Legend of the Ravenstone (23 page)

Jinx froze and slowly withdrew. “So if Hawkwing’s gonna leave, and Arcturus has a meeting with Bill, what’s that mean for us?”

“I’m not sure,” Kariayla admitted. She had told him about what she had overheard between William and Hawkwing, feeling a growing sense of guilt as she did so. She was no better than the washer women at the castle, spreading gossip when it was none of her business at all. Or was it? She was not quite sure what this visit to Jumull meant for her future, and Jinx was in the same situation as she was. He had expressed his concern for her the night William had taken her to the garden, so it was only fair she return the favor and keep him informed. But then why did her conscience feel so dirty?

“Maybe we will be invited to the meeting,” she said, trying to sound optimistic.

“Maybe.” He took out his knife and started to fiddle with it. “I like it here. Ruby does too.”

She knew he meant more than just the indoor garden to which she brought them.

“I don’t think we’re gonna be able to stay here, though. I mean, even if Bill said we could. I didn’t wanna think about it, but I haveta wonder what happens when we’re done here. Where do we go?” He looked up at her, and Kariayla wished he had not. It was as though he was looking to her for an answer. Perhaps he was; he wanted to hear what she would say.

But she had nothing to tell him.

He pressed on. “What’s it like, your home? I can’t imagine people with wings walking—er—flying around. Do ya live in trees?” He blushed and dug his knife into the ground. “That was kind of a dumb question, I guess. Why would ya live in a tree?”

At last Kariayla summoned a smile. “It wasn’t a dumb question, but no, we do not live in trees. We live in the mountains.”

“I ain’t never seen mountains ‘til Hawkwing took us here,” Jinx said.

“We passed by the Nightwind,” Kariayla reminded.

“Yeah, but we weren’t really in them. These mountains are right next to us. Do they make ya think of home?”

She sighed. “A little, but they do not feel the same. The Haloan Mountains—where I am from—are taller—grander. They are not so worn and rounded as these. The morning air is so crisp, you could almost snap it like a branch, and the wind carries the scent of the distant ocean. And if you watch the sun rise and set, you see the top of the world glow.” Kariayla closed her eyes, keeping her smile. “But the best is to watch a rising storm. The winds race like horses, and the thunder shakes the whole sky when it roars. The clouds are blue and violet and black, and the lightning shatters them with brilliant, silver cracks.”

“We should go there,” Jinx blurted, breaking her reverie.

Kariayla’s eyes opened, and her smile was gone. “No,” she said immediately.

He blinked. “No? Why not? It sounds like you really miss it. And I really wanna see it.”

“With any home,” she said, carefully choosing her words, “there are things we miss and things we would rather forget. I cannot go back—not now.”
Maybe never, if I can’t redeem myself.
She turned to watch Ruby, who had rejected the fish for a nearby butterfly. She waited for the inevitable questions to come.

“I get it,” Jinx said quietly. “I miss my ma, my brothers and sisters... I’d give anything to see them again, but that ain’t gonna happen.” He turned to her, his eyes a little watery. “See, you think I’m this nice guy, but I ain’t.”

“Because you’re a thief?” she asked gently.

He shook his head. “My real pa died when I was little, and my ma married another guy—Herbron. He never liked me, and I didn’t really like him. But my brothers and sisters were born, and I looked after them when he wouldn’t. He had a nasty temper and a taste for the drink.

“Herbron was drunk one night, and my little brother Jack got in his way. He hit him, and Jack started to cry, and that made Herbron real mad. So he hit Jack again, and I heard him cry and came runnin’. I didn’t think about it; I just knew I had to do something.

“Before I knew it, I was gettin’ hit, and I was hittin’ back. Herbron grabbed me by the neck—” Jinx clutched at his throat—“and I couldn’t breathe. So I hit him as hard as I could—just kept going. I think I heard my ma screaming. I gave one last good blow, and Herbron let go.

“I saw him on the ground, all bloody. And my ma was there, crying. All my brothers and sisters were there, just staring. I—I don’t remember much after that. Ma stuffed food and clothes into a bag and hurried me off. I dunno if I...if I killed him...” Jinx swallowed. “All I knew was I couldn’t go back. I was on my own.”

Kariayla turned away as he wiped his sleeve across his eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said.

“Yeah, well, ain’t nuthin’ to be done about it. But I still got Ruby. She’s like a little sister to me.”

