‘You can’t trust them!’ The man tried to convince her. ‘They’re not like us! They have no allegiance to anyone but their own. If they’re kind its because they’re trying to trick us!’
‘I have no time to bandy words with you old soldier,’ Celene lowered her blade, conscious of her audience as she retreated to her horse. It was safe to leave now that she could no longer hear the hoof beats of Arianne and the others’ horses.
‘Do not follow us.’ She warned.
Celene turned around and quickly mounted her horse, grateful that the old man had not decided to put up a fight once she sheathed her sword. Instead, he stood rooted to the spot, staring at her with that unsettling look of desperation.
‘You’re a fool!’ I have dealt with them before. You think she’s your friend but she’s not! She’ll turn on your like a rabid bitch dog and tear our your throat while you sleep. It’s what her kind do! They pretend to be one of you but they’re really not!’
What possible experience could this man have with the elves that could make him hate with such vulgar hatred? Celene thought of Arianne and Aeron, of the friendship and trust between them. She could never imagine them behaving the way this man was describing.
‘I do not know where this hatred comes from but it has nothing to do with me or my friends,’ Celene declared as she stared down at him from her saddle, ‘But we are done here. Follow us at your own peril.’
With that, she tugged the reins of her horse and rode away into the night.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN:
SHIFTERS
Ever since they had encountered the ice troll at the Splinter, a feeling of dread had begun to occupy the thoughts of the King though he spoke of it to no one.
Whether or not his companions suspected the fear he was starting to feel, he could not say. He only knew that it had taken root in his heart and was not letting go. With the passage of the Splinter now buried so completely that it was impossible to search it, he thought of the bones he had seen on the ground, the remains of travellers who did not have the benefit of a magii to see them through safely.
There was no telling how long the creature had been waylaying travellers with its deadly barrage of rock and stone. The snowfall concealed the true extent of its feasting but bones were obviously so many that it was hard to distinguish where one ended and another began. The urgency of the situation kept Dare from examining the bones closely and now that they were away from the place, he had to wonder that if Arianne, Keira and Celene passed through the same passage, had they survived?
Tamsyn had said nothing about them being dead but the magii did not always give him the truth he ought to hear, only what was needed. What if it was required that he kill the Enemy, even if Arianne was dead? No, she wasn’t. He told himself immediately. She wasn’t dead. He would feel it. Somehow, even without the power of sight that Lylea possessed, he would know if Arianne was not in this world.
Because he would not know how to go on without her if she was.
Once they had crossed the Splinter, they would ride towards the Eirian Hills because Dare knew Celene would be too practical to add so many miles to their journey by going to Wyndfyre and sheltering with her folk. With the second moon approaching, their aim would be to make best speed towards the Frozen Mountains by taking the most direct route there. Assuming they had passed through the Splinter unhindered, and for now Dare forced himself to believe nothing else, they would be bound for River Safrie to the take Bedvyn Crossing into the Torn Lands.
As he entered Angarad, Dare could not help but think of the last time he had entered these lands and under what cloud he had made that journey. His arrival in Angarad had followed one of the worst periods of his life with both he and Aeron in mourning for the loss of a dear friend. Until then, their company had been a triumvirate. Celene and Kyou had yet to join their number. The third member of their set was a man of Sandrine, Dare’s oldest friend after Aeron. Braedan.
Dare had met Braedan in his nineteenth year.
He had left Eden Halas the year before, having decided at the age of eighteen that he had imposed long enough on the House of Halion. Although Syanne had not wished him to leave, Dare knew it was time. Halion was never happy that his queen defied him to raise a human baby and though he never treated Dare badly, his dislike was obvious by his cold demeanour towards the boy. This indifference was mirrored in Halion’s two older sons, Hadras and Syanon. Only Aeron was a friend to him but the young prince spent most of Dare’s youth defending the woods of Halas against Balfure with his older brothers and so they saw each other infrequently.
