Justan pointed at the markers that had been laid out on the map. “Tarah, the combined forces will be gathered directly between the Roo-Tan’lan and the Troll Swamps. Even if the trollkin made a full frontal assault, they would have to go through these armies to reach the city and we will have several fall back positions between our main encampment and the city.”
She nodded, but it was obvious she wasn’t convinced.
Matthew leaned forward with interest. “Tell us, Tarah, what you are seeing that we do not?”
“I have had dreams,” Tarah said with a wince. “About the battle. I know it sounds ridiculous, but my dreams often come true.”
To her surprise no one scoffed. Even Aloysius reserved judgement. Matthew nodded as if this was what he had expected.
“No one’s gonna laugh?” she said.
“Dreams are one of my master’s ways of letting those with spirit magic know what they need to do,” Matthew told her. “Bonding wizards especially.”
“Fist and I have had dreams about the battle as well,” Justan told her. “In mine, I am facing Ewzad Vriil once more, but when I get close it turns into Mellinda.” Justan left out the part where he somehow became Ewzad Vriil. That was likely just a nightmare tacked on to the end of the dream. “It is the main reason I know that I have to be there in KhanzaRoo to fight her.”
Fist grunted. “In my dream, I am running through the swamps and Justa-, uh, Sir Edge is there and Deathclaw and Squirrel and Mellinda is there laughing as she makes the troll behemoth attack us.”
Tarah cocked her head at the ogre. “In your dream are there any buildings?”
“Uh, yes,” Fist replied. “There is a tall pyramid surrounded by water. We are running towards it and the behemoth’s tentacles are trying to grab us as we try to make it to a doorway at the bottom.”
“That can only be KhanzaRoo,” Tarah said excitedly. “There are several of those types of buildings in the city.”
“And what of your dream, Tarah?” Matthew said. “What does it tell you that makes our current plan invalid?”
“In my dream there are two battlefields. One in KhanzaRoo and one at Roo-Tan’lan,” she said. “I didn’t see any fighting in the middle where you got your armies lumped up.”
Now she had Warlord Aloysius’ attention. “Describe exactly what you saw. Such dreams are often open to interpretation.”
Tarah gave them a very detailed description of the green wave that struck Roo-Tan’lan in her dreams. Evidently there were slight variations each time, sometimes the wave struck the city as a giant wall of troll flesh and other times the wave crashed to the ground turning into thousands of beasts that attacked. But a few things were consistent. The green wave always struck the city and the survival of the Grove always depended on defenders fighting in front of the city walls.
“Are you certain that is all?” Xedrion asked. The Protector had returned to the table just as she had begun her tale.
“I also see parts of the fight in KhanzaRoo,” Tarah replied, but the way she hesitated before speaking told Justan that there was something she was leaving out. “It’s pretty similar to what Fist described, tentacles and mouths and whatnot. But every time it’s Djeri that’s in the most danger. If I don’t act, he gets torn apart.”
Justan nodded. “Then it’s a good thing you are coming with us to KhanzaRoo.”
She hesitated again. “I am?”
“We’ll need you,” he explained. “We’re going after Mellinda and Esmine’s powers will help us get to her without being seen.”
The child-like form of Esmine popped into existence. She was standing on top of the table and aiming a scowl at Justan. “She can’t go!”
All eyes focused on the rogue horse’s apparition.
“Why not?” Justan asked.
“Because of the baby!” Tarah said loudly. Esmine opened her mouth as if to declare something different, but changed her mind and clamped it shut. “I mean, when I was talking to Djeri last night, he told me not to come to KhanzaRoo. Esmine agrees with him.” She let out a laugh. “I keep telling them that it will be just as dangerous here.”
“Are you going to listen to him?” Jhonate said in surprise.
She grimaced. “It depends on the dream. I’m going to try and make different decisions and get it to change. If Djeri can be saved without me there, I should really stay behind. Just give me a few days to decide.”
Justan was just as caught off guard by the woman’s indecision. “Well, I hope you’ll join us. I’ll support whatever you choose to do, of course. I can’t force you to put your child in danger.”
