"We are nearly there. The Tomb lies at the end of this hollow. Are you ready?" Tomo asked, a formal tone to his words.
Laila glanced at Connor, who was wearing the same uncertain look that she knew must be on her own face. But she nodded anyway. "We are ready. For whatever that's worth."
Tomo turned and led them into the hollow. Ayman waited for them to pass so that he could take the rear position with his own torch. The walls of the hollow rose up next to Laila as she followed the light of Tomo's torch forward. They were stone, worn smooth with the constant rains. A small stream ran between their feet, flowing toward the mouth of the hollow as the floor moved slightly up along the spine of the island.
Within a few hundred feet they were almost completely surrounded by darkness, with only a slight strip of the dim sky over their head. The torchlight flickered around them, casting eerie shadows along the hollow wall. Laila gripped her staff. As they moved further into the hollow, Laila began to feel an odd buzzing. At first she assumed it was just the sound of the rain, perhaps mixed with the flickering of the flames of the torches, but as they moved further up she realized that it was coming from her staff. She did not call on her power, but something resonated within it.
"Do you feel that?" she whispered to Connor, glancing back at him over her shoulder.
His eyes widened in surprise. "I thought it was just me. The buzzing?"
She nodded.
"What do you think it is?"
Laila shrugged. "Wherever we're headed must be a place of some power...." She thought about it for a minute. "I wish Icarus were here."
Connor laughed quietly. "Why? So he could tell you...nothing?"
Laila smiled. "You're probably right. But at least he'd probably know, regardless of whether he told us or not."
Connor shrugged.
Tomo continued to lead them deeper into the hollow. They walked, slowly climbing upward, for nearly an hour. Then the walls of the hollow began to widen. Laila could see the torchlight expand and stretch to cover the newfound space.
The floor of the hollow leveled and became smooth, artificially smooth. Laila looked down and saw that the ground had been carved, and there were small grooves covering the ground, indicating some sort of tool. The walls moved back around after they widened, ending the hollow in a small circular chamber. The torchlight illuminated the far side. A large, circular stone lay embedded into the far wall. It was a perfect circle, and it looked almost like a plug. The walls of the chamber had been smoothed, much like the floor. The walls were carved with images similar to those in the tunnel that had led Connor and Laila to Grimmere, a remnant of the Moon Kingdom.
Laila walked toward the wall, studying the engraved images. The one she approached depicted strange, flowing creatures gathered at the base of building. At the peak of the building stood a figure surrounded in strange lines, depicting light, as though the figure shone like the sun. The next image showed the flowing creatures defiant, moving toward the shining figure. In front of the shining figure was another, a warrior holding a sword. Laila walked along the circle’s edge, following the carvings. The next showed the warrior, sword raised to the sky and the flowing creatures cowering. One more showed the warrior standing tall as the flowing creatures were being ushered into a mountain, the Tomb.
"What happened?" Laila said to herself.
"Did you not listen to our tale?" Tomo asked. "The Ondine defied the Moon, tried to stop her in the middle of her battle against Chaos. So they were locked away. And thus the Collapse was allowed to happen."
Laila remembered the words of the Water Treatise. “Perhaps they should not have been.” Did the Magusari realize her mistake in the end? And if the last Magusari could make a mistake that had led to the Collapse, with all her knowledge and power, what kind of mistakes might Laila make as she stumbled her way down her path?
"I did. So this is where the Ondine have been trapped all these years?"
"Aye," Tomo answered.
Laila continued to walk along the circle, finally reaching the circular stone that must have been the entrance to the Tomb. Connor walked up next to her and studied the stone. The stone was worn smooth with time and rain, distorting some of the images that had been carved into it. These were not pictures of the past; they looked more like words. Laila recognized the flowing script of the Treatises. This was the language of the last Magusari. A thought struck her and she spun toward Tomo.
"Can you read this?" she asked.
Tomo shook his head. "I cannot. There have been others that have tried, but our language is different now. There are similarities, but nothing that gives the script any true meaning."
"What similarities?" she asked, hoping for some clue.
Tomo stepped up to the stone. "This here is similar to our word for water, dwr." He pointed to a short portion of the script. "And here, this means betrayal." He pointed to another part of the inscription. "Both of which match our stories, but no one has ever been to translate the entire script. It is too ancient."
"Figures," Laila said.
"It is now up to you, Magusari. We have led you here, and our role is complete."
Laila turned toward him again. "So you don't know anything that would help us."
Tomo shook his head. Laila turned to Connor, who was studying the inscription on the stone. "Any ideas?"
Connor concentrated on the wall, as though willing the words to mean something to him. The look of concentration was so strong on his face that Laila thought he might actually come up with a solution.
Then, with a sigh, his face relaxed, and he turned to her, disappointment in his eyes. He shrugged. "None at all."
