by C B Samet
“You could be killed by the plague.”
“No, I won’t. We’re going to make the cure.”
“You could be trampled by a horse.”
“I’m agile.”
“You could be eaten by wild dogs.”
“I can communicate with animals, remember?”
“There isn’t any black fingernail polish where we’re going.”
She grinned. “Good thing I brought my own.”
When we reached the edge of the woods, I said, “Last chance to change your mind.”
“I’ve lived my entire life in that speck of forest. I want to see the world.”
I placed a hand on Coco’s shoulder and transported us to my home. Raven clutched tightly to my collar as she sat on my shoulder. The first few times transporting could be disorienting, and I’d neglected to warn her of that.
“I’ll be right back. I need to grab the Book of Stones.”
I left Coco outside, and walked into the house. A moment later, I snatched the book from a shelf in my study.
“Your house and land are so big,” Raven commented, still perched on my shoulder.
From her perspective, as a brownie, my estate spanned larger than the entire brownie village.
“What’s the book for again?”
“It’s a list of all of the stones and their last known location.”
“Handy.”
I ran a hand over the worn, blue leather cover. “The former leader of the Dubik gypsies gave this to me.”
Mama Duski had been instrumental in helping me find the Warrior Stone. Without it, I wouldn’t have defeated Malos. She died eight years ago, and the book arrived at my doorstep shortly afterward. Why had I kept it? It belonged in a library.
When I returned to Coco, she was stroking Carrot who was perched on a fence post. I watched, absorbing the picturesque moment of Coco enjoying the camaraderie of another creature.
“Carrot is probably worried because my family is gone. I can’t exactly communicate that we haven’t abandoned her.”
Raven made some odd cooing noises as she looked at Carrot. In response, the bird shook out her feathers.
Raven explained, “She understands now. She also said you’d better take her on any upcoming quests—and if you protest, she wanted to remind you that she saved you from the swamp snake.”
I blinked at Carrot. “Duly noted.”
Coco gave the hawk’s feathers one last caress, before stepping back to me.
I placed a hand on Coco’s shoulder, and instantly transported us directly to the deliberation room.
10
The large chamber materialized around Coco and I, appearing exactly as we’d left it.
“Abbey!” Joshua’s excited voice was music to my ears.
“It’s about time,” Minister Tarik snapped.
I ignored him, walking to place the books on one of the tables. My gaze roamed across the room—taking in the Queen, who sat on her large wooden chair, and the various ministers flanking her. Aman, the Queen’s Council, wasn’t present. I wondered if he’d fallen ill too.
Raven hopped off my shoulder to stand beside the book. Judging from several of the minister’s wide-eyed expressions, they’d never seen a brownie before. Her gothic appearance added an element of apprehension to their judgement of her.
I opened the book to the page describing the cure. “Cave bats on Kovia are the carriers of the Omega disease. We need blood from the bats, combined with the Healing Stone and Blood Stone, to make a cure.”
“How does it work?” the Queen asked. Purplish half-moons had formed beneath her eyes, accentuating her pale skin.
“Once all of the components are combined, a healer activates them. We’ll also need the Wind Stone. It can carry the effects of other stones over distances. Adding the Wind Stone would spread the effects of the Healing Stone.” And do what to Joshua? Healing half the continent sounded like a dangerous tax on him.
“This sounds like magical speculation.”
I turned a hard gaze toward Tarik. “Certainly, Minister Tarik—but your solution is?”
He glowered at me.
The Queen spoke. “This needs to be resolved quickly to preserve the most lives. We can send one team to collect each of the needed stones and another to collect the Kovian bats.”
I opened the Book of Stones. “The last known location of the Wind Stone is ... Ntajid. Looks like south of the city.” I continued to skim the pages. “The last known location of the Blood Stone is Karnelik.” The book listed more details of the specific locations. The one in Karnelik lay deep in caves northeast of the town, just before the point at which the rolling hills turned to stony mountains.
