by Andi Van
“The question, then, is what exactly the king thought was the weapon,” Emlynn said. She still appeared as calm as ever, but even she had paled a little upon hearing Falcon’s fate. “Did he learn of the box, or did he learn of Falcon?”
“It has to be the box,” Jorget said. “I don’t think even he would want to mess with a harpy. Though I suppose he would have thought it was a myth too. Except….” He screwed his lips into a frown and rubbed at his face with one hand. “Except he specifically wanted a priest to go.”
“Okay,” Zaree said slowly. “But what does that have to do with it?”
“Legend states harpies are people who ended up cursed,” Jorget explained, rubbing his face again. The whole thing was starting to make horrible sense, and he’d need to contact Denekk to catch him up. “And priests are supposed to be able to lift curses.”
Zaree raised an eyebrow. “Can you?”
“No,” Jorget said with a snort. “Not at all. Don’t get me wrong, the priests I know are all good people who want to do right by the Maker and preserve the world they made for us. But none of them have special powers specifically related to simply being a priest. I’m sure Denekk and I aren’t the only magic users, though.”
Tasis turned to his sister, his eyes narrowed in thought. “Remember what Mother used to say?”
“Legends are a way for people to remember things that happened long ago,” Zaree said immediately. “But does that mean priests used to have that sort of power, or does it mean they were magic users who could do that sort of thing?”
“We’re not likely to find out,” Jorget interjected. “The king—the one who destroyed the guild, I mean—also burned a lot of libraries belonging to the priesthood.” He frowned, an idea taking root, and looked at K’yerin. “The two you knew who could understand mage-speak, what did they do before they entered the guild?”
That was quite a long time ago, the cat pointed out patiently. And they weren’t my focus back then. Triv was.
“When you weren’t sleeping in the library,” Tasis added, grinning.
Being a familiar is hard work. The cat sniffed imperiously.
“Anyway, my point is once upon a time maybe there was something else involved. But if there was, that knowledge is gone. I’m sorry, but I can’t save Falcon.”
“Maybe not, but we can probably save that box and whatever’s in it from being used by the king,” Reikos said. He’d been quiet through the entire conversation, and Jorget wondered if he was confused by the whole thing or if he was taking it in. He knew he’d be confused if he hadn’t already been party to some of the weirdness involved with magic users. “If that’s what turned the girl into a harpy, it needs to stay out of his hands.” He turned his attention to Bahz, his face serious. “Did she get a look at what was inside before whatever happened to her?”
No. The chains are still there. All she did was touch it.
“I wonder if that’ll happen to us,” Kelwin said with a frown.
“Then maybe you should destroy it,” Tasis said hotly. “No offense, but I’d rather you didn’t get turned into some raving man-bird.”
At his words a hair-raising shriek rang out from inside the mountain.
Chapter 13
IT WASN’T easy for Kelwin to leave Tasis behind. Not just because Kelwin was understandably nervous about what they might find within the abandoned guild, but also because Tasis had his arms wrapped around him in a death grip of a hug. “I’ll be okay,” Kelwin promised, his voice a rasp because he couldn’t draw in much air.
“That shriek,” Tasis mumbled from where he had his face pressed against Kelwin’s neck. “It was Falcon. She’ll kill you if she catches you.”
Kelwin ran a hand over Tasis’s long hair and sighed. Or, rather, tried to sigh. It was hard to actually do so if you couldn’t breathe properly. “Let up a little. You’re going to suffocate me.” When Tasis immediately loosened his grip, Kelwin did sigh, and turned his head enough to whisper in Tasis’s ear. “I’ll be careful,” he promised softly. “I’ll be careful, and I’ll have people watching my back.”
He felt Tasis nod, but his heart twinged in pain when the nod was followed by a sniffle. “Watch their backs too,” he answered weakly. “I’m kind of fond of them.”
