Anilyia
Authors: John H. Carroll
Tags: #dragon, #druid, #swords and sorcery, #caverns, #indie author, #ryallon, #flower child
Published by John H. Carroll at
Smashwords
Copyright 2011 John H. Carroll
Cover Copyright 2011 John H. Carroll
Cover photography by Tracy Carroll
Background photography by Emlyn Addison via
morgueFile
Cover model: Jessica Jorgenson
This book is dedicated to me. I’m awesome,
just ask me.
Note: This is the second book of
the Willden Trilogy. I highly recommend reading book 1: “Rojuun”
first. You can find it at the same store you purchased this one
from.
Table
of Contents
Tathan made no sound as he walked toward the
northern wall of the city, a place he liked to go to look at
reflections of the moons in Trohiin Lake. He brushed a strand of
hair out of his steel-grey eyes. The curly, black mop was getting
long and needed to be cut soon. He debated buckling his dark
leather jacket, but instead left it open in an attempt to
relax.
It was a warm, clear night with both moons
half full, their mixed light casting a lavender glow that made it
easy to see. A gentle breeze flowed down from the mountains,
bringing the pleasant fragrance of nightflowers. In the distance, a
baby cried. It seemed as though there were a baby crying at night
in every city Tathan had ever roamed.
The street led into a plaza where Rojuun
artists had placed odd and varying statues with no regard to
organization. Many were of animals or flowers, while others were
just abstract shapes put together in strange ways.
The Rojuun were an exotic new race on the
world of Ryallon, having appeared from the depths of the Caaldith
Mountains about eight hundred years ago. Their arms and hands were
much like a human’s with the exception that there were four instead
of two. A graceful people, they averaged seven feet tall as adults,
and when they wore robes, it looked as though they were gliding
rather than walking.
The most striking feature was their eyes,
which were like upside-down teardrops containing pupils similar to
a cat. They could be any color of the rainbow, making each
individual stand out from the rest.
Then there were the multiple voices each
Rojuun had. Two main airways with vocal cords created dual voices
while a third, residual airway, became active when their emotions
were high with anger or fear. Many Rojuun used their voices to
sing, usually accompanied by lutes or other instruments they
played.
For the most part, humans throughout the
world weren’t aware of their existence. Ryallon was a vast world
with numerous continents. Extensive systems of caves littered the
continents and nobody knew how deep or wide-ranging they were. The
caverns Rojuun called home were in the Caaldith Mountain Range, a
vast stretch of nearly impassible peaks.
The Rojuun came to the surface east of the
mountains, where they discovered the Iynath Empire. The desert
nation was weak at the time, so its emperor decided to forge an
alliance. With Rojuun resources, Iynath grew stronger and began to
invade its nearest neighbors, picking on the weaker countries
first. Captured prisoners were sent to the Rojuun to work as
servants with the ability to ply trades and earn income.
On the western side of the mountains was the
Willden Forest, where Rojuun discovered Druids. When the Druids
refused to become servants or allies, the Rojuun slaughtered
everyone in a Druid village to set an example. At that point, the
Druids retaliated, following the Rojuun into the caverns to kill as
many as they could until the Rojuun blocked off all entrances
leading to the Willden in order to protect themselves.
A century later, human servants came through
the tunnels, reopening them. They began building Puujan on the
southern bank of Trohiin Lake. The walls were the first thing built
to protect against further Druid attacks. Upon seeing the plain
buildings of the city, the Rojuun attached gossamer wings to them
that fluttered in the breeze and glistened in the light.
Tathan looked at the ones around the plaza
as he leaned against a light post. There were a lot of blues and
oranges, although a few had other colors. Sometimes, when a gust
caught, it looked like the entire city was going to fly up into the
air. In a strong breeze or wind, the city hummed.
A movement at the other end of the plaza
caught his eye. Tathan didn’t give any indication that he had seen
something so as not to spook whoever it was. Then another movement,
this time behind one of the statues, caught his attention.
A quick scan of the area showed only one
meju, a male Rojuun, out for a stroll. The meju was staring into
the sky and didn’t appear to notice anything other than the moons
above. Tathan began walking across the plaza at an angle from where
the movement had come from.
