The Shadow Thief

by K.L. Bauman

Chapter 26

  Truth

  Echo signaled Shimmer with a thought and the horse jolted forward. Echo grunted as Keebo forcefully squeezed her torso to keep from sliding off of Shimmer’s rump.

  The little food she’d eaten and the exhilaration of riding rejuvenated Echo. The ground rushed beneath them and Echo could hear Keebo’s laughter behind her. If only life could always be so wonderful, with all worries carried away with the laughter in the wind. The ride was over far too soon.

  Keebo pointed to where the sandstone wall had crumbled on them after he’d saved Echo from the Fate’s lair. Shimmer slowed and then stopped before the wall and Echo gasped. Runes and paintings, more life-like than even the elves’ paintings, shone brilliant in the morning sun. Echo and Keebo dismounted and Shimmer followed them to the wall. The rock that had crumbled away had been moved into piles, and the grass in front of the wall was flattened as if several pairs of feet had trod there.

  Echo touched the paintings with her fingertips. Two winged horses reared toward each other. Between their striking front hooves was a shining star. The paintings were so alive, Echo could see the star pulsating and the horses’ manes and tails rippling. “What is this?” she whispered.

  Keebo stood beside the wall, but his eyes were on Echo. She turned toward his beaming face expectantly. He answered, “It’s a clue. The beginning to all the answers we’ve been searching for.” His eyes sparkled, and Echo felt excitement beat in her chest. Before she could ask any questions, Keebo spoke again. “I want to tell you about me first, though.”

  Echo could hardly stand all the suspense. She forced herself to calmly say, “Okay.”

  Keebo shifted nervously and glanced at the ground. He cleared his throat and then focused on Echo again. “My dad and I aren’t human, Echo. We’re, well, we’re actually woodland fae.” He waited tensely for her response.

  Although Echo had figured as much after being with Song, she gave Keebo a surprised expression. And then she asked the question that had been burning in her mind since she’d realized what Keebo truly was. “Why don’t you have wings?”

  Keebo chuckled and dug a small vial from his pocket. “You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to do this. Here,” he said as he opened the vial and poured a green salve into his shaking palm. “Rub this on your eyes.”

  Echo looked uncertainly at the salve. It was slimy. “It’s clover leaf salve,” Keebo explained. He looked into her eyes and said, “Trust me.”

  After another moment of hesitation, Echo dipped her pointer fingers in the salve and, before she allowed herself time to think about it, rubbed it on her eyes. “Yuck!” she stated as she rubbed the salve over her eyelids. It felt like snot and she wanted nothing more than to rub it off. “What is this suppose to do anyway?”

  Echo jumped as Keebo approached and gently rubbed her eyes with a soft cloth. When he was finished, Echo heard him step back and he whispered. “Okay, you can open your eyes now.”

  The salve made Echo’s eyelids stick a little, and when she opened her eyes, things were blurry. She blinked in rapid succession until everything became clearer. She then stared awestruck, her mouth gaping, as she watched Keebo turn. As his back came into view, the light caught a series of golden veins, growing like tiny branches on a tree. And then, slowly, more material formed around the veins, sending shimmering colors to Echo’s eyes. Finally, a full set of dragonfly-type wings rested against Keebo’s back. They weren’t as bright and decorative as Song’s had been. In fact, there was nothing feminine about them at all. Still, the word that came to Echo’s mind was, “beautiful”.

  Keebo turned slowly until he was once again facing Echo. His face was serious, his eyes wide. He gulped. “W-Well? What are you thinking? Do you think I’m a freak? Are they too girly?”

  Echo was dumbfounded for a moment. When she snapped out of it, she couldn’t help laughing. “What? I mean, well, you’re no more of a freak than you’ve ever been,” she teased, helping Keebo relax. Then she said more seriously, “They are definitely not girly. They’re amazing.” Shimmer nickered and bobbed her head in agreement.

  Keebo’s cheeks reddened. “Okay then, one down. Now, the ears,” he said and started to reach toward his head.

  Echo grabbed his wrists to stop him. “May I?” she asked. Keebo looked taken aback, but then nodded and lowered his hands. Echo drew closer and reached toward the hair above Keebo’s ears. She breathed in the scent of pine and her heart pounded against her ribs. Their faces were only inches apart.

  Slowly, Echo coursed her fingers through Keebo’s hair. It felt rough at first, but underneath was as soft as down. She pushed the hair back to reveal a set of pointed ear-tips. Echo smiled broadly, amazed and excited at the revelation of Keebo’s identity. She reveled in the moment, tracing the pointed ear-tips with her fingers.

  Keebo’s eyes rolled back and he closed his lids. A crooked smile played on his lips as he spoke groggily, as if waking from a dream, “Echo, stop. You’re gonna have to stop that now.”

