Rift Walker (Ember & Ash Book 1)

by E. A. Copen

  “So did it work?” asked one child “Did the Felmor end the war?”

  “In a manner of speaking, though not how they intended. They woke something up in the Black City. Something hungry. Something that reached into our world and nearly eradicated us. The crystals the humans call magicite grew out of everything, corrupting the land and the people. Sickness swept through our cities, driven by the presence of it.

  “The last of the Felmor magisters used his power to enter the Black City and sacrificed his life to bridge our world to a world beyond. Those who could, traveled through the rifts and came here, never to return to the world they left behind.”

  She slumped back against the wall of her hut as if telling the story exhausted her. “Today, our people camp near the rifts and keep to ourselves. Our scholars are working, just as the humans are, to close the portals we opened long ago. We keep to ourselves and dream of one day returning home.”

  “Do you think it’s possible?” asked an older boy with a long braid and bright eyes. “Can we really go home?”

  A heavy sigh escaped her lips. She closed her eyes. “My old bones do ache for the homeland. I wish my spirit could rest there instead of in this strange world, but even we cannot return through the rifts. Not yet. But perhaps one of you will be the one to change it.”

  No one comes back except for Ash. I pressed my lips together in thought. Why had he come back? How? “Say someone were to fall into a rift. What would happen to them?”

  “They’d die,” answered one child. “Don’t you know that?”

  “Hush, Jhearthe,” chided the Shainach.

  “So there’s no magic, Felmor or Elven, that you can think of that might let a person pass into a rift and come back safely?”

  She gripped her chair and leaned forward, her brow furrowed. “Girl, if I were to encounter anyone claiming to have survived such a feat, I would be very cautious. Not everything that looks human is. It is a lesson hard learned by the elves when we faced the Felmor. Rifts are not small magic that some enchanted trinket can protect you from.”

  “I know. It’s just…” I folded my hands and lowered my head. “I lost someone once.”

  “Then they are gone, and you must accept that,” said the Shainach, putting a hand on my back.

  “I have a question,” said Dex. “Why did the Telmara change their tune when she reacted to the presence in the sword?”

  The Shainach shrugged. “It’s obviously trying to communicate with her. We don’t know why, or how, but the Gwǽtach has chosen to speak to you, Ember. The Telmara tried to communicate with the spirit on their own, but to no avail. You have contacted a spirit that we hope will one day tell us much about the old world.”

  “But I don’t even have magic,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m nobody. I mean, I found the thing by accident.”

  The Shainach narrowed her eyes and pressed her lips together. “When something greater calls, you must answer. Be it fate, destiny, the gods, or an ancient spirit, we mortals can no more fight against the tides of the universe than we can stab the wind. It is the decision of the Telmara not to interfere, but to watch your progress with interest.”

  “From a safe distance, of course.” Dex grunted and folded his arms. “A lot of help you guys are.”

  She glared at him. “It is not the place of the Telmara to interfere with what we do not understand. We did that once, and it did not turn out so well for our people.” The Shainach rose, her hands on her lower back. “Now, children, it looks like it’s almost time to eat. Play, but stay out of the way of the cooks.”

  The children jumped up and bolted in every direction, chattering and giggling with each other. One girl stopped to pull on Dex’s ears. “Will you come play?”

  He winced. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

  The little girl’s face fell. “Oh.”

  “Go, child. These two have important matters to attend to.” The Shainach waved her off and pointed to the camp. “I think your friend is finally feeling better.”

  I rose from the ground and turned around. Zia wandered through the camp as if she were looking for familiar faces.

  “Go on,” urged the Shainach. “Enjoy the evening. Tomorrow morning, Leseran will escort you back to your convoy.”

  “Thank you, Shainach,” Dex said, rising.

  She dismissed his thanks with a wave of her hand. “Bah! Don’t thank me. You’re the idiot traveling with her. That puts you in the line of fire. Just don’t come crying to me when you get burned, young man. You’ll have to navigate all this without my help.”

