by David Ekrut
He glanced down to see Taego catch him again.
It had taken an hour of climbing for Elwin to realize the bear would catch up to him and take a break to give Elwin time to get ahead. Often, Elwin would look down to see the bear an arms length away. Other times when he looked down, he couldn’t even see the top of his head.
It was smart of the bear. At first, Elwin had knocked several pebbles and mountains of dust into the bear’s face, causing him to snort and sneeze.
Though Taego never groaned or growled, Elwin could almost see the bear’s impatience when he reached him again. He would have to make it up to Taego by catching him some fish.
Elwin almost slipped when his hand reached a flat surface. Daki caught his arm and helped him climb onto the level surface. Elwin moved aside to make room for Taego and looked around. After a few paces the tunnel angled upward, where Feffer leaned on his knees, breathing heavily.
Daki held the lantern up for Elwin to see it. A thin line of oil filled the bottom of the lantern. If they were lucky, it would last the hour.
“When this runs out,” Daki said, “we must climb in the dark. But the path will be easier if it slopes like this the rest of the way.”
“It does,” Elwin said, “but it will get tight for Taego in a few spots.”
“Let us make haste. We will keep the same order?”
Elwin nodded.
Daki moved toward Feffer, but he didn’t move.
“Feffer?” he said.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m going.” He pushed up with a grunt and turned up the slope.
Going up the angle did seem faster, but instead of climbing, he had to stoop not to bump his head, which he did on several occasions. In some places, the stones became smooth, and he could crawl or scoot on hands and knees. But most of the way, he was forced to avoid rigid and sharp rocks. Still, walking up the angle became as routine as climbing up the chute had been. Only, on top of the pain in his arms, legs, and neck, his back began to ache from being hunched over.
The entire time he moved, he expected the lantern to quit, but he was still not prepared when he was plunged into complete darkness. Memories of the shadows enveloping him rushed into his mind, and he felt a yell escape his lips. His heart thundered in his chest like the giant’s hammer. This was just a dream. It wasn’t real.
“Elwin,” Feffer called at the same time Daki said, “What is it?”
Their voices unfroze his thoughts, and his mind remembered where he was. Just in a cave. Around him, the power of Earth called to him even louder than before. He opened his essence to let some trickle into him. Immediately, he felt strength return to his muscles, and the aches in his legs and back seemed to dull. He could feel the vibrations of his companions moving around him, and his heartbeat began to slow.
“I’m here,” Elwin said. “The light went out. Just keep moving.”
Even though he only held it in his essence, he could feel the power in him draining. He had to open his essence wider to let more in just to keep Earth from seeping out. As more flooded into him, he could feel further up and down the slope, and he felt aware. Even though he couldn’t see them, he could point to the rocks around, and he knew they were there in the same way he could touch his nose without having to think about how to find it. As his companions began to move in front of him, Elwin followed.
After a few moments, his heartbeat and breathing slowed slightly, but it did not return to normal. His essence began to feel labored as he did when flying. But that didn’t make sense. As far as he could tell, he wasn’t doing anything with the power. The Earth in his essence continued to be used, but it didn’t feel like it did to tame Air.
If not taming, what else could it have been?
Taming a wind thrust and flying required his will. Even with the power in his essence, he had to make a mental effort to tame the talent. But, the Earth just burned away as he pulled more in.
But, he was willing it to do something. How else could he see in complete darkness? Like, for example, he knew this jagged rock was above his head. But, he didn’t will to see it. Did he?
Elwin stopped focusing on his surroundings. It felt like closing his eyes. Once more panic overwhelmed him. But part of his mind realized the Earth stopped being burned from his essence. He reached out for his surroundings again.
Once more, he could feel the vibrations of Feffer and Daki ahead of him. Behind him, Taego sniffed and snorted at Elwin’s boot.
