"I understand. We'll keep to the same story."
"Thank you."
"And the Seeker?"
"Sent back to her lands. I returned her horse and provisions, gave her a few extra supplies, and two guards are escorting her as far as Driavarage. From what she has said, she made a favorable impression on the man in charge of the village’s defenses. He'll make sure she gets the rest of the way home."
"Good." At least Ean hoped it was good. The Seekers might always be an enemy of his, but if he had swayed Kaytlin even the slightest, maybe the others could be shown he wasn't a threat.
"Now"–Haavian's tone became more serious, if such a thing was possible–"I have a matter of importance to discuss with you. Until I learn otherwise, I will take what I've heard happened in the throne room from your companions as fact. My men have been spreading the story of your defeat of the monster, Raneth. Unfortunately being a creature of the Abyss, and a powerful one at that, some are sure to come to their own conclusions."
"And think I summoned the creature that 'killed' The Silent King." Ean finished.
"Indeed. The majority of the people in these lands practically worshipped our false king without having seen him once. His death will surely create some ill will towards you, regardless of the stories my men spread. I don't want my people to think of you as an enemy waiting to strike at us again."
"Neither do I."
"What they need is another reason to view you in a positive light. Your companions informed me that the reason you were here was to help re-establish trade with Ven Khilada. Is that true?"
"Yes, although with your steady supply of fish, Raneth wasn't really interested in finding other sources of untainted food."
"Well, I am. In our situation, control is important, but my focus is on the well-being of ALL of the citizens of these lands. I want fish flowing out of Novufyr and fresh food transported up from Ven Khilada. Will you still help broker a deal with the trade families in Lurthalan?"
"I will," Ean said, giving it some thought, "but I'll need someone else to oversee that everything runs smoothly. I plan on returning to Rottwealth, and that's much farther south than Lurthalan. We'll need someone that isn't tied down to one location. Someone that can travel between both lands who won't have to worry about what might happen every time they cross the border."
Ean leveled his gaze at Dao.
"But I just got back!" Dao's voice hovered between outrage and a whine. "I haven't even had the chance to completely unpack."
"A new home given to you by some monster." Haavian waved off the man's argument. "As a sign of good faith, I won't have you arrested or have your property seized. But you will do your part for this country."
"Someone else could--"
"Are you willing to give up your ring?" Ean asked. "Or do you know of any others that exist?"
"No. And no."
"I could certainly use your help in securing a trade deal. I'm not exactly the best negotiator."
"Well, I suppose I couldn't let an amateur like yourself make this deal all on your own . . . "
"Good! Then I guess we'll be traveling together a little longer."
"Oh joy," Azalea murmured.
"We don't have to leave right away, do we?" Dao looked like the wind had been taken out of his sails. "I'd like to spend one more night in my home before having to go on another extended trip."
"We can leave tomorrow," Ean answered, then gave a questioning look to Haavian. "If that's ok with you."
"I don't mind. You and your party can stay here one more night. I just would not push it past that. Best to be on your way before the story of what happened here spreads too far ahead of you. I'll give you a small escort and make sure you make it to the border uncontested. There is a place I feel would be a good location for a settlement that my men will bring you to. By the time you make your deals and the first shipment is headed towards our lands, I'll have something established there waiting to meet that first caravan."
"Understood."
"Well then, if you will excuse me, there is still much that needs to be done." Haavian took a few steps towards the door before glancing over his shoulder. "Dao? Are you coming?"
"What?"
"How will you negotiate for our people if you don't have a detailed knowledge of what we have to offer Ven Khilada?"
"I . . . uh . . . "
"You will accompany me the rest of the day so we can discuss what we are willing to offer and what we are not. If you pay close attention, you might be able to get home for that 'one last night of sleep' before you have to leave in the morning."
