They emerged from the underground shortly before sunrise. The forest around them was still and silent save for the rhythmic chirruping of friggu from a nearby stream. The pre-dawn light under the dense canopy was tinged with blue and everything looked peaceful in the world outside.
Sela stood in the entrance of the Way and groaned. It was not that she was in pain – her bruises were minor compared to the injuries of Rama, Tawhawki and Kali. She groaned out of dismay. Her gowns were covered in dirt and dust and that did not please her.
‘Look at this!’ she exclaimed, directing her comment at Jehenna. ‘I’m covered in filth!’
‘Maybe that’s a good thing,’ Jehenna said stepping forward to take the bait. ‘That costume of yours isn’t exactly understated. Hardly ideal when we are trying to sneak into the Endless. A layer of grime might just be what it needs to stop us from getting killed!’
Sela’s hands dropped to her waist, a sure sign that Jehenna’s comment had hit its mark. ‘This is no costume,’ she snapped, emphasizing the word costume as if it were poison. ‘These are my clothes! Of course, I shouldn’t expect the Acora to know anything about cultures other than their own, but a Tamuan considers his or her clothes to be a –’
‘We don’t have time for this,’ Jehenna said abruptly, waving the Tamuan away. ‘This is a military operation, not a lecture series.’
Although Sela’s jaw was hidden by her face mask, everyone knew it had dropped. Under her cloak, Sela’s quills quivered as suppressed fury coursed through her body. By the time she had thought of a comeback, Jehenna had disappeared down the stairs that led down to the sleeping village of Harvagor below.
The sun was just kissing the tips of the tall ironwood trees above when they reached the outskirts of the town. A few lights had come on in numerous houses, adding to the lambent glow of streetlamps filled with clusters of shatterbugs.
By Acoran standards, Harvagor was not a large town. Fifty-two buildings were gathered around a serene pond upon which glided hammer-beaked ducca. The birds swam in wide circles pausing only to smack the heads of any carpu foolish enough to swim close to the surface.
The architecture of the town’s structures was unique to the area. The Acora of Harvagor believed in the cyclic nature of all things and the designs of their buildings reflected this right down to the round, ironwood doors and spherical doorknobs. Surrounding paths also followed this design. In fact, the only straight lines to be seen were the trunks of the ironwood trees that surrounded the settlement like a fortress.
In wide paddocks at the southern end of Harvagor, a herd of bobugs grazed quietly on the rich sweetgrass that grew there.
‘Wait here!’ Jehenna said to her companions when they reached the point where the woods stopped and Harvagor’s landscaped gardens began. Even the gardens were circular in design. Concentric rings of bellberries, flowerfall and water-roses radiated from each garden’s centre where statues of notable locals stood silently in the doleful light before dawn.
Jehenna stalked away through the nearest garden and disappeared behind the curved wall of a stable where snorses grumbled, hungry for their morning feed.
Not long afterwards she returned with a sackful of food and some medical supplies to properly dress the wounds her squad had incurred inside the Way.
Jehenna lay the sack down. It was heavy, flattening the dew-soaked grass beneath it. When she undid the thin cord wrapped around the sack’s neck, a delicious smell slithered its way out of the bag. Sela gasped loudly when she saw all the fresh food that lay inside. Freshly baked breads and pastries vied with sweet meats and fruits for dominance of the squad’s olfactory senses.
‘By the stars!’ Tawhawki exclaimed. ‘Wherever did you get this?’
‘I have a friend who is looks after the town’s commissariat.’
‘A merchandiser gave you all this?’ Sela asked as she reached in to take a cream-filled pastry.
‘Being a pampered princess has its advantages,’ she replied with a wry smile that quickly disappeared as she outlined their course of action. ‘We won’t be stopping to eat like this again until we reach Lucien which is two day’s march from here. By midday today, I hope to reach a tunnel that will keep our passage across Acoran hidden. Tawhawki, you will stay put as I put a healing salve and a splint upon your broken leg. Rama, I’ll also put a new bandage on your wrist. I will redistribute our supplies so that you two do not carry as much. Sela and Bormanus you will fill our flasks in the stream at the bottom of the gully behind you.’
‘Stop!’ Rama hissed to Jehenna who was setting a rapid pace through the glade.
They had just come over the top of a hill and the company had spread out considerably. Rama had been able to keep up with Jehenna despite his blindness. She was concentrating on speed so to Rama’s sensitive ears, her footfall was heavy and he had not struggled to place his feet where hers had gone.
Behind Rama, Kali stumbled along. He was unused to the tangle of ferns and bracken at his feet and had managed to trip over numerous times. Despite this, he had kept up with Jehenna and Rama as they raced up the hill. They were in the thickest part of the forest and although the sun had risen, the forest floor was still damp from the morning dew. Some way behind them Tawhawki and Bormanus walked together, neither particularly concerned with Jehenna’s desire to get to the Lucien breach as soon as possible. Tawhawki limped, but the healing salve Jehenna had placed upon his leg had removed most of the pain, making walking considerably easier. Having five other good legs also helped.
Sela wandered at the back of the line. She grumbled as she walked, rarely lifting her head to take in the spectacular forest surroundings. Even when the sun burst through the canopy painting the glade with splintered rays of white light, she snorted contemptuously. When she had agreed to the mission, she had no idea that it would entail so much walking.
‘Stop!’ Rama called a second time and Jehenna halted in her tracks.
‘What is it?’
‘I hear something.’
Jehenna cocked her head and listened but could hear nothing. The Acora were renowned for their sensory sensitivity but she had to concede that the blind Ankaran was her superior in aural matters. ‘We’re near the tunnels now. I don’t want to stop.’
‘Jehenna, please be quiet!’ he urged as politely as he could make the request.
‘What is it? I can’t hear a thing.’
‘It’s a sound I’ve never heard before.’
‘What’s it like?’
‘It… it hums.’
As he said it, she detected the sound. It was low, like thunder from a distant storm, but it was there and it was getting louder. She looked down the track where Kali was standing silently. The poor Kolpian had lost the enchanted scroll that Lilith Cortese had given him and was now relegated to the role of a dumb brute.
Kali stood out on the landing outside the Cloud Chamber. His knees felt weak and though he was at least ten feet back from the edge, he wanted to crawl back down the stairs to the room the Chamberlain had provided for his lodging. Though the concept of being surrounded by walls, a floor and a roof was foreign to him, it seemed a lot more comforting than the open space that made his head spin at the top of the tower.
He watched the other delegates leave the Cloud Chamber, many of them in pairs, some of them in groups, most of them talking. Communicating. A strange feeling welled up in his broad breast. A yearning for something. There was a word for it. But the words were slowly fading in his mind. The gift of language that Lilith Cortese had presented to him that fateful night on Hurucan Hill was fading and he found that he was wishing he had never been given it, if it meant that slowly losing it would make him feel the way it did.
At least he had the scroll. Even though he could not hear other people’s voices inside his head the way he had heard Lilith’s – and Chabriel’s – he had the scroll so that others could read what he was thinking. He looked down at his hands. Lilith’s scroll looked so small in his thick fingers. He curled his thumb under the scroll, unrolled it and placed his palm against the page. Words crawled across the page, but they now looked unfamiliar. Indecipherable.
‘Friendship. I am lonely. I want to contribute. I want to make a difference.’
He looked down at the words, frustration settling in on his kind face. The words made pretty patterns but he would never know what they meant.
He looked up to see another pair leave the Cloud Chamber. They were both important. The Chamberlain had paid particular attention to the male. But Kali could not guess what their roles were. He did not even know their names.
As they passed him, the Kolpian had an idea. He would show the pair the scroll and they would help him understand the words that had appeared.
Unable to speak, he reached out to the male and grabbed him softly by the cloak. The man swirled around and swatted at the hand that had grabbed him. Kali’s heart leapt into his throat when the man’s hand knocked the parchment sending it sailing up into the air where it paused momentarily only to be snatched up in a zealous wind. And then it was gone.
As the pair disappeared down the curving flight of stairs, a feeling of emptiness descended upon the Kolpian. He had never felt so alone.