“Truly?” scoffed Aloysius. “Is the life of one child more important than the destruction of Mellinda? How many lives will be destroyed if she is able to complete her designs on the Grove? What kind of world would be left to raise your child in?”
I really think I hate that gnome! Artemus declared. Even if he’s right, he’s so manipulative about it I just want to shove icicles through his eyes!
I think you should calm down a bit, Justan said. The scar on his chest was letting out a pulse of cold. There was a little too much Scralag in your tone right then.
Artemus sighed. Oh, the elemental’s sleeping just fine. Though this Aloysius makes me want to set it loose.
Xedrion rubbed his chin. “I too will leave judgement to you on this one, Miss Woodblade. I hope your dream will lead you to make the decision that’s best for all of us.”
Tarah swallowed. “Me too. Believe me, I want nothing more than to go to Djeri. Like I said, I just need a few days.”
The discussion soon ended and Xedrion removed the bracelet from Tarah’s arm. The Protector chose to open the doors to the Conference Room and brought in more of his captains and clan representatives. It was time to put more pressure on Aloysius to get a new treaty drafted before the war began.
Maybe Jerry’s right telling Tarah not to go, Fist said through the bond. I’ve been thinking about it a lot and I don’t like the thought of Maryanne in danger with our baby. What if something happens during the fight and she is hurt.
Justan nodded in understanding, thinking how he would feel if Jhonate was in that situation. Still, he knew what would happen if he were ever to bring it up. How do you think Maryanne would respond if you told her not to go with us?
I couldn’t just ‘tell’ her not to go, Fist said. Maybe if I suggested it? No, if I even bring it up, she’ll get mad. It would have to be her idea.
We could do it in a roundabout way, Justan suggested teasingly. I could tell Willum that Maryanne’s pregnant and ask him to pass it on to Bettie through the bond and ask her to get a message to Sarine. He nearly chuckled at the spike of fear that came through the bond at the suggestion.
Fist’s eyes went wide. No! If Sarine demanded that she not go, Maryanne would go for sure. Then she would figure out that we were the ones who told Sarine and . . . he shuddered. We should probably just leave it alone.
Chapter Twenty One
Tarah was not getting the answer she wanted. The days flew by as preparations for the assault were underway, yet her choices in the dream still had not changed. That wasn’t to say that the dream was unchanging.
Now that Djeri had shown her what Mellinda looked and sounded like, her taunts in the dream became more realistic. She called Tarah things like “Rogue slayer” or “Fraud” or “Killer of my babies” or other such nonsense. Each time she chose to save the Grove, Mellinda had Djeri killed in a variety of different ways. She saw him drowned, set on fire, torn apart by tentacles in a variety of ways, and perhaps worst of all, eaten alive by other trollkin.
Each time she chose to save Djeri, the Grove was destroyed and the methods of its destruction were just as varied. She had watched from afar as it was crushed under tons of troll flesh, chopped down by trollkin with axes, and one time sucked dry by Mellinda herself, her mouth wrapped around an ancient gray root.
But the main change in her dream, the one that was perhaps m
ost disturbing of all, was that she was now able to sense the anguish of the Grove as it happened. She saw the deaths of the elves that tended it, heard the cry of betrayal from her own two trees, and then as the dream ended felt a claustrophobic darkness encroaching. It was unclear what that darkness entailed, but it felt like the end of the world.
Each morning she awoke with a deepening sense of dread. There was no good answer. Eventually, she told Sir Edge that she had to stay behind. He had looked disappointed, but accepted her choice. She wondered if she was dooming him and his bonded along with Djeri.
She kept herself busy. There was morning training with Tolynn and Beth followed by her daily report to Xedrion and Aloysius. They always had some new detail they wanted her to ask Djeri about. Then her evenings were spent in anticipation for being finally able to speak with Djeri again.
Spending those evenings with Lenny helped. The irascible dwarf had taken up residence at Beth’s homestead and was staying in the guest house with Tarah and Cletus. He repaired things around the property and helped Beth with the cooking and regaled Tarah with tales of his time spent adventuring with Djeri before Djeri entered the Academy.