“You should be the one to capture a bat,” the Queen told me. “It’s the furthest away, and you can transport back the fastest.”
“Yes, mum.” My eyes still roamed the book.
“I’ll go with Abigail.” Coco stood beside me.
I gave her a grateful smile.
“We’ll need two other teams.” Tarik straightened. “Captain DeFay, do you have lieutenants still well enough and suited for the task?”
“Yes. Lieutenant Guy is from Karnelik and Lieutenant Jok is from Ntajid. They can each assemble a team.”
I ruffled the edges of the Book of Stones. “I’ll take Baird and Joshua and—”
“Not the healer.” Tarik held up an authoritative hand, which I wanted to use to smash his nose.
“The cure needs the healer,” I protested.
“You can bring the ingredients here. We’ll have the other stones brought here.”
“It would be faster—”
“If you stopped arguing,” he interrupted.
I looked at Queen Rebekah. “My Queen,” I pleaded. She wouldn’t ask me to take this trip and leave my husband behind.
“I’m sorry, Abigail. We need him to continue his work here while you collect the stones. If you don’t succeed, he’s our best hope to help us with alternative plans.”
I straightened, turning a cold, hard look on all of them. Uncaring, unfriendly faces stared back at me. I sensed they’d already discussed the possibility that I’d want Joshua to accompany me. They’d already unified their response. The truth was, there’d be no alternative plan if I failed. They were keeping Joshua as a hostage—to make sure I came back to the castle.
I turned to Coco. “You have two hours to prepare. I’ll meet you at the stables.”
I closed the book with an echoing boom. Raven climbed back on my shoulder, and I turned to leave.
“Abbey.” Joshua’s voice cracked.
I couldn’t look at him. If I did, I might run to him, embrace him and disappear with him. Doing so would brand us both as traitors. Even if we cured everyone, we’d never get his clinic rebuilt. He’d most definitely be denied the hospital he’d been fighting to build.
“I love you, Joshua. I’ll be back for you.”
I left.
I transported to the barn and let Raven from my shoulder onto one of the stall doors.
The horses snickered in greeting.
“Do all of your quests start so dismally?”
I sniffed. “Yeah. They quite often do. I imagine that’s why they call them crises.”
I walked to the back room and dropped the magic book into one of the saddlebags hanging there.
Baird? I called silently to my friend.
Abigail, what news?
Can you come to my barn?
By the time I walked out of the tack room, carrying a blanket and saddle, Baird had already arrived.
Raven was startled by his sudden appearance. “Oh! He’s got magic like you.”
“Baird, Raven. Raven, Baird.”
He gave her a warm smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Grabbing the beak, she tipped her bird head hat at him.
I opened a stall and walked into the stable. Phobus stood still as I brushed dirt from his back. I tossed the blanket and saddle atop him.
&nbs
p; “You’re angry.” Baird stood, watching me work.
“They’re holding Joshua hostage.”
“They who?”
“The Queen and council.”
“Why?” His voice held pure astonishment.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. I had no time for tears. “To keep the Queen alive. To make sure I’m motivated to find the cure.”
“Is that what they said?”
“Not those exact words.” I cinched the saddle. I walked to the tack room, grabbed the saddlebags and bridle, and walked back to Phobus.
“Can you find a cure?”
Maybe.
Hopefully.
“Yes.” After I secured the saddlebag, I placed the bit in the horse’s mouth. “We need a Blood Stone, a Wind Stone, Joshua’s Healing Stone, and the blood of a bat. Our job is the bat.”
“Blood of a bat?”
“A bat from the Kovian salt mines. They’re the harbingers of the plague—we think, as long as we trust that Orrick channeled his wizarding abilities accurately. Also, we’ll need a map of Kovia.” I stroked Phobus. His ears perked up and he lifted his tail. He suspected an adventure.
“Interesting.”
When I walked out of the stall and looked at my friend, I lost my composure. I stepped into Baird’s arms and tears streamed from my eyes.
