by Pedro Urvi
Viggo threw up his arms. “Yay! At last!”
Angus opened the door of the cell so they could leave. Viggo had half his body outside even before the door was fully open.
Ingrid went out after him, with Astrid and Lasgol behind her.
“Lasgol,” Dolbarar said to him, “I wanted to thank you personally for the vital information you brought us.”
“The Undying Bell: have they analyzed it?”
“Yes, and you were right. The erudites and healers who’ve studied it have come to the conclusion that yes, it is poisonous.”
Lasgol gave an emphatic nod. “That’s what Uragh the Turquoise Queen explained to us. How is it that Edwina didn’t find it with her Healing power? That question’s been gnawing at me. She didn’t have anything to do with all this, surely?”
“Edwina is innocent,” Angus assured him.
“As for the toxin,” Dolbarar said, “it’s almost imperceptible in the system in small doses. Administered in that way, it poisons the blood very slowly. Edwina never found it in my blood because the dose I was being given was minimal. If it had been used in any greater quantity, she would have found it. That’s why it was used so sparingly and I was slowly poisoned over a long period of time, simulating an illness of the blood.”
“Was it Eyra?” Lasgol asked straightforwardly. He could not hold back the question. He had been turning it over and over in his mind for two weeks, unable to think of anything else.
Dolbarar sighed deeply. “It’s been established that the poisoner was indeed Eyra, Master Ranger of the School of Nature.” He said this with deep sorrow, as if it were physically painful, this betrayal by one who had been his friend for so long, as if someone had stabbed him in the back.
“We find ourselves confronted with a very well-thought-out and well-executed plan,” Angus said. “If Eyra had poisoned Dolbarar, Edwina would have realized and suspected at once. But in this way, making it look like an illness of the blood, and participating in the treatment, there wasn’t the least reason to suspect her. Dolbarar went on getting worse and Eyra went on poisoning him slowly, without taking any risks. Edwina countered the poison with her healing power, but she couldn’t manage to do that completely, and hence Dolbarar was doomed to die.”
“Edwina’s indefatigable struggles saved me,” Dolbarar said. “Eyra ran out of plants to go on poisoning me with and had to resort to a ruse. She tricked you, Lasgol, so that you’d get her the plants she needed.”
“I’m so sorry. I never imagined …”
“You have nothing to apologize for. Your information led us to unmask Eyra.”
“So it’s absolutely certain it was her?” Ingrid asked, seeking reassurance.
Angus nodded. “It’s unequivocal. She refuses to admit it, but the evidence is irrefutable. Lasgol’s information by itself is enough to condemn her. But more than that, we searched the Master House of the School of Nature and found powder from the plant she was using to poison Dolbarar.”
“Which, much to my regret, confirms her guilt,” Dolbarar said sadly, “however much I may have refused to believe it.”
“We also found coins bearing the symbol of the boar and the bear hidden in a ceramic vase on a shelf behind her worktable.” Angus glanced at Egil. “From what Egil’s explained to us, the Dark Rangers use them, so that her membership of the secret dissident organization is now confirmed.”
“I have to admit, my heart bleeds just to hear about it. I could never have imagined it,” Dolbarar said. He looked devastated.
“It’s something that no-one could have imagined,” Angus said. “Nevertheless, it makes complete sense. As Leader of the Camp she’d have been able to influence entire generations of Rangers.”
“Unfortunately she may have already done that,” said Egil. “We don’t know how many years she’s been working for the organization.”
“Yes, and that troubles me greatly,” said Dolbarar. “How many young minds has she influenced and led aside to the Dark Rangers?”
“Can’t we get that information out of her?” Lasgol asked.
“We’ve tried, with the Herb of Truth potion she had herself,” said Angus.
“And did you get any relevant information?”
Dolbarar shook his head. “Eyra’s immune to its effects. I very much fear she’s been preparing for this possibility for a long time. She’s been taking small doses of the potion to accustom her system to it. It had no effect. We couldn’t get her to reveal anything. Once she realized she’s been discovered, she refused to speak, even to me. We have her locked up in solitary confinement, and she refuses to see or speak to anybody.”
