“Let’s find a cave and call it a day,” Andi suggested, squeezing his hand in response. They left the road and climbed up the side of a mountain to a location where Alec excavated a deep cavern for them. They both went out and gathered tinder and fallen timber so that Alec could start a proper fire at Andi’s insistence, and they pulled in a pile of yew and fir branches to provide some bedding.
After they had everything settled and they reclined upon their soft nest of branches as the fire crackled, Alec brought out the last of the food they had. “After tonight we’ll have to start scavenging. I went down the river the first time eating almost nothing but roots and fish. Raw roots, boiled roots, roasted roots – I thought I’d never have to eat roots again.”
“Can’t you just make a wild boar jump into the fire and roast himself for us?” Andi asked. “You’ve done just about everything else on this journey.”
“It has been an unusual journey,” Alec said reflectively. “So much has happened, and I don’t even remember parts of it.”
“Let me show you something I want you to remember,” Andi said, rolling over against him, and the two of them paid no attention to anything but each other until they fell asleep.
Chapter 17 – John Mark’s Cave
At noon the next day Alec and Andi arrived at the Riverside bridge. There was no evidence of any city having ever existed on the far bank, and Alec chose not to cross to look any closer. “I was so young when I came here Andi,” he said softly. “I didn’t know anything about lacertii or ingenairii, or even about girls!” he ended with a grin at his companion.
“Let’s start going along the riverbank to see if we can find some food,” he suggested. He had a goal he wanted to reach – the Cave of John Mark. They were only a short distance away from reaching the one location that Alec would think of as home, no matter where he lived or who he loved.
In the course of their journey along the game trails in the river bottoms Alec used his throwing knives to kill a young boar, and he carried the carcass with him until he arrived at the familiar mouth to a gully, with an hour of sunlight remaining. The glade of fir trees were gone, the spot where he and Natalie and Aristotle had camped, but Alec delved into the stony side of the mountain and created a rude, shallow cave. Then he carved apart the boar’s carcass while Andi gathered firewood, and he told her what to expect in the morning when they awoke and went to visit John Mark’s cave. They posted no guard after eating their meal, the first meal of hot meat either had had since leaving Boundary Lake, and both slept soundly during the night.
The morning brought the sound of heavy rainfall outside their cavern entrance, and Alec awoke to find Andi sitting at the mouth of the cave, watching the moisture from the sky refresh the greenery all around them. “You still plan for us to go today, even in this weather, don’t you?” she asked as she felt Alec stir into consciousness.
“Believe me, getting a little wet in the rain won’t seem like a problem, and you will find the journey to be one of the greatest events of your life,” Alec affirmed. He stood and stretched and came to stand next to her. “Let’s get going,” he held a hand out to help her rise.
“Without your sword? No knives?” Andi asked.
“None are allowed in the cave,” Alec answered, and they stepped out into the cool rain to begin the journey.
They started the journey up the ravine, which was gushing a steady flow of water on its way down to join the Giffey River. Alec discovered none of the crafted stones he had seen scattered and broken on his first trip up the ravine; the centuries of further floods and debris had covered them or washed them away. But the two travelers came to the fork in the waterway, and Alec took the smaller route on the right without hesitation. It led eventually to the small bowl-shaped dell that still provided access to the same nearly-subterranean passage that gloomily wound about and came to the shelf on the mountainside.
The details of the way to the cave remained firmly etched in Alec’s memories, even after so many years between visits, and he reached up to the exact spot where his fingers found the handholds chiseled into the stone of the cliff. He guided Andi’s fingers to them, and boosted her upward with a familiarly-placed hand to push, which she commented on, then he followed her and joined her in observing the round door that beckoned them inward. At his insistence they removed their boots.
“Go on Andi,” he encouraged her. “You go first. Open the door and go in. I’ll be right behind you.”
She looked at his face with searching eyes. “I remember your memories of this Alec. I can feel how much it means to you,” she told him. She kissed him chastely on the cheek, then walked forward and opened the door. Alec watched in rapture as she stepped into the chamber, then stopped all movement and froze in place as the pure waters of the cave drenched her with a calming, cleansing bath. Bringing her to this place was his greatest gift to her, he thought, no matter what might come after this.
Her foot that was suspended in the air resumed its motion towards the ground and she moved forward into the cave’s dim interior, out of his field of vision. For another moment he allowed her to enjoy the chamber in solitude, giving her the opportunity to commune and share the sense of holiness within her own psyche, then he walked forward and entered the cave, experiencing again all the things he had witnessed and enjoyed before.
He closed his eyes in contemplative relaxation as the curtain of water swept down his body, stripping away fatigue and doubt. He stepped forward at length into the antechamber where Andi stood examining the vast exhibition of drawings and writings that extended up the wall of the fabled staircase before them.
“We go up now?” Andi asked softly.
Alec silently nodded, and they began the long, arduous climb up the thousands of steps. The instructions on the walls were alive for Alec, many of them telling of ways to heal illnesses and injuries that Alec had faced over his long life, while many more, thousands more, told of situations he had never seen or attempted to heal.
The climb upward was timeless, and when they reached the top of the stairs Alec was neither surprised nor prepared.
