Realm of Shadows Trilogy Page 24

  Following the night-shadow had been easy across the scrublands near the mountain pass but when they reached the forest he had become lost. Even Neras, floating above the trees, had trouble directing him to clearer lands further east. With no sign of Caden’s trail, or a night-shadow in sight, they had wandered for hours before spending the night under a bush. It was mid-morning when Neras spotted the village.

  It was obvious that something was going on by the number of people and carts heading that way from any track or road in every direction. It looked like some sort of market or fair and Seth kept his distance and worked his way up to a good vantage point up on the hill.

  The smell of food was slowly wafting up to him and his stomach rumbled in reply. When had he last eaten? He had no idea. He glanced at Neras and was momentarily envious of the wizard as he had no need for food or sleep. Then he remembered that Neras was tied to a life of service in the staff and all envy fled. He remembered all too well how it felt to be bonded to Ryker and how good it now felt to be free.

  He wondered if MoonFlame had felt the same. His hand moved automatically to the now clear skin around his neck and he made a mental pact with himself never to put himself or anyone else in the same position again.

  ‘I think I’ll go down and find some food,’ Seth said, picturing tables groaning under trays of fresh baking and finding that his willpower was not as good as he thought it was.

  ‘I’m not sure you want to hear this…’ Neras said, pointing out across the land below as he spoke. ‘But look who just arrived in the village.’

  Seth squinted to see the individual people walking along the road where Neras was pointing, and then his eyes opened very wide. Darius was easy to identify even from this distance and he picked out Eagan and another two people. One of them had to be Rem but she appeared to have cut her hair very short.

  ‘It’s definitely Eagan and Rem, but I don’t recognise the other one. He looks a little familiar but I can’t work out where I know him from.’

  ‘I’m guessing they’re here to find either you or Caden, or both of you,’ Neras suggested.

  ‘And it doesn’t look like Rem’s dragon could come through the barrier either,’ Seth said, scanning the sky and seeing only a few small birds.

  Seth tried to ignore his stomach’s demands for food. He’d become far too soft of late. There was a time not so long ago that he could have gone for days without food. They sat in silence, watching the crowds below.

  He was about to doze off in the warm sun as it reached its peak when Neras spoke again.

  ‘Seth…’

  The tone of the young wizard’s voice was enough to snap open Seth’s eyes and banish any traces of sleepiness in a split second.

  Neither of them spoke again as Seth watched a black smudge blur across the landscape below them. It was coming from the north and he didn’t need to be told what it was. It appeared to be heading for the village, but his vantage point was also in the same path. He held his breath for a few seconds as his mind raced. Should he run? Could he run fast enough to get away? Where would he run to?

  He took a deep breath and forced himself to relax as he saw the plants around him begin to wither and die. Slowly, his focus returned to the world around him. He looked at the colours of the trees, felt the dry soil with his fingers and breathed in again to sample the smells wafting up from the village. When he was relaxed but alert he reassessed the situation. Surely this was why he had come to the east. He needed to find the night-shadows and here they were. He just hadn’t expected to find so many together!

  The village was now clearly the cat’s destination and Seth watched with a slightly detached sense of fascinated horror. Was the entire village population about to be killed by the cats? With a gulp he remembered that Rem was in the village. He didn’t want to even think about her being harmed and got up automatically as the desire to go and save her coursed through him. It was difficult to pick out individuals in the crowded market square from this distance and Seth dared to hope that she had already left the village. He wasn’t willing to risk it though. He took a step down the hill then paused as Neras floated in front of him and shook his head.

  ‘You can’t do anything for them,’ Neras pointed out and he looked as worried as Seth had felt a moment ago.

  ‘The one we took back to Ryker didn’t harm me. Perhaps I have some immunity to them? I could get Rem out of there.’

  ‘If you could fly, maybe… And even then you’re assuming that Rem will be pleased to see you.’

  Seth sank back down to the ground and stared helplessly as the black cats slowed to a walk just outside the village. There were at least a dozen of them. The villagers didn’t stand a chance.

