Dead Druid: Claire-Agon Ranger Book 2 (Ranger Series)

by Salvador Mercer

  “Getting down will be the easy part,” Dorsun began. “The true test will come when we return this way, if we return.”

  “He doesn’t sound too optimistic,” Marissa said, looking at Dorsun carefully.

  “No, he’s right,” Targon said. “We can climb down easily enough, the three of us, but getting back up with any children, women, or elderly men will be nigh to impossible.”

  “Four of us,” Marissa corrected.

  Targon eyed her and narrowed his eyes, knowing exactly what crazy idea she was referring to. “You know Core weighs more than five heavily armored men combined?”

  “So?” Marissa asked.

  “How do you expect him to get down there?” Targon said, pointing down at the rocky cliff which had jagged rocks below, a virtual death trap if anyone or any creature fell below.

  “You’ll have to lower him, then, real carefully,” she said matter-of-factly.

  “Impossible,” Dorsun said, also looking down again at the drop and then at the rope, measuring how much they would need to reach the ground below and whether or not it could handle something the size of Core, who was large even for bear standards.

  “Better for Core to guard here and await our return,” Targon said, his voice firm and his tone stern.

  “Good luck telling that to him,” Marissa said, giving both men a knowing gaze. Without a word, she leaped down, stepping on a couple of extremely small outcroppings, and Targon thought for sure she was going to break her leg or worse, her neck, but she nimbly reached the meadow ground again and started at a good trot toward the old cave.

  “She can’t be serious . . . can she?” Dorsun asked—well, more like pleaded.

  Targon shook his head. “I’m afraid she is, and worse, if she knows Core as well as I think she does, the big furry oaf will want to get into Kesh with us.”

  “So you’re willing to try lowering the bear with the ropes?” Dorsun asked, looking more than skeptical.

  “No, I intend to talk them out of it first,” Targon said.

  “She seems serious,” Dorsun said, allowing his gaze to follow Marissa till she disappeared behind some brushes and several huge boulders.

  Both men stood watching and waiting and then sighing when she reappeared with the large brown bear in tow. “This is going to get ugly.” Targon put his hands on his hips and sighed.

  “It is dangerous,” Dorsun said, his Kesh commander instincts calculating their odds. “If we drop him and he falls, he will die. Also, I don’t see any way to lift him back up.”

  “Yes, it would be a one-way trip,” Targon said, feeling as if things never got easier.

  It didn’t take long before Marissa, with a few growls from Core, convinced the men to make the attempt. Targon felt that time was wasting, and he had no visual on Argyll and thinking of his family only fueled his sense of urgency. Marissa also was convinced that her family was there even though Argyll didn’t actually say he saw them, not that the falcon would know what they looked like.

  One section of rope was used to make a huge harness that they wrapped over and under Core, especially behind each set of legs, with a large knot that Dorsun tied on top after looping over the bear’s body several times. The second set of ropes was attached to the harness and then laid out along the edge of the ledge as far as it would go. All three humans eyed the rope and then looked over the cliff and shook their heads.

  “It’s going to be close,” Dorsun said, having the most experience with ropes and rigging.

  “He may not reach the bottom, and then he’ll be dangling there. Doubtful we could pull him back up.” Targon turned to Marissa.

  Marissa knelt and whispered to Core, and the bear made a long, slow moaning sound before she turned back to the men. “He’s willing to take the risk.”

  Dorsun and Targon looked at each other and then shrugged and made arrangements to lower Core over the cliff. At Dorsun’s suggestion, they used a nearby rock to anchor the rope and actually faced away from the cliff edge after grabbing it and wrapping it around their torsos.

  “Very dangerous,” Dorsun said, donning his brigand gloves and tugging at the rope looped around his waist.

  Marissa grabbed it as well, and Targon smiled. “Be sure to let go if you see us flung around that boulder,” he said.

  She nodded, suppressing a laugh, and Dorsun made some kind of Kesh curse under his breath. “What did you say?” Targon asked him.