  “Well, she was a laugh and a half,” Dex muttered to me as we left the Shainach’s hut behind. “Do you believe all that?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know what to believe, but I know we can’t tell anyone. If humans anywhere suspect the elves are behind the Cataclysm, even if it’s only a story, they’ll hunt them to the last, Dex.”

  He rubbed the back of his head and sighed. “You get the cool demon sword, and what do I get? Secrets to keep. Always the sidekick and never the hero. Typical.”

  “Cheer up, Dex.” I slapped his back, and he stumbled forward a step. “They say we’re all the heroes of our own stories. Maybe you just haven’t met your villain yet.”

  “Or maybe I have.” He cringed and nodded to Leseran coming down the road toward us, half-dragging Zia with him.

  When she saw us, Zia broke away and ran up to us, red faced. “There you two are! Please tell this pointy-eared idiot that we need to go. Now. I’ve already been away from my vampires too long.”

  To his credit, Leseran took the insult in stride. “If you leave now, you’ll be passing through Heretic territory in the dark. I didn’t have the healers save your life just so you could go get killed. Besides, we’ll make better time in the daylight. I’ll have you back to your convoy by midday tomorrow. You have my word. Now, if you’ll excuse me…” He put a fist to his chest, bowed, and took off.

  Zia lifted her arms and let them fall limply to her sides. “What are we supposed to do in the meantime? Just sit around and wait?”

  Dex slid behind me. “Is that a whole orzalope they’re roasting over there? Well, I know what I’m doing.”

  “Seriously, Dex? All you can think of is to eat at a time like this?” Zia frowned.

  “Well, that’s not all, but my father is part of this group, and I’ve got no idea which of the others are my siblings. I wouldn’t want to accidentally seduce one of them, would I?” He hooked his arms over our shoulders and pulled us toward the firepit.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The elves, for all their flaws, really knew how to live. They gathered for their meals communally and broke off into small groups to socialize and eat. I had never seen an orzalope before that day, let alone eaten one. If I had to place it, I’d put it somewhere between mutton and venison without the gaminess. They served us each a large portion of meat so tender it fell easily off the bone along with a healthy helping of purple potatoes, yellow carrots, and some wilted greens I couldn’t identify. It was all perfect.

  Dex, Zia and I kept mostly to ourselves, finding a small patch of grass at the edge of the small clearing. I ate and watched the elves talk and laugh amongst themselves. Occasionally, one would throw a look our way, but mostly, they ignored their guests. That was fine with me. I’d had enough of being the center of attention for a while.

  “I suppose I should thank you, Dex,” Zia said, pushing her meat around in the wooden bowl they’d given her.

  Dex looked up from his food and swallowed. “Me? Why? What did I do?”

  Zia sighed and put the bowl down. “Well, if you hadn’t convinced the elves to heal me, I’d have become one of those things.”

  “It’s nothing you wouldn’t have done for me,” Dex said, shrugging one shoulder.

  She opened her mouth, closed it, grimaced, and turned away.

  I got the feeling what Dex said wasn’t true. If the roles had been reversed, she would�
��ve left him to his fate. All the more reason for me to keep my situation a secret. I cleared my throat. “So, Zia, does the Institute have files on the elves?”

  “Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes. “We have entire databases dedicated to them and the dwarves. While most humans are content to think they’re a myth, we’ve spent the last few decades studying them. And of course I knew about Dex being half-elf. I did extensive background checks within the Institute databases on everyone who joined the hunt.”

  Dex touched the tops of his ears, a self-conscious but instinctive gesture.

  “I won’t tell anyone,” Zia promised. “It means nothing to me, so long as you do your job.”

  “I’m not sure how I feel about the Institute keeping tabs on me,” Dex said, frowning.

  “Don’t feel anything. They have files on everyone these days. Well, almost everyone.” She glanced at me. “Some people’s files are more complete than others.”

