The Shrine of Kallen (The Tales of Zanoth Book 3)

by Aaron J. Ethridge

  “Good enough.”

  The two young men first followed the fair fairy to a storeroom beneath the fortress walls where General Halfar had ordered his men to pack their more mundane tools away. From these supplies, she asked Paul to select a shovel and grabbed up four burlap sacks from the plentiful pile that occupied one corner of the chamber. When Joey asked her what she wanted him to do, she told him that he was just supposed to watch, to rest, and to keep them company – explaining that they were still friends, even if they weren't best friends. That being the case, she didn't want to further exhaust him with menial labor.

  As she was leading the pair back toward the grass covered plain that separated the walls of the fortress from its keep, they encountered Myra. Much to Paul's delight, the maiden decided to join them. The companions quickly made their way directly to the nearest clump of trees. Once there, Nyssa asked the paladin to dig up four small saplings that she pointed out to him. Once each of these were unearthed, she – along with a bit of help from Myra and Joey – carefully wrapped the roots of each in a sack of its own.

  With these in hand (in Joey’s and Paul's hands specifically), they made their way through the portal that led to Kal Tammon. They then crossed the drawbridge that Myra had repaired just hours before and started making their way away from the castle.

  “What are we doing exactly?” Joey asked, carefully cradling the cargo entrusted to him under each arm.

  “Isn't it obvious?” Nyssa asked with a wide smile.

  “We're transplanting trees,” he replied. “That much seems obvious.”

  “Then why did you ask?”

  “Because we're in dark lands. That doesn't seem like a good place for them to flourish.”

  “Former dark lands,” the fairy corrected. “We shattered that dark shard weeks ago.”

  “Sure,” Joey replied. “I thought it took, like, a year for the lands to start healing, though?”

  “They start healing immediately,” Myra explained. “Although, it would take close to a year for plants to start growing on their own again.”

  “Which is why we're going to help them.” Nyssa said, before pointing toward the sun. “See that?”

  “The sun?” he asked.

  “No,” she replied. “Well... that is to say: yes. Sort of. Don't you see how much brighter it is? How much more glorious? How much more beautiful?”

  “As compared to what?”

  “As compared to the sun in the dark lands!” she explained.

  “I suppose you're right,” Joey nodded.

  “Of course, I am,” she giggled. “The residual power of the dark shard is fading fast. Which means that we can start planting things here.”

  “That you can start planting things,” Myra clarified. “I don't think the rest of us would be able to get anything to grow here for quite a while yet.”

  “That's true,” the fairy replied thoughtfully. “Still, I'm one of we, so we can still do it, can't we?”

  “I suppose we can,” the former lich said with a smile.

  “Didn't you tell me,” Paul began, his eyes on Myra, “that the power of the dark shards could be manipulated to cover certain areas and not others.”

  “Yes.”

  “Well then, couldn't Grathis use some other dark shard to maintain the dark lands here?”

  “He could try,” she nodded. “However, the further away the land is from a shard, the more power it takes to corrupt. And, as each shard can only generate so much power, it would be a bit of a waste. If he tried to keep this area dead, areas covered by whatever shard he was pulling power from would start to come back to life.”

  “That makes sense,” the paladin replied before pausing in thought. “We need to destroy more of those things.”

  “We certainly do.”

  “We also need to come up with a way to make light shards or something,” he continued. “The way I figure it, they would have to be easier to make than dark shards, simply because the land is meant to be alive. So, it would kind of be like a counter-spell.”

  “Counter-spells aren't always easier to cast than the spell they're meant to stop,” Myra pointed out. “In this case, no one's ever figured out how to make a light shard – if anyone's ever even tried – so we'd be starting from scratch.”

  “Not if we could get our hands on another dark shard,” Joey speculated. “If we had one of those, we might be able to reverse engineer how the magic works.”

  “Where would we keep it?” Paul laughed. “We certainly couldn't move it into the fortress. If we put it in Kal Tammon, it would kill whatever Nyssa manages to get growing around here.”

  “Not if we kept it dormant,” Myra replied. “I don't know exactly how they work, but I do know how to control them. So, really, that's a fairly good idea, Joey.”

  “Yes, it is,” Nyssa said, glancing back at the young man over her shoulder. “You have to be getting smarter. Anyway, we're there!”

  Having made this assertion, she told Paul exactly where she wanted four holes dug. She had him place two trees on each side of the road, right before it started climbing the slope that led to the castle. As soon as they were in the dirt, she began flying rapidly around one after the other, singing sweetly as she did so. Before she had finished, each sapling had quickly grown to a height of roughly five feet, bloomed, and bore fruit.

  One of them proved to be a peach tree (at least they looked like peaches to Paul), another was covered in apples, and the other two bore fruit that the young man had not yet encountered. As Joey reached out to take one of these fruits, Nyssa slapped his hand.

  “Those are for our guests!” she exclaimed.

  “What guests?”

  “Thaelen and everyone with him,” the fairy explained. “I thought a few fruit-covered trees would make the approach to the castle a little more hospitable. The caravan is going to be full of women and children. How would they feel if the only thing on the horizon when they came into view was that?”

