“What do you think, Uraza?” Abeke asked the leopard, who was peering over the edge right next to her. “Should we head down and see if there’s anything there? Or wait until morning?”
Uraza responded by leaping off the rocky ledge onto the path toward the bottom.
“Guess that’s your answer,” Meilin said, following Uraza with a jump of her own. She looked back up at the rest of the group. “Come on!”
Once at the bottom of the crater, Meilin released Jhi. The Great Panda lumbered over to Meilin, and their foreheads touched. The genuine affection between the two was obvious to Abeke. Then Jhi waddled over to where Briggan and Uraza were lapping up water from the edge of the small pond. The entire team spread out, hunting for a clue as to why Conor’s vision had brought them here.
Abeke first searched behind the waterfall, hoping that there might be a cave like in Eura, but there was nothing there.
“Maybe it’s like the Heart of the Land.” Rollan touched the token that hung under his shirt. “Hidden within a rock somewhere.”
“There are a million rocks here, though,” Anka said.
“How about hidden along a path?” Conor pointed to a narrow chasm through the mountain walls.
Abeke walked over to him. “Are you saying we should go through there?” The opening would require them to enter single file. If it got much narrower, their spirit animals would certainly not fit. As it was, Jhi already couldn’t enter.
“See how the ground is worn down in spots?” Conor pointed to the rock floor. “I think this is a path that’s been used before. Used a lot.”
Meilin and Rollan joined them, each peering into the long, narrow chasm.
“We should explore in there before it gets much darker,” Meilin said. “Don’t you think, Rollan?”
Rollan didn’t answer. He only stared into it.
“Rollan?” Conor repeated his name.
Meilin placed a hand on Rollan’s shoulder. “You’re thinking of Tarik, aren’t you?” she said. “The last battle you fought with him.”
“It looked a lot like this place,” he muttered. “Same type of chasm. A warrior’s last path.”
“But it’s not that place, and we aren’t battling the Devourer or the Conquerors,” Meilin replied in a gentle voice.
Suddenly a sense of unease filled Abeke. This would be a good place for an ambush. She glanced around, her hunter instincts on full alert.
It was too quiet.
Even the nightingale had stopped singing. Something was off.
“I think we should get out of here,” Abeke said in a hushed voice. “Maybe have Essix see if—”
Before Abeke could finish her sentence, a hooded figure jumped down and twirled a quarterstaff in front of them.
“Now!” came a shout from above, and suddenly warriors wearing gray cloaks rained down all around them.
First, one dropped behind Abeke. Then another in front. Then two more blocked the path forward through the chasm.
Abeke pulled an arrow from her quiver and nocked it to her bow, just as Meilin drew out her sword.
In a split second, more than two dozen cloaked figures had jumped down from the cliffs … all pointing their weapons at the five Greencloaks or at their spirit animals over by the pond. High above all of them, balanced on the natural bridge, another dozen attackers stood with arrows trained on Abeke and her friends.
There was no escape.… They were trapped!
FIGHTING A LOSING BATTLE WAS NEVER ROLLAN’S FIRST choice. He had learned on the streets of Concorba that diplomacy could work wonders. Words often yielded better results than any sword. Disarm them with a smile whenever possible.
Rollan quickly assessed the situation. Jhi, Briggan, and Uraza were surrounded, but they would be able to take care of themselves. The four Greencloaks had taken defensive stances against the hooded warriors, but Rollan wasn’t sure where Anka had gone. She’d camouflaged herself so well that he couldn’t see her at all. What Rollan could see was that these people weren’t dressed in all black like the Oathbound.
Perhaps he could convince them that they weren’t enemies.
“Friends, friends.” Rollan lowered his dagger and took a step toward one of the figures. “We mean you no harm.” He acted calm, as if the Greencloaks had the upper hand, instead of the other way around.
“Rollan … ” Meilin’s voice carried a warning that this approach might not be the best idea.