He laughed. “I discovered a new talent! I can see everything. Well not see exactly, but I can feel every rock as if … Oh. Feffer. Look out for—”
“Ack! Curse it all! Thumping, Life-cursed, thumping rock!”
“Sorry,” Elwin said. “It gets a bit tight right there, but we are almost to the top.”
Feffer’s curses became less audible, but Elwin could feel him drop and scoot forward beneath the low tunnel. Daki’s body pressed against the ground earlier than necessary, and he scrambled after Feffer.
“This will be tight Taego, but I think you will fit. Follow me.”
Taego snorted but complied with Elwin’s commands to guide him under the low-hanging rocks to the other side.
“There’s light!” Feffer called. “You were right. We are almost there.”
Elwin helped Taego the last few feet by pulling on his massive shoulder. Once the bear was free they both scrambled after Feffer and Daki. Less than a hundred paces, Elwin could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Ahead of him, two dark silhouettes ran on hands and knees. He stopped taming Earth and ran after them. The last of his power burnt out as he reached the exit.
Climbing out, he had to squint against the light of the sun, low in the western sky. Daki and Feffer both offered a hand. He clasped wrists with the pair and let them pull him to the mountain peak. Elwin sat with a thud and took several deep breaths.
The air was clean and crisp compared to the musky air of the tunnel. He leaned back against a boulder and let his legs and back rest. A moment later, Taego scrambled out of the hole and plopped next to Elwin. The bear had small pebbles and dust matted into his fur. Elwin began to pick at the easier to reach rocks.
“Lucky this was here,” Feffer said looking at the crack in the mountain.
“It was formed over many years,” Daki said. “In the winter, water freezes. But in the spring, it melts and must find a path. Before we ever knew of its existence, the Lady Nature has provided us a way.”
Feffer clasped Daki on the shoulder. “However it’s here, we are alive. And look! There are those red berries. The Lifebringer be praised!”
He picked a berry and stuck it in his mouth, then proceeded to find every berry and shove them into the pack. Elwin blinked. He had forgotten about the pack. Good thing one of them had the presence of mind to grab it. Though the cloth had rips and scrapes, it was better than nothing.
Elwin rose to join him and began helping Feffer pick the berries. He shoved one in his mouth. The sweet juice wet his dry tongue and throat as he chewed it. Even Daki ate without regard for the juices running down his chin.
He stopped when his eyes fell on the boulder next to Taego, where Elwin had been sitting a moment before. It was the same boulder Abaddon had used the night before. He shook his head. The Seeker had looked and acted so normal. No. He wouldn’t think about him. He wouldn’t think about the lies Abaddon had told him.
“What is it?” Feffer asked.
“Nothing. I just want to go home.”
“We should go,” Daki said. “It doesn’t look like the giants have been here, but they may still realize we climbed up the tunnel and try to track us. They will not come too close to Goldspire. We need to move.”
“You won’t hear me argue,” Fefffer said. “Go go go.”
Daki nodded and began to walk west atop the ridge, and Feffer followed. Elwin let Taego go next. The bear had followed him
for long enough.
As he turned to go, Elwin spared a backward glance at the boulder. Abaddon’s words seemed to echo in his thoughts.
“Not yet. But someday you will ask for my gift. I have seen it.”
A cool wind rose, and Elwin shivered. He ran to catch up with the others.
Chapter 29
Goldspire
With the sun overhead, Elwin’s shadow ran along the rocks and trees as he flew just above the ridge. Every time he passed a tree or tall rock, the oblong shape of his shadow stretched in disproportions with the flat ridge. He flew high enough to avoid the few trees speckling the mountaintop, but avoided going higher. The height of the mountain peak provided a clear enough view of the countryside, and going much higher made his head feel light.
From his vantage above the mountain, the rocky peak looked like a sinewy line cutting through an ocean of green. Either side of the peak dropped off at odd angles and gave way to lush green valleys far below. The trees swayed in the wind that swept through the mountain.
