The Quest for the Heart Orb (37 page)

“You can do it, Tiari-mine,” Tomas whispered to her.  She nodded, grateful for his confidence, and took a deep breath to calm herself.  Then she reached up and began again, touching the symbols more slowly this time, thinking carefully as she pictured the vision the orbs had shown her in her mind.  “Oh,” she said softly.  “That’s what I did.” 

Karma counted, shocked when she reached twenty-four before Tiari stopped.  She thought it was a miracle that anyone could remember that long of a combination after seeing it just once.

“My mistake was in not touching the same symbol twice in a row at one point,” Tiari said as she stepped back again, this time with a confident smile.  She’d gotten it right and she knew it.  A few seconds passed, then a large rectangular slab of rock slid back, revealing a doorway that led into a dark tunnel.

“Ren and Marl were successful,” Kapia said.  “She’s claimed the Heart Orb.”

“How do you know?” Garundel asked tightly.

“Because the tunnel is open,” Kapia said.  “According to the orbs, the Heart Orb was required to open the tunnel.”

Garundel smiled, his shoulders relaxing.  “Thank you, Highness.”

“She’ll come back to us, Garundel,” Kapia said.  “She and Marl both.”  Garundel bowed, then stepped back.

“Light the lamps,” Zakiel said, glad that Kapia had mentioned how dark the tunnel would be.  Within a few minutes several people scattered throughout the group held small oil lamps, and they were ready to enter the tunnel.  Zakiel went first with Karma and Nikura behind him, then Kapia, Tiari, Tomas, Bredon, and the rest of the Hunters. 

Once everyone had entered the tunnel Garundel took up a position just inside of it.  According to the Orb Maidens, the tunnel would remain open so long as someone remained inside.  He held his swords at the ready, and settled in to wait for his family.

***

“Here, beloved,”
Marl said, startling Ren. 

“What?”

“We can leave the river here without being seen by anyone on the island,”
he said. 
“From here we won’t have to go too far into the desert before we can cut back to the rock formation where Garundel is waiting for us.”

“All right,”
she said, and turned toward the bank, trusting him.  When the water became shallow, they raised their heads above the water and sucked in great lungful’s of air, initiating the change back to human form.

It took Ren a few moments to figure out that she now had legs and had to straighten them and place her feet on the river bottom.  It was a little disorienting at first, but by the time she stepped out of the water the odd sensations had passed.  She turned to look at Marl, who was just behind her, then bit her lip.

“You were right, beloved, our clothes are dry,” he said, then looked up at her.  “What’s the matter?”

“I’m…it’s…you….”  She gave up and hung her head.

Marl’s eyes widened when he saw tears fill her eyes.  “Ren, what’s wrong?  Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” she said, her eyes on the water between them.  “You still have the corona stones, Marl.  I’m so sorry.  I swear, I had no idea that would happen.”

“Do you find them so objectionable?”

“Not at all,” Ren replied, shaking her head.  “But I know full well that most people
do
find them objectionable.  I would not wish that on you, or anyone.”

“Ren,” he said gently, then waited for her to look up at him.  “This has been a special day for both of us for so many reasons.  I am quite happy to have corona stones, especially since they match yours.  No one who looks at us will ever have cause to doubt we belong together.  I honestly do not care if there are people who don’t like them.  If someone says something I don’t like, I have a feeling this Trident will come in quite handy in a pinch.”

Ren returned his smile.  “You’re right, of course.”  She tilted her head, then raised her arms to look at her wrists.  “The breastplates are gone, but we still wear the bracers.”

“Yes, I noticed that,” he said.  “What’s more, I don’t think these bracers will come off.  I think they’re like the corona stones.  Part of our bodies now.”

Ren looked at her bracers more closely and nodded in agreement.  Then she crossed her wrists and tapped the tops of them together.  The Wand left her hand, and the engravings of it returned to the bracers.  “It worked.”

“Did you doubt it?” Marl asked, then returned the Trident to his bracers.

“No, not really,” she said, looking at the small orb in her palm before slipping into a pocket of her skirt.  When she looked back up at Marl, she noticed that he was watching her with that dark, hot expression in his eyes again.  Her breath caught in her throat, but he shook his head ruefully.

