***
“Treehouses,” Kace breathed in awe. “Oh wow. I thought they weren’t real.”
“Treehouses?” Remi asked, looking upwards. There were several worn and rotting shacks high up in the canopy of the forest, each one looking as if it was going to fall down on their heads at any moment. “Are they traps?”
“No. They were once homes,” he turned to give Remi a smile. “For my people.”
“We’re near a Quietus encampment?”
“No,” he chuckled. “Not even close. The Quietus stick to the borders of Paragon or Cimmerian respectively. They wouldn’t be out here.”
“So they used to live here? What happened?”
“The Collision of the worlds. They once lived here in the forest near a Kingdom called Allay—the birthplace of the Sages. The Queen at the time—Catherine—had given them asylum in the forest after they lost their homeland in a great war between the five Kingdoms. Quietus was actually a very respected and feared Kingdom back then.”
“So you know where we are?”
“Kind of. I’m relying on what I’ve heard. But if the stories are true, that means Allay might be nearby. I doubt it’s still up and running though. It seems that in preparation for the upcoming war, most people on Terra chose a side and traveled there for safety.”
“Well, it is getting dark,” Remi winked at him. “Maybe we should check this place out.”
“There could be squatters,” Kace warned. “Remember the Langoran ruins? There were Langorans near there.”
“What are the Allays like then?”
“They were called Allayans, and from what I hear, it all depended on who was charge. The people pretty much followed the mantra of their King or Queen. There were times in which they were hospitable and kind, and at other times, they were ruthless.”
“That sounds terrible,” she grimaced. “And you say that’s the birthplace of the Sages? Are they like that?”
“They don’t flip as much as the villagers did, but they had their problems. Sometimes they could be deceptive.”
“The more I hear about and think about the Sages…the more nervous I get. They sounded like people I wanted to meet before. But after knowing Eckard, and seeing how Scarlet was at times…I’m not sure. What do you think? Should we go to Allay?”
“It might be safer than being out here in the open. And there really might not be anyone there. We’ll just be cautious.”
“You never know. We might find some allies there.”
“I wouldn’t hold my breath,” he muttered as they walked on. The forest seemed to continue on forever as they found only treehouses and even more trees. Eventually they hit a dense wall, created out of thorn bushes, thick vines, and fallen branches.
“I’ve got this,” Kace said as he began ripping the debris away from the center. Remi kept her attention on the forest around them but it was still. Eerily silent.
“Got it,” Kace grunted as he removed the last of the makeshift wall. They proceeded forward, to find more trees and less hope of finding Allay.
“We’re just being impatient,” Remi said aloud to herself. “That’s all.”
“It’s got to be around here somewhere. How much further could it…
A colossal iron gate appeared in the distance, just as they walked around a cluster of oak trees. A stone wall that was even higher than the gate itself extended for miles in both directions. Kace whistled as they stopped in their tracks.
“It’s a fortress,” he said as Remi examined it further. She couldn’t see past the gate though there were rectangular slits within the frame. There was a dense fog past its border. The walls were so tall that it appeared to keep out giants. The stones were once ivory white but now they were dirty and caked in mud. Remi frowned as she listened for signs of life. She could swear that she heard talking in the distance, but she wasn’t entirely sure. It was like someone was moving their mouth into the wind as if speaking, but not actually letting any words come forth.
“Should we go on?” Kace asked.
“Yes,” Remi said boldly. “I’m not afraid.” She made the first move, walking up to the iron gate and pushing at it lightly. Surprisingly, even with her lack of strength, the gates moved easily and they swung open wide. The wind died down instantly as the fog seemed to get even denser upon their entrance. Kace moved in front of her and then stared down at his feet. There was gravel beneath his feet. He had never stepped on a substance like it before, and so he wiggled his toes between the pebble like stones, trying to decide whether he enjoyed the sensation or it made his bare feet ache.
Remi walked over to the right side and rubbed her hand across one of the white stone circular pillars that were erected high up in the air. She noticed that there were cuts in the surface, caused by what had to have been a sword. She turned and squinted. The fog lightened up a bit, and she could see that there were pillars on the other side as well, fashioned exactly the same.
“It feels strange here,” Remi said. “Like we’ve walked into a ghost town.”
“Which we know don’t exist,” Kace muttered, looking up at the sky. “This fog is ridiculous.”
“It is a product of the nearby swamps,” a man said, stepping out of the fog as if he was born from it. Kace and Remi jumped up in shock and then scurried to each other’s side. The skinny man in the scholar’s robe chuckled to himself. He reached up and ran his fingers through his mop like hair. “Sorry to scare you. I couldn’t help myself. As I was saying, the fog is a product of our swamps. They were once blocked from the nearby rivers and therefore they weren’t receiving the proper nourishment, if you will. But we’ve rectified that and now we have a smokescreen available to us.”
“You’re Allayan?” Kace asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes and no,” he replied, clasping his fingers together. “I would love to explain further, but I would like to hear your names first.”
“What for?” Remi asked.
“Because it’s polite,” he said, giving them a large grin.
“Kace,” Kace replied. “And this is Remi.”
“Kace is a Quietus designation,” the man nodded. “Are you Quietus?”
“Depends on what that means to you.”
“Nothing bad. We accept all who are willing to be peaceful here.”
“I am Quietus,” he decided to say. The skinny man nodded and turned to Remi. “And Remi, my name is Jalen. Nice to meet you. Based on your designation, I would say that you come from the outskirts of Terra. Correct?”
“It is,” she said. “But what does that matter?”
“It doesn’t,” he laughed. “I just like to challenge myself.”
“We told you our names,” Kace said. “Now tell us where we are.”
“Allay,” he said. “And it’s good you arrived when you did. Terra is no longer safe, and at least here, you have a fighting chance. We’ve been preparing since the beginning, and just because we’re not established in Paragon or Cimmerian, it doesn’t mean we can’t hold our own.”
“What do you mean Terra isn’t safe?” Remi asked.
“I’m sorry to say,” he lamented, bowing his head, “that the war has begun. The first major attack occurred in Paragon yesterday.”
The Sorcerer's Ring (Book #1 of the Seven Sorcerers Saga) Page 17