  He couldn’t see what was going on in the crowded market place but nobody was running or screaming so he had to assume that the cats weren’t there to harm anyone. Less than ten minutes later Seth saw the night-shadows leave the village. He watched as they raced off across the land until they were out of sight. They were heading north and it sealed Seth’s decision to head in that direction.

  ‘We’re going after the cats,’ Seth said, dusting himself off ready to leave.

  ‘We should see which direction Eagan and the others go. They might have found out something in the village,’ Neras suggested.

  ‘I guess that depends what they’re looking for,’ Seth replied with a slightly sour tone. It was far too much of a coincidence that they were here so soon after him. ‘Either they’re looking for me, the night-shadow, or Caden.’

  ‘Or all of you,’ Neras pointed out again. ‘I can’t sense Darius from this distance, but if we get any closer I’ll have to stay in the staff because he’ll know I’m around.’

  ‘There’s a wagon leaving the village.’ Seth drew back and watched. Perhaps it was someone they could get a lift with as he had a notion that Eagan and Rem would be heading after the night-shadows and so was he.

  The wagon pulled out onto the main road at a rate that said it was in a hurry. It was overloaded with half a dozen large men and Seth immediately discounted it as a possible ride. They didn’t look like travellers and the array of weapons they carried rang alarm bells instantly.

  ‘They look like trouble,’ Neras commented as he floated down the hill as far as he could.

  The wagon of thugs vanished off past some bushes and Seth turned his attention back to the village.

  ‘Another wagon coming,’ Neras called out. ‘I can see Eagan.’

  ‘They’re definitely heading north,’ Seth commented as the wagon rolled off down the road. He could see Eagan sitting up front with the driver and assumed that the others were in the back of the covered wagon. ‘Maybe they did find something out. We should follow them.’

  Seth went to step out from their vantage point and head down the hill when Neras called out a warning to stay still.

  ‘Those thugs have circled around the trees and are heading in the same direction as Eagan, but they’re keeping out of sight and going fast!’

  ‘I doubt that they’re after Eagan, but I dare say he can look after himself even if they are,’ Seth said. It left an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach to know there was someone chasing after Rem though.

  The first wagon hurtled down a small track that led around the other side of a small forest. Perhaps they weren’t chasing Eagan after all.

  ‘Is it safe to head down the hill yet?’ Seth asked ten minutes later, already plotting a course that would take them near the road in hopes of a lift with a traveller. Neras nodded and Seth walked slowly down the hill. He could only just see the other wagon now but his theory of it being unrelated to Eagan was disproved when it turned sharply and headed into the trees, at right angles to the road. By now the thugs would be well ahead of Eagan’s wagon and no doubt were going to lay in wait in the forest.

  ‘We have to warn them,’ Seth said. It wasn’t a suggestion or even something to discuss, he knew they had to warn them of the impending ambush.


  ‘How are we going to do that?’ Neras asked, gazing down the hill and into the distance where Eagan’s wagon was still a short distance from the entrance to the forest. ‘By the time we get down there on foot it will be all over.’

  ‘We could light a fire to draw their attention,’ Seth suggested, looking at the ground and dismissing the idea as everything looked damp. ‘Or… umm.’

  Seth was at a loss. Every second that ticked past was another second closer to the attack. He held the staff tightly and banged it on the ground in frustration.

  ‘Ow… don’t do that,’ Neras objected and rubbed his head as if it was sore.

  ‘But we have to get down there, and fast,’ Seth insisted.

  ‘Calm down a little,’ Neras suggested and nodded at the ground.

  Seth looked and saw the plants around him dying very quickly. He tried to pull it back but he kept imagining Rem being attacked by the men in the forest. He gripped the staff even tighter.

  ‘I just have to get there. I have to warn them!’

  The air around him started to swirl and he felt dizzy. Had he gone too long without food? He struggled to stay on his feet but felt himself falling. It seemed to take far too long to hit the ground and when he did it knocked the wind out of him and left him lying on his back sucking in air to catch his breath.

  ‘What did you do?’

