The Book of Heroes (41 page)

“What were you doing in here, Sky?” U-ri asked as she slowly walked over to the table. The devout hesitated a moment at the entrance, then followed her inside.

“I was going to go back up to the others, when I lost my way—”

Lost your way? But this is right next door.
U-ri was about to bring that up when another discovery pushed such thoughts out of her mind. She had gotten close enough to see the paintings in the dim light, and she realized that they were all portraits. U-ri walked up to the largest of them, the one sitting directly across from the entrance. It showed a man in silver armor with a long crimson cape flowing from his shoulders.

He’s another handsome one.
He was a little younger than Dr. Latore; a young warrior in his prime. And not quite the same type. Dr. Latore was what you thought of when you thought of a man—a paragon of handsomeness, maybe—but this warrior was beauty itself. Abstract, genderless, perfect beauty in human form.

U-ri guessed his age at about twenty. He had a prominent forehead and angled nose. His eyes glittered ebon black. Thick black hair fell in gentle curls down to his neck. The man’s cheeks were as fresh as a baby’s, adding to his youthful demeanor—marred only by a streak of silver in the hair over his right temple, like the painter had accidentally marked the portrait there with his brush.

His right hand rested on the hilt of a sword at his belt. His left hand was half-concealed beneath his cloak, but she could see a large ring on one of his fingers. The crest engraved into the ring was the same as the ones that adorned his shoulders where the cloak attached. U-ri carefully removed a candle from one of the wall sconces and brought it closer to his face.

“It
is
the same crest.”

Behind her, Sky spoke. “It is the sigil of House Dijkstra.”

“Who are they?”

Sky stepped up to stand next to her in front of the oversized portrait. “Kirrick’s birth family.”

U-ri’s eyes opened wider, and the candle in her hand tilted. A drip of melted wax fell on the ground by her feet. “You mean—”

“This is a portrait of Kirrick Roth, twelfth count of the House Dijkstra, painted on the occasion of his first battle at the age of nineteen.”

U-ri blinked. So this was he. Leader of the rebellion, commander of an army of the dead, and Ash’s half brother. The cursed hero.

“It is said that the rightful heir of House Dijkstra is always born with a streak of silver hair over his right temple. This is the proof of their legitimacy.”

U-ri stared unblinking at the portrait. After a short while, she took a few slow steps backward to glance at the others. There was one of a newborn baby, wrapped in white swaddling clothes. And another of a young boy standing with a dog beneath a tree. A strong boy, with ruddy cheeks—

“All of the paintings here are of Kirrick. This gallery is a record of his growth from infant to man.”

“But why keep them? Didn’t Kirrick’s rebellion end in tragedy?”

Sky replaced the candle in the sconce. “On account of his undead army, Kirrick lost favor in the capital as quickly as he had won it. Those who blamed him most loudly were the nobles and members of parliament loyal to the old royal line, those who had clung to their riches and authority before Kirrick brought them down. Under pressure from them to act, Kirrick led a small force down to deal with the creatures spawned from his army—and they never returned.”

Though he had no choice in the matter, when he left the palace, Kirrick had gone from being the new king to being a traitor of the state. His enemies in the capital made it so. And those who dragged him from his throne in the end had plenty of justifications for what they did, what with Kirrick so newly arrived to a power he had gained by means dark and questionable. A few whispered words in the right ears, and Kirrick went from being a hero to being the source of all the kingdom’s woes in the space of a fortnight.

Kirrick was forced to flee before he could bring the creatures under control, and eventually his enemies killed him.

“But his change of fate in the eleventh hour was the doing of highly placed supporters of the royal family in the capital. The populace still loved and supported Kirrick throughout. He had begun his rebellion to free them from oppression, after all, and though the king who replaced him branded him a traitor and hunted him down throughout the land, there were those who aided and harbored him before he met his end.”

U-ri walked quietly in front of the five portraits, looking carefully at each. “So the Katarhar Abbey was on his side, then.”

“That is correct. Even today, they revere him as a hero of the people, as a king who would have brought peace were it not for the tragedy that befell him. This is Kirrick’s room, Lady U-ri.”