  Echo didn’t want to stop.

  “Echo! Stop!” Keebo said more urgently as his eyes snapped open. He grabbed Echo’s wrists and yanked her hands away. Echo’s heart dropped as she frowned. What had she done?

  “I’m sorry,” Keebo said more calmly. “It’s just that, well,” his face turned bright red, “that’s a woodland fae’s greatest weakness, having their ears rubbed. I can’t be held accountable for my actions if you keep that up.”

  “Oh,” Echo said, startled. She felt her own cheek flaming with embarrassment. She tried to pull her hands away and end the awkward moment, but Keebo held her fast.

  “There’s something else I’ve been wanting to tell you. I’ve been waiting forever…”

  Echo waited a moment, her heart racing, and then asked, “What is it?”

  “Well, I, um, I…” Keebo stumbled over his words. Then, he said, “Oh, what the heck!” He pulled Echo to him and planted a kiss directly on her lips.

  Echo tensed against Keebo’s sudden, unexpected move. Her heart threatened to leap through her chest as shock and then pleasure coursed through her. She vaguely heard Shimmer release an amused squeal.

  Keebo pulled back suddenly, his face still red. “I’m sorry!” he said, looking horrified. “I’m really sorry! I didn’t mean--I mean, I did but--please don’t be mad!”

  Mad? Echo was shocked, excited, mostly confused, but not mad. In fact she felt the urge to give the kiss another try. But she stood frozen to her spot and answered, “I’m not mad.”

  Keebo looked only slightly relieved. “Oh, okay. Good. It’s just, the ears and, well, the moment and all.” He went to fidget with the hair over his ears, only to touch the bare tip. He jerked his hand away and cleared his throat. His voice cracked as he said, “Well, I still have a lot to tell you. Y-You want to sit down? I really need to sit down.” He nervously walked to a soft patch of grass and flopped down. Shimmer began cropping the grass nearby as Echo sat next to Keebo. Her lips still tingled from his kiss.

  Taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, Keebo spoke. Echo noticed he kept his eyes averted from her as he told the rest of his story.

  “I’m really sorry that I couldn’t tell you about me before. It’s not that I didn’t trust you,” Keebo added quickly. “But we were sworn to secrecy. Woodland fae are secret keepers--we’re entrusted with Shae Vale’s most important secrets. We aren’t allowed to tell even our closest friends. But, we somehow lost track of Shae Vale’s greatest secret.”

  Echo leaned toward Keebo, hanging on his every word. “What was the secret?”

  Keebo finally looked at Echo and gave her a sneaky smile. “I just told you, we can’t tell!”

  Frustration hit Echo in the chest. “Then why tell me any of this?”

  “Just hold on. You’ll know the secret before the day is done. Anyway, where was I? Oh, our people were contacted by the
elves in Thildin. They’d found some scrolls that gave hints to a long-lost secret--a mystery--concerning Thildin Valley. The elves also spoke of a special herd of horses that lived in the valley and how they’d begun caring for the creatures. The elves could sense magic around the horses, but they weren’t certain what sort of magic it was.

  “Well, my mom and dad were sent to investigate. They moved to Ulway in hopes to learn more from the villagers. They thought maybe some old legends or stories would give them some clues. They disguised themselves as humans because humans believe woodland fae to be good luck. They would’ve attacked my parents, hoping to get pieces of their clothes or hair to bring them fortune.”

  Echo giggled, “You are good luck. You’ve saved me more than once.”

  Keebo grunted. “Luck had nothing to do with that.” He tried to hide a smile and then continued, “Anyway, Mom died having me.” Keebo looked momentarily sad, then hid the emotion behind a small grin. “Dad started teaching me magic and secret keeping from the time I was old enough to walk and talk. We and the elves have been watching the horses all this time. When your dad rescued the stallion, my dad started having suspicions about him. So the elves found a way to keep your dad close. And, suspicions grew stronger when you and Brecker connected with two of Finear’s offspring.”

  Shimmer snorted and shook her mane. She’d ceased eating and was watching Keebo as intently as Echo. The horse hadn’t missed a thing, learning everything Keebo had said through Echo.

  Echo wasn’t sure what to think. This big secret seemed to have something to do with her and her family, but that seemed unlikely. “What are you saying, exactly?” she asked.

  Keebo stood and brushed the dirt and grass off of his pants. He held his hand out to Echo and assisted her to stand. Electric excitement shot through his eyes and Echo felt it pulse through his hand into hers. He said, “The runes on this wall told us where to find the answers.” Still holding her hand, Keebo pulled Echo along a worn path. “Come on!” he stated. He pulled harder until they were running with Shimmer trotting behind them. Echo felt dazed, mesmerized by Keebo’s shining wings and her insatiable curiosity about what he had yet to show her.