Twenty-Six
Awakening
The rain seeped down the walls of the hollow, running out along the grooves in the ground. Connor shivered. He had never liked the cold, though he had liked the rain back home in Custos. Now, however, he despised it. His hair clung to his head and the back of his neck uncomfortably as he and Laila stared ineffectually at the stone door to the Tomb.
Tomo and Ayman sat with their backs against the far side of the chamber. There had been a few moments of conversation between them as Laila and Connor had tried to figure out the door, but now they all sat silent, staring. Connor could still feel the buzzing pulling at the back of his mind. He turned his head and looked at Laila through the rain running down his forehead. She sat, facing the stone door, her staff resting across her knees. She had not used her staff or her magic the entire time they had been in the hollow. Each time it came to that point, she became very quiet and would avoid Connor's suggestions. He also wished Icarus was here. Not that the old Magus would be able to convince Laila where he hadn’t, but he might at least have an idea as to what to do.
Connor felt his frustration growing as he continued to stare at the wall. Tomo had been no help, simply redirecting them back to their legend and that the Magusari and the Warden would somehow know how to free the Ondine. Why was there never a clear answer? Why were they even here? He stood, hoping that movement would help diffuse his anger. Once on his feet, he stepped toward the door. As his anger focused, the Sword formed in his hand. Blue light filled the hollow, giving light to the cold air.
He struck out at the stone.
The blade of the Sword never reached the stone door. Before it could, there was a flash of light and Connor was thrown backwards.
He landed heavily on his back, staring up, out of the hollow, past the tall trees and into the dark clouds of the Storm. His hands felt heavy, lying by his side. He flexed them cautiously. They moved easily enough. That was good. As he stared into the sky, a face came into view. Laila's rain-darkened hair stuck to her cheeks as she looked down at him.
"Feel better?" she asked, a small hint of a smile on her face.
Connor tried to shake his head clear of the fog, sitting up slowly. "A little."
She gave him an awkward half-smile and turned to look at the stone door. Nothing had changed. The symbols still me
ant nothing, the stone itself had not moved. And whatever power had repelled Connor was no longer visible.
"Want to give it a try?" Connor said, regaining some of his composure and gesturing toward Laila's staff.
She looked down at the staff and then back to the door. She straightened and walked toward the stone and then walked along the carved wall of the hollow, looking closely at the images. Connor watched her, not sure what she was doing, but curious. He had seen her come to conclusions in the strangest moments; perhaps this would be one of them.
She walked all the way around one edge of the hollow, following the carven images in reverse and then came back the opposite direction. Her lips moved silently and her staff moved back and forth as she moved. When she was back in front of the circular stone, she stopped and turned back to Connor.
"Nothing. I still have no idea what to do." She lowered her head. "I'm sorry."
"What about your staff? Your magic?" Connor pressed. The two Edonin were now standing on either side of Connor, watching the exchange.
"I...I'm afraid," she said without raising her head. "You saw what happened yesterday. The Ondine are trapped here, and...I...I think they hate me...."
Connor raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"The last Magusari. She was the one that locked them away," Laila said, finally lifting her eyes to look at the three men from beneath her wet hair.
"They betrayed her..." Connor began.
"Maybe not. Even in the Water Treatise, she says that locking the Ondine away may have been a mistake. I think she may have known what was coming."
"But...it was not actually the Magusari that imprisoned the Ondine," Tomo said, his voice low.
Connor and Laila both looked at him sharply. "What do you mean?" Connor asked.
"It was not the Magusari. She played a role, to be sure. But even in our legends, it was the power of the Warden that imprisoned the Ondine, not the Magusari."
Laila stared at Tomo with an empty expression. Connor tried to reason out what that might mean, if it meant anything. Laila was the one with the power. She had even used his power on the boat...
"That's it!" Connor said.
Laila turned her blank expression on him.
"On the ship, in the Straits, you took my power, you tried to use it to save us!"
Laila's eyes darkened, remembering.
"Why?" Connor asked. He had a point, but he needed Laila to get there with him.
Laila took a deep, calming breath, and then answered. "I don't know. I was desperate to save us. I..." She gripped her staff tighter, fighting off the emotions associated with the memory. "I could feel my power, and Wyndam's, but I couldn't control the water, I couldn't find it... Then, you had your arm around me, and I felt something in you. It's always been like that. I guess I can tap other people's power. Icarus, Wyndam, you. So...I did. And I thought it would work. Your power is different than mine. It's...it's pure energy, will, whatever you might call it. The feeling was incredible." Her face began to brighten slightly. "But I reached too far. The Ondine must have attacked me, seen me all the way above the waves. They created the Straits, or at least the Storm. I think they recognized what I was and...they hate me."
Connor thought for a moment. Now it was his turn to walk along the pictures. He ran his hand along the one of the warrior holding a sword aloft, banishing the flowing creatures back into their tomb.
"Maybe it wasn't you they were attacking. Maybe...maybe they thought it was me, or at least the Warden...” He trailed off. “Could you do it again?"
"Do what?" Laila asked, her eyes showing that she knew what he meant already.