  “I cursed Father Death, hoping he’ll reject my soul today,” Dorsun said, nodding for Targon to start.

  Targon decided he didn’t want to hear any more about death and asked Marissa, “Tell Core to step off gently.”

  Before Marissa could do anything, the bear literally rolled over and off the cliff. Both men were pulled to the ground, landing on their butts, and dragged to the large boulder, their feet scrambling for purchase. Suddenly they stopped with Targon’s feet planted firmly against the rock and his entire body laid out horizontally as he arrested the bear’s fall.

  “Why in Agon did he do that?” Targon asked, breathing heavily and trying desperately to secure his footing on the craggy rock.

  “He understands you, silly,” Marissa said, almost laughing. “I thought the three of you were going to enter Kesh at the same time.”

  Indeed, Marissa didn’t have time to secure her handhold on the rope, and she quickly let go as Targon had commanded. Targon finally caught his breath and gave her an order. “Go watch Core and let us know when he’s almost down.”

  Marissa complied and knelt at the edge of the cliff, speaking soothing words to the bear. Targon asked Dorsun if he was ready, and the Kesh just grunted. Slowly they unwrapped the rope and fed it as the bear moved only inches at a time toward the ground at the base of the cliff.

  “Wow, look at those muscles,” Marissa said, leaving the cliff and approaching Targon, who was straining with all his might to keep Core from falling.

  “Not . . . the . . . time . . .” Targon struggled to speak as he dared not let out all his air and release his grip on the rope, but it was obvious that his arms, shoulders, chest, and neck were all straining intensely from the effort.

  “All right, silly, keep lowering,” Marissa said, returning to her vantage point on the ledge. “You got a long ways to go at this rate.”

  Targon resisted the urge to say something sarcastic, as he felt his muscles burning from their exertion. Dorsun was less kind. “Shut up, little girl.”

  “No need to be rude,” Marissa shot back. “Keep going.”

  After several long minutes and a pace that was too slow at times but apparently the safest they could manage, they felt the rope go slack just as it was giving out. Both men breathed a sigh of relief with Targon asking, “He’s down?”

  “Yeah, you got him perched on top of a jagged rock down there,” she said.

  “What?” Targon asked, releasing his hold and scrambling to stand and look over the cliff edge. There, Core stood on top of a flat rock with jagged edges about ten feet above the ground, which sloped steeply away from the cliff edge.

  “I think he can jump the last bit,” Dorsun said, having joined his companion in looking at the bear.

  “Let’s tie this around the boulder,” Targon said, reaching for the rope and then realizing they didn’t have enough to make a secure knot.

  Dorsun pulled one of his daggers and headed to the cliff edge, but Marissa beat him to it. Pulling her own and putting it between her teeth, she grabbed the rope and nodded to the other end.

  “Oh right,” Targon said, grabbing it and pulling it taut again. As soon as it was tight, Marissa disappeared down the length of the rope, coming to a rest with Core on top of the large boulder. Quickly she cut the bear’s harness, allowing the men to pull up a bit more slack and secure the rope around the boulder.

  “Well, now we have an even bigger drop,” Dorsun said.

  Targon looked and smiled. “Yeah, but I think we can make it. Are you ready to enter Kesh again?”


  Dorsun smiled, the first time in a long time. “More than ready,” he said.

  Without further word, both men scaled down the cliff face while both Marissa and Core jumped down onto the steep terrain to clear the rock. Both men dropped first from the rope onto the rock and then from the rock onto the ground. Targon had finally entered Kesh.

  “You sure you can’t come with us?” Salina asked, looking at Elister with a mournful gaze.

  Elister smiled, a gesture of kindness, which he forgot was not comforting now that he was turned to stone. “That is most thoughtful of you, and perhaps many years ago I would have been flattered, but now, I can only say that leaving the protection of Agon, here in the forest, is not possible for me.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. We could use you in Korwell,” Salina said.

