Eris considered how to answer. Would explaining the connection seem too strange to Terran? Would explaining dreams that had felt so real, almost as if she had lived them herself?
But Terran had come for her. The only one who cared that she’d gone missing.
“A dream,” she said. “As we ran from the magi, Jasi and I were separated. I ended up here, in the heart of the forest, where I fell asleep and dreamt of the forest, from its very beginning to when it reached its current enormous size. When I woke, the dream stayed with me.”
Terran watched her for a moment and then looked around at the trees. “This place is powerful. Few can reach the heart of the forest without its permission. You were granted a great gift, my lady.”
Eris remembered how the forest seemed determined to pull her and her sister apart, the way it guided her toward the center, and wondered. Was this a gift or something else?
“When I became aware of you, I sent Jasi back to the palace.”
“I saw that one of you had continued on. The tracks led out of the forest and toward the Verilain Plains. The other tracks moved back into the forest. I almost followed the other set of tracks.”
Eris nodded. “I know.”
Terran’s mouth tightened. “But I sensed the trees wanted me to follow the other set of prints. When I saw you, I knew why.”
“You think I am meant to be a flower mage—a keeper—like Lira?”
He nodded. “I think that’s what you are meant to be.”
What she was meant to be. Eris had no idea what she was meant to do. Her father expected her to marry and carry on the bloodline. That was never what she’d wanted. But this?
Eris shook her head. She could not be like Lira, could not sit and arrange flowers each day, could not agonize over how the arrangements fit together even if such arrangements gave her power over the magi.
“I don’t think I can do what Lira does.”
Terran stepped up to her. His presence changed both in how he was physically next to her and through her connection to the forest. He smelled earthy, much like the forest itself. This time, he took her hand and squeezed, and pulled her close.
She looked up at him, and he smiled at her with his lopsided grin. His deep brown eyes seemed the color of fall leaves and almost swallowed her. Eris shivered.
“You may not make the same types of arrangements as she makes, but the gift is no different. Each keeper chooses their own garden. Each chooses the flower that suits them best, which helps start their garden as they work with the gardeners.”
“My flower doesn’t belong in any garden.” Much like her, she realized.
Terran smiled and pulled her closer. The heat of his body pressed on her.
“Are you certain? Look around you. Look at this life. There was purpose to these plantings. That purpose is what grants this place its power. There is more than one type of garden, Eris.”
Terran was right. She had felt the power building in her dream even if she wasn’t entirely sure what she had felt. The keeper of her dreams had known, had placed her garden—this forest—in such a way as to guide the story she wanted to tell.
“Does Lira know?”
Terran didn’t move away. “Probably. Undoubtedly she recognized the flower. Choosing a flower like the teary star names you a certain type of keeper, different than one who chooses a flower that prefers full sunlight.”
Different. Always different. But what did it mean?
“What happens now?” she asked.
Terran sighed. “Were this a different time, a time when the great gardens still existed, you would be offered the opportunity to learn from all of the great keepers. Now, with the gardens destroyed, the keepers scattered, you must choose whether you wish to learn from the mistress.”
“And if I don’t?” Lira had not seemed willing to share much with her, especially if she suspected what Eris was capable of becoming. Holding that information back from her was bothersome.
Terran looked upset by the possibility. He shook his head. “I don’t know what will happen then. Perhaps your ability will wilt and fade. Perhaps it will come out regardless of what you choose. I don’t know.”
Eris wondered whether Lira even knew.
“I have known few keepers, the Mistress of Flowers being the only one. My grandfather told me of a time when there were dozens of keepers, each paired with a gardener, and each with a wondrous garden. The Gardens of Elaysia. Its beauty was said to be unrivaled. The power of the gardens nearly limitless.”
In her mind, she saw the gardens as they once were. With more time, she suspected she could delve into the roots of the forest and know the story written there. How much could she learn by simply exploring what the forest’s keeper had written within the roots?
“What happened to the gardens?” she asked.
Terran shook his head. “I don’t know. My grandfather was one of the last gardeners of that time, and he will not speak of it. My father knows something of it, but he will not tell me much. All that I know is the gardens were destroyed, and the gardeners, along with the keepers, disappeared from this land.”
Eris wondered how long ago the gardens had been destroyed. Did the Conclave have a hand in that, too? Had Lira been one of the great keepers in the Gardens of Elaysia?
Things began to fall into place. Lira saying her garden had been destroyed. The magi describing the difficulty in destroying the gardens. Their fear of Lira. But why? What did it mean?
She had so many questions. Most the forest couldn’t answer. That left Lira.
“We should return to the palace. Jasi might need help.”
“We should hurry. If we’re lucky, we will find your sister along the way.”
Terran took the lead, guiding them from the forest. Eris noted that he led them on the most direct path. The forest seemed to help, creating an opening in the undergrowth that didn’t catch or pull at them.
Darkness had fallen as they walked. The air was still and heavy with the scent of a coming rain. The forest seemed relaxed, as if in anticipation.
