A World Apart (38 page)

"We will make our way to the North Reach waystation."  Dominic said as they rode.  "We should arrive just before dark and will stay there tonight.  After that, we will leave the road and travel cross-country."

The seemingly endless open grasslands of the valley, a pale green carpet interrupted by the occasional stand of trees, rolled by as they headed north.  The road paralleled the Blue River for the first few hours, then separated as the River's course took a more northwesterly direction.  They kept a moderate pace to conserve the horses.

They passed by other travelers heading towards the city, merchants with large wagons, carriages carrying passengers, as well as individuals on foot and horse.  A patrol of soldiers came by, the officer saluting Dominic once he recognized who it was.  Many of the other travelers recognized Dominic as they passed as well, giving him respectful waves and nods.

They ate during short breaks to water and rest the horses.  The sun was bright and warm, with only a few high clouds in the sky.  Without any shade, Jake spent most of the day sweating under his armor, trying to distract himself with the memory of Keria's kiss.  By the time the sun dipped low in the horizon and the waystation appeared, he had lost his enthusiasm for this trip.

Dominic led them over to a small stable near the main complex.  He spoke with the stable master and some coins changed hands.  After they had removed their saddles and gear, a couple of grooms came out to lead the horses in.

"They will make sure that the horses are fed and watered."  Dominic said as he headed for the waystation.  They entered the main hall, a large open dining area with a high wooden ceiling with tables set up and servers moving about.  It was lighted by a large stone fireplace in the wall and several sets of chandeliers with dozens of candles in each.  The hall appeared to be about half full.  Jake could see a set of stairs at the back wall leading to a couple of landings that surrounded the hall, with a line of doors along each.

Dominic went over to a man sitting behind a desk near the main doors.  He spoke with him briefly and came back with a set of keys.  The keys were to a room on the second landing.  Inside, there were two small beds and just enough room to stack the saddles and gear.  Once they had offloaded the equipment, Dominic had them go back down to the hall and order dinner.  He chose a table near the center of the room.

"Aren't we being a bit obvious?"  Jake asked, noticing several of the other guests looking towards them.

"We want to be seen."  Dominic said quietly, glancing about.  "Once our enemies know we are gone, I expect them to follow.  They will know we headed north and stopped here.  Hopefully, they will assume that we are continuing north along the road.  By the time they realize their mistake, we should be safely out of reach."

They ate a large meal, taking their time.  Once they were finished and the plates taken away, Dominic ordered two tankards of ale.  Jake found the ale somewhat bitter, even though it was flavored with some slightly tangy fruit.  They sat there drinking while a singer came out to entertain the crowd.  More people came in as the night deepened, filling the tables.  After a while, Dominic motioned that they should leave and went back to their room.

Jake copied Dominic by removing his armor and boots, but staying dressed and placing his drawn sword next to him on his bed.  Dominic cracked the window, allowing the cool night air to come in.  Between the food, travel and ale, as well as the comfortable temperature, Jake was soon asleep.

Jake woke up when Dominic tapped him on the shoulder.  "Get up.  We should be moving."  Jake glanced out the window and thought that it was still at least an hour before dawn.  He quickly put on his armor and boots, grabbing his saddle and gear as they left the room.

They went down to the hall, which only had a few people up at this hour.  Dominic got a couple of travel rations from one of the servers and headed out to the stable.  They waited as the grooms quickly saddled the horses, then headed out.

They rode along the road for a couple of miles until they came upon a small river that passed under the road.  After making sure no one was within sight, Dominic led them down into the river, the waters an inky black in the pale light of the eastern sky, and headed upstream, keeping the horses in the main channel.  It was slower going, but Dominic kept them in the river for an hour or so.  Once the sun was up, they left the river and headed out across the grasslands in a northeasterly direction.

They rode all day, the Gray Ridges looming in the east.  The rich grassland faded and became rockier and the grasses gave way to clumps of shrubs and small trees.  As the sun faded into the west, Dominic found a campsite in a copse of trees.  They made no fire, simply setting up their sleeping rolls next to the horses.  They ate in silence, a dinner of jerky and cheese, washing it down with some water.

