First Comes The One Who Wanders

by Lynette S. Jones

  “I don’t trust you,” said Leilas, not taking her eyes from her work.

  “Nor should you, Chidra,” said Garabaldi. “I told you that in Crysalis.”

  “What are you trying to accomplish? You know that if I don’t succeed, Preterlandis will fall. Yet, you’re still working against me.”

  “Perhaps not all dark crafters think it would be bad if Preterlandis turned dark.”

  “I thought you were different,” said Leilas.

  Garabaldi shrugged. Leilas put her axe back on her belt. She’d changed her mind about going on without Erion. Right now, she wanted his help. She didn’t have to go far. By the time she reached the ring of trees that surrounded the temple, Erion came running through the forest.

  “What do you think you are doing, my lady?” He asked, stopping when he saw Garabaldi at the door. His sword was drawn before Leilas could explain.

  “Erion, no. He’s not a threat.”

  Erion stopped but didn’t lower his sword. “Do you know this creature?”

  “This is Master Garabaldi of the School of Land. I met him in Crysalis. He came with his friends to stop us.”

  “I thought you said he wasn’t a threat.”

  “I didn’t say he wasn’t the enemy,” said Leilas, sadly.

  “What are you going to do with him?” asked Erion.

  Leilas looked in Garabaldi’s direction. She’d been mulling over that same question. What did she do with the gnome master? If she let him go, he would go back to doing everything in his power to thwart her plan. If she kept him with her, she’d have to worry that he was betraying them wherever they went. She didn’t think that she could kill him in cold blood, no matter how much a threat his presence was to her.

  She looked at Erion and shrugged. “I haven’t decided yet.”

  Erion was looking around the temple. His eyes rested on the dead crafters, then took in the temple. “This isn’t like the last temple.” He said, finally.

  “What are you going to do with this lot?”

  “Send them off properly,” said Leilas, with a sigh. She’d been sending a lot of people off to the next world lately.

  “They wouldn’t do the same for you,” said Erion, rolling up his sleeves.

  When they’d gathered the wood and bodies, Leilas left Garabaldi to perform the ritual, while she went back inside with Erion.

  “Do you trust him not to run off and tell his friends where we are?” asked Erion.

  “They aren’t nearby. Even if he does tell others where we are, it will take them a little while to get to us. Hopefully, we’ll be gone by then.”

  “You plan to leave him here?”

  “I don’t know what to do with him. If we leave him, he’ll be our shadow. If we take him, he’ll most likely betray us. I suppose we could use that to our advantage, when the time is right.”

  “Better the enemy you know,” said Erion.

  “Something like that,” agreed Leilas. She didn’t bother to mention that Garabaldi had been her teacher of sorts in Crysalis.

  “Do you know what we’re looking for in this place?” asked Erion, having settled the problem of Garabaldi.

  “I was expecting something similar to the last two temples,” confessed Leilas. “There isn’t a platform or a stone.” She heaved a sigh. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

  They began tapping the walls, looking for a secret entrance to another room, but ended up standing next to each other near the mosaic of the dragon.

  “This seems to be the focal point of the room,” said Erion, looking down at the sea dragon. “Maybe if you stand on it, or do something it will react like the seer stone.”

  “I walked all over it earlier,” said Leilas. “So, obviously I’m not the trigger. And the rest is just inlaid wood.”

  “Except the eye,” said Erion, taking a closer look at the circle of wood in the center of the room.

  Leilas came to look at the eye. Rather than being made of wood, it was made of stone and rose from the floor by about an inch. Leilas pushed on in, but it didn’t move. Deciding there was nothing there to find, Leilas rose and turned. Her foot landed on the eye of the dragon and this time, she felt the stone give. To her surprise, a section of the dragon’s scales popped up to reveal a ladder to a lower floor. From the hole, there was a definite smell of salt water. Leilas looked up in surprise. “We are miles away from the ocean,” she said, puzzled.

  “This is the temple of the Sea crafter,” said Erion, as surprised as she was.

