by Franc Ingram
Before the first bite of cheese, mushroom, peppers, and egg crossed her lips she felt the familiar itch spread along her forearm. Instinctively, Oleana shoved the shot glasses off to the side so Lorn wouldn’t see them and start in on her.
The next person to walk in the door looked familiar, but it took Oleana a second to cut through the shock and realized who had just stepped back into her life. The man stood in the doorway rubbing at his forearm. His brow was wrinkled, completing the disturbed look on his face. He looked back outside as if he were rethinking coming in. Oleana jumped up, knocking her silverware on the floor. She wasn’t going to let him get away a second time.
The man looked around, anger flaring his nostrils and reddening his cheeks. His eyes locked on Oleana’s and they stared each other down like bulls ready to charge. He moved toward Oleana with large, sure strides. “You’re following me,” he yelled, pointing his finger in her face.
“I was here first,” Oleana argued. She sat back down, hoping her nonchalant ruse would force him to calm down. They were drawing enough attention without any further yelling.
He followed her lead and sat down on the opposite side. “I come here often. Never seen you before,” he accused. “My arm starts itching, then burning, and you show up first time. Now my arm does it again, and here you are in my place.” He shook his head while he glared at her accusingly. “Not an accident.”
“Sorry about the arm. The first time it activates can get a bit painful. The burn will fade in a couple days.” Oleana licked her fingers and reached for his exposed mark.
The man flinched, pulling back his arm before she could touch him, and demanded, “What do you think you are doing?”
“Do you want to stop burning every time you come close to one of us?” Oleana asked, but he said nothing. “Only my bio imprint will calm it down. It won't hurt.”
Grudgingly, he offered his arm. Oleana placed her fingers on the glowing mark. A shock traveled up her arm like a cold burst of air smacking her in the face. His mark faded and the redness in the surrounding skin eased.
The man looked from the fading mark on his arm, back to Oleana with a dazed and confused look on his face asking, “What this? What are you?”
“Oleana. Guardian.” Oleana leaned in close as she spoke to keep any ears in the vicinity from hearing all her secrets. “You’re the Master of Animals. One of the Heirs of Eternity.” It wasn’t a conversation she wanted to have in public, but it was clear he needed some answer before he bolted again.
“Ha!” he snorted, “I know you be crazy. I might be crazy myself, but not that crazy though. Not yet.”
“How do you explain it then?” Oleana asked, raising her sleeve showing the junior copy of his mark fading from her arm.
“I don’t know,” he shook his head. “It may be some trick you playing. Not falling for it. You stop following or we have problems.” He stood, but Oleana was quick to get in his face and block his way.
“I don’t think so. It’s my job to find you, and I won’t be letting you get away from me again. I didn’t convince you?” she countered, “That’s fine. I guess my skills in that department are a little rusty, or you’re more skeptical than most. I know others who can be more persuasive. You can come with me to talk to them,” she stepped closer, “or we can have that fight right now, and I can drag your unconscious body to them.”
“What makes you know you win?”
Oleana smiled. She looked the man over, really noticing him for the first time. He had a sinewy build that was born of hard work. His hands were calloused and scarred. They stood eye to eye yet he held himself like a coiled spring ready to pop. His brown hair was cropped short and slicked back “I have more years of fighting experience than you have on Euphoria. If you think that dagger you have tucked in your jacket is any match for my sais then go ahead and press your luck. Come peacefully and save your dignity.”
The man stepped closer to her, his warm breath brushing against her face, which smelled of turmeric and honey, with the faint aroma of alcohol. It was a common remedy for pain. Oleana also noticed his shirt bulged out at the middle. His tumble with the yeti must have damaged his ribs, yet he didn’t move like an injured man.
He was tough, no doubt about that. The defiant look in his eyes showed more backbone than Oleana expected, given their last encounter.
“This is my bar. You’re a stranger. You attack, and others will defend.”
