Think, Ghile. There is nothing for it now. You have to think.
Right. If they wanted him to flee the Cradle, they would have to help him first. He wanted to find his uncle and make sure he was all right, and talk with him. He also wanted the people of Last Hamlet safe from any persecution. If they helped him do those things, then he would go with them.
As for his role in freeing Haurtu, he was not sure yet. He knew he wanted the souls of his race to return to the cycle. He would do it for that alone, but he did not want to bring a mad god back into Allwyn so he could start another war. He would have to find some way to free Haurtu and convince him not to pursue his quest to become the All Father. Ghile laughed at himself. How do you expect to do that, Sheepherder?
“Alright, Riff,” Ghile said. “I'll do it. I'll be their key. But, they are going to have to do something for me first.”
Riff raised an eyebrow and then issued a low whistle. “Well, look who has some bass in his voice.” Riff jumped to his feet, dusting off his hands. “Let's get in there and tell them. I wanna see the look on their faces,” Riff said.
Ghile nodded and headed into the cave with a grinning Riff following close behind.
They made their way along the base of the Horn, following Two Elks. The swollen clouds hung low in the sky like a blanket piled against the mountains. A steady rain fell and Ghile had given up trying to remain dry hours ago.
The barbarian had never been on the Horn, but Two Elks assured them he could find Ghile's uncle if he was somewhere on the mountain. They had only taken the time they needed to pack provisions and the extra protection from the elements they were going to need if they had to stay too long on the icy and treacherous peak.
Master Almoriz was on his way to Last Hamlet. He had promised to warn them of the danger they were in and convince them to leave the Hamlet, or if he was too late, help defend them. He had said he had nothing to lose. He had almost looked eager by the prospect.
Ghile had wanted Mother Brambles to go with him, but she had refused. She had not been surprised when Ghile and Riff had returned to give Ghile's demands, much to Riff's disappointment. She had been in the midst of preparing to leave when they had entered. She said she had sang on all this and she was supposed to return to Lakeside. Though, she would not say what she was going to do when she got there.
Ghile didn't understand what she meant when she said she had sang on something, but he understood enough to know she knew what needed to be done. Could the old druid look into the future? It wouldn't be the biggest surprise he'd heard recently.
Two Elks motioned for them to stop as he examined the ground. Gaidel moved up beside him and they spoke softly to each other. Gaidel finally nodded and Two Elks pulled his large stone axe from its harness and started up a steep incline at a fast trot.
“He has found a well-used trail and is going to scout ahead. Time is against us, the ground is soft and the rain is washing away the tracks,” Gaidel said as she walked back to Riff and Ghile.
“So, you and the barbarian,” Riff began, flashing that annoying smile at Gaidel. Ghile moaned.
“Do you understand what is at stake here, Sorcerer?” Gaidel said thin lipped.
Riff glanced around and placed his hand near his mouth to whisper, “What? Is Two Elks the jealous type?”
“We should have already left the Cradle. The longer this boy makes us remain here, chasing down his family members, the more we risk everything!”
“Boy?” Ghile said.
Riff made a serious face and nodded. “Too bad you aren't the one who gets to make those important decisions, isn't it, Druid?”
“I passed my manhood test!” Ghile said, though no one seemed to be paying him any attention.
“Why are you even here, Sorcerer? We don't need you. We can sharpen our own weapons and light our own fires. Isn't there a pot in some village you could be mending?” Gaidel said.
“You are not that much older than I am,” Ghile said.
Riff put an arm around Ghile's shoulder, grinning wider.
“Again, not your decision, Druid. You don't even know what I'm capable of with Ghile around. I might surprise you.”
Gaidel gave them both a withering stare and turned to follow Two Elks.
“I am not a boy!” Ghile called after her.
“This is going to be fun,” Riff said, patting Ghile's shoulder. He followed after Gaidel.
Ghile wasn't so sure.
34
Best Laid Plans
“No! No! No!” Muk said with each stamp of his feet.
