Illeon’s face lit up at the slim hope that Sariel offered, but Raphlia sneered. “It sounds like you are trying to put a chain around our necks.”
Blue fire burned in Sariel’s eyes. “I am not required to justify myself to you, traitor. Go if you wish. Remain, if you wish, though if you do not help in this conflict, do not pretend that you are keeping to your purpose. People will die, more so without your aid.”
“I will do whatever I can, Sariel.” She practically spat the name. Manakel’s eyes blazed, and he moved to strike, but Sariel raised a hand. Raphlia either didn’t notice the exchange or she ignored it. “I will just do so out from under your thumb.” She turned to her companions. “I am going back to the healing tents where I can do some actual good. If you truly wish to help, I would recommend you come with me rather than wasting your time as a lapdog to them.”
Then, she stormed out of the garden. The plants, seeming almost afraid of her, moved out of her way, leaving a clear path in her wake. Illeon turned to Shanel.
“What about you?”
He was very nearly pleading, but Shanel shook her head. “I will not stay with the high lords either, but I think Raphlia is too short sighted. We have been healing humans for eons, and all it has accomplished is help them survive longer so that they can kill. I am tired of this, Illeon. I want no more of mortal wars.”
“But this is a battle against demons. You must be able to see that this is not the same thing as when one human army fought another.”
Shanel nodded. “Yes, I do, and I have no intention of leaving, but neither will I go back to the healing tents.”
“Where else is there?” Illeon asked.
Shanel scanned the garden until her gaze fell on a pair of yellow eyes staring from the shadows between trees. She approached, and the bestial form of Aniel stepped into the clearing. He seemed, somehow, more solid than the others, his power more real. Shanel walked up to him and inclined her head.
“Lord Aniel, with your permission, I would like to go among the beast men and offer my services to them.”
For his part, Aniel looked surprised. He narrowed his eyes at her. “They have little patience for humans.”
She closed her eyes and looked down. “Today, I helped to heal a man who had injured himself training, injured himself learning how to hurt others. I have little patience left for humans either, but your children never make war, not in the way humans do. I believe I could best serve this cause by doing what I can to aid them.”
He snorted. “That may be true, but the beast men are neither my slaves nor my servants. It is not up to me to decide if you may dwell among them. Go to them, if you wish.”
She nodded and turned to leave the garden, following the same path that Raphlia had taken. As she walked past, Jez caught the scent of wildflowers. Illeon grabbed her sleeve before she moved out of reach. She paused and met his gaze.
“We are still on the same side, my friend.”
He nodded and let her go, but before she started walking again, she turned. Her eyes flickered to Aphlel before settling on Jez.
“Thank you for the opportunity to see my old friend and mentor. I wish we could have been of greater aid.”
Jez nodded, unsure of what to say. She smiled before gliding out of the garden, moving on silent feet. Illeon looked from Sariel to Aphlel before stepping into the stream and kneeling next to Aphlel. Jez felt surges of power from within the afur, though he couldn’t guess what he was trying to do. With nothing else to do, Jez and his friends went to the basement laboratory to see what Kilos had found.
Apparently, whatever working Dusan had left behind permeated the entire city, but Kilos hadn’t been able to find out what it did. The high lords were no help either. Because the magic had been left by Dusan long before Sharim had bound them to the world, the restrictions against interfering with mortal choice still held, regardless of the fact that Dusan was dead. Jez and his friends spent the rest of the day looking for answers, but to no avail.
As night fell, Jez returned to his quarters to sleep. His dreams were filled with his battles against Dusan and Marrowit. Over and over again, he saw his father scream in pain as the demon lord of nightmares tortured his soul. He awoke in a cold sweat when someone knocked at the door, feeling like he had barely slept at all. He glanced out the window and saw that the sky had been painted orange by the rising sun. He groaned and got up. He opened the door to find Osmund standing there. The larger boy looked him up and down.
“You should probably change out of your sleeping robes for this.”
“What is it?” Jez asked, annoyed with his friend for waking him.
“Narva says the people are upset. They want you to do something about the forest on the northern edge of the city.”
Jez blinked at him. “Osmund, there is no forest on the northern edge of Randak. Most crops can’t even grow there. The earth is too salty.”
Osmund nodded. “That’s what I’ve heard from the townspeople. I don’t think anyone told the trees, though. They go on for miles.”
Jez wiped his eyes. His mind was still groggy from sleep. “What are you talking about?”
Osmund waved to Jez’s window, and he shambled over to it. He stared in silence for almost a full minute. The trees beyond the northern wall of the city stood at least fifty feet tall, their leaves bright green instead of the yellows and reds that should’ve decorated trees at this time of year, not that trees should have been there at all. From this vantage point, he couldn’t tell how far the new forest stretched, but the line of trees went west as far as he could see.
“Osmund,” Jez said.
“Yes?”
“There’s a forest on the northern edge of Randak.”
He could practically hear the laughter in the other boy’s voice. “That’s what I came to tell you.”
“Why is there a forest on the northern edge of Randak?”
“Well, my guess is someone put it there.”
