Feel the Burn (19 page)

‘Don’t worry, little bird,’
Kerak teased, his nickname for her after Alek shot her into the air those few times.
‘Rumal and I will keep you safe.’

Kassie glanced at the griffon, marveling to herself how grown up he seemed now and she cuddled as close to him as their respective suits of armor allowed.

‘Not too uncomfortable?’
she thought, rapping a leg greave.

‘It’ll do.’

They didn’t talk and the distraction of watching everyone work at setting the camp up helped Kassie’s anxiety to settle.

The exhaustion I used to feel at using my energy so extensively didn’t hit me now. This new, stronger version of energy made it feel almost like a separate entity. I could sense it lying there, tense and ready if I called on it and the realization of that other part, something ancient, primal, and fully elemental, both terrified and thrilled me. The fire within the very planet, deep beneath the surface called to me and it lusted for Jenviet’s death.

For too long the DeNaga’s had toyed with the natural alignment of the planet and its elements. The debt they owed required payment and only blood would suffice.
 

The dark thoughts made me shudder and I shook them off, turning to look for Loi. I could feel her fatigue from holding the ceiling up. The three girls didn’t know how close they stood to the barrier that prevented the archaic things from claiming them. I couldn’t get them there quicker but I could sense the distant and every time they forced their gifts to the extreme, it drew them closer. Loi’s performance today drew her much closer than Kassie or Sian but the exertion had exhausted her, and that I could help with.

I walked to where she sat with Sabyn, Tomiar curled around their backs.

‘Cousin,’ Sabyn greeted me with a smile which I returned, feeling a pleasant tingle of affection for the handsome man even while my throat swelled at the reminder of Alek. The memories of Alek that Loushka shared with me frequently included Sabyn, the two of them forever play fighting or getting into mischief when younger.

‘Loi, how are you feeling?’

I could see the tell tale paler than usual complexion, eyes looking hollow, but she nodded and answered with a smile, in typical kiwi ‘she’ll be right’ fashion.

‘All good.’

I arched an eyebrow and sat beside her, tapping her knee.

‘Liar. Give me your hand.’

With a skeptical glance Loi offered her hand wondering what Cat was up to. Cat closed her eyes and Sabyn gently squeezed Loi’s leg, resting his chin on her shoulder while he watched his cousin.

The darkness enveloped her so swiftly she didn’t even have time to gasp. Panic at the blackness constricted her chest then a sudden flame engulfed her, the brilliant ruby light filling her eyes. Sounding like he stood miles away, Loi could hear Sabyn calling her name and the fear returned in a flash when she struggled to respond.

Don’t panic, Loi. You’re safe.

Cat?

Sort of. Just hold still for a moment.

The flame surrounding her flickered brighter and brighter then began to change to a strong, beautiful green. Loi could feel the energy flowing freely from that spot behind her heart, filling her limbs and senses until the overwhelming sense of it felt unbearable, like she might burst. A single solid thud of her heart jolted through her, like waking from a falling dream and Loi opened her eyes. Stalactites hung above her then Sabyn’s anxious face came into view, staring down.

‘Ugh,’ Loi groaned and he helped her to sit up. ‘What happened?’

‘How do you feel?’ asked Cat, still sitting there, curious but unconcerned, unlike the others staring at Loi.

Glaring at her, about to give her a piece of her mind for the fright caused, Loi stopped. How did she feel? The heavy sensation of exhaustion was gone, her body felt light and strong. Strangely strong. Loi extended her hands then willed her energy into them. They glowed that beautiful green she’d seen in the darkness; much healthier and stronger then ever before, especially considering how much she’d pushed herself today.

‘Good,’ Loi said hoarsely, unnerved at the intensity of the energy humming within. ‘I feel good.’

How did you do that?
she thought to Cat, incredulous.

I don’t know. But I do know you’re close to achieving your full Elemental state.

Cat winked at her then stood and walked away to where Ignatius and Leseach argued. Loi looked back at her hands, not entirely believing what she saw and felt.