As Jake packed away the supplies, groping around in the dark, Dontas moved and his hoof came down on Jake's foot.  Jake stifled a shout, grabbed his foot and hopped back to his blankets.  Rubbing his foot, he did not feel that it was seriously damaged, but he suddenly missed having Hailyn around to heal him, along with her friendly presence.  Thinking of Hailyn and healing brought up another thought.  He looked over at Dominic, but without a fire, Jake could just make out his dark outline sitting across from him.

"Dominic, why don't you allow the clerics to heal you?"  Jake asked quietly, his curiosity finally overcoming his concern of offending Dominic.  "I still don't understand that."

There was moment before Dominic spoke.  "I believe I told you before that you should keep the reminders of failure."  Dominic said, voice distant.  "Each time you are healed, you eliminate that reminder.  Each scar I have is a reminder of a mistake I made.  It helps me to not make that mistake again."  In the darkness, Jake could barely see Dominic's shadowy hand reach up and touch the scar across his face.  "Some mistakes should never be forgotten."

Jake did not know how to respond, so he sat there, silent in his thoughts.  "Get some sleep, boy."  Dominic said, voice normal.  "I'll keep first watch."

Jake tossed and turned for a bit, finally getting comfortable and sleeping.  He was dreaming of Keria and Sanduas when Dominic woke him to stand watch.  Jake shook off his sleepiness and sat up while Dominic stretched out on his blankets.  The night seemed to stretch on forever, as Jake fought against falling asleep.  Finally, as the sky began to lighten, he went to wake Dominic up.

They continued their northeasterly path, working their way into the foothills of the Gray Ridges, camping near a small stream when it turned dark.  The next morning Dominic changed direction to a more northerly route, paralleling the mountains.  They continued in the foothills for most of the day.  In the late afternoon, they came upon a large road leading into the mountains which Dominic turned onto and followed.

After an hour of riding, Jake saw a large granite wall rise up ahead.  It was very tall, towering over the trees.  It took them almost another thirty minutes to reach it.  As they came up to it, Jake could see it was one of two walls that ran back towards a cliff in the mountains to form an inverted V, funneling any attackers towards the main gates, nestled at the point where the two walls came together.  Dominic looked appreciatively at the layout of the defenses.

Behind the gates, the cliff face was pot-marked with windows and what looked like patios.  As they rode up to the gates, Jake could see soldiers on the wall watching them.  They stopped in front of the massive gates, made of a shining metal, waiting.

With a metallic clang, the gates opened and several soldiers rode out.  They were armored with the same metal that made up the gates.  Their breastplates and helms shone in the late afternoon light.  They were armed with lances and swords, with a shield strapped to their saddle.  They came up to Dominic and Jake.

Their leader was a lean man, a little taller than Jake, with a large plume on his helm.  Jake was surprised to see that he had dark skin, the first person Jake had seen here with it, with dark eyes that seemed to take everything in.  "He is from southern Aletonia."  Dominic said quietly, noticing Jake's surprise.

The leader stopped in front of Dominic and gave him a salute, which Dominic returned.  "Greetings, Sir Dominic."  The man said formally.  "I am Moshanna Deepwood, Captain of Tomaris' Guard.  Please be welcome to Tomaris' Keep."

"Thank you for the welcome, Captain Deepwood."  Dominic replied, formal as well.  "Please call me Dominic."

"You honor me.  Please call me Moshanna."  Deepwood replied.  "What assistance can we give you?"

"I have a letter from Chief Cleric Jonas of Sanduas for Master Tomaris."  Dominic stated.  He gestured at Jake.  "It concerns this boy, Jake Thomas, and Jonas believed that Master Tomaris could assist.  I believe that he is familiar with the boy's story."

"We had instructions to watch for visitors coming from the west."  Deepwood said.  He turned his horse around and said over his shoulder.  "Please follow me.  I will take you to Tomaris."  With that, he led them through the Keep's gate.

