The Druid's Spear (Ascent of the Gem Bearers Book 1) (23 page)

“Take that,” Rin taunted as she lost the fight against consciousness.

By the time they buried Balder a half hour later, Uchida—
sensei
stirred. Ken rushed over to her, his heart clogging up his air passageway.

“
Sensei
?” He knelt to assess her condition. The long, burnished hair lay matted and snarled like a bird’s nest. Bandages covered her wrists and ankles where the wolves had chomped down. He’d wrapped the wounds himself. In the midst of the mayhem, while he protected them, he saw the spit she thrown into that wolf’s face. Held down by wolves, surrounded by enemies, and her response was to spit.

This feeling he had was growing deeper, more than mere attraction of a man for a beautiful woman. Though fear had choked him, the admiration of her strength resonated like the gong of a bell. It was that fear of watching her be nearly devoured by wolves that finally made him utilize the power of his ancestor, his dragon genes to unleash a stray current of lightning. He’d no idea if it would work, but with every single atom locked into his being, he concentrated on the wolf and the lightning erupting from his fingers did the rest.

The amber gold eye opened with clarity. “How long have I been out?”

“Not long.” He scrubbed his face. “About a half hour or so.”

She made to sit up when she winced.

“Please,
sensei
.” He placed a staying hand on her shoulder. “Please stay still.”

“I’ll be fine.” Uchida—
sensei
went to rise again when she cried out once more.

“Hurts, doesn’t it?” he muttered darkly. Why did she have to be so…so…difficult? “You were almost devoured alive by wolves less than an hour ago. Surely you can take a few moments to recover, Druman or no.”

At his words, a glint appeared in her eyes. Her lips curled. “I’ll not let him get that much satisfaction for trying to kill me.”

Ken bent over her. “Kill you? Who?”

A wisp of hair fell forward on her face, but she blew it away. Focused on a point above his head, she whispered, “My father.”

“How do you know this?” No sooner than he asked then he recalled her gift with animals. “They were sent by Dericote?”

Uchida—
sensei
nodded. “
Hai.
”

“Not the same Druman we’re going to go see!” Ken screeched. How could a father send a pack of wolves to attack his daughter?

“The one and the same.” Uchida—
sensei
sat up again, slower this time. She winced as she did it, and Ken wanted to push her back down again.

“I guess this was a sign that he doesn’t want us to come to him.” What were they going to tell the Elder? The one person the man believed could save his son was the one who attacked.

“Oh, we’re going.” She pushed herself to a standing position, waving away his help. “Nothing, not even wild, rabid wolves would keep me away.”

“Uchida-san
!” Odin ran to them, his eyes wide with shock, “Uchida-san
, you’re alive.”

“Why do you sound so disappointed about it?” Uchida—
sensei
quipped. Taking one step, she howled at the resultant pain.

What was it with her? “Rin, you just got bit in the ankles by wolves. What makes you think you can walk?”

“I’m not going to let a coward maim me.” Another step and she took in a sharp breath.

Luke came rushing to them, “Uchida-san,
what are you doing?”

Donvar added his own protests. “Are you insane?”

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Ken saw a tight, reluctant grin line the woman’s face. “And it only took being attacked by wolves to get you all to act normal again.”

To this stupid, useless joke, they all gesticulated about, trying to get her to lie back down and she refused their assistance. Ken walked beside her, wincing along with her with each step she took.

“Uchida—
chan
, rest.”

The Elder’s voice, spoken in almost a whisper, had the impact of stopping Uchida—
sensei
in her tracks. They all turned to see the old man coming toward him, his stride slow. A muscle ticked along her jawline as the Elder neared. Ken knew she had avoided the old man during their journey, but it was no longer an option.

“
Senpai
,” she started to say when the man held up a hand.

“No arguing. You’ve been viciously attacked and nearly killed. You will need this time to recover.”

Ken saw indecision flash in those amber eyes. Would it be prudent for her to reveal the cause of the attack was the Druman they were so desperate to get in contact with
?
As he watched, she lifted her chin like a mutinous child. She was going to tell him.

“We can talk tomorrow, Uchida—
chan
.” The Elder glanced at him. “If in ten seconds your
sensei
does not make her way to the tents to rest, you will carry her there.”

“All of us will,” Odin added.

Her mouth opened to protest again when Ken simply said, “Give it up, Rin.”

“That’s the third time you’ve called me by my name.” She shook her head and then turned around slowly. While he thought on those words, Odin, Luke, and Donvar led her away.

He hadn’t been aware of that lack of formality. But now he recalled them with some unease. He had no wish to be disrespectful as her pupil.

“Dericote is warning us away,” the Elder said. “This was no mindless attack of hungry wolves.”

Something must have shown on his face, because the Elder pursed his mouth. “I can see that you and Uchida—
chan
are both aware of this fact.”

He made his way to his tent. Ken fell in step beside him. “Did you know this would happen?”

“I knew Dericote would warn away any possible intruders. I did not think it would be to this extent. There was no wish on my part for Balder to die, or for any of you to get harmed.”