It was winged but had no feathers. Instead, the pennons covering its body seemed to be carved from slate. Its wings moved so quickly they emitted a droning noise. This was not the only sound the strange beast produced. Its massive wedge-shaped head opened up and it let loose a deafening, ferine cry. The high-pitched noise exploded across the forest and the Cabal behemoth known as Kleesto announced its arrival in its own inimical way.
The savage sonic blast picked up Jehenna and Rama and hurled them twenty feet across the glade into a dense copse of trees. Rama fell deep into some brambles and as thorny as his landing was, the bush cushioned the impact with the forest floor. Not so lucky was Jehenna who was thrown into the unforgiving bole of an ironwood tree. She slid down the trunk clinging to consciousness, her brain and body stunned by Kleesto’s sudden attack.
The beast swept through the air, past Kali who had been oblivious to Kleesto’s presence until the moment its scream had scooped up Jehenna and Rama like leaves in a silent gust of wind.
Kleesto circled around Jehenna and Rama looking for a place to land to finish off the pair. Its 100 foot wingspan impeded its progress into the thicker parts of the forest. To get closer to the prostrate figures of Jehenna and Rama, it would have to land, giving up its aerial advantage.
Kali quickly appraised the situation. Kleesto must have recognised him and remembered that its sonic barrages had little effect upon his person. It had picked out the company’s leaders, probably on the assumption that they were the group’s strongest members. Now it had weakened them, it would quickly move in and finish them off, thus reducing the squad’s members by a third.
Kali could see Jehenna sprawled under a thick tree. She was dazed, unaware of Kleesto’s approach. He realised that he had to do something to draw the monster’s attention away from Jehenna and Rama. He did not really understand his part in the mission, but he knew Jehenna was irreplaceable. He was expendable; she was not.
He spied a small patch of pastureland further down the hill to his left. If he ran towards it Kleesto might consider him a more accessible – and palatable – choice of prey. The open field – the beast could attack him easily out there.
Kali sprinted down the hill hoping that his quick movements would catch Kleesto’s eye. They did but at first the creature didn’t seem interested in him. It continued to circle Jehenna and Rama, looking for a way into the copse. But when Kali reached the open pasture beyond the trees, Kleesto shrieked in delight and took off in his direction.
Jehenna had no idea what had hit her. Her head was a mess. Thoughts tumbled around. There was no order. No clarity. As she picked herself off the ground at the base of the tree, she tried to pull her thoughts back into line. She had been hit from behind, picked up and thrown across the glade. There had been a high-pitched sound. Then there had been the dreadful crunching of her body against the ironwood trees. Her head throbbed. Her ears ached. On the edge of the ringing sound that filled them, there was another sound. A humming. Rama had said something about humming.
Rama. Jehenna’s eyes bounced around the copse looking for some sign of the blind man who had warned her of the approach of whatever had assaulted them. The Ankaran was nowhere to be found. Then Jehenna saw Kali. He was running down the slope, with his head turned back up the hill. She could see his serene face. Although he was running, he was not showing any signs of fear. In fact he was smiling. He was looking back at something, running and looking as if he wanted whatever pursued him to follow him.
Then Jehenna caught sight of the beast. It was massive. It hovered and darted rather than flew. Its wings were a blur. Three pairs of clawed legs combed the air underneath a long body covered with shards of grey feathers.
Kali broke out of the woods and sprinted across the open field beyond. Jehenna watched incredulously as the Kolpian gave up the cover of the trees. The stupid oaf had placed himself in the most vulnerable spot of all.
Jehenna watched helplessly knowing that it would be pointless to yell out to him. ‘Of all the idiotic…’
Rama rose out of the brambles to her left. He was bleeding from the long thorns he had landed upon, but was otherwise unharmed. ‘The sound. It’s moving away,’ he said as he scrambled his way across to Jehenna.
‘It’s Kali. The beast is chasing Kali,’ she said as she watched Kleesto swing out around the grassy pasture and hover at the far side, its jaw opening slightly in a terrible smile. It was eyeing Kali who stood in the middle of the field waiting for the beast to swoop.
‘Jehenna!’ The voice was Tawhawki’s. He had seen Kleesto and was limping quickly across the slope to the copse where Jehenna and Rama stood. Behind him, Sela and Bormanus were jogging, both of them staring at the sight of Kali standing defenceless in the field down the hill.
It was then Jehenna realised that Kali’s act wasn’t borne out of stupidity. It was out of bravery. The Kolpian had deliberately drawn off Kleesto so they could escape. She was faced with the sort of decision that leaders despised. She had to weigh up his welfare against that of her companions. Had she been on her own, the Acoran would have rushed to his aid, but she had to consider the lives of her team as well. As a result of their encounter with the Ghul, Tawhawki had a broken leg, Rama’s wrist had been fractured, two of his ribs broken and he had been concussed. Sela also had been badly knocked about. They were not in any state to fight.
Jehenna had no information on the monster they faced. Even if they all tried to get to Kali, the beast would get there first. He had made the choice to place himself in such a vulnerable position. She had to respect his decision.
‘Come on,’ she said in a low, angry voice. ‘Let’s go.’
‘But what about Kali?’ asked Sela, turning her head fearfully to the field where Kleesto hovered menacingly, relishing the moments before her attack.
‘There’s nothing we can do for him,’ Jehenna growled. ‘Now go, while we still have a choice.’
Out in the field, Kali’s eyes widened as he saw someone he thought he would never see again. She was racing up the hill, behind Kleesto, her dark hair entwining itself with the light morning breeze. But she was too far away to help. No-one could help him.
Kleesto hung over him like an executioner’s axe. Kali watched the beast’s eyes narrow as it opened its mouth to strike. Despite the fact that Kali’s last confrontation with the creature on Hurucan Hill suggested he was impervious to its sonic attacks, the Kolpian braced himself for the scream. But it never came.
Kleesto had feigned an attack to put Kali off his guard and it had worked. The moment of confusion was all the beast needed to dart past him and attack from behind. Kali did not even have time to turn around. Kleesto’s massive jaws spread open and clamped down on his head. A sickening pop could be heard as the Kolpian’s skull gave way under the vice-like embrace of Kleesto’s powerful jaws.
Jehenna had steered the group through the copse and down the slope on the far side of the hill at a breakneck pace. Even if they wanted to stop they couldn’t; their momentum down the thickly wooded slope was such that it took all their concentration to avoid all the obstacles the forest placed in their way. Sharp-bladed ferns whipped at their legs. They leapt over boulders and logs as large as shelp. Their bodies shuddered as each jarring step took them further and further from the place where Kali had made his stand.
Jehenna was cursing under her increasingly laboured breath. Kali was probably dead by now. Whilst it may have given the rest of the team an opportunity for escape, it was far from a desirable outcome. They had a long way to go to complete the mission and being one man down so early was a catastrophic outcome. Part of her was screaming, demanding to turn back, but her sense of practicality shouted down all opposition to their current tactic. And so they kept on running.
‘Do you know where we’re going?’ Sela called between grunts as she struggled to keep up with Jehenna.
‘Yes. There is a tunnel at the base of this hill.’
They slowed down to a walk and eventually stopped as Jehenna tried to get her bearings. It was approaching midday but it was dark where they stood. The leaves above created a thick green roof that the sun struggle to penetrate. In a few places beams of white light streamed through in long, thin lines, lighting in dappled patches a pretty forest floor where large red and white mushroots grew at the base of thick grey tree trunks. A cloud of shatterbugs floated above thick-bladed ferns and somewhere in the distance a brook babbled peacefully. The place seemed familiar. She knew she was close.
Bormanus sat on a rock with a look of disdain emblazoned on his face. The patch of forest around them looked the same as every other patch of forest they had seen since arriving in Acoran. ‘So you have tunnels out here? In the middle of the forest?’ His thin voice was fractious. It seemed as if the morning’s adventures were taking their toll on him.
‘Yes,’ said Jehenna ignoring the abrasive attitude he was displaying.
Bormanus looked down at his hands and sighed when he noticed that he had chipped a fingernail on a rock in their sprint down the wooded slope. ‘So where are these tunnels?’ he said, his manner suggesting he was already bored with the situation.
‘They’re hidden Bormanus,’ Jehenna said curtly. ‘If you’d like to help me look for them, that would be a help.’
Bormanus flicked his white hair back like a petulant schoolgirl. ‘I’m sure you know what you’re doing,’ he sniped.