Oleana didn’t bother looking around. She knew the second the words came out his mouth it was a bluff. “You're a low-born thief. These people may know you, and may look the other way if the city guard comes around. They may even pass a job your way here and there, but when real trouble comes knocking, they will disavow any connection to you.” The man hid his shock well, but Oleana caught the slight narrowing of his amber-brown eyes. “I know more about this city than you think. Your speech screams low-born. The calluses on your hands tell all about the climbing work you do, scaling buildings, running across rooftops. I can see the edge of the Guild brand peeking out of your collar, but it's old.” Oleana continued her run-down as a vein at the man’s temple pulsed with his growing anger and humiliation. “I’m guessing you started young. You're good at what you do, good enough to have nice clothes and keep yourself healthy and strong. Even though the thieves’ guild marked you, I’m guessing your ties to them are thin. No guilder would make their base this close to the school, and the constant guard presence.”
The man snatched the nearest rum shot and downed it before Oleana could protest. “Pay already and let's go,” Oleana slid her hand toward her blade, suspecting she was going to have to fight her way out. “Go talk to ‘em friends,” he explained, sweeping his hand toward the door.
CHAPTER SIX: TRAINING
Daycia and Lorn were still out on the grassland behind the local ranger’s office. It was one of the few places in the heart of the city that was safe for such dangerous activities as shooting practice. Oleana caught them in the middle of their exercise. Daycia was using herself as a squirrely moving target for Lorn. Oleana wondered about the sanity of her old mentor until she spotted the caps on Lorn’s arrows.
The older woman had shed her coat and pulled her distinctive fiery red hair back into a bun. She dived, and rolled, and ran all over the space with the speed and agility of a young hare. There may have been a touch of gray at her temples, but her body retained its youthful vigor.
“Come now Lorn, are you even making an effort?” Daycia teased.
Lorn scrambled behind a large rock, using it to steady his hand. Daycia stood out in the open, not showing an ounce of worry. He had an arrow locked, but didn’t fire. His eyes went unfocused, and his lips moved but no sound escaped.
Oleana felt a change in the air around them. Worse yet, her body tingled with the exchange of energy. “Lorn!” she warned, but was too late.
A bolt of lightning suddenly cut through the air landing in the exact spot that Daycia had been standing just a second before. Taking advantage of the distraction, Lorn let his arrow fly, tagging Daycia deep in the chest. It marked what would have been a kill shot for any mortal.
“What was that?” Leith exclaimed in shock, spinning around in a circle, looking up at the sky with its singular dark cloud, that was fading rapidly.
“Lorn what have I told you?” Oleana asked admonishingly.
Lorn looked startled to find his mom staring at him. “I know mom,” he said chagrined, “not so close to the mountain.” Lorn tucked his bow into the slot on his quiver. “It was only a short burst,” he explained, “I really wanted to win. She was being difficult. I didn’t see you there. I’m sorry.”
“You saying he did that,” Leith said pointing at young Lorn. “Wait. He just call you mom?”
“I see you located the Master of Animals on your own.” Daycia approached the trio as she casually pulled the arrow out of her chest, as if it were of no consequence whatsoever. She nodded at Oleana. “Well done, my dear.” Then she looked at Lorn wh
o hovered just out of arms reach, waiting for her response to his diversionary tactic. She rubbed at her chest, saying with a smile, “and you Lorn, that was very well played. You showed great control of your power and your bow. A very nice move indeed.” She handed the arrow back to him, and he placed it back in his quiver.
“I know you,” Leith said with dawning awe, “You’re Daycia Firestar, Protector of Solon, Dean of the Library, and Fire Ultra offspring.”
“Yes, I am, and now that I see you up close, I realize you are Leith Underwood, or do you prefer Silver Owl?”
Leith’s face turned a bright shade of red as he stuttered in embarrassment. “I’m not...How do you...? You both read minds now?”
“Young man,” Daycia began in a commanding tone, “I have been watching over this city for a long time now. Exceptional characters such as yourself always catch my attention eventually.”