He patted me gently and with unconcealed surprise. “We’ll get Joshua back. It sounds like you have a plan. I’ll go prepare and get a map. I’ve a trainee I’ll bring, too. The four of us will make a great team.”
“Coco is coming.”
“Five of us then.”
I nodded, my face still buried in his blue robes. In our thirteen years of friendship, I’d never cried on Baird’s shoulder. Finally, I stepped back and tried to pull myself together. When I glanced at Raven, she respectfully looked away from the emotional scene. Her first big adventure had started with the Avant Champion bawling her eyes out.
I wiped at my eyes. “I’m sorry, Baird. I’ve had only a few hours of sleep.”
He pulled me back in for a hug. “Don’t apologize. Friends are intended to be used for comfort.”
“And adventures?”
“Especially adventures.”
“Can you be packed and ready in a few hours? The monk library has a map of Kovia?”
He nodded as he released me. “One hour. I’ll bring a map. Have you extra horses? If not, I can borrow some from Aithos.”
“I’ve two more,” I assured him. “Joshua’s horse, Unis—he’s older and he’ll be slower than the rest—and Butterfly. She’s a young mare. She’ll need an experienced rider.”
“I’ll be back in under an hour.” He disappeared.
I busied myself brushing and saddling the other horses. I packed snacks of oats and apples. Raven was bonding with Phobus, sitting on his mane, stroking his hair and talking to him.
During all of my preparations, I was cognizant of Mal’s absence. I would have valued his council, but his disappearance had been sudden, causing me to wonder if he was upset with me or with his brother. We had shared a searing touch of our hands, and I hadn’t seen him since.
As I looked at the moons tattooed on my palm again, I shook my head. Another mysterious “gift.” No one stopped to ask me if I wanted them. However, I wasn’t going to argue with a wizard capable of seeing the future—especially not if he thought to grant me a gift that might prove useful. My angst originated from not having had enough time to learn more about the tattoo’s purpose from Orrick.
Scrounging around in the kitchen, I gathered dried meat, bread, and cheese from Mo. I snacked on a few pieces, since breakfast had consisted of only few slices of bacon, and lunch had been nonexistent.
Next, I went to my bedroom where I packed a blanket, tent, clothes, soap, and a water flask. Lastly, I reached for the weapons stored in my trunk. I picked up a blow dart and the case with darts, plus a glass vial of snake venom. I also took a few small sacks of brownie sleeping powder. When I’d finished, I filled the flask with water and carried everything to the barn.
Baird and his young trainee were already waiting for me. I stared at the dark-haired, rosy-cheeked lad.
“Hans Stallman.” I felt satisfaction at having remembered his name.
He wore the blue cloak of the Gunthi Monks, but his eyes were still dark green.
“Thank you for joining us,” I added.
He gave me a bright smile, which illuminated his face and eliminated all traces of his usual insecure awkwardness. I’d known Hans as a university student, but as he’d been an English major, we had seldom crossed paths. His father was one of the English professors—one more reason why I remembered who the young man was.
“And are you joining us as well?” After setting down my supplies, I walked over to Baird’s wolf, bent down, and scratched behind his ears. “Hello, Fluffy. Such a good wolf. Yes, you are.”
Fluffy Fury melted into my affectionate hands, showing me exactly where to rub and scratch with his body language.
“That’s amazing. He never lets anyone except Baird touch him.” Hans took a friendly step toward the wolf. The animal stiffened and eyed Hans cautiously, causing the poor young man to halt.
Baird crossed his arms. “Only Abigail pets him like a domesticated dog.”
I grinned as the wolf gave me a slobbery kiss with his tongue. “That’s because I saved you, right, Fluffy?”
“His name is Fury,” Baird corrected me with barely contained exasperation. “And I need to introduce him to all of the horses.”
“Raven, do you want to meet Fury?” I asked.
“I’d rather meet Fluffy.”
We chuckled.
She slid down Phobus’s outstretched leg the way a child rides a slide, walking over to me and climbing onto my shoulder as I knelt on the ground. Fury sniffed Raven’s extended hand. She dropped to the ground, and he lowered his head.