Jehenna turned away from him and bit her lip to contain the frustration she was feeling. So far, the mission had been a disaster. Kali – dead in all likelihood. Tawhawki – injured. Rama – injured. Although Sela and Bormanus had avoided any serious injury, their attitudes were like a wound that the entire company had to suffer. In her burning mind, Jehenna cursed her luck. She could have had people such as Pylos or Sir Edgar or Sumi in her squad, but instead she had…
Then she realised, it was not luck. It was design. Her husband had helped the Chamberlain construct the groups, as had Porenutious Windle. She felt compromised.
Suddenly, an ear-piercing shriek sounded and a bough overhead splintered and cracked as a sonic barrage hit the canopy under which they sheltered.
‘I think you better find those tunnels quickly,’ said Bormanus wryly as a humming sound filled the air. Somewhere above the canopy, Kleesto hovered, trying to catch sight of the party.
Jehenna strode across the forest floor, the sound of her footsteps upon the leaf-strewn ground silent to all but Rama. ‘What was that?’ he said as she walked under a natural archway of branches.
She stopped. ‘What was what?’
‘It sounded hollow.’
Suddenly Jehenna’s face beamed. ‘Rama, you’ve found it!’ she said with delight. She dropped to her knees and wiped away the leaves and topsoil to reveal a pair of trapdoors in the forest floor. Each door was roughly ten foot square.
Bormanus strolled over to where she knelt and said, ‘You forgot the entrance was a trap door?’
Jehenna didn’t look up as she continued to wipe away the natural debris. ‘There are countless tunnels all over Acoran, Bormanus, and they all have different entrances.’
Bormanus said nothing more as he watched her struggle with one of the heavy doors. Rama and Tawhawki pulled at the other door. After some exertion, the entrance to the tunnel was opened. A cool, dark wind rushed out to greet them as they peered down into a black, rectangular hole in the ground.
Another scream sounded high above and branches and leaves rained down on them. Kleesto knew they were near.
‘It’s dark in there,’ Tawhawki observed, stating the obvious as he tried to work out how he would make his way down the shaft.
‘Is it?’ Rama said with a smile but the comment went ignored.
‘It’s not a deep shaft,’ Jehenna said to the Caquikki. ‘You’ll be able to jump down without hurting your broken leg.
‘If it’s all the same to you Jehenna, I’d rather see what I’m jumping into.’
‘I can change that,’ Sela said proudly. She slipped off into the ferns whilst her companions stayed where they were around the shaft. She returned minutes later followed by a cloud of shatterbugs. They hovered around her head, silhouetting it. With a flourish of her hand, she pointed into the shaft and the shatterbugs flew down past the others to light the tunnel beyond.
‘You can talk to the shatterbugs?’ Jehenna said incredulously.
‘Well, I wouldn't call it talking,’ corrected Sela. ‘Communicating would be a better word.’
‘Okay,’ said Jehenna trying to accept the correction graciously. ‘So you can communicate with the shatterbugs.’
‘If you knew anything about Tamuans, you’d know that we can communicate with most beasts.’
Jehenna’s thin, dark eyebrows rose as she betrayed her ignorance of this rather significant piece of Myrran lore. Like most of her compatriots, her education had focused on all things Acoran; this parochialism occasionally revealed itself, but the Acora weren’t overly concerned about this chink in their armour. They genuinely believed that most things known beyond Acoran’s borders probably weren’t worth knowing anyway. She decided to focus on the problem at hand. ‘Can you communicate with that monster above.’
‘Just because I can communicate with a beast doesn’t mean it will listen to me. Somehow, I don't think that thing will listen to me. The Cabal are supposed to be intelligent. It would probably even understand you. Perhaps you could go out and speak to it.’
Jehenna smiled at the Tamuan’s feistiness. ‘I think I’ll leave that discussion for another day, thank-you.’ She turned to the others and said, ‘We’ll be safe in the tunnels. It won’t be able to follow us.’
‘Jehenna, who built these tunnels?’ Tawhawki asked inquisitively. He had studied a reasonable amount of Acoran culture but the books he had read had made no mention of a network of tunnels under Acoran.
‘My great, great grandfather Zachariah Carrucan was the King of Acoran two centuries ago. By all reports, he was a rather obsessive and secretive man. Many described him as mad. He had these tunnels built throughout the country and –’
‘I thought this was a military operation and not a lecture series,’ said Sela smugly.
Ignoring the comment, Jehenna shifted her gaze to the rungs of the ladder and made her way down to the bottom of the ten foot shaft. Rama quickly joined her, followed by Bormanus.
Tawhawki edged close to the lip of the shaft preparing to leap into it. Water from recent rains had seeped through the cracks in the trapdoors and produced small puddles across the floor of the tunnel. The soil looked soft, or at least soft enough to land on without further damaging his femur.
‘A big lug like you should be afraid of a little hole,’ Sela cajoled.
The Caquikki took Jehenna’s lead and ignored her comment. He stepped forward and dropped into the shaft. His five good legs took what little impact there was and he trotted off to join his companions who had already started making their way down the shatterbug-lit passageway.
Behind her mask Sela smiled, content with the knowledge she had got the better of Jehenna and Tawhawki. She slowly made her way down the ladder, replaying the brief exchanges over in her head, enjoying the way she had found comments that had annoyed both of them. So pleased with herself was she that Sela stopped focusing upon where she was placing her feet; on the second last rung of the ladder, she slipped and fell into a muddy puddle that stained her colourful robes and mask. ‘I’ve had enough of tunnels,’ she grumbled as she hurried to catch up with the others.
Jehenna had meant what she said back in Harvagor – the company did not stop for food or sleep. Occasionally she let them stop to take a sip from their flasks, but these breaks were brief and all too infrequent. Often Sela would catch up to the group just as they were shouldering their gear to start walking again. The Tamuan felt permanently out of step with the group. A number of times she called the shatterbugs back to her which would deny her companions of light and thus slow everyone but Rama down.
It was a long, dull, silent trek. No-one spoke and there was nothing to see others than the timbers that held up the tunnel roof. Every now and then Jehenna would steer them down a new tunnel, but they all looked basically the same. Some sloped up. Some sloped down. Some were flat.
After two days of King Zachariah’s tunnels, Sela felt a little mad herself and was overjoyed when they emerged near Lucien.
Trees so tall that their tops could not be seen from the forest floor stood in rows like Helyan troops awaiting orders. There was such symmetry to the forest that the effect of standing there in the midst of countless arboreal laneways was somewhat unnerving to all except Jehenna Canna. The lines of trees extended for leagues. As Sela tentatively crossed from wooded corridor to wooded corridor, a feeling of claustrophobia descended upon her; she was a long way from the open plains of Tamu.
She walked back to Jehenna Canna who was biting on a mushroot she had pulled from the bole of the nearest tree. Peering out through her mud-spattered mask Sela asked, ‘Did the Acora plant these trees?’
It felt like a stupid question. It seemed obvious that the forest had not grown that way by its own design. Nature’s plans were chaotic. Her patterns were subtle. There were no ranks and rows in nature. No lines.
However, when Jehenna’s rebuke came, it was not what Sela had expected. ‘Who plants a forest? Are you mad?’
Sela pointed to the left and right. ‘But look at the lines. This isn’t a forest – it’s a grid!’
‘Well we didn’t plant it.’
Sela stopped pointing and placed her hands upon her hips. ‘Someone must have. Trees do not grow in lines!’
‘These ones do!’ Jehenna’s voice was strained. This was becoming a characteristic of her exchanges with Sela. ‘Listen. It is not my job to explain the botanical intricacies of our surroundings. It is my job to get this squad to the Lucien breach and from there, find a way to Caliban.’
‘But surely you –’
‘No! Stop!’ Jehenna raised her hands in despair. ‘There are some things that I simply cannot explain Consul Noye. I can’t explain why these trees grow in straight lines. I can’t explain why it is that you must argue with me on every single point. I can’t explain why the other squads consist of warriors like Bannick Landen, Sefar Hadith and Pylos Castalia , and my team has –’
She pulled herself up. She had almost articulated thoughts that, as a leader, she was expected to keep private. Her mouth hung open for a moment whilst everyone stared, waiting to hear the insult for which she had set the stage.