“I promise,” Kelwin said, pulling away so Tasis was forced to show his face. And Maker, Kelwin immediately wished he hadn’t, because at least then he wouldn’t have seen the tears in Tasis’s eyes. “Oh, don’t cry. I meant it when I said I’ll be careful.”
Tasis wiped his eyes roughly before glaring at him. “Right, because you’ve suddenly learned to see the future.”
Well, he certainly couldn’t see the future, but…. “Zaree?” he called over to the woman who was speaking to Emlynn. She looked up and cocked her head to one side, a silent “what?” if there was any. “Did you bring your rune stones?” She nodded, and Kelwin smiled. “Could you do me a favor and tell Tasis I won’t die?”
Zaree snorted, but she obediently pulled a drawstring bag from the pocket of her trousers. The giantess standing next to her seemed interested in the process, if her expression was any indication, and began to ask Zaree several questions about it. Zaree, for her part, was starting to grin, obviously pleased by Emlynn’s interest, and she appeared to be explaining things as she poured the rune stones into her hand and cast them at the ground. She squinted at the stones and looked up at Emlynn, pointing out several. Kelwin wished they were a little closer, because he kind of wanted to hear the explanation too. “You ought to see if Zaree would be willing to teach that,” he said to Tasis. “I realize it’s different from casting a spell or whatever, but it’s still interesting.”
Those beautiful blue eyes he’d come to love so much looked up at him, and Tasis nodded. “You’re right. I’ll talk to her.”
“Hey,” Zaree called from where she was standing. “I see unexpected developments, danger, and a change in path. What I definitely do not see is death. So you can stop freaking out, Tas.”
“Cute,” Tasis shot back before lowering his voice so only Kelwin would hear him. “But her readings are incredibly accurate, so I have no choice but to believe her.”
“Take her back to the village and get some rest,” Kelwin said before pressing his lips against Tasis’s forehead. “But give Jorget that thing first.”
“Oh, right,” Tasis said excitedly, nearly banging his head into Kelwin’s as he moved. Kelwin managed to dodge in time, used to Tasis not looking before he leaped, so to speak. It was an oddly endearing quality. Tasis rummaged through his pack, then let out a triumphant noise. “Hey, Jorget, come here.”
The other mage gave him a curious look, but pulled himself away from the discussion he was having with Whogs and Lifit to join him. “What is it?”
Tasis grinned and handed him a silk-wrapped object roughly the size of the palm of his hand. “Here. Don’t break it. I understand that’s bad luck.”
Jorget looked at him, confused. Then he unwrapped the package, and his brows went up in surprise. “A mirror? You had one for me?”
“Of course I did,” Tasis said with an amused snort. “It’s important to be able to keep in contact.”
“And he wants to be able to make sure we’re alive every fifteen minutes,” Kelwin teased.
“I will not be checking up on you every fifteen minutes,” Tasis said hotly. “It’ll be at least every twenty.”
Kelwin gave him a look, and he grumbled, crossing his arms in front of him. “Fine. I won’t contact you first. Maker knows I don’t want to do anything to call Falcon to you.” He sighed and looked at the ground with a frown. “You know I’m going to have to tell Triv, right?”
And that, Kelwin knew, would hurt him more than almost anything. Tasis practically worshipped the ground Triv walked on. Or rather, he worshipped the sea Triv swam in, since walking was no longer an option for her. He also knew Triv would carry a lot of guilt for Falcon’s fate, despite not having done anything wrong. “Remind
her Falcon was an adult who made her own decisions,” Kelwin suggested. “I don’t know that it will help, but there’s no point in letting her wallow in guilt she shouldn’t be taking ownership of.”
“I’ll try,” Tasis promised.
“Hey, are we ready?” Reikos called out. “We need to get started, and if Tasis and Zaree are getting back down this mountain before the sun’s down, they need to get moving too.”
“Yeah, almost ready,” Kelwin called back before turning his attention to Tasis again. He gripped the other elf’s arms, practically nose-to-nose with him. “I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too,” Tasis whispered back. While his voice was watery, he was keeping his tears at bay, thank the Maker.
