Where now? the nemerahl asked.
Jakob looked around. He had come to Avaneam hoping for understanding, and answers. He had learned something. Perhaps that was the answer he needed. That this was a crossroads. This was a place for the damahne and the daneamiin to come together, and that connection remained to this day. Other connections had failed, those like the bridge that crossed the Great Valley, a bridge that had allowed others to cross over, and had allowed Raime to attack. That bridge had been the reason the daneamiin had first come under attack and had first experienced war and violence.
Where would he go now? What would he do? He had come north for answers. That meant that he needed to investigate the groeliin, and he needed to see if he could find where Raime had disappeared to.
Can you find the groeliin?
Groeliin are numerous throughout the mountains. Is it your intent to find all of them and destroy them yourself?
That hadn’t been his intent. Finding the groeliin, hunting them one by one, would be a slow task. What he needed was to bring them to him. Was there any way for him to sweep the groeliin toward him?
Raime had done it. He had somehow controlled the groeliin, and forced them south, creating a massive horde, but Jakob doubted that was all of them. The Antrilii would continue to hunt the groeliin. Did he need to intervene if they were willing to continue their hunt?
Probably not. What he needed was to discover what Raime intended of the groeliin. If he could find that, and if he could find Raime, then he would act.
He would have to be more careful than the last time. Raime had very nearly captured him, using both the groeliin and the pool of ahmaean to trap him.
I need to understand more about the groeliin, he told the nemerahl.
The nemerahl watched him with his bright, practically glowing golden eyes. Yes. I see that you do. I will take you.
Jakob rested his hand on the nemerahl’s back, and they shifted.
Chapter Ten
They appeared in a mountain valley. The air had a bitterness to it and swirled in eddies of current that tugged at his cloak. It was cool, but not quite as cold as what he would’ve expected. Snowcapped peaks rose all around him, but down in the valley, there were scrub plants, splashes of green with the occasional flower upon them giving even more color.
Why here? Jakob asked the nemerahl.
You wanted to know more about the groeliin.
I wanted to know more, but there are no groeliin here.
If there were, Jakob suspected that he would have detected them. The groeliin had a connection to dark ahmaean, and he could detect that, and he did not see any sign of it.
Perhaps not now, but there were.
Jakob looked around. He walked slowly around the clearing, looking for signs that the groeliin had passed here. He found nothing. The nemerahl sniffed the air and bounded off, disappearing behind a clump of rock.
Jakob followed him and found him sniffing at the ground.
He studied what had drawn the nemerahl’s attention. Dark streaks of soot lined the rock. It was much like what he’d seen in Avaneam.
Had this been groeliin?
The hunters come through here, and they destroy them, the nemerahl said.
The Antrilii came through here?
They hunt well, and they prefer to burn the bodies, not wanting to leave any trace.
Why?
The groeliin are drawn to the scent of their dead. They would reclaim them if they could.
That surprised Jakob. Why would the groeliin reclaim their fallen?
They do so to honor them.
Jakob frowned. The groeliin would honor their dead?
The nemerahl sniffed. They would. The hunters choose not to grant them that honor. Considering what they have faced over the centuries, it is understandable.
What else is here? Jakob asked.
There is nothing else here.
That’s all you wanted to show me? You wanted me to see how the Antrilii hunt the groeliin, and then burn their bodies? After learning of the Antrilii, and learning of their connection to the Magi, he wasn’t surprised that they hunted. From what Novan had shared, the Antrilii saw it as their responsibility to hunt the groeliin.
You wanted to learn of the groeliin. This is a beginning.
The nemerahl stood and waited for Jakob to place his hand once more on his back. When he did, they shifted again.
When they appeared once more, he noted the dark openings to caverns. The ground was stained with ash and soot, and streaks of maroon were visible, as well.
There had been a battle here. The Antrilii had fought, and groeliin had died, and likely in massive numbers considering how much soot and ash he saw.
The nemerahl left him, heading into the mouth of the cave, and Jakob followed.
He had no lantern, but since discovering he was damahne, his eyesight had improved in the darkness. He blinked, and it seemed as if a veil of darkness lifted, allowing him to see clearly. How many physical transformations would he make? Would he continue to become more and more like the damahne in his visions? Jakob didn’t think he looked anything like them, though he might have some of the height. He knew that his voice had begun to change, taking on some of the musical quality that the damahne possessed. What other changes were in store for him?
The nemerahl led him to the back of the cave, where Jakob felt warmth radiating. He had known a similar warmth before.
Teralin? he asked the nemerahl.
The metal is found here, the nemerahl said. But not in great quantities. What is here must be brought by others.
Jakob found a pile of teralin near the back of the cavern. It had the darkness to it like that of the teralin the Deshmahne preferred. The heat that radiated from it was almost oily, and unpleasant. He had little experience with teralin, but enough to understand that it had some use, and that the damahne of the past had been uncomfortable with it since it prevented them from shifting.