Upon reaching the next street, he flattened
his back against the wall to wait for whoever might be coming.
Minutes passed before Tathan grew restless and looked back. He
stared for a moment, trying to make out details in the various
shadows. There was nothing there.
Tathan leaned against the wall and thought
for a moment. He had been jumpy for quite a while now. It had
subsided in the Willden Forest and again in the Rojuun caverns, but
the feeling had returned now that he was back in a city. Perhaps
the movement was just his imagination.
He shook his head to clear it and then
looked back again. Nothing moved except for the fluttering wings of
the buildings and the Rojuun who had been looking at the moons. The
meju was moving out of the plaza with his head down, talking to
himself. Tathan considered for a moment that the meju might have
been scheming against him. With a sigh, he realized he was grasping
at straws.
A movement up the street caught his
attention and he dashed toward it instead of waiting. He stopped at
the intersection. It was empty to the left and right and there was
nothing further up the street. Tathan wasn’t convinced he was
seeing things. Whoever was following him must have gone to the
rooftops. It was the only explanation.
He ran to the side of the building on his
left and scrambled up two stories of rough stone to the slate roof.
Tathan was sure-footed and had no trouble on the slate. He climbed
to the top of a nearby chimney and looked down at each side to make
sure no one was hiding.
When he was certain that the immediate area
around the chimney was clear, Tathan scanned the surrounding
buildings. The one he was on had yellow wings, which were too
bright for his taste. The flittering wings on all the buildings
made it difficult to separate movement. No matter how hard he
looked, he could not see anyone or anything out of the
ordinary.
Tathan came off the chimney, slid down the
slate tiles, grabbed the edge of the roof, swung down and back
toward the building, hit the wall with his feet, somersaulted back
to the ground and landed in a crouch. There was still no one in
sight.
He walked back to the plaza. Upon reaching
it, he saw the movement again, more of a blur than anything. Tathan
drew his sword and began following. The weapon was stunning. Runes
were etched the length of the curved, black metal. Whenever it was
out of its sheath, it hungrily ate nearby light. It also protected
and warned Tathan about things that wanted to harm him.
Another blur flashed at the next
intersection. Whoever or whatever was leading him could just deal
with him taking his sweet time by that point. Tathan maintained a
light grip on his sword as he scanned the intersection with
hawk-like eyes. He had never concerned himself with whether or not
he was handsome, so didn’t realize the stance he was in would have
left most women weak-kneed. The blur moved up another street, going
north.
He turned onto the street, and then the
next, keeping his sword ready. The part of the city he was in was
mostly uninhabited and nobody saw him. After passing more empty
intersections and a small, plain plaza, Tathan was at the northern
wall. Each of the city’s walls had a road separating it from
buildings and simple chains blocking off stairs to the top.
Tathan saw the blur turn into an alley to
his left. Reaching the alley, he saw a door shut. The sense of
danger was getting very high now. He cautiously moved forward,
looking everywhere for signs of an ambush. The door was locked when
he tried it. Tathan looked around the alley some more.
Then Tathan did something many people
wouldn’t be able to. He walked away.
***
The woman crouched on the roof, staring as
Tathan left the alley and turned to the west. Her teeth clenched in
anger at his refusal to fall into her perfect trap. She slid down
the slate, much as Tathan had done earlier. At the bottom of the
roof, she flipped into an open, second-floor window. Once inside,
the woman opened the cloak that had been keeping her invisible.
Steve glowered with eyes the exact same
dark-green as hers. His whiskered nose twitched in irritation and
his claws were out, ready to kill the human who distressed his
mistress.
She took a deep breath and calmed her
emotions. It wouldn’t do to have her protector try to kill Tathan
of the Shadows. Steve was deadly, but no match for the one she
hunted. She would just have to try again later.
The sun had not yet risen, but Liselle was
awake. Early morning air drifted through the open window. She
yawned and stretched in the comfortable bed before turning to look
at her lover. Vevin was still asleep. Liselle ran fingers through
his metallic purple hair, watching him breathe. Sharp teeth showed
in his slightly open mouth. They looked a bit odd when he was in
human form, but she liked them. It made kissing a bit challenging.
She giggled as she remembered how terrible Vevin had felt the first
time Liselle cut her tongue on them.