  Neras’ voice told him that he’d done something bad and he groaned. How much of the grasslands had he killed with his anxiety and fear for Rem? He flicked his eyes open and looked up at the sky before pushing himself up on one elbow. The grass and trees around him weren’t dead but they weren’t the same grass and trees either. He wasn’t on the hill any longer. Neras’ staff lay a short distance away near the road that led into the forest.

  ‘How did we get here?’ Seth asked as he stood up and went over to pick up the staff. His head was spinning and he blinked to clear his vision.

  ‘Well it wasn’t me,’ Neras said and shook his head. He pointed at Seth and his expression was of both disbelief and awe. ‘That only leaves one possible answer.’

  It wasn’t making sense to Seth. He wasn’t an apprentice and all he ever did was destroy things. Yet here he was standing a good hour’s walk from where he had been just a few seconds ago.

  ‘Impossible,’ Seth replied. He went to shake his head but stopped when it set the world spinning again.

  ‘We have company,’ Neras said and Seth spun a little too quickly and tumbled sideways onto the road.

  **

  Chapter Twelve - Reunited

  The wagon bounced along slowly and Rem stared out at the land out the back of the canvas cover. She shook her head again at the time it was taking to travel towards the city. Having become accustomed to riding on a dragon lately it seemed like a snail’s pace. They left the village almost half an hour ago but it was still in sight.

  She knew the cats had gone north and that’s where she wanted to go as well but unless she wanted to walk the entire way it seemed that this wagon, and the company of Asher and Tal, was the only way for now.

  She was still angry with herself for freezing with fear when the night-shadows came to the village although she couldn’t really have done much. It wasn’t likely she could ask them where Caden was and expect an answer. The next time she came face to face with one of the black cats she would show them she was someone to be scared of.

  ‘Are you sure you want to come to the city?’ Asher asked, looking as if he would rather go anywhere else but there.

  ‘We’re looking for someone and it’s the most likely place to find them,’ Eagan replied.

  ‘It’s not just people who live in Dohl. There are the cats so close by. The Yarris built Dohl as their gateway to this land. Several of the wizards live near the city.’

  Rem glanced at Eagan. She was fairly certain the old man was a wizard, at least he was treated like one back at High Gate, so perhaps he was from this land originally? Her head was full of questions but she didn’t want to ask Eagan. She found herself nodding off to the bouncing of the wagon on the well-worn road.

  ‘Whoa!’

  Rem sat up, all traces of sleep banished, as Asher hauled the horse to a sudden stop.

  ‘Seth!’

  Eagan’s shout had her on her feet and pushing her way through to the front of the wagon. She collided with Waide who had reacted in a similar way and they jostled with each other to be first to get out of the wagon.

  ‘What’s going on?’ Tal asked, moving aside and looking alarmed at all the sudden commotion.

  ‘Just an old friend we’ve been looking for,’ Rem replied through gritted teeth and renewed her effort to push past Waide. He was attempting to draw his sword as he went and they both burst up onto the front seat at the same time, knocking Asher sideways.

  ‘I don’t think I’d like to be your enemy then,’ Asher said, leaping down from the wagon to give them room to get past. ‘I don’t think he’s much of a threat.’

  Rem jumped to the ground and looked past the horse. It was definitely Seth but he was lying across the road looking stunned and confused.

  ‘Did you hit him?’ Rem asked as she fought between conflicting emotions. She had gone through this meeting in her mind a thousand times since he ran off with the egg. The imaginary meetings had alternated between telling him how much she despised him for abandoning her and being delighted to be reunited with him. Now that the time had actually come she couldn’t decide which reality she wanted.

  ‘No, I stopped well short of him. He was already on the ground,’ Asher assured her.

  ‘Make way!’

  Waide didn’t seem to be struggling with how he wanted to react. His sword was now fully-drawn and he was heading straight for Seth.

  ‘Waide, he’s already on the ground,’ Eagan pointed out as he got down from the wagon and came around the other side of the horse. ‘Are you going to strike him while he’s down?’

