Wanderer

by Nancy E. Dunne

  “We have to keep moving, but no more fighting, Elys,” Teeand said. “We need to be ready for when we meet Salynth, and I need both of you on your toes this time.” Elysiam opened her mouth to protest but he held up a hand. “No arguments lass. Gin might have gotten our Sath back into the fight faster if she’d had a bit of help back there.” Elysiam scowled but nodded her compliance. “And as for you,” he said, turning to Anni, “keep that calming spell up and playing, yeah? I don’t know if it will work on the dragonkind but it might keep her minions from noticing us.”

  Anni stared at him, saucer-eyed. “What are you talking about, Teeand?” she said, feigning innocence.

  “I’m talking about whatever you were doing that made our Ginolwenye miss a healing spell on Sathlir. I have seen you mooning over him. The only way to keep him safe is to stay away from our Ginolwenye. Do you understand me?” Tee hissed at her in Qatunari. She nodded. “Good. Now, let’s move on through to the next floor. Gin? Elys? We’ll need a new invisibility spell once we land, quick as you ladies can, yes?”

  “Thanks, Tee,” Sath said. “I’ll be back to 100% soon, and…”

  “Save it, Cat,” Teeand said, grinning. “Let’s go get your Kazhmere and get out of here. I’m about ready for some warm and sand and sun once we’re finished here.”

  “And maybe a few fire dancers from Qatu’anari?” Sath said, grinning back at his old friend. Teeand laughed heartily and nodded at Sath, then moved to the enchanted doorway.

  “Let’s get this over with,” Hackort said as he joined Tee. “I hate this magic stuff. It makes me itchy.” Elysiam strode over and wrapped a protective arm around Hack’s helmet. He grinned up at her and then held a small hand out to Gin. “Come on, Ginny!” he called out. Grimacing at the nickname, the druid joined the group along with Anni and Sath brought up the rear. Anni stepped through the doorway and then reached back through. Gin grabbed her arm and Anni suddenly yanked her through the doorway before Sath had a chance to take her hand.

  “What the…?” Elysiam ran at the door that had swung shut, intent on following her sister druid through to the next floor, but bounced off the wood and back into Teeand’s waiting arms.

  “NO.” Sath ran at the doorway and because he had been there before he started passing through it. “Tee, wait, if I’m not back in…well, you know…”

  “Aye, Sath,” Teeand said, his voice breaking a bit. “You go get your Kazhmere and our Gin.” Sath passed on through the doorway, but not before he heard Elysiam cursing Teeand. The dwarf was not going to have an easy time of it.

  “This is wrong!” she screamed at Teeand. “We have to get Gin out of there!”

  “Just be still a moment, lass!” Tee screamed back. Hack was beating the doorway with his axe, and Tee had to haul him back by his neck. “And you, wee man, you’ll break the doorway and then where will we be?” He flopped down on the floor, his breath heaving. “Now, listen, here’s the plan. I can get through the doorways too. We just need to give Sath time to make Anni think she’s got the upper hand.”

  “Seriously?” Elysiam asked. “You expect us to believe that you got all of that from a look?”

  “He and Sath have been together even longer than we have, Elys,” Hack said, his voice quiet and cautious, “and I sometimes know exactly where you need me to be in a fight just from a look.” Elysiam looked down at Hack, and the blazing fury in her eyes faded.

  “I know, I know all of that,” she said, clearly defeated. “But I just wanted to…I mean I think we need to…” She paused, biting her lip and trying to get herself together before she burst into tears. “I want that Anni, Tee,” she whispered. “She’s been lying to us the whole time, and now we’ve given her what she wants. SATH.” Fury began to ignite in her eyes again. “There probably isn’t even a Kazhmere! I bet that bard made it all up, so that she could get Sath alone and now…now she is…now Gin is… Oh, Ikara’s TEETH she’s got them where she wants them and we can’t help because YOU WON’T ACTIVATE THE DOORWAY!”

