Spellkeeper

by Courtney Privett

  Hael closed her eyes and inhaled. She recognized some of these scents. Stone, dirt, trees, salt. The shape of the valley and the density of the forest meant there would be extra shade during the day. Places to hunt, places to fish, places to farm and hide.

  “Is this a good place? Is this home?” Juna whispered. He held his baby in his arms, a happy and noisy little boy who was already trying to walk.

  Hael opened her eyes and looked up at the stars and moonlit peaks. “I think this is home. We should find our friends down there. Do you want to go see them?”

  “I wouldn't mind seeing Benny and Mordegan again. Iefyr, too. That empath friend of yours is a troublemaker, though, and if that damned brown-eyed elf is here, I might just turn around and head back to Sungate.” Juna laughed, then shrugged. “Or maybe not. I think Radamar and I have come to an understanding.”

  “My sister should be here,” Adina murmured, and Hael wasn't sure if she was disappointed or still caught in her mourning. She hadn't left Hael's side in the six nights since her dragon was killed.

  “Your sister is good,” Hael said, patting her arm.

  “I hope so. She's hiding now, too. I hope she's smarter about it than I was.”

  “All right, kids, down the slope,” Ragan said as he passed them. Cadriel sat upon his shoulder, chirping and swishing his tail in time with Ragan's. “Was kinda wondering if those directions would take us to nowhere, but this looks like somewhere to me. If we went to the wrong place and no one's down there, seems a good enough place to stay while we figure out where we're actually supposed to go.”

  There were no established paths leading downward, so they left the wagons on the ridge and carefully descended into the forest. The air beneath the canopy was cool and smelled of herbal mist. Animals scurried along the branches and under the bushes.

  “Captain Autumngold may have found something wonderful,” Rin said once she caught up to Ragan and Hael at the bottom of the hill. Her toddler, Zinnia, slept in a sling on her back while one of the babies rode on her front.

  “She knows her way around the Bacran coasts like no one else,” Ragan said. He stepped over a log, then reached back to help Adina navigate it. “Did you ever meet her in person? I can't remember.”

  “Yes. Before we were together. I worked with her to find a mark in Caprima. Remember when I told you about that temple with the . . . um . . . abundantly phallic mural? She's the one who showed it to me.”

  “Heh. Yeah. She knows all the funny little seaside attractions.” Ragan smiled at Adina, then cocked his head toward Rin. “Hey, Rinny? Are we okay now? You were kinda pissed when I showed up in Mountain Home, but I know you were trying to keep it together for Tessen's sake.”

  Rin sighed and looked up at the swaying branches. “Ragan, you've become friends with my husband and my son regards you as a father. Sometimes it hurts to be so close to you, but I don't want you to go anywhere. Just please, find someone to take to your bed because I'm getting tired of that mournful longing look you give me when you think I'm not paying attention. Maybe one of Berra's pirates will take a liking to you. You're a kind, loving, and strong-as-hell man, and anyone would be lucky to have you. And yes, we're okay. I'm glad you're here with us.”

  A twig snapped and Hael found herself with an arrow pointed at her forehead.

  “Lower your bows. It's them.”

  Hael recognized that gravelly voice.

  The arrow retreated to the side of a human woman and Hael's heart calmed.

  Iefyr stepped into a patch of moonlight, his red dragon at his heels. He grinned, exposing his short tusks, and said, “We were hoping you'd show up. Saw your lights up on the ridge.” He looked past them at the line of uncertain Uldru. “How many are there?”

  “About two hundred ten Uldru. Plus Ragan, the Goldtrees, and me. The orcs are only escorts. They plan to return home once they help us get settled,” Adina said. She pressed close to Hael, then looked back into the trees. “Hael and Juna united the Mountain Home and Jadeshire Uldru. We hope there is space for them here.”

  “Plenty,” Iefyr said. He reached down and scratched under his dragon's raised chin. “I have to say this look suits you. You look a lot more relaxed in your own skin. May I ask your name so we can finally be properly introduced?”

  “Adina Starfall,” she said with a smile. “At least I think it is. Adina for certain. The last name hasn't quite settled, but this one has stuck for about a month so it might be the one.”