“As much as I want you, as much as I
need
you, I do not want our first time together to be out here in the desert without so much as a blanket between us and the sand.”

“Not to mention the lack of privacy,” she agreed with a regretful sigh.  Marl grimaced, then made himself look on the bright side.

“The tunnel leads to the palace, right?”  She nodded.  “There are many comfortable rooms in the palace, beloved.  Large rooms with every luxury, including doors that lock, clean, soft beds, and private bathing chambers.”

“Then why are we standing here?”

“Good question, beloved Wife,” he said with a grin.  “Let’s go.”

***

The tunnel seemed to go on forever, but not even Zakiel’s Tigren senses could discern what direction he was facing.  He knew the tunnel was supposed to take them into the palace, but it continued as it began; straight and even, going neither up nor down.  He couldn’t figure out how it could possibly be taking them through or beneath the river, though it had to be if it ended in the palace.  The walls bothered him as well.  They seemed to be made of some sort of smooth, hard material, but it was neither rock, metal, nor any substance he’d ever seen before.

“It’s magic,” Karma said in a low voice after watching him try to figure it out.  “I’ve discovered that when it comes to magic, you have to suspend logic, belief and understanding.  Otherwise, you’ll go a little nuts.”

“You’re right,” Zakiel said, nodding.  “It matters not what it’s made of or how it works as long as we end in the palace.”

They walked on in silence for nearly an hour before suddenly, without warning, the tunnel ended with another doorway like the one Tiari had opened in the rock.  Zakiel stood on the threshold for a moment, looking around a small room with a simple staircase leading upward.  Seeing nothing suspicious, he stepped into the room with Karma at his side.  The walls were of the same familiar stone that most of the palace was made of, which helped them to relax.

Zakiel went straight to the stairs and began to climb, Karma behind him, then Nikura, Kapia, Bredon, Tiari, Tomas and all the rest.  They went up eight flights and Karma’s legs were shaking by the time Zakiel stopped.  Directly in front of him was a small wooden door, and nothing else.  It was either go through the door or turn around and go back.  He reached out, turned the knob, and pulled the door open, then stepped into a very familiar room.

“The King’s bedchamber,” Zakiel said softly as he crossed to the window and looked out.  This window overlooked the small city of Ka-Teru
,
but instead of the low hum and bustle of people going about their business, it was almost completely silent, and nothing moved.

Bredon joined him at the window as the long line of Hunters quietly entered the room.  “No one is expecting us, Highness,” he said.  “It will be a shock if we suddenly appear from the King’s chambers while the palace is under siege.”

“I’ll send Timon down to break the news of our arrival,” Zakiel replied as he continued to stare out the window.  “Then we will decide how to take Ka-Teru back from the demons.”

***

A lifetime of fighting for King and country had sharpened Sir Garundel’s instincts to a razor’s edge, so he knew that someone was approaching the rock formation before he either saw, or heard them.  Within seconds, the sounds of two sets of footsteps reached him, though they were very soft and quiet.  He tightened his grip on his swords, preparing for demons, though he strongly suspected it was Marl and Ren.  A moment later he relaxed when Marl uttered the soft call of the water-flit, a tiny pink bird that flew in large flocks and grazed on river insects.  Garundel was so relieved and so excited that he very nearly stepped out of the tunnel.

He sheathed his swords and grinned as they came into sight, then arched a brow at the sight of Marl’s corona stones and braided hair.  He ran his eyes over both of them, assuring himself that they were both well, not missing the gold and silver bracers they both wore.

Ren threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly, which brought tears to his eyes.  To be greeted with true caring by his daughter was something he hadn’t allowed himself to hope for so soon.  He squeezed her gently, then released her to clasp hands with his new son.  “I see you have a story to tell,” he said, glancing at the corona stones that matched Ren’s.

“Indeed,” Marl said, grinning happily. 

“I look forward to hearing it,” Garundel said.  “Once we reach the palace.  Shall we go?”

“Yes, please,” Ren said.  “I’ve been getting a bad feeling out here in the open for the past mile.”

“As have I,” Marl agreed, flicking a quick look at Garundel.  Garundel turned and bent to pick something up from the floor.