  “If there was a route to the sea from here, it would explain why the temple is here, instead of by the sea,” said Leilas.

  “I was wondering about that,” said Erion. “Garabaldi,” he called loudly. “Time to go.”

  The gnome entered the temple, brushing dust and ash from his clothing. He stopped to pick up his pack and his weapon. Erion took the weapon from him and then indicated that he should go first into the hole in the floor.

  “So I’m to be the prisoner, I see,” he said, as he began to descend the ladder.

  “Until you give us reason why you shouldn’t be,” said Erion, gruffly.

  “No, no, very wise of you, I think,” replied Garabaldi from the darkness. “Nothing here,” he said. They could hear him moving around on the floor below.

  “Me next,” said Erion, “just in case there are more crafters waiting below.”

  Leilas nodded and held the door while Erion climbed nimbly down the ladder. He landed lightly.

  “All clear,” he said. Leilas started down the ladder, pulling the door closed behind her. They didn’t need to give away any secrets to their enemies.

  They’d descended into what appeared to be a storeroom. There were barrels stacked along the west and south walls. The north and east walls had doors. Other than the sound of mice scurrying, there was only the sound of water lapping against something. But there was no water in this room.

  “Let’s go find our sea,” said Leilas, heading for the east door. If they were searching for sea water it would come from the direction of the sea. Once they stepped through the door, the smell of salt water was stronger. The door led to a short hallway that opened up into a large room that appeared to be a docking area for sailing vessels. The roof was higher than she could see, although Garabaldi made appreciative noises about the architecture. In this room was a channel filled with water, the wooden floor serving as a loading platform. There was a vessel at the dock, but there were no people in the room or on the ship. Leilas gave Erion a puzzled look and moved cautiously toward the ship.

  A gangplank spanned the gap between the ship and the dock. Leilas took a look around the room. But seeing nothing that appeared to be a clue to the staff and seeing no other doors, she stepped on the gangplank and boarded the vessel. Erion prodded Garabaldi to follow and then boarded the ship, as well.

  As soon as they were aboard, the gangplank withdrew and the ship began to move. Leilas thought about jumping overboard, and regaining the dock. She could see that Erion had similar ideas, but they’d moved quickly away from the docking area, and she knew that what they were looking for was not in the temple. Stepping back from the railing, she took a deep breath and walked to the front of the ship to peer into the blackness of the channel.

  Garabaldi was standing near the railing, reading some runes that had been carved into the brass that lined the rails. “There is but one destination from here,” he read aloud. “What you find when you reach your journey’s end depends on you.”

  “That makes it so much clearer,” said Leilas, brushing back the strands of hair that had escaped her braid.

  “The one destination is the sea,” remarked Garabaldi. “The other half must mean you have a choice to make when you reach the ocean.”

  “What choice would that be, gnome?” asked Erion.

  “That part is harder, isn’t it?” replied Garabaldi. “Perhaps it’ll be clearer once we get there.”

  Leilas ground her teeth in frustration. She was ti
red and time was against them. Yet, it appeared the four crafters had made finding the last two pieces of the staff a game. They were moving through a carved, water-filled tunnel. There didn’t appear to be any reason for them to be moving, and yet they were slipping quickly through the channel.

  “You should get some rest,” Erion told her. “I’ll watch our friend here. It doesn’t look like we’re going to run into trouble until we get out of this tunnel.”

  Leilas nodded, looking in Garabaldi’s direction. She had more questions to ask him, but they could wait until later.

  CHAPTER 33

  Erion looked longingly at the island of Seal Haven as they emerged from the channel just a few miles north of the small island. Seals were already playing nearby and investigating the unusual ship. Leilas had seen a few swim off in the direction of the island and wondered if they were warning someone of their presence. A frown pulled at her lips as she watched Erion. It was just a few days until the summer solstice. She knew Erion was homesick and heart-broken to be missing the summer festival.

  “Are there any forest elves on Seal Haven?” she asked pulling her cloak together to keep out the brisk sea breeze.

  “There are only sea elves on Seal Haven,” replied Erion.