The door stood waiting at the top of the landing. Andi looked back over her shoulder at him, knowing from his memories what was about to occur. He offered an encouraging smile, and motioned with his hand, then saw her open the door, and saw the bright flash occur within the room. He reached out to place a steadying hand on her shoulder for a moment, then released it and followed her in to the chamber.
As Alec entered a second flash shocked him, and he stood in stunned blindness as he waited for his eyes to adjust to the ambient conditions of the room.
Andi stood in front of the great window, looking out at the river valley, now bathed in bright sunlight. “You won’t ever receive a greater blessing in your life than coming here and being made a Healer,” he said to her as he walked up beside her.
She looked up at him with shining eyes, her face expressing enthusiasm. “Everything looks so vibrant out there! It’s as if the life forces were visible everywhere! It’s not like this for you all the time, is it?”
“No, once you leave here the power of the vision is different. It’s the power to see health, or illness and injury, and then you know how to treat and repair the injuries to your patients,” Alec answered.
They continued to stand and stare out the window for a long time, until Alec at last cleared his throat. “Are you ready to go? We have a long journey ahead, and even though there’s no hurry, we might as well get back to our shelter and pick up our supplies.”
“You don’t need to be in such a hurry, really,” a voice spoke from behind them, and both whirled to see a man standing in the rear of the chamber, small in stature, but bearing a visible sense of spirituality that filled the room. Alec immediately dropped to his knees, and Andi sensed the appropriateness of his action, kneeling as well.
“John Mark, my lord, it is a great blessing to see you. It has been such a long time,” Alec felt himself tremble at
the presence of the spirit of the saint.
“It has been a long time Alec. You’ve earned the right to not have my visitations for a long time. Haven’t you figured out by now that the only time you see me is when grave conditions are present on the earth, and the Lord has need of your service?” the saint was gentle, both mocking and instructive in his statement.
“You have a new acolyte, it appears,” John Mark nodded towards Andi.
“Acolyte is not indicative enough of the strength of this woman,” Alec replied. “This is Andi, with whom I share my own memories and who I have served, relied on, and chased after, in the course of the longest journey any two people have probably ever taken.”
“You are both extraordinary,” the saint commented. “This girl is choosing a rough path to walk if she is following in your footsteps. Are you willing to take up a portion of the burden Alec will carry?” he asked.
“I will assist Alec if he wants me, my lord, even if I had a choice, and I don’t, for his mind and soul are imprinted upon me,” Andi answered.
“I can change that,” John Mark told her. He knelt, so that his face was only a foot in front of hers, and looked into her eyes. “If you wish to be free, I can sever the connection, and you will no longer be troubled by the impulses and feelings and decisions he makes. There are tough times to come, and a deadly role for Alec to play. You do not have to be part of it, or suffer rejection when he chooses some greater good over your concerns.”
His steady gaze locked her eyes into his, so that she could not look away, as she thought about all that it meant to be connected to Alec.
“In just a few days, he will have his memory and his connection to me again, he told me,” she replied. “And when that happens, when it is the way it was before, and we can become as we were before, then it will all be worth it, my lord,” she replied, finally able to cast her eyes down at the ground.
“He will be sorely tested,” John Mark told her.
“All the more reason for us to support one another,” Andi replied.
“He will suffer, my daughter. The pain he may be exposed to would be overwhelming for most men,” John Mark said. “The bond between you would therefore cause you to suffer unbearable pain. You do not have to go through that. You can still support him as a Warrior ingenaire, and be a friend.”
Alec was following the conversation closely, contemplating the prospects of John Mark’s warning. “Andi, you asked me before to try to excise the memories and the connections between us. If John Mark can do it, let him be the one to make it happen – there will be no pain, no waiting, no danger. You should not be trapped in the pain of whatever is going to happen to me.”
“I’m strong enough to take it!” Andi shouted at them both. “There will be bad times, I know, but there was so much good in what we shared. Has there ever been a couple who were as close as we were? The union we can have will be so fulfilling for each of us, and such a source of strength for each of us, that I owe it to Alec to be his partner in this. I can give him comfort when he feels the pain. The connection is so powerful that even when he didn’t try to comfort me, Alec did give me strength, just by the fact that I knew he was coming after me, following me when I needed his aid.”
“You will be at risk as well – you personally – because of your association with Alec, if you do not release the connection,” the saint added a further warning.
“I will rely on my faith in Alec, and his faith in you, that what is good will prove triumphant, and I know that he is good,” Andi answered.
“It shall be as you wish then,” John Mark told her.
“Alec,” the saint turned to her companion. “You will face great challenges in the future you are destined to meet. Andi will need you; the whole world will need you. You will need allies, and you will need abilities to reach them. You are granted those abilities now.”
Alec looked at John Mark in puzzlement, until a moment later, when a patch on his arm grew warm. He pulled up his sleeve and saw the rippling mane on the galloping horse shine and flicker within his skin, the ingenaire mark of the Traveling powers. It was a sign of the restoration of the ability that allowed him to translocate himself physically from one location to another instantaneously.