‘Goddess, are you sure you’re okay?’

She looked up and saw the tense anxiety in Sabyn’s eyes and cupped the hand that held her face, smiling reassuringly.

‘Yes. Cat helped me to link to’, Loi paused unsure of how to describe it. ‘Well, something. It made my energy feel strong, bright.’

‘I know,’ Sabyn said wryly. ‘You lit up the cavern like the Southern lights.’

He pulled her onto his lap, back to his chest and hugged her tight, pressing his lips to the side of her throat.

‘Had me worried.’

‘All good,’ Loi tipped her head back and smiled into his concerned eyes. ‘I promise.’

It wasn’t until later that evening when Loi lay in Sabyn’s arms in the now quiet and dark cavern that she realized just how much her energy had increased. When they first entered the cave the voices of the plants diminished but now they sounded even clearer than when she’d first heard them, on the surface.

The faint light from a torch of one of the soldiers on first watch flickered on the stone wall near her head and she watched idly at the shapes it created. Breathy snores from the mass of sleeping bodies were punctuated by the occasional growl or wheeze from a griffon or Sito and Sabyn mumbled in his sleep, throwing an arm over her and shifted closer. Loi smiled and squeezed the hand that gripped firmly under her ribs before tuning back into the plants. They weren’t talking with her at the moment; too busy conversing with each other about the day’s events. It sounded like Cat’s burn off would be beneficial for new growth the next spring.

Loi dozed off while listening to the simple, soothing thoughts.

Waking in total darkness when your body clock knows it is morning feels weird. I didn’t move at first and listened to see if I could hear others stirring. Beside me in the small tent Ignatius shifted then sat up, the light from a soldier on watch not far from us giving the Lieutenant a faint outline in the darkness.

‘Your Highness?’ he asked in a quiet voice.

‘Morning,’ I whispered.

‘Did you sleep okay? With the drink, I mean, not the bedroll.’

I smiled at his wry tone; not much could make a cave floor comfortable.

‘I did.’

Compared to the other nights last night had been peaceful, with no aching desire of Alek from my dreams. I felt both grateful and sad at not seeing him but with my bedroll hard against Ignatius’ bedroll I didn’t want the risk of sleep talking. In the darkness Ignatius quickly dressed then left so I could dress and he turned up a lamp outside the tent. The extra light made finding and wriggling into the chainmail easy but that dratted back seam still took a good amount of grunting, tugging and general struggling to get it right and it felt nearly momentous when I succeeded. With a congratulatory nod to myself I started to plait my hair. A centaur horn sounded in the chamber, just soft enough to echo and it woke everyone. When I climbed out of the tent, soldiers hustled about, some packing, and others organizing the breakfast of dried meat, hard bread and carefully allocated water. I walked to grab a plate and heard a Medanga soldier in hushed conversation with Chaieth; it sounded like the other cave system had water and they’d counted on that. I sat with Loushka and the other griffons, the guys and Loi, Sian, and Kassie joining us. The griffons and Sito had eaten a huge meal of the remaining fresh meat on the ships the day before we left and in theory it’d keep them satisfied for the two weeks. But they still needed water.

‘Can the plants tell you if we’ll find water?’ Sabyn asked Loi, while we all ate and she nodded, her mouth full.

‘Yes,’ she said after swallowing. ‘We should be fine. There’s a lake that we’ll find tomorrow or the day after.’

Rumal, in the midst of fixing Kassie’s hood to her suit, asked, ‘Do you know how long it’ll take to reach the castle?’

Loi fell silent while she communed with the plants. Lieutenant Rashid, overhearing the question, waited with a tense expression. Having finished my food I slipped a hand between the armor plating on Loushka’s back leg and scratched gently.

‘Here?’
I thought.

‘No, a little high—Ooooo.’

Loushka stiffened when I hit the right spot and her leg jerked involuntarily while I scratched. A funny whine slipped out her beak when I worked at another spot lower on the same leg. Gredel did the same for Phroma and she looked as awkward and funny as Loushka. I bit the inside of my cheek to stop from giggling.

