Taking the woods, we walked near the road, keeping alert to any movement that didn't belong. The first city we came across was Hafton. I knew there wouldn't be a way Naloud would be there and I really didn't want to go back. Instead, we moved forward, traveling along the major trade route that acts as the most direct way between cities.
By the time we reached Verora, I was worn and in need of a place to stay. Marren agreed that we could stop for some rest and see if anyone had seen our daughter recently. Our plans would prove unrealized.
We were greeted with wide eyes, full of alarm and fear. Many of the people stopped what they were in the middle of doing to stare at us. Many of the people we approached in question of our daughter shook their heads wildly and ran as fast as their legs could carry them.
“What is wrong with these people?” I asked.
“The man said that Jiren had deceived them all. He had crossed over after the fight that claimed so many lives and started to warn people of creatures he saw in the woods. Creatures that look human during the day but like beasts at night. Jiren told them they had eyes blacker than the abyss and would use mind tricks to lure humans into their trap to be eaten.”
“Gross,” I replied. It was difficult to keep the bile from rising into my mouth.
“He also said that the king had believed Jiren so completely that anyone caught speaking to these creatures would be killed along with them.”
“Enid! We haven't heard from him, what if he's dead?”
“Let's not worry about that until we have something to prove his death.” Marren tried to speak as calmly as he could, but his words were still tinged with worry.
“We better leave then before we both get killed.”
“That's an excellent idea,” came a voice from within the crowd. It was exuberantly deep and full of warning.
We turned in time to see a man, just as stout as he was tall, and skin the color of burnt toast. He held a large sword in his hand and stared at us with a crowd gathering behind him. Each person had some sort of weapon, even the children.
It made my heart clench.
“We want no trouble. We're just passing through. Our daughter was taken from us. Perhaps you have seen her?” Marren said.
“We haven't seen the likes of your kind. Now leave or suffer painful deaths worse than that you bring upon your prey.”
***
Every town was like this. Especially Ashelm, where we were chased out by the crowd mad with fear. Their faces contorted into blood thirsty creatures out for the kill. We were forced to make camp each night, only neither of us could sleep. We were too afraid a band of hunters would come across us and make good on the bounty. We had passed trees that had posters of crudely drawn faces that were meant to depict the immortal races with the reward of ten thousand copper for each head.
“Is this what it was like when the immortal realm was created?” I asked as we neared Yerr.
“It was like this and so much worse in places,” Marren replied.
“How so?”
“If it were worse, we wouldn't have our heads right now.”
“Oh.” I tried to ignore the extremely large lump that appeared in my throat. It was difficult to swallow back and forced my eyes to tear. The one thought I tried hard to not acknowledge during this entire journey loomed even closer, whispering louder. It voiced my feelings that the likelihood of us actually finding my daughter alive was growing slimmer.
That fear became a weight on my shoulders. A burden only I could bare. Not even Marren felt the absence of our daughter like I did. The fear of her not returning. The pain of loss and death is a human experience. And though I'm no longer a human, I still share the feelings I had. Just as strong, and just as powerful.
When the Gates of Yerr poked up along the edge of the road, I felt almost sure that we would be turned away as we were so many times before.
Yerr is the outer city that surrounds the kingdom of Ghadel.
“Built as a means to filter out those unworthy or unclean souls, Yerr's magic was within its indestructible wood used for the gate's posts and beams,” Marren explained. His words coming out like the rehearsal of a story he’d once memorized. His voice was solemn and weary.
Small green stems of ivy grew like tangled fingers, weaving in between the beams that formed the two sides of the gate. Either side was attached to a large stone wall. Too high to scale, even if I could make use of the vines that grew along its side. There was a clearing along the walls of about the span of my arms, between the woods and the wall. It looked as though it was made to be a barrier. Beyond the wall, the towering city of Ghadel reached high into the sky. A symbol of how high the king held himself, and just how below him the rest of the world was.
A limestone road wound up in a constant spiral towards the center. Inside the castle's walls it's said to have a large courtyard garden with the most precious of fruits, flowers, and trees. The opposite of the abyss—an oasis of sorts. And when the sun hits it just right, the stone sparkles in a golden effervescence. A brilliance that matches the sun's.
In all my life, I had never been this far to see the castle's walls, much less the Gates of Yerr. Under different circumstances, I would have found this place captivating and simply breathtaking. Given our current circumstance, I wouldn't get the chance to see beyond these walls and get closer to the castle. Not with our streak of luck as it were.
“What if the races were forced to return to the immortal realm?” I asked.
Marren shook his head as he gripped two bars of the gate and rattled them to check their hold. “I would have received word of their return. And it doesn't seem likely.”
“We haven't heard of them or seen them otherwise.”
“That doesn't mean they're not here.”
I looked at him quizzically.
He sighed and twisted to face me. “Ghadel is known to house many of the races both known and unknown to humans. It's likely that they went into hiding here or in other cities that hold citadels.” He gestured to the towering castle above. “Either way, we are bound to have some allies here. And this is the best way to gather a group to help search for our daughter.”