“Master,” Alec began, looking up, “it is a marvelous gift. Thank you.” His eyes were shining.
“You’ll know when to use it Alec, and who to use it with,” John Mark replied. “You have once again been chosen to lift a heavy load, and to carry out difficult tasks, and given the severity of those tasks, it seems appropriate that you should have this tool at your command.”
“May I travel through time as well?” Alec asked, seeking to gain a further power.
“Ah! It’s not like you to ask for more!” John Mark smiled. “No, Alec, that tool remains too confusing, too powerful for humanity to hold. Take all the great gifts you’ve earned, and go in peace to serve the Lord.” He placed a hand briefly upon each of them in an unspoken benediction, then vanished.
Andi looked at Alec is astonishment. “That felt unlike anything I’ve ever known,” she told him.
“It makes an impression when you face the spirit of a holy man,” Alec agreed. “You cannot fail to have faith in the Lord.”
“Who is he?” Andi asked. “My access to your memories isn’t complete.”
“John Mark was brought by God to this world, to share and spread his message of God’s love. He came a long time ago, so long ago it was ancient before I even was born,” Alec gave a brief smile.
“That was a long time ago!” Andi laughed.
“He is revered by the leaders of the church in the Dominion as the holiest of figures,” Alec pretended to ignore the jibe.
“And he has just given us many things to think about and talk about,” he added as he began to stand up. “Shall we leave the cave and go on our journey?”
Together, they walked down the long flight of stairs, stopping both to examine the information that covered the walls and to catch their breath. When they reached the bottom of the cave, they left through the watery curtain and the mysterious door, then stood outside on the ledge that looked across the mountain valley. “You are a Healer now, Andi. The best of all the Houses, I say,” Alec told her. The clouds of the morning had cleared away, and the western sky was still blue as the sun began to set.
Half an hour later they returned to the cave where they had left their supplies. “I am starving!” Andi declared. “Shall we dig up your roots for dinner?”
“We,” he spoke in grandiose tones, “shall do no such thing! Tonight we’re going to go find whether there is a meal available for traveling visitors at a great palace,” he slung his bandolier over his shoulder, and picked up his pack. He removed his sword scabbard and handed it to Andi, who buckled it on with a perplexed look on her face.
“Alec, we’re in the wilderness,” she said. “I get the impression that the lacertii cities are closer than human settlements. Where are we going to eat?”
“Come here,” he held his arms open, eager for what was to come. Andi tilted her head and looked at him with a sideways glance, suspicious of the glee she felt in his spirit. She waited a dramatic beat, then stepped forward into his hug. “Take a breath,” Alec told her, and then her stomach flipped, the cave became dark and gray at the same time, and then she was standing on a windy height in an ancient ruin, looking out over a vast plain where a river ran towards the setting sun.
“This is an ancient ruin. When I entered Boundary Lake, I felt a reminder of this city Andi, though I don’t know why. Someday we’ll have time to come explore and try to find out if the two cities are related,” Alec said. He stared down at the river, and Andi sensed that emotional memories were at the forefront of his mind.
“This is my Traveler ability,” he said suddenly, looking up away from the river. “We’ll make two more jumps – it strains me to try to jump too far at once – and we’ll be in Goldenfields for the evening. We can try our luck at the p
alace to see what they might serve a couple of visitors for dinner.”
He closed his eyes for a moment, thinking about his next objective, and then they were in the midst of another movement, and they landed seconds later on a bluff that looked out over a winding river. Alec looked around behind him, and so did Andi. There, ten yards away, stood a tall stony obelisk that spouted water in an unceasing stream.
“Hey! Who are you? Move along; no one allowed near the fountain,” a voice called, and they both looked to see a guard walking towards them. Behind the guard, Alec realized he saw a large warehouse, a plain and unattractive building.
“We’re just visitors, here for a moment,” Alec answered. “We don’t intend any harm. We’ll be gone in a second.”
“You’ll be gone because I’m taking you to a cell,” the guard said, approaching with a swagger, holding his sword.
“Who is in charge of the fountain here? The Duke of Goldenfields?” Alec asked mildly.
“Maybe when my grandfather was alive the Duke ruled here; now this is the monopoly of the Scarl clan. What nonsense are you spouting?” the guard said, then gaped in shock as the couple in front of him disappeared. “Hey!” The guard shouted. He turned back towards the warehouse. “Gurve, did you see that?” he asked.
Shocked, Alec landed with Andi in a backroom of a tavern in Goldenfields. “Where are we? That was abrupt,” Andi said. Alec released his arms from around her and stood still, stunned.
“That wasn’t right,” Alec said softly. “That wasn’t right,” he repeated forcefully. “It doesn’t make sense that a Michian clan would control the fountain of healing water.
“I didn’t expect that,” he said, looking at Andi again.
“Let’s go to the palace, and see if the world is any less confusing there,” he said, opening the only door to the room.
“Alec, it’s been three hundred years or more since you’ve been here. There’s bound to be lots of changes,” Andi said gently, her hand reaching for his. He stopped and looked at her clear green eyes and smiled.
The Journey Home: The Ingenairii Series: Beyond the Twenty Cities Page 20