On Lonely Paths (Earth and Sky Book 2)

by Jann Rowland

  Two more approached, walking up behind the lead chimera, which was marginally larger than its brethren. Skye eyed their wings. There would be no escape by land or air. They would have to fight the pack of chimeras.

  “Strix,” Skye muttered to the Fenik, who was perched on his saddle, “fly up in the air to safety while we fight.”

  “Very well,” the bird said as he took to the sky. Skye was grateful the bird had not attempted to remind him how easily he might have done away with the feral beasts.

  “Ready to dance, Skychild?” Jasper asked, lifting his hands in the air.

  “I thought you’d never ask,” Skye quipped, raising his own hands up.

  The lead chimera spread its wings as it roared in challenge. Skye and the rest of his band fought to maintain control over their mounts, who were none too eager to chance being a chimera’s dinner. The screams of horses punctuated the air. A few more roars issued from some of the chimeras.

  As the alpha chimera sprang forward, Jasper shot up a cloud of dust and debris that Skye sent flying forward on a gust of wind into the chimeras’ eyes. The lion and goat heads roared and bleated. The cacophony of sounds made nearby trees vibrate.

  The head chimera lifted itself into the air and flew over Skye and Jasper’s heads, landing in the middle of the group.

  Horses screamed and bucked, threatening to throw the Skychildren from their horses, but miraculously they all maintained their seats. Fighting back against the chimeras, however, was another story.

  “Watch for the others!” Skye yelled. He raised his hands again, sending a rush of air at the chimera standing in the middle of the party.

  The beast roared and spat fire at Skye, who put it out with a gust of wind. The lion head bared its fangs at him. A twist of Skye’s hand produced a whirlwind. The twister buffeted the creature, which pressed its wings against its body and tilted its heads toward the ground.

  Spinning around, the beast lifted itself a few feet up in the air. It went backward toward Skye and Stardust, the snake head of its tail darting forward. Stardust dodged to the side, and Skye felt the snake’s jaw snap at where he had just been, its fetid breath filling the air. Then the beast plowed against Stardust’s side. The pegasus released a piercing cry, its hooves kicking out at the side of the lion’s head.

  With the beast momentarily stunned, Skye glanced around, locating the other two chimeras. One of the beasts stood beside a small stream and lashed out with its tail, catching Vesper on the side and knocking her from the saddle.

  The chimera moved in for the kill. Gusty appeared, attacking with a blast of wind. The gust knocked the beast aside into a tree.

  Skye was then forced to return his attention to his own opponent. It had recovered and was now stalking him, baleful glares coming from all three heads.

  “You want to play?” Skye snarled. “Stardust, up!”

  The pegasus crouched and then shot up into the sky with a blast of his wings.

  Looking back, Skye saw the chimera gather itself for its own leap when out of nowhere a wall of water appeared. The water rolled over the creature, sending it careening head over tail. The chimera impacted against a tree and fell to the ground. It struggled to rise, hampered by its limp goat head, which seemed to have been knocked out by the impact.

  The lion head roared. With two beats of its wings, the chimera rose unsteadily into the air. Then it began flying away. The other two monsters responded to its call, and soon, all three had fled.

  His heart still pounding from the aborted battle, Skye guided Stardust down to the ground. Strix took the cue without prompting, descending from his place high up in the sky to perch on the glove Skye lifted into the air.

  Griffin had dismounted and was helping Vesper to rise. The woman panted and favored her side, which had taken the brunt of the impact from the beast.

  “I’ll survive,” she said, nodding at Griffin with gratitude. “I think it’s only a bruise.”

  Skye turned to Sequoia. “What was that? I thought your people couldn’t control water like that.”

  “They cannot.”

  Startled, Skye looked back down the path they had traveled to see a young woman standing there. Belatedly, he realized that Sequoia had been looking at her when he had turned, and it had not been Sequoia who had spoken, but this woman.