  “Do they celebrate your solstice, as well?”

  Erion didn’t reply immediately, but looked longingly at the island. “It doesn’t matter, my lady. We must push on.”

  “I have no idea where to go, Erion. This island is as good as any other.”

  “The ship will take you,” said Erion.

  “It will only take me where I think I need to go,” replied Leilas.

  Garabaldi’s head bobbed agreement from his hiding spot beneath several coils of rope. “Exactly so. Well done, Chidra. That is the answer.”

  Erion scowled at him, but didn’t argue with the two crafters. “Maybe the sea elves will be able to help us find what we seek,” he said at last.

  “They do seem to be Sylph’s friends,” replied Leilas.

  Without their bidding, the ship shifted slightly and the island began to draw nearer. “So, the choice is made,” said Garabaldi, climbing from his hiding spot to come and stand by Leilas. “The sea elves are not particularly my friends.”

  “Or the forest elves,” replied Leilas, seeing Erion scowl at the gnome.

  “They aren’t particularly fond of gnomes, either,” agreed Garabaldi. “Still, one must do what one must do.”

  “What is that exactly, Garabaldi?” asked Leilas.

  “To help restore the balance, of course.”

  “Of course, how stupid of me not to have realized that. Even though it’s not what the gaunt masters are trying to do, or Gidron Frey, or Rengailai,” said Leilas. “All dark masters, the same as you.”

  “Not quite the same,” replied the gnome, “but that’s something you’re going to have to discover yourself.”

  “You came to Sylphia with dark crafters. Ro told us gaunt masters had come and gone in the last month. You were lying in wait for me to arrive at the Temple of Sylph. What am I supposed to discover?” Leilas lowered her voice. “You told me in Crysalis you were sent to help me.”

  Erion turned his head slightly and Leilas knew he’d heard. That was a problem she’d have to deal with later. “Yet, it appears you’ve been searching for the temples to keep me from completing my task.”

  “I’m a dark master,” replied Garabaldi. “I have duties to the guild, as long as they don’t interfere with my duty to the Creator.”

  “How can you serve those who are evil?” asked Leilas in bewilderment. “I feel the power within you, it’s pure. I don’t feel the evil within you that I feel in Rengailai and now in Gidron Frey. How can you do as they ask when you know they wish to corrupt Preterlandis?”

  Garabaldi looked at Erion for help. The elf shrugged and crossed his arms. “Fine, my friend, I’ll do my best to explain.” He paced in front of Leilas, trying to frame his words. “Every power must have a counter power,” he began.

  Leilas cut him off. “Yes, yes, we learned all that in school.”

  “Obviously you didn’t learn it or you wouldn’t be asking such rudimentary questions,” sniffed Garabaldi.

  Leilas turned on him, menacingly. “I didn’t ask for a dissertation on the balance that’s supposed to rule Preterlandis. I asked how you could serve those who are evil.”

  “So you did,” replied Garabaldi, beginning to pace again. “And I answered you. I have duties to the guild. As long as they don’t ask me to do anything that offends my conscience or that the Creator says is wrong, I’m bound by my word to serve them.”

  “What happens if they do ask you to do something that is against your conscience or wrong?”

  “Then I must stand against them and face the consequences.”

  “You didn’t think killing the Chidra would be wrong?” asked Leilas.

  “I wasn’t asked to kill the Chidra. I wasn’t asked to stop the Chidra. I was asked to find the pieces to the crafter’s staff,” replied Garabaldi.

  “Knowing that if you found them and turned them over to Rengailai it would be stopping me?”

  “Knowing that,” agreed Garabaldi. “Also knowing I couldn’t gather the pieces. I did visit the Crystal Caves, quite by accident. I knew only you could do what they asked me to do. Still, they sent me.”

  “What will happen when you go back empty-handed?”

  “They’ll kill me,” replied Garabaldi, emotionlessly.

  “So, you think you’ll let Leilas collect the pieces, then steal them from her,” said Erion, condemningly.

