Defenders of The Sacred Land: Book One of The Sacred Land Saga (14 page)

“What did you do to him, Gondrial?” Dorenn asked angrily.

Seancey rose from his chair and seemed to grow ten feet tall. “Sit down and be silent, boy.” Dorenn shrank back from him; he wanted to run screaming from the room just from the sound of Seancey’s deep booming voice, but he sat back down on the divan.

Seancey sat back down in his chair, and there was a long silence.

“What news do you have from Scarovia?” Lady Shey asked.

“Naneden of Scarovia and Drakkius of Abaddonia have been amassing a huge army near the Snake River just on the other side of the Jagged Mountains,” Seancey began. “My guess is that they plan to come through the southern pass to attack Symboria first, and that is where most of the Western army is currently assembling. The northern pass is also being fortified near the village of Arborton. A smaller army is amassing on the Abaddonian side of the Jaggeds near the Great Road, and there is talk of closing off the northern pass completely. Most disturbing of all is the laws against wielders are to remain in effect. The priests of Scarovia will cast unopposed at the Western armies.”

“The fools,” Gondrial spat. “Those damn Enforcers have agents in all of the courts from here to Lux Amarou. They have the kings and commoners alike convinced their laws are still keeping order.”

“Now, Gondrial, curtail your tongue. Your passions are well-founded, but they do not help our situation,” Enowene reminded him.

“You are right of course, my lady,” he said. “Forgive my outburst.”

“We need to take the tome to Morgoran and consult the prophecies. I remember reading something about the Western armies when I was a little girl,” Lady Shey suggested. “Is he in one of his coherent phases?”

“Not at present. He has been spouting off gibberish, ranting and raving about the emperor of Ishrak or some nonsense. Ishrak hasn’t had an emperor since the War of the Oracle forged the Sacred Land,” Seancey said sighing. “He will not be of much use to us.”

“How do you know it is gibberish? Perhaps he sees into the future as the scribes say he does,” Enowene said.

“Nothing the scribes say he has seen from the future has ever come to pass,” Seancey said skeptically.

“A few things have,” Lady Shey said blushing.

Enowene cocked a curious eyebrow. “Oh, and what might that be?”

Lady Shey stiffened. “Never mind that. It is a personal matter, and I will not discuss it here.”

“All right, dear,” Enowene said. “I did not mean to offend.”

Lady Shey nodded. “No offense taken.”

Dorenn’s eyelids had been getting heavier. The lack of sleep the night before had begun to catch up with him, but he fought off sleep to listen.

“This talk is getting us nowhere. I say we take the book to Morgoran. His eyes may be blinded, but he may yet give us insight,” Gondrial said. “Or better yet, we can wait and take it to Ianthill.”

“It is a good idea to take the tome to Ianthill,” Enowene said, “but he is hundreds of leagues away, and we are already faced with too many decisions and little time to decide them. I am willing to take my chances with Morgoran.”

“It is agreed then, we will consult with Morgoran,” Lady Shey said.

Gondrial shrugged. “Morgoran it is then.”

Dorenn bobbed his head, almost dozing off. He glanced at Rennon, who had already gone to sleep.

“Dorenn dear, why don’t you go ahead and get some sleep,” Lady Shey said. “You can barely keep your eyes open. We have finished our talk for now.” She helped him up and pointed to the now unoccupied divan. “Here, why don’t you lie down on this divan until we find suitable quarters.” Dorenn saw Seancey and Gondrial leave the room still talking, and Sylvalora was waiting at the doorway for Lady Shey. Dorenn decided sleep would be fine. “Maybe for a little while,” he said, and he fell asleep.

Dorenn awoke to Rennon’s snoring. The chamber was empty, except for the two of them, and it was darker. Heavy drapes covered the large windows of the tower chamber. After a few moments, Rennon also woke up.

“What happened?” he asked, rubbing his eyes.

“You fell asleep.”

Rennon looked at Dorenn with a smirk on his face. “I am aware of that. Why did I fall asleep? I was under a spell, wasn’t I?”

Dorenn stood and clasped his hands behind his back as he walked around the room. “I can’t say for sure. We both fell asleep, but then again we both had a rough night, and it’s not unreasonable for us to nod off.” Dorenn looked at his friend who was rubbing his hand over his mouth. “You are fine, Rennon. Even if it was a spell, it was harmless.”