  The woman was small, standing even shorter than Tierra, and her bright blue eyes were almost the color of the cobalt sky. Her silvery blonde hair was tied back out of her eyes with a few strips of leather. She wore a loose-fitting dress of the type that Skye had usually seen Groundwalker women dressed in around the Groundbreather castle.

  In all, Skye thought she was rather pretty, though the roundish nature of her face—which was much rounder than he had ever seen in any Groundbreather or Groundwalker—made her appear exotic. He had never seen a woman who looked quite like her.

  As Skye struggled to think of something to say, Stone—whom Skye had forgotten during the course of the battle—whined and trotted up to the stranger. The woman smiled and crouched down, allowing the garm to sniff at her in greeting while she patted his head and scratched behind his ears.

  “Just what I need,” Sequoia growled, “another mongrel charming that garm.”

  “Maybe he has discerning tastes,” Skye said, feeling an unwarranted measure of levity.

  Sequoia scowled at him.

  The woman down the path rose, and with the garm still close by her side, she said, “He senses a friend and reacts accordingly. Is that not why he befriended the Skychild?”

  “Who are you?” Skye asked, looking at her suspiciously. Strix had moved from Skye’s glove to Stardust’s saddle, and it was all Skye could do to keep from putting an arm on the bird.

  “I am Wave.”

  “And what are you exactly? Were you responsible for the water that chased the chimeras away?”

  “Chimeras are creatures of fire and air, and they are finicky when it comes to water, perhaps due to their feline heritage. It is nothing to chase them away with a bit of water.”

  Skye frowned. “You did not answer my question.”

  “Yes, I conjured the wave that chased away your attackers.”

  Thoughtfully, Skye turned to Sequoia. “Is this not one of your ‘extinct legends,’ Your Majesty?”

  Though she glared at Skye, Sequoia refused to respond.

  Skye then spoke again to the woman. “Why are you here?”

  “To see you, Skychild. I wished—I was commanded—to introduce myself to you. Our fates are closely intertwined. It is not yet time for us to join forces, but it will benefit you in the future if you are aware of me.”

  “Commanded?” Skye asked, latching onto a term from her nearly incomprehensible statement. “Who commanded you?”

  The woman gave him a wry look. “I am sorry, Skychild, but I do not think you are ready to hear the truths I bear. The Great Goddess, however, has directed me to you. She finds you interesting, and so must I.”

  “Great Goddess?” Skye asked. “Do you mean Celesta?”

  The woman laughed, making Skye feel cross with her. “Again, Skychild, it would do no good to answer that question now. The next time we meet, I will tell you all you need to know.”

  “Why are you here?” Sequoia demanded.

  “To assist you. The chimeras were a serious threat to your ability to continue with your quest, and it is imperative that you retrieve the princess. Much depends on the Skychild king and the Groundbreather princess. They must be united to fulfill their destinies.”

  Skye frowned. “That sounds suspiciously like prophecy.”

  The woman shrugged. “You may call it what you will. I know your beliefs, Skychild, and yours, Groundbreather.” The woman nodded at Sequoia, whose expression grew darker. “You will discover that many of the things you believe inviolable are in fact nothing more than lies fed to you by those who wish to use you. When you have reached this realization, you will remember me and seek me out, for I am the on
e who can answer your questions.

  “Furthermore, I will tell you right now that there is a traitor in your midst who is beholden to one who wishes you to fail in your mission. All is not as it appears, Skychild. Everything you have been taught, everything you believe, even the forces for which you struggle and fight—all of it is nothing more than lies fed to children, passed down through the generations. You do not know what side you are on, Skychild. You will soon find out.”

  “Do not be ridiculous,” Sequoia snapped. “You can no more see into the future than the gods themselves can!”

  “Perhaps I cannot. But I serve a power that possesses the ability. Trust me when I say your trials are not yet coming to a close; they are only beginning.” Wave turned her gaze on Skye. “You have faced fire in the past, Skychild, but you cannot even begin to conceive the streams of water which shall twist and writhe on the path before you, blocking your way and forcing you to discover hidden wells of power.”