‘Twelve nights!?’

Rashid’s astonished exclamation made me twist around. The Lieutenant gaped at Loi who frowned.

‘Yes, is that not good?’

‘It’s fantastic,’ Larvaste said in a dry tone. ‘The route we had intended would have taken two full weeks.’

My mind automatically calculated two weeks as fourteen days so it felt both longer and shorter when I re-calculated for the nine day weeks. A saving of six days does sound good, I begrudgingly admitted to myself.

‘Let’s get started then,’ Oomoth called from where he stood and his excited tone roused all the other soldiers. Everyone hurried about, packing up the last pieces, snapping on armor and weapons. The hollow sharp sounds of boots against stone echoed through the cave. Sito eased himself out of the crevice he’d tucked into and crouched under the low ceiling. Sian and Daron made their way to him and strapped various parcels and bags to his armor. As the line up started I got a surprise when little Leynorah and her mother alighted on my shoulders.

‘Hello! I wondered where you guys were.’

‘We went exploring for dinner.’

I nodded agreeably while wondering what the fae ate and they settled down for the day, content to latch onto my armored shoulders and chat to me. We watched while the Cavalry Lieutenants and Nyjens argued with some goblins. Ignatius appeared at my side, a brief frown flickering when he regarded my guests. The frown deepened when Leseach straightened up from fastening her boots, on my other side.

‘What are they arguing about?’ I nodded at the goblin troops ahead of us.

‘The Nyjens want to be on the outer of the formations. The goblins challenged that because they are more familiar with caves.’

Evidently the goblins won that argument and the Nyjens moved in a layer. The goblins all moved around the cavern’s walls and ceiling with the ease of a person walking, their long muscular limbs with dexterous fingers and toes easily gripping the stone. I watched one casually scale the wall to the crevice Sito had slept in with no difficulty, even though the vertical ascent looked at least four times his height. The armor they wore allowed full movement thanks to the clever design of narrow diamond shaped plates overlapping each other like snake skin. Their hands and feet remained uncovered and they wore helms of a similar style to our hoods, protecting the head but allowing full vision. Another soft call on the centaur horn drew everyone into position. With Ignatius before me, and Loushka, and Leseach behind me, I moved forward, lighting my hands to see the way.

*~*~*

Chapter Thirteen

Kassie and Rumal walked hand in hand in front of Kerak. Rumal held a torch in his other hand. At the very front of the long train of soldiers and allies, Loi led the way with Larvaste and Sabyn. They kept following the cavern deeper and deeper, the ceiling getting lower. Kassie’s heart beat fast at the horrible sense of claustrophobia that threatened when the floor started to climb and larger stalagmites appeared, making it a slow and complicated path that they helped Kerak to squeeze through. The darkness intimidated and more than once Kassie jerked in shock, thinking she’d seen something in the shadows the torch created. Rumal kept a tight hold of her hand and when they paused, while Loi assessed the correct tunnel to take, he pulled Kassie tight against him. She sighed and wrapped an arm around his back while they waited. No point moaning, she thought determinedly. But it will be so nice to get out of these caves.

A call travelled from the front of the line to where they stood near the back and the line started to move forward.

The next part is narrow. You will need to open it more for the griffons and dragon.

Can I do that?
Loi thought to the plants.
What about a cave in?

The rock is solid. It will hold.

You only need to move it a little.

Keep everyone back.

With a quick explanation to Sabyn and Larvaste, Loi climbed into the narrow section of tunnel and extended her arms. Eyes closed and about to reach out with her energy, she stopped at a sound.

‘Loi?’ Cat called quietly. ‘Let me know if you need a hand.’

‘Will do.’

Focusing, Loi extended her energy, flowing it over and into the rough but solid ceiling. With a deliberate motion, she pushed. The tunnel shuddered and chunks of rock fell around her but the ceiling now looked higher.

Well done!

Do it again.

Once more and they’ll fit.

Loi nodded to the voices and focused, readying to push again.