  As she asked this, she pointed toward the edifice of the stronghold. Paul had to agree that, to any objective observer, the scene would have had to have been described as 'dismal'. The massive walls, built atop a solid stone plateau which was only accessible by crossing a thirty-foot chasm spanned by a drawbridge of steel – did seem secure. However, it certainly couldn't be considered warm and merry by anyone in their right mind. It was amazing how, to the imagination at least, those four small fruit trees softened the scene.

  “I take your point,” Joey nodded. “But, they're not really going to be guests, are they?”

  “Alright,” she said, putting her fists on her slender hips, “then they're a housewarming gift. Either way, they're not for you!”

  “Yes, ma'am,” he replied with a touch of sarcasm.

  “Now, you three wait here,” she said. “I'll be right back.”

  She then flew out of sight, only to return five minutes later with two tiny handfuls of seed. She carefully placed these around the base of the trees before causing them to sprout and bloom into a variety of beautiful flowers.

  “Perfect!” she exclaimed. “And, just in time!”

  “In time for what?” Paul asked.

  “The rain of course!” she laughed. “In fact, we only have a few minutes left to get inside if we don't want to end up soaked.”

  “Not to be argumentative,” Joey said, as they all turned to make their way back into the castle, “but, there's not a cloud in the sky.”

  “There will be in the next ten minutes or so,” she assured him, glancing at the sun, “I dreamed about rain during my nap, and that always means it's going to rain.”

  “How do you know when?”

  “I just know.”

  Roughly ten minutes later, they were all standing in the courtyard of Kal Tammon, Nyssa staring at the empty sky.

  “This is just weird,” she said, shaking her tiny head. “I've never been wrong before.”

  “We can wait a little longer,” Joey said with a
stretch. “Although, I am already getting tired again.”

  “There's no point,” the fairy said, once again shaking her head. “It should already be raining and it's not. Let's just go.”

  They made their way through the magical portal back into the Fortress of Donmar only to find a torrential rain falling from the sky above.

  “Of course!” the fairy laughed. “I was napping in the fortress. I should have thought of...”

  Here, she paused.

  “My bed!” she exclaimed before shooting off toward the wooded glen where her captured furniture was currently residing.

  Her companions quickly followed behind. When they reached her, she was working to drag the soaked bedclothes off the mattress. Instantly, her allies came to her aid. She had them throw the blankets, sheets, pillowcases, and pillows over the branches of several nearby trees. This done, she flew up to each of them in turn, inspecting them carefully, before turning her attention to the bed itself.

  “I knew it!” she shouted over the sound of the downpour. “This is just wonderful!”

  “I'm sure it'll all dry out,” Joey replied, trying to comfort her – having mistaken her tone as sarcastic.

  “I'm sure it will!” she replied with a wide smile. “When it does, that smell will finally be gone!”

  “What smell?” he shouted.

  “The smell of old vampire,” she grimaced. “It was disgusting.”

  “I'm sure it was,” Joey chuckled.

  “Can we get out of the rain now?” Paul asked. “It's cold.”

  “Of course, we can!” the fairy laughed. “What's stopping us?”

  The soaking wet, but very satisfied, companions made their way to the keep. They all enjoyed a good meal before deciding to call it an early night.

  Chapter 4: The Wanderers

  “Come on!” Nyssa exclaimed, gently patting Paul's face with her tiny hands. “You've had more than enough sleep. It's time to get going.”

  “What time is it?” he asked, half-opening one eye.

  “Early,” she replied. “I woke up hours ago and couldn't fall back to sleep for some reason. It was like I had spent most of yesterday napping or something.”

  “You had.”

  “Oh, yeah! That explains it, then,” she smiled. “Either way, it's time to get up!”

  At the insistence of the beautiful fairy, the rest of the party got up and started getting prepared for their journey. Although the sun had yet to come up over the floating island in space that was the Fortress of Donmar, Alena and Darek agreed that it was late enough to get the men moving. A hundred of the Warriors were going with them; all of them mounted, driving wagons, and some even leading spare horses. This meant they had to get a regular cavalry unit put together before they set out.

  They woke the men, got their breakfast, and got to work. In just under two hours, the entire force was assembled just beyond the walls of Kal Tammon, ready to depart.

  “I've decided not to have a service for our fallen until after you return,” the general said. “Many of them have kin that you'll be bringing to join us. I thought it only right to wait for them before we lay our dead to rest.”

  “I agree,” Paul replied with a sigh. “Although, that will be a grim welcome for them.”

  “It will,” General Halfar nodded. “But, those men died fighting for their families and for all of Zanoth. Their kin not only have a great deal to be proud of, they have much to be thankful for. For centuries, almost no one has died of old age and even fewer have had burials. It's a rare honor that they’ve earned.”

  “I hope that comforts their wives and children,” the paladin replied.

  “It will,” the old man assured him. “In this world, death is a constant companion. Honor, however, has been a rare one.”

  Having said this, the general turned his eyes to the rising sun, which was just coming up over the horizon.

