“She calls to her brood,” Nekoor said, as they climbed the stairs. “We must hurry. We are in no condition to deal with the entire pack.”
“If we can just get outside the city, I can use my power to protect us,” Jason said.
“You were fortunate to get out of that room,” Gatlor snapped, “but we can discuss that another time. Nekoor is correct. We must get out of the building as quickly as we can.”
“Aye, and once out of the city, I can treat your wounds,” Meryl said.
“We also need to find Calador,” Seerka added.
They reached the exit without incident. As they rejoined the Warders who had waited outside, they could hear the pack approaching in the distance. From the building, the mother’s calls still echoed into the streets.
“Calador will be that way,” Gatlor said, pointing toward the approaching commotion. “We will need to circle around.”
They moved across the lane toward their original hiding place, and waited while the first of the creatures ran into the building. Once they were sure most of the pack had gone inside, they went in search of the Dokal warrior, keeping a careful watch for any stragglers that may not have returned to the lair yet. Jason noticed Gatlor’s limp was getting worse, and Nekoor’s leg dragged behind her, leaving a disturbing trail in the dirt as he and Seerka helped her. He could tell Meryl had seen as well, but she kept her silence. She glanced at him and gave a small shake of her head. Until they left the city and she had her power again, there wasn’t much she could do.
“Seerka, I must thank you for saving my life,” Nekoor said. “Without your actions, I doubt I would have survived. I am in your debt.”
“What? Oh, that. Yes, well, your thanks are unnecessary,” Seerka replied. Jason thought the cat-man sounded uncomfortable. “I assure you, like any proper Ferrin, I merely acted according to my own best interests. After all, a dead Yellowtooth is not nearly as entertaining as a live one.”
Nekoor chuckled. “I would tend to agree. Nevertheless, regardless of your motives, you have my thanks.”
“Well, should you run into any other Ferrin, or Yellowtooth, or anyone else at all for that matter, you may show your gratitude by keeping this between us. There are reputations to consider, namely mine.”
“Of course. I will not speak of it again.”
Seerka gave a dramatic sigh. “If only Sharr had come in your stead. I am certain he would have been much more enjoyable. You are far too reasonable for a Yellowtooth.”
“Why, Seerka,” Nekoor said, cocking an amused eyebrow at Jason, “it almost sounds as if you like me.”
“What?” Seerka opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before continuing. “All I am saying is that you are not nearly as entertaining as a typical member of your race.”
“Of course. Forgive me for assuming anything more.” She gave Jason a wink as she finished.
In spite of their situation, Jason couldn’t keep from grinning. She sure knew which buttons to push.
They were getting close to the edge of the city when they saw Calador’s maul on the ground. A little further ahead, they could see the warrior’s battle ax, and beyond that, a tattered, crimson bulk sprawled in the dirt. As they hurried forward, Jason was both relieved and alarmed to hear labored breathing. At least he’s alive. But the sounds of his wheezing and gasping made it clear he wouldn’t be that way for long.
“Calador!” Meryl ran forward and stood over him, her expression one of dismay mixed with helpless anger. Jason drew a hissing breath through his teeth as they came up to the fallen warrior. Calador’s clothing was torn and shredded, and so bloody it was hard to tell where the cloth ended, and the equally mangled body underneath began. The dirt all around him was a burgundy quagmire where his blood had soaked into it. Here and there, the giant’s plate-like natural armor, obviously the only reason he was still breathing, peeked out through the tattered flesh. Black quills hung from him and covered the ground.
Calador looked up at them through a crimson mask. “Did you…did you get the diamond?” he managed.
“Aye,” Seerka said. “It is ours. But more to the point, what are you doing? This is hardly what I would expect from a Dokal warrior. Now is not the time to be lounging about, you great laggard.” Although the Ferrin’s tone was light, it was clear he was holding his emotions in check.