“I’ll need to light this lamp, but I’ve a coal here so it won’t take long.”

“No need,” Marl said.  He turned in time to see Marl tap his bracers together.  Then, suddenly, there was a silver trident in his hands, the emeralds on the tips glowing brightly.

Garundel smiled.  “Nice trick.”  He put the lamp back down and straightened.  “After you, Son,” he said.  Marl smiled as he stepped past him into the tunnel with Ren right behind him. 

Garundel paused to look out the doorway into the desert, suddenly wishing there was a way to close the tunnel now, or at least close the door in the rock so that it hid the tunnel entrance again.  But Lady Techu and Princess Kapia had told him that it would only close when no one remained inside of it, and that it would do so on its own.  He thought a moment, then nodded to himself.  If the tunnel didn’t close when they left it, then he would know they’d been followed.  It would be a simple matter to wait at the other end for whoever, or whatever, might enter behind them.  Satisfied, he turned and hurried to catch up with his family.

An hour later Garundel crossed the threshold out of the tunnel and into a small room made of the same familiar stone as the palace.  Marl had already begun climbing the staircase with Ren close behind him, but they both paused when they realized that Garundel wasn’t following them.  Instead, he stood facing the tunnel, both swords drawn.

“Father?” Ren asked.

“The tunnel didn’t close when we left it,” he said.  “Whatever you felt in the desert seems to have followed you.  You two go on up.  I’ll handle this.”

Ren tapped the tops of her bracers together, surprising Garundel when a silver rod topped with an enormous pearl suddenly appeared in her hand.  She gripped it firmly and went back to stand beside Garundel, the Wand in her hand.  “I think I’d like to handle this Father, if you don’t mind?”

Garundel arched a brow at her when the pearl began to glow with what looked like white fire.  A moment later Marl joined them, the emeralds on the Trident far brighter than before.

“Shall we wait to see what follows us, or see what the Trident and the Wand will do?”

Ren smiled, remembering how brightly the Wand had flared when they were beneath the island.  “Careful now, this will be bright,” she warned, squinting her own eyes before aiming the Wand into the tunnel and imagining it as bright as possible. 

Strong arms went around her waist and tried to pull her back from the threshold, but she resisted.  The sight of the serpin scrabbling toward her in the long tunnel was frightening, but this time
she
would protect those she loved.  She narrowed her eyes and focused, pouring her fear and anger into the Wand.  The light on the end of the Wand changed from white to blue-green.  An instant later, a beam of blue-green light burst from the Wand, engulfing the serpin which was now only a few yards away.  The serpin screamed so loudly that the echoes continued to bounce off the strange walls of the tunnel for several seconds after the serpin ceased to exist. 

“I did it,” Ren whispered as she turned to look at her husband and father.  “Finally.  I protected you.  Both of you.  I really did it.”

“Yes, beloved, you certainly did,” Marl said, reaching out to wipe the tears from her cheeks with gentle fingers.  “And quite well, too.”

“I am proud of you, Daughter,” Garundel said, leaning in to kiss her cheek. 

“Thank you,” Ren said, beaming up at him.

“I think that must have been the serpin that ran away the day we left the
Hidden Sister
,” Garundel said.

“How could it have followed us through the mountains in that cold?”

“I do not know,” Garundel said.  A loud ratcheting sound filled their ears.

“The tunnel is closing,” Ren said.  “It must be empty now.”

Garundel nodded, though he continued to watch until the dark doorway vanished.  In its place was the same stone that made up the other walls.  Ren tapped her bracers together, returning the Wand to its resting place, but Marl decided to hang onto the Trident for a while longer.  Just in case.

Chapter Sixteen

Timon knew the royal palace of Ka-Teru as well or better than anyone, so it was a simple matter for him to take the servant’s stairs out of the king’s chambers down to more populated areas.  It took about an hour of careful searching and eavesdropping to discover that Sir Lochlin was in command of the palace, as expected.  Ten minutes later he entered the entry hall on the ground floor and walked right up to the older man. 

“Sir Lochlin,” he said, bowing low.

“Timon?” Lochlin asked in surprise, then looked behind Timon hopefully.  “Where did you come from?”