  “The time has come for you to go, my friend,” he said, reaching out the take the paladin by the wrist. “Bring them back to us safe and sound.”

  “We'll do our best.”

  “Take care of yourself, as well.”

  “Always,” Paul nodded, before kicking his mount into motion.

  As their journey began, the air was filled with a sound that Paul had rarely heard before – at least, while in the world of Zanoth. It was the sound of contented chatter. All of the men riding with them had family members currently hiding in the tomb that had once been the home of Kalmock Tal. The general consensus seemed to be that, in a few days' time, all of these people would be gathered within the walls of the Fortress of Donmar. Just two days before, they had also fought a pitched battle against an army of undead that they had soundly defeated. All of these factors combined to make most of the Warriors traveling with them happier than they had ever been in their lives.

  In point of fact, Paul was as well. He and his companions truly were saving Zanoth, one victory at a time. Because of them, hundreds – if not thousands – of people would soon be living in safety. Rather than dreading the day that the first of their children would be harvested, Captain Thaelen and his wife Anne would be able to look forward to the birth of their first grandchild. At least, they would after their children started getting married.

  For the time being, Thaelen would be able to focus his energies – when he wasn't having to fight undead – on building his family a home within the fortress that would rival the one they had once had in Jannac. For one thing, their previous home didn't have any windows. A few of those would be a massive improvement, in his mind. This particular deficiency had struck the young man as odd when he had first taken notice of it. Now, however, the idea that anyone in Zanoth would have windows in their houses seemed completely insane. It was just asking some hungry ghoul to break in for a midnight snack.

  Any house in the Fortress of Donmar would be well out of the reach of any wandering undead. As a result, his house was going to have massive windows that would let in as much light as possible. It was also going to have a giant fireplace, walls that didn't let in the slightest draft, and a roof without a single leak in it. Not that he had any idea how to build a house, of course. But, Thaelen did. The paladin was certain that the captain would be more than willing to help him with such a project.

  After all, if he could find a way to remain in Zanoth, he was going to need a place of his own. A place that he could eventually share with someone else. And, in time, with several someone-elses. Before he took any more steps down that particular road though, he would have to have a home to offer her. Not to mention, a ring...

  “What's got you so quiet?” Myra asked, gazing at him with a smile.

  “I was just thinking.”

  “About what?”

  “This and that,” he said with a wink.

  “Is that all?” she laughed.

  “I was thinking about Thaelen,” Paul replied. “He should be able to build a new house before too much longer. That ought to thrill Anne and the kids.”

  “I'm sure it will,” she smiled.

  “I was also thinking I might want a house of my own.”

  “I can certainly understand that,” she nodded. “It would be nice to have some place to come home to if we ever end up having a few days where we're not having to fight legions of undead.”

  “We get those occasionally,” Paul pointed out. “I've already taken a couple of days’ vacation at the fairy well. Of course, as pleasant as that was, I think I'd prefer sleeping in a bed of my own and eating a meal or two at my own table. Well, once in a while, anyway.”

  “That’s incredible to think about,” she said with a sigh. “I mean; the idea that some people in Zanoth – even if it's only a few hundred, at first – will have actual homes; not just houses. Places they can really live; not just survive.”

  “And, after a major victory – like the one we just had,” Joey added, having just ridden up to the chatting couple, “we could all take a few days off to hang around the house, rel
ax, and do just about anything – except worry about the undead.”

  “We probably could,” the beautiful maiden laughed.

  “So, I've been thinking,” he continued. “That battle actually went exceptionally well.”

  “Yes, it did,” Paul agreed.

  “Which made me wonder: Why didn't the undead just try to teleport in on us, like we did to them?”

  “They probably did,” Myra replied.

  “Then, why didn't they?” he chuckled. “If you follow me.”

  “They couldn't,” she asserted. “Nyssa and I altered the runes that protect Kal Tammon just hours after we captured it. Don't you remember?”

  “That, I do not,” he replied, shaking his head. “I was busy reading that whole time. How exactly did you alter them?”

  As Joey and Myra began discussing technical details of magical theory, Paul's mind once again began to wander on its own. The first thing he considered was the sunlight or, more specifically, the fact that it wasn't filtered through the gray mist that floated in the air above the dark lands. He hadn't really thought about it until Nyssa had mentioned it because he'd been back on Earth for a month and had gotten used to pure sunlight again. But, she was absolutely right. The morning sun was absolutely glorious.

  Although the region they were passing through was unquestionably still dead, it was dead like winter; not dead like the dark lands. One of the things that attracted his attention was the fact that the ground didn't seem as if it were made out of concrete. After a quick chat with one of the Warriors riding with them, he found out that it had rained twice in the last two weeks – which was exactly what Paul had suspected. It was also something that rarely happened in the dark lands. It was clear that the residual power of the shattered shard really was fading.

  He wondered what the spring would be like the following year. They still had a winter to go through but, after that, grass might well start to grow, flowers bloom, and trees sprout more than a few handfuls of sickly leaves. This made him wonder what unncar worms – which the young man had come to think of as sylvan shrimp – ate and whether they might be able to encourage some to take up residence near Kal Tammon.