Bloody Maw watched quietly as Muk stomped in a circle, only reacting when one of the goblin's feet came down in a puddle, sending water flying. Once the goblin had released enough frustration Muk crawled back to the edge and peered over again. Even with the heavy gray clouds shielding his sensitive eyes from the sun, Muk still had to squint. He could just make out the four figures making their way along one of the lower trails.
Muk could sense one of them was the boy who had his other stone. This was not how he had planned it. The boy was supposed to be alone. Muk had ridden Bloody Maw down the mountain last night and used his powers to call one of the scrawny mutts the humans used to protect their lair. He had given it the knife of the human he had captured and then sent it back into the village with an image of the boy in its mind. He had almost killed the creature when he saw it expected a small tribute of food for its services. It had received a good kick instead.
The boy was supposed to see the knife and then come alone. This would not do. Muk sat down next to Bloody Maw and used the worg to shield him from the rain. He had to think of another plan.
He had to keep the others busy while he lured the boy away. He could send the pack at them, but he wanted as much help as he could get to defeat the boy. It had a stone like his and Muk wasn't going to take any chances.
What he needed was more creatures. That was it, thought Muk. He needed more help. He closed his eyes and concentrated as the dream teacher had taught him. He took the breaths that were important to help the magic work. He immediately sensed Bloody Maw's mind. The worg was hungry and bored as usual and wanted to hunt something down to torment and then devour. Muk moved his mind out farther, ignoring Bloody Maw's thoughts. He kept reaching. He found many small minds of creatures who lived on the ugly mountain. But none of them would do. He reached deeper into the stone. There. Yes, there was a mind.
This creature was big. Very big. Muk hesitated. He had never tried controlling something this big. It was far away and Muk knew his power waned as the distance between him and his thralls grew. If he did try and use this creature, he could not risk getting close to it. He had not come this far just to be eaten on this ugly mountain.
Muk could sense it slumbered and tried to wake it. It resisted, it was not time to wake. It was not cold enough yet. This creature hibernated until it was colder. Muk became annoyed and reached out and hurt it in its mind. Muk was master and Muk needed the big ugly thing to wake up and go eat the humans on the mountain. The creature stirred. It had tasted human flesh before and it had not fed since it had crawled deep into the mountain to sleep. Go, Muk pushed at the creature's mind. Go and eat the humans. All, but the tall skinny one. He tastes bad. Him you do not eat. He is mine. Muk felt the creature yawn, and start crawling its way to the surface.
Opening his eyes Muk took a moment to clear his head and regain his strength. He then scurried up onto Bloody Maw's back. He straightened the captured human's bow he had hung over his shoulder. He thought Bloody Maw into movement. He had to get down there and get into place. He hoped this worked. He would have to get closer to his creature to be sure it did not eat the boy. He had another plan.
35
On the Edge
Ghile covered his face with his hand and tried to see through the rain pelting the Horn. Someone was watching them. He couldn't see anyone as he looked up the uneven ledges and steep rises of the mountain side, he could just feel it on the nape of
his neck. There was someone or something out there.
“Daughter Gaidel, we are being watched,” Ghile called.
The druid didn't stop walking, but hazarded a look up above them and then behind. “I do not see anything. Are you sure? Two Elks hasn't given any sign,” Gaidel said.
Just as she finished speaking, Two Elks came sprinting back along the thin ledge they had been following, water splashing up from the rivulets of rain zigzagging down its surface.
Ghile watched in horror at the barbarian's perilous strides. The mud slick trail clung to the mountain on one side and opened into emptiness on the other.
Riff came up behind Ghile, his hood pulled far over his face. “Why is the fool running?”
Riff quickly had his answer. A creature came into view following closely behind Two Elks. It was huge, easily twice as long as the barbarian was tall. At least eight legs worked together to propel it forward and help it cling to the mountain's uneven surface. Its leathery skin was pure white, from its long fang-filled maw to its lashing tail. All the stories Uncle Toren had told Ghile of the dreaded frost wyrms came rushing back.
