Journey To The Rift (Coimirceoirí: Guardians of the Marked Ones)

by Cathi Shaw

  Brijit devoured the apple crisp, savoring the sweet, tartness of the dish, a smile of bliss on her face. She grinned in Weylon’s direction as she found herself relaxing with a full belly and the thought of the warm bed that was waiting for her. She was surprised when Weylon suddenly stood. She looked up at him.

  “Let’s go for a walk,” he said quietly, his eyes darting around the room suspiciously.

  Wondering what had put him on edge again, Brijit shrugged and followed him from the great room. She would have preferred to just go up to her rooms and get a good night’s sleep, but it appeared that Weylon had other plans.

  #

  Weylon had noticed a change in Brijit since they arrived at the village. She seemed more confident than she had when they were alone in the forest. Something felt wrong about the whole thing – he couldn’t put his finger on it, but she seemed different in some way. Unease filled him as they stepped into the street and walked toward the river in the dimming light.

  Refraining from sharing his thoughts with her, Weylon decided to test just how open her mind was to him. He probed for a few minutes, secretly, attempting to enter her mind unawares. Almost immediately he was assaulted with a myriad of emotions. Fear, pride, humiliation, sadness, excitement. The feelings were so overwhelming and so numerous that Weylon had to sit down as a sudden wave of nausea threatened to overcome him. And then just as suddenly he was shut out, the emotions, the thoughts, everything completely silent and black.

  He took a few deep breaths, watching Brijit with confusion. She stood in front of him, breathing hard, her eyes flashing with emotion like he’d never seen in her before. She not only knew how to shield expertly; she knew how to open herself more than anyone else he had ever met.

  He’d never encountered a mind so open and so busy. There was so much going on behind her seemingly calm exterior that it was impossible to focus on any of her individual thoughts. And she’d been so strong when she’d flung him out. Clearly his fellow Coimirceoirí had, as he’d suspected, been keeping some fairly large secrets from him.

  Brijit was glaring at him. “How dare you?” she said, rage infusing her words. There was no sign of the meek and timid girl she’d pretended to be.

  Weylon held up his hand. “I didn’t mean –”

  But she cut him off. “Don’t lie to me. You certainly did mean to. You can’t just probe someone’s mind by accident. I guess it didn’t turn out the way you expected, did it?”

  He stared at the clearly infuriated girl who was standing in the front of him, rage flashing in her eyes.

  “Why did you hide this?” he asked.

  Brijit shook her head and turned away from him. She remained silent.

  “No? Not so eager to talk now? There’s plenty going on in your mind. Why did you pretend to be inept?”

  Brijit turned back, her face completely devoid of emotion. “I saw no reason to open up to you, Weylon Forborrow. After all, you certainly weren’t prepared to open up to me.”

  Weylon was silent for a moment. She was right about that. He hadn’t been at all friendly or open with her. But that was because he thought she was a simpleton whom he was stuck babysitting. He had no idea she hid such talent.

  He should have known, he reminded himself. After all, she was this year’s Academy apprentice. It wasn’t logical that she would be as helpless as she had pretended to be. And he had been so condescending. He shook his head slightly at the memory. He probably deserved this.

  She was so strong. He had never encountered a skill set like she had shown. It was something he’d only read of. Suddenly the reason the Elders wanted the girl as one of their Coimirceoirí made sense. It was obvious that Brijit’s outer expressions, while they appeared transparent, were only the tip of the iceberg. Beneath the surface raged a multitude of other emotions. And she was able to take one into her mind like no one he’d ever encountered. He had barely probed the surface when he was submerged and threatened to drown. And then she’d flung him out just as easily.

  Could she truly be so gifted?

  Weylon couldn’t help wondering what he would find if reached into her mind again. He turned back to her and saw that she was striding along the riverbank without him. He hurried to catch up. She hadn’t gone very far on the isolated path when he overtook her. Reaching out with all his power, he attempted to enter her mind, brutally forcing his way into her inner thoughts. Instantly, white hot pain flash through his skull, knocking him to the ground. He vaguely heard Brijit scolding him from a distance, but he barely noticed her response through the pain that was threatening to rip his head in two.

  “What do you think you’re doing?”

  He finally heard her words through the haze of pain.

  “You should learn some manners. Reaching into anyone’s mind like that is a violation.”

  Nausea threatened to overcome Weylon, and his head spun with the emotions that had been unleashed.

  He was surprised when she knelt beside him when she saw he was ill. Her anger had faded instantly into concern.

  “Here.” She helped him lean back against a fallen log on the side of the trail. “Just rest. I didn’t mean to push back so hard.”

  Weylon closed his eyes and waited for the sickness to subside. Brijit sat down beside him, casting worried glances his way now and then.

  Obviously there was even more to her gifts that he had suspected. He wondered if she knew just how strong she was? She said she didn’t mean to push back so hard, so perhaps she didn’t have the training she needed to harness her talents. If so, why would the Elders and her teachers leave such an ability underdeveloped? Surely she could be even more powerful with some training.