The nemerahl kept a distance from the teralin and sniffed at the ground. Jakob approached carefully. Teralin in this form could be dangerous and could attempt to influence him. He didn’t understand it, not as Novan did, but had been warned to use caution.
Why did you want me to see this? Jakob asked.
These are the breeding grounds.
This is where the groeliin are bred?
This time. They move, and it is unusual for them to breed so soon after the last. Typically, they breed once every twelve years, taking time for their females to develop once more. Something has changed.
Raime changed.
The nemerahl sniffed the air, and then put his nose to the ground, inhaling deeply of the scent of the rock. Perhaps. Yet I suspect he understands the danger in hurrying the breeding.
What danger?
The groeliin must be fed. It connects them to the rest of the horde and allows them to gain their connection to the ahmaean.
Jakob’s attention was drawn back to the teralin. They use the teralin to feed the groeliin?
Teralin is used, but it is not the source. The groeliin are much like the daneamiin, they return their ahmaean, recycling it.
There was something in what the nemerahl was telling him that Jakob suspected was important, more important than what he understood. What was the connection the nemerahl wanted him to make? He was certain there was a purpose to coming here, and certain that there was something about the breeding, and the groeliin, that the nemerahl intended him to learn, but he wasn’t sure what it was.
The Antrilii were here during the breeding time, Jakob said.
That has happened rarely, the nemerahl said.
Rarely?
The groeliin conceal their presence. The breeding period is a time of vulnerability to them, and they prefer not to attack. When the hunters discovered the breeding grounds, the groeliin were unprepared.
Because they’d sent the horde of ten thousand south.
Most likely, the nemerahl agreed. That is the reason the b
reeding must be spaced. They need to have numbers to protect the females. There are few enough of them.
If this wasn’t Raime, if you don’t think he was the reason that the groeliin were pushed to breed outside of the typical time frame, who else could control them?
The nemerahl didn’t answer him. He stood and pushed Jakob back, away from the dark teralin, and shifted.
When they appeared this time, they did so atop a mountain. Cold wind gusted, whistling. Jakob wrapped his cloak tightly around him. He was ill-equipped for the cold weather.
The nemerahl seemed unbothered. His thick coat of fur protected him. He sat back on his haunches, staring down the mountainside.
Jakob followed the direction of his gaze, wondering what the nemerahl had intended for him to see. Why had he brought him here, and what did he need for Jakob to do? It had something to do with the groeliin, but what, exactly?
In the distance, dark ahmaean swirled. It drifted up like a thick fog. He expected to find hundreds of groeliin and was surprised when he saw only a dozen.
They were massive creatures, much larger than any groeliin he had faced before. They had dark markings along their skin that reminded him of the Deshmahne. They used their ahmaean with control, swirling it around and attacking each other. There was a practiced movement to what they did, almost a dance as they attacked, retreated, and attacked again. Jakob watched in fascination, never having seen ahmaean used in such a way.
What are these creatures? Jakob asked.
They are groeliin.
He looked over to the nemerahl. They aren’t like groeliin I’ve seen before.
No. Not like what you’ve seen before. These now lead the broods. They are powerful, and they will not leave this place.
Now?
This is different.
If they’re as powerful as they appear, why wouldn’t they attack? The Antrilii would have struggled with creatures this powerful.
Their connection to their ahmaean is what helps feed the growing groeliin.
Jakob continued to watch, fascinated by the way the groeliin used their ahmaean. It was beautiful in its own dark and deadly way. There was violence to it, and he now understood how Raime used his ahmaean—unless Raime had been the one to have taught the groeliin.
The nemerahl stood. We should depart. They will recognize our presence.
You think they’ll know that we’re here?
It is a certainty that they will know. There’s a reason we do not venture this far very often. Had you not the need to understand the groeliin, I would not have brought you here. It is dangerous, and there have been damahne who have been taken and killed by lesser groeliin.
They were even different from the groeliin that Raime had brought against him in the daneamiin lands. Jakob had been captured by those groeliin, held in place by their connection to the ahmaean.
Where now?
You needed to see what you might face in the north. You needed to know how the groeliin moved and what risks you would be exposed to if you attempted to find Raime here.
This was your warning?
Not a warning. This was my way of showing you what you must be prepared for.
Jakob wouldn’t be able to face these groeliin on his own. Even with others like him, he doubted he would be able to guarantee success facing the groeliin. They needed an army, and they needed power—or some way of diffusing the groeliin’s connection to the ahmaean.
We can go, he said to the nemerahl.
As the nemerahl prepared to shift, Jakob noted another band of ahmaean entering the valley. He tapped on the nemerahl’s back, signaling for him to wait.
Jakob stared, trying to peer through the dark cloud of ahmaean. As it parted, he saw other groeliin, most of them the typical groeliin, but there were some among them that were unlike them.
There was something about these groeliin that caught his attention. Swords.
These were like the groeliin he’d faced in the Unknown Lands. There were so many!