“The damage she’s done could be enormous,” said Angus. “That’s why Gondabar wants to try her in the capital. There’ll be a council of all the leaders of the Rangers: those from the Camp, the Shelter and the Capital.”
“The Great Council,” said Dolbarar. “It only convenes in times of great difficulty, like the current one.”
“I always thought she was a witch,” Viggo commented. “We should have suspected her before.”
“The important thing is that we’ve managed to unmask her,” Angus said with enormous relief, “and most of all, to save Dolbarar’s life.”
“I’d like to thank all of you for the important role you’ve played in saving my life,” Dolbarar told them. “Especially Egil, whom I’ve already thanked personally, and Lasgol, but all of you here as well, because without you I’d have died. I’ll never be able to repay this debt.”
“There’s no need.” Egil said with deep respect. “We owed it to you, for everything you’ve done for us … for me in particular.”
“We’re the ones who are in debt to you,” Lasgol added.
“It was our duty,” said Ingrid.
“It was a pleasure to be able to help,” said Gerd.
“Yes,” Nilsa said, “we feared the worst, and seeing you better makes us deeply happy.”
“I’d also like to thank you for all you’ve done for Dolbarar and for the Rangers,” Angus added. “I’ll make sure that everybody knows it, and that you’re rewarded.”
“Thank you, sir,” said Astrid.
“Speaking of rewards –” Viggo was about to say something typical, but Ingrid anticipated him and trod on his foot “But –” he protested.
“Shhhh …”
“Enjoy the freedom and the rest you’ve been granted,” Dolbarar said.
“And this time, try not to overstay,” Angus joked.
Then the two leaders left the room.
Chapter 53
As soon as they were alone, they went out to enjoy the fresh air of the Camp and to start their reunion celebrations. The friends who had been separated for so long joined in joyful hugs. They had not had the chance to do so until that moment.
“You get bigger and uglier every day!” Viggo said to Gerd.
Gerd smiled from ear to ear at him. “And you get more stand-offish every day! Come here and I’ll give you a bear-hug!” He spread his arms wide, ready to crush him between them.
“No way!” Viggo dodged the hug and slipped away, while Gerd laughed.
“Nilsa! I’m so happy to see you!” Ingrid said, and folded her in her arms.
“I’m even happier to see you! How I’ve missed you!”
“How was Erenal? Many adventures?”
“I’ve got to tell you everything, it was incredible,” Nilsa began, tripping over her words. “You’re not going to believe it, the things we’ve seen, what we’ve done … and Egil’s two little friends … and the Grand Library and all the rest …”
“Egil’s little friends?”
“Ufff! You’ll see …” Nilsa was shaking one hand compulsively.
Lasgol gave Egil a hug, which his friend returned with great feeling. “What a reunion, eh?” Lasgol said, beaming.
“You can say that again, worthy of the Snow Panthers!” Egil said, and smiled back.
“You saved Dolbarar!”
&
nbsp; “And you rescued Astrid!”
Lasgol glanced aside at Astrid hugging Nilsa and smiled. “Yeah, it was a whole new adventure, getting her back.”
“So was getting the antidote,” Egil said.
Both friends hugged again, very moved.
Gerd, who had given up trying to catch Viggo, went to say hello to Astrid and Ingrid. Viggo took advantage of the opportunity to greet Nilsa.
“Well then, have you got a bit less clumsy during this new adventure?”
“A lot more than you have in manners.”
“But I’m a gentleman and very well-mannered,” Viggo said as if this were beyond question.
She giggled. “Yeah, and I’m a delicate little dancer. Come here and give me a hug, you knucklehead.”
Viggo smiled and hugged her close.
