Return of the Matka-Zem (The Sorain Chronicles) (34 page)

"
Thane . . ." He heard his name softly carried on the wind. Slowly raising his head, he spied a woman bobbing in the water. At first glance, he thought she was the princess, with her fiery red hair, yet his senses told him Valencia was still far away. As the woman drew near, Thane stared in disbelief at the Nereii.

"
I'm not worthy of this honor, Nereii." He had heard stories of Nereii living in the Jaxop Expanse, but until now, he'd never seen one. He tried to look away, yet his eyes remained fixed on hers. She looked as if she could be related to Valencia, with her red hair and huge green eyes. Gliding out of the lake, she was tall and lanky, and wore a slim, silvery gown, its length so long it covered her feet.

"
Do not despair, warrior." Her voice was soft as an evening fog, caressing his skin. "You must rest and wait for the others."

"
I have to find the princess."

"
You need your strength to enter the mountain." The woman knelt beside him, and placed a cold hand upon his shoulder.

"
You know where Valencia is being held?" Thane stared at the Nereii as his spirit lifted with hope. When her hand fell from his shoulder, he firmly grasped her wrist. "Tell me what mountain!"

"
We will tell you where the Matka-Zem is." The Nereii did not pull away. She gave him a pity-filled smile. "But first you need to rest, Thane of the Mlinzi. Calm your spirit."

"
I can't wait, I have to save Valencia." He released the woman's wrist and rose to his feet. With the intention of swimming across the lake, he walked into the water. Although the bottom was rocky, he sank to his knees as if in quicksand. The rock became a living thing, solidifying around his legs, imprisoning him in the lake. Struggling to free himself, the ground loosened again and he sank deeper, until water crested his chest. Once again, the rock hardened around him. In an attempt to free himself, Thane placed his hands on the firm rock that incased him and pushed with all his might. Instead of lifting him out of the water, in a blink of an eye, the rock liquefied and then solidified, capturing his arms at his sides. He glared at the woman and snarled his anger, "Free me!"

"
You will not be able to pass until you have rested, Mlinzi," the woman continued in a soft voice. The Nereii gave him another sorrowful smile as she slid back into the water. Thane watched in amazement as her legs transformed into a long fluke. The Nereii swam around him, circling him twice before stopping in front of him. "Have no fear. You will save her. Yet she will no longer be an innocent girl. The Matka-Zem is learning how to hate the Torpek and any who stand with them." The fiery-haired Nereii placed her hands upon his shoulders. "You must control her wrath, Mlinzi."

"
She will have just cause, Nereii." Thane did not like this train of thought. He could only imagine the horrors Valencia was facing that would cause the Nereii to make such a comment.

"
After the Batu you must remind the Matka-Zem of her humanity. Without you, she will turn rogue." The whispering words chilled him to his core, and he shivered at the thought of Valencia running amuck, lost in her power. It was well known that the Nereii were Vident-Ara, with the gift of far-sight. However, it was rare that they revealed their prophecies to the other races on Sora. There must be a dire reason for them to come forth in this hour of need.

"
What do you
see
, Nereii?" The rock began to fall away from his trapped body but he did not try to leave.

"
We
see
a path of annihilation. The Matka-Zem's hatred will grow and consume all, without your guidance." The Nereii stared deep into his eyes. "We must protect you, so we all can survive." The water became a trickle around his wet boots, but still he did not move. The Nereii floated a few yards away.

"
Where is Valencia?" Thane begged as he stepped backwards to get out of the water. "Litica." The Nereii floated farther away. "You must heed our warning, Thane."

"
What do you wish of me?" Thane watched the woman float further into the deep water.

"
Love her!" With a flick of her fluke, the Nereii disappeared.

***

Donna did her best to keep pace with the swift-moving Mlinzi. Although none complained, they slowed their steps to allow her to keep pace. There were six in all. Parth informed her that each had their own specialty to aid them in their trek. As they hurried through the forest, there was no time to study her companions except the back of the tall Mlinzi in front of her. The ropes fastened to his back made the hair on the back of her neck rise in apprehension.

"
Rock climbing," Donna mumbled with a shudder. She hated the idea of scaling a cliff. In fact, she had never really liked anything about the wilderness. Yet, here she was, stomping through a strange bluish forest, trying to rescue a princess on an alien planet. The thought was actually laughable. "I must really be in a coma and dreaming this fairy tale," she muttered to herself. Twice now, she'd thought of her coma theory and figured it could be plausible.

They tried to follow Thane
's path but often had to find alternative routes to cross areas where it was too dangerous to proceed. As they climbed up a steep hill, she lost her grip on a root and slipped backward. She gasped in surprise when a big hand grasped her buttock and lifted her towards the Mlinzi above her. The man ahead of her turned to grab her arm and pulled her up the hillside.

"
Hey watch the hands, big fella," Donna said in an offended manner at Parth. Ever since Valencia had ordered him to protect her, the Mlinzi never left her side for more than a few minutes and it was becoming annoying. She now had a good idea of how Valencia had felt about having a personal guard her entire life.

"
Hush, Human. We are trying to be stealthy." Parth came alongside her as they stopped for a breather on top of the hill.

"
Hush, yourself, Mlinzi." Donna stared over the huge lake that dominated the valley below and to the snowcapped mountains not far away. "No one's going to follow us through all this."

"
The human is right, my brother." The Mlinzi with the ropes defended her. "Thane's trail is madness. He is not in his right mind going this route. We can't keep following his path." He glanced at Donna then back at Parth, who nodded in response.

"
Hey, I caught that look. I'm holding my own." When Parth gave her a look, she added, "Most of the time."