Jez shook his head to clear his thoughts before turning to face his friend. He let out a breath and nodded. “Right. Let me get dressed, and we’ll see what’s going on.”
CHAPTER 11
They didn’t bother with the carriage. It would be useless in the uneven ground of a forest. Instead, they rode a pair of stallions from Jez’s stable so that they could get to the forest quickly. He had never been entirely comfortable on the back of a horse and found himself with a death grip on the reins as he bounced through Randak. Osmund managed himself with much greater skill, so he took the lead. They came to a stop when they found Lina and Kilos waiting for them at the edge of the city. Jez’s horse kept twitching and taking steps in random directions. None of the others seemed to be having trouble with their mounts, and Jez tried very hard not to resent them for that.
“Jez,” Lina said, “There’s a forest outside of your capital.”
“We already covered that,” Osmund said.
Lina glared at him before addressing Jez again. “Why is there a forest outside of your capital?”
“We went through that too,” Osmund called out.
“You’re not helping,” Jez said. “I don’t have the slightest idea. Do you want to come help me find out?”
She grinned and reined in beside him, with Kilos riding behind them. The guards saluted as Jez rode by. Several people had gathered just outside the gate and were staring northward. More than one person carried a bow, but no one seemed willing to go very far from the walls. Fortunately, the forest hadn’t grown around the road and instead started about a hundred yards north of it, and Jez and his companions rode in that direction. Jez’s breath caught in his throat when he realized that these weren’t the oaks or elms that traditionally grew near Randak. Rather, these were the thick leaved plants that he’d encountered in Aniel’s valley.
“That’s powerful healing magic,” Kilos said as they neared.
Jez nodded. It made sense, since it was healing magic that governed plants. “And we just sent a Life
bringer to go live with them,” he said under his breath.
They tried to go into the forest, but the horses refused to come closer than a few yards from the tree line. Jez sighed and dismounted. He waved to one of the gate guards who was watching them from his post. The man jogged over, and Jez told him to take the horses. That done, they walked into the trees.
It was like entering a new world. Birdsong and insect chirping filled the air. Flies buzzed around them. Heat more comparable to the height of summer than mid-autumn threatened to smother them. Even the sun seemed brighter, though no magic Jez knew could accomplish that.
“Does anyone sense anything?”
“Beast.” Osmund’s voice was a blending of his own and the deeper voice of Ziary.
Lina stared at him for a few seconds before responding. “There’s healing too. It’s flowing all through this place.”
“Shanel,” Jez said.
The trees almost seemed to shudder at the name. Kilos nodded. “But I thought the power of an afur was limited.”
“It is.”
The voice seemed to come from the trees themselves. The branches rattled against each other, as if the words were passing through them. Instantly, Osmund’s flaming blade was in his hands, and his eyes glowed red. Jez drew his own steel weapon but held himself on the verge of calling his crystal sword. The bark of one of the nearby trees shivered and parted, revealing a tall woman in shimmering orange robes. A wooden sword with leaves sprouting from the blade hung at her waist, and wings that were as much leaves as feathers rose from her back. It took Jez a second to recognize her as Shanel.
“Something like this, however, is not all that difficult to create.”
Jez blinked. “A forest that goes on for miles isn’t difficult to create?”
“No, not especially.” She knelt. Unlike a normal forest, no blanket of leaves covered the ground, and she ran her fingers through the soil. “The potential was always here. I simply caused one tree to grow. Then, that tree became a source of life which I could draw upon to fuel another. Then two more, and four. This entire forest sustains itself.” She sniffed as she rose. “You are a warrior. You kill. I would not expect you to understand matters of life.”
“We have never taken a human life.” Ziary’s voice spoke from Osmund’s lips, though the look in the other boy’s eyes said he didn’t disagree with the statement. “We’ve only ever fought against demons.”
Shanel let out a bark of laughter. “The scar under your friend’s eye says otherwise.”
Once, at the slightest mention, Lina’s hand would’ve risen to the scar that Ziary had given her so long ago, but now, her fingers didn’t even twitch. She gave the afur a level stare.
“Mistakes were made that day, and Osmund’s weren’t the only ones. They weren’t even the worst. No one died so don’t act like that makes you better than us. We never pretended to be something we’re not.”
Jez sighed. “Can we not get into a big argument again? Shanel, why did you create this forest?”
She clenched her jaw, but rather than answer, she motioned for them to follow. The four mages exchanged glances and fell into step behind her, though Jez kept his weapon drawn.
A path opened through the foliage, and Shanel ghosted through it. It closed behind the mages as soon as they passed. As a result, they moved through the forest quickly, though Jez couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being trapped. Before long, they came to a clearing as large as Jez’s manor grounds in Randak. A trio of wolf people loped through the grass. At first, Jez thought they were hunting something, but after a few seconds, he saw that they were running simply for the sheer joy of it. Above, a bird chirped. Jez glanced at it and saw eyes that looked a little too human, though if it was a beast man, it gave him no sign of recognition. He thought he saw others too, but none stopped to acknowledge him.