Rollan ignored her. She was a warrior at heart. Her instinct was always to fight. But he had to use his gut. He took another step. “We aren’t here for a battle. We’re only in search of something. Perhaps you could help.”
The response came swiftly. The hooded figure in front of him spun his quarterstaff in the air, then swung it low at Rollan’s knees, trying to knock his legs out from under him.
Rollan jumped over the end and quickly grabbed the pole, yanking it out of the hooded figure’s hand and turning it on him.
So much for diplomacy.
“STOP!” a voice called from above. Another hooded warrior appeared from an opening near one of the land bridges. The figure ran along a path to the bottom, leaping down the last few feet to skid to a halt right in front of Rollan. “Don’t harm these people. These are our friends.”
Rollan couldn’t believe it.… His plan had worked.
The cloaked figure pulled back his gray hood.
“TAKODA!” Meilin exclaimed.
Takoda smiled and rushed over to be embraced by Meilin, Abeke, Conor, and Rollan. “I’m so glad that you’re all safe!” he exclaimed, but then lowered his voice to a whisper. “I heard what happened with the Emperor of Zhong. How could the Greencloaks do something like that? What’s going on?”
“It was a setup by people impersonating us,” Meilin answered. “We’re trying to make things right again.”
Takoda didn’t hesitate. “How can I help?” he asked. “Do you want me to go with you somewhere? Maybe give you a place to hide with the monks?”
Rollan stared at Takoda. The boy had grown about four inches since he’d last seen him. He’d also become more muscular.
But along with Takoda came Kovo, who was bonded to the young monk. Rollan didn’t love the idea of traveling with the once subjugator of Erdas. “Have you heard of something called Stormspeaker … or the Dragon’s Eye?”
Takoda shook his head. “What are they?”
“Important items we need in order to clear our names and unite Erdas,” Conor explained. “We believe at least one of them is found in Nilo.”
Murmuring had risen from the cloaked figures. The monks still had their weapons trained on the group and their spirit animals.
“Takoda, what’s going on?” someone shouted.
Takoda turned around. “Everyone, please … lower your weapons.” He pushed down the spear of one of the nearby monks. “These are my friends, the ones I’ve told you about. The ones who helped defeat the Wyrm. The Heroes of Erdas. We should be welcoming them, not threatening them.”
Briggan growled at one of the hooded monks and Rollan could see Uraza’s muscles tense and tauten. Even Jhi was staring down the person in front of her.
“Place your spirit animals in passive state,” Takoda whispered. “The monks won’t relax if they’re out.”
Meilin, Abeke, and Conor glanced at each other. They each quietly nodded and called back their animals.
Rollan could see the hesitation among the monks, but they slowly put away their weapons and pulled back their hoods in an apparent symbol of acceptance.
Takoda had risen to become a leader in his community. This was definitely not the same boy Rollan had first encountered moping in Greenhaven. The battles underground against the Wyrm had clearly changed him … or was it Kovo’s influence? Had the bond between him and the Great Beast caused him to grow in his command of others? Was it just a sign of growing up? Rollan wasn’t sure. Perhaps Kovo had changed, too. Doubtful, but anything was possible.
“Do yo
u know someone who might help us?” Meilin asked.
Rollan feared that the answer would be Kovo, but Takoda surprised them. “I don’t know someone with answers, but I know someplace that might have them. Come with me.” Takoda motioned for the group to follow him into the chasm.
“No!” The monk who had attacked Rollan leaped forward, blocking the entrance. “You can’t take them into Maktaba. You’d be placing everyone and everything at risk.”
“Step aside, Sodu.” Takoda stared him down. “I think I’ve earned the right to bring four guests—four friends—into our community.”
Sodu didn’t back off. “They’re wanted by the Oathbound! I’ve heard the rumors of what happens to those who help Greencloaks. We can’t allow them entrance. The library has never been seized, because strangers are not permitted inside.”
“These four aren’t strangers,” Takoda argued. “They’re known to everyone.”
“Ahem.” Anka cleared her throat. She took two steps forward, away from the mountain wall where she had been camouflaging herself, and allowed herself to be seen. “There’s five of us, actually.”