  Sequoia shook her head and let out a snort. “Do you believe this, Skychild?”

  “My people place no more faith in prophets than yours,” Skye said. He then gave Wave a serious look. “Tell me this, water-bearer: do you know where Tierra is?”

  “There are those who shun the warmth of the sun in favor of the cool dirt of the land. My kind is not welcome among them.”

  “Who are they?” Skye demanded. “Is Tierra with them?”

  “Knowledge is not completely lacking among all of those in your group,” the woman said. “There is one whom you would believe over me.”

  “What do you mean?” Skye growled. “Why do you keep speaking in riddles?”

  Rather than answer him, Wave looked at Sequoia. “When your way seems to have disappeared, trust in your abilities to let you forge a new path.” She lifted an arm in the air and pointed. “Follow the garm’s nose that way. You will find part of what you seek, Groundbreather Queen.”

  “And what about what I seek?” Skye prodded. “Will I find Tierra?”

  “What is found is easily lost again,” Wave murmured. “I fear your relief will be met with sorrow. Indeed, you may be brought low by a jealous priest, a man who desires your destruction and the destruction of your entire people. When you bear the mark of Terrain, you will come to me, for seeking my aid will be the only way you may set yourself free from it.”

  Skye made a noise of disgust. “More riddles. If that’s all you have for us, you might as well go.”

  “I will go,” Wave said, bowing her head. “But though we part for now, we shall meet again once you are ready to listen to what I have to say.”

  The strange young woman knelt beside Stone, scratching behind both ears and then trailing one finger down the center of his head, muttering something incomprehensible. Then she stood and took several steps away from the party, only to pause and turn, looking directly at Skye. “You will be betrayed by a good friend. Remember this conversation when that happens. And remember that my people may be found in the west. If you journey south from Groundbreather lands, staying close to the sea, I will find you.”

  And then she stepped away and disappeared into the forest.

  “Good riddance,” Nimbus growled, looking after the woman.

  Skye’s thoughts were along the same lines. The meeting with that stranger had produced more questions than it had answers. In fact, Skye was not so certain it had produced any answers.

  Gusty brought his horse up to stand beside Stardust. “What do you make of all that, Skye?”

  “I for one do not make anything of it,” Sequoia proclaimed. “We should continue on as we were.”

  The odd young woman had not tried to convince them to turn around. Even if she had, Skye could not have obliged her. Still, he knew there was more for him to learn, and he turned to look at Sequoia, who met his gaze with her own.

  “You need to tell me what you know,” he told her. He was not certain whether to be proud of the fact that Sequoia flinched and looked away, refusing to meet his eyes.

  Terrain looked upon both the Waterweavers and the Skychildren with disgust and despair, for they had disregarded his natural laws.

  But the greater blow was that unleashed by the Waterweavers, for Terrain had cared for Cascade’s children as the goddess of water had desired. Their betrayal, even under the influence of the vile Celesta, had cleaved his heart in two.

  This betrayal caused a resolve to settle in Terrain’s breast, for he knew that the Groundwalkers had no protection from the children of the gods. He therefore resolved to make a perfect race of mortals who would share in some small part of his powers and be able to resist the Skychildren and the Waterweavers when they caused mischief.

  Terrain walked among the Groundwalkers, and when he came across those whom he deemed to be most noble and intelligent, he would place his hands upon their shoulders and ask them, “Would you be part of my people? Would you serve the earth, taking joy in the life it provides you, molding, shaping, and nurturing all to a greater level of order and rightness?”

  And he breathed new life into those who said they would, imparting some measure of his power into them. He called them “Groundbreathers,” for his breath had infused the richness and strength of the soil into their bodies. And the strength of the Groundbreathers was great indeed, for they had been created by Terrain alone.

  CHAPTER

  TWENTY-TWO

  Betrayal

  “I do not know what you are talking about,” Sequoia said firmly. Yet the firmness of her voice did not fool Skye.

