The Shaman's Curse (Dual Magics Book 1) (33 page)

Vatar and Thekila added the last items to their traveling
packs. They’d said goodbye to their friends the night before so they could get
an early start. The parting with Theklan had been hardest. He wanted to come
along, but Thekila had insisted he continue his studies.

They stepped out of their door to find Quetza waiting for
them.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Thekila asked.

Quetza crossed her arms across her chest. “Going with you,
of course. Don’t worry; I’ve got my own tent. I’ll give you your privacy.”

Thekila took a step forward. “Quetza—”

“Now, Thekila,” Quetza cut her off. “You know how I love
camping and exploring. I couldn’t resist.” Then turning more serious, she
added. “Besides, I know how to live in the Forest better than either of you.
You may need my help out there. And Vatar’s not wrong to worry about Wartan and
his crew. We don’t know who all of his allies might be.”

“Quetza—” Thekila started again.

“No, Thekila,” Vatar interrupted her. “She’s right. We can
use the help. Thank you, Quetza.”

Thekila threw her hands up. “Well, I can’t fight both of you.”

Quetza laughed and turned toward the road that led to the
Pass. “Oh, yes you could. Being outnumbered never stopped you before. But this
time you know we’re right.”

They were climbing the pass by midmorning. Vatar looked
around with interest. He hadn’t had a chance to really see much of it before.
His eye was attracted by movement on the mountain slopes above the pass. It
took a moment for him to recognize that the gray shapes that seemed to be
moving against the gray rock face were animals. They were vaguely goat-like in
shape, but when he looked closely, he could see that they had horns unlike any
goat he had ever seen. These horns were straight, twisted in a tight spiral,
and longer than his forearm. “What are those?”

Quetza stopped and looked where he pointed. “Oh. Mountain
antelope,” she said. “It’s unusual for them to graze this close to the Pass.”

Vatar shaded his eyes to get a better view. He’d seen
something like that before. “That’s the same as
Zoria’s
avatar, isn’t it? Except that hers is white.”

“Yes, that’s right,” Thekila said.

Quetza used her woods craft to lead them nearly due west by
easier paths than Vatar had taken on his way east. They made good progress, but
Quetza kept looking back as they walked. When they stopped, she circled back
down their path.

Vatar reached for his belt knife—the best weapon he had
since dropping his spear on his flight to the Pass. He’d hoped to find it again
when they crossed the Pass, but only found the remains of his water skin.
Orleus and Cestus must have picked up his spear and his pack and taken them
back with them. “What’s wrong?”

“We’re being followed,” Quetza answered.

Thekila’s brows drew down. “Who? Or what?”

“Who,” Quetza replied. “It’s human, not animal.”

Quetza motioned them to silence as she listened. “We’ll camp
early tonight.”

They quickly set up the tents. Quetza left them to build the
fire and silently slipped back into the trees. Vatar and Thekila waited on
alert for her return. About an hour later, Quetza stepped back into camp,
pushing Theklan in front of her. Vatar relaxed.

Thekila leaped to her feet. “Theklan! What do you think
you’re doing?”

The boy scuffed his toe in the deep forest soil. “Following
you. You’re my sister. I should be with you.”

“You should be back at the Academy getting an education and
learning to use your Powers properly,” Thekila said sternly.

“I don’t have any family back there. I belong with you,” the
boy said stubbornly.

Thekila tapped the side of his head. “I’m never farther away
than this. That is,
if
you learn how to use your Powers.”

Theklan stuck out his chin. “We’re not supposed to bespeak
teachers.”

Thekila sighed deeply. “Well, I’m not at the Academy now.
And that rule never applied to family members anyway.” She shook her head.
“What am I going to do with you?”

Quetza raised an eyebrow. “We either send him back or we
take him with us. We can’t leave him alone in the Forest at his age. And if we
send him back, one of us has to go with him.”

Theklan crossed his arms. “If you send me back, I’ll just
come after you again! I won’t stay there all alone. I’m your brother.”

Vatar touched her arm. “It’s alright, Thekila. He’s welcome
with the Dardani and there’ll be plenty of room for him in Caere. And you and
Quetza can continue his education.”

“I suppose so,” Thekila answered with a shake of her head.
“He can be so stubborn sometimes!”