Takoda spun around. He hadn’t noticed her, even though she’d been standing so close to him.
“Anka’s with us,” Meilin quickly explained. “Her spirit animal is a chameleon. We can vouch for her, though.”
“You see!” Sodu mocked Takoda. “You can’t even recognize danger when it’s right next to you.” He turned to the monks as Anka blended back into the colors of the mountain. “My brothers, we cannot let them enter. There’s no telling what will happen if they do. We would be putting everything at risk.”
“What I see”—Takoda spoke to Sodu through clenched teeth—“is someone who pretends to be strong, but is afraid of his own shadow.”
“Look who’s talking!” Sodu exclaimed. “The boy who couldn’t be trusted to travel alone, but who required the guidance of a superior student to accompany him to Maktaba.”
Takoda’s eyes narrowed. “And when none could be found, they told me to bring you.”
“Ha! Nice try, but we all know the truth,” Sodu scoffed. “You are still only a boy.”
“We’ll see about that.” Takoda sneered and took a few steps forward. He lifted his arms and addressed the other monks in a loud, booming voice. “Brothers and sisters, you all know me and trust my judgment. These are my friends, the ones who defeated the Devourer and then helped destroy the Wyrm. They are the Heroes of Erdas, who have selflessly risked everything for Nilo … for the entire world. They come to us seeking answers and rest … something only we can offer. Isn’t it our duty to share our knowledge with the righteous and stand against the Oathbound? Will you not rise up, stiffen your resolve, and aid them?”
There were whispers among the monks. A sense of purpose was filling the cavern.
“We are being called to be part of history,” Takoda continued, “instead of just preserving the historical accounts. We cannot turn our backs on those who defended us. We have a duty, so I ask you … ” He paused for a moment, capturing everyone’s attention. “Who will join me in leading these heroes to find the answers they seek? Who stands with me and with the Heroes of Erdas?”
“I do!” shouted one monk.
“As do I!” yelled another.
“I DO!” hollered the remaining monks in unison. All except Sodu, who stayed silent with his arms crossed.
“To the Heroes of Erdas!” Takoda shouted, raising a fist in the air.
“THE HEROES OF ERDAS!” the monks roared back.
“Glad he’s on our side,” Rollan whispered to Conor as he followed Takoda into the chasm.
As the Greencloaks walked through the narrow passage, it continued closing in on either side. Soon it was impossibly tight, like a fissure running up the mountain. As night fell and the light waned, Takoda lit a small lantern. Rollan glanced up the steep rock walls at the sliver of dark sky above them. He knew Essix was flying above them somewhere, giving them protection from the air.
“So what’s the deal with your friend Sodu?” Rollan asked Takoda. “Not the friendliest monk I’ve seen … not that I’ve actually seen any before today. Except for you, of course.”
“Yeah, we have some history,” Takoda explained. “We were together at the other monastery before I bonded with Kovo. After everything that happened with the Wyrm, we were both sent here. He’s not my biggest fan.”
Rollan chuckled at the understatement. “You think?”
“Almost there!” Takoda called back to the others as the path opened up to a ledge high up on a mountain.
“Finally. I was wondering when we’d get … whoa!” Rollan waved his arms, trying to maintain his balance as Takoda yanked him back. In the darkness, he had misjudged where the ledge ended and almost stepped off.
“We’re about two hundred feet up and it’s a straight drop,” Takoda warned.
“A little more notice next time,” Rollan muttered over the pounding of his heart.
“Wow,” Conor said as he stepped onto the ledge. “I didn’t even realize the incline was taking us so high.”
“The monastery is up there.” Takoda pointed to a few twinkling lights in the distance. The moonlight revealed enough of the monastery that Rollan could tell it had been built into the mountainside, about two-thirds of the way to the top.
“Guess we have to take one of these rope ladders the rest of the way up?” Rollan tugged on a pair of old ropes with wooden rungs fastened between them. None of it looked very sturdy. “It’s about another two hundred feet?”