  Teeand took a deep breath before speaking. He had learned through raising his many children that greeting anger with anger will never help anything. Elysiam was standing over him, waiting for an answer, and Hack had risen to his feet and was tugging on her tunic, trying to rein her back in to calm. The dwarf looked up at the wood elf. “Elysiam, sit down,” he said in his most authoritative voice. She just stared at him. “SIT.” Elysiam plopped down on the ground in a huff and Hack scooted over close to her, putting a hand on her knee that she promptly shook off. “Now, Hack was right when he said that I don’t always need to talk to Sath to know what’s going on with him or what his next move will be. But this is not one of those times.” Elysiam started to hop back up but Hackort held her down.

  “You’re mighty brave for such a tiny wee man, Hackort,” she snarled at him.

  “Elys, please…” Hackort and Elysiam shared a look for a moment, and then she relented. “Now, go on, Tee,” the gnome said.

  “I’m guessing that Sath is going to let Anni think she has the upper hand and then take her down, because she’s just a young bard and shouldn’t be any trouble for him, really,” Tee said. “But that won’t work if all of us go charging in after him.” The dwarf laid a fatherly hand on Elysiam’s arm, but she yanked it away. “None of us want to see Gin get hurt, Elys, lass. None of us. Nevertheless, you know our Sath will not let that happen. He will send for us when he needs us, or when I feel it has been too long we will go on through the doorway and go find them. However, for now, our Elys, you need to remain calm. Please?”

  Elysiam snorted. “Me. Calm. Sure, no problem,” she said, rising to her feet and beginning to pace back and forth in front of the doorway. “No problem.”

  “That’s not going to last very long, Tee,” Hack said, leaning over to whisper to the dwarf. “She isn’t going to be reasonable for long. Gin is the only druid from Aynamaede that will have anything to do with Elys any more, you know that. When she calls Gin her sister-druid, she means it.” He rubbed his face with his tiny hands. “What can we do to help Gin and Sath?”

  “Give them a few more minutes,” Teeand said. “But I’m getting a bit uneasy myself, if I’m honest. Young bard or not, that Anni has some natural skill and talent and I fear that Sath is underestimating her because he’s the…because he is who he is,” he continued, hoping that he had covered for his slip well enough. It would do no good to out Sath at this point. Besides, Elysiam was not likely to believe him anyway.

  “Okay but only a few. If I have to stun you and carry you through that doorway, little green man, you know that I will do it,” Elysiam barked. Teeand glared back at her for as long as he could, but his face soon split into a wide grin and he laughed heartily. Hackort joined in the laughter and finally Elysiam grinned. “Well, I would certainly try,” she said.

  “Aye, of course you would, Elys,” Teeand said, getting to his feet. “Gin and Sath are family, and you don’t abandon family, regardless of how hard-headed they are.” He winked at Elysiam as she grinned back. “Oh, fine, we’ve given them enough time. What is it our Gin says? Doorway ahoy, everyone hug the dwarf!” Hackort laughed and grabbed onto one of Teeand’s arms as Elysiam grimaced and grabbed the other one. The three of them walked toward the doorway and passed through as though it was made of water. “Elys? Invisibility magic now, please?”

  “Anni, what are you doing? Why are you doing this?” Gin whispered as Anni dragged her down the corridors of the uppermost floor of the Tower. “Please, I will help if I can, please just…”

  “Do you never, ever shut up?” Anni exclaimed, turning to face Gin as she skidded to a stop. “Seriously, you talk more than the other four put together except maybe that other wood elf. It must be in your genes or something.” She resumed her frantic pace as she zoomed up and down hallways, her nose in the air. Gin struggled against her but Anni’s grip was so strong that she could not pry the Qatu’s strong hand off her arm.

  “Okay, I didn’t w
ant to do this, but…” Gin summoned up a fiery magic that set the fur on Anni’s arm alight. The Qatu howled in pain as she released Gin and beat at the flames to put them out. Gin saw her opening and ran, trying to remember the path they had just come but failing. All the hallways looked the same to her.

  “GIN!” At the sound of Sath’s voice, Gin’s heart leaped up into her throat. “ANNI?” He was livid; Gin could tell that from his tone, and with each call, it sounded as though he was getting closer. She pressed on; following what she thought was a Qatu shadow moving away from her, always one turn ahead of her. Finally, she was close enough and leaped forward, grabbing at a tail that was disappearing from view.