Those long-taloned claws looked as if they would be equally good at rending flesh or anchoring the monster onto the mountainside. It closed the distance between itself and Two Elks in a sudden burst of speed. Ghile heard a cry of warning before he realized it had come from him.
Two Elks had been expecting the attack, the agile barbarian spun, shield in the lead, and reflected the frost wyrm's bite and front sweeping claw. He continued the turn and brought his stone axe arcing through, catching the wyrm on the shoulder. The stone blade did little damage to its hide from what Ghile could see.
Ghile didn't understand why this thing was awake? It should still be asleep. For whatever reason, this one was awake and looked none too happy about it.
“Back, go back!” Two Elks shouted as he followed his spin through and kept running along the ledge.
Ghile had little time to marvel at the barbarian's balance as he turned to do as he was told. He heard Gaidel right behind him. He had to push Riff, who was in the middle of digging in one of his many pouches.
“No time, Riff. Go!” Ghile screamed as he pushed against the sorcerer.
Riff turned and began moving as fast as he could back along the ledge. Ghile remembered the stories of how agile the Frost wyrms were and knew they couldn't outrun the beast.
Ghile heard a high pitched undulating hiss from much closer behind him. It sounded like it was right over his shoulder and he screamed when Gaidel pushed him in the back, urging him on.
Ghile could see Riff had reached a portion of the trail where the ledge widened out to form a long flat landing. Ghile remembered passing it and thinking how relieved he was not to have to be reminded how steep the drop was.
Riff moved to the center of the landing and started digging into his pouches again. Ghile followed along the cliff face as far from the ledge as possible.
Two Elks moved to take a position beside Gaidel.
“Keep moving back, Ghile. As far back as you can,” Gaidel said as she turned and took a defensive stance, her staff before her.
Ghile hastened to do just that, but felt his feet get ahead of themselves, like they often did, and fell hard against the wall. He scratched both palms trying to stay upright but only managed to get more twisted. He collapsed in a heap.
Ghile saw her start to sway and heard the singing. He could only watch as the frost wyrm landed before the two of them and swept its huge tail across the landing. Two Elks only managed to get his shield in front of Gaidel as the tail sent both of them flying past Ghile to land near Riff, who had finally managed to produce an everflame from his pouch.
There was nothing between Ghile and the wyrm. Ghile brought his hands before him. He had to relax and get his force shield up. The frost wyrm crawled toward him with incredible speed. He lost all focus when he saw its mouth open and heard another of those terrifying hisses pour forth. He shielded his face as the wyrm charged past him towards his companions.
What was happening?
Ghile watched in shock as he saw the clawed legs scuttle by one after the other. The creature acted as if he wasn't even there.
Ghile scrambled to his feet just as a gout of flame shot out of Riff's hand scoring several burns along the wyrm's head and neck. Frost wyrms feared few things more than fire. The taloned legs seem to switch direction of their own accord trying to get their owner's body away from the new threat.
Riff's face danced in the glow of the flames as his spell continued to billow out along the beast's flank. “Oh, Ghile, you beautiful stonechosen, you!” Riff's laughter mixed with the wyrm's snarls.
Riff had bought Gaidel and Two Elks enough time to get back to their feet. The frost wyrm stalked along the edge of the landing, cautiously circling the three of them. Ghile wasn't sure why it hadn't killed him. He had not brought his shield up. But, the creature was not concentrating on him now. He tried to think how he could help in this battle. He could feel his heart trying to beat its way out of his chest and his blood thudding in his ears. The idea of running came to him, but he pushed it away. He had to help.
Something grazed the back of his shoulder and flew past his face leaving behind a stinging pain. Ghile saw an arrow reflect off the cliff face and fly off into empty space.
He threw his hand onto his back and felt a warm wetness. He knew if he looked at his palm he was going to see his own blood. Instead, he looked back up the trail they had just fled down and all thoughts of the frost wyrm and his wound vanished.