Joy took possession of them. Gerd wanted to make a group bear-hug, but Viggo refused absolutely. Even so, Gerd hugged them and persuaded the others to join them. Nilsa and Astrid, delighted, joined in, to be followed by Egil and Lasgol. Viggo tried to avoid it, but Ingrid grabbed his arm and pulled him into the group. The group bear-hug was now complete. Their joy at the reunion, and the fact that they could see that they were all well, flooded them. Laughter and hugs continued for quite a while.
“I see they’ve let you go at last,” said a feminine voice suddenly.
“Val!” cried Nilsa, and waved at her to come over. “Join in the celebration!”
Valeria came up to the group with her determined stride.
“Val came with us on the mission,” Nilsa explained. “She really helped us a lot.”
“Her elemental arrows are incredible,” Gerd added.
“Well … the pretty blonde,” said Viggo with a mischievous grin. He glanced at Astrid. “You look more irresistible than ever,” he told Valeria sweetly.
“And you’re as flattering as ever,” she said with a charming smile which emphasized all her beauty. “I still don’t trust you.”
Viggo made a slight bow by way of greeting.
“Valeria,” Astrid said very coldly. She was biting her lower lip, not at all happy to see her.
“Astrid,” Valeria replied, equally coldly.
“I’m glad to see you,” Ingrid said. “I see you’re a Specialist now.”
“Elemental Archer,” said Valeria with a certain pride.
“Wow,” said Lasgol. “That’s great. Congratulations.”
Valeria turned her blue eyes to Lasgol and smiled a bewitching smile. She looked at him as if the others were not there.
“Lasgol, I’m so very happy to see you. You look amazing.”
“And so do you …” Lasgol did not know what else to say. The situation was very uncomfortable, and out of the corner of his eye he could see the simmering annoyance on Astrid’s face. It worried him.
Valeria was still staring at him with that enchanting smile. There was a moment of silence which became very tense. Astrid seemed on the point of jumping on Valeria’s neck. The blonde girl was ignoring her deliberately, her gaze still fixed on Lasgol.
“This is getting interesting,” Viggo said. He was rubbing his hands as he watched the two girls, waiting for the confrontation.
“Well, I have to go. I just wanted to say hello. Be seeing you,” Valeria said to all of them, but staring at Lasgol as she spoke. She turned, and her golden hair shone in the sun.
Astrid made a move to go after her, but Ingrid put her arm out to stop her.
“See you later, Val,” Nilsa said.
Valeria raised a hand in farewell as she walked away.
Viggo smiled. “That was entertaining. We must do it more often.”
Lasgol looked at Astrid and shrugged. His expression said ‘it’s not my fault’, but there was no friendly look in return.
“We all have to catch up with each other,” said Gerd in an attempt to change the subject and break the tension.
“Exactly!” Ingrid said. “I want details of everything you’ve been up to.”
They all started talking at once, only to end up laughing because nobody could understand anything anybody else said. After they had been chatting for some time, Lasgol went with Egil to his cabin, where Ona and Camu were waiting. Egil had taken it on himself to look after them while Lasgol was locked up. When they saw him come into the cabin, Ona and Camu hurled themselves at Lasgol, licking him from head to foot. Lasgol threw himself on to the floor to enjoy the caresses of his two friends.
“They’ve been so worried,” Egil said.
“I’d explained to them that I was going to be locked up for some time.”
Too long, Camu protested.
I had no say about how long they were going to keep us locked up.
Escape.
No, we couldn’t escape.
Why not?
Because we’re Rangers.
Not understand.
I’ll explain when things are quieter. Lasgol said, although he doubted whether he would understand.
Ona, good, he said to Ona and petted the panther, who enjoyed this immensely. She lay down on the floor as though she were a huge kitten so that he could go on stroking her. Camu, seeing that Lasgol was paying more attention to Ona than to him, lay down beside her and waited for Lasgol to rub his belly.
Lasgol and Egil spent a good while making a fuss of the two animals, then they sat down on the cabin porch to talk.
“How do you feel after all this?” Lasgol asked.
“Fine … I think I’m fine. We managed great things in this last adventure, and that makes me feel good.”