  “We don’t have time for these stupid games,” Skye growled. “She’s one of those Waterweavers, isn’t she? You know—the ones you insisted were extinct.”

  “They were supposed to be extinct,” Sequoia snapped.

  “That woman we just saw sure didn’t seem extinct to me,” Skye said.

  Sequoia gave him a dirty look. “The situation is not what I expected.”

  “Obviously.”

  “Regardless of whatever Queen Sequoia thought was the case,” Gusty said, stepping in, “the fact of the matter is that there is at least one of these Waterweavers in existence. And if what she said was true, then there are others like her out there.”

  “It would’ve been nice if she’d told us their numbers,” Skye grumbled. “Or anything about them, really, if she thinks she will teach us something someday.”

  “Does it matter?” Gusty asked, his head tilted. “She didn’t seem to mean us harm.”

  “She didn’t seem eager to help us either,” Nimbus inserted, causing those in front of him to twist to look at him. “We should abandon this foolhardy mission now while we’re still able. That woman’s babblings seemed more like a way to confuse us and turn us against each other.”

  “I didn’t feel any ill will from her,” Vesper said. She sounded almost defensive, as though she wished to protect a fellow woman from the displeasure of men.

  “Isn’t there anything else you can tell us?” Skye asked, looking at Sequoia. He had learned by this point to ignore Nimbus’s incessant pleas to leave Tierra’s fate to the Groundbreathers.

  Sequoia pursed her lips in irritation. “As I told you before, they were believed to have been destroyed by your goddess.”

  “And yet they were not.” Skye returned Sequoia’s look with exasperation. “I seriously doubt Celesta had anything to do with a people created by Terrain. Your head priest indicated that Waterweavers offered up Groundwalker sacrifices. Maybe Terrain was fond of the practice and hid his people away to protect them from those who might not like what he was doing.”

  “That is ridiculous,” Sequoia told him. “We were Terrain’s chosen people. If some of the Waterweavers survived Celesta’s attack, then that speaks more to the strength of Terrain’s influence and the weakness of your goddess than anything else.”

  “Now, you wait one minute,” Skye growled dangerously, fists clenching at Stardust’s mane. “I won’t sit here and let you—”

  “This arguing
isn’t helping anything,” Gusty interrupted. “We need to work together. We may not know the motives of Wave or her people, but for now, we need to set all that aside. There will be time enough to worry about them later. The highest priority right now is retrieving Tierra, right?”

  Skye and Sequoia mumbled their agreement, eyes downturned as they refused to meet anyone’s gaze.

  “Now, how about we continue on our journey?” Gusty suggested gently. “There’s still time yet before we need to make camp.”

  “Lead the way, Skychild,” Jasper said from behind him, sounding amused.

  Skye threw him a glare. Jasper only chuckled.

  When they finally made camp, the party had settled into an uneasy peace. All the talk of Waterweavers and gods had put everyone on edge, and the hardheadedness of both Skye and Sequoia was not helping matters. Gusty had done a good job of taking on the role of peacemaker, but the group would have also benefited from Tierra’s soft touch. Knowing this did not improve Skye’s mood.

  As Skye removed Stardust’s saddle, he looked over at the Fenik, who stood on the ground nearby. “Do you know anything about these Waterweavers?” Skye muttered. He did not want anyone to overhear him.

  “No,” the bird said. “But I believed that woman when she said she was a prophet.”

  Skye shook his head and made a noise of disgust, but he did not pry further.

  “I cannot tell you how much I have appreciated your help, Stardust,” Skye murmured, knowing he did not thank the pegasus often enough.

  “It is my pleasure to serve you,” Stardust returned.

  “Your Majesty,” a low voice sounded from nearby.

  Skye turned to look at Nimbus, who was standing before him. The silvery light of the night sky played across the Skychild’s solemn face, making it look as though it had been chiseled from stone.

  “What is it?” Skye asked.

  “May I have a word with you in private? I wish to discuss this Waterweaver.”