They moved quickly, leaving the Svanth trees behind; soon only elms and oaks surrounded them, not stretching nearly as high into the sky.
When Eris saw a flash of light she hesitated.
Then came thunder.
“The magi.”
Terran looked back at her. A sudden blast of light lit his face. Worry lines etched there. “Are you certain?” he asked.
She nodded. The memory of the attack from the night before was still vivid in her mind. Already she sensed the forest tensing, as if forming a defense against the magic the magi summoned.
Thunder began to roll in steady rumbles, but distantly and not as if targeted toward the forest. Lightning streaked again, flashing brilliant. Eris felt the energy building, but it was nothing like the night before, nothing like the near suffocating pressure that made it hard for her to breathe.
This was not an attack on the forest, she realized. This was something different, out toward the Verilain Plains.
With a jolt of fear, she understood.
Jasi.
Chapter 26
Eris streaked through the trees, not mindful of whether Terran followed. All she cared about was whether Jasi was well. She needed the forest to cooperate, to grant her free passage as she ran. The forest seemed to accede to her needs, opening a path.
Thankfully, the path ran straight and true, cutting through the trees. The thorny undergrowth pushed aside, letting her hurry toward the thunder and explosions.
She didn’t bother lifting what remained of her thin shift as she went, not worried about whether it was soiled. The tattered white remains would have to be discarded entirely if she ever managed to return to the palace.
Instead, she was filled with fear for Jasi. The attack was upon her sister. Who else would the magi attack outside the forest?
Trees blurred past her, little more than dark shadows looming. Occasionally, she heard Terran call her name, but
it was a distant sound, far behind her. Sooner than should have been possible, she reached the edge of the forest and passed beyond the trees.
The Verilain Plains. Eris rushed straight toward where the lightning struck. Thunder still rolled, almost a constant presence. Did they attack Lira, or had she defended the palace?
Tall needlegrass sliced at her as she ran. Were she anything like Lira, it would just leave her alone rather than tearing at her arms and legs while she ran in the darkness.
Why couldn’t the grass simply bend away from her?
And then it did.
Eris almost stumbled. Faintly, she was aware of a connection to the grasses along the plain. She felt it sway in the breeze. Now that the grasses understood what she wanted, they parted, leaving a narrow path for her to slip through.
She ran.
Other than the occasional flickers of lightning lighting the heavy clouds overhead, the night was dark. She felt her way across the plains. No longer did the bright blasts streak from the sky. Only the soft rumble let her know the magi were active somewhere nearby.
Eris paused. The air crackled with energy. Her breathing grew heavy, tight, and she didn’t know if it was from her running or the magic the magi performed.
Could the grasses upon the plain aid her as the forest had? Eris touched the ground, ran a finger through the hard dirt as she made a connection, creating what she had seen in her dream the night before. Then she delved.
Eris could not explain how she knew what to do. Perhaps sleeping and dreaming at the heart of the forest had unlocked something inside her. Perhaps she had always known, just had to try. Perhaps she simply imagined whatever it was she did. All were possibilities.
What she felt as she touched the plains was weak, the connection different than what she felt with the trees. A vast expanse opened around her, like a light touch on her mind which carried none of the depth or weight of the forest. The information was different as well, almost muted.
Somewhere ahead of her was life.
The grasses could not make the same distinction as the forest, almost as if unable to tell one form from another. All she sensed was that life existed. More than that, she felt life moving, disturbing the stalks of grass, bending and trampling as they pushed across the plain, the grasses fighting…fighting…fighting…tearing at the life pressing upon it…before falling…falling…crushed to the ground.
Eris broke the connection. The sense was strange and unique. She had no idea why she should be able to sense what the grasses told her.
Again, she ran.
Now she knew where to go. Eris had the advantage; the grasses did not work to slow her, parting, splitting wide in a narrow path so she could move through them unobstructed.
The longer she ran, the more she felt the pressure of the magic against her. Eris grew increasingly certain of what she felt. Fatigue did not bother her as it should. She had run for what felt like hours but didn’t feel its effects. Once she dared to glance back and saw the distant outline of the forest. How had she moved so quickly?
Finally, the energy upon her was nearly unbearable.
She slowed to a walk to take deeper breaths. Eris imagined there was some way to counteract the effect of the magi’s magic, but she did not know it.
The sense became severe enough that she finally stopped.
Only then did she see the light.
Flames bobbed in the distance, torches or lanterns carried to light the night. Eris counted at least four. The magi.
She crept forward slowly, listening for the sounds around her. The distant light helped her see the grasses spread apart for her, slowly now that she walked. Even without the light she felt what the grasses did.
Ducking low, Eris moved as close as she dared. The tall needlegrass would protect her. Hide her. It seemed strange to be thankful for its presence after she had cursed it when they went through it before, but without the tall grasses, she would be exposed for the magi to see.
She felt it as Terran rejoined her. He said nothing as he crouched next to her. Part of Eris was surprised that he was not winded, that he’d managed to keep up. Were gardeners granted certain abilities?