The groeliin carrying swords peeled off and approached the dozen powerful groeliin he had first seen. The newcomers bowed, tipping their heads low, and dropped to one knee. Ahmaean swirled from the powerful groeliin around these others. It reminded Jakob of how the damahne used their ahmaean.
It seemed as if the groeliin were talking, but that would be impossible. They hissed and screamed, but he’d never heard them communicating.
Have you ever seen groeliin like that before? Jakob asked.
They are new.
Is this what they were breeding?
It is possible. Groeliin develop quickly, especially when they are well fed.
If these are new creatures, then it’s more likely that Raime is responsible.
Perhaps. He has guided the breeding for many years. It’s possible that he’s responsible for this.
You seem uncertain.
The nemerahl sniffed. He has never trained the groeliin. This division is unusual.
Why do I get the sense that this is a dangerous development?
Because it is. The nemerahl looked up at him, his eyes piercing. It takes considerable energy to feed developing groeliin. That has been the reason the broods prefer their typical workers. They require less feeding than developing others of great power. Those dozen that we first saw require much care and feeding. They are incredibly rare. These newcomers would require considerable energy.
It would be more than just energy they would require. They would require training. Raime was not gifted with the sword. He had some talent, but in his visions, Jakob had never seen Raime training with the sword, preferring to use his connection to ahmaean.
Whoever was working with these groeliin was likely a skilled swordsman.
We should go, the nemerahl said.
Jakob prepared to shift, wanting to return to the Great Forest, anywhere but in the mountains. As he attempted to shift, he found that he could not.
He looked over to the nemerahl. I can’t shift.
The nemerahl flickered for a moment and bared his teeth. I cannot either.
Jakob looked down at the groeliin and noted dark energy pushing up toward them.
Not only had they been discovered, but the groeliin had some way of holding them here, preventing them from shifting away.
Chapter Eleven
Jakob studied the groeliin. The cloud of ahmaean continued to near them, and he shivered, wanting only to be away from it. He feared remaining there too long. Not only were there a dozen groeliin with considerable power and ability to use ahmaean, but there were hundreds of groeliin with more coming. Dozens upon dozens of them carried swords.
This would not be a fight he could wage and win.
The wind changed, blowing snow toward them and carrying a foul stink on it.
We’re going to have to hurry, Jakob said.
The nemerahl snorted, clearing snow from his face. If we can’t shift, and we should not fight, we will have to run.
Running through the snow would be difficult. The nemerahl would be better equipped for it than Jakob, but he wondered if he could use the daneamiin way of moving. Could he flicker as he walked? It would allow him to move more quickly, but if he couldn’t shift, he might not be able to walk in that manner, either. There were similarities to how the daneamiin moved and how the damahne moved.
You’re going to have to carry me, Jakob said.
The nemerahl looked up at him, anger flaring in his bright, golden eyes. I am not a pet.
You’re going to have to do this. Otherwise, I suspect they will reach me, and they’ll capture me. You can get away, but I doubt that I can. The snow is too deep for me to move quickly enough.
The dark ahmaean continued to approach, and now Jakob could feel it as much as anything. There was a coldness to it that mixed with the cold bite in the air and the blowing gusts of snow.
This will not end well.
For whom? Jakob asked.
The nemerahl snarled softly and shook his massive he
ad. Climb on, but know that you will regret this.
I think I’ll regret it more if I don’t manage to escape.
He climbed onto the nemerahl’s back, wrapping his arms around the big cat’s neck and trying not to dig his heels into his sides. Jakob didn’t want to restrict the nemerahl’s movements.
He’d been close to the nemerahl before and had stroked his fur, but this was a closeness that he had not experienced with him. There was an almost sweet odor to him that reminded Jakob of the hint of a coming rain, a fresh smell that he breathed in, welcoming it.
The nemerahl leaped up the mountainside. Jakob had no idea how deep into the mountains they had come. Distance was difficult to ascertain when they shifted the way that they had. With each jump, they traveled dozens of feet. Still, that didn’t seem fast enough. The fog continued to drift toward them, moving with increasing speed.
Jakob hazarded a glance back and wished he had not.
The twelve large groeliin stood in the base of the valley, with the ahmaean they controlled pushing up the side of the mountain, moving with the speed of an avalanche. Jakob could feel the power pushing upon him, and he resisted the urge to draw upon his ahmaean and push back. There was no sense in getting into a battle with the groeliin, especially not one that he probably could not win. His connection to the ahmaean was strong, and he had been gifted the ahmaean of the many damahne who had come before him, but there were twelve powerful groeliin down there. Even one of them might be more than he could manage.
We should hurry.
I hurry, the nemerahl said.
They reached the top of the peak, and with a powerful leap, they cleared it, heading down and away. Jakob attempted to shift but could not.
I still cannot, either, the nemerahl said.
What was it that contained them? What did the groeliin do that prevented them from leaving? They had been able to shift to this place, but it was almost as if the groeliin had anticipated that they would and had a way of preventing their departure.
The Last Conclave (The Lost Prophecy Book 6) Page 9