“But you must have suspected something.” Ken’s eyebrows arched into his hairline.

The Elder looked away without responding. The silence spoke louder than any words he could utter.

“How could you put us in danger like this?
Sensei
was almost killed.” That image of her being held down by a pack of wolves would remain with him for the rest of his life.

“My concern for my son outweighed my common sense.”

Ken refused to let it go at that. “If it wasn’t for Donvar, the wolves may have attacked your son.” The man beside him came to an abrupt stop. In the waning light of the fire, Ken saw the Elder’s face pale. “You said yourself this Druman does not concern himself with right or wrong. How can we even trust he will help us after this?”

“I am an old man, broken down by worry. Alderic is my son and I must do what I can to save him. I must face any obstacle.”

“But not at the expense of our lives.”

“You are correct, Kenzo—
sama
.”

Ken studied the man’s face to see if there was any hint of scorn or insincerity, but there was only a placid acceptance of his ire. Yet beneath the calm exterior, Ken sensed the utter dejection emanating from the man. That stayed the rest of the angry words, searching for sound. Considering the dilemma from the Elder’s angle, Ken replaced Alderic with either Okasan or John. If either of them were still alive and their lives were hanging in the balance, what wouldn’t he do? At the end of the day, he could not fault the man for doing what any parent would do.

The ancient shoulders sagged under an invisible weight. Prudently, Ken kept his thoughts to himself. “
Konbanwa
,” he ended with a bow of respect as the Elder disappeared into the folds of the tent.

Soon, the sounds of the camp settling down after a fashion faded into quiet. The fire crackled gently behind him. Ken sat before it, staring into the leaping flames, transfixed by their dance. Then he looked to the heavens, to the blue-black fabric of night. The stars glittered against the backdrop, and Mars glowed angrily in the midst of it.

Distorted thoughts and words jumbled around in his mind. Blood gems, dragons, royalty, Drumans, and power. Where did he fit in all the insanity this new reality had brought him? It was possible this Dericote had the answers to the questions he had.

He gazed at the mound to the west of the camp. Balder lay dead because of what this Druman had done. They owed it to Balder’s memory to go on until they met face to face.

The resolve of both Uchida—
sensei
and the Elder finally made sense. Absolutely nothing would stop them.

The mid-morning light revealed the small shack as they came to the last and final clearing. It was bereft of any greenery save for the bare trees huddled together in the center of it. Hard earth floor cracked under their feet and the Elder’s pitiful excuse for a heart thumped weakly in his chest as he took in the sight of Dericote’s lair. It had been many years since he’d been here, but it still looked the same.

“This is it?” Uchida-san
asked from behind him, her tone doubtful.

Taking inventory of her physique, he saw she’d healed completely from the attack last night. The bandages had been torn off sometime earlier this morning and except for a light scar, there wasn’t any sign she been mauled.

“
Hai
.” Another step drew him nearer to the shack. Would Dericote be able to heal Alderic?

“Do we just walk up to the door and knock?” Luke asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet at the inactivity.

“Unless you feel like dying,” Odin responded. Folding his arms.

The air had grown colder, and their breaths escaped like wisps of smoke.

“He will come to us presently.” Memories came forward from the last time he’d taken a trip here. He’d been a young man then, with
juusha
to lead and care for as they prepared for the Druid’s Spear to appear. Back then Dericote’s scorn had been biting and with that explicit warning, he let it be known that he never wanted to see the Elder’s face again.

And here he was, defying the Druman’s command.

A creaking sound drew his attention back to the door of the shack. It opened to reveal a tall figure clothed from head to toe in a long encompassing coat with a wide hood.

Uchida—
chan
’s body went rigid as a board while a subtle but palpable excitement radiated from Kenzo—
sama
. From past experience and knowledge of Dericote, the Elder knew the Druman would hate the idea of someone looking for his presence.

“Why are you here?”

The figure came closer, his voice dark and raspy. Long strides ate up the distance between them.

“Dericote, I need your help.” There was little time to waste. He sensed the rage gathering from the form coming at them.

“I made it clear to you that I never wanted to see your face again. Weren’t the wolves enough to make sure you heeded my commands?” Dericote stalked closer, and the group around the Elder formed a protective circle.

“I risked it in order for you to save my son.”

“Save your son?” He stopped a few feet away from the edge of the semi-circle of human protection. “What has happened?”

“Alderic was attacked by one of Ludovicus’s
juusha
. The boy was among us for many years and we never suspected he served Rhychard—
sama
’s enemy.”

It was impossible to tell what Dericote thought about his words, but the Elder waited with bated breath.

“What else are you not telling me, old man?” The voice coming from the dark expanse of the hood had lowered an octave. It was a threat to be truthful and though the Elder had not given the Druman any cause to suspect he would lie to him, he nonetheless heeded the command.

“The boy was enhanced by Ludovicus’s mark.”

At that, the hood was ripped away to reveal the face of Uchida—
chan
’s father. Her spine lengthened a bit, it seemed, at the sight of her father’s face.