  #

  It took almost twenty minutes for the color to return to Weylon’s cheeks. Brijit felt only slightly guilty for pushing him out of her mind so violently. He had no business probing her thoughts, but she could have used a bit of restraint in her reaction to his invasion. Had she pushed any harder, or had he been not as strong, Brijit knew she could have permanently damaged his mind. Guilt pricked at her again, but she pushed it away. He had not been so badly hurt, and he needed to know he couldn’t do that to her. Especially since he’d tried to invade her mind not once but twice.

  “Are you well enough to go back to the inn?” she finally asked.

  He nodded and stood shakily. He shook his head and then began to walk more strongly toward the inn.

  They didn’t speak to one another, although Brijit could feel the questions he had swirling in the gathering dusk. Instead they entered the inn and went up the stairs to their rooms in utter silence.

  As they stepped onto the landing, Weylon let out a curse and began to run toward their rooms.

  “Weylon, what are you doing?” Brijit called as she hurried after him wondering what could cause such a reaction. He didn’t reply but in a moment he didn’t need to, Brijit saw what had sparked his response.

  The door to her room was open and two figures were fleeing down the hallway in the opposite direction of the landing. She watched in horror as Weylon chased them only to have them leap through the window at the end of the hall. Brijit caught up to where Weylon was standing at the open window, cursing softly under his breath. Brijit looked down to where he was gazing to see two black figures sprinting across the common and disappearing into the trees.

  Weylon turned back to her.

  “It seems, Brijit Carnesîr, that you have more than one secret you’ve been keeping.”

  Brijit stepped back from the anger she saw in his dark eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “Just why would an Elder and a Draíodóir be breaking into your rooms?”

  Chapter Seven

  Brijit stared at Weylon in horror. Her heart hammering in her chest. “Are you sure it was a Draíodóir?” she asked, unable to control the shaking in her voice. Fear enveloped her.

  Weylon nodded grimly and then gripped her elbow and led her down the hall, back to her room. Her meager belongings ha
d been emptied from her saddlebags and were now scattered around the room.

  Tears pricked at Brijit’s eyes. She felt the violation on a physical level. Nausea rolled over her.

  “What were they looking for?” Weylon asked as he surveyed the room angrily.

  Brijit shook her head as hot tears began to slip down her cheeks. She had no idea why they would do this, and she shuddered as she wondered what would have happened if she had been in her room by herself when they broke in.

  Weylon looked at her, obviously impatient for an answer. When he saw her tears his expression changed. He took two steps toward her and pulled her into his arms.

  “It’s okay. You’re all right, Brijit.”

  Surprise at the physical contact, so gentle and unlike anything she’d ever seen him express, hit Brijit and the tears started to flow in earnest. It wasn’t because the room had been broken into and her things had been looted. It was the culmination of all the betrayal she’d felt in recent months and her deep loneliness. She had been missing Serena and Elsa more than she realized. She even missed Raspella.

  Weylon let her cry it out, and when she was finished he stepped away and sat her on the edge of her bed before closing the door to her room. They sat in quiet for a few minutes. Brijit began to feel more and more embarrassed. She shouldn’t have lost control like that in front of Weylon. It made her seem weak. But there was no judgment in his eyes when she finally had the courage to meet them.

  “Do you know what they could have been looking for?” he asked in a tone so different from his usual gruffness.

  Brijit shook her head, the tears threatening again. She needed to get it together. She considered Weylon’s question. Why would someone break into her room? She had nothing of value. No money, no jewelry, nothing. “I don’t know.”

  Weylon studied her for a minute and then looked around the room, with an expression of frustration. “Think, Brijit, there must be something you have.”

  As she looked at her belongings scattered around the room she wondered what they could have been looking for. Suddenly she reached into her pocket and felt the map.

  “What is it?” Weylon asked.

  Brijit cursed herself for not remembering to shield herself. She closed her eyes. She needed to trust someone, and it seemed as though Weylon was the only person she had right now. She decided to take a chance.

  “There is something…” she said softly.

  Weylon watched as she pulled the map from her pocket and held it out to him.

  “What is this?” he asked as he reached for it and then sucked in his breath as he studied the paper in his hand. “Where did you get this?”

  “I took it from my mentor’s office before I left the Academy.”

  He looked at her sharply. “You mean you stole it?”

  Brijit smiled sweetly. “If you want to put it bluntly, then, yes.” She watched his face as he continued to look at the map. “Have you seen anything like it before?”

  Weylon shook his head. “No. Nothing like this exists at Stone Mountain. At least so far as I’m aware.”

  “I hadn’t seen anything like it at the Academy, either. It is very different than the maps we studied in our geography classes.”

  Weylon nodded, his mouth set grimily. “It certainly is.”

  “Do you think it’s accurate?” she asked.

  He licked his lips and looked down, considering. “It is the work of Elder mapmakers, so I would be surprised if it wasn’t accurate.”

  “Elder mapmakers – how do you know?” Brijit asked.

  He pointed to a small ornate insignia on the bottom left corner of the map that she hadn’t noticed before. “That is the Elder mapmaker’s seal.”