“Harmless? Unnatural, you mean. I didn’t fall asleep on my own.”

“Oh, stop it, Rennon. I saw you last night. You did some…” Dorenn realized what he was saying and turned toward a draped window and pulled it open, revealing it was still daylight.

“What? Go ahead and say it, Dorenn. You saw me what?”

“I don’t think we should talk about it here.”

Rennon stood up, paced across the room, and looked out the window Dorenn had opened.

“How long have you known?” Dorenn asked reluctantly.

“When I was apprenticed to Sanmir, he helped me to suppress it with an herb mixture he had imported from Darovan. Sanmir did not want the Enforcers to send me away, or worse yet, kill me.”

“So that was what the bag of bittering tea was for that Sanmir gave you before we left Brookhaven. Why didn’t you tell me? I would have understood.”

“The wild magic breeds insanity, Dorenn. You would have found out soon enough.”

“I never saw you brew the potion. Are you suppressing it now?”

Rennon sighed. “Sometimes I mix it in with my food when no one is watching. I don’t always have the time or the privacy to brew it into a potion.”

“That works? When you eat it in your food, I mean.”

“It takes longer to work, and it usually adds a bitter flavor that I don’t always savor, but it gets the job done.”

The door opened, and Vesperin walked in with Sylvalora close behind.

“Vesperin!” Dorenn and Rennon said at once, running to him.

Vesperin’s arm was wrapped in bandages, but he did not appear to be in much pain. Dorenn did notice his sandy blond hair had become golden blonde, and his eyes were bluer than he remembered them. He also looked extremely tired.

“How do you feel?” Rennon asked. “You look terrible. Should you be out of bed?”

“I have felt better, but I am okay,” Vesperin replied.

“Come and sit down,” Dorenn said, bringing Vesperin to the divan. “And tell us what happened.”

Vesperin sat down on the divan. “I can’t say exactly what happened. I can say that Loracia’s spirit was with me. Brother Kerad said it was the spirit of Loracia that saved me. He could do no more for me.”

“What does that mean?” Rennon asked suspiciously.

Sylvalora sat down next to Vesperin on the divan. “It means Brother Kerad believes he actually saw the spirit of Loracia heal Vesperin.”

“A miracle?” Dorenn asked apprehensively.

“It has happened before,” Sylvalora began. “Sometimes it is necessary for a god or goddess to directly intervene.”

“According to the priests of Loracia in Brookhaven, the gods are not allowed to directly intervene. Fawlsbane Vex forbade it.”

“Ah, but Loracia is the goddess mother and wife to Fawlsbane. If any god could defy his decree, it would be her.”

“I will not debate you in theology. I am just glad we have Vesperin back in one piece.”

Sylvalora smiled. “Oh, and Tatrice is on her way here as well; I must take my leave of you to speak with Enowene and Lady Shey.” Sylvalora rose from the divan, smiled at Vesperin, and walked to the immense wooden door. After she had disappeared from sight, Dorenn moved to sit next to Vesperin. “Do you feel different now?”

“No, I do not feel different, but I know that I am different. Loracia has charged me with a task, and I must not fail.”

“What kind of task?” Rennon asked.

Vesperin looked up to meet Rennon’s gaze. “Ask me tomorrow, Rennon. Loracia will come to me tonight in my sleep.”

Rennon rolled his eyes.

“Ah, there you are,” Tatrice said as she entered the room. She gave Dorenn a hug and kissed him. Dorenn’s mouth fell open as she pulled her lips from his. “Isn’t it wonderful? Vesperin is healed, and we are witnesses to a miracle.”

Dorenn shook his head. “It is a miracle Vesperin is healed, but something doesn’t feel right to me about all of this.”

“I agree,” Rennon spoke up. “I think we are being tricked or put under spells.”

“Oh, Rennon, will you never change,” Tatrice said. “Just because someone is not from Brookhaven they are up to something, is that it?”

“No,” Rennon said defensively. “I just think we are over our heads this time, and the sooner we get home the better.”

“I am afraid we are in over our heads,” Vesperin said quietly.

“See, even Vesperin thinks so,” Rennon pointed out.

Vesperin shook his head. “Not in the way you think, my friend.”

Rennon gave Vesperin a puzzled stare but said nothing.

