Chapter 25
Olyva
Rafe settled in beside her and pulled out some of the clothes from his pack. Olyva felt raw, as if her life were an open wound. Everything she feared had come to pass and while she didn’t say anything to Rafe, she secretly wished she hadn’t fallen in love with him.
She had been scared when they were exposed during the feast, and then when they were forced to spend the night in the holding cell, but she felt a numbness too. It was like a bad dream and she kept trying to wake up. When they were in the city, she couldn’t help but feel hopeful, as if something would happen to stay the punishment she feared most.
In Avondale, attacks by the terrible creatures from the blighted lands were rare. Avondale was a wealthy city, with plenty of food and space, but in Hamill Keep where she had grown up, things were different. Hamill Keep was much smaller, little more than an ancient fortress really. The city around the Keep was carved into the rocky mountainside. Food was scarce and the city suffered from overpopulation.
Olyva, being the Earl’s oldest daughter, was insulated from the poverty and fear, yet it was like a constant shadow hanging over her head, threatening to blot out the warmth of the sunlight at any moment. Her marriage arrangement to Brutas had been about insuring political alliances for Avondale, but it had been about survival for Hamill Keep. Her father had essentially traded his eldest daughter to Earl Aegus for food.
Now, on top of her fear of being banished from the city, she had to deal with the fact that her father wouldn’t receive the promised food. People in Hamill Keep would starve because of her. Their family would be shamed, her actions gossiped about for generations. It was almost too much to take. She had her small knife and she considered slashing her wrists just to end the nightmare. Rafe had been so chivalrous, always encouraging and trying to comfort her, but he couldn’t deny the fact that they were doomed.
She wasn’t sure what to think of Tiberius. He reminded her in many ways of a fanciful child. It was as if the Earl’s third born didn’t fathom the depth of their fate. He actually believed they would survive. Olyva would have preferred a quick death to being eaten by the terrible monsters that dwelt in the blighted lands. Olyva was sure that nothing but a grisly demise waited for them on the other side of the mist.
“Look,” Rafe said, holding up a pair of wool breeches, “I know these aren’t up to your standards, but that gown won’t last long out here and it certainly won’t keep you warm. You can put these on underneath your skirts. My boots are too large for you, but once we start traveling, you may want to wear them anyway.”
“What’s the point?” Olyva said. “You don’t seriously think we can survive in the blighted lands beneath the mist.”
“I have to believe it,” Rafe said. “We can’t stay here. There’s no food, no shelter. We’ll die from exposure up here.”
“You may prefer that once you see what’s waiting for you in the mist.”
“Come on now,” Rafe said. “It won’t do us any good to dwell on thoughts like that.”
“No, Rafe,” she said with a trembling voice. “It won’t do us any good to deny the truth. We’re going to die out here.”
“Not if I can help it.”
“You can’t help it,” she said, tears stinging her eyes again.
She couldn’t keep from crying, even though she tried. She was so afraid that she wanted to curl up and hide beneath a thick quilt. She hated feeling this way. She was so helpless, so completely out of her depth and there was nothing she could do to make it better.
“Look,” Rafe said, “I won’t pretend things aren’t dire. We’re in a bad situation here, but it isn’t certain that we’ll die. And if we do, I don’t plan to take it lying down.”
“I’m not like you, Rafe. I’m not a warrior. I’m not a man. This shouldn’t be happening to me.”
“I know,” he said calmly. “It’s not fair. I’m so sorry things worked out this way. I thought I had found a way for us to be together, but at least we don’t have to hide our feelings anymore.”
“Is that supposed to be comforting?” she asked, her voice getting louder with a note of hysteria. “We can die in each others arms, how romantic.”
“Don’t be sarcastic,” he said.
“Don’t be a fool,” she snarled. “We’re dead, you just don’t know it yet.”
“Put on the pants,” he told her as he stood up. “I’m going to gather some wood for a fire.”
She turned away from him. She was so angry. He had gotten them into this horrible mess and he acted like it was okay. She didn’t want to forgive him. She didn’t want to die. She didn’t want to spend every last moment of her short life in total unrelenting fear, but that was the reality of her situation. She wished she had never let her foolish, romantic ideals sweep her away. She had thought she was in love with Rafe, the handsome warrior. He was so different than anyone she had ever met before. He was confident, fearless, and always so kind. He was the exact opposite of Brutas, who when he bothered to acknowledge her at all, was always arrogant, rude, and demanding. Still, if she had only known the fate that awaited her, she would have gladly married Brutas and never complained no matter how terrible he was to her.
She could hear Rafe talking to the horses. She hated horses. In Hamill Keep, the stone masons used mules to haul rubble from the deep tunnels or carry supplies over the rough terrain of the mountain. Horses were a luxury not even her father could afford, nor was there a need for them in the Keep. She had never learned to ride a horse and she was frightened of them. She’d heard stories of horses bucking their riders off; she couldn’t imagine being thrown and not being seriously hurt.