  “Pretty name. I like it,” Iefyr said. “Adina and everyone else, welcome to Haven Cove. Now, if you follow me, I'll take you to the settlement and surprise the hell out of you.”

  “I dunno, Iefyr,” Ragan said. “Juna told me some, and so did those gods damned coded letters you all wrote. You still sleeping with my baby sister?”

  Iefyr smiled, but kept walking. “Oh, yes. I married her. And her other husband.”

  “You're an odd one, my friend.”

  “Perhaps. I'm quite happy about that, though. It's good to see you again, Ragan.”

  “You too, brother.” Ragan ducked beneath a branch, then gasped as he found himself in a clearing. “Well, shit. Berra went all-in, didn't she?”

  Hael stopped next to him. There were houses here, and gardens full of food, and people laughing around a cooking fire before a large, keep-like house. This place was unlike either Mountain Home or Sungate. It was unfamiliar, but comforting, and she already liked it.

  Iefyr waved at a light-haired elf who sat near the fire, then turned to Ragan and smiled. “Berra built this place years ago as an outpost and she brought several people before us, people who also needed to hide. They worked the land, and we've been helping them since arriving. Well, some of us. Tessen and Radamar are useless right now.”

  “Radamar? Radamar Nightshadow? My cousin?” Daelis asked, startling both Hael and Zinnia. He had the other baby on his chest and Yana at his side.

  “Yes...” Iefyr swallowed, then shrugged. “He's mine. And Benny's. I'll . . . we'll explain things shortly. I think you may want to go see Tessen first. Ragan...” His mouth opened as if he were about to say something important, but then he swallowed again and shook his head. “You need to speak with Benny. She's over there, past the herb garden.”

  “Okay...” Ragan glanced at Hael, then up at the mountains. “We've got supply wagons up there that'll need to make it down here. Didn't wanna do it in the dark. Uldru brought down the food so hopefully animals won't bother too much with them.”

  “Don't worry about it. We'll figure it out in the morning.”

  They continued toward the fire. The grass here was wet as if it had been raining, but the sky was clear. There was a muffled scraping sound that Hael soon figured out was coming from the large circle of water down the hill.

  “Adina. You came.” Kemi emerged from the shadows to embrace Adina. Tears in her eyes, she kissed her cheek. She had a new scar on her face, a purple band running from her earlobe nearly to her mouth. “We're free of her now, both of us. You're so beautiful, my sister. I'm relieved to finally see you like this.”

  “She disowned me. After everything she did to me, I'm okay with that.” Adina smirked, then took a step back and looked down at Kemi's belly. “You're pregnant, aren't you?”

  Kemi tucked her black hair behind her ears, then grinned and patted the small round of her belly. “Yes. I still have something like five months left. Four, maybe four. Damn it, I'm not really sure. I mean, I know when this happened, but I have no idea how long ago that was. Time has been a little off.”

  “Is it my son's?” Rin asked, an eyebrow raised.

  Kemi giggled. “Who else's would it be? Yes, it's Tessen's. I married him.”

  Rin tried to hide a smile within her pursed lips. “Congratulations, then. I thought that was what his letter meant. Where is he?”

  “Sitting on the other side of the fire,” Kemi said, then embraced Adina again. “He can't walk right now, and this is the first time Doc's let him o
ut of our cottage since we arrived here. Careful when you hug him, Rin. There was an incident with reefwalkers. The lower half of his right leg was shattered, and it's only just starting to heal.”

  “Reefwalkers? What gods damned reefwalkers?” Ragan asked.

  Hael was already ahead of him and didn't hear what was said next. They were taking their time crossing the clearing, and she wanted to be sure the empath could tolerate the presence of so many Uldru before she brought them all to him.

  He was in a chair at the edge of a dirt circle, his back to her and his legs propped on a padded crate. Even covered by a blanket, his right leg was far bulkier than the left, and a pair of crutches sat on the ground next to him. “Hello, Hael,” he said, raising his hand.