  They raced through the badlands, between reddish-gold sandstone cliffs and over rough grass and hardy wild flowers. Small trees and sage brush lined the path that led them closer to revelations. Keebo finally slowed as the path twisted and turned through a series of sandstone walls. The air was quiet here, and they were shaded from the sun. Grasshoppers chirruped and buzzed as they flew short distances between blades of grass. Echo kept her eyes and ears alert for any signs of rattle snakes. The badlands were notorious for such creatures.

  Finally, they rounded one last bend. Echo’s parents, Mari, Dorian, Jiggers, and several other elves and fae were gathered near another smooth wall. This one was gigantic. Echo gaped up at the towering formation, all of which was covered with the same type of paintings as the other, smaller wall. A natural ledge formed over the wall, protecting it from wandering eyes and harsh weather. The group of people, elves, and fae were in deep discussion, pointing at certain runes and nodding or shaking their heads. All stopped short and turned their eyes on Echo and Shimmer as they approached.

  “Many of my people have come to help with translating the wall and to help fight later,” Keebo stated.

  Mari was first in the crowd to react to Echo’s presence. She rushed toward Echo and embraced her enthusiastically. “I’m so glad you’re feeling better! I was really scared.”

  Echo’s old companion, guilt, poked at her gut as she hugged Mari and apologized yet again for things she couldn’t change. They parted and Mari’s face was shining. “Oh, forget all that for now. Come on. You have to see this.” She flipped her long blond hair over her shoulder and walked toward the wall.

  Echo followed Mari with Keebo keeping pace as they approached the wall. Echo’s mom and dad, who were waiting there, each hugged her in turn.

  “This is amazing, Echo,” Oran stated. His excitement had softened his features to resemble a much younger man. “From the very top of this wall to the very bottom is a story.”

  “And not just any story!” Keebo interrupted, and then apologized and nodded to Oran to continue.

  “Look up there,” Echo’s dad said. Echo looked at the very top of the wall. A picture of a beautiful woman with flowing brown hair rode astride a black, winged horse. She held a sword with a clear, sculpted hilt.

  “Is that sword glass?” Echo asked, intrigued.

  “Crystal, actually,” Dorian stated as he came to stand next to Echo. She suddenly remembered the scrolls of Azura and how they spoke of the Kavalah’s crystal swords. Dorian spoke again, “Keep looking at the paintings, Echo.” He whispered something in old elvish. Echo gasped as the woman and her horse seemed to come to life. The horse spread its wings and reared as the woman raised her crystal sword toward the sun; her hair flowed in elegant swirls around her form.

  A strange voice whispered against the surrounding walls, “Azura!”

  Even after the figures became still again, Echo couldn’t take her eyes away. “That’s Azura? You mean, the Kavalah queen who defeated Belzac?” She whispered her question to no one in particular.

  “Yes, and the blade she holds is her sword, Dylarian,” Mari stated. Echo jerked her head toward her sister in shock. A smile crept across Mari’s lips. Soon she and Echo were giggling.

  “What’s so funny?” Keebo asked.

  Echo explained, “We thought Dylarian was a man!” She and Mari burst into laughter as everyone looked at them strangely. They finally got a hold of themselves and Echo asked, “So, is this Azura’s story? I mean, the rest of it--the part that was missing from the scrolls?”

  “That, and then some,” Keebo said. His strange, unwavering stare was making Echo uncomfortable.

  She looked away from Keebo, only to find the rest of the group staring at her the same way. “WHAT?” she asked, exasperated.

  Echo’s dad spoke softly. “Echo, look at the rest of the paintings. They tell the story from the time Azura proclaimed war on the shadow dwellers up until today.”

  Echo’s eyes scanned the paintings and runes. Images of warriors astride winged horses bore down on a pack of shadows. Elves, humans, and fae folk all fought against the darkness from the ground. Then, a burst of light from Dylarian that swallowed Azura and a large, human-shaped shadow that Echo knew was Belzac. Some strange runes that she couldn’t read followed. A series of squiggly lines resembling tree roots with names attached covered the lower section of the wall. “How could these paintings be current? I mean, they’ve been hidden forever. Who kept them up?”

  Dorian said, “A spell was put on them to keep things up to date. We will explain that and the rest of the painting’s story later. Pay close attention to this root over here.” He pointed a long, slender finger toward one of the squiggly lines.

  Echo was so shocked she couldn’t even draw a breath. The name, “Mareau”, her family’s name, was painted in delicate runes under the root. From there every name of her family, including hers, was attached by more roots.

  “Echo,” Keebo said softly as he touched her shoulder, “This is the great secret that the woodland fae lost all those centuries ago. It is also your family history. You are Kavalah!”