"
She will be in the way when the fighting starts." The roped Mlinzi ignored her as he talked with Parth.

"
I received my orders to protect the human directly from the Matka-Zem, and I will not fail her. She must come or I would have to stay." Parth patted her shoulder as if she were a pet. "Besides, Chand, we both wanted to go. It solved the problem."

"
By the way, boys, Thane did train me how to protect myself." Donna was indignant and determined to prove her worth. She glared at the roped Mlinzi. His hair was light brown with a shimmer of silver, his face was fair as the Torpek, yet his bronzed skin had a greenish tint. He had the sharp features of the arrogant race yet he wore a thin mustache and goatee upon his face. When he met her gaze, she saw his eyes were the color of caramel.

"
How long was your training, human?" Chand asked, with a trace of sarcasm.

"
A month." She was proud of her training, and even Thane had complemented her on the speed at which she learned. However, both men only snickered at her sincerity, and started down the hill into the valley.

It was dusk, when they came upon Thane, waiting by a fire. There were several fish frying in the flames, as if he had spent the day leisurely fishing instead of searching for the princess.

"Are you okay, Thane?" Donna warily approached her friend, while the others spread out in a semicircle.

"
I should have known it was you, Donna." Thane glanced at her with irritation and shook his head. "You just couldn't be left behind, could you, Earthling?"

"
And why are you just sitting here, instead of looking for Val?"

"
I cannot cross the water until the Nereii allow me to do so." Thane grumbled in displeasure at his predicament. The other Mlinzi closed their circle to sit around the fire.

"
You saw a Nereii in these waters?" Chand asked in awe. "I have heard of them here."

"
You mean one of those mermaid people you spoke about on the yacht stopped you?" Curiosity perked, she sat beside Thane. As a child, she had liked the idea of mermaids and pretended to be one when she played. "Will we see one? Damn, I need a camera!"

"
Yes, you will see one, little Earthling." Thane gave a chuckle and ruffled her hair. "She will return at dawn to set me free." He glanced at the others around the fire.

Following Thane
's gaze, she watched two of the Mlinzi as they prepared the fish. The remaining Mlinzi pulled pampa leaves off the closest trees for sleeping mats. She glanced back at her friend and saw his anguished expression.

"
Thane, this is not your fault." Donna placed a hand on his arm for comfort. "We all did our best to protect her."

"
That's where you are wrong, little earthling. I failed her." Thane pulled his arm away from her hand. His voice grew hard as he stared into the fire. "I should have been at her side, instead of finding a good place to bed her."

"
So . . . that's where you ran off too." Although the situation was serious, she could not hold back the chuckle. "I'm sorry, Thane, but that is just too hilarious."

"
You are not at fault, brethren." Parth glared at her for her insensitivity. "You are in the throes of a Kleben. No man can fight the urge to mate with the Matka-Zem for as long as you have and remain sane."

"
Thank you, Parth," Thane grimaced, "but that doesn't make me feel any better."

Donna could no longer contain her humor, and another snicker escaped her control.

Rolling his eyes at her, Thane snapped a twig in half and began to draw the layout of a mountain fortress. Donna watched as Thane drew a winding road that lead up the mountainside to a gate. Inside the fort were four buildings with a cliff behind them.

"
According to the Nereii, the Matka-Zem is in the abandoned mountain fortress of Litica." With his stick, Thane pointed at the crude shape of the cliffs and the location of the entrance to the fortress. "Chand and I will climb this cliff," he pointed the stick to the left of the entrance, "While the rest of you will draw their attention to the right."

"
Do you know their number?" Chand asked as he stared at the scribbles in the sand. "I climbed these cliffs many years ago. We will need that distraction, for we won't want to encounter anyone. The rocks are unstable and we will need time to safely climb."

"
Many years ago? Were you just a baby when you climbed mountains?" Donna peered at the fair Mlinzi and said with skepticism, "You can't be any older than me."

"
I passed my trials fifty years ago, Human, and it has been seventy-three years since my birth."

The Mlinzi all laughed at her baffled expression.

"Chand has Torpek blood in his veins, Donna." Thane gave her his usual slight smile that lifted only the corners of his mouth. "They are long-lived."

"
Damn, they are like elves." She shook her head and chuckled. "Mermaids, harpies, elves, and dwarfs—this planet is a living mythology class. Next you'll tell me there are unicorns."

"
So that's the plan. We distract them while you sneak in and find the Matka-Zem." Parth stated in an attempt to get them back on track.

"
I don't know how many of them there are, however the Nereii don't think there are many." Thane looked at the large Mlinzi and shrugged. "The Nereii say there was a small band that passed the lake two days past."

"
How can that be? We've only been on this planet for less than a week." Donna counted on her fingers to get the days right. "How did they know Val would leave the city and where to find her?"

"
That's a good question, little Earthling, and it's something we need to find out." Thane spoke grimly. "If they have a Vident-Ara, then the princess will not be safe anywhere."

"
What is a Vident-Ara?" With all the things she had learned in the few short days of being on Sora, Donna's curiosity still had not diminished.

"
They are those who have the ability to see into the future, but, outside of the Nereii, there are very few Vident-Aras," Chand replied. "The Torpek and Ipatx have no history of the ability among their races. The Koylu and Syel Mel occasionally have Vident-Aras, but most are not strong."

"
This one must have a fair amount of ability," Parth said in a quiet tone, as if the one they spoke of could hear them.

"
I thought psychics had to touch something that belonged to the person?" Donna was puzzled about how this Vident-Ara worked. "And if that's so, then they must have gotten ahold of something of Val's that first night in the city."