  “What the?” Anni looked down and beamed a toothy grin at Gin, who was clinging to her tail. “WRONG cat, druid,” she said as she snatched Gin up from the floor. “Well, wrong for you anyway. Now, we have to find Kazhmere, come on.” Gin shrieked but this time Anni was ready and she wasted no time wrapping one of her clawed hands around Gin’s face to stop her from making any more noise.

  “Annilanshi!” Sath roared as he followed the weak trail of her scent. “If one hair on the wood elf’s head is harmed, just one hair, I will forget who I am and take it out of your hide!”

  “Forget who you are?” Salynth said as she appeared in the hallway Sath had just run through. “I won’t forget who you are, Cat, now that I have your little sister in my thrall.” Sath skidded to a halt and spun around to glare at the dragonkind sorceress. “Oh, my you are a handsome one, aren’t you?” she said, licking her lips. “Pet, what shall we do with this one? Would you like another kitty to keep you company?”

  A puff of smoke blinded Sath for a moment and he pawed at it, trying to speed it to disperse. Next to Salynth, he saw a young elf in a tattered cobalt robe wearing a heavy-looking metal collar around his neck. Salynth tapped her foot impatiently and then gave the chain a violent yank. “Pet?”

  “Aye, Mistress, if you think I should have more than one cat. My will is yours,” the elf said. Sath could clearly see the disgust on the Elvish features. His red hair, streaked with white, was tied back by a piece of leather but was escaping in wisps around his sharply featured face. His wrists bore scars from previous heavy chains, probably not unlike the one currently around his neck. There was something familiar about him, but Sath could not afford the time required to search his memory.

  “Another…Cat?” Sath asked, daring to hope. “Enough games, witch, show me where my sister Kazhmere is at once!” He puffed up his chest as he had seen his father do hundreds of times, in an effort to look bigger than he was and intimidate the sorceress. She laughed in his face.

  “Your sister, the Princess, is here in my Tower. On that point you are exactly right,” she hissed, a maniacal smile spreading across her dark features. “But to show you where would take away the fun, don’t you think? People don’t want to work for things anymore,” she said, wringing her hands. “I think we should have a scavenger hunt, what do you think, Pet?”

  “You don’t have to help her,” Sath said to the elf. “We can help you, me and my friends. We will get you and my sister safely out of here.”

  “What makes you think he wants to leave?” Salynth roared. She flung some brightly colored magical butterflies at the elf’s face, and he smiled as he watched them flit about. “Do you want to leave me, my Pet?”

  “Of course not, Mistress,” he said, his voice soft and childlike.

  Anni heard voices around the next corner. Sath? Had he found the witch? Tightening her grip on the druid, she ran forward and came upon the other three standing in the corridor. Salynth laughed heartily and clapped her hands when she saw Anni.

  “What have you brought me, Kitty Cat?” she asked. “A wood elf? Hmm…what can I do with her, and from the look of her a druid as well! I already have a wizard but a druid might be a nice addition to my collection.” She drifted over toward Anni only after speaking ancient words that called roots up out of the ground that wound around Sath’s feet, holding the now hissing and spitting Qatu in his place. “She’s pretty too, much prettier than any of those cats, don’t you think my Pet?”

  Still enchanted by the magical insects, the elf nodded his head. “As you say, Mistress,” he mumbled, though she was completely blocking his view of Gin and hers of him. Salynth held her arms out to Anni.

  “Give me the present you’ve brought me, Annilanshi,” she said as Sath roared his objection in the background. Anni hesitated as Gin fought against her and finally bit down hard on the sensitive skin on the inside of Anni’s hand.

  “OW!” Anni screeched, dropping Gin as she did. The druid wasted no time dashing away from Anni and toward Sath, even though that put her closer to Salynth and the other elf…who looked strangely familiar to Gin. She skidded to a stop and looked him full in the face, her eyes widening as she recognized him.

  “Taeben?” Gin whispered, moving closer to him though Sath grabbed an arm and tried to hold her back. “Ben? Is that you? Do you remember me?” Something gnawed at the back of her mind, something to do with the forest and Gaelin, but it was gone as soon as it surfaced.

  The wizard, still enthralled by the butterflies, looked down at Gin at the sound of his name. “Ginny?” he whispered, as though he was seeing a ghost. “Ginny, what are you doing here?”

  “Oh, this is too much!” Salynth exclaimed, clapping her hands with glee. “They know each other! It is like a storybook!”

