“How is this going to work?” Myron Lloyd asked.
Holden stood for a moment, possibly thinking of how much he needed to say.
“You all know the story, but it’s time I let you in on what has transpired.” He took a deep breath. “Anithistor had the foresight to send two Sleepers to Earth before the Gatekeeper closed the Blue Gate sixteen years ago. Over the years, Hroth has stayed in contact with them as they have searched for the Garland and Silas. ”
“We already know where Marcus and Theron are,” Katherine Fallera said. “Please get to the point.”
“I know,” Holden continued. “We’ve recently learned that they might have a lead on where Silas and Garland are located. From what has been seen, the land is war-torn and it is difficult to find anyone. But they think they’ve finally done it.”
“Took them long enough.”
“They are still Human,” Holden continued. “They can still think for themselves and they can still disregard what Hroth tells them with the voice. I fear they will kill Silas, making it more difficult for us to find him and turn him. All they need to do is get the medallion and kill Garland and the protection can be lifted. We’ll be able to send Maroke in.”
“I’ll be ready to go in as soon as the barrier is lifted,” Darius Umar said. This confused Julian. Why was Darius offering to go in and capture Silas? Wouldn’t he rather stay in the safety and confines of Jekyll Rock?
“We also have Mintuk rallying support in Voelif,” Holden continued. “Things have been going smoothly there as well.”
“What about the king’s boy, Julian?” Myron Lloyd asked.
Katherine Fallera spoke next. “Holden and I have been thinking of ways to use him. He won’t be turned. There isn’t enough time.”
“In fact, we can probably use him more without him being turned,” Holden added. “If we have him convinced that he’s doing the right thing, he’ll play right into our hands.”
Each of them smiled at this. Julian’s jaw pulsed as he clenched his teeth in loathing.
“Of course, there will be no mentioning this in Jekyll Rock,” Holden continued. “To be overheard would cause a lot of issues I don’t need to deal with. If you need to speak with me about something we’ll do it over the green wristbands I gave to each of you. And we will continue to meet at this location.”
Don’t they already have a wristband? It’s a Dunarian invention! Julian shook his head, thinking that perhaps they were extra ones to use in secret. Maybe they worked directly with one another, as did the ones that had been given to Maroke and Spencer.
It didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he now had the proof. Four council members had betrayed all of the Dunarians, all of humanity. He had somehow hoped that he would find something different, that Holden would have been bluffing the whole time, but his proof was there, and now he knew what he had to do.
He closed his eyes, concentrating on returning to reality. His body began to tingle again and before he realized what had happened, he found himself staring up at the dark night and leaning against a barn once again. Daniel’s dead body lay next to him. Julian held firm to the bloody memory orb in his fist. Anger, rage, confusion. All of these flushed through him at once. He never wanted to believe that the council had plotted against him, but it was true. Memory orbs cannot be fabricated. There was no trick. The council was evil.
He hadn’t been ready to see Robin staring at him when he looked up and to his left. The battle-worn commander held a look of disbelief when he saw the dead body next to the king.
“Your Majesty?”
“He was already dead,” Julian said as he looked away. “Seeing him lying there, I had to get the memory orb.” He was more than willing to leave out the fact that he just let the man die right in front of him. “What of the battle?”
“We beat the Stühocs back, but not before they took many prisoners. The man Dink that came to warn us, his wife was taken. He’s been trying to get the citizens to rally and go after them, but no one is willing.”
“There’s nothing that can be done,” Julian said. “Not until we are ready to take the fight to them.”
Julian stared at the ground, unable to break his gaze from it. Thoughts of betrayal, hatred, and uncertainty raced through his mind so quickly that he had no idea what to do with himself. He wanted someone to tell him what to do, but he knew there was no one left. Robin could possibly lend advice, but Julian didn’t want that. He wanted his father. He wanted someone who would truly know what to do. That person did not exist. It was completely up to Julian. He was the king.