  As the eating waned, the atmosphere around us changed. People started gathering in larger groups, the conversations becoming louder and more playful. Music started somewhere, and where there’s music, there’s dancing, even among elves.

  Dex watched the dancers move with interest, the shadow of their graceful movements flickering across his face.

  I put a hand on his arm. “Are you okay?”

  He forced a smile. “Me? I’m ecstatic. I mean, why wouldn’t I be? For most of my childhood, all I wanted was to run away and find the elves and see what that side of my family was like. Turns out, elves are just as full of shit as humans.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  He shrugged. “It’s not news to me. I’ve been out here before, remember?” His expression darkened. “But what we learned from the Shainach… It’s troubling.”

  I glanced over at Zia. She was listening in on our conversation. I didn’t trust her not to blab to the Institute, so I figured it would be best if I steered the conversation away from how the elves had probably destroyed the world.

  I shrugged. “It could be worse. It could always be worse.”

  Zia snorted. “Saying something like that invites trouble. On that note, I think I’m going to turn in. I want to be on the road at first light. The sooner we can get back to my vampires, the better off we’ll all be.” She stood and started back down the hill for the small hut Dex and I had been in earlier.

  I watched her go, thinking about how different things might’ve turned out if even one detail of the last few days had changed. If the heretics hadn’t ambushed us and taken Zia, I never would’ve learned about the creature in the sword. Meeting the elves had also given me hope that maybe the crystal infected scar across my stomach could be cured. They had extracted the magicite from Zia, after all. Maybe they knew some ancient form of healing that could help me. I had wanted to bring it up to the Shainach, but I was afraid. The elves might kick us out, or Dex might decide I was better off dead. For so long, I had kept it a secret, trusting no one. If I wanted a chance to change my future, to survive, then I’d have to trust someone eventually enough to ask, and my time with the elves was running out.

  “It’s amazing they could heal her,” I said. “I always thought magicite ingestion was fatal.”

  “The heretics survive it.”

  “But not forever. It infects them, changes them. Once it gets in you, there’s no going back. At least, that’s what I always thought. Do you realize what this means? If the elves have a technique that can help people…”

  Dex sighed. “It means nothing. They won’t share their methods with outsiders. I wouldn’t be surprised if even Zia doesn’t remember what they did. Elven magic is a closely guarded secret. Yet another reason they don’t care much for me.” He looked down at his palm and flexed his fingers. “For most people, magic isn’t innate. You have to use magicite infused items, or be exposed to small amounts of it over time. Even most humans who are born with powers have them because of exposure in the womb to trace amounts. But the elves, it’s as natural to them as breathing.”

  “I don’t understand why they’d have anything against that. I mean, it’s not like you chose any of this.”

  He made a fist. “I was expected to suppress what I could do. Even growing up, I had to hide my ears, hide my powers. Even if mom hadn’t made me, I would’ve done it myself. I wanted to fit in. Besides, I knew the price of having powers. If people found out, I’d get sent away to one of those magic schools run by DEMO.”

  DEMO was almost as bad as the Institute when it came to abuse of power, and they had offices and agents everywhere.

  They also ran the magic academies, which snatched children away from their homes and families as soon as they showed signs of ability, and sequestered them in boarding schools. Of course, wealthy families could afford to send their kids to upper class academies where they were well taken care of, but I doubted that was Dex’s experience. For the average kid, the academies were a grueling gauntlet of trials, tests, and training. In the end, academy kids were passed to the Institute, went to work for local governments, or joined a guild. There weren’t many career prospects beyond that for someone with magical talent. At least, not legal ones.

  Dex picked up a stick and started doodling in the dirt. “They eventually sniffed me out. I was the best elementalist in my class. You’d never know it, though. I learned the hard way it was better to pretend to be mediocre, so I didn’t show up the human kids. Fewer black eyes that way.”