"Use my power. If it was the Warden who locked the Ondine away, perhaps my power can open it."
"No," Laila said simply.
Connor opened his mouth but nothing came out; her rejection had been so quick. "What...what do you mean?"
"I can't do that again. I won't do that again."
"But...it might be..."
"I will not take your power from you."
"I'm not asking you to take it. I want you to help me. Maybe you can direct it..."
Laila cocked her head to one side. "Direct it?"
Connor shrugged. "We don't have any better ideas."
Blue energy formed in his hands, the Sword appeared again, casting its light, eerie in the near darkness. He stepped toward her, holding the Sword to one side. She retreated a step, her face unsure.
"Laila, help me..." He stepped in front of her, placing her between him and the circular stone.
Her eyes were almost closed, and he could see that she wanted to turn away from him.
"Please."
There was a long pause. Laila's eyes darted between Connor's face and the Sword. Hesitantly she reached out and placed a hand on Connor's shoulder. Her staff began to brighten as she did. A jolt ran from her hand into Connor. Laila snatched her hand back.
"It's happening again. That was the Ondine," Her voice was pained.
"Let me help you now," he said. "Do it again."
He could see tears forming at the edge of Laila's eyes, but she replaced her hand on his shoulder. The light from her staff began to grow again. The jolt came again, but this time, Connor grabbed Laila's hand and kept it on his shoulder. After a moment, the pain subsided. And Laila's staff was still lit.
"See?" Connor smiled through the aftereffect of the attack.
Laila did not smile back. He felt something, some sort of power delve into him, reacting to the Sword. The blue light flickered and the blade itself began to waver. Another moment passed and the Sword dissipated, but the light remained. It ran along Connor's arms, coating his upper body. The light increased in the hollow and Connor could sense the two Edonin standing behind him.
"You...you need to direct it. I... I don't think I can. Not like this. Focus on what you want," Laila said, her voice strained.
Connor, distracted by the change in the Sword, tried to focus back on Laila's words. He could feel the strain she felt through his connection with her hand. Something pushed at his mind, a presence that was trying to direct his will. He focused on the circular stone, thinking about removing it, opening the door.
The blue light responded. Dancing down his arms and then across Laila, the energy swirled around her staff. Without opening her eyes, Laila tilted the staff and brought it toward the stone. A strange sound echoed through the hollow, like the forest after a lightning strike. Laila's staff, lit with earthlight and surrounded by the energy of the Sword, pressed against whatever barrier Connor had struck. The sound intensified but Laila's staff did not recoil. Connor tried to focus harder, picturing the stone moving in his mind. The stone staff moved forward, coated in blue energy, passing through the barrier. Connor gripped Laila's hand tighter.
"It's work—" The staff touched the circular stone and exploded outward, knocking the four of them off their feet.
Connor gasped for air as he found himself sitting against the wall of the hollow, opposite the circular stone. His ears rang terribly, and his vision was blurry. He tried to swing his head from side to side to see the others, but nausea immediately overwhelmed him. Lowering his head, he tried to gather himself. After a long moment, he felt like he could raise his head up.
As he did, he saw Laila near him, strewn across the floor of the chamber. Her eyes were open, and she was half-propped on one arm, staring at the circular stone. Or, at least, where the circular stone had been. Pieces of it were scattered all around the hollow. He could see one large piece on top of Tomo's leg. Tomo's eyes were closed, but Ayman was near him, pushing at the stone on his companion’s leg.
Slowly Connor pulled himself to his feet and stumbled over to the stone. Laila did the same, propping herself up with her staff. Connor could still not hear anything, but he could see that Ayman was shouting at Tomo, trying to wake his friend. Connor reached the stone and began to push. It did not move. There was no way that he and Ayman would be able to move it without help. Tomo was stuck.
"Finally..." Connor did not actually hear the word, but he could see Tomo's lips form it.
As he and Ayman strained against the stone, another sound began to penetrate past the ringing. A dull roar, slowly increasing. Connor stopped pushing for a moment to try and figure out the sound’s source. The roaring continued to rise, quickly overtaking the ringing that still remained. Connor turned to the hole. That was where it came from. At the base of the circle, a small stream of water flowed, joining with the others on the hollow floor and moving down the narrow cleft that led to the chamber. Connor watched as the stream grew, quickly turning into a flow of water, then what could have been a large creek.
Connor pulled Laila out of the water's path and she turned to watch it.
"We are free!" It was Tomo's voice Connor heard.
He spun back to the trapped Edonin. As the water began to rise, Connor saw Tomo's face begin to change. The water no longer seemed to cover him as much as it embraced him. His eyes became lighter, his tan skin became paler, and the clothes covering him began to bloat. Connor looked at Ayman in horror and saw the other Edonin going through a similar transformation. Ayman's hands rose to his face, scratching at it. The water continued to rise.
Heart of the Ocean (The Equilibrium Cycle Book 2) Page 29