Vatar smiled but didn’t say anything.
Theklan’s not the
only one in this family. He’ll fit right in.

~

When they neared the western edge of the Forest, a little
exploring led them to Vatar’s first camp. From here, Vatar knew he could find
his way back to the plains at the place where Uncle Bion would come for him. He
was surprised when a chittering sound made him look up right into the lion-like
face of Chit.

“Chitter! You’re still here,” he said, oddly pleased.

“Chitter?” Thekila asked.

“The squirrel,” Vatar answered, pointing. “He hung around my
camp when I was here last summer.” With a touch of embarrassment, he added, “He
was the only thing I had to talk to out here.”

Thekila grinned at him.

Vatar looked up again at renewed chittering. He smiled to
see another, similar creature beside Chit. This one was a little darker in
color and lacked the mane around its face. Behind her were four small bundles
of fur. Vatar’s smile widened. “I see all those nuts I gathered and couldn’t
take with me went to a good use.”

Once they were settled, Vatar attempted a second contact
with Orleus. Even though Orleus was closer, this was actually harder than reaching
Father all the way in Caere, because Vatar didn’t really know Orleus at all.
He’d only had that one contact with him on the night of the attempted
kidnapping. Vatar shook his head. “I can’t do it. I may have to relay the
message through Father or Boreala—he’d used Far Speech to talk to both of them
during the long winter—especially before he and Thekila made up.

“Before you resort to that, try the same way you contacted
him the first time,” Thekila suggested. “Start with a distance viewing of
someone you can find easily, like your son. Then expand to find Orleus. Then
contact him.”

Vatar nodded and blew out his breath as he concentrated. He
found Zavar playing happily with Savara and Fenar under an apple tree. Then he
expanded out until he found Orleus, riding around the herds with Pa.

“Orleus! It’s Vatar,”
he called, silently.

“Yes? Where are you?”
Orleus answered.

“Near the edge of the Forest. I need to ask you to do
something for me.”

“Yes?”

“Tell Mother that when Uncle Bion comes he should bring three
extra horses. Suitable for young riders. Mother’s from Caere. She’ll understand
how you know better than anyone else, even Pa.”

“Extra horses?”

“I’m bringing a couple of guests back. And Thekila, my
life mate.”

“Ah! I’ll tell her. And I look forward to meeting your
lady. And you.”
Vatar could hear the smile in Orleus’s voice.

~

They waited just inside the edge of the Forest. After
everything that had happened, Vatar had lost count of the days. He couldn’t be
certain of the day on which his Ordeal would officially end. But he knew Uncle
Bion would come on that day to escort him back home. He hoped it wouldn’t be
too long.

One morning, Uncle Bion stood in the same spot from which he
had sent Vatar into the Forest and called his name. Vatar held Thekila’s hand
tightly as they stepped out into the brighter sunlight of the plains, followed
by Quetza and Theklan. Vatar had not expected Uncle Bion to come alone. The
other five chiefs—one from each Clan—were there, of course. Vatar was a little
surprised to see who stood behind them, though. Vatar blinked to be sure he
wasn’t imagining it, but they were there. Pa and Mother, Kiara, Arcas, Cestus,
another man who could only be Orleus, all smiling broadly and, most wonderful
of all, Zavar and Savara right in front with Fenar!

Vatar sprinted forward, dragging Thekila with him. He
scooped up his children and was surrounded by his family.

He caught his mother eying Quetza with a speculative gleam
in her eye. Why? Ah, of course. Mother wouldn’t have let Orleus go without
explaining something about those extra horses. Though she knew better than to
expose that knowledge where other Dardani could overhear, she must be wondering
about Thekila. And tall, nearly blonde Quetza probably looked more like what
she expected to see than Thekila did. Amidst the tall Dardani, Thekila looked
almost like a child. Better straighten that out before anything embarrassing
happened. Vatar broke free of the joyous reunion.

“Mother, Pa. This is Thekila,” he said, releasing his
children and gathering Thekila to his side. “Don’t judge her by her size. Like
Boreala, her Spirit is much larger than her body.”

Mother paused only an instant, looking at the way Thekila
leaned against Vatar, before gathering Thekila into a hug.