I expelled a large breath of air as if it would lessen the weight on my shoulders and leaned up against the wall with Marren standing in front of the gates. I jumped when he yelled, “Gatekeeper!”
I removed myself from the wall and took my place just behind Marren. I watched as a tiny man, too skinny to be considered a dwarf, approached the gate. As he got closer, I knew there could be only two things that could explain his stature. Either he was half-dwarf or he didn't like eating nearly as much as every other one I knew. He eyed us suspiciously.
“What be y’er business in Yerr, the Guardian City?” His voice was raspy and worn with age, though he didn't look older than thirty or so.
“Our daughter was taken from us. The man that we believe is behind her disappearance has ties to this city. We believe she could be here.”
“Not possible. No one gets through these gates without my say so and no one has passed through in three weeks.”
“Three weeks?” I asked not bothering to hide my desperation.
“Aye,” replied the small man. “Remove the hoods.”
Both Marren and I stiffened and hesitated long enough for the man to look at us and squint like he could see through the shadows.
“I said remove the hoods.”
With a sigh I removed my hood and stared into the short man's eyes. The color I knew he would be looking for would surely prevent our passing through. Marren slowly removed his hood as well. The man didn't seem at all surprised by our appearance. Maybe he was dwarf after all? Could this be a sign in our favor?
With a sigh, the man wobbled over to a small wooden stool and took a seat. He pulled out a pipe from a leather pouch at his side and struck a match to light it. He puffed a few times and then crossed his legs, resting his hand, pipe and all, over his bent knee.
We stood, w
aiting patiently for him to say something or do something other than stare at us.
Marren...
Just wait.
But we are running out of time!
Patience, please. I want to find our girl too.
As if he could hear our internal conversation he inhaled another puff of his pipe, exhaled it in a dramatic heave, then said, “No.”
“No?” Marren asked speculatively.
“No,” the little man replied.
“Why not?” I asked more incredulously.
“Because, I can lose my head over this. Just speaking to you may cost me my life.”
“But no one has to know! We won't tell anyone. I promise! Please let us through. Please let us find our daughter!” Tears started to fill my eyes, forcing my vision to blur and the short man to become a blob of mixed color rather than a solid figure.
“Ya wouldn't have to. The king keeps eyes on this gate at all times. Not one person comes in here without his knowledge.” I tried to ignore the way he spoke king. It was as if he had a personal disdain for this man.
“Surely there is a way,” Marren insisted.
“No.” The man stood and placed his pipe on the seat of his small stool then approached the gate. In a low voice he said, “Come back at dark. Hoods up. I'll help ye in. Anything to bring this bastard down.” Before I could inquire what he meant, he started waving his hands and yelled, “Now be gone before ya lose your heads!”
Come on. Marren said in our private way. We should do what the man says.
Reluctantly, I followed Marren into the woods and waited not so patiently for night fall.
29
New Allies
Marren and I walked deep enough into the woods that no one would see us, and hopefully wouldn't bump into any human hunting parties. When night had claimed the last of the sun, we walked back. Careful of the ever watchful eye of the king's men high above, we sheltered ourselves under our hoods and stuck to the thicker of the shadows. Avoiding all light, as much as possible. The walls were lined with sconces. Most having yet to be lit or having already gone out for one reason or another.
We approached the gate carefully. I peered through to see if our friend kept his word. He wasn't there. There was no evidence of him anywhere. The stool was gone. No pipe smoke lingered in the air. The sconces that lined the wall on either side of the path were lit. Their light shining on everything in sight, leaving no room for shadow.
What do we do now, Marren?
We wait. Even in thoughts, his words were calm and even.
What if it's a trap?
Either way, we get into the city.
And what then? I turned to face him. What if our daughter isn't here? What do you suppose we do then?
He moved closer to me, taking my hands into his. Emotions of hope filled me. His hope. I sighed, dropping my head to his chest. The night air had cooled considerably. My breath emerged from my mouth in a small puff of fog. Marren rested his chin on my head and smoothed the back of my hood with his hand. His warmth poured into me with his hope. I felt my mood shift slowly.
A snapping branch sounded through the woods. The sound carried on the air, replacing the warmth that was in me with a sudden and complete chill. Marren stiffened around me. He stood like a statue of solid armor. I knew I didn't have to ask, but the words escaped me before I could stop them. “Did you hear that?” I whispered.
One movement was all I got in a reply. One slow and deliberate nod of his head against mine.
Another snapping branch sounded.
We stood motionless, waiting for whatever made that sound to find us and turn us in. My stomach clenched with anxiety, my body started to shake uncontrollably. It was a trap. We would be brought into the city, and lose our heads. All for money. The small man was definitely not a dwarf. Dwarfs have more honor and respect for Marren than that.
Something flew through the air and hit me on my leg. I moved to see what it was but Marren seemed frozen solid. I poked him in his side. Nope, not frozen. He moved enough for me to see a twig at my feet. I jumped when another one, larger than the first, stopped at my feet, after it bounced off the wall behind us.
My eyes met Marren's. We didn't need to share our thoughts to know we were thinking the same thing. Both of us turned our attention towards the woods. After glancing back to me and holding up his hand to symbolize his desire for me to stay put, he walked towards the spot he thought the twigs were coming from.