But the insult never came. ‘We are fifteen leagues from Lucien. If we move quickly, we can be there by lunch,’ she said before whirling around and marching off down the laneway of trees. She didn’t even pause to see whether her company was following.
It was mid-afternoon when Jehenna pulled the company to a halt. The landscape had changed. They had left the ironwood trees behind and were now surrounded by thick, leafy oakaen trees that sprawled across the air above them, keeping them in shadow despite the blue skies high above. Blocks of angular black crystal rose from the soft, mulch-covered ground around the company. Wide-bladed ferns competed with the crystals for space. It was a lush environment and Sela preferred it to the prison-like ironwood forest or the mad king’s tunnels. The Tamuan finally felt like she could relax. She was soon given an opportunity.
They had been marching up a steep slope for some time and the chance to stop was welcomed by all. Jehenna instructed them to keep their voices down as they rested.
‘Why?’ asked Bormanus curiously. ‘Are we near Lucien?’
Jehenna stood to attention, keeping a watchful eye out as the rest of the squad unpacked their belongings and prepared something to eat. ‘The town of Lucien lies about three leagues to the south-west,’ she said in a low voice, finally taking a seat on the ground when she was sure there was no immediate danger.
‘So why are we whispering?’
‘The Lucien breach is not in Lucien. It is here. We are within a hundred yards of the deep gully that houses the breach.’
Sela sat up shocked by the casualness of the comment. ‘So what you’re saying is that there could be a gang of Ghul soldiers just sitting over the rise. And here we are having a picnic.’
‘I thought it would be best to eat before a fight.’
‘We’re going to fight?’ Sela gulped.
‘Well that depends on whether the Ghul are still there. My guess is that they will be and they won’t just stand aside as we march into their realm.’
Sela pushed away the stick of bread she had been preparing to eat. ‘I’ve lost my appetite.’ She nodded up the slope to where the rise ended at a naturally formed wall of black crystal. ‘Perhaps we should take a look.’
Jehenna peered over the rim of the deep gully and then fell back down against the crystal wall and groaned.
‘What is it?’ asked Sela.
Without having to move Rama said, ‘There’s thousands of them.’
As one they all raised their heads over the wall that ran round the side of the verdant ravine. Though it was afternoon, the thick canopy overhead and the steep incline of the gully meant that the entire area was draped in shadow. And in the shadows, the Ghul thrived.
Rama was right. There were thousands of them. Tens of thousands. They covered the landscape like white insects on the carcass of a beast. Some could be seen sharpening their bone weapons on the shards of black crystal covering the fern-encrusted slope that led down into the darkness. Other Ghul were perched on rocks and logs, feeding themselves meat that dripped blood upon the greenery. A number of less recognizable figures were there – the remains of fallen Acoran warriors.
What was almost as remarkable as the sight of so many Ghul packed into one area was the relative silence of the crowd. The occasional scrape of bone on crystal and the general hum of breathing was all that could be heard. No-one spoke.
‘They’re not very sociable are they?’ Bormanus noted.
‘There are so many of them!’ gasped Sela. ‘They must have known we we’re coming!’
‘Or perhaps the Ghul numbers are a lot greater than we imagined,’ suggested Tawhawki.
‘Whatever their reason for being there,’ said Jehenna with great sobriety, ‘they’re in the way!’
‘You’re not actually thinking of going through them are you?’ Rama said nervously. Though he couldn’t see them, he had a very clear mental picture of the masses below and the thought of continuing on through the breach seemed madness, even in one as headstrong as Jehenna.
‘We have a mission,’ Jehenna replied bluntly. ‘The Chamberlain said we were to head through the Lucien breach, and that’s what we’re going to do.’
‘You’ll kill us all if you take us in there,’ Sela remonstrated. It was only her fear of the Ghul that kept her from shouting.
Tawhawki reached into a pocket on the front of his gold waistcoat and pulled out his glasses. In a manner much like his father, he carefully wiped the spectacles before placing them on the bridge of his long, hooked nose. ‘Consul Canna, I would not be so bold as to question your judgement in matters of combat but exactly how do you hope to penetrate this rather formidable defence?’
Jehenna’s brow clenched like a fist as she tried to work out a strategy but the sheer weight of Ghul numbers was such that every plan she conceived dissolved quickly afterwards. Even if she were backed by the remaining ranks of Acoran marksmen and infantry, she would fail. Rama had proven that the Ghul had proven invulnerable to all forms of weaponry other than those forged from shatterstone, and there were not enough shatterstone arrowheads in all Acoran to cut down a tenth of the Ghul Caliban had sent to the Lucien breach. It was also clear at a glance that they could not hope to sneak their way into the breach. The land was so densely covered in Ghul soldiers that the company could not go five feet without encountering the enemy. ‘There is always a way,’ Jehenna said to herself as if it were an irrefutable truth. But from where the company crouched, the way was blocked.
‘We could try,’ said Bormanus as he watched Jehenna struggle with the situation, ‘but it would be a foolish way to die. We have already been ambushed twice. I agree with Sela – I think they knew we were coming.’
Jehenna ran her hands through her long, black hair. Her face was taut. She made no attempt to hide her frustration. ‘What would you have me do then? Return to Cessair and tell the Chamberlain we have failed.’
Bormanus stared back impassively. ‘That is one option, but there are others.’
Jehenna gave him a doubtful look. ‘And what options are they, Bormanus?’
‘It would seem that everything we have done so far has been anticipated. It is time to do the unexpected. To take a less predictable road.’
‘Where would you take us Bormanus?’
‘I think you can guess Jehenna. The last place Caliban would expect us to go is the breach in Cephalonia.’
Jehenna scowled. ‘To Cephalonia – are you mad? It’s over a thousand leagues away. The only way we could reach it is by boat and even then the journey would take us forever. Your concern is not for the Myr but for your homelands.’
Under his long, straight white locks, Bormanus’ face reddened. ‘If we do not find a way, then all homelands are lost. Think on it Jehenna. The Ghul were waiting for us in the Acoran Way. That beast… what was its name Tawhawki?’
‘Kleesto.’
‘Kleesto was looking for us in the forests outside Harvagor. And these Ghul are assembled here for our benefit. It would seem Caliban has anticipated our route, so we must take another.’
Jehenna could see the sense in what he was saying, but Cephalonia seemed so far away. It would take months… unless they had a boat unlike any other. A boat so fast and great that the seas seemed smaller under her mighty sails. She knew of such a boat.
‘Where did you say we are going?’ Sela asked as she jogged beside Jehenna who was marching with such purpose, it was hard for her companions to keep up with her.
‘We are going to the port city of Griflet. I know a man there who has just taken command of a ship that may suit our needs.’
‘Can you trust him?’ asked Tawhawki, overhearing Jehenna’s response. ‘We have been compromised. We should be careful who we trust.’
Jehenna nodded in agreement. ‘I think I can trust this man. He’s my brother.’
Crawling across the lattice of branches high above them, the herd of bobugs grazed on the canopy’s tender, green leaves.
‘Good!’ said Jehenna glancing upwards. ‘These aren’t wild. They’ve been domesticated.’
‘How can you tell?’ asked Rama who could hear the ponderous movements of the creatures high above, but could not see them.
‘They have harnesses on them.’ She stepped closer to Rama and extended her hand. ‘May I use your staff?’
A quizzical look passed Rama’s face but his polite demeanour was such that he quickly replied, ‘By all means.’
Jehenna took the long, brass staff and strode over to the nearest tree and struck its smooth side. Rather than the sound one would expect from metal striking wood, a noise not unlike a bell sounded, reverberating up the trunk until it was lost in the canopy.
The bobugs above stopped ranging over the lattice of leaves and scuttled across to the trunks of the nearest trees. They quickly slid down the trees and crouched before the company, their great translucent bodies dwarfing the five Myrrans gazing upon them.
‘Thank-you Rama,’ she said as she handed the Ankaran back his staff. She turned to the rest of the group and announced, ‘Our transportation has arrived. I will take the lead bobug and steer us toward the Naiyeni River. From there we will travel on foot to Griflet.’
‘But...’
Even though Jehenna couldn’t see Sela’s face behind her mask, she could tell the Tamuan was agitated. ‘Yes, Sela?’
‘There are no carriages. You’re not suggesting we just hang on do you?’
