Chasing the Prophecy (Beyonders) (72 page)

“You mean we wait for the other part of the prophecy,” Naman said. “We hope that your companions slay the Maumet, find a dead prophet, and gain some inscrutable secret that will save us.”

“Essentially, yes,” Galloran said.

“This is folly,” Naman protested. “It is not too late to turn back.”

“We have had news from Lord Jason,” Galloran said. “Ferrin?”

Ferrin stood. “My ear is with Jason. He informed me this morning that they have destroyed the Maumet and escaped Windbreak Island.” Expressions of relief and excitement greeted the news. After a moment Galloran held up his hands, allowing Ferrin to continue. “They have the location of Darian the Seer in their possession. They have been heavily pursued. A lurker fell upon them, which they killed.” This announcement created another stir. Ferrin glanced briefly at Rachel. She wondered how they would have defeated a torivor without Galloran.

“Let him proceed,” Naman said.

“They spent several days caught in a calm; then other torivors, glimpsed in the distance, led a small fleet to them and chased them about the Inland Sea. They are finally preparing to disembark and journey over land to the last abode of Darian the Seer. They chose to share this information because they decided that if the emperor knew their movements, we deserved an update as well. A displacer cannot leak secrets that are already known. They hoped we would find their progress encouraging.” Ferrin sat.

“Indeed,” Naman replied, “I am relieved to hear that the second part of the prophecy has not yet unraveled into failure. Defeating the Maumet was an unexpected success. Yet we are all in agreement that Maldor has learned the prophecy and is using it against us.” Naman didn’t look at Rachel, but she cringed a bit anyway. “With foreknowledge of our movements he has undoubtedly created a perfect trap. We will be caught between an unassailable fortress and the full might of his armies. What information could possibly alter this unwinnable scenario?”

Galloran stood. “Just because you or I cannot comprehend the
secret that can save us does not mean it isn’t real. We have good reason to believe such a secret exists. We must let that suffice.”

“You ask much,” Naman said.

“
I
do not ask it,” Galloran said. “The oracle saw what she saw. The truth she beheld asks this of us. We can resist our duty with logic, we can find reasons to turn aside, but the prophecy will not be fulfilled because we almost obeyed. We must finish what we have started. It will not be easy. We have been warned that this endeavor will probably end in ruin. But we are here because it is our last chance.”

“You speak true,” Naman said. “It is why we came. Besides, if I protest, I may find myself prematurely in the ground again. We proceed on the morrow?”

“We do.”

Naman frowned slightly, but nodded. Rachel could tell he seemed satisfied, which was an encouraging sign. “How many men do we leave to hold the wall?” he asked.

Galloran rubbed his palms together. “Holding the pass will not win the war. If we fail to take Felrook, we will all perish. If Maldor wants the pass, he will take it regardless of how we defend it.”

“But it is a highly defensible position,” Naman said. “We should make him pay to have it back.”

“Probably sensible,” Galloran consented. “We will examine the wall when we pass it tomorrow. It will most likely be attacked from both sides. Those who remain there will not escape. We will guard it with an appropriate contingent of volunteers.”

They went into particulars about how the remainder of the march would be coordinated, including the missions of scouts throughout the valley, the integration of the Amar Kabal among the human troops, and how the orantium would be allocated. They outlined strategies for contending with manglers and
giants. They discussed how the drinlings would be used in the upcoming fight.

As Galloran and Naman moved into discussions about supply wagons and the dispersion of resources, Rachel began to lose interest. She knew it was important to keep everybody fed, but she had nothing to contribute to the conversation.

She managed to catch Ferrin’s eye.
Is everyone all right?
she mouthed. He didn’t seem to understand, so she repeated the silent inquiry.

His face fell a little. Enough to tell her that something was wrong.
After,
he mouthed back.

Rachel could hardly sit still through the remainder of the meeting. Could one of her friends have been hurt? Killed? She tried unsuccessfully not to think about it. When the strategy session finally concluded, Rachel left with Tark and Ferrin.

“Why didn’t you tell me about the message from Jason before the meeting?” Rachel asked Ferrin once they were outside and had a measure of privacy. She moved her veil aside in order to see him better.

“I was having a private discussion with Galloran when Jason confided in me,” Ferrin apologized. “As soon as I relayed the message, Galloran asked me to keep it a secret so that he could use it as surprise leverage when dealing with Naman. It only meant withholding the information from you for a few hours.”

“I guess I can’t blame you if Galloran specifically asked,” Rachel said grudgingly. She wanted to make sure everyone was all right. At the same time, she was afraid to ask. “It’s a good sign, right? That they got past the Maumet?”

“An excellent sign,” Ferrin agreed. “Many have tried to defeat the Maumet to no avail. If one impossible task has been accomplished, why not more?”

“Jason is all right?” Rachel asked, her voice quiet, her body tense.

“Well enough,” Ferrin replied. “They are under heavy pursuit. I am not surprised that Maldor sent torivors. Once the Maumet fell, his concern over their side of the prophecy would have increased a hundredfold. The emperor will throw everything he can between Jason and his goal.”

“Are the others well?” Rachel asked.

Ferrin paused. He had that sickly look again. “Several drinlings have fallen. And I’m afraid I have bad news. One of our original delegation gave his life to defeat a lurker. It’s a miracle they stopped a torivor without Galloran. It had come to slay Jason.”