U-ri imagined the monks carrying the portraits here during the wave of religious suppression thirty years ago. Why would they have bothered, if they didn’t still revere Kirrick’s memory?

“It seems like they could have put his portraits up in a more appropriate place. Why here, across from the infirmary?”

Sky smiled. “I believe it is because Kirrick always stood on the side of the weak, and who is weaker than the very old and the very ill?”

U-ri smiled back at him. She felt sorrow for Kirrick, an almost physical pain in her chest, though seeing the portraits hung here did much to ease that. “Let’s go.” U-ri turned to the portrait one last time and curtsied before leaving the room. She returned with Sky to the living room above where she had first met the doctor. Ash was standing in the back, facing the bookshelves. When they came in, he turned, a sour look on his face. “Where were you?”

“I’m sorry. I got lost.”

Aju was up on top of one of the shelves. “The books here say they want to talk to you, U-ri. We have a little time, don’t we? Please, Ash?”

That’s not like Aju to ask permission. I wonder what’s up?

U-ri walked over to the shelves, and the tightly packed books began to wink and glimmer at her.

“Protector of the Circle, great Tuner of the Chords. Young Bearer of the Glyph, Apostle of the Good Light. You who bear the Providence of the Seal. Lady
Allcaste
—” a chorus of voices called out in greeting. All of them were glimmering more brightly now, the light illuminating U-ri’s face. “Welcome to the Haetlands. Welcome to Katarhar.”

“Thank you,” U-ri curtsied, a little taken aback.
What was all that they just said? Something about bearing providence?
She wasn’t sure she had caught the meaning of everything—she only knew she had never heard anyone greet her quite so formally before.

“Lady
Allcaste
.” The chorus had now become a single voice, that of an old woman. “We of the Katarhar Abbey are linked to the Hero’s escape through ties that go back many centuries. Ties as thick as living blood and as deep as the abyss at the Circle’s end. Lady
Allcaste
, we would lend you our wisdom, through your sage, Aju, if you would have it. Please use it as you see fit.”

Aju’s nose twitched proudly. “They taught me lots, U-ri. Learned some new spells too.”

“That’s…that’s great, Aju.”

Ash had left the bookshelves and was leaning up against the rock wall by the entranceway, his arms crossed. His face was stern, his gaze almost painfully sharp.

“Th-this is my servant, Sky.”

Sky turned to the bookshelves and bowed curtly. The glimmering of the books faded, their winking becoming more sporadic—like someone frowning at an unfamiliar sight.

Sky’s expression was hard. For some reason, though the light from the shelves fell on them the same, in it his cheeks looked pale, his skin tightly drawn across the bones of his face, casting strange, hollow shadows.

“We were about to—” U-ri began, when the old woman’s voice interrupted her.

“We know where you go, Lady
Allcaste.
”

U-ri thought she sensed the books shiver, as a person does when saying something they are reluctant to admit.

“Be strong, Lady
Allcaste.
You must be strong. And patient.”

“Huh?”

What’s that supposed to mean? And why is Aju nervously scratching at his nose?

“What connection does Katarhar Abbey have with the Hero’s escape? You said there were old ties, from a long time ago. What did you mean?”

Just then she heard the sound of hurried footsteps on the path outside. It was Dr. Latore.

“Are we all met?” the doctor asked, striding into the room. He turned to Ash. “He’s calmer now. Says he won’t try to run and hide, now that the time’s come.”

“How generous of him,” Ash said, standing up from the wall. “We are off, U-ri. Time for your audience,” he said.

Ash was brimming with energy. By comparison, Dr. Latore looked positively dejected. He stood with his shoulders slumped, staring blankly toward the back of the room.

“Am I going to meet the person with information about my brother?”

“That’s right. Try to keep up for once,” the wolf growled as he strode toward the doorway.

U-ri stepped away from the bookshelves, trying to figure out what was going on. Why was everything so mysterious all of a sudden? Why wasn’t anyone telling her anything?

“Do I know everything I need to know?” she asked the room. “If there’s something else, you think you could tell me now? Please?” U-ri ran her fingers along the spines of the books on the shelf.

Aju hopped lightly on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, U-ri. They told me everything we’ll need. Let’s just get going.”