She wanted to run away, perhaps even back to the city and beg to be forgiven. She didn’t think Rafe had fought hard enough to spare them from being banished. He had told her he had found a way to be with her forever, but he was wrong. Now he was telling her they would be okay, but she knew he was wrong again.
She pulled her knees up under the flowing skirts of her gown and hugged them to her chest. She felt like she was going to be sick, and closing her eyes didn’t help. The horses stank, and she couldn’t get comfortable. The ground was so rocky and the tree bark was rough, snagging her hair and her gown. She bent her head forward, resting it on her knees. She wasn’t sure how long she stayed that way, time seemed to stretch out like a horrible dream. Then she felt something. At first it was just a little tickle on her backside, but then she felt a sharp sting. She jumped up shouting.
“What is it?” Rafe asked as he hurried over.
“Get it off, get it off!” she screamed.
Rafe looked bewildered as Olyva hopped around in a circle and swatted at her own backside. She tugged on the skirts of her dress and wailed in pain. The stings were coming faster and faster, the pain growing worse. She felt like the backs of her legs were on fire as something, or somethings, were crawling over her legs and bottom.
Rafe kicked at the tree where she’d been sitting and cursed.
“It’s fire ants,” he said as he dropped to his knees in front of her.
With one swift motion he grabbed a handful of her skirts and tugged. Olyva stumbled, almost falling down, but the fabric tore along the seam. The silky material ripped away and Rafe grabbed more, pulling and pulling until the billowing end of her gown was around her ankles. His hands brushed away the tiny insects, but the effects continued to torment her. She was angry, embarrassed, and in pain. Her backside was hot, and when she reached down to touch the back of her now bare legs, she could feel tiny blisters welling up on her skin.
“They’re painful, but not lethal,” he said.
She wanted to hit him, but chose to shout instead.
“Turn away,” she cried.
He turned quickly, averting his eyes from her bare legs. Her bottom was still covered by her undergarments, but she felt exposed. She pulled on the woolen pants he’d given her. They were too long and too big, but the waist cinched up and she rolled the
cuffs of the pants so they stopped around her ankles. She knew she looked foolish, but she didn’t have a choice. Her backside was starting to itch.
“This is torture,” she said.
“The pain will pass soon,” he assured her.
“And the itching?” she said angrily.
“A few days,” he said in a quiet voice. “Listen, I know this is a lot to take in. Let’s just get through the day; things will look better in the morning. Ti and Lexi should be back soon and we’ll find a place to rest for the night.”
“I wish I was dead,” she sobbed.
“Don’t say that. I promise things will get better.”
“How? Things will never be better. We’re going to die out here all alone.”
“No,” he assured her. “I won’t let that happen.”
“You can’t stop it.”
“I’ll get you to Hamill Keep. You can return to your family.”
“They won’t want me, can’t you see that? I’ve brought shame on our entire city. They won’t get the food and money they need. People will die because of what we’ve done.”
“Then I’ll get you to Sparlan Citadel,” he vowed. “I’ll get you there and get that pardon from the King. I swear it.”
“You swear, but you and I both know you’ll fail,” she said. “If you love me at all, you’ll kill me now and end my misery.”
“Never,” he said. “I love you.”
“You’ve ruined my life.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He sounded desperate, but Olyva didn’t care.
“I hate you,” she said, then the world seemed to tip wildly out of balance and she fell to the ground as everything went mercifully black.
Chapter 26
Tiberius
The blighted lands were not what Tiberius expected. In his mind, he had seen the land below the mists as dead gray rock veiled in shadow, with bogs of poisonous slime, and the skeletal remains of ancient civilizations laid bare by the great cataclysm. Instead, what he found was a land teaming with life. They were high up on the mountainside, overlooking a long, flat prairie. The ground was covered with a thick, green moss, shorter than grass, but the fibrous ends were still long enough to be grazed on. In the distance, a river flowed like a blue ribbon across the plain, and there were strange looking animals drinking peacefully on the bank. Other mountains rose around them, but none towered as high as Avondale’s peak.
There were trees that grew in thick clusters, and flocks of birds swooped back forth from tree to tree. Sunlight filtered through the mist, casting the entire landscape in an amber colored light. The temperature was warmer and the air was thick with humidity.
“It’s beautiful,” Lexi said. “Like nothing I ever dreamed of.”
“Me either,” Tiberius said.
He bent down and ran his fingers through the moss. It was thick and spongy. He pulled up a small pinch and it tore away from the moss around it. The fibrous roots were woven together and barely dipped into the rust colored soil. Tiberius touched the ground and found the dirt powdery and dry.
“The moss must leech up all the moisture,” he said.
“I can’t believe it,” Lexi said. “It isn’t blighted at all.”
“Perhaps it was once, but now life has adapted.”
“We should go get the others,” she suggested.
“Or we could be alone for a while,” he said, teasingly.
“You are banished from civilization, facing almost certain death, and all you can think about is getting me alone?”
He stepped close and kissed her.
“I just can’t help myself,” he whispered.