Dao got to his feet with slow, overdrawn movements. He looked like a child being forced to do his chores. If the man stomped his feet in frustration, Ean couldn't guarantee he wouldn't burst out laughing. As much as he liked Dao, it was good to see the man's swagger and cockiness swept aside. If only for a few moments. When both men had gone–Haavian's steps small and precise while Dao dragged his feet–Ean rose.
"Well, I need to stretch my legs a bit. Anyone care to join me?"
"Going out to walk amongst the people?" Azalea asked.
"No, that probably wouldn't be the best idea. Just going to roam the halls, get out of the room for a bit."
"Count me in then."
"Zin?"
"No, I'll stay here. You two have a nice little time."
"Why, Zin," Azalea placed a hand to her cheek. "Not jealous of me being with Ean alone for a change?"
"Nope."
"Well, good for you!" Azalea wrapped an arm around Ean's waist. "I promise not say too many insulting things about you while we're alone."
"I'm not worried," Zin said, climbing up onto a table that held a bowl of fruit, "because I can feel Ean's emotions now just like you. If he starts getting bored, I'll know you're speaking poorly about me."
"Why bored?"
"Because you can only repeat the same things over and over again. You have nothing new to say about me. So go have your walk. And try not to bore our boy too much."
Azalea's face scrunched up and her dark red eyes seemed to flare. Ean grabbed her waist and lead her from the room. He could feel the anger radiating off of her, but she kept quiet. Instead, her arm tightened around his waist. It felt good. His legs, after all, weren't as strong yet as he had hoped. And possibly for other reasons.
Behind them, Zin began to laugh.
***
"Well, boy," Kaytlin said, leaning forward to rub Rook's neck, we're almost home."
The mist and fog had started to lessen as they traveled south, which made her at least hope they were almost home. Without any real trail to follow and the always-present mist and fog, it was hard to tell if she had been traveling south the entire time since she left Driavarage. It had taken all of her attention the past few days to keep the same heading. When she camped, she placed markers, so she would head in the same direction when she woke. Between her instincts and the steed's, she was confident they were heading in the right direction, freeing her mind to focus on other things--like what she would tell the other Seekers about Ean Sangrave.
The man was a danger to the world and a menace to all who knew him, yet he didn't seem to want to hurt anyone. Kaytlin had been impressed by his courage in facing the Nar'Grim. She had only read about such monsters in the libraries deep in Alistar's temple, but she knew enough to know that she wouldn't have stood a chance against the creature. An army of Seekers might not have. Only Ean had the key to destroying its power.
And the young man seemed to stumble upon it rather than know what he was doing.
The trouble was that he had power. A power that must surely lead to his eventual corruption. It was only a matter of time. If he could be turned away from using that power, or better yet, if it could be taken from him, he might be saved.
His company, on the other hand, probably wouldn't let that happen. The imp was nothing. She had stomped out her fair share of the little creatures. Mindless things whose only crime was comin
g from the Abyss. But a Yulari . . . Kaytlin still didn't know if this Azalea was a follower of Ean or was making him dance to her whims. Sure, Ean seemed to defy her on multiple occasions, but Yulari were tricky beasts. She had once freed a whole trade caravan from a Yulari that had hidden and manipulated their group for years. Yulari could be patient. If this one was just using Ean--
Rook stumbled and fell, which sent Kaytlin flying from the saddle. The ground rose up to greet her. The shock of being thrown by Rook, something that had never happened before, kept her from getting her hands up in time. Her shoulder dug into the dirt a moment before her head smacked the ground. Her vision swirled.
Rook's screams burned away the haze. The first thing Kaytlin saw as she rolled onto her side was that the mist was gone. Not gone, she could see the edge of it, swirling against the magical barrier that kept it at bay. She was back in Ven Khilada. Then her gaze sought out her steed and what she found made her blood run cold.
Her long-time friend and mount was lying on his side, legs kicking weakly. His screams and whinnies had stopped, replaced by the raspy gurgle as it struggled for breath, the hacking wheeze of the dying.