He broke his stare from the ground, forcing himself to look up at Robin.
“Did we lose any of the Royal Guard?”
“Not a single one,” Robin said proudly.
“Good. Get them ready to leave.”
“Shall I tell them that we are leaving for Farlaweer?”
Julian stood and brushed the dirt from his clothes. He took one last look at Daniel’s dead body on the ground and his anger grew.
“Tell them we’re going to Jekyll Rock. I’ve got some business to take care of.”
Chapter Fifteen
Silas hadn’t been ready for Lorcan’s reaction when he told the group that they had to go to Elysium. He swore up and down that he was not going. There was no way that the rest of them could make him go. It reminded Silas of only a few months before when Lorcan refused to go with them to Mudavé because of his fear of the Stühocs. This time it was a little different. This time he wasn’t speaking out of fear. It almost seemed like he was angry. He tried his best to convince the others that they shouldn’t go, and that this quest to find the Gatekeeper was folly, but he lost. It was all they had to go on. The Reckoning could not be accomplished until Silas met with the Gatekeeper to find out what to do next. It was Inga who ultimately changed his mind. He never offered up a reason for his apprehension, but the explanation came to each of their minds. Lorcan was a mercenary with a group of people that didn’t always obey the law. Perhaps the reason he wasn’t in Elysium was because he was a wanted man. None of them knew for sure, and they didn’t want to press it. He was their guide through the Gated Passage, the territory of deep, dark forests between the land of the Humans and the Erellens, though the Erellens technically controlled the entire forest and what lay beyond.
They flew out of Hanzad in the darkness of night. A look of anger and wariness stayed on Lorcan’s face, but he said nothing. Silas knew he wasn’t being a coward, but he knew Lorcan was not going to offer any sort of explanation either. All of them were exhausted and sick of traveling. Silas felt as though he might fall off Skarret, he was so tired. When they reached the forest, Lorcan instructed them to land on the outskirts. They would have to travel the rest of the way on foot because the Erellens wouldn’t hesitate to shoot down riders in the middle of the night. The more quietly they could travel through the Gated Passage, the better. Lorcan pulled a hood over his head, possibly to disguise his features. As they traveled on foot, the sarians would fly from one tree to another, never soaring above the trees, keeping safely out of sight. They would often move on ahead or stay behind, but every ten minutes or so, they could be seen flying by to check on their smaller riders.
Silas wished they could have flown over The Passage, but he had been shot down out of the sky before and had no wish to experience that again. The Erellens were known to possess the ability to take down a flyer from great distances, even at night. Silas held his hand over his ribs, remembering the terrible pain his last crash had caused.
They had lost track of time. After being in the forest for several hours, they knew it was time to make camp for the night. They wouldn’t be able to make it to Elysium that night, much less the city of Jarul where the king lived.
Kaden asked Lorcan his opinion on building a fire for the camp, but Lorcan shook his head.
“I can’t tell you what to do, but I say no. The less contact with my people we have, the better.”
&n
bsp; “Why is that?” Kaden asked. “The Dunarians have always had a decent relationship with the Erellens. They would not harm me or Silas, and I don’t imagine they would harm the rest of us. What’s going on?”
Lorcan shook his head, watching the distant trees for movement. “It would just be better if we found the Gatekeeper in secret, I think.”
Kaden took the first watch and woke Inga when his time was finished. Silas wasn’t sleeping. Too many thoughts plagued his mind. Though his body was exhausted, he would find no rest. When Kaden finally went to the ground, the snores began immediately, letting Silas know he was asleep. He glanced at Lorcan, who despite his worry before, was sleeping soundly. Inga rested her head on her fist as she perched on a fallen tree about twenty yards from the camp. The moonlight shone bright, giving anyone on watch the ability to see an approaching enemy. When Silas stood, Inga looked his way immediately and smiled. He silently walked toward her, rubbing his face as he walked.
