as if it was obvious. She gazed up at the last stretch of cliff ahead of them. It looked quite mild in comparison to the rest of the climb. “Creatures don’t attack me. I’ve told you before.”

  “But they quelled you. How would that still work?” Hilt said.

  Beth shrugged. “I don’t know. Believe me, I’ve asked myself that same question countless times. Maybe they missed some piece of my magic. Maybe it was deep down inside me in a place they couldn’t touch. I don’t know. I can’t control it. All I know is it’s the last piece of magic I have left and I can’t even see it with my mage sight. Who knows? Maybe it’s the way I smell.”

  “I doubt it.” Hilt chuckled. “I mean, we could all use a good bathing, but it didn’t work for Yntri or I.”

  “That’s not what I meant, idiot,” she said with a glower. “But thanks for pointing that out.”

  “Oh come on.” Hilt said. “I said we.”

  “I know what you meant,” she said and walked to the wall in front of her. “Besides, your excuse doesn’t work. We both know that Yntri just smells like almonds.”

  Beth started up the final stretch of the climb in the lead. Yntri chuckled and clicked at Hilt.

  “Yeah, yeah. I know,” he grumbled and took up the rear.

  Once at the top of the cliff, the stream, circled around to their left. The water was so warm that it steamed in the cold air, surrounding the area in a thick mist. They followed the stream for a short distance, but they couldn’t make out their surroundings so they walked away from the water and stood at the edge of a rocky ledge hoping that the mist would disperse enough that they could get their bearings.

  The didn’t have to wait long before the wind changed and blew the mist away from them, revealing their goal. They could see the highest peak clearly now, standing across the ridge ahead of them. It was surrounded by a sheer cliff a hundred feet high.

  “No, not another cliff,” Hilt complained. “I have had enough climbing to last a lifetime.”

  “No whining,” Beth reprimanded, gazing at the mountaintop. “We are almost there.”

  “Are you sure we’ll even be able to climb that once
we get there?” Hilt said. “That cliff looks pretty steep.”

  “There will be a way. I know it,” she said with confidence. “The prophet would not send us this far if there wasn’t a way to reach the top.”

  The frustration on Hilt’s face melted away and he sighed. “You are right, Beth. This is just the last stretch.”

  An excited series of clicks and whistles rang out from the mist. Hilt looked at Beth and shrugged. “He’s found the source of the stream and wants us to come see.”

  They headed back into the mist and could hear the gush of the water before they saw it. Yntri appeared before them and grabbed their hands, a wide grin on his ancient face. He pulled them along the water’s edge until they saw it. Beth and Hilt stopped and stared.