They both turned to see the imp had caught the butterfly and had disassembled its wings.

Jinx jumped up. “Ruby—no! No! You can’t do that. It’s a living thing.”

Kariayla watched him reprimand the imp, saw the colorful but tattered wings fall to the ground.
We are not so different,
she thought.
But he can remember; I cannot. I don’t know which is worse.

“Jinx.”

He came back, the shame-faced imp his shadow.

“I’ve done something terrible too,” Kariayla said, “only...I don’t remember doing it.”

He looked at her questioningly.

“Back home, at the temple. They told me that I was responsible—” she drew a deep breath—“for the death of the High Priest. I swore I did not do it, but they insisted I did.” Kariayla was surprised by her own lack of emotion. She felt empty as the confession left her lips—horribly empty. “They banished me under the condition that I had to cleanse my spirit and atone for what I had done. I cannot return until I do.”

“But that ain’t fair,” Jinx said, his brow furrowed. “If you don’t remember, they could’ve made it up. They could be blaming you for what you didn’t do.”

Kariayla shrugged. She had not elaborated on the evidence that proved her guilt. What did it matter? Her sentence remained, and so did the stains on her hands.

“I think I know what we gotta do,” Jinx said. He offered Kariayla a hand to help her to her feet. “I think we gotta stick together. We’ll have our own group, and we’ll travel around, do what we want. We’ll look out for each other, and we won’t need anyone else.” He smiled and almost spit on his hand. Then he reconsidered and simply extended his arm for a shake.

Kariayla felt the corners of her mouth turn upward—ever so slightly. Clasping her hand in his, they sealed their bond. She had to admit that while her conscience still weighed upon her, she felt less alone. Arcturus had been the first friend she had trusted since Eleana, but Arcturus seemed likely to follow a different path. She took comfort in knowing that her own path would not have to be traveled in solitude—not anymore.

~*~

T
he feast had ended, the table had been cleared, and the plates, platters, tureens, and utensils had all miraculously disappeared... All but the wine, which Arcturus insisted remain at their disposal. Though physically satiated, Kariayla shifted restlessly in her chair, awaiting their dismissal before William would begin his meeting. Jinx met her gaze a few times, though he did not seem anxious in the slightest; Ruby had fallen asleep under the table. Hawkwing was the only one not present, and Kariayla suspected he was the reason the wizard repeatedly glanced toward the dining hall entrance.

At last, Arcturus set down his cup. “Shall we begin?”

William glanced at a pocket watch that was not there. “Yes. Yes, it is about time,” he said with a sigh. He gave a short whistle, and Karrott the magic cavy scurried into the room. The wizard crouched down and whispered into the rodent’s ear, whereupon Karrott gave a short squeak and a jump and scurried back the way it came.

Kariayla quietly stood and pushed in her chair. Jinx started to do the same when William addressed them. “There is no cause to leave,” he said. “I extinguished the fire. The damage was minimal, and only the kirlips escaped, so we can focus upon more important matters.”

Jinx looked at her and shrugged before reclaiming his seat. She did the same.

Bill paced at the head of the table and glanced again at the hall entrance. “Right. So it is most convenient that you had all arrived when you had.”

“Hmph.” Arcturus took a long drink.

“You.” William pointed at Arcturus. “Curator of magical antiquities. If I were to ask you about a particular item known as the Ravenstone, what would you tell me?”

Arcturus pushed aside his drink and folded his hands upon the table. “I would tell you that it is a fictional relic—a bit of lore created by the Humans during the time of what they call, ‘The Cataclysm.’ It was said that Ocranthos used the stone to fight his adversary, Jedinom. When Ocranthos was vanquished, the stone was left behind. Its powers were reputed to raise the dead, call upon the dark forces of Shadow,” he wiggled his fingers, “enslave demons.”

The Markanturian sat back and withdrew his pipe. “Fiction.”

“How come I ain’t heard of the Ravenstone?” Jinx asked.

“It is an obscure bit of lore,” Arcturus said. “Likely a regional concoction that never left its region.”

“Huh?”

“The story never spread,” Kariayla interpreted.

“Oh.”

William rubbed his chin. “Very good, Arcturus, but I think I will elaborate.”

“I expected as much.” He narrowed his eyes at the wizard as he packed his pipe.

“Ocranthos did create the stone, and it was left behind. And no one is entirely certain what power it harbors.” William glanced at the entrance to the hall again. “I disagree that it is an object of fiction.”