  “Ben, what are YOU doing here?” Gin said, moving close enough to touch his hand. Taeben jerked away from her. “What’s happened to you? I left you…I mean I saw you…I mean…” She looked sadly at him, inwardly frustrated at the memory that would not coalesce.

  “Gin, you need to get back behind me,” Sath warned. “Anni, I don’t know what you’re playing at here but if you know what’s good for you, you will take Gin back to the others and keep her safe.” Once again, he tried to emulate his father in tone and stature, and it seemed to have the desired effect on the other Qatu.

  “Aye, majesty, I will do as you ask,” Anni said, begrudgingly. She scooted past him and grabbed Gin up as she moved, carrying the screaming wood elf back to a point behind Sath.

  “Bah, we’re not ready yet anyway,” Salynth said, moving close to Taeben who had not taken his eyes off Gin yet. “Soon, Sathlir Clawsharp of Qatu’anari. Soon. For now, Pet, if you will?” She wrapped a bony arm around Taeben who sadly spoke ancient words of transport magic, his eyes still following the path Anni had taken with Gin. A yellow ring of fire appeared around them and they seemed to wink out of existence as he mouthed the word Tower.

  “NO!” Sath screamed, lunging at them just as they disappeared. “Tell me where my sister is you witch!” He hit the floor with a thud and just stayed there a moment, pounding his fist into the stone beneath him.

  “Sath, did you say your…sister?” Gin whispered, her voice barely audible to even his keen feline hearing.

  “Shut it, druid,” Anni snapped. “You may have just ended our Kazhmere’s life. Now go find your friends and I will tend to Sath.” Gin stepped back from her, eyes like saucers. “GO!” Gin took one last long look at Sath and then scampered away, back down the corridor using her tracking abilities to find her way back to the doorway. She was watching her feet and ran headlong into Teeand, who was charging ahead watching his own green armored boots.

  “Ow!” Gin yelped as she fell backward. Teeand scrambled to help her up off the floor and then grabbed her up in a bear hug. “Tee, I can’t breathe, please?” she whimpered as he held her tightly. He released her, with an embarrassed chuckle, and looked her over from head to toe.

  “You’re all right then, our lass?” he said. Gin nodded. “Where’s Sath? You leave him behind to deal with Anni?”

  “Tee, did you know that Kazhmere is his sister?” Gin asked, looking the dwarf in the eye. Tee looked away but she moved around to make eye contact with him again. “Tee? Don’t lie to me, please.”

  “She i
s Sath’s sister?” Elysiam had run up to join them, and she stared at Gin. “He didn’t think that was important enough to tell us?” She poked Teeand in the side. “Did you know that?”

  “Aye, I did know that. Remember when we sat up telling stories?” Tee said, avoiding Gin’s gaze.

  “Yes, you were over there purring and growling and keeping us awake,” Elysiam snapped. “Is that why you were speaking Qatunari? Because we can’t understand it?”

  Teeand looked away from all of them. “Yes,” he said. “There is more, more that you don’t need to know right now, but that I swear to all of you I will hold that Cat’s feet to the fire until he tells you all of it. Once his sister is safe we will be done with all the secrets between us. Deal?”

  Elysiam walked over and squatted down in front of Teeand so that she could look him in the eye. “We will talk about it afterward. There will be no more secrets. If I can’t trust you I won’t fight beside you. I will walk away; do you understand me? I will WALK AWAY.” She stomped back toward the doorway, muttering angrily. Hackort smiled apologetically up at Teeand and then ran after Elysiam. Teeand looked at Gin, who was still staring at him.

  “You knew. What else do you know, Tee?” she said, her gaze accusatory.

  “Afterward,”” he said.

  “No, now.” Gin stood her ground. “What else do you know?”

  “He…cares about you, all right? That’s all I can say, but Gin, please, you know I adore you, but I…You and I both know what he can be if he loses his…focus. Don’t make him lose focus,” Teeand said, his words coming out in a rush. “Blimey, I’m terrible with words, I just…just be careful, our Gin, please?”

  Gin smiled at him, but her smile didn’t go all the way to her eyes. “I won’t, Tee. Now, let’s get his sister back.” Teeand halfheartedly smiled at her and they joined Hackort and Elysiam.