Calador tried to chuckle, but only managed a weak cough. “Once the creatures left, I had nothing better to…to do, so I thought to relax for a while.” To Jason’s ears, it sounded as if the giant was struggling for every breath.
“We must get him out of the city!” Meryl said, as she began pulling quills out. “Calador, we must move you. I only hope it will not cause you too much pain.”
“Ah, my dear,” he answered, “it will…cause me no pain at all. One advantage to…to allowing the beasts to hit me with their poison darts.”
“How will we move him?” Nekoor asked. “He clearly cannot walk.”
“We need a stretcher or something,” Jason said.
“We have nothing to use as a stretcher,” Meryl said.
Jason didn’t answer as he studied their surroundings. At the base of one of the buildings, a tangled metal framework gave him an idea. He ran over to it for a closer examination, and nodded as he saw several small girders held together by a number of crosspieces.
He motioned to two of the Warders. “Help me out here.” As they joined him, he pointed at the metal. “We need to get this section out. Try to break off these pieces here, here, and here. Once we get this out, we can put Calador on it and drag him.” They nodded as he explained what he wanted them to do, and the three of them began pulling and twisting at the frame. Soon they had a makeshift stretcher that Jason hoped would hold the massive warrior’s weight.
A few moments later, they maneuvered Calador onto the frame. Jason held his breath as two of the Warders lifted the front. The metal sagged a little, but held. Now, if we can just get him out of Ishadon in time. Jason didn’t know how much time Calador had, but it couldn’t be long. The giant was unconscious, and now, rather than struggling for air, his breaths were much shallower. They had to hurry. The only thing working in their favor was that Calador had managed to draw the creatures so close to the outskirts of the city. Jason just hoped they were close enough.
They began walking, the Warders dragging Calador with Meryl alongside the stretcher, Seerka and Jason supporting Nekoor, and Gatlor limping heavily but still managing to set the pace. Lenai scouted ahead and the other Warder brought up the rear. They were just passing the last buildings, when a faint sound caught Jason’s attention. Oh, man! Are you kidding me?
As if to confirm what he was hearing, Crin spoke up, “Jason, the creatures are pursuing.”
He looked at Seerka and Nekoor. “Do you hear that?”
Nekoor nodded. “The beasts were obviously not done with their prey.”
“That’s just great,” Jason said, shaking his head. The screeching of the creatures was getting louder by the second. “We need to move faster.” He turned to look over his shoulder. In the distance, several blocks away, the vanguard of the pack was heading right for them. At least they don’t run very fast. The creatures’ lack of speed might be enough to allow them to get to a spot where his power would work.
As they left the last building behind, he stretched his hand out and tried to create a small globe of dimsai. The power appeared for an instant, but then immediately dissipated, leaving a glowing streak as it blurred back toward the city. He looked back again. The creatures had closed half the distance between them and the group.
“Jason, you must use your power,” Crin sent.
I’m trying! I’m trying!
He kept checking his power as they reached the first trees, until finally a glowing ball hovered uncertainly over his outstretched palm. It wavered and flickered like a small flame in a breeze, acting like it wanted to return to Ishadon, but with each step it grew stronger and steadier. The sound of t
heir pursuers was getting closer by the moment. Finally, he decided he couldn’t wait any longer.
“Here,” he said to Seerka, “help Nekoor. I’ve got to see if I can stop these things before they’re right on top of us.” Seerka nodded and shifted his grip to take Nekoor’s weight.
“Jason, look out!”
Jason turned, and was shocked to see the leader of the pack was less than ten yards away, preparing to leap at their exposed backs. Just then, Crin swooped at the beast’s face, screeching at the top of his lungs. The leader flinched back, but then leapt toward Jason again once the fortunewing had passed. Even with the split second Crin’s attack had bought him, Jason barely had time to get a shield up before it flared brightly as the creature crashed into the wall of power mid-leap. The beast took a step back, shaking its head. Then it ran at Jason again, and once again it collided with Jason’s shield. The shield flared again and again as other creatures tried to get at their prey. Within moments, they stopped their attacks, sniffing at the shimmering wall of power and pacing back and forth as they tried to find a way to get around it. The shield sparked and popped as several of the beasts sent waves of quills at him with no success. Behind them, more were approaching.