  “Hello, Tessen.” Hael circled to his front so they could see each other. He looked thinner and wearier than he had in Mountain Home. “Did you figure out how to feel better without drowning yourself?”

  “I think so.” He smiled and shook his fingers through his silky dark curls. “I'm glad you made it here safely. I feel a lot of confusion right now, but not from you. How many of you are there?”

  “A lot. My Uldru and Juna's, and many of Juna's said they knew you from Jadeshire.”

  “I don't feel Itrek. I felt him all the time in Mountain Home, no matter how far away from him I was. Is he here?”

  “No.”

  “Is he all right?” Tessen asked, worry in his strange, dragonlike eyes.

  “Yes. He is well. He decided to stay with the orcs in Sungate and learn how to be a healer. A shaman, they called it. Frald said he had the magic-skill for it. She's teaching him.”

  “Frald is a good woman. I'm glad he found a purpose.” He smiled at her as he held out his hand for his golden dragon to rub against. She was bigger than Hael remembered. “Maybe someday I will, too. I need to wait and see how this leg heals before I can figure out what I'm good for, if anything. One of the other exiles gave me a loom and is teaching me how to weave, but I don't have much energy for learning right now.”

  “You've taken a mate and she's carrying your baby. That's a good thing.” She pointed toward the ridge. “Your parents brought some of your things. Your fiddle and silversmithing tools are on one of the wagons. You'll be able to make things again.”

  Rin carefully placed a baby in Tessen's arms, then crouched next to him. “This is Katina. Daelis has Zoria. I hear you'll be holding one of your own in a couple months. I was hoping you'd wait a few more years, but I didn't and that gave me you, so I'm not going to criticize you for it.”

  “Hi, Mom. I'm sorry I disappeared. I'm so glad you found us. Hael just came over to make sure her Uldru horde wasn't going to make me panic.” He smiled as he studied the baby's face. “She has your eyes, but she looks like Shan.”

  “Both twins do. They're identical.” Rin brushed her fingertips across Tessen's face. “Don't disappear on me again. Okay, honey?”

  “I'm done with disappearing. And most other things that don't involve worrying or homesteading with my family.” Tessen kissed his little sister's face. She looked up at him and cooed. “Did you bring the journal?”

  “We had to leave it. The High King was using it to track us.” Rin sighed and shook her fingers through her black curls. “We're cut off from Shan now, honey. Worst time of his life, and we had to abandon the book to keep Daelis and the girls safe.”

  “Worst time?”

  “Yes. He has a little boy now, Tessen. Maritan. The baby's name is Maritan.”

  Tessen's face pinched and he closed his eyes. “He lost Marita?”

  “Yes. She seemed fine, but then her heart stopped the next morning. He's alone now, just him and the baby.”

  Hael knew she was intruding upon a conversation she had no place in. It was time to see to her own people and find out where they could set up camp. So many days spent crammed into wagons, and now they had all the space they could need.

  “Hael?” Elan grabbed her hand and leaned against her. He was as tall as her now, and all of this time in The Above had made him healthy and strong.

  “Hello, little brother. Not abandoning me to play with the other children tonight?” Hael smirked at him as she savored the sweet night air.

  “No.” He squeezed her fingers. “You brought us here, Hael. This is a good place.”

  “It is, isn't it?” Hael spun him toward her and embraced him. “I promised our parents I would protect you, and I did. I brought you somewhere new, somewhere we can call our own. This is ours now. I love you, Elan. Look around us. All you see here, this is home. This is our home.”

  31

  Benny

  Berra settled cross-legged on the grass in front of Benny. She reached past her knees to touch the sandy-blonde hair of the little girl using Benny's leg as a pillow, then signed, «I see a lot of your father in her face, not just her own father. Mordegan was a good man, a good friend. An especially good father. His children brought him such joy. I suppose that's why he had so many of them. And he treasured each of you. He died because he had five children and two grandchildren on the Grace whose lives needed to be saved. I know you're still mad at him for coming on deck, and we both know he wasn't able to do anything truly helpful against those beasts, but we also know his protective nature outweighed his sense, and at that moment he didn't care if he died if it meant you, your children, and your little siblings lived.»