“I know,” Kelwin said, giving him a quick kiss. “I’ll see you at the giants’ village. I have something important to ask you when I get back.”
“Yeah?” Tasis asked, looking more curious than sad. That was good. Kelwin could deal with curiosity. “What is it?”
“You’ll find out,” Kelwin promised. “Now go on. Let Lifit and Whogs get you guys off this mountain, and be safe. I’m pretty sure Vashk was talking about Falcon when he said it was dangerous for you, but that doesn’t mean you should take chances.”
“Same goes for you,” Tasis said. “Don’t take any chances.” He looked at Jorget, who was clearly embarrassed to still be within earshot while they were having their conversation. “Watch his back for me and keep out of trouble. Deal?”
“Deal,” Jorget said with a nod. “We’ll stay safe.”
Tasis nodded, paused for a second, and pulled off the pendant he was never without. He placed it around Kelwin’s neck, picked up both his pack and K’yerin, then turned to look at Whogs and Lifit. “Let’s go.”
And then Tasis, Zaree, and the two giants were gone, leaving Kelwin clutching the pendant in shock.
“Is he going to be okay?” Jorget asked, looking concerned as he looked in the direction the group had left.
Kelwin chuckled, though he thought it sounded a little strained. “He’ll be fine. He’s worried, and I can’t necessarily blame him for that. Not with what we’ve heard.”
He’s strong, Bahz said. Possibly even stronger than Triv. Interesting.
“Let’s concentrate on the matter at hand, shall we?” Kelwin suggested, trying to divert conversation away from Tasis. It didn’t feel right to talk about him, not when he wasn’t there and not when they were about to step into a potentially dangerous situation. “Bahz, can you show us to the entrance?” He paused, his brow furrowed. “I’m assuming there’s an entrance, anyway, if you’ve had concerns about Falcon emerging.”
Quite. It’s not much of an entrance anymore, but it’s there. I’ve had to chase her back in more than once.
The last was said with more than a small amount of pain, and Kelwin wondered how horrible it would be if a familiar was forced to attack their own mage. He tried to imagine K’yerin having to make a stand against Tasis, and something deep inside him ached. He shook his head and pushed it out of his mind. “Reikos, I’m thinking you and your men need to go first. Obviously you’ve got more experience in battle than any of us, so it makes sense.” He said that, though the small handful of men with Reikos looked even younger than Tasis. He doubted any of them aside from Reikos and Shan had any idea what they were getting into. But they’d made it up the mountain without complaining, so they certainly had the stamina for it.
“Of course,” Reikos said, as if he’d assumed that from the start. And he probably had. “Is anyone other than us equipped to fight?”
“Throwing knives,” Kelwin supplied. “Not sure how much that would help in a fight, but my aim is true, at least.” He looked over to where Daro was lounging under a tree, his tongue hanging out. “And I’ve got a wolf. Not sure how much help he’ll be either.”
Daro looked up at him, let out a huff, and turned his head away.
Reikos looked at the pouting canine for a moment. “Do you have any normal animals in your life, or do they all have unnerving attitude problems?”
“I have my strength,” Emlynn said, ignoring Reikos’s comment about Daro. “And a few spells, though the ones I know are basic and likely not much help in a fight, not unless I can get close enough to blind someone with light.”
“I can cast fireballs,” Jorget said, sounding rather pleased with himself.
“From the ceiling,” Emlynn said under her breath, though she gave Jorget a bit of a grin when she did to let him know she was teasing. Apparently he got the message, because he stuck his tongue out at her.
“Yeah, let’s not try any levitation spells,” Kelwin said with a grimace. “And Jorget, please, for the love of the Maker, do not try to teach Tasis a fireball spell. He just put that guild back together. I’d rather it didn’t get burned down already.”
Jorget made a noise of protest, but Reikos cut through it by addressing Emlynn. “You said something about light?”
“Yes,” the giantess said with a nod. “It’s more convenient than having to carry a torch or a candle.”