Jason didn’t know how wide he could extend the shield, but he didn’t want to find out after it was too late that it wasn’t far enough. If he couldn’t make it wide enough, there were too many of the creatures for him to deal with on an individual basis. His mind raced as he tried to figure out what to do. He needed a way to deal with all of them at the same time. I hope this works. He focused as hard as he could, pulled both hands back, and then pushed them out toward the pack. A sparkling wave of power erupted from his hands, capturing the entire pack and hurling them back toward Ishadon. It dissipated quickly as it swept them toward the city, but it was apparently enough for the creatures to rethink their pursuit. As they picked themselves up off the ground, they looked at Jason for a moment, and then turned away, heading back to their lair.
“Impressive,” Seerka said from behind him. “I have not seen such a display of power even from the Circle. Your power grows.”
“Yeah, I guess,” Jason said, turning to see that the group had stopped about twenty yards further along. “How’s Calador?”
The Ferrin shook his head. “It does not look good. Meryl despairs of being able to keep him alive.” He took a shaky breath as he looked over his shoulder at the fallen warrior. “His loss will be difficult.”
Jason jogged to where the Dokal lay on the ground. Meryl was on her knees beside him, using her power to heal him as quickly as she could. She looked up as Jason stopped beside her. He saw tears welling in her eyes.
“I cannot heal him fast enough,” she managed, her voice thick with frustration. “I do not have enough power.” The tears finally spilled over, leaving gleaming trails as they rolled down her face.
“Yes, you do,” Jason said. He knelt beside her and placed one hand on her shoulder.
Her eyes widened as she realized what he was about to do. “Thank you,” she whispered, and then turned her attention back to the fallen warrior. As she began working on Calador, he focused on sharing his power with her. The glow from her hands intensified, spreading over Calador’s body until the warrior was encased in a glowing cocoon of dimsai. After several long moments, the power faded, exposing Calador once again. Although his clothing was still torn and blood-soaked, Jason saw the flesh underneath was now whole, and the Dokal’s breathing was steady and strong. He removed his hand from Meryl’s shoulder, but before he could stand up, she turned and wrapped her arms around him.
“Thank you, Jason,” she said, her breath warm in his ear. “I could not have saved him without your aid.” She pulled back to look in his eyes, and then wiped the tears from her face before leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek. As she released him and went to tend to the others, Jason looked up to see Lenai watching, and felt the blood rushing to his face. Before he could say anything, Lenai nodded and turned away.
He jumped to his feet. “Lenai…” He could still feel the warmth of Meryl’s lips on his cheek. It felt like he’d been branded. He just hoped it didn’t look like it too.
Lenai turned to him. “That was well done, Jason. Your aid to Meryl saved Calador’s life. You worked well together.” A ghost of a smile crossed her lips. “We should return to Lore’s Haven. Calador will need more tending, and the Circle awaits the diamond.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re probably right,” he said. He was hesitant to broach the subject if she wasn’t going to. Now probably wasn’t the best time anyway. But they would definitely have to talk about it sooner or later, whether she wanted to or not.
He took a deep breath, concentrated on the last symbol he had etched upon the stone, and opened a portal.
Impossibilities
Delani stared out the window of her quarters into the distance. Somewhere out there, beyond the hills she could see, their unlikely savior was making his way to Lore’s Haven, carrying with him what could very well be Teleria’s only hope. “Three zunz, maybe one more. I come. I bring rockz.” She shook her head, still finding it difficult to believe they had found such an improbable ally. She could only imagine what would happen to him if the other Manarachs discovered his role in their escape. The queen’s attack on the Warder had been nothing short of brutal, and he had just been considered prey. Krrr Z’an was already outcast because of his attitude toward humans. What would outright betrayal earn him?