It felt horrible to stand in the entranceway to the tunnel when it shuddered again at Loi’s push. My stomach twisted with nerves, the shaking underfoot making me think of the earthquakes we feared on Earth. In Wellington you always thought an earthquake might be the ‘big’ one; long predicted and years overdue. The absolute darkness added to the anxiety; if I extinguished my energy I couldn’t see my own hand in front of my face. I wished we didn’t have to stand in single file now, wanting the reassurance of knowing someone stood alongside me.

The floor rumbled again and I flinched away from the wall when it shook. Taking careful steadying breaths I tried to focus on Loi and not the horrible truth in the back of my mind. Here we stood, miles beneath the ground, with nothing to protect us if the walls collapsed except for Loi.

All the more reason to focus on her, pointed out my rational voice while I calmed myself. I hoped the terror didn’t show too much on my face while I stared at those behind. Goblins clung to the sides and roof of the quaking cavern with unconcerned expressions and most those in the line behind me crouched, waiting, eyes wary but not terrified.

I sensed Loi moving and turned back. She appeared ahead of us and beckoned.

‘You can come, I’ve opened the way.’

I didn’t realize I held my breath until she said that and my head spun when I breathed in, stomach unknotting. I called the message back and climbed further into the tunnel. A goblin dropped from the ceiling right behind me and gripped my shoulder when I brightened my hands to lead the way. Now the soldiers and allies treated me just like one of the girls, which I preferred, no more annoying propriety and I enjoyed feeling useful without the fuss. While I walked slowly I felt more tugs through the hand on my shoulder, the line I led continually growing. The corridor extended for some distance and I thought to Sian,
You might need to use water to ease Sito through.

Is it that tight?
Sian sounded understandably worried.

It’ll be a squeeze.

Just when I thought that, the corridor widened and I slowed, stopping when I sighted Loi. She stood in the middle of a large cave, larger than the previous one we’d stayed in, and tiny lighted things fluttered around her.

‘Loi, what are those?’ I called in a quiet voice, not wanting to disturb them. Leynorah squealed and she and her mother leaped off my shoulders, flying straight for Loi and the lights. My jaw dropped when the two fae tackled one of the glowing things to the cave floor, gobbling it down and then lifted their heads to utter sharp whistles. Poor Loi looked horrified when answering whistles echoed from further down the corridor and more Halenine fae came whooping through, flashing past my head into the cave.

In a short matter of time the Halenine fae devoured the glowing things, buzzing excitedly around Loi, congratulating her on the find, oblivious to her appalled expression while she stared at the glowing remnants scattered about the floor. Those behind me pushed past into the cave, looking around, and the Cavalry and General guard soldiers started to set the camp up. It felt strange to realize that the whole day had gone, the lack of light messing with my body clock. Loi stared at the glowing remains of the fluttery things and I made my way to her.

‘Errmmm…sorry about that.’

Leynorah sat perched on a rock, fiendishly waving some bits of glowing wings in either front hand, singing a little ditty of ‘Yummy! Yummy, yummy, YUMMY!’

Loi sighed.

‘S’okay. Guess they have to eat.’ She smiled, her fatigue obvious. ‘Can you do that thing again?’

We moved to the side, to keep out the way of the bustling soldiers and watched Loushka, Nesha, and then Tomiar squeeze through the tunnel. The griffons walked over.

‘Hope Sito can get through all right,’
Loushka thought.

‘Where’s Kerak?’

‘Waiting, he’ll come through behind Sito.’

Back in the corridor Sian beckoned Sito to lower his head and nodded to Rumal and Daron.

‘Help me get his armor off, Cat says it’s a squeeze.’

Daron bent and offered his hands, tossing her up onto Sito’s back. Some of the goblins who rode Sito already worked at the plates on his back, fingers deftly unfastening the numerous buckles. Amazing how creatures with such muscular limbs are so nimble of touch, Sian thought. She pushed herself to match their speed. They lowered each piece to Rumal and then to Cat and Loi who appeared to help.