“Are you okay being up front with me? Because we’re going to need that light.” Emlynn nodded again, and Reikos continued. “Good. I want Jorget and Kelwin in the middle.” He looked at Kelwin and gave him an apologetic smile. “I know you can fight if you need to, but I’d rather not give Tasis an excuse to tear me apart later.”
“It’s fine,” Kelwin said, having expected it. He was fairly useless if they came across a serious threat anyway, and this way he could keep an eye on Jorget. The guy was definitely talented, from what he could tell, but he had no idea how to focus. Some time on the isle with Triv and the others would take care of that, but that would have to come after their foray into the depths of the mountain.
There was a flutter of wings, and Bahz landed on Emlynn’s shoulder. The bird had to be heavy, and his talons had to be gripping the giantess painfully, but she merely turned her head with a look of vague surprise on her face. Did the girl ever show strong emotion? I know the way, Bahz said. It’s safest if I’m up front as well.
“Of course,” Reikos allowed. “Well, then. Let’s go exploring.”
“We’re all going to die,” Jorget muttered to Kelwin as they found their place in the middle of the small group.
Kelwin tried to swallow down his laugh with only moderate success. “So optimistic,” he said. “We’ll get out of it alive. If we don’t, Tasis will resurrect me just to kill me himself.”
“Necromancy is forbidden,” Emlynn reminded him from the front of the group, Bahz still riding on her shoulder, quite at home there.
“That wouldn’t be likely to stop him,” Kelwin remarked.
Reikos waved a hand as if to silence the lot of them before he looked at Bahz. “Well, this is your show for the moment,” he said. “Where’s the entrance?”
The falcon clacked his beak, then launched himself from his perch on Emlynn’s shoulder to spread his enormous wings. Kelwin wasn’t sure how Bahz managed it within the trees without hitting one of them, but he led them out of the small forest and to the clearing on the other side. The side of the mountain seemed to drop away, and Kelwin sucked in a breath as what looked like the entire kingdom spread out far below them. Very far below.
Watch your step. It’s a bit narrow here.
That seemed like quite an understatement, but Kelwin kept the comment to himself.
“This is near where I climbed up,” Emlynn observed. “The path widens again at the next turn.”
And indeed, they were all breathing sighs of relief when it no longer seemed like they would be tumbling down the mountain at any moment. Unfortunately, they’d have to do this all over again on the way back down.
Eventually, Bahz alighted on an outcropping of rock, watching them as they neared. At first, Kelwin thought he was merely waiting for them to catch up, but upon closer inspection he could see a wide crack in the side of the mountain. “That’s the entrance?” he aske
d Bahz. “Will we even fit through there?” He had his doubts.
Falcon fits through it, the bird answered dryly. If she’ll fit, so will you.
Emlynn examined the opening, then lifted her right hand. Almost immediately, a white orb of light began to glow in her palm. Kelwin had seen this before on several occasions when Tasis had needed more light, but for some reason, his always ended up being a light blue. He’d have to ask about it later.
When Emlynn’s light was so bright Kelwin almost had to look away, she lobbed it gently through the fissure. She peered in, eyes narrowed, then looked back and nodded. “It’s clear.”
“Me first, then Shan, then you,” Reikos told her.
She nodded and stepped out of the way, letting the two pass through the opening before she looked up at Bahz, who was still observing from atop the stone ledge. He met her gaze and made the short hop down onto her shoulder, where he once again took up residence. And then the two disappeared through the entrance as well.
Once the other guards ahead of them had passed, Kelwin and Jorget gave each other a look. “Well,” Kelwin said after taking a deep breath, “here we go.”
The room on the other side of the crack would best be described as cavernous. Not because it was set inside a mountain, but because it was massive. It was also surprisingly well preserved. The floor was a mosaic masterpiece in green, white, and black stone. It took several moments of staring at the pattern before Kelwin realized it was a compass, pointing to the cardinal and intermediate directions.