‘Precisely,’ Jehenna replied. ‘The harnesses have rope seats and handholds. If you loop the ropes around your wrists, you shouldn’t fall.’
‘Shouldn’t fall?’ Sela cried in exasperation.
‘What about me?’ Tawhawki asked nervously. ‘There’s no way I can –’
‘Yes, I know,’ Jehenna said abruptly, cutting him off. The rope seats were not designed with his massive, six-legged body in mind. ‘You will be required to walk the distance to Griflet. I imagine we will be delayed a day or two as we make preparations to sail. Hopefully you will be able to arrive at Griflet before we depart.’
‘You must be joking!’ Tawhawki said angrily. ‘That’s impossible and you know it! Or have you forgotten that one of my legs is broken?’
‘I am well aware of that Tawhawki,’ she countered unsympathetically. ‘In fact I have my doubts about what value you can possibly be to us now. Speed is of the essence, especially now we are headed for Cephalonia. We cannot wait for you.’
‘You heartless barga!’ Sela squalled.
‘I was appointed to be your leader, not your nursemaid,’ Jehenna shot back.
Rama raised his hand to speak. ‘Excuse me Jehenna, but if speed is of the essence, why are be only going as far as the Naiyeni by bobug? If we are to leave our colleague behind, why not go the entire way to Griflet by bobug?’
‘The forest thins significantly as we head south. The bobug is swift among the trees but on land, it is a lethargic beast. It will be faster to walk once we reach the Naiyeni.’
Jehenna realised that her decision was not popular. Tawhawki was scowling. As far as she could tell, so was Sela. Rama’s face displayed concern. Bormanus’ expression was as indecipherable as ever.
‘Now if we do not have anymore questions, we’ll be under way,’ Jehenna said as she moved towards the nearest bobug, a gigantic female, with bulbous eyes filled with curiousity.
Sela stayed where she was, amazed by Jehenna’s indifference to Tawhawki’s plight. ‘We can’t just leave him here like this.’ Although Sela had developed a penchant for disagreeing with Jehenna at every turn, the Acoran was surprised that her prickly companion had come to Tawhawki’s defence so stridently. As far as Jehenna could tell, Sela hated Tawhawki more than anyone.
‘Tawhawki is not in any immediate danger. It is many hours until nightfall and I doubt that the Ghul will wander far from the Lucien breach anyway.’
Sela shook her head vigorously, the red feathers of her mask exaggerating her movements. ‘What about the small matter of the screaming demon that attacked us outside Harvagor? It killed Kali. It won’t hesitate to bite Tawhawki’s head off as well!’
Jehenna’s body tensed. The constant demand that she justify herself was something totally alien to the Acoran. ‘You may not want to hear this Sela, but Tawhawki will be probably safer away from us.’
‘How can you be so cold, you arrogant, pointy-eared shrew?’
Jehenna snapped. Sela had spoken one too many times. She strode up to the much smaller Tamuan, her fists and teeth clenched firmly. Sela jumped back a little, surprised by Jehenna’s sudden show of anger. Rama stepped forward to stand between the two. The tension was so palpable, he could almost see it.
‘Listen Consul Noye,’ Jehenna said through gritted teeth. ‘If I appear cold, it’s because I have to be. I have to make decisions. I have to put the mission first. We have already lost one man. I cannot allow this operation to be compromised further. You think I’m hard on Tawhawki, do you? It’s nothing compared to what I have in store for you, should you continue to question my every decision. Is that clear?’
An awkward silence descended upon the group. Sela had been given the opportunity to respond, but did not take it. She was too stunned to speak.
Jehenna was not prepared to let it end there. Her face displayed a severity and a sharpness that not even her unquestionable beauty could soften. ‘Consul Noye, I require you to do your duty. To fulfil your obligations as Consul. You will demonstrate your compliance immediately. You will stand beside a bobug. You will take hold of its harness. You will say nothing.’
Sela was frozen for the briefest of moments. Then, to everyone’s great surprise, Jehenna included, she walked over to the nearest bobug, took hold of its harness and silently awaited her orders.
Jehenna’s face did not betray her sense of relief but her shoulders relaxed slightly. She asked the others to follow Sela’s example. Finally, she nodded to Tawhawki in farewell, took hold of the bobug’s harness and pulled it slightly. The vast creature responded dramatically leaping onto the trunk of the nearest tree and scuttling away into the shadowy canopy.
Sela hadn’t opened her eyes in over six hours. It hardly made a difference. She still felt sick to her stomach. She had managed to swing her legs up into the rope seat that hung from the bobug’s back but she felt far from comfortable. The constantly shifting motion of the bobug made her stomach swirl. At one point she thought she was going to vomit but fortunately her empty belly could not commit to such an action.
In contrast to her stomach, her head was full to overflowing. Most of her thoughts were centred upon Jehenna. It was true that the Acoran had shown a glimpse of kindness to her when she had commended her upon her valour back in the Acoran Way, but since that time, she had been belligerent and overbearing. She had hardly displayed any concern over Kali’s death and her treatment of Tawhawki seemed insensitive in the extreme.
‘I hate her, I hate her, I hate her,’ Sela muttered to herself as they hurtled through the Acoran forests, her bitter mantra an attempt to drown out the clattering sound of the bobug’s limbs upon the sprawling branches above.
‘We'll rest here tonight,’ Jehenna's voice hollered over the noise of the bobugs’ movements. Without thinking, Sela opened her eyes and she was slapped across the face with vertigo. Her mind reeled as she inadvertently took in the astounding view. From her lofty position high amongst the canopy, Sela could see the vales of Acoran rolling away to the south, like a light green cloth rippling in the breeze. Weaving its way around the folds in the land, a wide and gentle river bubbled over rocks and ledges, sweeping around bends, eventually disappearing under a thin blue mist that descended upon the land as night drew in. She could see flocks of kestra winging their way across the darkening sky in search of a meal to bring home to their aeries in the mountains to the north.
Sela quickly shut her eyes again. She could hear Jehenna saying something about the Naiyeni River but her brain struggled to make sense of anything as the bobug gave up its upside-down position for a vertical one as it slid down a tree trunk at a frightening speed.
It took Sela a few moments to accept that they were back on solid ground. She rolled out of the rope seat and lay face down in the aromatic riverside grass. A sweet smell filled her nostrils, clearing her mind of all the heated thoughts that had consumed it all day. She felt calm. Strangely, the frenetic journey across the tree tops seemed but a distant memory.
Sela sat up and opened her eyes. She was on a patch of vibrant green grass that covered a small knoll that led down to the pebble-encrusted shore of a river whose waters were clearer than any water Sela had ever drawn from a well. From where she sat she could see shoals of fish hovering like clouds above the reeds where bright red friggu gambolled amongst the green. On the far side of the river she could see a small family of ducca happily slapping the river’s surface with their flat beaks. She had not felt so contented since leaving her village of Nuadu on the plains of Tamu. To her right, Bormanus lay on the grass with his eyes closed and a slight smile on his face. She could tell he felt as contented as she did.
‘The fragrance you smell is sweetgrass,’ said Jehenna as she patted the side of her bobug which was munching avariciously on the green verge at the edge of the forest. ‘Breath it in. It will relax you. Re-energise you.’
Rama wandered down the slope to the river’s bank. ‘Oh, I don’t need sweetgrass to re-energise me. Just enough water to swim in.’ He dropped his robe to reveal a taut, muscular copper-skin body underneath. Fortunately, Rama’s long dreadlocks obscured much of his nudity and Jehenna was able to speak to him without too much awkwardness.
‘Oh, I wouldn’t go swimming in that river if I were you.’
‘Why not?’ Rama said, disappointed at the prospect of not being able to enjoy the cool embrace of water. As an amphibious race, the Ankarans could stay on land for long stretches, but it was not something they would do by choice. Though he had said nothing, the journey through the Acoran Way and the trek through the forests had taken a lot out of him and he desired a swim the way a starving man desired food. The thought of that desire being unfulfilled was crushing.
Jehenna pulled a small chunk of dried shelp out of her pack and threw it out over the river. It was high above the river’s surface when the waters erupted and countless fanged praga fish jumped out and tore ravenously at the small morsel of meat.
‘What was that?’ Rama asked, intrigued by the gnashing sounds that had filled his ears.
