Forsaken Prince (Kilenya Chronicles Book 1)

by Andrea Pearson

  Early relayed the message to the Makalos. “They said to let them know if and when you do remember,” she said. “It could be very important.”

  Jacob agreed to do so, and Akeno helped Early back into her container, which he shut and put inside his knapsack. He saw Jacob watching him and gave a shy smile. “Minya containers are lined with Kaede sap, keeping the Minyas healthy and comfortable. She’s not miserable in hers.”

  “Kaede sap!” Jacob said. “My mom said she needed some yesterday. What does it do?”

  “It has healing properties,” Seden said, leading the way up the first set of switchbacks. “A Makalo hundreds of years ago discovered it, and they’ve harvested it since. It comes from a type of maple tree. In fact, the first time you’re around it, you’ll notice a syrup smell. The taste is awful, so beware if you ever have to drink any. It has been hugely beneficial, and I’m glad the Makalos have allowed us to bring some.”

  Akeno sent an apologetic expression to Seden. “There aren’t a lot of Kaede trees around Taga Village, and it takes a long time to harvest the sap. I’m sorry we weren’t able to bring more.”

  “Oh, you don’t need to apologize,” Seden said. “I’m just grateful we have access to it.”

  The group fell silent for a few steps as they hiked. The trail wasn’t too difficult. The mountainside sloped gently upward, and the path followed naturally.

  Seden glanced back at Jacob. “I don’t know what I’ve explained well enough. Do you have any questions?”

  “Tell me about the Lorkon,” Jacob said immediately.

  Chapter Eleven

  “They’re horrible and very powerful,” Seden said. “They’re taller than humans, nearing nine feet. Their teeth are stained black and yellow. They run fast and are extraordinarily strong, both physically and mentally. So strong, they don’t have need for weapons.”

  He shook his head slowly. “This is bad, but the most disturbing feature of the Lorkon is their skin. It’s blood red and is constantly chafing and peeling. They infect whatever they touch with horrendous diseases, and the blood that oozes from the cracks in their skin burns like acid.”

  Seden shuddered, rubbing his shoulder.

  “That’s awful,” Jacob said. “And they have my dad and little sister?” His heart pounded, thinking about the nightmares Amberly was being put through. She was only nine. He resolved again to stop the Lorkon, regardless of how powerful they were. He would put a stop to their tyranny.

  “Yes. And you have to get the key from them. Without the key, the chances of you escaping are nearly zero. Remember, we can’t attack them. We’ll lose if we do. The Lorkon are immortal and invincible. We discovered this during the last war.”

  “Great,” Jacob said. He refused to be discouraged by the information, though, and instead of dwelling more on the Lorkon, decided to change the subject. “What role did you play in that war?”

  “I was an officer. All my men were destroyed. I was lucky—I got injured before the Lorkon attacked my unit.”

  The sarcasm was heavy in his voice, and Jacob wondered just how “lucky” Seden really felt. “Do you have a family?”

  Seden took a breath and let it out slowly. “I did. Before the Lorkon. You’ll find that’s common—millions were killed. Most who survived lost everyone dear to them.”

  Jacob concentrated on hiking for a moment, trying to figure out how to word his next question. He finally decided just to ask it. “Kenji mentioned you all had a motivation for taking me. What was yours?”

  Seden didn’t respond for a while, and Jacob worried he’d gone too far. Before he had a chance to take back his question, the man finally responded.

  “There’s some backstory to understand before I get to the motivation part. I hope you’ll forgive me for sharing it.”

  “Go ahead—I need the info.”

  “As I said, the Makalos sealed themselves off for many years. They didn’t even attempt to contact anyone outside their village for fear word would spread and the Lorkon would find them. When their spies realized the Lorkon were getting closer and closer to discovering their location, they sent a Minya to Gallus—first, to find out if their former ally was still alive, and second, to send word that they were looking to hire someone who was skilled enough to find you and bring you to them.

  “It was a delicate balance they were hoping to strike. King Dmitri had refused to educate you, and the Makalos knew his decision was putting everyone in danger. They risked their king’s ire by seeking to bring you to their village.” Seden hesitated. “I’m getting off track from motivations.”