C
HAPTER
T
WENTY-
T
WO

As they passed through the shadow of the Keep's main gate into the courtyard beyond, Jake was immediately struck by the spectacular garden that rose in the center.  Tall trees ringed the garden, green grass filled the center and throughout, beautifully shaped bushes and hedges, many filled with bright flowers.  There were people wandering through the garden, some who turned to look their way.

The garden was an oasis of color in an otherwise stark stone courtyard.  The pale granite walls and cliff face bracketed the courtyard, while low stone buildings, also of the same pale granite, were built next to the walls and cliff.  Jake could see that some of the buildings were craftsmen shops, with the now-familiar smoke and faint ringing of metal of a blacksmith coming out of one.  Some of the shops had people standing out front, gazing curiously in their direction.  Looking around, Jake was struck by the large number of people in the courtyard.

"Excuse me, but where do all of these people live?"  He asked Deepwood.  "There does not seem to be enough room in the buildings for all of them."

"Most live within the Keep itself."  Deepwood replied, gesturing towards the cliff.  "There are many rooms and halls within the mountain."

"Oh, I see."  Jake said.

"Some live in Numaria, a small city back along the road near the base of the foothills, and come here to do business or visit relatives."  Deepwood continued.  "There is an inn among the buildings, as well as guest quarters in the keep."

"Is this all of your Guard, Moshanna?"  Dominic asked, frowning and looking at the soldiers along the wall and around the courtyard.  "Forgive me for saying, but it seems inadequate to defend the Keep, even with the walls."

"Do not worry, Dominic."  Deepwood said with a smile.  "We have additional forces within the Keep.  We also send patrols out and have sent some forces into Numaria to assist the local authorities.  If the need arises, we have enough forces to hold the Keep against any attack."

Dominic nodded at that, though he continued to study the defenses as they rode around the garden and approached the Keep's main entrance, an archway carved into the cliff face.  The top of the large archway was at least twenty feet high.  On either side of the arch hung another set of large metal gates that could close and seal the Keep if needed.  A large and wide abutment of stone thrust out of the cliff another twenty of so feet above the archway, shading it in its shadow.  Jake saw several soldiers look down from that abutment at them as Deepwood led them past the gates and into the Keep.

As they rode in, Jake could see that the arch was actually a tunnel that stretched some thirty to forty feet, solid rock all around them.  The tunnel was lit with torches, hanging in metal brackets that lined the walls.  Along the roof of the tunnel, Jake saw several openings carved at regular intervals.

"What are those for?"  He asked Deepwood as he pointed, his voice echoing in the tunnel.

"Those are vents to allow us to pour burning pitch from inside the Keep onto any attackers that breach the outer gate."  Deepwood replied mater-of-factly, Dominic nodding appreciatively as he looked at them with a professional eye.  Jake shuddered at the thought as he imagined being trapped in the space with fire all around.

At the end of the tunnel, there was another set of metal gates to close it off.  Past the gates, the space suddenly expanded into a brightly lit domed area, at least two hundred yards wide with the ceiling at least eighty to one hundred feet above them.  All around the dome, there were passages that ran deeper into the mountain.  Jake noticed several stairways that led to at least two upper levels.

Most of the light was coming from several large glowing balls of light, shining with a slight golden hue, hanging in the air near the ceiling.  Jake was stupefied on how they worked.  He studied them and could not see how they were suspended.  He could only tell that they were not made with regular fire.

Deepwood noticed his confused stare and chuckled.  "I do not know how it is done either, Jake."  He said.  "Tomaris has studied many things and he is the one who created them."

They halted near the far end of the dome and several soldiers came out of a large opening.  Deepwood dismounted and motioned them to do the same.  "Please take your saddlebags and my soldiers will see to the horses.  They will given food and water and your saddles will be stored."

After the horses were led away, Deepwood took them up a flight of stairs onto the second level.  They made their way down several brightly lit tunnels and through a set of ornate wooden doors into a large hall.  In the wall to the left, there was an opening with stained glass that led to a stone patio that jutted out from the cliff wall.  Its stone walls were decorated with colorful tapestries and paintings.  There was a large fireplace built into the far wall and long wooden table that took up the center of the room.  Sitting in the large wooden chair at the head of the table, facing the doors, was an old man, who gestured for them to come closer.