  Garabaldi smiled wearily. “Then I would be going against my conscience. It’s a dilemma,” he added. “I fear I’ve thrown myself on your mercy to do with me as you will.”

  “I believe you as much as I’d believe one of my dark brothers,” replied Erion.

  Leilas didn’t know what she should believe. She wanted to believe the gnome. But with all of Preterlandis at stake, she wasn’t sure she had the luxury of believing him.

  The ship was slipping closer to the shore. The seals were still moving along beside them. Looking toward the shore, Leilas could see people mounting the seals and dolphins and riding out toward the ship. She’d never seen sea elves, but she knew instinctively that was who these people were. Unlike the mer people, the sea elves lived near the sea and were at home in the sea, but they weren’t creatures of the sea.

  When they were close enough, Erion greeted them. Leilas wasn’t sure what they said to each other, but when they finished speaking, two of the elves climbed aboard the ship and the others fell in beside the vessel. Once aboard, the elves began to speak in a chant and the ship began to turn toward an inlet.

  Erion came to stand next to Leilas. “They say that anyone who can board this ship is a friend of Sylph and so a friend of theirs.” He cast a glance at Garabaldi, which registered confusion. “No one has ever boarded who wasn’t invited. They’ll take us to their city. Since it’s so close to the festival, we must join them in the festivities, and then we’ll discuss what brings us to them.”

  Leilas nodded her acquiescence. From what she’d heard of elves, it did little good to try to rush them. Life moved at a much slower pace for them. Someday, maybe, she would be better able to understand their sense of time.

  The ship slowed as it neared the entrance to the river that led away from the beach into the tropical foliage of the island. They didn’t travel far along the river, just far enough to hide the ship. Then, the gangplank lowered. The elves left the ship and waited for Erion, Leilas and Garabaldi to join them. When they were on dry ground, the elves moved quickly through the dense foliage. Leilas knew she’d have quickly lost her way were she on her own, but their guides moved with surety.

  Within a few hours, they were at the border of the city, though Leilas knew this only because Erion told her. To her, she was still standing in the middle of a tropical forest. Then, with one step, she was in a clearing, ringed by
forest. In the center of the clearing was a great building made from white stone and sand, with peaks and towers rising up in a fanciful fashion. There were many smaller dwellings made of the same white stone and echoing the architecture of the main building. The sun shone off the rock and sent sparks of color flying through the air. There were elves everywhere, busy with food, instruments and flowers. All were making preparations for the festival.

  One of the elves leading them dropped back to speak with Erion. She was slight, with hair that shimmered like mother-of-pearl, and eyes the color of the sea. Leilas was certain she’d never seen anyone as beautiful. Erion listened attentively as she spoke then motioned for Leilas and Garabaldi to stop. He watched the woman walk away until she was out of sight. Leilas’ eyebrow went up at Erion’s actions.

  “Who is our guide?” she asked, as they waited for someone to return.

  “That is Kai. She’s the daughter of Kalin who is the king of this clan.”

  “Oh,” Leilas tried not to show her disappointment. She wasn’t sure how it worked in elven hierarchy, but where she came from, Kai would never be allowed to choose Erion as a mate. “She’s quite lovely.”

  “Yes, she is,” agreed Erion, his eyes showing his sadness. “The most beautiful woman–”

  Garabaldi snorted. “She wasn’t beautiful to me. Looked a bit like a fish. Speaking of fish, I’m quite hungry. How long do you think they’re going to make us stand here?”

  “Not too long gnome. Mind your manners or I’ll teach you some,” snarled Erion.

  Garabaldi straightened at Erion’s tone. “I always behave. My manners are impeccable. I’ve set at table with kings.”

  “I can’t imagine you’ve ever been invited to sit with elves.”

  “I’ll do my best to not dishonor you while we’re here, elf,” said Garabaldi. “But after all, I am just a dark creature.”

  Erion scowled at the challenge, but chose to ignore it. Leilas let out the breath she had been holding. She needed both Erion and Garabaldi right now. She didn’t need them trying to kill each other.

  “Couldn’t we have left him tied up on the ship?” Erion asked her.