Upon leaving Eden Halas, Dare travelled along the Yantra with the intention of eventually arriving at the city of his birth, Sandrine. For years, Syanne had warned him against going there, fearful that Balfure’s agents might recognise him. However, those agents had been seeking an infant and Dare could not imagine how anyone would recognise him as the lost heir of Icara, eighteen years later.
As an experienced woodsman and hunter thanks to his elven upbringing, Dare was able to travel up river, plying his skills as a trade without drawing attention to himself. In this way, Dare lived for the first time in his life, among his own race and discovered that there was little difference between men and elves. Each race wanted the same things, dreamed the same dreams and wished for the same freedom. The prejudice that kept them apart was wafer thin and he wondered what it would take to break it.
It was also the first time he was able to see what effect the occupation of Balfure had upon his country.
He learned that while Balfure ruled from Abraxes, his left his disciples in Carleon to work his will. When Eden Ardhen was breached and the elves of that realm were chased away, the Circle built a tower in its woods in celebration of their victory and called it Tor Ardhen as a final insult to Queen Lylea. From there, they maintained the occupation of the Southern Province while Tor Iolan was built to guard the Northern Province and Tor Iridia stood watch over the dwarf homeland.
While Navarre had managed to maintain control Varaen to rule under the watchful eye of the Disciples, the supposed annihilation of House Icara left a void in the rule of Sandrine. With Balfure’s continued assaults on Angarad, his designs on pushing beyond the Baffin taking up time and resources, the Shadow Lord chose wisely not to provoke an uprising by installing one of his disciples in Sandrine Keep. Instead he charged the rule of Carleon’s former capital city to Braelan, oldest son of House Kelamon who swore allegiance to Balfure when Carleon had fallen.
Braelan had ruled as best he could, even though he was considered a traitor for taking up a position in Sandrine Keep. Through Braelan, Balfure’s iron grip of Sandrine continued with Berserker troops enforcing terrible penalties on those who disobeyed or still resisted the rule of Abraxes. An ambitious man, Braelan knew pleasing the Shadow Lord would only strengthen his position and while Selkirk and Navarre attempted to ease the oppression of their people during the occupation, Braelan had done the complete opposite.
Determined to build a dynasty under Balfure’s protection, Braelan eliminated all those in Sandrine that might lead others in rebellion. Midnight raids by the Berserkers resulted in large open graves being dug outside the city walls in the dead of night. Those same walls were used by Braelan to make examples of the particularly defiant.
Phylea, Braelan’s wife, whose family had been killed in the purges following the fall of House Icara, watched in horror as the husband she loved turned into a monster. Determined to save her son from this fate, Phylea took charge of Braedan’s education herself and she guided him as best she could and ensured he was free of the influence of his father’s cruelty. As a result, Braedan grew up painfully aware of how despised his father was.
They had met purely by chance.
Braedan had taken to leaving Sandrine Keep and frequenting taverns and inns in order to escape being in his father’s presence any longer than he had too. Showing his father that he was a useless wastrel that was good only for dri
nk, Braelan’s disgust ensured that Braedan was left to his own devices. They had met at a tavern, two young men of the same age, drinking and talking about the world they’d lived in. During the entire time, Braedan tried to place why this new friend seemed so familiar. Only when he chanced upon the few remaining portraits of House Icara that were not destroyed, did he recognise Dare’s resemblance to his grandfather and realise who he had befriended.
What should have been a mistake of monumental consequences became instead one of the most fortuitous moments of Dare’s life.
Braedan did not give him up to Braelan. Instead he told Dare that Carleon needed its true king and pledged himself to Dare’s service. Dare, who at the time only had the makings of an idea in his head about how to defeat Balfure, refused initially. Explaining to Braedan that he was a journey to learn about the occupied land and meet the races that might be of help to them, Dare was touched when Braedan asked to accompany him.
