“Anything: until we are found out by the Council, until the shadow sits outside our door, until the world crumbles out from under our feet—how much longer until the end?”
She twirled the spindle in one hand, winding the length of newly-spun yarn around the shaft while holding the main tuft of wool in the other. “You have grown tired of all this, love—we all have.”
“Damn straight.” He let himself fall into the large chair next to where she sat.
“You know you cannot rush time, although we all wish we could. We can only sit and wait for whatever Fate has in store for us, and the Lady.”
“This cannot last forever.” Ren reached down into the basket on the floor by Tal’s feet and picked up a ball of bright red yarn; he kept rolling it around in his hands as the bitter thoughts bounced across his brain.
Tal clicked her tongue in disapproval. “Ren, my love, if you do not stop that then the moisture from your hands will felt the wool fibers together. How can I use it for anything after that?”
“I am sorry, dearest.” He let the ball drop from his hand back into the basket. He sank further into his chair. “Why has Hiran not come back yet?”
“Did he say he would?”
“Yes, once he found a way up the mountain the Council is not already aware of. But seriously, does it really take two weeks to find an unguarded path?”
“With how vigilant the Council is these days it should not be that surprising—especially if he is around again; you and I both know they will find out about his return sooner or later. With luck it will be later rather than sooner. Be patient Ren—everything will work out, you will see.”
“I hope so my d—”
There was a loud crash from somewhere at the front of the house, cutting him off. Both Ren and Tal jumped in their seats, startled by this sudden commotion. Everything else forgotten, they froze as they listened to the continuing noise. It was growing louder with each second, its maker coming closer to this room. It left Ren with a sinking feeling in his stomach.
Something bad was happening.
He got up from his chair. “Stay here,” he commanded. Without waiting to hear any of her objections he crossed the room in only a few strides and turned to enter the hall.
Three armed soldiers burst into the room, weapons and armor clanking together. They deliberately walked into Ren, forcefully pushing him back into the room; he almost fell back on top of Tal. Both of them glared at the soldiers as fiercely as they could. Ren spotted the blue and green wolf insignia on the front of their uniforms: the emblem of the Council.
Ren scowled at them, struggling to keep control of his temper as he tried to stare them down. “What is the meaning of this?” he demanded. “What right do you have to force your way into our house? Explain yourselves!”
“We have our orders from the High Council,” said the tallest of the men.
“And just what is that supposed to mean?”
“A monster was seen in the area prowling around your property. The Council has ordered the search to make sure you are not harboring the beast. It is also thought to have brought some woman with it.”
Ren fought to keep his face straight. Gods, he thought fearfully, they saw Hiran and know Calla is here. He straightened up and looked the one guard in the eye. “And just why would we be hiding such a creature? It wandering around close to my home is nothing more than coincidence.”
“Perhaps, but the Council wants to make sure. Do not try to interfere in our search.” With that the guard turned and walked back into the hall, motioning for his two companions to follow. They all disappeared to another part of the house.
Unable to do anything else, Ren and Tal stayed in that room. From there they could hear the guardsmen turning over everything in their path as they searched on. He hoped desperately they wouldn’t find Calla, or any sign of her; hoping was the only thing he could do.
Lady Elenia, he prayed quietly, do not let them find her.
Several hours later the guardsmen finally left, abruptly and without saying a single word to any in the house as they walked out. As they headed down the long path to the front gate the inhabitants finally reemerged to survey the damage. Ren looked on in shock when he saw the state of his house: furniture overturned, a few rooms with lots of broken glass, papers and other small items thrown everywhere—his house was in shambles. But from the way the guardsmen left, Ren could only assume they had found nothing.
So how had they not found Calla? Where had she been while all of this was going on? The soldiers clearly hadn’t found her during their search, but now that they were gone the servants couldn’t find her either; her room was empty, and there was no sign that she was elsewhere in the house. Even the Tri-tail was missing. Concerned, Ren sent many of his servants to search the grounds for them both.
If the girl wandered off on her own now, there was an even higher risk of the Council getting their hands on her.
At sunset he went out onto the porch at the back of the house, sitting down in one of the chairs next to the door. He closed his eyes and let his head drop back. The world is about to end, he thought, strange creatures from other parts of the world are living in my house, and now the Council is officially knocking on my door. Is there anything that has yet to come and try making my life any worse?
As if in answer to his fears there was a loud movement somewhere in the bushes, followed by some dog-like creature yipping happily. Ren sat up straighter, feeling his heart beat faster as he listened. The creature continued its strange barking, nonstop, but its volume was rising all the time—it was coming closer to where he sat. He could hear something bouncing along in the grass. He grabbed the oil lamp sitting on the table next to him and held it up so its light was cast out across the darkened yard.
“Ouch!” cried a girl’s voice; he could barely make her out at the edge of the light. “Ren that hurts my eyes!” The bouncing shadow at her side gave a low growl as though to back up her statement.