“You know all that, why guards not taking me off to jail? Why send crazy lady with far flung story to round me up?” Leith asked in his odd cadence.
“I didn’t know where you called home,” Daycia replied. “I also had no concrete proof to bring against you. Besides, if you haven't noticed, the city has bigger problems than one thief.”
Lorn’s curiosity got the better of him. “Why the name, Silver Owl? Sounds intriguing. There must be a story behind the name.” he questioned.
“Young Leith here is a second story man, who has a preference for silver,” Daycia explained. “He’s been known to strip all the silver out of a place, leaving behind gold and jewels. Never could figure out why.”
Leith shrugged. “I like what I like.”
Oleana groaned. “So not only are you a no-good thief but you’re a bad one at that. How do I turn that into a king for the ages?” she asked anyone in general.
“Those who have, don’t make a big stink over a few pieces of missing silverware. Make my living without a big bounty on my head. And if you dragged me here to insult, I be on my way. Who say I want you to turn me into anything?”
“You have no choice. Just like I have no choice about traipsing around all of Euphoria searching out the other Heirs of Eternity, and getting nothing for my troubles but three lifetimes worth of nightmares and pain." Oleana's sharp tone could have cut through bone. “I don’t want to be here interrupting your life. I would give anything to be able to stay at home and mind my own business, instead of wasting my life trying to save y’alls.”
“Mom.”
Oleana saw the pained look in Lorn’s normally bright eyes, and it cut her insides to ribbons. She had a habit of letting her mouth run away her. Oleana grabbed Lorn’s chin, making sure his eyes met hers. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean you,” she said, trying to will him to understand just how much he meant to her. “I was just… You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me. Ever. You hear me? Ever.”
“For a thief, your walk is surprisingly without stealth,” Daycia stated to change the subject.
Oleana turned to see Leith already made his way past her and to the edge of the field.
“With that awkward family moment, can I leave?” Leith asked.
“No, my boy, there is much to show you,” Daycia said. “After all, don’t you want to see what the Master of Animals can do.”
“He says we have the wrong one,” Oleana said.
“Ah yes, of course. Lucky for you I’ve had experience dealing with that particular objection. I know just the place to go to prove you otherwise.”
The mischievous look on Daycia’s face made Oleana nervous. She only looked like that when she had something dangerous in mind. She sometimes underestimated the fragility of ordinary humans. Not everyone could just bounce back from her little demonstrations.
100101
“Welcome to the ranta pits,” Daycia said, spreading her arm out over the ravine that dropped off in front of them.
The area was less of a pit and more a series of underground tunnels connected by a large, open area. It must have been thirty feet down, with the bottom partially obscured by the shadows created by large outcroppings. Oleana caught glimpses of what lurked beneath, but never a clear view. They darted in and out of the darkness with a speed and stealth hard to keep up with.
They walked on all fours. Oleana caught sight of a tail that was as thick as a flag pole. Green and red pricks of light dotted the cavern which she guessed originated from a dozen or more sets of eyes.
Oleana heard stories of the pit the last time she was in town, but never did she think to go near them. She heard tales of animals that were five feet tall with sharp ears, even sharper teeth, and claws designed to cut through rock. These animals were as fast and agile as any cat and just as ready to pounce on unsuspecting prey.
“The rantas are hive creatures who live underground eating whatever creatures come into their path,” Daycia explained. “They devour mineral rich soil to produce, and maintain, new tunnels. In turn they secrete irdonium which they use to line their nests. Much like the bees they work constantly and produce much more than they can ever use. Trained workers harvest some from time to time.”
“Down there,” Leith said looking incredulous.
“Harvesters usually work in pairs of four and raid ten to twelve nests at a time. Surely the two of us can harvest two.”
“Two? What of the others?” Leith asked. He looked at Oleana suspiciously as if she had anything to do with his current predicament. Oleana shrugged. She was following Daycia’s leads as with everyone else.
“No need to risk the others unnecessarily…”
“What bout risking me!”