With so much of it around him, he felt a part of the Air. Though he did not travel at a swift pace, he had flown all morning, and taming for so long had not even begun to fatigue him. The breeze seemed to carry him over the mountain, and he was not the only one riding the wind. On both sides of him, he could make out flocks of birds in the distance.
For the first time in a long time, he felt free. A part of him wished the feeling would never end. But it would. Others had plans for him. Prophecies and fates and the Lifebringer knew what else. Once he reached Goldspire, his freedom would end.
Jasmine would be waiting for him to take him back to Justice to finish his training. Or would she? What had become of the trial? Maybe there had been an order for his execution. Would the warders be waiting to behead him?
Suddenly, he felt heavier. That could be a best-case scenario. Jasmine would not be the only one waiting for him in Goldspire.
Zeth and his other black savants would be there, too. Should they try to find them? Zeth was just a man. He could be killed. The memory of the child giant entered his thoughts. There had been so much blood. It had felt wrong. No matter what Daki said, the loss of any life felt like a tragedy to be avoided at all costs. Even Zeth?
Elwin shook his head. Even if Zeth didn’t belong to Abaddon, he was a murderer. Zeth’s death would be a justice to those who died by his hand. To Feffer’s father and Elwin’s. Whatever had happened to Wilton, that too could be laid at the black savant’s feet.
But could Elwin kill him? The dream that was not a dream had taught Elwin he was capable of such a thing. But that had been different. Asa was his little girl. Rather, she had been his little girl in the dream. Strange. The feeling to protect her still had not diminished. Part of him wanted to find her and keep her safe, no matter the cost. Not just her.
Zarah needed him. So did Feffer and Daki. His mother would need him before this war was through, and by the Lifebringer, he would find a way to save his father. His real father. There had to be a way to free Drenen’s soul from the soulkey. Somehow, Elwin would find a way to save him. He would save them all. To the abyss with prophecies and fates. He would save his family. If it killed him, he would find a way to protect them all.
In the distance, he saw smoke streaming into the sky, and he stopped. Lost in his thoughts, he had missed it.
Buildings like wooden toys of various sizes nestled against the base of the mountain. Smoke rose from hundreds of red chimneys. Though more spread out than Justice, the city was a fraction the size, and Elwin could just make out small specks moving between the structures.
“Goldspire,” he said. “We actually made it.”
Studying the rocks below, he mapped out the best course to the valley below. Then, he turned back toward the east and put a hand over his eyes as a shield from the sun. Far to the north, he could see white peaks and ridges even higher than this one. Squinting, he surveyed the sinewy ridge for his companions.
Elwin had flown at his slowest pace, but the others had lagged far behind. He saw Taego first, lumbering over a tall rock. In front of the bear, he could see the other two. Taming more Air, he flew toward them.
Sweat streaked through the dirt on Feffer’s face, and his eyes looked as if they had been blackened. Daki also had the sunken eyes of little sleep. Sweat soaked his brow and streamed down his face. Elwin found himself wondering if he looked as rough. They had gotten little sleep the night before, not stopping to make camp until well into dark. And Feffer had been healed in a way. He should have been in a bed, not on a mountain. They could have spared some time to rest.
There had been no sign of pursuit, and Elwin had scouted out for the giants in the shadow realm to be sure. He had not found them, but Daki had insisted that the group should rise before first light to put as much distance between them and the Mystic Valley as possible.
“How much farther?” Feffer called.
Elwin lowered to their level, so he wouldn’t have to shout. “Not far. Maybe fifty paces. This way.”
Elwin led them to the place he had scouted.
Daki smiled. “The giants helped us to find a shorter path than the one we knew. My way would have taken us another day.”
“How will we get down?” Feffer leaned over the edge to look down.
“You will need your rope,” Elwin said.
Feffer pulled the rope from the tattered pack and looked at it doubtfully. “This won’t be long enough.”
