The Sorcerer's Ring (Book 1) (11 page)

“I can walk,” Remi muttered, but Kace acted like he didn’t even hear her speak. Remi cleared her throat. “I said I can walk.”

“I heard you the first time,” he said. “But I’m still not going to let you.”

“Why?” she asked, opening her eyes. It was a bittersweet moment—not having to fight the sun’s blinding rays, but still feeling the disappointment of knowing that she had been sleeping for hours. She yawned while trying not to move too much. “Where are we headed?”

“Away from Langorans,” he said. “But other than that, I have no clue.”

“That’s fine. As long as we’re putting some distance between us and this mess. I just don’t get it.”

“Get what exactly?”

“How people think that others are inferior just because they have one thing wrong with them. It’s funny how those who are blind or disabled or deaf or sick are looked down upon, but those in good health might have something even worse wrong with them. What’s worse? Being blind and a good person, or being in full health but you’re a bully? I don’t get it, Kace. Why do people act like ego isn’t a disease?”

“I know what you mean,” he replied. “The Quietus are a very proud people—so much that they deny nearly all aid thrown their way. The result is that we are divided and living in pockets all around Terra when we should already have a stable location to call home. I wish they would get their act together. But since I don’t see that happening anytime soon, I keep my distance.”

“It might be strange to say…but I’m kind of glad that I have this sickness. At least it keeps me humbled. I can sit back and focus on improving myself instead of forcing my will on others.”

“I feel the same way.”

Remi laughed. “What are you talking about? You’re in perfect health.”

“What makes you say that?” he snickered. “You don’t know what’s going on inside of me.”

“Well, based on your rippling muscles and your strength, I can see that you work on yourself physically. And you’re kind and good to me. So I would say that makes you perfect.”

“But you didn’t address my internal health. What if I’m as sick as you?”

“Like I said, you’re in perfect health to me.”

“Careful now. I might just fall for a little of that flattery.”

“Then perhaps you should have a thicker skin. You know what? I changed my mind. You’re not perfect anymore. I don’t know what I ever saw in you.”

“You’re sure something,” he chuckled. He stopped and craned his neck to slightly look behind them. Remi studied his face.

“What’s wrong?”

“We’re being followed. I heard something. A whisper.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t the wind?”

“Positive,” he said, crouching low and letting Remi down to the ground. “We’re not really hidden here. The trees are a lot thinner in width, but if we stay low, they might pass by us.”

“How many of them are there?”

“Two. But…wait. I know this scent. Remi, it’s Olivia and Eckard.”

Remi sighed and stood to her feet. Kace tried to reach out and pull her back down but she swatted his hand away.

“You haven’t rested enough!” Kace shouted in a whisper and she turned her head around to give him a hardened glare. He sucked his teeth in response. Remi stood vigil and closed her eyes, taking in the little rest she could gather. Eckard and Olivia must have realized she was waiting as they suddenly picked up their pace, and after a couple minutes had passed, they were in sight.

Remi gazed upon them wearily. Eckard was limping toward them while holding his sides with both hands. Olivia wasn’t limping, but her body was tired. Occasionally she would touch one of the many bruises on her face and wince.

They didn’t call out to her nor did they sprint to her once they saw that she had noticed them. They made their way to her gingerly.

“I’m sorry,” Olivia said first, moving her lips slowly so that her wounds wouldn’t cry out. Eckard nodded and responded in kind. Remi sighed and kept her guard up. “I was stupid,” Olivia said, bowing her head in shame. “I looked down on you, and I shouldn’t have. I had forgotten how powerful you could be when you put your mind to it. When we were kids, I thought of us as equals, even though that was when you were at your sickest, and when we got older…somehow I forgot. I’m so, so sorry.”

“And I was a fool,” Eckard said. “I questioned my faith in you when you’ve proven that you are exactly what I was looking for from the very beginning. I hope that you can forgive us.”

Remi noticed Kace stepping next to her. She glanced at him for his opinion on the matter but he merely nodded in her direction. It was up to her what happened next.

“I can forgive you,” Remi said. “We fought and it’s over. So I don’t really have any ill-will against either of you…but I can’t travel with you any longer.”

“But we trained for over a year,” Olivia exclaimed, ignoring the pain coming from her face. “We planned this trip together. Now you’re going to ditch me out here in the wilderness?”

“You were going to do the same thing to me only a few hours ago.”

“I knew you didn’t forgive us,” Olivia snapped. “You’re going to hold this over our heads, aren’t you?”

“No, I forgive you. The thing is…I’m not stupid. You were ready to let the Langorans kidnap me, hurt me or worse, all to save your own skin. I wouldn’t have done the same to you because I thought we were sisters, but now I see that we’re completely different people. I don’t hold a grudge against you. It was your decision to make. But for my own self-preservation and my sanity, we can’t be around each other. It’s not fair to me, and it’s also not fair to you.”

“It was a mistake.”

“But a costly one,” Kace said. “There’s a lot more dangers ahead of us. We haven’t even faced Cimmerian directly yet, and you already betrayed us. How would you feel if it was the other way around? If we had given you up?”

“I think that—”

“—I’ll tell you,” Kace interrupted. “We would be dead right now. That’s what would have happened. Because even though you don’t want to admit it, all you care about is yourself.”

“Where will you go now?” Eckard asked.

“Wherever we like,” Remi answered for him.

“You won’t go to Paragon? What about the Sages?”

“I’ll think about it,” she said to his dismay.

“But my mission…”

“You were willing to let your mission die back there so just consider it dead now.”

“What will I tell the Sages though? After losing Scarlet, they won’t be happy to hear that you’re not with me either.”