He sighed with relief—it was Calla and the Tri-tail; the Council guards hadn’t found her after all. He set the lamp back on the table. “I am sorry Calla,” he said. “I was not sure what was coming.”
“Only us.” She walked up the two steps that led onto the porch. She was covered in dirt and there were leaves and broken twigs caught in her hair. She must have hid herself in the garden when the guardsmen came, probably in some of the larger bushes.
At least she was safe.
Ren stood up and put both hands on her shoulders, almost to reassure himself more than anything else. “That was far too close,” he said. “If the Council had gotten their hands on you, chances were that our doom would have been sealed right there.”
“Why?” Calla was confused; even the wolf-like creature at her side seemed to share that feeling. “Why would they want to find me? What about me would draw their attention?”
“That is what concerns me. Come; let us talk for a while over tea.”
He led her back inside, guiding her down the main hall towards the sitting room at the front of the house. He stopped in the doorway, motioning for her to enter first which she did hesitantly. He couldn’t blame her for feeling more than a little nervous: she had been uncomfortable coming here, and the arrival of the Council Guard didn’t do much to improve her feelings about the situation. He entered the room right behind her.
Tal was still in the room, spinning together two threads of the yarn she had been making earlier. Calla stopped about halfway across the room, staring at the woman suspiciously; somehow, in the two weeks she had been here she never once crossed paths with his wife. He gently nudged the girl towards a chair next to her.
Tal looked up, her expression soft and kind. “Is this Calla?” she asked quietly.
“Yes,” he replied. He took his place in the chair on the other side of Tal, directly across from Calla. He reached over and picked up a small bell from the table next to him, ringing it hard for a few seconds before setting it back down; it wo
uld take only a few minutes for one of the servants to come with the tea. He sat back in silence for a moment before addressing the two women.
“I think we can agree,” he began, “that what happened today has served to warn us.”
Both of them looked up at him, neither saying anything in response but seeming to agree with him.
“I think it is safe to assume that we cannot depend on Hiran anymore.” He tried to ignore the look of hurt in Calla’s eyes. “It has been two weeks, and still he has not sent us word of success or failure. If the presence of the Council Guard has proven anything to us, it is that we can no longer afford to wait for him; we will have to take matters into our own hands.”
Even as he spoke, he still hoped that somehow Hiran would come through. Old friend, Ren thought, do not let me down.
XXIII
Hiran
Hiran sat up in the higher branches of a large pine tree, carefully moving the needles aside with his fingers to get a better look at the ground below. Three soldiers, all of them bearing the Council insignia on their uniforms, came running down the path in his general direction. They had heard him moving around here, but from the way they continued past him it was safe to say they have an idea as to where he actually was. He kept listening after they disappeared from his sight down the hillside, the racket they made echoing back to him for several minutes, before he finally hopped from his perch back to the ground.
That was a little too close, he thought.
The base of the mountain was swarming with soldiers, all under the Council’s command. After only the second day of searching for a clear path up the mountain they started appearing everywhere. It seemed like Hiran couldn’t take more than a few steps before running into another patrol. It was likely the Council knew he was somewhere in the area. As much as he feared getting caught and forced to face those he hated just as much as they hated him, he couldn’t stop now. He had to take his chances and find some path that the Council had overlooked, and then figure out how to get Calla up without both of them getting spotted.
That was proving to be quite the challenge. No matter where he went he always managed to stumble on a small group of guards, and after losing them in the woods was forced to look somewhere else.
The Council’s control was getting tighter.
Hiran swatted at a low-hanging branch and continued on his way up this one particular path. In two weeks of searching, this was the only one he had found that showed even the slightest bit of promise. But he didn’t feel that comfortable leading Calla up this way.
His thoughts drifted back to her as he continued up the hill. He was surprised by just how much he missed her when he hardly even knew her. He couldn’t get her out of his head these days. But why? Of course he knew she was the one chosen by the Lady to save them all, and he could not interfere with that for any reason. But there was something else there in his heart as well, something he hadn’t quite felt before. He had only seen her for a few days prior to Mai’s arrival and curiosity was all he felt then; but spending the past few weeks getting to know her was changing something in him. He had a sense that his feelings towards her seemed to be shifting.
Was he falling in love with Calla?
He shook his head. What did he know of love? He’d heard of it, of course—he always thought it was a foolish emotion to have, especially after having so little of it over the last few years. But how did he know it was one he didn’t have?
He tripped over an exposed root and almost fell to the ground, breaking his train of thought. His feet scraped at the dirt as he staggered forward, trying to keep himself upright. He straightened up as he regained his footing, cursing at himself quietly.
“Hi! over there!” shouted a voice—from very close by. “There’s something moving over there!”
Hiran swore loudly, charging down the mountain away from the voices. He quickly left them far behind and started to slow down, glancing over his shoulder repeatedly to make sure he wasn’t being followed. He turned around again to come face to face with another three soldiers. For a minute they all just stood there staring at each other in surprise. Then with a shout the soldiers ran at him while he darted off to his left; they followed close behind him, shouting for their comrades the entire time. Over their din Hiran could hear more soldiers yelling somewhere up ahead of him.