  “I really don’t mind,” Jacob said. “It’s all good stuff to know.” He wished the Makalos had tried to find him earlier.

  “When the Makalos sent notice that they were wanting to hire someone, the Lorkon caught wind, figured out where the Makalos had hidden, and broke into the village to steal the key. The moment the Makalos found that the key was missing, they acted quickly and changed their original search for help. They knew they’d need a guide—”

  “Or two,” Aloren said.

  “Or two,” Seden repeated, “who had strong motivation to get to Maivoryl City—beyond just money. The Lorkon are persuasive, and the Makalos didn’t want to risk their guides being swayed or chickening out. A wise decision.”

  Seden fell silent for a moment, then said, “Without the key, we can’t defeat the Lorkon. And the Makalos didn’t want the Lorkon to figure that out. Or the fact that they can’t use the key, because things would get violent. Which they have.” He paused, looking back at Jacob. “No one but you can use the key.”

  Jacob felt the blood drain from his face. “Why only me?”

  “There are rumors that the spells placed on the key revolve around you, making it impossible for the key to function for anyone but you.”

  “Why would Aldo and the Makalos do that? Did they want me to die?”

  Seden shook his head. “A lot of hope has been placed in you, our Forsaken Prince. King Dmitri wanted to raise you to be a warrior strong enough to destroy the Lorkon, and having you be the only one who could use the key helped protect it and helped your position of power. The people will be more willing to follow you if you have the key. I think Dmitri lost track of that goal, though. No offense to you, of course.”

  “None taken,” Jacob grumbled. He remembered Dad trying to teach him to sword fight when he was younger, but Dad had gotten busy with work, and with all the frequent trips he and Mom went on, there were other things to stress about. Jacob wished that hadn’t ended up being the case. He definitely wished he’d known why Dad had wanted him to learn the sword. He would have taken it much more seriously.

  Possibly sensing Jacob’s frustration, Seden asked, “Shall we take a break?”

  No one objected, and they sat and pulled out food. Jacob pushed aside his thoughts and tried to admire the view. Smoke rose from Aldo’s chimney below, the sun was bright overhead, making the waving grasses extra green, and with the forests and gently rolling hills, he found himself wanting to take a picture. He powered up his phone and snapped a couple before shutting his phone down and putting it away.

  If anyone thought the device was weird, they didn’t say anything. And actually . . . “Why do you guys talk so much like people from earth?” he asked.

  “Sister planet,” Aloren said in a singsong voice probably meant to annoy Jacob.

  It did. So Jacob refused to acknowledge her.

  Akeno surprised him by speaking. “Yes, Eklaron is a sister planet to earth—English is the predominant language of Gevkan, and we’ve had connections to earth for hundreds of years. As you know, there’s a link near Taga Village, so Makalos have gone there several times. We’re not the only ones, though. I’ve been told that Aldo used to visit regularly. He’d bring back all sorts of gadgets, and Makalos would power those gadgets with their Rezend.”

  “Rezend?” Jacob asked.

  “The Makalo magic,” Akeno said, glancing at Seden and Aloren.
He flushed when he saw they were paying attention.

  Jacob realized for the first time that the Makalo wasn’t familiar with either of them. He wasn’t shy just because of Jacob, but because of all of them.

  “So . . .” Jacob said to Seden, trying to take the focus off Akeno. The Makalo probably wasn’t going to say anything more. He’d have to ask him about his magic when there wasn’t as much of an audience. “Motivation?”

  “Oh, right,” Seden responded. “My father’s things are in Maivoryl City—everything he taught and learned and experimented with is there. He was an inventor. I’ve been trying to get back for nearly eighteen years. I know it sounds shallow, but I’m positive some of his inventions would be worth something now. Money aside, I simply want to have the items in my possession again because they belonged to him. I miss my father. He died when the Lorkon first attacked, before you were born.”

  “Okay, makes sense.” Jacob glanced at Aloren. He was curious—he wanted to know what made his companions tick. “Am I allowed to ask what your motivation is?”