“Deal with it,” she said. “Or don’t go back at all. Honestly, if I do come across the Sages, I’m going to make sure to tell them what happened with the Langorans. For their sake.”

“I might be exiled.”

“That’s not my concern.”

“Look at you,” Olivia said angrily. “Sitting up there on your throne, deciding the fate of your subjects and having the nerve to say that I’m the selfish one.”

“Every single person on this planet comes across great decisions in their life,” Remi said to her, as a mother would to a child. “Decisions that will affect the lives of others on a grand scale. When that moment comes…what you decide…determines what kind of person you are.”

“You know what this means, don’t you?” Olivia snapped. “We’re done. No longer friends.”

“That’s up to you. I just said we can’t travel together right now. Doesn’t mean we can’t meet up later in life and continue on hand in hand.”

“I don’t need your crippled hands,” Olivia spat, spinning around and storming away. Eckard sighed wearily and followed behind her awkwardly. Remi could hear him shouting for her to wait up.

“You made the right decision,” Kace said. “We can’t trust them.”

“I never truly could trust Olivia,” Remi admitted. “But I couldn’t let her know that. I had hoped she would abandon the path she was on and just be my friend, but I guess that was wishful thinking.”

“They’ll be okay,” Kace said, putting his hand on Remi’s shoulder. “I know you still care about her.”

“I don’t want to,” she sighed. “But it’s true.”

“Come on. Let’s keep moving. It’s going to be dark soon.”

*              *              *

“Treehouses,” Kace breathed in awe. “Oh wow. I thought they weren’t real.”

“Treehouses?” Remi asked, looking upwards. There were several worn and rotting shacks high up in the canopy of the forest, each one looking as if it was going to fall down on their heads at any moment. “Are they traps?”

“No. They were once homes,” he turned to give Remi a smile. “For my people.”

“We’re near a Quietus encampment?”

“No,” he chuckled. “Not even close. The Quietus stick to the borders of Paragon or Cimmerian respectively. They wouldn’t be out here.”

“So they used to live here? What happened?”

“The Collision of the worlds. They once lived here in the forest near a Kingdom called Allay—the birthplace of the Sages. The Queen at the time—Catherine—had given them asylum in the forest after they lost their homeland in a great war between the five Kingdoms. Quietus was actually a very respected and feared Kingdom back then.”

“So you know where we are?”

“Kind of. I’m relying on what I’ve heard. But if the stories are true, that means Allay might be nearby. I doubt it’s still up and running though. It seems that in preparation for the upcoming war, most people on Terra chose a side and traveled there for safety.”

“Well, it is getting dark,” Remi winked at him. “Maybe we should check this place out.”

“There could be squatters,” Kace warned. “Remember the Langoran ruins? There were Langorans near there.”

“What are the Allays like then?”

“They were called Allayans, and from what I hear, it all depended on who was charge. The people pretty much followed the mantra of their King or Queen. There were times in which they were hospitable and kind, and at other times, they were ruthless.”

“That sounds terrible,” she grimaced. “And you say that’s the birthplace of the Sages? Are they like that?”

“They don’t flip as much as the villagers did, but they had their problems. Sometimes they could be deceptive.”

“The more I hear about and think about the Sages…the more nervous I get. They sounded like people I wanted to meet before. But after knowing Eckard, and seeing how Scarlet was at times…I’m not sure. What do you think? Should we go to Allay?”

“It might be safer than being out here in the open. And there really might not be anyone there. We’ll just be cautious.”

“You never know. We might find some allies there.”

“I wouldn’t hold my breath,” he muttered as they walked on. The forest seemed to continue on forever as they found only treehouses and even more trees. Eventually they hit a dense wall, created out of thorn bushes, thick vines, and fallen branches.

“I’ve got this,” Kace said as he began ripping the debris away from the center. Remi kept her attention on the forest around them but it was still. Eerily silent.

“Got it,” Kace grunted as he removed the last of the makeshift wall. They proceeded forward, to find more trees and less hope of finding Allay.

“We’re just being impatient,” Remi said aloud to herself. “That’s all.”

“It’s got to be around here somewhere. How much further could it…

A colossal iron gate appeared in the distance, just as they walked around a cluster of oak trees. A stone wall that was even higher than the gate itself extended for miles in both directions. Kace whistled as they stopped in their tracks.

“It’s a fortress,” he said as Remi examined it further. She couldn’t see past the gate though there were rectangular slits within the frame. There was a dense fog past its border. The walls were so tall that it appeared to keep out giants. The stones were once ivory white but now they were dirty and caked in mud. Remi frowned as she listened for signs of life. She could swear that she heard talking in the distance, but she wasn’t entirely sure. It was like someone was moving their mouth into the wind as if speaking, but not actually letting any words come forth.

“Should we go on?” Kace asked.

“Yes,” Remi said boldly. “I’m not afraid.” She made the first move, walking up to the iron gate and pushing at it lightly. Surprisingly, even with her lack of strength, the gates moved easily and they swung open wide. The wind died down instantly as the fog seemed to get even denser upon their entrance. Kace moved in front of her and then stared down at his feet. There was gravel beneath his feet. He had never stepped on a substance like it before, and so he wiggled his toes between the pebble like stones, trying to decide whether he enjoyed the sensation or it made his bare feet ache.

Remi walked over to the right side and rubbed her hand across one of the white stone circular pillars that were erected high up in the air. She noticed that there were cuts in the surface, caused by what had to have been a sword. She turned and squinted. The fog lightened up a bit, and she could see that there were pillars on the other side as well, fashioned exactly the same.