“Tie it here,” Daki said. “Elwin can untie it when we reach that cliff and then we can tie it again and lower to the next.”
Feffer began to tie the rope to the peak of a boulder with Daki’s help. Just to be sure, Elwin held the rope in place as Daki and Feffer climbed down. Taego dangled his hind legs behind him and used his sharp claws to descend. When his companions reached the ledge below, Elwin untied the rope and joined them.
“I never thought we would make it,” Feffer said, staring at the city. He turned to Daki and placed a hand on his shoulder. “It is thanks to you. Without you, we could have never survived that valley. I owe you a debt.”
To Elwin’s surprise, Daki’s cheeks reddened. “It is I who owe you. My path is yours.”
“I mean it,” Feffer said. “I will find a way to make this up to you. And Taego. I promise.”
Elwin wanted to give Daki the same promise but decided against it. At Feffer’s words, Daki’s face became a deeper crimson, and he looked away.
“Feffer,” Elwin said. “Help me tie this rope.”
They tied the rope and lowered to the next cliff, then the next. Seven more times took them to haphazard stacks of boulders that sloped into the valley that housed Goldspire. Far to the east, Elwin could see people with picks going in and out of entrances to the mountain that were supported by wooden columns in the mountain’s base.
The trees became thicker as they moved down the slope. And, as the land flattened out, Elwin eased down next to his companions. He could see the first building through the trees.
“I have never actually been into the walls of men,” Daki said in an anxious voice. “I have always looked at the city from afar.”
“Don’t worry, my friend,” Feffer said. “It is not all murder and mayhem. Can you smell the crowncakes and mutton?”
Elwin took a deep breath. It smelled like spiced fruit. “I can.”
“What was the name of the place Jasmine told you to find?” Feffer asked.
“The Hammer Forged Inn.”
“I need an ale,” Feffer said. “I’m going to have a pint. Maybe I can trade this well-used rope and lantern for some coin.”
“I have never had an ale from your lands.”
“You haven’t?” The incredulity was thick in Feffer’s voice. “It is the most amazing drink ever. At first it is bitter, but after the third or fourth drink, you don’t care. It ma
kes you feel really good. I could feel really good right about now. A bed will be nice, too.”
“Yeah,” Elwin said, “a bed would be nice. I could use an ale, as well.”
“I must try your ale,” Daki said. “Do you think Taego can come?”
Feffer’s smile showed all his teeth. He always gave that smile when considering a mischievous act. “I am willing to wager that no one will try to stop us.”
“I am sure it will be fine,” Elwin said. “The buildings are spread out. Besides, Zeth may be in here, and we might need him.”
“The black savant is here?” Daki asked.
“Could be,” Feffer said. “Hopefully, Jasmine is here too with Lord Zaak and a legion of the White Hand. Come on. That ale is waiting.”
Feffer took the lead, but Daki followed close behind. Both of them had hands on the hilts of their blades and tried to look everywhere at once.
The trees thinned into a clearing that stretched to the city. Elwin could hear the familiar sound of a hammer smashing down on an anvil. A feeling like butterflies began to move through his stomach and spread through his chest as images of Faron working his forge came to his mind. He followed the sound to the first building on the edge of town. A large man with brown hair slammed a hammer down on a piece of metal. Sparks flew from the red-hot metal with each strike.
It wasn’t Faron. But Faron was alive. He had made it out with Poppe and his mother. Elwin would see them again.
Feffer walked toward the smithy with a bounce in his step.
The smith looked up, and his eyes widened. “The Lifebringer save me! It’s a bear!”
He had the hammer raised as if to defend himself and backed away from them. He bumped into the door behind him and tried to work the handle without taking his eyes off Taego.
“He is a friend,” Elwin said in a calm voice. “He won’t harm you.” He held out his arms to make a calming gesture and saw his sleeves. Then he saw the dirt and dried blood smeared into the silks. He hadn’t noticed it before. It must have come from Feffer.