The woods were lined with a pale aura. Not nearly as strong as the auras on the immortal realm, but strong enough for me to see a hunched over figure in the trees, just barely visible against the bushes he was in.
Marren approached slowly with his hands up, palms out. I barely heard the words he exchanged, but I did see his body language relax, which allowed me to do the same. His words reached into my mind with soothing comfort. It's okay. It's the gatekeeper. I let out a heavy sigh. It was a breath that I hadn't known I was holding. Letting it out felt almost as if a weight was lifted from my chest. I took my place next to Marren.
The gatekeeper stood, removing himself from the bushes. He was cloaked, nearly as heavily as we were. His eyes assessed me as much as mine had of him. With a nod he said, “Alright, follow me. Stay close and out of the light...not that ye need that much,” he muttered the last part. It was heavily concealed within an exhaled breath. I'm not sure that even Marren caught on. I looked at him questioningly. He seemed oblivious, preferring to keep his eyes forward. I considered asking him what held his thoughts, but decided better of it.
We followed the gatekeeper through the woods, sticking near the edge of the trees. It kept the wall of the city in sight. We stopped at a small stream where the run off came from an archway barred with iron, rusted with age and exposure. It was just large enough to crawl through. From the looks of the wall, and the side of the castle that towered above, we were on the back end of the city. The torches were extinguished, leaving the wall and everything around us shrouded in darkness. Even the moon’s light was far too pale to reveal much less than fleeting shadows. No one would know we were there.
“The iron bars aren't solid. The races that came back ‘accidentally’ found this and decided that they could use a way in and out of the city without detection,” the gatekeeper said.
“They?” I asked.
He nodded. “Ye'll see.” He moved over towards the arched iron bars and pulled them free from the wall with very little noise. He set it to the side, then motioned for me to go in. I hesitated, looking at Marren, hoping he would argue my being first. He only nodded once. Crushing my hopes of him intervening.
I approached the opening, dropping to my hands and knees. The cold water seeped into my clothing and skin. It reached into every nerve ending, threatening to freeze me solid. At the far end something twinkled. Quickly, I dismissed it and looked one last time behind me at Marren, now standing in the water beside me. With a smile from him, I returned my gaze ahead of me and started to crawl through.
It was dark. Nothing gave off an aura. I swallowed the lump in my throat as I was reminded of my time in the Tombcell. Everything in my situation had mimicked the other in all of the most frightening ways. The dark, the damp, the tight space, the way the air seemed so much thicker and harder to breathe. It was enough to cause a small surge of panic inside me, adding to the already cramped space.
A wave a fresh air entered my nose. It was cold and carried a high level of stone and iron. It was quiet around the opening, but sounds in the distance came as if there was just as much business after dark as there was during the day. Or there was a celebration. Either way, no one would be paying much attention to strange figures in black robes crawling from the city's run off.
I poked my head out, keeping my eyes alert to any movement. Stacked against the walls were wagons and old broken down carts. This must have been storage of some sort, long forgotten and unvisited. All the better. I crawled out and noted that the iron bars to seal the run off rested
against the wall just to the side of the opening. Above us was a roof made from wooden shakes. We were well hidden.
Marren crawled out, along with the small man who had done more for us than any other stranger would do. I had to know why. I waited for him to finish replacing the bars into the opening and dusting his pants off before I said, “I don't understand one thing. Perhaps you could clear it up for me?”
His eyes were clear, free from emotion, but his lips pressed together in a soft, yet firm smirk and ever so slightly, his jaw clenched. “Anything.”
“Why help us?”
“Why not?” he asked.
“Relena, not right now,” Marren said.
“Yes, right now, Marren. I want to know why he's so willing and eager to help us after such little propositioning while everyone else in the world would happily behead us without a moment’s thought.” My eyes never left the man’s. Nor did his leave mine.
“It's quite all right. I‘ll answer her question.” His eyes clouded slightly, then in a lower voice he said, “As ye can see I'm short in stature, but far too thin to be a dwarf, but that doesn't mean that I'm not part-blooded.” He paused as he lifted his head proudly into the air. “My grandfather was full-blooded dwarf. He was all I had. All that tied me to my heritage...to who I am.
“My mother was human, my father was dwarf. It caused friction in my father's family and so he was disowned until my birth. When I was born with a short stature, my grandfather made an appearance in my life and continued to appear regularly throughout my years.
“My mother was ridiculed by everyone in our village. People would refuse to trade with her and would speak openly about her actions as if she weren't there. It killed her. And my father, who spent his years trying to hunt for food and build a roof over our heads, followed her within weeks.” He shook his head, as if he thought that would shake the tears that had formed in his eyes. He took a deep, shuddering breath and let it out slowly with his hands on his hips.
“My grandfather returned six months after their passing. He stayed with me until I could grow into manhood. Then, the king offered me a job. I refused. His retaliation was public execution. The whole town watched as my grandfather was beheaded. I couldn't do anything. I didn't know how to!
Heart Song Page 27