  She rolled her eyes. “You can ask, but that doesn’t mean I’ll answer.” She stood, putting her food away. “It’s none of your business, okay?”

  She started up the trail without a backward glance.

  Seden sighed. “She’ll come around eventually.”

  “One can only hope,” Jacob muttered loud enough for Seden and Akeno to hear, but not Aloren.

  They got to their feet and followed Aloren. Jacob munched on beef jerky as he went, wishing they’d had more of a break and vowing never to ask Aloren anything personal again.

  Chapter Twelve

  They hadn’t been hiking for long when the path began rising sharply, and the switchbacks cut deeply into the side of the mountain, causing a sheer drop on one side. In several sections, parts of the path had crumbled away, leaving only a few inches to stand on. In many places, Jacob and the others had to grab branches and bushes to pull themselves up, hugging the side of the cliff. Eventually, they reached the top where the path crested over the foothills and turned left, veering to the east.

  “We’ll be coming to the mud bubbles soon,” Seden said. He glanced back at Jacob. “It’ll take about half an hour to cross them. It can be dangerous, but I’ve traveled across them several times. As long as we’re careful, we should be fine.”

  The trail curved a couple of times around huge rocks. There weren’t many trees here, and the view was amazing. Jacob could even see the manor.

  Strange-looking wildflowers grew in patches on both sides of the trail, and he picked one to examine it while walking. It was a type he’d never seen before, with bright blue petals and soft thistles on the stems and leaves. He noticed something odd and frowned at it. “That’s weird. Are the petals moving?”

  “Yes, they are,” Seden said. “That’s how they attract bees. The petals are edible, with a spicy-sweet flavor. They’re a favorite in Macaria. It does take a bit to get over the feel of them wiggling in your mouth, though.”

  Jacob grimaced. “That’s really gross.”

  “It’s disconcerting, yes,” Seden said, adjusting the strap on his knapsack. “Of course, if you’re out on the road and don’t have anything else to eat, you’ll take what you can get, right?”

  “I guess so,” Jacob said.

  He paused, staring at the trail ahead of them. The flowers and trees abruptly ended, and the ground was shiny and bubbly looking. It was a brown-gray color, with no inclines of any sort. As he continued walking closer, he noticed it looked as though someone had poured a layer of smooth cake mix over everything. He took a step onto it—the path was barely visible—and his foot crunched through an inch or so of dried mud. It felt like stepping on dead leaves.

  “I present you with the mud bubbles,” Seden said. “It’s the last of four elemental traps that Dmitri went through, placed by the Lorkon to stop him. The castle the Lorkon now reside in was once the king’s castle. The Lorkon stole the princess from that castle, then ran away, placing traps as they went. We’re following their steps, but in reverse.”

  “What were the traps?” Jacob asked.

  “One was a great waterfall, the second was scented air that people got stuck in forever, and the third was a Fire Pulser—a creature that, well, pulses fire. This is the last one. When Dmitri encountered it, it was boiling mud.” He shifted his knapsack. “Be cautious. I’ll do my best to guide everyone across, but there’s no guarantee that we won’t be injured.” He glanced at Aloren. “Have you come this way before?”

  She shook her head. “I took the long way from Macaria to the Makalo village. Didn’t want to deal with the Lorkon traps.”

  “Probably a good idea.”

  Following Seden and walking carefully, Jacob soon got accustomed to the crunching sounds under his feet. The farther they walked, the bigger the bubbles got, and the path became impossible to distinguish. Eventually, Seden began kicking or pushing through the sides of the bigger bubbles, making way for the rest to follow. The going wasn’t very difficult, and they made good progress for a while.

  After ten minutes, the sides of the bubbles became more and more difficult to break through, and they took turns leading. Jacob’s arms and legs soon tired from the exertion, and eventually they reached a bubble no one could break. It was about four feet tall and five or six feet wide.

  “Each time I come, the groups I’m with are able to break through a little farther,” Seden said. “We’ll need to climb up and walk on the tops of them now.”