‘That was the praga fish!’ Jehenna said with a little bit of perverse pride in her voice. ‘They are indigenous to the Naiyeni River. There are few creatures in the Myr as vicious and ruthless as our praga. Whilst it is only small, its three rows of incredibly sharp teeth can strip a creature of its flesh within seconds. Its fins actually end in claws that are just as sharp as its teeth.’
‘But the sounds I heard,’ Rama said amazed, ‘they were high in the air!’
‘Yes, the praga can leap up to twenty feet into the air. There have been many reports of Acora being attacked whilst walking across the bridges that span the river at numerous places. These attacks are often coordinated, sometime involving more than one hundred fish at a time.’
‘We’re not planning to cross any bridges on the way down to Griflet, are we?’ Sela asked disconsolately from her patch of grass on the knoll.
Jehenna smiled but did not answer which depressed the Tamuan even more.
‘What about the other creatures on the river?’ asked Rama. ‘I can hear a flock of ducca on the far side of the water. Why does the praga fish not attack them?’
‘The praga seems to prefer people,’ Jehenna replied, ‘which can make life difficult when you need to get close to the river.’
She walked back to her pack and withdrew an even larger piece of dried shelp meat. 'Apparently it tastes a bit like us,' she said with a grin as she hurled the meat as far down the river as she could. As it sailed through the air, Sela could see the shadowy shapes of hundreds of praga, swimming powerfully through the deep water following the path of the piece of meat. Then, as if on some unseen signal, the swarm of fanged fish shot out of the river and came together on the meat. The huge gnashing ball fell back down to the surface of the river which was churned up by the ferocious feeding frenzy.
Jehenna wasted no time in stepping onto the pebble-strewn shore of the Naiyeni River. She fell to her knees, put her face close to the water and whispered, ‘Simeon, get her ready. We’re on our way.’
‘What are you doing?’ asked Sela somewhat stunned by her squad leader’s actions.
Jehenna quickly rose and retreated to the safety of the river bank. ‘I have just sent a message to my brother.’
‘How?’
‘It will sound like a geography lecture,’ Jehenna said smugly.
Sela grunted as she recognised Jehenna’s rejoinder. ‘Just tell me,’ she said.
Jehenna took a seat beside Sela. She was joined by Rama who had put his robe back on and was trying to put aside his disappointment over not being able to take a swim.
‘The Naiyeni River,’ Jehenna explained, ‘takes its name from an ancient Acoran word which means whisper carrier – remarkably, the river carries sounds the way most water ways carry leaves. It is said that something spoken upon the river’s edge in Efnissien could be heard the following day in Griflet almost 150 leagues away. This has enabled an extraordinary line of communication between Efnissien and Griflet. To this end, the late King of Acoran stationed whisper-catchers in Griflet, men and women who patrol the banks of the Naiyeni listening for any word from the north. This job is paid handsomely; many Acora have lost entire ears to the vicious praga, who will cunningly follow the ripples of a whisper all the way downstream just to feed on the flesh of a careless whisper-catcher.’
‘That’s quite astounding,’ said Rama who was truly impressed by the whispering river. ‘You are quite sure you message will be delivered to your brother?’
‘He is well-known in Griflet. The message will find its way to him.’
Sela’s mind was on other things. A hearty meal, a warm bed and a night spent indoors. ‘Will we be staying in Efnissien? It’s on the way isn’t it?’
Much to Sela’s disappointment Jehenna shook her head. ‘I will obtain some snorses from a farm outside Efnissien so we can ride to Griflet, but I do not think it would be wise to travel through the city. We cannot risk one of Caliban’s spies discovering our new route.’
‘You don’t trust your own countrymen,’ Sela observed.
‘I don’t know who I can trust,’ Jehenna responded honestly. ‘What I do know is that we should not take unnecessary risks. I’m afraid we’ll be sleeping outdoors until we get to Griflet.’
‘Wonderful!’ Sela said sarcastically before rolling over on the sweetgrass and closing her eyes. She was asleep within seconds.
Rama woke first. Wrapped in the mellifluent fragrance of the sweetgrass on which he lay, he found it difficult to open his eyes, but a familiar humming noise tugged and pulled at him until sleep could hold him no more.
He jumped up and cocked his head to one side, pushing his keen senses to triangulate the source of the noise. The humming was growing louder and that meant only one thing – Kleesto was approaching.
‘Jehenna!’ he yelled, dispensing with his characteristic calm manner. ‘We’ve got trouble on the way.’
He could hear the Acoran scramble to her feet.
‘Where?’ she asked as she scanned the skies. Although she couldn’t hear noise that had roused Rama, she assumed it was Kleesto.
‘North-east,’ replied Rama. ‘Coming in high above the treetops.’
Jehenna looked above the forest behind them. The sun hadn’t risen but the lustre of the stars had faded as the sky shed its black robes and donned a gown of indigo.
‘Sela! Bormanus!’ Jehenna snapped. ‘Get up!’
Sela was curled up by a fallen log. Her large face mask lay to one side but her face was hidden under a woollen blanket. She stuck a hand out from a blanket and pulled in the mask so that none could see her place it upon her face. When this was done, she jumped to her feet and cast aside her outer cloak so that her quills were ready to fire at any approaching threat.
The morning sun was momentarily obscured as Kleesto swooped down upon the knoll. She did not attack on this first pass. She had something in her claws and she hurtled this at the group. It was large and… it had legs. Six of them. One of them was broken.
Jehenna had lifted her arm-mounted crossbows but had no time to fire at the beast before the unconscious body of Tawhawki barrelled into her, sending her flying off her feet.
Tawhawki rolled like a broken wheel down the knoll. His body smeared the grass with blood as he tumbled over it. Kleesto’s talons had cut deep into his hide and as he drew to a stop in the weeds that lined the river. He looked as close to death as a person could be without actually crossing over. Although his body showed signs of breathing, it seemed that might change at any second.
Kleesto wheeled around in the sky and hovered, ready to strike.
Jehenna was winded, but unharmed. She quickly scanned the area to assess the situation. It was dire. Sela was huddled on the grass and whilst it seemed she was ready to retaliate with her spines, it also looked as if she had just curled up in a ball, hoping the bad monster would go away. Rama had picked up his staff and was facing Kleesto who was hovering menacingly in the air no more than fifty yards away. Jehenna knew that the creature would unleash something from her repertoire of attacks any second.
‘Bormanus, get out here and fight!’ Jehenna screamed to the Cephalonian who had taken cover behind a rock at the edge of the forest.
‘Are you insane!’ he shouted back. ‘We’ll be safer in the forest!’
‘I’m not leaving Tawhawki,’ she said. ‘Not again.’
‘Then you’ll die,’ he sneered.
‘So be it!’ she called back. Running down the short slope to where Tawhawki lay on the embankment, Jehenna put herself between the fallen Caquikki and the monster that had savaged him so. She lifted both her arms and aimed her crossbows at the flying beast before her.
This act of defiance was enough to catapult Kleesto into attack. Its triangular head reared back revealing multiple sets of teeth. Suddenly, Jehenna felt herself being tossed twenty feet into the air by a sonic barrage that hit harder than any blow she had ever experienced. She fought to stay conscious as the world spun around her.
The sharp sensation of cold water on her forehead pulled Jehenna back from the blackness that threatened to take her but the river was no friend. She was lucky that she hadn’t been devoured by praga already. At first, this made no sense – the praga were not known for their slow reactions – but a quick glance revealed she had landed in a patch of water separated from the rest of the river by a bank of pebbles. To her left, the river water surged as a shoal of praga tried to leap the wide bank, but the water was too shallow for them to get enough momentum to cross the natural causeway. A number of the savage fish lay on their sides on the pebbles, snatching at the air with teeth like knives.
Jehenna quickly clambered out of the river and made her way back to the knoll. She found Sela nursing Bormanus and Rama. Both men had severe wounds. Rama’s shoulder had been torn badly and Bormanus chest had a gaping wound in it. Sela was in tears as she hunched over their bodies. She looked up as Jehenna approached.
‘Sela what has happened here?’
‘The beast,’ Sela said through panic-stricken gasps for air, ‘it just mowed them both down. Bormanus ran out to help when it attacked you but that thing just carved him up with its claws. Rama too!’