“You know what’s going on too, don’t you! Tell me!”

“You’ll see for yourself soon enough. I think that’s better than me telling you, anyway.”

The more she heard, the more confused she became. And afraid.

I’m afraid. I’m really afraid!

Ash strode across the room, grabbed U-ri by the arm and pulled. “Enough of this!”

“No, Master Ash. Stop,” Sky said, moving to step between them.

“You stay out of this!” Ash roared. He violently shouldered the devout out of the way.

“Hey, don’t do that to Sky!” U-ri shouted, her anger rising. U-ri thrust forward with her arms, pushing Ash away from her. Still not satisfied, she lifted her hands and charged.
I’m going to hit him, or scratch him, or bite him, or I don’t know what—

“U-ri!” Aju squealed from her shoulder.

U-ri swung her hands down at Ash, but they stopped inches away from the wolf’s face. Ash’s hands gripped her tightly by the wrists. She couldn’t move either arm.

“If you are an
allcaste
, why don’t you start acting like one? Miserable child,” Ash growled in a low voice. He flung her away, sending U-ri staggering into the arms of the nameless devout. The two stared at each other across the room.

“Lady
Allcaste
,” the old woman’s voice said tearfully, “please, you must follow the wolf for now. You must go to meet the one who waits for you in the depths of Katarhar.”

U-ri spoke to the voice, though her eyes stayed fixed on Ash. “I noticed you books went dim when Sky bowed to you. You don’t like him either, do you? Maybe you know why Ash seems so bent on making Sky’s life miserable. He’s been like this from the start! All high and mighty, and cruel to Sky—and now he’s keeping important things from me!”

“It’s all right, Lady U-ri,” Sky said from behind her. “It’s all right. I—”

“No it’s
not
all right! Not until I say it is. You be quiet, Sky.”

“U-ri,” said a quiet voice. Someone grabbed her by the elbow and gently pulled her away. It was Dr. Latore. She hadn’t even noticed him come into the room. “We must go. There is little time.”

U-ri stood there with her mouth in a pout, ready to retort even though she had no idea what she might say, but the doctor’s eyes fixed on her. “It will not be in the proper state for you to speak with it for much longer.”

“It?” U-ri gasped.
What’s this now? I thought we were going to see a person, not an it!

U-ri swallowed her outburst and let herself be led from the room. Dr. Latore turned to Sky. “You will stay here. Please. For U-ri’s sake.”

U-ri didn’t see how Sky could be any better informed than she was about all this, but he simply nodded and withdrew. In fact, he stepped back so fast, he hit the bookshelves behind him. The books blinked and glimmered like fireflies caught by a sudden rain.

Ash walked silently ahead. The three had gone a ways down the path when U-ri turned to Dr. Latore. “I’m sorry. I won’t act that way again.”

The doctor smiled at her. But it wasn’t the kind of smile that had charmed her the first time they’d met. There was sorrow in his eyes now, and U-ri could see it.

Ash walked swiftly, apparently familiar with the twists and turns of the cavern’s many paths. Dr. Latore walked behind U-ri, who occasionally had to jog a little to keep up with the wolf.

The three of them were alone. Aju had protested loudly when Ash said he couldn’t go either. The wolf had scooped him up and for a moment it looked like he was going to toss the little mouse against the wall. U-ri had run to stop him, but for some reason, it was Sky who talked her down. Aju would remain with him and the books. It was better that way.

Now that she was actually walking down to the bottom of the catacombs, it seemed far more distant than she had imagined it would be from the top. As they passed down the levels, the candles along the walls that lit their way were replaced by torches. And they were fewer and farther between—though U-ri didn’t notice that so much as she noticed the increasingly large pools of darkness around them. A railing ran down the path along the inside edge, and when she peered over it, all she could see were flickering torches burning below. There were few monks down this far, and fewer residents.

“In the lowest levels, there are solitary chambers for the gravely ill. That’s where we’re headed now,” Dr. Latore informed her.

“Solitary chambers?”

“Dmitri has told you of the creatures that rose from Kirrick’s undead army, and the venom they carry?”

U-ri nodded, slowing her pace. They had been walking so quickly she had to catch her breath.