  Benny stroked Radella's peaceful face as she gazed upon the stone marker they'd set over Mordegan's grave. The others who died were sailors and received water burials, but Mordegan would have been appalled at spending eternity anchored to the bottom of the Azuredeep Sea. A land burial at his intended destination was the only appropriate ending for him. «He dealt with mercs, criminals, all manner of death and injury, but couldn't stand to see any of his children hurting. He couldn't prevent the world from hurting us, so he did his best to keep us safe and made sure we always knew we were loved. Seasoned leader of mercenaries and operatives, but he was nothing but soft when it came to his kids. I mean, he disciplined us and pushed us to find our limits, but it was in such a gentle way...»

  Berra looked past Benny and smiled. «Yes. Why do you think I chose him?»

  «You never told me. I just assumed you two got drunk one night and ended up with a baby.»

  Berra laughed and shook her head. «No. That's not how you happened. Did he never tell you?»

  «He said you'd tell me eventually.» Benny put her hand to her mouth to bite her fingernail, then remembered that particular fingernail and finger were no longer attached to her hand. «So?»

  Berra tilted her head to the left and continued to smile. «I'd spent my youth and young adulthood at sea. Gathering resources, building alliances and reputation, securing my fleet. I was a Captain at age twenty-two, and that didn't leave much time for other things. Then I woke one day and realized I was fifty-one. I had all of these beautiful things, but I was alone. I was still two years away from meeting Urzal, but what I really wanted then wasn't a wife. It was a child. It was all I could think about, and I was afraid if I waited another decade I wouldn't be able to conceive.

  «I already knew Mordegan from my previous trips to Jadeshire. Young, gorgeous, brilliant tower of a man with eyes like the burning midday sea. He is one of the few men I've ever felt any attraction toward. He was twenty-six, and already well-established in his trade. I'd been looking for an elf to father my child, but once I saw him again and learned he'd split from his orcan girlfriend, I started considering if maybe my child could be a half-human. He was in the farmers' market with Ragan, and I just watched them for a while. So many people glared at the poor little boy, or even cursed or spat at him, but Mordegan protected him with this shield of pride and love. So many things could have twisted that child's life and shaped him into something horrible, but instead he grew up to be the half-Fae version of his father.

  «So, I watched them, and before long I knew I'd found the father of my child. So I asked him. He wasn
't quite sure about it. Turned out, he didn't want to have a child out there in the world who he didn't know. That was easy enough to solve. I sailed to Jadeshire often enough to make an arrangement, so we agreed on a half-year schedule. I didn't mind. That would allow me to take on my more dangerous missions while you were under his care. I'd never been with a man before, but I declined when he offered to just give me his seed so I didn't have to sleep with him. He knew my proclivities, so it wasn't anything unthinkable. I wanted to be with him, though. So I was. We enjoyed each other's company for a couple months, and then I returned to sea. I tried to make it back to Jadeshire so he could help you come into the world, but I was held up in Ornakar, and then you were a little early. We did arrive in Jadeshire shortly after your birth, though, and I'll never forget the look on Mordegan's face when I placed you in his arms. Beautiful little girl with a head full of cocoa-brown curls. The way he held you and cared for you . . . I never had any hesitation about leaving you in his care when it was his turn. And, Brezva's heart, I loved him for it. I've loved him for your entire life. Not like I love Urzal, but damn if he couldn't still make my heart flutter even as we both hit the squalor of middle age. And oh, he aged well. Urzal teased me about it, but not too much. She's always loved being a second mother to you, and she and Mordegan were fond of each other.»

  Berra scratched the side of her head and sighed. «When you disappeared, I knew if anyone could find you, he could. He carried so much despair with him. Couldn't understand how you had vanished from your own bedroom. We looked for you. Ragan, too, until his son died. Mordegan never gave up hope that he'd find you, and then he did. I found out he'd discovered where you were hidden just as I sent word to him that Radella had been left with me. I was furious with Radamar for that, you know? He was clearly desperate, but he'd come to me without you and begged me to take care of his daughter. Your daughter, who looked nothing like you. I'd thought maybe he was lying about who she was until she signed to me.