“William. If the Ravenstone exists, then it would verify certain facts about the Great Welling, but no one knows of it, and no one could speculate where the stone would be,” Arcturus reasoned.

“Much like
The Forging
, is it not?” the wizard asked with a smile. “Yet you know Trinnad Markanturos’s account exists. There are obvious reasons why such an object of power would be kept secret. The problem is, the secret has been uncovered by one with questionable intentions.”

Arcturus took a puff from his pipe. “You imply that someone has found the Ravenstone.”

“Nooo,” William said. “I have stated outright that someone has found it. And that this someone may have less than noble intentions for it.”

“What’s this gotta do with us?” Jinx asked.

Arcturus nodded. “Indeed. And why do you constantly gape at the hall’s entrance? Have your plans gone awry—”

William silenced him with a gesture as Karrott darted across the floor, beneath the table, and out again to the wizard’s feet. In its mouth it dragged a small but bulky bag. William exchanged the bag for a carrot, and the cavy backed into a corner to munch on its reward. Everyone waited as he emptied the contents of the bag into his hand. A raw, dark blue crystal the size of a mouse sat on the wizard’s palm.

“Um... The Ravenstone?” Jinx asked.

William did not speak immediately. His brow furrowed, and then he bit his lower lip. His fingers closed around the gem, and he shoved it into his pocket. “No, no, no!” he muttered. “I did not think he would actually... But he did, and now...” William shook his head and began to pace.

Arcturus cleared his throat. “Your guests are still raptly awaiting your response.”

The wizard looked up and frowned. “Just—never mind.”

“Never mind what?” Arcturus demanded.

“Never mind any of it,” William snapped. “Just—go and occupy yourselves.”

“I beg your pardon?
Occupy
—?”

“Yes, you know the meaning of the word.”

The occupants of the table looked at one another, bewildered by the sudden change in mood. Even more sudden was a flash of light in the hearth, and when they turned back to William, the wizard was gone.

“It would seem not all is as he would wish it to be,” Arcturus grumbled. “This is not an excuse to treat us poorly, his guests. I will have a word with him later.” He looked at Jinx and Kariayla apologetically. “I am afraid we are forced to do as he asks: occupy ourselves until he has finished his tantrum.”

Jinx shrugged and peered under the table at the sleeping imp. “Guess I’ll put Ruby to bed. Feelin’ kinda tired myself.”

Arcturus poured another cup of wine as Jinx made his exit with Ruby.

“Do you think William is upset because Hawkwing left?” Kariayla asked in a low voice.

“My dear, I will be the first to admit that I was less than fond of our former guide, but if he has managed to disturb William this much, then I will give him his due credit.”

Kariayla frowned. “I don’t understand.”

Arcturus smiled. “That is because you have not known William for as long as I have. He has an agenda, and he enjoys seeing his plans fall into place. We are his guests, yes, but we are also his pawns in a grander scheme. Whether you know it or not, you bow to the machinations of a master manipulator. Though William and I are friends, and though I have often tried to deviate from his thumb, seldom have I met with success.” His smile broadened. “But somehow, in a twist of irony, his own personal spy has cast him in quite the tizzy.”

“Hawkwing is a spy?” Kariayla asked, her eyes wide.

“So it seems from my vantage,” he said evenly. “Regardless, whatever setback our guide has caused, William will rebound and reshape his plans for us. You will know when this has happened, because he will return in a much brighter mood and a glimmer in his eyes.” He thunked his cup on the table. “That is when you must be wary of him, my dear. Not now.”

Kariayla watched him alternate between his drink and his pipe, considering his words.

“Though,” Arcturus mused, “I do not believe I have seen him this discombobulated. There is the slightest sense of satisfaction in seeing him experience what he inflicts so readily upon others.”

“But he is your friend,” Kariayla said.

“Oh, yes. It is a friendship, despite all appearances in this circumstance.” Arcturus leaned back, pipe in hand. “I was not yet 200 years old when I first set foot in Mystland. It seemed a logical place for a displaced Markanturian to seek refuge. But that was my perspective. To Humans—well, to virtually the entire Secramorian populace, my race is a rather reclusive sort. To see a Markanturian anywhere but in Markanturos is cause for intrigue. Of course, no one sees us in Markanturos either, for no outsiders are permitted...” He sighed. “I digress. The wine has found me, Kariayla.”