Jehenna was about to ask where Kleesto had gone when a deafening hum revealed its whereabouts. The beast had circled behind the trees and emerged above the stretch of grass lining the river to the south. ‘There you are,’ said Jehenna in a stern whisper. ‘I’m ready for you now.’
Kleesto took her hovering position and Jehenna braced for another sonic assault. ‘Sela,’ she said to the Tamuan cowering beside her, ‘when I give you the word, I want you to fire off as many quills as you can.’
Sela shook her head. ‘Jehenna, that creature’s feathers are like scales of armour. There’s no way I’ll be able to penetrate them.’
‘Trust me,’ Jehenna said calmly. ‘Just get ready.’
Sela swivelled around so that her back was facing Kleesto. The beast was hovering, the thrumming of her wings sending reverberations through the ground. Suddenly its head dropped back, once again revealing countless blades of teeth.
‘Now!’ Jehenna screamed and the air was filled with hundreds of quills. Many of these bounced off the beast’s pennons, but some buried themselves in the soft tissue lining the creature’s throat. Its sonic blast never came; in its place a pathetic shriek was released as pain coursed through its body and momentarily stopped all other considerations.
Kleesto dropped from the sky like a boulder. It landed so heavily Jehenna could feel the ground shake through her boots. The beast writhed on the grass trying to pull Sela’s spines from the roof of its mouth. Failing this, she twisted onto her feet and let loose a cry of anger so loud that it sent ripples across the surface of the Naiyeni. Jehenna and Sela hadn’t killed Kleesto.
‘Are you sure that was a good idea,’ Sela said nervously as the beast started walking towards them.
Jehenna didn’t respond. She was concentrating. Her right arm was extended and supported by her left hand. She had to make the shot count. A small twist of her wrist sent a shatterstone bolt firing across the space between them. A small splash of blood, tissue and vitreous humour indicated she had hit her mark. The bolt exploded in Kleesto’s left eye and the beast dropped to the ground once again. Jehenna’s attack introduced a new sort of pain to the beast and it thrashed about more savagely than ever. It let fly shriek after shriek in an attempt to hit its tormentors, but blinded as she was, by rage and by shatterstone bolt, none of these came close to Jehenna or Sela.
‘I think you’ve made it even madder,’ said Sela.
‘I think you’re right.’
Kleesto clambered back up onto her claws and broke into a blind run. Whether she was aiming for Jehenna or not was unclear, but one thing was certain – when she collided with the woman who had blinded her, she recognised the opportunity for revenge.
Not knowing what to do, Sela pulled out a quill and approached the beast only to be viciously swiped away. Kleesto then set her attention upon the writhing woman underneath her claws. The beast opened her vast jaws and prepared to feast.
Jehenna had run out of options. She had fired two bolts from her crossbows, but these just skittered of Kleesto’s tough feathers. The claws around her neck were crushing her windpipe. If the beast didn’t bite her soon, she would die anyway – her neck was about to break. Kleesto’s jaws just hung there over her head, fixed in a manic smile.
A strange cracking sound filled Jehenna’s ears and she was suddenly aware that the temperature had dropped. She was so cold she shivered, but that seemed inconsequential in light of the fact she was just about to have her head squashed. The air grew colder still. Small icicles appeared where Kleesto’s saliva had gathered. A film of ice appeared over the beast’s horrible teeth. Kleesto did not move and an incredible realisation dawned on Jehenna – the creature had been frozen. But how?
Jehenna decided that the best place to explore this quandary was not between Kleesto’s jaws. She rolled out from under the beast and jumped to her feet. Standing beside her was a stunningly beautiful, black haired woman with pale skin and lips so red and shiny, they looked like jewels.
‘Who are you?’ Jehenna gasped.
‘My name is Lilith Cortese,’ replied the woman, ‘and I need to sit down.’
‘You… you’re Morgai.’
‘I’m exhausted,’ Lilith said as she collapsed to the grass and hung her head on her knees.
A cracking sound behind Jehenna made her spin around. The strange noise was the sound of Kleesto’s uninjured eye swivelling around to stare at the two women beside it. The rest of the creature was still frozen by Lilith’s spell, but the power of the magick was quickly fading. Without understanding it, Jehenna realised that the battle was not over.
‘You’ve got to finish it!’ she said to Lilith.
‘I can’t!’ Lilith replied, almost too exhausted to speak.
‘You’re Morgai aren’t you?’ Jehenna said exasperated. ‘You can do anything.’
‘At the moment, girl,’ countered Lilith, ‘I can’t even stand. You’ve got to finish this yourself.’ Lilith slumped forward unable to say anything more.
Jehenna instinctively stuck out her crossbow and at point blank range tried to fire another bolt, this time into Kleesto’s right eye. There was a click but nothing more. Jehenna knew the sound. The chamber was empty. She had no more bolts to fire.
Suddenly, her vision blurred as the impact of Kleesto’s claw against her temple sent her reeling. She staggered back and fell. Blood streamed over her eyes where the beast had struck her. She was defenceless. The battle was almost over. They had lost.
She wiped the blood from her eyes to see Kleesto trying to regain control of the situation. The beast lurched backwards, its floundering limbs barely responding to its thoughts. It fell on its hind legs and tripped on something. A body. It was the six-legged Caquikki it had brought all the way from Lucien.
Tawhawki was vaguely aware of something going on around him. Instinctively, he thrust out a leg to protect himself. His hoof connected with Kleesto’s feathered body. Ordinarily, the behemoth would have shrugged off such a feeble blow, but blinded and half-frozen, it was as vulnerable as a beast its size could be. It wavered for a moment on the edge of the embankment and then toppled into the Naiyeni River.
For the first time in her life, Jehenna found herself appreciating the dreaded praga. They were merciless in their attack upon the vast beast. Despite Kleesto’s size, or its feathers of stone, the praga soon reduced it to a set of bones that sank to the pebbles on the bottom of the river.
‘You were wrong about one thing, Jehenna,’ Rama said wryly holding his bleeding shoulder as the bubbling fury in the river gradually subsided.
‘What’s that?’ said Jehenna, stunned that the Ankaran was back on his feet.
‘The praga don’t just eat people. They seem to like the Cabal as well.’
‘Luckily for us,’ Jehenna laughed as she lay on her back and let the smell of sweetgrass envelop her.
Lilith Cortese was tending to Bormanus’ wounds. She was applying an ointment to the gaping hole Kleesto had torn in his chest. A small white cloud of vapour rose from the ointment and when it dispersed, Bormanus’ chest was as it had been before the beast had attacked. He sat up amazed, his hands clutching at his repaired skin. When he gazed upon her face, he leapt backwards. ‘I have heard of you. You are the enchantress Lilith Cortese, are you not?’ Despite the fact that she had just saved them from Kleesto and healed him from wounds that would have killed him, he eyed her warily.
‘Lilith Cortese is my name,’ she said softly, ‘and you have no need to fear me.’
‘You healed me with an ointment. I thought Morgai would use magick.’
‘Not all Morgai are healers. Fortunately, I know one or two apothecaries.’
‘Not that I don’t appreciate your intervention, Miss Cortese,’ Bormanus said as he clambered to his feet, ‘but why are you here? How comes it you find us in an hour of need.’
Lilith laughed. ‘Finding you was not difficult. The noise of Kleesto’s attack could be heard from the other side of the forest. As for why I am here, I have been tracking that beast for many days.’
Jehenna gazed at her with admiration tinged with suspicion. ‘Your powers are extraordinary. What other talents do you possess?’
‘I have heard that Morgai can sense one another,’ Bormanus noted. ‘That they are attuned to the presence of others of your kind.’
‘That is true to a point,’ she said with some reservation.
Bormanus’ eyes flicked over to Jehenna. ‘The one Caliban seeks – his brother. Finding him would end this conflict. Lilith could help.’
Lilith laughed. ‘And would you simply hand him over to Caliban, expecting that the Ghul would go quietly into the darkness and not bother the Myr again?’
Bormanus shrugged.
‘I tell you this truly, sir, were Remiel Grayson standing beside me, I would not be able to sense him. I am coming to the end of my time, and my powers are not what they once were. I am no longer sensitive to such things.’
Bormanus leant forward and said, ‘But you are no more than twenty-years old!’