  Brijit chewed on her lip and then asked the question that was foremost in her mind. “Do you think that’s what they were looking for?”

  Weylon looked around the room and then back at Brijit. “Unless there’s something else you’re hiding, then I think it’s likely.”

  Brijit sat down on the edge of her bed and looked at her boots. There was a lot she hadn’t told Weylon, but none of it could be found in her room. She wished she knew whether she could trust him or not. She looked up at him.

  He raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to speak.

  “I’m sure there are many things that we have both kept to ourselves.” Brijit watched him and saw as his face instantly became shuttered. “I do have things that I haven’t told you. We haven’t exactly been confidants on this trip, but…I’m not sure I can trust you, Weylon.”

  “What can I do to convince you that you can trust me?”

  Brijit studied his handsome face. In her heart she really did want to trust him but part of her was reluctant.

  “Well, perhaps if you shared some of your secrets I would be more willing to share mine.”

  His mouth twitched and then he nodded. “Fair enough. I know where we are going…”

  She nodded, “To The Rift, I know.”

  Surprised flooded his face.

  She smiled grimly. “I found out about that the night before we left the Academy. But what I don’t know is what The Rift is, where it is or why we might be going there.”

  Weylon crossed over to sit beside her on the bed. “I have the answers to the first two parts of your question but not the last.”

  Brijit leaned forward, eager to hear what he had to say.

  “I have never been to The Rift, but I have been told about it.”

  “By whom?”

  Weylon paused and looked down. “It was considered vital knowledge for those of us who were training in combat.”

  Brijit was silent for a moment, digesting what he’d said. As far as she knew none of the female Coimirceoirí had been told about The Rift, whether they trained in combat or not. Or if they had, they’d kept what they were told to themselves.

  “Well, what is it?”

  Weylon met her eye, his expression serious. “It is a wasteland that borders on a dead sea. It lies on the other side of Séreméla. The Elders’ land is protected by an invisible magikal border that is said to have been created during Queen Aibhilín’s time.”

  “Do you have any idea why are we going there?”

  Weylon shook his head. “I told you there were some things I don’t know. Believe me I tried to get information out of Gregor, but he never admitted to knowing the reasons behind the Elders’ plans for us being sent to The Rift.”

  Brijit considered that for a moment. He knew nothing but he suspected things. She could tell. She knew it had something to do with the royal family.

  “I think it might have something to do with the Crown Prince and his heir,” she admitted.

  “How do you know this?”

  “I overheard a conversation between Raspella and your mentor the morning we left the Academy. That was what they said.”

  Weylon was looking at her with admiration now.

  “What?” Brijit asked feeling self-conscious.

  “I never took you to be an eavesdropper.” Weylon admitted.

  Brijit smiled grimly. “I don’t think you took me to be half of what I am, Weylon Forborrow,” she said suddenly feeling the weight of the talisman that hung beneath her tunic. She wasn’t quite ready to share that information with Weylon. In truth, she didn’t know if she ever would be.

  “I don’t think I do,” he murmured with admiration, and Brijit was suddenly aware how close they were sitting. She pulled away and stood, her cheeks flaming.

  She looked around her room, wanting to lighten the suddenly heavy mood between them. Her few things were scattered everywhere. She bent and picked up her Apprentice gown, folding it carefully, ignoring the muddy boot print that was on the skirt. “Do you think they will come back?” she asked softly.

  She heard Weylon rise behind her. “No, I don’t think they will but I can sleep on the floor here if it will make you feel better.”

  Brijit look at the hard floor boards. And then she looked at her bed. Wey
lon deserved to sleep in his own bed tonight. There was no telling when they would next get a chance to sleep in comfort. She shook her head.

  “I will be fine on my own.”

  He studied her. “Are you sure?”

  Brijit nodded. Weylon was in the room next door, she reminded herself.

  “Okay. Call if you need anything. I don’t sleep deeply.” He looked at the map still in his hand. “May I keep this? I’d like to study it a bit.”

  Brijit nodded. She didn’t want to have the map on her body anymore, given that there were those who appeared to be hunting for it.

  “Sleep well, Brijit.”

  “You, too, Weylon.”

  She watched as he exited her room. Just before he closed the door behind him, he poked his head back in and said, “Make sure you bolt the door tonight.”

  Swallowing Brijit nodded. He slipped out again, and she knew he was waiting on the other side to hear the bolt slide home. Brijit twisted it and then turned back to the room. She began to gather up her things, folding them and re-stowing them in the saddlebags as she went.

  As she worked, she thought about the last few hours. Things had changed quickly between her and Weylon. He now knew far more about her than she had originally wanted. But he had also opened up with her about what he knew of The Rift. She felt that they were easing slowly toward something akin to a partnership. She just didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

  #

  Weylon stood outside Brijit’s room until he heard her lock slide into place. He didn’t think the intruders would try to return tonight. They had come close to being caught – too close, likely, for their own comfort. He was relatively certain they were after the map Brijit had in her possession.