  “That must’ve been hard.”

  “Life’s hard. For everyone. I’m not special.” He shook his head and tossed the stick away. “Anyway, I don’t know the first thing about healing magic. Not my area. Now, if you want a flaming inferno the size of an elephant or a wall of ice, I’m your man.”

  “Half a man, anyway,” said Leseran. He’d sneaked up behind us, silent. He smirked and folded his hands behind his back. “I escorted your friend back to the guest quarters and put a guard on the door. Will you two be joining her or do I have to keep babysitting you from the shadows?”

  “Actually,” I said, standing, “I’d like to talk to the people who healed Zia.”

  “Why?” Leseran looked me up and down as if I’d just announced I wanted to eat his firstborn.

  I lifted my arm. “I thought maybe they’d like to look at this warg bite.” It was a pretense. The bite was already healing nicely aside from a little pain whenever I moved the arm, but if it got me an audience alone with the healers, I’d take it.

  “Is it bothering you? I could take a look,” Dex offered.

  I raised an eyebrow. “No offense, but you just got done telling me you don’t know the first thing about healing magic.”

  “Well, magic isn’t everything.” He crossed his arms.

  “Let me see.” Leseran grabbed my arm and yanked on it.

  I let out a pained gasp and hissed through my teeth as he poked it through the bandage.

  “Hmm. Warg bites can be serious. It looks like you could do with a change of bandages as well.” He let go of my arm. “I suppose if I take you to the healers, I’ll get a few minutes to enjoy the evening, provided the half-ears minds his distance.”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Dex muttered. “I’ll just sit here like a good half-ears. No trouble at all.”

  “Very well then. Follow me.” Leseran stepped around Dex and started around the perimeter of the post-dinner merriment.

  I followed him to the far side of the clearing where a group of elves with white collars sat, just apart from the rest of the group. The collared elves moved among the people gathered—which ranged in age from the very old to the very young—and helped them with their food. Some of them needed to be fed, either because they had extensive injuries, or seemed to have some other issue I couldn’t see. There were patients who were confined to chairs, elder elves who could no longer sit up on their own, and small children that barely stopped running back and forth long enough to grab a bite of food.

  I immediately felt guilty for
interrupting what seemed to be a regular evening. The healers already had their hands full.

  A white-collared elf with stripes of silver in her brown hair came to greet us. She spoke briefly with Leseran in Elvish before beckoning to me. “Come, come. Let’s have a look.”

  “I’m sorry to bother you,” I offered as she showed me to a bench sitting away from the others.

  “It’s no bother if you’ve got a wound. Now, let’s see it.”

  I extended my arm. She carefully unwrapped the dressing, and I winced at the sight of it. The warg bite was indeed healing, but it’d left my forearm bruised a deep shade of purple. A jagged line of broken skin marked the bite.

  “My, my. That’s quite a wound. Let me take care of it for you.” She placed her hands gently over my bruised forearm.

  “A warg bit me. One of the heretic’s wargs. It could be infected with…” I trailed off as the warmth of her healing magic enveloped my arm. It was as comforting as a warm bath on a chilly day at first. Then the lightning bolt of pain struck across my abdomen. I pulled my arm away with a pained cry.

  The healer was stunned for a moment until she calmly rose. “Neesa, watch the children for me. We’ll need privacy. Come with me, human.”

  “But—”

  The healer bent over and hissed in my ear. “Don’t make a fuss. If Leseran and his warriors find out, you’ll be dead within the hour. Now, come with me.”

  I pressed my lips together and glanced over at the other healers who were giving me curious looks. There was no choice but to go with her. I followed the healer to one of the white-roofed huts just behind where they had gathered for their meal. She held open the door flap for me and I slipped inside.

  Unlike the other huts, this one had several sections divided into rooms by white sheets hanging from the spokes in the ceiling. She ushered me into a room and had me sit on a platform in the center.