  “You’re kidding,” Aloren said.

  Seden shook his head. “Akeno, as the lightest one here, you’ll lead the way. Aloren next, then Jacob. I’ll take up the rear and guide as best I can from there.”

  He put a hand on the Makalo’s shoulder. “The most important thing to watch out for is holes. If a bubble has a hole or crack anywhere on it, avoid it. Choose a different one to walk on.”

  Akeno’s face paled. “What happens if someone breaks through?”

  Seden’s mouth set in a thin line. “We pray for survival. The bubbles will get bigger and bigger, which means a longer fall if the shells break. They’re not the only thing to fear here, though.”

  It looked like he wanted to say more, but he didn’t. Jacob almost asked him to spill what he knew, but the expression on Seden’s face stopped him. Maybe just knowing there were other dangers would be enough.

  After hesitating a moment longer, Akeno turned to face the hardened mud, and with a boost from Seden, got on top. He started forward, moving out of the way, and Aloren hoisted herself up, followed by Jacob and Seden. Aloren stayed a full bubble behind Akeno, and Jacob gave her a good lead before also beginning to cross the stuff.

  The sun was in the afternoon position, warming the breeze uncomfortably, and Jacob was glad his skin wasn’t the kind that burned easily. Things would have been so miserable if it was.

  Akeno stopped, holding up a hand. “There’s a hole—no one move. I’m going to find another way around.” He inched past the hole, peered down, and then stiffened. “Uh . . . guys?” He looked back. “The bubble we’re standing on is at least thirty feet deep.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jacob straightened, his heart clenching. “It is?” Even with the warmth from the sun, his hands turned to ice and a cold sweat sent shivers down his back. He tried not to picture falling those thirty feet.

  Akeno led them around, and Jacob was relieved when he saw there weren’t any holes in the next bubble. He looked out over the shells in front of them, discouraged at just how much they still had to cover. “We’re barely halfway.”

  “Yes,” Seden said, “and it will probably take another hour to cross.”

  Resolving not to focus on how far they had to go, Jacob concentrated on maintaining a safe distance between himself and Aloren. The larger the bubbles got, the bigger that distance became, though, and he didn’t like how spread apart their group was getting.

  He was making his way over a
very large bubble when a cracking sound came from under him. He stopped and watched in dismay as a line shot across the surface, starting at his foot.

  Jacob didn’t have time to react before the crust below him gave way. He gasped, eyes widening as he clutched at the air, trying to find something, anything, to hold on to. He tipped backward and fell, the shell breaking as his body hit it. He was aware of Aloren’s scream, the bright sun in his eyes, and the scent of mud.

  Cold, damp air rushed past him, making a roar in his ears as he gained speed in his descent. With a thud, he landed on solid ground, and the wind whooshed out of his lungs. Everything threatened to go black. He forced his eyes open, and a dull ache built in his chest.

  “Jacob!” someone screamed.

  He tried to pull in the air he needed to breathe. It wouldn’t come, and panic washed over him. How far had he fallen? Everything was dark except for a small shaft of light that came in through the hole above him.

  His chest was on fire. The pressure built and built until finally, with a gasp, he drew in a ragged, painful breath.

  “I’m okay,” he called out weakly. Was he?

  Jacob tested all of his limbs—they each responded, and without pain. But when he tried to sit up, fire raced across his chest again. He must have broken a rib. Or several, judging by how painful it was to move.

  With difficulty, he rolled over and sat up, gasping for breath, working through the pain. His eyes widened when he saw a crumpled body near him. Aloren had fallen too—had her bubble broken when Jacob’s did? The hole above didn’t look that big.

  Her eyes were shut, her body unmoving. Jacob crawled to her, doing his best to ignore the agony ripping across his torso. Dark liquid dripped from a wound on her forehead, and judging by the awkward position of her body, she’d broken several bones. Was she even alive?

  Panic made Jacob’s hand shake as he checked for a pulse. He’d never been around a dead person before, and though he didn’t really like Aloren, he definitely didn’t want her dead. “Please, please be alive,” he whispered.