With a final pat to Fury’s head, I left him and Raven to become acquainted.
I stood and turned to Hans. “You have much experience with horses?”
“A little, professor.”
I led him to Unis, standing by a fence post outside the barn. “Call me Abigail, Hans. We’re not in class anymore. You graduated—what—three years ago?”
“Four milady. Four, Abigail.” He fidgeted nervously with his hands, looking from my face, to my breastplate, to my sword. I wondered if my battle armor made him skittish. Hans had been accustomed to seeing me in either dresses or trousers at the university.
“Always mount from this side,” I warned him. “The horse’s left. Unis is a good horse, he’ll follow the other’s lead, but horses in general don’t like sudden movements. Keep everything slow and smooth.”
I stood by the gelding’s neck as Hans approached. I pushed at a clump of dirt on Unis’ chest. Since he’d been put out to pasture for most of the week, his white coat had patches of brown dirt spotting it. Not that it mattered. We were embarking on a quest, not a parade, so his appearance was acceptable enough for the task at hand. Haste trumped beauty at present.
Hans stepped into the stirrup and hoisted himself shakily into the saddle, his face flushing.
I put a hand on Han’s calf and made eye contact with him. “And they can tell when you’re nervous, so take a deep breath. You’re going to be fine.”
With a nod, Hans swallowed and tried to force himself into a more relaxed position in the saddle. As the son of an English professor and city dweller, Hans wouldn’t have needed to learn horsemanship as a lad.
I left Hans to hyperventilate and walked back past Baird to escort Butterfly out of the barn. I shot Baird a look.
The corner of his mouth quirked. You were young once, too, Abigail. And inexperienced.
I grunted and handed him Butterfly’s reigns. Baird loaded a sack of supplies into her saddlebags.
Finally, I walked Phobus out of the barn and mounted him. “Coco is meeting us at the royal stables.”
Baird nod
ded.
I whistled. Carrot dutifully glided from a tree, through the air, and landed on my outstretched forearm.
“You have a hawk!” Hans exclaimed, eyes wide in astonishment.
“Hold on,” I warned Raven, who’d climbed back onto Phobus’ mane.
She grabbed a fistful of the horse’s sleek hair as I transported us all to Marrington castle.
We arrived at the royal stables—me and Raven on Phobus, Baird riding Butterfly, and Hans still nervously situating himself on Unis. The stables possessed an eery silence, like the rest of the vacated outer castle. The stables consisted of three long rows of horse stalls. The animals inside snickered at our arrival.
Baird dismounted and secured Butterfly’s reins to a post. He disappeared, and reappeared moments later with Fury. Looking around the stables, Baird asked: “I wonder if these horses have been fed and watered. This place is deserted.” He began pumping a faucet to fill a bucket with water. Hans followed suit, dispensing hay and feed to the horses.
As I dismounted, I transferred Carrot to the saddle. She perched herself there, and I stroked her feathers as she clucked. “You saw the family packing, didn’t you? You didn’t think I’d leave you behind?”
“Can you talk to animals like Baird?” Hans asked.
“No. Nothing coherent. I’m sure my communication is mostly one-sided.” After I found a barrel of feed, I began to distribute grain to the other horses.
Many years ago, I’d given Baird the Language Stone, enabling him to understand and speak other languages, including, as we soon discovered, animals.
As we worked, I explained the gruesome progression of the plague to Hans, Baird, and Raven. Hans’s complexion turned greenish, and he looked like he might lose his breakfast. Raven, on the other hand, merely picked at her black fingernails.
“Tell us about the cure,” Baird said.
“The Queen has sent guards to secure the Blood Stone and Wind Stone. Our quest is to collect bats from the Kovian salt mines. We have your map, Baird—though a guide would be better.”
Hans dropped a pad of hay to a grateful horse. “I’ve been to Kovia. There’s a train that runs from Moontown to the salt mines. It makes several stops, but it’s faster than horseback—and more comfortable.”