It was difficult keeping a secret from him. He was the only person in the world that cared for Djeri as much as she did. On the night before the assault on the Troll Mother was to begin, Tarah finally broke down and told Lenny the truth of her dreams. Dusk was settling in. Dinner was over and they were sitting on the back porch watching Cletus and Sir Hilt spar.
“I-I have no choice, Uncle Lenny,” she said sullenly, watching as Cletus leapt over Hilt’s attack, spinning in the air overhead, his chain swiping out after him. Hilt had to hit the ground and roll to avoid being struck. “If I stay here, he dies. If I go, the Grove dies.”
Lenny was silent for a while. He wasn’t watching the incredible display of artistry being put on by the two elite warriors in front of him. He was looking down at his hands, at those powerful callused fingers that had made so many weapons and slain so many foes.
“Bah!” he said finally. “That’s a pile of half-dry cow turds is what that is!”
Tarah sighed. “I can’t ignore the dream. I’ve been trying, but I know it’s true. Without Esmine’s power, the Grove will be destroyed.”
“Lemme tell you somethin’ girl and you’d better dag-gum well listen,” Lenny replied and those powerful hands clenched into fists. “I learnt a long time ago that if you believe somethin’ you make it happen. Well this is one of those things I ain’t gonna believe and you shouldn’t believe it neither. There ain’t no such thing as an impossible situation.”
“But, Uncle Le-.”
“I’d rather hump a cactus than believe yer dag-blasted dream!” he declared, hopping down off of the porch.
Tarah bit her lip. “It’s not that I want to-.”
“I’d rather spend the rest of my long life playin’ tickle fairies with a gall-durn kobald!” he shouted.
Tarah winced at the loudness of his voice. Cletus and Hilt stopped their sparring and Beth came out onto the porch, a scowl on her face to match the dwarf’s. “Lenny Firegobbler, if you wake Sherl-Ann-!”
“I’d rather eat a bucket of live spiders! Or swim through a creek full of pissed-off deathwhispers, or become a tin merchant, or marry a goblin, or be allergic to pepperbean stew!” He pointed a finger directly at Tarah. “I’d rather shave my garl-friggin’ mustache!”
Tarah didn’t know whether to laugh or cry or take her staff and bust him over his thick head. “What do you want me to do?”
“Stop believin’ that Djeri’s life depends on you,” said Lenny. He poked his thumb at his chest. “I’m goin’ with Edge tomorrow and while he’s off huntin’ fer the Troll Queen I’ll be savin’ my nephew. So you leave it to me!”
A lump rose in Tarah’s throat.
“And Cletus!” Lenny decided.
“Huh?” said the gnome, hearing his name. He came closer to the dwarf. “But I don’t got a mustache.”
Lenny turned to look up at the gnome. “Cletus, yer comin’ with me to save Djeri!”
That surprised Tarah. Warlord Aloysius had already requested that Cletus be on the front lines when the battle with the trollkin started. He wouldn’t be happy when he found out that their best fighter would be taken away.
Cletus blinked, a smile forming on his lips. “Save Pretty Djeri? Okay! Do I still get to fight troll monster things?”
“Hell yes,” Lenny said and Cletus clapped his hands together in excitement. The dwarf turned his determined gaze back on Tarah. “You gonna tell me that yer gonna believe there’s somethin’ me and Cletus can’t do?”
Now tears began to flow. “No, Uncle Lenny. That I can’t believe.”
He nodded. “Durn right.”
Sherl-Ann chose that moment to wake up and cry. Beth stomped down the porch steps to stand in front of Lenny and for a moment Tarah thought the woman was going to clout him. Beth bent down and kissed the top of his head instead.
“That’s because you’re a good man,” she told the dwarf. She turned and walked back up the steps. “But if she’s dirty, I’m making you change her.”
Hilt walked over and placed a hand on Lenny’s shoulder. “I wish I could come with you.”
“You can’t!” yelled Beth from within the house.
Hilt gave them an apologetic smile. “I’ve been put in charge of the group that the Roo-Tan soldiers affectionately call, ‘The Dry-Foot Brigade’. We’ll be back manning the walls of Roo-Tan’lan,” he explained. “Also Beth believes that if I ever go out into battle without her again I will perish.”