‘Feeling okay?’ Sian called to Loi who stretched for a plate of armor a goblin offered down. Her friend looked good considering the effort and energy she had used to widen the tunnel.

Loi flashed a smile.

‘Yup! All good.’

When the last piece of armor rested on the pile behind Sito, Sian slid down, landing in Daron’s waiting arms and turned to look at Sito. The dragon’s brown eyes looked worried.

Forcing aside any sense of anxiety Sian smiled brightly at him.

‘Okay, Sito. Let’s take this slow and I’ll be with you the whole way.’

Loi, Cat, and now Kassie joined her, in front of the dragon, backing along the tunnel while the dragon eased himself in.

With the girls and men occupied with Sito, and Leseach standing at the tunnel exit with Rashid, it occurred to Ignatius that it might be the perfect moment. Everyone already in the cavern watched the proceedings, with little attention to anything else. With a quick but soft tread he located Leseach’s bedroll and medicine basket. It took him no time to locate the two bottles he wanted and with a glance to check no one observed, he unscrewed them and poured a small amount of each into a single bottle. He didn’t need much and didn’t want the Northerner to notice the reduced amount. Besides, if Catherine slept too deeply Leseach would know at once. With calm hands he made sure he replaced everything exactly as he’d found it and walked quietly back to his own bedroll and pack, tucking the bottle away. The sounds of excited, anxious voices caused him to glance up. Laura worked on the tunnel again; the dragon’s head now visible and Sian, Kassandra, and Catherine soothed the beast when the floor shuddered. Ignoring them Ignatius turned and studied the cave walls; an indent in the wall midway on the right looked okay and he seized a torch to go check.

The floor shuddered while Loi worked the tunnel. Sian, Kassie, and I hugged Sito’s muzzle tight, smiling and soothing when the dragon’s eyes went wide with fear, the whites showing. Sian did fantastic, her voice not wavering at all while Loi deflected a rock that smashed down beside her. We spoke aloud and via our thoughts as we coaxed Sito to move.

‘Just a little further, wriggle your bum forward,’ Loi called. ‘You’re nearly there, honey.’

Sito wasn’t saying much and we could all feel his heart hammering away. It vibrated through his head while we stroked his muzzle. His head nearly cleared the tunnel but I knew his barrel chest would really be feeling the squeeze and the dragon breathed in shallow quick gasps.

Leseach watched while the three girls kept the dragon calm. Perhaps it was due to their strange upbringing that they didn’t hesitate to coddle a beast that could wipe out villages. While Leseach admired Sito, she would never talk to him like an infant. But Sian and Cat stroked and cuddled the creature’s muzzle, with Kassie perched beside his ear, crooning to him. It seemed wrong to watch such a fearsome creature in such a situation. From the other side of the tunnel entrance, Rashid glanced her way and smiled, gesturing at the dragon then lifted his hand and eyes upward in an expression of bemused humor.

Leseach stared with flat eyes at the man, and then turned her attention back to Sito. The over familiarity he regarded her with insulted her, and gave rise to the urge to challenge him to combat. He really needed to know his place.

A faint prickle at the back of her neck made her glance instinctively to the side, meeting Rashid’s eyes. The Lieutenant’s face lit in a smile at her look. With a silent growl she jerked her eyes away, feeling more annoyed at the attention.

Why is he not threatened? What’s wrong with the fool, she growled in her mind yet again. Irritation bubbled up and she turned her back on the tunnel, walking across to her bag while plotting various methods to get rid of the man. Other than Ignatius, none of the others annoyed her quite like Rashid. His silent, continual observation made her feel inadequate though he never spoke a word of judgment. Trying to shake off the irritation his constant gaze aroused, she marched to where Ignatius worked at the Princess’ tent.

Ignatius jolted when the Northerner appeared next to him, face contorted in a scowl, and his stomach clenched while he waited to deny the accusation.

‘Why does that stupid male smile at me?’

The snarled question caught him by surprise and he gaped at the angry woman. Leseach looked just as surprised at the outburst and her jaw stiffened.