“We are to report to the dining room for a meal,” Tatrice stated. “Lady Enowene showed me to the washrooms, and I am to lead you there. Afterward, we are going to meet Morgoran. Isn’t it exciting? We are going to meet Morgoran!”

Rennon frowned at Tatrice dubiously. “I don’t want to meet Morgoran.”

Tatrice looked at Rennon as if he had just slapped her in the face.

Vesperin feigned a weak smile. “Rennon, my friend, will you do it for me?”

Rennon softened a little. “All right, for you, Ves, but let it be known that I didn’t want to meet Morgoran.”

“Thank you, Rennon.” Vesperin’s weak smile became stronger.

“Where has Trendan gotten off to, Tatrice?” Dorenn asked.

“He is with Seancey preparing to leave for Brookhaven. He is carrying a message for our parents to let them know what happened to us. He should speak to you before he leaves in the morning.”

“Is he coming to the meal?” Rennon asked.

“No, he had his meal earlier to make time for Seancey and Gondrial to instruct him on the safest route back to Brookhaven.”

“We had better go and wash up then,” Dorenn stated. “I will need to talk to Trendan as soon as possible.” He did not want to alarm his friends, but Dorenn had the sinking feeling that something was wrong. What happened to the new ale wagon idea Lady Shey had suggested? Why was Trendan riding off alone? Dorenn instinctively looked at Rennon and wondered why he was not questioning the change.

The washrooms were located to the left of the dining hall. Huge wash pots and towels lined the room, and each person had to use each pot in turn to clean their hands. The room itself was a barren, mud-walled room with brilliant murals of what Dorenn thought must have been depictions of the War of the Oracle. Robed wielders cast spells over darker robed ones. The murals made Rennon visibly uncomfortable.

After washing, they were seated in a specific, carefully chosen place setting. Dorenn’s seat was between Gondrial and Lady Shey. Rennon was seated between Enowene and Seancey. Trendan sat on the other side of Lady Shey next to Tatrice. Vesperin was seated next to Enowene and Sylvalora. At the head of the table, Dorenn guessed, was the cleric, Kerad, by the look and make of his robes and his manner of dress. At the foot of the table was seated a man also dressed as a cleric, but his manner of dress did not match that of the clerics of Loracia. He wore deep green robes with yellow cuffs and a red sash. Dorenn assumed him a high cleric of one of the two other temples in the Vale. At introduction, the man at the foot of the table was identified as Trebin, Lord Monk of Fawlsbane Vex, the father of the gods.

The man at the head of the table dressed in the white and yellow robes of clerics of Loracia was indeed Kerad. The dinner bell sounded after the formal introductions. The first serving was a hardy soup served in a hardened bread bowl, followed by heavily spiced roast beef and potatoes served on one half of flat bread used as a plate. Dorenn found that the light, slightly fruity wine was a treat. Tatrice, he noticed, had three glasses. The clerics of Loracia frowned upon speech at the table and preferred more formal dining, so no one spoke during the meal. Desert consisted of a somewhat pungent, spiced drink called javaro and rum cake.

After the meal, they were required to wash their hands again, and then they were all led to a large chamber with more battle murals. Each time Dorenn tried to speak, a sharp look from Kerad immediately curtailed his urge. Rennon visibly fidgeted as the party was led from the chamber into a hallway and into Morgoran’s antechamber. Two wooden doors with carved, eerie faces with forest scenes of sprites and dryads stood ominously before them. Seancey dismissed the guards at Morgoran’s chamber and opened the two elaborately carved doors. They climbed a short stairway into a huge round room that Dorenn was sure was the top of the great tower, but he did not feel as though he had climbed high into a tower. The stairway seemed much shorter than he would have imagined. Blue tapestries hung in circular patterns on the rounded walls, and the floor had a think carpet centered in the room. A bookcase and desk stood on one side of the room, and two divans and a throne-like chair sat opposite them. On one of the divans sat a man dressed in flowing blue robes with light blue trim. His white beard reached easily to his chest, and his hair was long but well-maintained. His facial features were sharp but gentle, and his skin appeared soft and wrinkled. His eyes were completely clear, and he stared out into space with a look of total detachment. His eyes appeared so transparent that one could see the sockets that contained them. Occasionally he would flinch and twitch as if he were seeing disturbing images. Four men in blue robes sat around Morgoran at small tables with quill pen in hand.