They left Sandrine together and travelled the length and breadth of Carleon. For the next nine years, they created friendships amongst the many peoples of the kingdom and learned how many yearned to cast off Balfure’s rule. They learnt of the desperate plight of the dwarves, hunted across the occupied territories, finding refuge only in places far beyond the reach of Abraxes. Braedan would return with him to Eden Halas where Dare unveiled his idea of an alliance with all the races for the first time followed by outright rejection from Halion. Even Syanne was sceptical.
Only Aeron saw the vision of Dare’s proposal and advised that if Eden Halas would not listen then it was time to seek a higher authority who commanded all the elves. Leaving Eden Halas, Aeron took him and Braedan instead to meet with High Queen Lylea of Eden Taryn.
During this time, word had finally reached Balfure that the lost prince of Carleon was still alive.
The Shadow Lord’s reaction was swift. Balfure wasted no time sending out his Disciples and for the next two years, they hunted the trio with ruthless determination. It was outside the woods of Barrenjuck that they were almost caught and in an effort to save Dare’s life, Braedan sacrificed himself by impersonating the exiled king and leading the Disciples away. The ruse was simple and succeeded long enough for Dare to reach the Green but it came at a devastating cost.
Dare did not know when Braedan died or how much he had suffered before the end, he only knew days after Tully had led him out of the old wood, they were able to retrieve his broken body. They buried him in the Green but after the war, Dare returned Braedan to Sandrine where he was interred in the royal mausoleum.
Others would join his company, Celene, Kyou and Tamsyn but it would never feel the same as when he was nineteen, travelling the world, feeling free and invincible with his best friend.
*******
The company made camp at a ruined sentry post at the edge of the Eirian Hills when the sun started to set on the horizon.
‘Aeron,’ Dare called out to the archer who had taken position at the highest part of the still standing rock wall, maintaining a vigil on the surrounding area. ‘Kyou and I are going to scout the area, keep your eyes sharp.’
‘Try not to wander too far,’ Aeron remarked with a little smile. ‘You know how easily you get lost.’
‘As easily as you can hold drink,’ Dare said sweetly before he headed off.
Even though Angarad was friendly territory, Dare was not so foolish as to think that the Enemy would not repeat the attempt on their lives with a new menace. The caracal attack had come out of nowhere and now that only Angarad lay between them and the Frozen Mountains, Dare expected some form of attack to ambush them on route.
Aeron nodded and watched Dare and the dwarf leaving the campsite heading towards the Mountain Wood, a moderately sized forest of tall trees that deserved a quick survey before they settled in for the night. The forest began on the slopes of the Baffin that loomed over them and spilled onto the base near the Splinter. To the west, Eirian Hills were less imposing than the Baffin and even in the darkness, Aeron imagined the beauty of the rolling hills that looked like waves of green across the landscape.
As he observed and kept watch, he imagined the numerous battles that must have taken place in this land as Angarad fought to keep Balfure out of their lands. The sentry tower had been destroyed only in the last twenty years but enough moss and lichens had grown over the remaining stone walls to ensure it blended seamlessly into the landscape. So much so that it was difficult to tell where it ended and the hills began.
As he kept watch, he felt the weight of something ominous pressing against his chest but did not voice it yet because the warning could be premature. If the Enemy was watching them, then it was possible that Aeron was feeling that scrutiny and there was nothing that screamed danger, just foreboding. There was so much darkness afoot in this quest that he trying not to confuse immediate with prevalent.
In any case, the elf’s keen vision kept all his companions within sight. Each of their group was engaged in their own undertakings as they settled down to rest from the day’s journeying. Aeron could still see Dare walking alongside of Kyou away from their camp while on the far side of the tower; Ronen was seeing to their horses. Like most knights, his squiring days had taught him how to tend to horses and a small stream near the tower had allowed Ronen to water them appropriately before feeding and tethering them for the night.
Tully appeared to be putting the finishing touches to their evening meal, hunched over the simmering pot while Tamsyn sat by and enjoyed the warmth of the fire. The magii’s dark eyes were staring into the horizon as he smoked his pipe and observing the cook who over the last few days had grown more and more distant.