  “You have the Kesh wizard and a mighty sword. You will be fine,” Elister said.

  “And me?” Cedric said, feeling a bit out of place at the moment as if he were luggage.

  The druid seemed to understand. “Of course, and a sharp mind to guide you and counsel you in your quest.”

  The flattery was obvious, though not forced, and Cedric accepted it, smiling and seeming satisfied in return. “Well, I guess we should go, then. You’ll wait for us here?” Salina said, looking at the roaring river and not desiring to attempt the crossing.

  “Yes,” Elister said with a knowing nod. “I’ll slow the river for you so you can cross with your feet dry.”

  Khan looked skeptical. “The entire river?”

  Elister’s bizarre smile disappeared immediately, and a stern look came across the druid’s face, stern not being far from the truth considering the man’s skin condition. “Not all at the same time, Kesh. Trust me.”

  The group shrugged and grabbed the rope that hung slack and dipped into the water. They had to have it that way for fear of a Kesh patrol finding it, and if they wanted to use it, they had to take up the slack from either end. A detailed search from either side would reveal the rope where it was anchored, but so far it had yet to be discovered. The Terrel ford was the only way across the river unless the group wanted to try the bridge a half day north, which Khan assured them was heavily guarded, or even further north, a few days to circle the great Glacier Lake at the northern base of the Border Mountains.

  Elister stepped forward and planted his staff into the ground inside the river’s edge, muttering unintelligible words. Instantly the water receded from the bank, revealing the mossy rocks below and the wet rope that had been lying there submerged for the entire summer. Salina nodded, and Elister smiled, sending goosebumps down her arms.

  Slowly the group walked closely together, using the rope for support, as Will had pulled it tight to take up the slack and it lifted from the water a dozen feet in front of them. As they started to cross, careful not to slip on the slippery rocks, the water receded in front of them and then flowed back behind them, covering the rocks they had just used seconds before.

  “Agon help us.” Will freed one hand from the rope and paused just long enough to make the sign of warding.

  “I think she is,” Salina said, marveling at the power of the druid.

  “It is not Agon but the Arnen who is helping us,” Khan said, as if correcting children who had gotten a question wrong on a school exam.

  “Who cares? I just hope he doesn’t let the river sweep us off our feet.” Cedric glanced to his right as he crossed, and the river seemed to hit an invisible barrier and flowed around to the side both in front and behind the group. Where they were, the water piled high about ten feet and blocked them from seeing directly upstream.

  Soon enough, the four companions crossed and Will laid the rope back down. They stood on the far side and looked back at the far bank in awe, much as a young Targon had done seven years earlier, though it was now daytime and not night. Elister stood on the far side, playing his role perfectly, not moving and looking very much like a statue until Salina raised a hand at him. The Arnen raised a hand in return and stood still, facing them from across the roaring river, which now flowed normally.

  Without looking back, the group headed out toward Korwell, first along the bank of the river, and Salina turned to Khan. “What did you and Elister talk about all day?”

  “You mean on our way to the river?” Khan asked.

  “Yes, you spent a lot of time discussing something,” Salina said.

  “Well,” Khan began, “he instructed me in a spell, if you want to know the truth.”

  “Really,” Salina asked, her eyes wide in amazement. “What does it do?”

  “It’s an odd spell, really,” he began. “It is designed to bring the destructive force of Akun and channel it through my staff into Agon. It is supposed to rip apart the very ground at the caster’s feet, though I have no idea how that would benefit anyone using the spell. More likely to kill them than to help them.”

  “Sounds dangerous,” Salina said, picking her way along the riverbank with the others.

  “Yes, it does,” Khan said, looking forward until they reached a point that looked familiar and trodden. “I think we head west here,” Khan said, looking down at the ground which looked disturbed from many months ago.

  “You certainly know how to trample a land,” Will said, frowning at the destruction that would not heal for a few years to come. The land was littered with tree stumps, broken pottery, small pieces of rope and burlap from their prior encampment, as well as several large fire pits as if mocking them.