“I don’t wake you for another two hours,” she said quietly.
“If you want to sleep, you can. I’m not going to sleep tonight.”
“Bad dreams?”
“Racing mind.”
Inga nodded with understanding.
Silas moved closer to her and climbed up onto the tree next to her. “What’s wrong with Lorcan?” Silas finally asked. “Usually he’s fine with anything we take on, but then there’s times like in Mudavé and now here.”
“Here’s different,” she said. “At least in Mudavé there was a reason.”
Silas nodded, remembering the story she had told him about his family being killed and Lorcan being tortured by the Stühocs when he was only a child. That was a good enough reason for anyone not to want to be around the Stühocs, but to fear going into your own territory was something else. Silas decided to drop it. He didn’t want to spend the few precious minutes of alone time with Inga talking about Lorcan.
“How are you holding up?” he asked her. “You were amazing at the Dwelling Tree.”
She smiled, probably not knowing what to say. “You weren’t too bad yourself.” She nudged him with her shoulder. It sent shockwaves through his body. He couldn’t stop looking at her long dark hair and her bright green eyes. They sat silently for a few moments, but it wasn’t awkward.
“Do you still believe in it?” Silas asked.
“In what?”
“What we’re doing. We’ve gotten to know each other better over the past few months. Am I still the Meshulan to you?”
“Whether I think you’re the Meshulan or not doesn’t change who you are,” she said.
“That’s not what I mean,” he rubbed a hand through his scruffy blonde hair. “I mean, do I live up to your expectations about the Meshulan? Do I live up to what Silandrin taught you?”
She stiffened slightly at the mention of her former teacher. He had been missing for several years now and it was never a pleasing topic to discuss for Inga.
“You’re everything and more,” she said looking into his eyes. “I plan to follow you until your job is finished. I want to help you in any way that I can.” Her eyes didn’t waver, remaining fixed on his.
Silas knew he couldn’t break the gaze. If he did, he would lose something that he really wanted. What that was, he didn’t know for sure. He knew he was getting it in her eyes. He knew he wanted her to keep staring at him. He never wanted it to stop. He felt that if she looked away that he would lose her forever. It wasn’t logical, and made no sense at all. He just wanted her.
He leaned forward, their eyes never leaving one another’s. Before he could stop himself, their lips touched, but she didn’t pull away. She accepted it fully; kissing him back with a passion that only meant she had felt these feelings for some time. As their lips broke from each other, their eyes met again.
“I was six years old,” Inga said. Silas’ confused look caused her to continue on. “When I died. On my birthday, my parents threw the most elaborate party.”
At first Silas wanted to ask her why she was telling him this, but then he remembered what she had told him when he had asked her about it before. She said it was a very intimate thing to ask. Inga telling him about her death meant that she truly trusted him; that they were now on a whole new level. Silas was content to sit and listen as her story unfolded.
“There was a magic show, music, friends, family, and the presents towered all across the table. It was wonderful.” She looked up at the night sky, pausing for a moment to collect her thoughts. Silas knew this was uncomfortable for her, but it was her way of telling him how she felt. He would listen without interruption.
“I went through all the presents and I loved every single one of them. At the end, my parents brought out the best gift of all. A puppy.”
Silas couldn’t help but smile at this. What child wouldn’t want a puppy? He hated that the story would inevitably have a sad ending. But then, everyone’s story of coming to Marenon was sad.
“I loved that puppy. I took it with me everywhere. After about a week, I got some sort of ear infection. My mother took me to the doctor and wouldn’t let me take the puppy.” She shook her head. “I was so angry at her, but I was just a child. I didn’t know you couldn’t take a puppy to a doctor’s office.