“This is Thekila’s brother, Theklan,” Vatar added,
introducing him. “He’s just about your age, Kiara.”

Kiara smiled at Theklan, which sent the boy into a fit of
embarrassment.

Last of all, he turned to Quetza. “And this is our friend
Quetza. Thekila’s oldest and dearest friend.”

~

Vatar rode with either Zavar or Savara in front of him all
the way back to Zeda. “Did you miss me while I was gone, Zavar?”

“No,” Zavar said seriously, shaking his head. “You wasn’t
gone.”

Vatar smiled down at his son. “Yes, I was. I was gone for a
whole year.”

“You
comed
back,” Zavar answered.

“Yes, I did. Yesterday.”

“No,” Zavar insisted. “You
comed
back. At night. All the time.”

“You mean he was in your dreams?” Thekila asked.

“No,” Zavar insisted. “He
comed
back. He was with me.” His little face scrunched up with the effort of
expressing himself. “Not in the hut. But
there
.”

Vatar and Thekila looked at each other for a moment.
It
couldn’t be—could it?
Vatar had watched his children sleep almost every
night during the winter and spring. Watched them sometimes in the daylight,
too, playing with Fenar and Kiara. But Zavar shouldn’t have been aware of that.

Slowly, Vatar asked, “Zavar, do you remember when the bad
men tried to take you away?”

The little boy nodded. “Yes.”

“Was I with you that night? Did I come back after you were
safe in the hut?” Vatar asked, trying to keep a quaver from his voice.

Zavar’s little brow furrowed. “You
comed
.
Then you was gone. Then you
comed
back.”

“And after that?” Vatar asked.

The little boy waved his pudgy arms. “All the time. Mostly
at night.”

Vatar looked to Thekila. “What does it mean?”

“He sensed your distance viewings, Vatar,” Thekila said
softly.

Vatar sighed. “It seems like it.”

Thekila looked at Zavar. “For Powers to manifest this young
. . . He’ll need to be trained at the Academy.”

Vatar’s arms tightened around Zavar. “Surely not yet.”

Thekila smiled and shook her head. “No, of course not. Not
until he’s Theklan’s age. But that much Power needs to be trained—and he
must
learn the Tenets.”

Vatar nodded. He could certainly agree with the last part.
He understood, now. The Dardani were wrong about this and Thekila was right. It
wasn’t the magic that was evil. Not in itself. It was what was done with it.
The Tenets were the Valson’s protection against the misuse of their magical
Powers.

“It means something else, too,” Quetza said, riding on the
other side of Thekila.

Vatar looked over at her. “What’s that?”

“We need to continue your training,” Quetza said. “If your
son has Powers at this age, they had to come from you. You’re more powerful
than you know.”

The conversation was interrupted when Mother reined back to
join them. She pointed off to the west. “Look over there, about a third of the
way from here to the horizon.”

Even for Vatar, who thought he knew what they were looking
for, it took a while to make out the running shapes in the middle distance,
especially difficult to distinguish from the background of the plains because
of their coloring.

“Are those horses?” Thekila asked, shading her eyes.

“Not exactly. They’re wild horses,” Vatar said.

“What’s the difference? And why are they so hard to see?”
Quetza asked, fascinated.

“That’s their coloring. They’re a light tan color that
blends well with the grasses. And they have spots that are black around the rim
and darker tawny inside. It makes them hard to see if you don’t already know
they’re there.”

“Are any of the Dardani horses like that?” Thekila asked.

“No,” Pa said with a touch of regret. “Not that we wouldn’t
love to get that color. But the wild horses are
uncatchable
and untamable. It’d be like trying to ride an elk. Except it would be easier to
catch the elk.”

“I can see how that would be, when they’re that hard to
spot. How did your mother ever see them in the first place?” Quetza asked.

Pa smiled. “The wild horse is the totem of the Horse Clan.
That’s why Lucina could sense them. Otherwise, we might never have known they
were there at all.”

Vatar rode silently for a while after that, eyes not seeing
the plains around him. He knew exactly how Mother felt the presence of the wild
horses through the Spirit of the Horse. That only served to remind him of the
Spirit of the Lion that he
should
feel here on the plains. He’d barely
thought of it at all while he was in the Valley. Now, it was like a fresh
wound, open and bleeding.