They must have crossed out of the Deadlands.
The Plague, when it infiltrated flesh, became like immortal glue, changing tissue, making it less pliable and comely, yet at the same time, holding it together indefinitely, so that neither could survive without the other. That is why there was no way to cure the Plague. Removing it was no less a danger to a body than draining away the blood. So when Rook's beautiful brown fur began to fall away in patches, the condition spreading out over his body, Kaytlin knew with horrible dread that the magic had begun to take effect. As it ate away at the Plague, it dissolved the immortal glue holding her beloved steed together. "No," Kaytlin said hoarsely, eyes welling with tears. "Dear gods, no. He's just an innocent animal."
She met his eyes for a moment, and then had to look away. Kaytlin couldn't watch. Couldn't stand those questioning eyes. How could you explain to an animal that it was going to die? How could she apologize to him, knowing that it was her decision to take him into the Deadlands when she knew the risks involved. Risks that hadn't accomplished anything. She hadn't stopped Ean, hadn't killed any of his companions. All she had managed to do was get herself captured and now her horse killed.
Her eyes returned to her friend. If nothing else, she owed him the pain of watching his death. Their eyes locked and she held his gaze until there was nothing left for her to see.
A wail escaped her and she cried into the dirt until the light of day disappeared.
Epilogue
Days and nights passed. Kaytlin moved along in a daze. The cold of the season didn't touch her despite the patches of frost that tipped the grass of the plains. She walked until her feet hurt and her eyes refused to stay open. Then she slept. Her exhaustion kept her dreams away more often than not. When she did dream, they were always the same. Always of Rook. Not the vision of what had happened to him. Just his cries. His cries in an endless sea of darkness and sorrow. When her mind couldn't handle those cries anymore, she woke, gathered her things, and started moving again.
When her boot crunched down on the packed dirt and cobblestone of a road, Kaytlin finally roused herself from the void she had been hiding in. She was on the road that led into the southeastern section of Lurthalan. Somehow she had walked right past the city itself. Part of her wondered if she had missed the road if she would have kept on walking down into the eastern section of Rensen forest. That same part didn't much care if she had, even considered walking into the forest anyway.
But that would be foolish. She needed to go home.
The temple of GanZroe loomed ahead, its massive tower covered in twisting vines while trees, gardens, and small ponds dotted the ground around it. During the warmer seasons, the temple was a thing of beauty, every species of plant life bloomed a rainbow of colors around the temple and of the dual god of the earth and water. Now, this far into the Freeze, all were bare. The only colors to be seen were the pale browns and greens of hibernating plant life. How different would her life have been if she had been the follower of GanZroe instead of Alistar. She would have had a peaceful life of tending the earth, making things grow and thrive. Rook would still be alive.
The main gate stood open just a little further ahead. It was always open. No point in closing the gate when the wall still stood unfinished. It wrapped a bit more around the city than when she had last left. Its Vithalos constructors stood inanimate, their handlers nowhere to be found. They could be on a break or finished for the day. Kaytlin didn't care enough to look skyward to determine which.
The guards at the gate, just as much for show as the gate itself, roused themselves at her approach.
"Do you need help?" one asked. "Lady Seeker?"
How she must look for a guard to even address her. Most cowered at the sight of any of the Seekers. Kaytlin ignored his question and continued on into the city. The main street headed north, eventually curving west towards Melcoi Bridge. It was at that curve that the path leading to the temple of Alistar sat.
She walked that path as she had so many times before. The temple loomed ahead of her, its usually welcoming architecture casting a shadow across her path. Was she ready to enter those halls? Have the statues of Alistar look down on her with judgment in their eyes?
Kaytlin turned off the path and headed for the stables.
The scent of hay and wood and a few other choice smells took a bit of the edge out of her muscle pains. The feel of the wooden stable door was a comfort. She moved inside. Rook's stable sat open and empty. Kaytlin's heart broke again. She stumbled into it and sat down in the hay and mud, her back to the door. Tears began to swell in her eyes.