“Lord Jason is all right,” Tark confirmed.

Ferrin nodded, his eyes on Rachel.

She paled. “Not Drake,” she whispered.

Ferrin gave a slight nod.

Rachel felt cold and sick inside. How was it possible that Drake had gone out of the world and she hadn’t known? She returned a little nod. “Oh.”

“I know you were close,” Ferrin said. “Jason said he died very bravely.”

“I’m sure,” Rachel said, trying to wall herself off, trying not to react to the terrible news. She wanted to lash out with Edomic. She noticed a boulder the size of a couch, and suddenly she wanted to throw it higher and farther than she had ever thrown anything. She wanted to crush it to dust. She wanted to tear the tent where she had just met with Galloran to shreds. She wanted to set the world on fire. In that moment of hurt and sorrow, she almost felt she could do it.

Instead, Rachel drew the dark veil in front of her face. For
once her outfit felt completely appropriate to her mood. “Maldor will not get away with that,” she finally managed.

“He won’t,” Ferrin said, giving her a hug.

Rachel let him hug her. She didn’t want the contact at the moment, but Ferrin couldn’t know that. He was trying to help. When the embrace ended, Tark took her hand and patted it. She could see the hurt in his eyes.

Rachel backed away. “I need some time alone.”

Ferrin nodded.

Rachel turned, walking away from camp. She wished somebody would attack her. She wished Maldor had left defenders in the pass. She wished Maldor himself would come after her. He had sent that torivor. She had a message for him.

Somebody caught her arm from behind. Rachel turned. It was Galloran, his blindfold off, his eyes sympathetic.

“You heard my thoughts,” she realized.

“They were impossible to miss,” Galloran said gently.

“I don’t . . . ,” she began, but couldn’t continue.

You don’t know what you’re fighting for if the people you most love are going to die
, Galloran conveyed mentally.

Yes
, she replied.
And at the same time, I want to fight more than ever. I’ve never wanted to hurt somebody with Edomic before. I’ve hurt people in the heat of the moment, in self-defense, but I’ve never felt like I do now.

Leash those desires
, Galloran cautioned.
I understand how pain and grief can fuel rage. In this moment, riding this tide of emotion, you could wield Edomic as never before. But the effort would be wasted. You might harm yourself, and for what? To scorch a field? To lob a boulder toward the clouds? Store up the emotion. Save it for when you really need it. Don’t weaken yourself before the true battle.

His words brought her back. The urge to lash out diminished as her anger dissolved into heartache. She felt utterly helpless. “They killed Drake.”

“We can’t reverse what happened,” Galloran said. “But we will make them pay.”

CHAPTER
20

I
’m out of tricks,” Aram said, lowering the spyglass. Eight ships were visible along the seaward horizon, sails bright in the moonlight, the steady glow of lanterns illuminating their decks. “And we’re running out of water. There is no room left to maneuver. Taking the wind into account, I don’t see an alternative to the docks.”

Jason studied the ships converging from all directions. Not much had changed since he had sent the message to Ferrin a few hours ago. The enemy vessels had spread wide, driving the
Valiant
before them. As land drew nearer and escape options dwindled, the pursuing ships drew closer together, led by an interceptor called the
Intrepid
.

After the prolonged calm had finally subsided, the
Valiant
had sailed north. They wanted to stay away from Angial, the largest city north of the Inland Sea, because it had a garrison with hundreds of soldiers. They had been making for Jerzon, a fishing village well west of Angial, but with reasonably good access to the Fuming Waste. But before they could reach the village, lookouts had spotted a torivor on the water. It had not borne swords, but not long after the sighting, imperial ships had forced them to revise their plans.

Aram had led the imperial vessels on an epic chase. He had tried the same trick on the
Intrepid
that had sunk the
Avenger
, but the new interceptor had carefully avoided following directly in their wake. Apparently, word had gotten out.

Jason watched the drinlings prepping hot pitch for the little catapults. The
Valiant
would end her final voyage with a firefight. They did not intend to leave the interceptor seaworthy. Over the course of the chase they had lost the skiff and one of the launches, along with five drinlings and five orantium spheres. The drinlings in the launch had managed to hit one of the smaller ships with orantium before flaming pitch had set their open boat ablaze.

After days of desperate maneuvering, they were out of alternatives. They were now heading for the town of Gulba. Heg had apparently scouted the town a few months ago. He had assured them that the town should house no more than twenty soldiers, but it did boast a pair of sizable piers and a large livery stable. The idea had been to steer toward Gulba, but to watch for a chance to slip through to a more northerly town. The wind and their pursuers had not cooperated, so now their options were either disembarking at Gulba or staging a battle on the water against eight enemy ships.

“Imperial schooner at the docks,” came a cry from above.

“What?” Aram called, racing to the other side of the deck. He peered toward land through his spyglass.

“We can expect extra soldiers in town,” Jasher said. He wore a patch over his injured eye and a bandage on his arm.

Even without a spyglass Jason could make out the dark form of the docked ship ahead. They just couldn’t catch a break! Now they would be sandwiched between strong forces.

“Eight of you should take the remaining launch and land away from the dock,” Heg said. “Let the
Valiant
draw away attention.
We’ll bombard the schooner, the dock, and the incoming ships with pitch.”