‘Not everything is as it seems,’ she said as she brushed her hair back and preened her dress.
Jehenna knelt beside Lilith and grabbed her hand. She looked at the Morgai with a sad look on her face. ‘You are the one who saved Kali’s tribe from the Ghul aren’t you?’
Lilith nodded.
‘I have sad news for you Morgai. I fear that Kali may have fallen two days ago at the hands of this fell beast.’
Lilith clutched Jehenna’s fingers in empathy. ‘Your fears are correct. I saw him die, but could do nothing to stop it.’
Without any warning an image burned itself into Lilith’s mind.
She was kneeling on a rounded hilltop. It was a pristine day, full of sun and skies that radiated with warmth. From the crest of the hill she could see for leagues across an archipelago of islands. A strange mist sat across the sea to the south but to the east and west, deep golden waters sparkled with brilliance. Shatterbugs, gillygulls and kestra threaded the sky, weaving in and out of one another in a playful show. Down the slopes of the hill, a herd of long-haired barga ambled their way across meadows sprinkled with wild pink orchida.
A figure approached her, silhouetted by the sun. The woman’s lithe body was accentuated by the light behind her. She walked with confidence and grace. It was Jehenna Canna. She carried an ornate golden glaive in one hand. It was a beautiful weapon and she bore it with reverence, as if it were a ceremonial mace.
Jehenna was speaking. Laughing. Smiling. She held the beautiful glaive high in the sky where the blade caught the sun and refracted it like the face of a diamond. Then, with a vehemence most people had never known, she rammed the glaive through Lilith’s chest.
Lilith had glimpsed her death before now she recognised her murderer. Jehenna Canna was the one who would end her life.
‘Are you okay?’
Lilith could not look Jehenna in the eyes. ‘I’m sorry. I just need to lie down for a spell.’
Despite the ferocity of Kleesto’s attack the company was ready to travel by late morning. Jehenna walked over to the place where Lilith Cortese had laid down to rest. She had drawn her cloak over her head. Tiny snores indicated the Morgai was fast asleep.
‘Morgai? Morgai?’ Jehenna said softly as she placed her hand upon the woman’s shoulder.
‘Please, call me Lilith.’ She pulled the cloak from her face and sat up.
‘We’re leaving for Griflet now,’ Jehenna said. ‘We would like you to accompany us. I have spoken to my companions about this. We believe you could be of great assistance to us.’
‘Really?’ said Lilith bemused by the offer. ‘What makes you think you can trust me?’
‘You saved the Kolpians. You saved us. I trust you.’
‘And what makes you think that I even want to accompany you?’
Jehenna smiled. You chased Kleesto over two lands. I do not think you would do that if you did not oppose Caliban.’
Lilith looked into Jehenna’s eyes and saw there was more to it than that. The Acoran was holding something back.
‘And can I trust you Jehenna Canna? Can I trust you?’
Jehenna was shocked by the comment and a little insulted. ‘Of course you can trust me. Why would you ask such a question?’
‘Because you are not being entirely honest with me, dear.’ It was Lilith’s turn to smile. Her full lips turned up at the corners as she awaited Jehenna’s response.
Jehenna was not easily intimidated but Lilith’s smile unsettled her. Could the Morgai read her mind? Or could she sense falsehoods? ‘I apologise Lilith. You are correct. I am guilty of the sin of omission.’ She paused before explaining herself. Lilith just gazed back patiently, waiting for the truth to be presented. ‘My companions and I know it was you who read Remiel Grayson’s visions. You have insights that we could never have. You have seen things that no-one else has seen. Things that could turn this conflict on its head.’
‘How do you know this?’ Lilith said warily.
‘You once knew the apothecary Garnett Shaw. He told a knight by the name of Sir Edgar Worseley what you had seen, and he in turn relayed it to us.’
Garnett Shaw. It was a name she had not heard in many years. It brought back memories of rainy days in Pelinore. Rainy days before Caliban had risen to power. ‘I see,’ was all Lilith could say.
‘Garnett Shaw is now dead as are all the apothecaries of Marshmead. Killed by the Ghul. On Caliban’s orders.’
Jehenna said it as a way to convince Lilith Cortese to support their mission. To aid them. But the sad irony was that Lilith had known for many years that she would accompany the squad to Griflet and beyond. There was no case to present. Her choice had been made long ago. As the pages of precognition turned in her head, Lilith nodded graciously to Jehenna and said, ‘I would be honoured to help you where I can.’
Griflet was situated upon a bluff. The town did not actually sit on top of the tall cream-coloured cliffs overlooking the busy harbour – it was built into the cliffs and its many structures resembled barnacles on the sides of ships. The town’s multifarious buildings jutted out of the rock taking advantage of the spectacular view the cliffs afforded. These structures were predominantly crafted from wood, although here and there could be seen buildings wrought of Acoran blue-iron and tailor-made glass. These newer, bubble-like structures were owned by Griflet’s wealthy and powerful, most of whom were merchants. It was not uncommon to see such men and women standing out on their glass-encased platforms watching their fleets sail out into the great Arion Ocean, riding out on a tide that held the promise of even greater prosperity.
The structures on the cliffs were connected by wooden poles that served as steps across the precipice. These walkways were simply comprised of poles that had been thrust into the cliff face like pins. The beams were situated at a distance of three feet apart and were not bound by any railing, despite the fact that most of the town was hundreds of yards above the docks that served Griflet’s busy port.
Vessels of all descriptions bobbed serenely in the gentle sea lapping at the cliff’s feet. From time to time a thin high-pitched sound ripped a hole in the tranquility as the dock master’s whistle summoned another boat to the small timber pier where goods would be unloaded and loaded.
High above the dock, flags of all descriptions fluttered in the warm breeze blowing across the bluff. Flocks of gillygulls sportively danced and darted around these flags, playing a frolicsome aerial game only they understood.
In the middle of the cliff, the Naiyeni River shot out of a broad hole in the rock. The river waters turned a great wheel that was suspended from the cliff face and via a series of pulleys and winches this wheel powered the many wooden elevators that transported people up and down the cliff face.
At the top of the cliff, high above the great wheel, one building stood out. It was the only one that was not directly attached to the bluff. It was connected to the land by a massive wooden beam that had once been one of the tallest trees in the forests outside Lucien. The beam was broad enough for ten men to walk along shoulder to shoulder. The building it led to was spherical in shape and crafted entirely of glass except in places where the huge curved sheets were held in place by a blue-iron frame. The unique structure was not fixed to the great beam but rather hung from it. The only access into the huge sphere was via a series of rope ladders and suspended carriages that hung precariously from the vast beam.
The inside of the sphere was comprised of a number of circular platforms designed to take maximum advantage of the view. Tables had been placed close to the curved glass walls and at these sat members of a wide range of Myrran races, drawn to Griflet by business and a little pleasure. The incredible sphere was a restaurant formally named Gastromycetes but known to most as The Glass Ball. It was a highly sought-after dining venue, with patrons having to book a year in advance to be ensured a table.
Jehenna walked out onto the long beam that led to Gastromycetes. Behind her marched Rama who was steadier on the precipitous walkway than most people with sight. Tawhawki and Sela followed behind him. Tawhawki walked tentatively but Sela was on her hands and knees, terrified by the severe drop on either side of the broad beam. Ironically, it was she who had instigated their being on the walkway. When Jehenna had told her of the finest restaurant in the Myr, she had made the Acoran swear to taking them there before departing for Cephalonia. Jehenna had agreed, primarily to shut her up, but also to taste the roast barga that some people travelled halfway around the world to experience. Jehenna’s royal lineage assured the company of a table.
Bormanus and Lilith made up the rear, content to accompany the group but neither particularly interested in the culinary delights that awaited them.
Jehenna looked out over the panorama of blue before her. She had always loved Griflet. Like many Acora, the port city was a special place where she could put aside the troubles that entered her life with sublime regularity. It was a place of peacefulness. She always felt safe in Griflet.
Suddenly out the corner of her eye she saw a flash of light, like the glint of the sun’s rays on the edge of a knife. Before she could turn around, she felt the cool, threatening touch of metal upon her neck. She was shoved sharply in the small of her back and as her body lurched over the edge of the walkway, she looked down at the jagged reef below and realised that there was nothing she could do to prevent her own death.