An hour later, they came back through the mist. It was almost nightfall. The sun was painting the sky a beautiful pink color, and Avondale rose up like an impregnable fortress before them. Tiberius hurried back to where Rafe was sitting a short distance from Olyva, who was asleep under the tree.
“You have got to see what’s below the mists,” Tiberius said.
He was slightly winded from their climb back up the mountain.
“Is it horrid?” Rafe asked.
“No, it’s amazing.”
“It is,” Lexi agreed.
“It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen before. Help me with the horses, we’ve should go before we lose the light.”
“We can’t,” Rafe said.
“What? Why?” Tiberius asked.
“Because,” Rafe waved a hand at Olyva, “she passed out. She’s under a lot of pressure.”
“And we aren’t?” Lexi said.
“It’s different for her,” Rafe insisted. “She’s never faced anything like this before.”
“None of us have,” Lexi said. “Ti grew up in a palace, but you don’t see him falling to pieces.”
“Look, no one asked you to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong,” Rafe said angrily.
“Actually,” Tiberius said calmly, “I did. Fighting with each other won’t help us.”
“I’m grateful you came to help us,” Rafe said. “But that was your choice. You don’t know what she’s been through.”
“Fair enough,” Lexi said. “I’m sorry.”
“Things are nothing like we expected,” Tiberius said. “I’m not saying it will be easy, but there is life below the mists.”
“Abundant life,” Lexi said.
“We can find food, shelter; it may not be perfect, but it isn’t a wasteland.”
“Why has no one returned to tell the cities then?” Rafe asked.
“I don’t know,” Tiberius said.
“Maybe they have, but the Earl suppresses the truth in order to remain in control of the city,” Lexi said.
Rafe looked down and Tiberius looked embarrassed. He wanted to argue, to defend his family, but he knew she might be right. Lexi didn’t know anyone in court except for Tiberius, and she had never met anyone in his family, yet she knew them. She understood their lust for power and their desperation to hang onto it at any cost.
“It doesn’t matter now,” Rafe said. “The only thing that matters is can we make it across the blighted lands to Sparlan Citadel?”
“I think it’s possible,” said Tiberius.
“We’ve already decided that’s the best thing to do?” Lexi asked, the surprise in her voice clear to both Tiberius and Rafe.
“You don’t think we should?” Tiberius asked.
“We have to,” Rafe said. “It doesn’t matter how incredible the land is, Olyva needs the pardon. She needs to be restored to her rightful place.”
Lexi rolled her eyes. She had never been one for social standings, Tiberius knew that. She had very little patience for anyone who couldn’t keep up with her sharp wit, and it appeared she felt the same way about Olyva’s lack of emotional strength now.
“I won’t keep you from going to the Citadel,” Lexi said. “I’ll stay with Tiberius, even if he goes to the Princess.”
“I don’t have any desire to ever see the Princess again,” Tiberius said.
“But you want to get your hands on her books,” Rafe said with a wolfish grin.
“I’m interested in learning as much as I can about magic,” Tiberius said. “But if there are writings that survived in the Citadel, surely there are writings elsewhere.”
“I think we need a goal,” Rafe said. “I suggest we try to get to Hamill Keep. Olyva thinks her family will reject her, but I don’t think so. Besides, if we can just get there, it will be a major boost to her confidence.”
“Unless she’s right and her family won’t let her into the city,” Lexi said. “Believe me, when the people you depend upon most let you down, it’s hard to recover.”
“I’m not going to let her down,” Rafe said. “Does anyone have a better idea?”
“No,” Tiberius said.
Lexi shook her head.
“Then it’s settled. We’ll head for Hamill Keep.”
“What about tonight?” Lexi said. “It’s going to get cold up here.�
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“Right,” Rafe said. “I’ve already gathered as much wood as I could get from this sickly tree, but we’ll need more to keep a fire burning through the night.”
“We’ve got some food in our packs,” Tiberius said.
“Water too,” Rafe added.
“We only have a few of blankets though,” Tiberius said.
“So, we’ll have to sleep close and conserve our body heat,” Rafe said.
“And we’ll need to stand guard. We’re pretty exposed out here,” Tiberius said.
“Ti and I will take the first watch,” Lexi said. “You and Olyva get some rest.”
When the sun set, the temperature dropped quickly. Rafe found a bar of flint in his pack and they got a small fire going. It wasn’t much more than a way to warm their hands and feet, but it was better than nothing. Rafe moved Olyva over to the fire and laid out a blanket. He set her on the blanket and lay down behind her. They used another blanket to cover up with.
There were strange noises in the night, but Tiberius couldn’t see far beyond the light from their fire. The sky was bright with stars, but the mountainside was completely dark. He and Lexi paced, trying to keep warm and stay alert.
“So,” Tiberius asked. “What made you do it?”
“Do what?” she asked.
“Risk your neck for me,” he said. “Stealing horses?”
“I just thought of what I would want were I in your shoes,” she said. “I’d want a horse, although I’d never ridden one.”
“You haven’t?”
“There isn’t much need for horsemanship in the lower city,” Lexi smirked. “We don’t go on holiday often.”
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