“We certainly did. We managed to save Dolbarar’s life, which was the most important thing.”
“Yup, and in the process we found out that Uliskson, who was keeping an eye on me, belonged to the Dark Rangers. That led us to Eyra, who was the one poisoning Dolbarar and directing Dark Rangers from the Camp.”
“Grand bit of work.” Lasgol put his hand on his friend’s shoulder.
Egil smiled. “And you rescued your beloved and brought us key information about the poisonous Bells.”
“Yes, I’m very pleased,” Lasgol admitted.
“And I’ve dealt with the Guild of the Blue Snake too. We won’t have to worry about that guild of Zangrian assassins anymore.”
“Did you get the name of the person who put the price on your head?”
Egil nodded heavily. “I haven’t told the others yet.”
“Why not?” Lasgol looked at him in surprise.
“Because the person who did it isn’t the one I suspected, and it has implications …”
“You can tell me. I’ll keep it secret.”
Egil sighed. “All right. It’s Count Malason.”
“Oh, no,” Lasgol said sadly. “That’s a betrayal …”
“That’s what I fear. One of the nobles of the West … a member of the Western League … who supports me.”
“You can’t trust anybody,” Lasgol said. “Treason in your ranks.” He shook his head in disbelief. “I know him, my father knew him. They were friends …”
“I know. It’s hard to believe,” Egil said, shaking his head. “For the moment, don’t share the name with anybody. I want to see where this discovery leads to.”
“You can count on that.” Lasgol noticed that his friend was looking thoughtful. “Something else bothering you?”
“Actually, yes … I hadn’t thought the attempts on my life and yours were connected …”
“And you think so now?”
“I’m beginning to suspect it. The coins, the seal with the emblem of the bear and the boar, point that way. That business of Gerd and his encounter with the assassins of the guild on the Zangrian border is going to turn out to be very significant, because it links the two cases.”
Lasgol was remembering this. “I thought it was coincidence. I never thought twice about it.”
“Nor did I, but there’s a connection, and I think it’s an important one. They’d already put a price on my head wi
th the Guild of the Blue Snake and tried to kill me when I was on my way to the Camp. You and I fought them back. The members of the guild Gerd intercepted didn’t need to be carrying a thousand gold coins with them, plus another contract with the Bear and the Boar for my life. That provided a link between both plots. I still don’t know why or how.”
“Yeah … I wonder … why would the Dark Rangers want to kill you? In my case it must have something to do with my father or my mother and their whole past. That’s what I think, at least. Well, actually, I’m sure of it. But in your case? Why do the Dark Rangers want you dead?”
“That’s a very good question, and I don’t have any answer yet. It doesn’t make sense to me either. I can understand that some political rival, someone from the nobility, because of my lineage and my aspirations to the crown, might want me dead … but the Dark Rangers … it just doesn’t fit.” Egil wrinkled his nose and scratched his forehead.
“Maybe there’s a piece of the puzzle missing.”
“Yeah, a crucial one.”
“What’s the plan, then?” Lasgol asked. He was deeply interested now.
“The plan, my dear friend, is to find the missing piece and solve this mystery.”
“I can’t say why, but I’d imagine it’s not going to be easy.”
“No, but on the other hand, don’t despair. We’ve already unmasked one fundamental piece of the intrigue.”
“Eyra …”
“Exactly. Now we’re going to find out who she’s working for.”
“You don’t think she’s the leader of the Dark Rangers?”
Egil shook his head. “I think she’s the second-in-command. There’s someone above her, moving the strings from the shadows. And we’ll find out who it is.”
“So I guess we’re in danger all over again.”
“Even more so than before, I’m afraid, because we’re getting close to the truth.”
Lasgol smiled and put his arm on his friend’s shoulder. “We’ll find out who’s behind all this, and he’ll pay for it.”
At that moment they saw Astrid, Ingrid, Nilsa, Gerd and Viggo chatting happily on their way to the cabin.