"Miss, are you ok?"
The stable boy. It wouldn't do for him to see her in tears. Mud and grime were one thing. Part of the traveling that she did. But he could not see her in a moment of weakness. She wiped her eyes and kept her back to him.
"I'm fine . . . "–she struggled to remember his name–" . . . boy. Just give me a moment."
"You haven't been waiting here long, have you? I only took him out for a moment to groom him and rub his muscles."
"What do you mean . . . "
Kaytlin turned and found the boy looking up at her. In his hand a pair of reins.
Connected to those reins was a horse that looked exactly like Rook. Her breath caught.
"He wandered in just yesterday," the boy continued. "The other stable boys told me he sometimes comes back without you."
It wasn't possible. Couldn't be . . .
The horse dipped his head forward and nuzzled its nose against her chest.
Kaytlin couldn't hold back the tears. They flowed freely as she caressed Rook's neck. Her senses–touch, smell, sight, sound–all told her this was her Rook.
"Where . . . " she couldn't find the words. A joy she hadn't felt in ages overwhelmed her senses.
"It is a gift, child. For surviving what comes next."
"Next?" she asked, unashamed of the sobs that made her voice crack. The boy's voice had changed to that of a man. Deep and powerful, like it had the strength of a thousand men behind it.
"Yes. You failed your god. You were weak when you should have destroyed that man connected to the Abyss. I must temper you into a stronger weapon."
"Lord Alistar?" Was this really her patron deity? "But--"
A flash of light and pain beyond imagining filled her.
Then nothingness.
***
Ean walked into the High Horse Inn, Dao not far behind him. He had sent Azalea and Zin with the Hound ahead of them back to Rottwealth. There had been protests, a bit of yelling, and Ean's shoulder still ached from where Azalea had struck it, but he had won in the end. With his temporary truce with Kaytlin, there wasn't any other threat for them to worry about. Easier for him to enter the city with Dao, establish contact with one of the Hawkpurse families, and then be on their way.
<
br /> And the best place to look for a Hawkpurse as dusk settled over Lurthalan was the most prestigious inn and tavern in the city.
As expected, the inn was filled with people. The bar was packed with bodies, and most of the smaller tables closer to the entrance were full. A few of the larger ones closer to a stage had some free spaces on their benches. A single man with a lute sat on stage, his fingers moving along strings and his voice a muffled hum that Ean couldn't make out at this distance. Ean motioned towards the larger tables with his head.
"Some space over there."
"Might be quicker to get drinks at the bar." Ean had gotten used to making out what Dao was saying through his scarf. "I'll head there, you find us a seat. Order a round if the waitress gets to you before I get back. Having a few extra never hurts."
Ean laughed and gave the man a friendly push towards the bar. A narrow path led from the door to the tables, fenced off by partitions for the waitresses and entering patrons to use. He followed it out to the rows of long tables and found an open spot on a bench. Taking a seat, he glanced around as the storyteller on stage finished his story.
Men and women in all different manners of dress made up the crowd. He focused his attention on the finer dressed of the patrons, hoping he might see something that would indicate they were part of a Hawkpurse family. He doubted he would be that lucky, but it was worth a shot. In the end, he would probably just end up asking around to find the type of people he was looking for.
Up on stage, the storyteller began the Ballad of Bran. Ean smiled and shook his head. Let the man have his glory. Despite how Bran felt about Ean, the man had killed the monster in Rottwealth on his own. He deserved some glory, and it was foolish of Ean to begrudge him that. When he returned to Rottwealth, he would try to fix his relationship with the man. At the least they could be cordial. With all of this madness with the Deadlands coming to an end, it would be good to fix his relationship with all of the people of Rottwealth.
Enemies and Allies (Bound to the Abyss Book 3) Page 35