  ‘I want to know where my brother is,’ Waide said, taking a deep breath as Eagan barred his way. He looked ready to take on the old man as well if he didn’t move.

  ‘Well I don’t see him around here, so if you want to know you’ll have to leave Seth able to speak, and right now he doesn’t even look capable of that.’

  Rem frowned as she saw that Seth still hadn’t moved. Was he seriously hurt? She ran around Waide and Eagan and knelt by his side. She lifted his head and put her hand underneath it then tilted her head to match his. She could see the confusion in his eyes as if he were somewhere else entirely.

  ‘Seth,’ she said quietly. ‘Are you hurt?’

  Seth’s eyelids fluttered a few times and his eyes slowly came into focus.

  ‘Ambush…’

  ‘You were ambushed?’ Rem asked, looking at his face and arms for any sign of injury but he looked unharmed.

  Seth tried to shake his head and his eyes clouded over again. He swallowed hard and pushed himself to sit up. ‘No, there’s an ambush waiting for you in the forest.’

  ‘Really?’ Asher asked and looked alarmed. He looked back at Tal, who stood on the wagon seat watching the proceedings, and nodded once at her. She nodded in return as if understanding the unspoken message then hurried into the back of the wagon. She was back quickly with two quivers of arrows, two bows and a small leather pouch which she handled very carefully. She climbed down and hurried over to Asher then handed him a quiver and a bow. The pouch was placed on the ground and opened slowly.

  Rem tried to split her attention between Seth and what was going by the wagon. Seth was now sitting up and looking a lot better. He used his staff to help him stand.

  ‘Rem… I’m sorry,’ Seth said.

  Rem felt the anger well up at all the hurt he had caused now that he was obviously not dying. She drew her arm back and punched him squarely on the jaw.

  Seth reeled backwards and steadied himself. He rubbed his jaw and grimaced. ‘I deserved that,’ he admitted.

  ‘Where is Caden?’ Waide ask
ed, finally pushing past Eagan after having given up his sword to the old man.

  ‘That’s what I’m here for,’ Seth said quietly as he coloured with embarrassment. ‘The night-shadow took him and I followed to get him back.’

  ‘And why did you take him?’ Waide demanded.

  Seth hung his head a little and looked lost for words.

  ‘Whatever you’re discussing, it will have to wait,’ Asher called over to them.

  Rem saw the man take Waide’s sword from Eagan and toss it back to Waide. She saw a movement in the trees ahead and realised that the ambush had come to meet them.

  ‘Stay back by the wagon but be ready to fight if any of them get through,’ Asher said in a commanding voice. He was clearly more than a gentleman farmer and his tone brooked no argument.

  ‘We have swords,’ Rem said, drawing hers and holding it up to show him. Seth did the same and the man looked a little closer at the two of them. Standing side-by-side the markings of the dragon tattoo were obviously identical, and the huge swords they swung with ease were yet another thing that made them out of the ordinary.

  ‘We have something better than swords,’ Tal said calmly. ‘You’d better get out of the line of fire.’

  Rem looked at the young girl. She was barely a teenager, probably not even that, yet she spoke with confidence and handled the bow as if she had done so for many years. Something about Tal jolted a long-forgotten memory in Rem but she couldn’t quite grasp it.

  ‘Turn the wagon so the horse is out of danger,’ Asher said and Eagan quickly led the horse in a circle so that the back of the wagon now faced the entrance to the forest.

  They all stepped back as Asher and Tal took up positions either side of the wagon. The horse neighed nervously and Rem laid a hand on it to calm it down.

  Rem had expected a big fight. She had been ready for it, waiting with her sword drawn and knees slightly bent so that her weight could shift in either direction with ease. What followed, however, was nothing more than a few arrows catching the would-be ambushers as they emerged from the trees.

  ‘Is that it?’ Rem asked, walking forward to look at one of the fallen men. The arrow had only lodged in his arm, yet the man appeared to be dead. Rem had seen a lot of dead creatures around Seth over the winter but she had never seen a human die before. It made her frown. How could an arrow in the arm have killed him?