“When we got back home, the house was on fire and smoking badly. My father was out in the front yard, waiting for help to come. My mother and I stood next to my father and cried at the sight. I didn’t even think about my puppy until I heard the loud yelps coming from inside the house. It was suffering.” She took a deep breath. “Before my parents could stop me, I ran into the house. I searched for the puppy, but by the time I was inside, it had stopped barking. I’m sure now that it was dead. I started to feel weak, lightheaded. That’s when I blacked out. I don’t even know if the flames burned my body. The next thing I remembered was flying through space and I woke up on a cold, stone floor, dressed in burlap, following a line of people into Marenon.”
Silas waited for her to continue, but she didn’t. This was her tale. This was Inga’s story. Tragic.
“Do you still think about them? Your parents?”
Inga shook her head. “From time to time, I guess. They’re more feelings than images now. I’ve forgotten what they looked like. I miss them, but I know I’ll never see them again. What hurts me the most is that I deprived them the joy of raising me. I know they were heartbroken. They had to be. It was selfish and stupid of me to go into that house.”
“No,” Silas said. “It was brave and caring. You gave your life to save another. Even if it wasn’t a person.”
“But I didn’t save it, Silas. It died too.”
“Maybe. But you can hardly call yourself selfish.”
“I’ve never told anyone that story before,” she said, not looking at him.
“Not even Silandrin?”
“For some reason, I feel like Silandrin didn’t want to know how I died. Sometimes he acted as if it was his fault that I died at such a young age. It never made sense to me. I guess it just showed how much he cared for me. I miss him more than I miss my parents.”
“You spent more time with him,” Silas said. He was glad that she told him the story of how she died. It wasn’t something he was expecting, but it gave him more insight into who she was. It wouldn’t have felt right to get that kind of information from her by asking. He was, rather selfishly, glad to be the only person she had ever told. That meant that Lorcan didn’t even know about it.
“Was it alright that I kissed you?”
She stared at the ground for a moment, then looked into his eyes once again. “Yes,” she said. She leaned in to kiss him this time, and he was about to accept when both of them were snapped to attention by a noise to the north of their camp. Silas gripped his staff tight and Inga readied her hands after they jumped from the fallen tree to the ground. They were quickly joined by Kaden and Lorcan who must have been startled awake by the approaching sound.
“I knew we shouldn’t have
come through here,” Lorcan said. “They’ve spotted our camp.”
“We aren’t in danger,” Silas said. “The staff hasn’t changed.”
“There’s no danger to you, maybe,” Lorcan said as he pulled his cloak tighter and drew the hood further around his head.
Kaden gave the others a concerned look, but it barely registered before the group of Erellen soldiers in the distance called out to them.
“We mean you no harm,” Kaden shouted out.
“We’ll be the judge of that,” came the reply. The Erellen was taller than the others he travelled with, and he carried himself with readiness. He had no weapon drawn, but Silas had the feeling that he was prepared for any scenario. He and his group of five soldiers stopped about ten feet short of Silas and the others.
“I’m Commander Teymus,” he said. “I’m on assignment, patrolling the Gated Passage. What brings you to the Erellen borders?”
“The Meshulan,” Kaden said without hesitation. Silas and the others looked at him quickly, surprised at his willingness to give up the information. Then again, what did they have to hide? The more Silas thought about it, didn’t they need the Erellens on their side?
Teymus stood speechless for a moment, obviously not having expected to hear such an answer.
After a moment he finally found his voice. “Excuse me, say that again?”
“We’re on a mission to find the Gatekeeper and you are in the presence of young Silas Ainsley,” Kaden said as he motioned to Silas.
Silas sheepishly waved a hand. “How’s it going?”
Teymus stepped toward Silas to get a better look at him. Silas didn’t move. The expression on Teymus’ face was one of disbelief, but he did not question Kaden about the validity of his statement. No one would think to make such a claim to try and get out of a situation.
“You killed General Maroke, didn’t you?” Teymus asked.
Silas nodded.
“He was a terrible enemy indeed. I only wish I could have been there to see you do it.”
The Marenon Chronicles Collection Page 44