“You got lucky last time,” Beth said, from the window with a bleary-eyed Sherl-Ann in her arms. “If the Bowl of Souls were to name you over again today, it would be, ‘Sir Chained to His Wife’.”
Sir Hilt shrugged helplessly.
“Oh, and Lenny,” Beth added. “She’s stinky.”
When Tarah lay down later that night, she felt more calm than she had in a long time. While Lenny and Cletus prepared themselves for the next day’s journey she closed her eyes and reached out through the bond.
Djeri?
His answer was immediate. Hey, Tarah. Did you get any answers?
Tarah smiled at the feel of his thoughts. It was like the Djeri of old. She could hear the sound of his voice in his words and tonight she was able to take comfort from that. My dream wasn’t any different last night, she replied. But after what happened tonight I have a feeling it’s gonna change. I think you’re gonna be okay.
Really? he said and there was hope in his voice. He had been aware of the nature of her recurring dream for a while now and he had understood that she was going to need to choose the Grove over him. He hadn’t resigned himself to eventual death, but he had understood. What was different this time?
I told your Uncle Lenny about the dream. He promised me that he would save you himself. And Cletus. Cletus is coming with him. As she spoke, she sent Djeri her memory of the evening along with everything that had been said.
Djeri let out a chuckle. He’d rather shave his mustache, huh? I remember back when I was just twenty, my momma told him that he had to take me and teach me to be a smithy. He had just sold his blacksmith shop in Corntown and wanted to go out adventuring for awhile. He told my momma, ‘I’d rather suck on a turd lolly!’
Tarah laughed and Djeri laughed along with her.
The part-dwarf sighed. They had a drag-out fight then. A real ear-ripper. Finally, he agreed to teach me to smith and took me away from Corntown with him. Of course, he ended up taking me adventuring with him instead. We were gone almost a whole year before he decided to set up a new shop again. I think it was that first adventure with my uncle that made me love to fight. I certainly couldn’t ever be satisfied with farming after that.
Did it also start your love of the word turd? Tarah teased.
Maybe, he said. It sure started my cursing habit. Me and Uncle Lenui used to rip them back and forth, hurling insu
lts . . . His thoughts wandered for a time, old memories playing themselves over in his mind. It’s crazy to think that I forgot all this. There’s so much I would have lost. There’s so much this whole people has lost.
Tarah sent him reassuring thoughts. But, you didn’t lose it. And they’ll get their memories back too. We just gotta get rid of Mellinda and . . . She stopped short of adding the Troll Mother to the list of who had to die. He knew it was true, but he still struggled with that fact. Eventually it’ll all come back. The Roo-Tan will start trade talks with the trollkin and the people that want to go back to their old lives will be able to.
I don’t know, he said. People aren’t as accepting as you think. It’s one thing to promise they won’t hunt us down and kill us after the war. But to let us back into their lives? That’ll be much harder. There’s gonna be a lot of pain for any of the trollkin that go down that path.
That pain was something Tarah didn’t want to think about at the moment. She decided to change the subject. So, tell me about your day. Did you learn anything new that could help us?
Not really, he said. Spent all day with the Mother’s womb again. Nearly a thousand newborns. It’s like she knows something is about to happen. It’s getting harder and harder to sort them all. Mellinda doesn’t come to the lake anymore but she has sent a few listeners to us from the old prison in New-Kin. It has been a very big help, but I think she’s given them instructions of her own.
What kind of instructions? Tarah wondered.
Well, it’s to the point where the newborns come so fast that the king can’t touch all of them and these listeners always seem to make sure that certain ones don’t come his way. I try to watch and sort out any that I know for sure have the potential of power, but even if he touches all of them they still go back to New-Kin where they will fall under Mellinda’s control.
Tarah sent sympathy his way. It’s a terrible situation. But it isn’t hopeless. It will all be over soon and with Mellinda gone they will come to trust the king again.
Behemoth (The Jharro Grove Saga Book 6) Page 33