“This is why I did it,” Shanel said. “Your army outnumbers them nearly fifty to one. While they were out in the open, they were at your mercy. Now, they can defend themselves from a place of strength, and you will not take them without a significant effort. They feel safe because of what I did.”
Welb, having seen them enter the clearing, ran toward them, moving with such liquid grace that his feet scarcely seemed to touch the ground. The wolf man ran on four legs, a thing Jez had never seen him do, though he stood on two as soon as he reached them.
“Jezreel, is it not wonderful? With Shanel’s aid, we are creating a place where our kind can live freely but not be so isolated from the rest of the world that we must travel weeks just to reach the outskirts of civilization.”
“I thought you didn’t like civilization,” Jez said.
“I do not,” Welb said, “but there are others who do not feel the same. They have wished for something like this, and more than anything else, we are free. How could I deny the others for the sake of my own desires? There is something else, though. How many have fallen under the influence of beast mind, leaving their loved ones with no idea what to do? We were secret before, kept so by our isolated location, but I think the time for that is past.”
Jez pursed his lips and considered. It wasn’t a bad idea. Beast mind fell on those who remained transformed too long, causing them to begin taking on traits of the creature whose shape they had chosen. Their bestial nature would conflict with their human mind. More often than not, the warring instincts would drive the mage to commit violent acts. If they were caught by one who did not know how to deal with them, the mage would almost always be hanged, but if there was a place, well known and accessible, where those stricken by beast mind could go, it would save countless lives. He nodded, glad for a way to help that, for once, did not involve battling demons.
“You’re right, but I wish you would’ve, at least, told me what you were going to do.” Jez scanned the clearing, but didn’t find the face he was looking for. “Where is Galine?”
“Out hunting with the rest of his pack,” Welb said.
“Hunting what? Shanel may have been able to create a forest out of nowhere, but there’s nothing near Randak large enough to be prey for a lion, much less for someone like Galine.”
Welb huffed. “He seemed to think he would be able find something.”
Jez had a momentary flash of Galine taking down or horse or cattle, but he pushed that idea out of his mind. Surely, Galine would know better than to do that. His throat felt dry. Probably.
“You will be happy to know, Jezreel,” Welb said, “that afur have started arriving.”
“What?” Jez asked. “When?”
“The first arrived late last night, a former Shadeslayer who now stalks the western edge of these woods. Like Shanel, he has tired of human ways, but he has agreed to help fight our enemies. A handful of Beastwalkers came with the rising of the sun. Others have apparently gone to your manor or to join the army.”
Jez looked around as if trying to spot them, but he realized he was being foolish. These were beings that had ages of experience hiding. Even if he saw them, he wouldn’t be able to recognize them if they didn’t wish him to. “I didn’t expect that to happen so soon.”
Welb gave him a toothy grin. “We are everywhere, Jezreel. Our people have been among humans since nearly the beginning, and for the first time in history, we are gathering. Before long, we will have a force in these woods strong enough to overcome anything Sharim can throw at us. Let the high lords hide in their buildings and pretend they still have the Keep. Let the rulers play their games. With tooth and claw, we will save this land.”
He threw back his head and howled. From deeper within the woods, others echoed his cry. Jez couldn’t help but shudder.
CHAPTER 12
Jez and his friends stayed in the forest for several hours, trying to calm the situation, but to no avail. Eventually, they headed back. As they walked toward the edge of the forest, Osmund drew his sword. He fell back and started practicing forms. Jez had watched him do that several times, and though he couldn’t tell why e
xactly, Osmund seemed more focused and drawn into his practice. Jez eyed him for a second before moving close to Lina and Kilos.
“I don’t like what I was hearing.”
Kilos nodded. “He seemed almost savage.”
“Welb’s always been savage,” Lina said. “This was different. He’s never wanted to form an army before.”
“He wants a strong pack,” Osmund said between slashes. “He finally has a way to get one.”
“So you’re not worried?” Jez asked.
Osmund completed a complicated maneuver that involved moving the sword from one hand to another in the middle of a strike, slicing through a branch in the process and causing a sweet-smelling sap to dribble to the ground. He moved with an almost inhuman grace. Once he was done, he twisted and swung his sword in a wide arc, never bothering to answer Jez’s question. He was sweating profusely, though if it bothered him, he gave no sign.
“That’s eerily familiar,” Lina said.
Jez nodded. “It’s like when we were moving against Sharim. Master Fina said it was because we had moved beyond civilized lands.”
“We’re less than a mile outside of Randak.”
“I know.” Jez shivered as he remembered the destruction master’s words. Only lines on a map say we’re still in Korand. He wondered if that was true now.
“You know, I can hear you,” Osmund said without stopping his practice. “No, I’m not worried about Welb, but if it’ll make you feel better, I’ll stay here and keep an eye on them.”
Jez paused and stared. Osmund was so wrapped in his sword forms that he didn’t notice the others staring at him. Jez cleared his throat, but Osmund ignored him. It was only when he sent a thin strand of terra magic into the earth to shake the spot directly beneath Osmund’s feet that the other boy stopped and met his gaze.
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