“...besides the Master of Animals doesn’t need anyone weighing him down. I’m just going to help you carry. That much metal can be cumbersome to maneuver through these narrow passageways.”
Leith stared down into the pit. His stomach turned just thinking about descending into the shadow. He heard workers talk about what it was like harvesting the nests. As drunk men had the tendency to do, their stories were wild and exaggerated, but the scars on their bodies told the truth of it.
“If I’m not the one you think, we both be torn to shreds.” Leith muttered morosely.
“Have confidence, my boy.”
“You’re the immortal. Sure, things like this don’t bother.” Leith shook his head. “Not going.”
Oleana and Lorn exchanged looks. Then they lined up behind him, weapons drawn. “You’re not going back,” Oleana said, the look in her eyes a mix of desperation and anger.
“Crazy. All you,” Leith shook his head glaring at each of them.
Daycia pulled a glow stick and a short sword much like Lorn’s from the pack on her back. She started down the narrow staircase cut into the side of the rock, without another word. Leith’s gaze darted back and forth from the rapidly disappearing Daycia to the stern Oleana.
For the second time that day he was caught between two hard choices. He couldn’t tell which option was more dangerous. From what he’d witness with the yetis, Oleana clearly had the skills to cut him to ribbons, but would she go that far to make her point? She’d already threatened to knock him out and drag him where she wanted him to go. If he lost the fight with her, he’d have a rough trip down the stairs anyway. Better to go on his own two feet, and hope Daycia could defend them both when it came down to it.
“Crazy,” Leith mumbled again as he gripped his dagger tight, and started after the shadow that was Daycia.
The black dirt that made up the sides of the pit was pockmarked with claw marks starting at the ten-foot mark. The creatures that were moving along the floor of the structure, scattered at the touch of the glow stick light. From what Leith could see of them made him rethink having that fight with Oleana. At least she was likely to kill him quick.
“What if we sit these stairs a bit? Test our nerve. Then head back in victory,” Leith said looking around with some anxiety.
“Our prize is the irdonium. We shall not surface until we have some in hand,” Daycia s
aid. Her voice held a tone of glee that confirmed Leith’s earlier assessment of her. The long lonely years must have damaged her mind. No rational person would be happy to go down into a pit of death.
The further they went down, the greater the tension at the back of Leith’s neck became. His senses had never felt so alive before. He didn’t know how, but he knew there were at least half a dozen ranta crawling around behind the wall at his right. Their presence felt like an itch just under his skin.
Distracted by the new sensation, Leith froze on the steps. He put his hand to the wall, needing physical confirmation for what his mind was telling him.
“Don’t fight it,” Daycia said, seeming to read his mind. “let the information come in and your mind will learn to sort it all out on its own. The same way your mind rights the image that your eyes pick up. Or, the way we can make out a familiar voice amidst a crowd.”
“How you know so much?” Leith asked curiously.
“After you were first created, the Twelve gave me a task. I was to teach the guardian the history of this world, and the ways of the ultras. I know as much about you as the Twelve, and the guardian. My fate is tied with yours. Most of the decisions I have made in my life over the past century have been tempered by thoughts of the Heirs of Eternity.”
Leith stared into the ultra’s eyes. The violet there was like that of sparkling amethyst forged by immense pressures, eyes that have watched over the birth and death of nations. Yet she spoke of those much older than her with a touch of reverence and awe.
“You’ve spoken to the Twelve?” Leith looked up into the sky. He could still make out the faint outline of the rings that surrounded the planet. “They be real? Surely real?”
Daycia smiled. “Yes, the legend surprisingly gets it right more than it gets wrong. I’ve spoken to them. So has Oleana, and if you haven’t in a past incarnation, then you will eventually. You can’t be sealed as king without them.”
Leith’s head was swimming. It wasn’t enough to encounter the yetis, then an ultra. Now his whole history was rewritten and the Twelve were real. Having a death worm in his arm would have been more comforting.