The High One had stopped by earlier to let her know the Warders had been alerted to watch for the Manarach. She hoped the word would spread throughout all of the keep. An arrow would be a poor reward for Krrr Z’an’s service to Lore’s Haven. The High One had also reiterated Loremaster Seryn’s instructions for her to rest as much as possible today. Had those orders come only from Seryn, she would most likely not be in her room right now. But with them coming from the High One as well, she would do her best not to push herself.
She turned away from the window and walked back to the small table in the center of her quarters. As she sat down, she raised a hand to rub the back of her shoulder where the Manarach’s fangs had pierced her. Although Seryn had healed the wound and nullified the remnants of the creature’s poison, a phantom ache still ran through her muscles, as if the flesh there was unable to forget the pain of the attack. Once this is done, will we be able to go back to what was before? she wondered. Or will there be yet another crisis after this which we will have to deal with?
Ever since Jason Bennett had arrived, it seemed like one thing after another had happened: Bodann’s attacks, Chon’s death, the carnage on the Scorched Plains, now the return of the Altered. But had the Far Planer’s arrival precipitated these, or had he been sent as an answer to them? She sighed as she brushed a stray hair out of her face. Trying to decipher such things was not worth the aching head it would cause. Suffice it to say, his absence would have resulted in a much different Teleria now than the one she saw outside her window.
She started as a light knock on her door interrupted her musings. As she opened it, she saw one of the Warders standing in the hall.
“Loremaster Delani, the High One wanted the Circle to know Captain Gatlor and the others have returned.”
Her heart jumped a little at his report. “Thank you,” she said with a nod. “Please tell the High One I will be there presently.”
As the man nodded and turned away, she closed the door. Had they been successful? Or was their quick return an ominous sign? If they had failed, would the staff be of any use without the gemstone? Would what they had endured, and what they had lost, have been for nothing? With one last glance toward the window, she walked out into the hallway and headed for the dining area.
She stopped abruptly in the middle of the passage as she felt another presence invade her mind. Or at least, she intended to. Although she ordered her body to stop, it continued walking, ignoring her increasingly forceful demands, even nodding amiably to
the people she passed. She was completely aware of what was happening, but she had no control whatsoever over what she was doing.
She reached a juncture in the passage and turned toward the dining area. Like a rider on a runaway horse, she could only watch as her body carried her through the keep, still nodding greetings to those she passed. Since it was obvious that she could not alter her course, she tried to use the mental abilities that were part of Amethyst training to determine who or what the presence was that now controlled her body. The first thought that came to mind was clearly impossible. She kept probing, looking for any weakness in the force controlling her.
Then, a whisper in her mind, the voice all too familiar. “Remember me, my sweet Del?”
You! No! This is not possible!
“Did you miss me?”
You died!
“Ah yes, such a tragic end. Did you mourn my loss? Did you shed a tear for me?”
How are you doing this? Let me go!
“Now, lass. Surely you’re not meaning that. Why, I remember a time when you asked me to never let you go.”
That was long ago. Before I knew who you really were.
“And you think you know me now?”
Let me go!
“Not just yet. First, let’s see what your Circle is up to. Then maybe we’ll talk. Just you and me.”
Ignoring her continuing protests, her body carried her along toward the dining area and the rest of the Circle.
*****
“Excellent work, Captain Gatlor,” Tal said as he accepted the red diamond. “Indeed, excellent work, all of you.” He held the gem up so that Jarril, T’kel, and Kalen, the other Loremasters already present, could see it. The quick return of the party was encouraging. Now all we need is the Blood Iron. It was reassuring to have made the right decision. So many of his decisions had been turning out badly recently.
“Please forgive me, High One,” Meryl said, “but I need to get Calador to the healing area. He will need further treatment.”
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