  Khan bowed his head and closed his eyes. Salina placed a hand on his shoulder. “Pay no heed to what you see here. Lead the way and use your crystal ball, if you wish.”

  Nodding, Khan opened his eyes and saw a clear path of destruction to the west. He would not need his critir to follow that trail. Silently, he led the way, and his companions did not speak further until they were far from the remains of the Kesh encampment. They were now heading into the heart of the enemy, the heart that they once called home, all except the lone Kesh wizard.

  Bran fingered the pouch at his belt, feeling the large iron key inside. He wasn’t sure what magic the Lich had placed upon it, but Malik seemed intent that it would work in Korwell again despite the magic barriers that the undead creature said were sure to exist there.

  “You sure my key will work against the Kesh magic?” Bran asked as the pair approached a small hill, falling to the ground and crawling the last several feet so that their silhouettes were not visible against the southern sky.

  Malik reached the crest and peered over. “It will, though that is not the hard part.”

  “Not the hard part?” Bran repeated, wondering how breaking into Korwell’s tightly guarded castle complex that had been reported to have also been magically sealed could be accomplished, much less thought of as “not the hard part.”

  “Shhh, look below,” Malik said, gazing at the distant river which was nearly a half mile wide.

  The Rapid River flowed south into the Ulatha River which flowed west from the Border Mountains. Where they combined, they formed a large river that slowed and became much slower and much deeper. In the distance at the riverbank was Fornz. The signs of activity were easily visible, and the black-clothed figures gave no doubt that the Kesh still held the town.

  “What now?” Bran asked, frowning at the many Kesh moving around far in the distance.

  Malik motioned for Bran to crawl back and did the same. Once clear, the tall scout moved west, keeping the hill between them and Fornz. “We head west a quarter day and then to the river where we cross.”

  “How?” Bran asked, no longer surprised when Malik explained things.

  “I hid a small rowboat in a small alcove off the main eddies of the river. I used it to cross back and forth after the occupation.” Malik smiled.

  Bran understood, nodding and watching his step as the pair headed west. “Then after crossing?”

  “It should be a quick journey to the north and Korwell where we try that key
of yours and see if we can find us a wizard.”

  “I’m not looking forward to that part,” Bran said truthfully.

  “You will if you knew that it will save your family,” Malik said.

  Bran shrugged even though Malik couldn’t see him as the man walked in front of the Ulathan captain, scanning the ground ahead and keeping a certain distance from the hill crest. Bran had become accustomed to simply assuming the scout saw everything, even when he wasn’t looking. “I’m not seeing an easy way to raise so much as a single squad of soldiers, much less an entire army.”

  Army was a relative term in Agon. A thousand years prior, it would have resembled exactly what the name implied. Here and now, however, an army was any group of soldiers more than a hundred in strength. The inhabitants of Agon had been pushed very near to the edge of extinction a thousand years prior, and the petty wars, raids, and battles over the centuries did little to help them repopulate.

  “We can try Rockton first, and then if that doesn’t work, we head south to Safron,” Malik said.

  “That is a long ways away,” Bran said, already feeling as if he had walked more the last week than he had walked his entire life. What he wouldn’t give for his trusty steed right now.

  “For some,” was all Malik said, and Bran knew the young scout could walk across all of Agon twice and not tire.

  Soon they passed several hillocks and Bran was more than certain that Fornz was out of sight, but still the young scout led them on. He once asked and was rebuked for questioning Malik why they had to travel so far out of the way. Malik simply stated that the Kesh patrols had a wide range, and it would not do to come across one so soon.

  Finally they headed toward the river, and Bran was relieved to see a lot of trees and shrubbery in which they could travel relatively concealed. Malik seemed to notice his sigh of relief, though the Ulathan captain tried to conceal it.

  “You know little outside the realm of road and river,” Malik said.