“Two fifty,” Takoda corrected.
“This could explain why you don’t get many visitors,” Meilin added. “Though it does remind me of parts of Zhong.” She grabbed the first ladder’s wooden rung and hoisted herself up.
“Before we all get there, I, um … ” Takoda suddenly seemed unsure of himself.
“Spit it out,” Meilin said.
“Yeah, so, I was going to ask that you not bring out Uraza, Briggan, or Jhi when we get up there. Maktaba is, well, a sort of particular place, if you haven’t noticed. Not that I don’t want them around, but I’m not sure what the reaction would be.”
“From who?” Abeke asked. “The monks or Kovo?”
Takoda sighed. “Both, I guess.”
They all knew there was no love lost between their spirit animals. Kovo had killed the Four Great Beasts during the First Devourer War and had in turn been killed by them during the second. They had reluctantly worked together to defeat a common enemy, but no one truly knew what would happen if they were thrust together again. Still, Rollan didn’t like the idea of having to accommodate Kovo.
“I think Kovo will just have to figure it out,” Abeke said in a cool, unforgiving voice. “We’ve all had to deal with him.”
“But we’re guests,” Conor reasoned. “Let’s not stir up any trouble.”
“Kovo is different now,” Takoda said as they each began climbing the ladders. “You’ll see.”
Rollan was about to make a joke when he glanced down at the steep drop to the bottom and felt his head spin. Devastating quips would have to wait, since he needed all his concentration to not fall. As they continued up the mountain, the glow of the moon rising over the adjacent mountain peak cast a dim light over their surroundings. It was nighttime, but Rollan wasn’t looking anywhere except at the rung right above him. It seemed as if everyone was focused on the climb, because no one spoke. In fact, all Rollan could hear were the occasional grunts and sighs as someone paused to catch their breath before pressing on.
Once they arrived at the monastery, Rollan turned to look back at the view. An enormous sense of peace washed over him. It was a combination of the beauty of the thousand stars above him and the moon rising silently in the sky. Wind whispered past the oil lanterns lighting the entrance to Maktaba. For the first time in weeks he felt safe, a security provided by the remote location.
“Nice, huh?” Takoda smiled, taking it all in as if for t
he first time. “Just be careful with the thorns that line the bushes near the entrance.” He waited for the remaining Greencloaks and then motioned for them all to follow him. “Come on, I think someone may want to see you.”
“I doubt it,” Abeke muttered as she walked past Rollan.
Rollan nodded in agreement. Kovo couldn’t have changed that much.
The group passed several monks in the wide corridors who silently stared as they walked by.… It seemed that word of their arrival was spreading throughout the monastery.
“This is the Great Hall,” Takoda said, entering a large room where oil lamps hung from the many rafters that crisscrossed the vaulted ceiling. There were a few monks eating at one of the long dining tables on the right side of the room, and a fire burned in the massive fireplace on the opposite end. “Figured you might want to stop and get something to eat before—”
“MEILIN! CONOR!” someone shouted while running down a darkened staircase in the corner. “ROLLAN! ABEKE!”
Takoda smiled. “Told you someone would want to see you.”
A girl with white hair and almost translucent skin rushed into the light.
It was Xanthe, the Sadrean warrior Meilin and Conor had met while battling the Wyrm underground. “I can’t believe you’re all here!” She hurried over and pulled Meilin close to her. “Takoda and I heard about what happened to your surface elder—er, emperor. How could—”
“It wasn’t us,” Meilin explained. “They were imposters.”
Xanthe tapped Takoda in the chest with the back of her hand. “What did I tell you? I knew it couldn’t be real Greencloaks.”
“And since when are you a monk, Xanthe?” Conor teased. “Or are you here for another reason?”
Takoda blushed at the insinuation, but Xanthe simply rolled her eyes. “I’m here to give a record of my people’s history. Preserve the Sadrean stories for future generations.”
“How are things in Sadre now?” Meilin asked.
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