“What are you doing?” He pitched his voice so it sounded no louder than the soft breeze blowing through the plains.
Terran’s large hand rested on her arm. The warmth of his skin sent heat through her as he touched her bared skin. She tilted her head toward the flames. “I need to see if they have taken Jasi.”
Terran blinked slowly and then nodded. His deep brown eyes were wide. He didn’t argue with her.
Eris crept forward, moving low. The grasses bent away from her just enough so that they weren’t tearing at her flesh, just enough to grant passage across the plains.
Terran stayed close, sliding along the ground behind her, nearly silent. Were it not for her connection to the grasses and the sense it granted her, she doubted she would know he was there.
“Strange that she would come out here.”
Eris froze. One of the magi spoke and sounded as if he was next to her. His voice was coarse and deep.
“There is much strange about this one,” another commented.
Eris recognized the voice as coming from Davin. She stayed low, hoping the grasses would continue to protect her, wrap her in their disguise.
“She has a reason for being here. We must learn what it is.”
“How will we keep her secured?”
“She can do nothing against the irons. There are limits to her magic.” This from the High Seat, and he spat the last.
With sudden realization, she understood. Not Jasi.
They had Lira.
“Fortunate she is here. Once the last garden is destroyed, there will be no more interference. The Conclave can claim the throne.”
“Had you not allowed her to fester, we wouldn’t have had to work so hard at this,” Davin told Adrick.
“I did what was needed. We’ve lost nothing. And when Tholen reaches the border, he’ll find the attack much stronger than expected. We will soon have the throne here.”
“We do already,” Davin said.
“Not yet.”
“Near enough,” the High Seat said.
Eris crept backward, moving carefully, making no more sound than the grasses in the breeze. When she was far enough away, she turned to Terran. “They have Lira.”
“How?”
She shook her head. After all the attacks the magi had tried, why had they now been able to capture Lira? What changed? Had she come for her best student, knowing Jasi was in trouble? But if she had, where was her sister?
“I don’t know. I don’t think they have Jasi.”
“If Lira is here, then nothing protects the palace,” Terran said. “The attacks will grow stronger. I don’t think the palace can withstand the force of the attacks long without her.”
“It is not the palace gardens they seek to destroy. It’s the reason they abducted Jasi and I in the first place. The magi seek to destroy the forest.”
“Then you have to stop them,” Terran said.
She shook her head. “Not me. We need to free Lira. She can stop them.”
Terran took her hand, looking deeply into her eyes. The distant light of the flames made his deep brown eyes dance. “Lira can only do so much. Like all keepers, she is connected to the forest, can use the vast power stored within the trees and all that grows within its boundaries, but to truly save the forest, we must find the keeper.”
She could tell from the way he said it there was a difference. “Are there others?”
Terran pulled her back, moving away from the dancing firelight. A soft breeze kicked up, blowing back toward the forest, as if even the wind wanted to keep their conversation private and prevent the magi from hearing.
“I know little of the keepers other than what my father has shared. The mistress would not share such information with me as I was not her gardener. Each garden is unique. Most keepers begin their own gard
ens, but some bond to existing gardens, take over its care, work to grow the power trapped in the garden, enhance it. With a garden as old as the forest, there have been other keepers through the years.”
“How do you know that it isn’t Lira?”
Terran shook his head. “Her flowers grow in the sun. The keeper of the forest prefers the shade. I think Lira can use the forest, but she is not its keeper.”
Eris looked up and saw the distant smear of darkness on the horizon where the trees began. The forest stretched out on either side of her, running for hundreds of miles, a massive length of darkness in the night. There was much history within the forest, much power. Even with whatever skills she had, she felt that about the forest. Could the magi really manage to destroy it all?
“How?” she asked, looking back to Terran.
Before he spoke, there was a distant peal of thunder. A blast of lightning came streaking from the sky, striking the ground behind them. They were thrown from their feet, tossed forward and into sharp grasses that slashed at her as she landed.
Thunder rolled again.
The magi knew they were here.
Chapter 27
Eris jumped to her feet. Lightning flashed in the sky around them, illuminating the night. Another strike might be more than they could take. No longer did the grasses provide protection. It was as if the energy of the storm had flattened the tall needlegrass, laying it on its side, leaving she and Terran exposed.
The air stunk of char and smoke mixed with the scent of broken earth. She tasted it on her tongue. Massive chunks had been rent from the ground, tossed into the air and thrown about, some striking Eris and drawing blood. Her ears rang from the blast; the air now carried an odd muted sound. Her body ached from where she’d collided with the ground. Thankfully, she could stand.
Glancing behind her, she looked for signs of the magi. Lanterns moved through the grasses distantly. How had she moved so far away so fast? Had the explosion really thrown them that far?
“Terran?” she whispered. Her voice sounded strange and soft. She feared raising her it too much, not wanting to draw any more attention to them, already knowing it was too late. If the magi had struck, they knew where they were.
The Lost Garden: The Complete Series Page 21