It was not the large wolf that surprised him. True it was the biggest wolf he had ever seen, but that was not what had his attention. The small green creature clinging to his back wasn't what locked his gaze. He even recognized the bow in the creatures grasp as his Uncle Toren's and somewhere it registered in Ghile's mind it was this goblin who had just shot him with an arrow from his own uncle's bow. All this his mind took in an instant, but it was the small raised stone-like welt in the Goblin's chest that captured Ghile's focus.
The Goblin raised the bow and shouted at Ghile in a language he didn't understand. But Ghile could hear the creature's words in his head even as he heard the unintelligible speech in his ears.
“You know this bow! I have him, human mutt! I have the man who looks like you! I go to kill him now!” The little goblin screamed. Then the wolf turned and bounded up the trail.
Ghile found himself following. That goblin had a stone just like his. It was stonechosen like he was. Ghile felt a desire like none he had ever felt before, more than any hunger or thirst. He wanted that stone. He needed it.
He knew now that was the presence he had felt watching him. He moved along the ledge, all fear of falling forgotten. He couldn't see the goblin or the huge wolf it was riding, but it didn't matter. He could feel where it was now. Somewhere in his mind a part of him wondered what he was going to do when he caught up to them. But it was barely a whisper compared to the desire to have that stone.
“Ghile, stop! Where are you going?” Riff shouted. He could see Ghile running up the muddy ledge. He would have thought the sheepherder was fleeing from the wyrm had he not seen the worg with the lowland goblin on its back.
What were those things doing in the Cradle? More to the point, why was Ghile chasing them? Had he finally lost his mind? The kid was barely a match for the goblin alone.
Riff reached into the everflame and pulled forth another gout of flame and threw it into the air between him and the frost wyrm. He berated himself again for not being able to find which pocket he had put it in sooner, but these things happened. The flame diminished noticeably the farther Ghile ran up the trail.
“Nice, Ghile, real nice.”
The wyrm was keeping its distance for the time being, but Riff knew things weren't going to stay that way. The barbarian and the druid were finally back on their feet. Two Elks didn't look any worse for having been slapped silly, but Gaidel still seemed a bit
unsteady.
Well, she better get her sense about her and fast.
“Alright, you two. How about some help?” Riff said.
It looked like the wyrm was figuring out the flames were now more of a nuisance than a threat. Riff wished Ghile hadn't run off. He wished he had practiced this spell more. He could hear Master Almoriz now, “There will come a time you will wish you had practiced more, Apprentice, but then it will be too late.” How was he supposed to know he was going to be squaring off against a frost wyrm on the side of the Horn in the middle of summer? This one would have been tough for anybody to call.
Two Elks banged his stone axe against his shield and roared at the wyrm as he charged towards it. Riff had to admit, the barbarian wasn't easily scared.
The wyrm lunged forward and grabbed hold of the barbarian's shield with its two front limbs, its head reaching over the shield, jaws snapping. Two Elks held on tight to his shield and swung his great axe at the limbs, all the while trying to keep away from those snapping jaws.
Riff moved down the creature's flank and threw another gout of the diminished flame against its hide. He fell flat, barely dodging the creature's tail as it whipped through the space where his head had just been.
Gaidel's clear voice echoed off the cliff side as she swayed to some unheard music. Riff knew this was how she asked the All Mother for help. He hoped the old girl was listening. They were going to need all the help they could get.
36
The Cave
The rain soaked ground gave way under Ghile's hand, mud squishing between his fingers as he climbed the steep embankment in pursuit of the stone. He could feel its pull growing stronger. As he felt his way through the rain, he wondered where it had come upon a stone. Who had the stone allowed the goblin to visit in his dreams? What secrets of the old ones had it been taught? All these thoughts warred inside Ghile's head as he climbed.
The Cradle of the Gods (The Soulstone Prophecy Book 1) Page 14