Aeron knotted his brow in sympathy, realising that the farmer must surely be worried about his wife. The elf had never been married so he could not fully appreciate the bond that Dare, Tully and Ronen shared with their wives. However, he knew each man suffered greatly by their absence and was equally worried about their fates. Aeron himself had never had an attachment to warrant the anguish he saw in these men though he knew that Kyou often spoke of a dwarf maid called Hanae who lived in the Jagged Teeth with the rest of his father’s clan. Even Tamsyn was rumoured to have some history with the High Queen thought that was merely gossip.
Aeron supposed his thoughts on the subject were influenced by his parents.
As the youngest child of House Halion, he had never been terribly impressed by the union between his parents which he thought to be a bad match. They loved each other but he was uncertain if they liked each other. Once an elf decided on a soul mate, it was a bond that not even death could break and elves lived a long time. Perhaps his own reluctance for marriage had to do with the possibility he could end up being with someone he might not be able to tolerate for all of eternity.
Certainly it was not the case with Dare, Ronen and Tully who viewed every moment with their spouses as precious. In that respect Aeron could appreciate why Tully would be so distracted. After all this time, Keira still suffered the effects of the burrowers in her blood. Although Tully had not spoken of it in depth, Aeron suspected that even with the help of the elves, they had not fully been able to expel the venom of the burrowers from her body. It tainted her so completely that its vile magic could still be felt by every elf that encountered her.
Aeron had not spoken of it to Tully for it would only upset him.
Like Aeron, Tamsyn also noticed the darkness in Keira and kept silent. Lylea had put it down to the burrowers venom in her veins. The burrowers were vicious creatures when the Dreaded Mother had birthed them but after Balfure had infused them with dark magic to create the Blinding Curse, it left a stain upon the soul that appeared to be permanent. For the elves, it made Keira extremely difficult to read and even Tamsyn could not be entirely sure of her reasons when she agreed to undertake the quest.
He did know that it had nothing to do with Arianne’s baby.
Still, Arianne needed a company of her own for this quest and so he had not objected
because Keira had proven herself to be a friend to Arianne and Dare since her ordeal at the hands of the Disciples and the stain of the burrowers upon her soul was inflicted through no fault of her own.
‘Tully,’ Tamsyn called out to him when it appeared the man was done with his cooking when he covered the pot with a lid. ‘Come join me.’
Tully lifted the pot away from the fire and allowed it to cool for the eating before he took a seat next to Tamsyn on still intact set of steps. When the aromatic smoke from Tamsyn’s pipe reached his nose, it prompted Tully to retrieve his own pipe from his coat pocket and light it.
Both men lapsed into a quite moment of reflection as they gazed at the horizon through a broken wall and for a moment Tully thought that if he stared hard enough, he might be able to see the Green from here.
‘You’re thinking of home?’ Tamsyn ventured a guess.
Tully exhaled a lung full of smoke and watched it dissipate into air before he answered the magii.
‘Yes,’ he admitted readily, ‘I miss it. I miss the quiet. I used to think that I was different from the other folk in the Green, that I needed adventure and exploration but now I think I was being frivolous and selfish. I’m not sorry I helped Dare but I regret that Keira paid the price for my foolishness.’
‘There was nothing foolish in what you did,’ Tamsyn stated firmly. ‘You were exceedingly brave as your wife was exceedingly brave. What tragedy came about because of that courage is not your fault but that of Balfure and the cruelty of his agents.’
Tully couldn’t accept the compliment as much as he wished he believed Tamsyn’s words. ‘Keira married a man of the Green. At least she thought she did. I feel sometimes that she’s angry with me for lying to her about the man I am. She expected an ordinary life, with a houseful of children. I promised to give her that when we married. I didn’t tell her that I wished to wander the world, to see things and go places. That for some reason in me, I had this desire. I should have told her that.’
Avalyne Series 01: The Queen of Carleon Page 19