Damn it all! He sprang off to the right. He had to lose his pursuers somehow but no matter how hard he ran they still stayed close behind him, their shouts getting louder. What was worse, there was a clearing coming up ahead of him—if he was driven there he wouldn’t be able to hide. He had to stick to the trees if he was to have any hope of escaping. He jumped to the right again.
“Hold it right there!” shouted the men behind him.
“We have you now!” yelled more voices. “You cannot escape us—we have you surrounded!”
Hiran felt his heart drop. He slid to a halt as more soldiers appeared in front of him. They moved to form a ring around him, pointing their weapons at him.
XXIV
Calla
Calla thought she was flying. She couldn’t describe the weightlessness she felt any other way. The world around her was a gray haze, swirling around her like clouds of mist. She was beginning to wonder where she was when the scene around her changed.
The mist faded into a green meadow filled with colorful flowers. Birds were singing in the trees nearby, and butterflies and other insects fluttered and buzzed around her. Somewhere nearby she thought she heard children laughing; she looked up, and a small group darted out into the meadow playing some kind of game among themselves, completely oblivious to her presence. Something glimmering above her caught her attention, and craning her neck back to look up she saw the white tower of the city. She knew where she was: just outside of Elenan.
Calla bent down and picked a flower; she let the white crocus sit in her palm as she stared at it.
But suddenly it changed—the petals began to shrivel and crumble, until Calla was left holding a small pile of brown dust. The air around her changed as well, feeling thick and heavy as she stood there. She looked up to find flakes of ash swirling around her, and a much different landscape before her eyes.
The rich green she had seen before was gone. There were not any flowers to be found on the ground, and the grass was yellowed and brittle, snapping and breaking with ease under Calla’s light step. The trees were worse to look at: devoid of leaves, they were burning, blazing limbs falling to the ground everywhere she looked. Many had burned so much they were beyond recognition. She looked up at the tower only to find it wasn’t even there, while the mountain behind it was crumbling. In the distance, she could hear voices screaming out in anguish and despair.
Just as suddenly as the vision had appeared, it was quickly swallowed up by the gray mist again. Calla blinked, trying to understand what had just happened.
—This will pass if we fail.—
Startled, she looked around wildly to find the speaker, finding only the unbroken clouds of mist swirling slowly around her. “Who said that?” she shouted to the silence around her.
—I am here.—
“Where are you?”
—Our time is not yet over. You are in danger, but you can prevail.—
“What are you talking about? Who are you?” Calla was getting frightened.
—You must stay strong. Only then will you succeed.—
Calla stared in silence at the world of gray around her.
—You must find me…—
Calla sat bolt upright in her bed as her eyes snapped open, breathing hard. The moments from that dream continued to play in her head, over and over again in sharp detail instead of fading like most nightmares. The destruction she had witnessed there was seared into her memory. She tossed a lock of her hair back over her shoulder as she focused on calming herself down, vaguely noting how moist it was with sweat.
So that’s the future I’m supposed to prevent, she thought. The thought didn’
t make her feel any better about this whole mess she had been dragged into. She crawled out of bed and walked over to stand by the window.
There was a soft pattering of paws on the floor behind her. You cannot sleep? Lina walked over to join her.
“What do you think?” Calla replied, feeling more than a little unhappy right now.
Lina hopped up onto the windowsill, circled in place a few times and lay down on the narrow ledge. I could hear you tossing and turning all the way down the hall. Was it another nightmare?
Calla shook her head, rubbing at her eyes with her fingers. “I’m not sure.” She sat back down on the edge of her bed. “I’m not sure about a lot of things anymore.”
Lina stared at her for a moment, her golden eyes wide and unblinking, before leaping over to Calla’s side; as large as she was, she landed lightly on the mattress. She rubbed her muzzle against Calla’s arm. Talk to me Calla, she said, that is part of why I chose to stay. What is wrong?
“A lot.” Calla didn’t look at her, trying to keep her emotions under control. “I can’t take much more of this, Lina. I miss home, my family, my friends—everything that was a major part of my life. I don’t want to be here anymore.”
Lina licked at her cheek, attempting to comfort her. I cannot offer any advice to you on this. Perhaps when Hiran comes back, you could talk to him about this?
Calla felt a single tear sliding down her right cheek. She wanted to hate him for just dumping her here to fend for herself before running off without another word. She hated everything that had led to her being here, but somehow Lina was right: maybe she should talk to Hiran about what was in her head when he finally came back. For some strange reason, he was the one thing she couldn’t bring herself to hate; more than anything, she wished he was with her once again.
Why do I miss him so? she thought to herself.
Suddenly Lina stopped, standing up straight, her ears perked up as she listened for something. As Calla watched her in confusion she started sniffing at the air. After a minute she let out a growl.
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