Chapter 9

 

Master Daigath was sitting on a branch of his new home tree, both hands on the trunk and his eyes closed as he communed with the tree’s spirit.  Each day the tree shaped itself a bit more in order to conform to the druid’s desires.  Daigath provided a nearly limitless supply of energy in the form of mana to feed his new friend’s growth. Already it had widened its trunk to nearly triple it’s original girth, which had been considerable to start with.  The tree had also hollowed out large sections of its interior, opened knotholes to serve as windows, and was currently forming a staircase that wound around the exterior of its trunk from the ground up to the first level of Daigath’s habitat. 

The ancient elf smiled at the tree, sending it thoughts of warmth and gratitude.  And though the tree was not yet as fully sentient as his previous home tree, it was growing closer. 

A distant roar interrupted the druid’s communion with his tree, the sound causing his eyes to pop open as it rang out loud and long.  It was a sound that Daigath recognized all too well. 

He hopped off his branch, using his magic to ensure a soft landing on the ground some thirty feet below.  The moment he touched down, the elf dashed toward the source of the sound, which was now being repeated, and accompanied by a second, louder roar.  With the ease of millennia of practice, and the natural agility of his race, Daigath rushed through the underbrush and dodged around trees without slowing in the least.  It took him less than a minute to reach his destination and confirm his suspicion.

In a small open area next to a blackberry bush, he found Fuzzy and Fiona, both with muzzles and faces smeared with berry juice.  The bears sat on their haunches, heads lifted toward the sky as they roared in anger and grief.  Each roar ended in a sort of pained whine, sounding much like an injured dog.  The ancient druid recognized what these sounds meant, having heard them before when a bonded companion lost their master.  Regardless of the species of the grieving companion, the nature of the sound was always the same.

For an instant, Daigath feared that Allistor had perished.  A quick check of his UI revealed that his agreement with the human was still in effect, which told him that it was instead Amanda who had died, severing her link to Fiona.  Fuzzy’s grief was for both the loss of a beloved friend, and sympathy for Fiona.

Daigath began to whisper words to Fiona, holding both hands in front of him in a calming motion as he slowly stepped closer.  He knew from experience that bonded companions that survived their masters often lost their will to live, and perished themselves.  Others lost their sense of self and went wild, sometimes injuring or killing those nearby.  He finished his whispered phrase, and Fiona was enveloped in a soft green glow.  Her roar of grief faded, and her head lowered as she fought to keep her eyes open, to resist the sleep spell Daigath had cast upon her.  But the druid’s magic was more than a match for the distressed bear, and she slowly succumbed.  Her head drooped, then her body rolled to the side until she lay on the ground next to Fuzzy.

“She’ll be alright, Fuzzy.” Daigath took the final steps to reach the bears, laying a hand on Fuzzy’s head and scratching one ear.  He instantly felt the tension begin to leave the massive grizzly cub.  “It is no small thing to lose your bonded.  She’ll need some time, and you should remain close by her side.”   The bear’s answering growl was one of sadness and agreement. “Stay here and guard her while she sleeps, my young friend.  Maybe hunt something for her to eat when she wakes?  I shall go and learn what has happened.”

As Fuzzy chuffed and nodded his massive head, Daigath turned and resumed his run, this time heading for the Wilderness Stronghold.

*****

 

Nancy and Chloe were sitting in the grass not far from the upper habitat’s elevator housing, chatting with the griblin druid when alarms began to sound.  Wide-eyed, their gazes flitted around the enclosure before both turned toward Gimble.  “What’s happening?” Nancy asked, concern in her voice.

“I do not know.” Gimble raised one hand and pressed a button on a bracelet.  His eyes widened, and he hopped to his feet.  “There has been an explosion!  We must get you both to a safer place.  Come.”  He began to run toward the elevator, motioning for the two humans to follow.  He called out “Matilda!  We need the elevator, right now!” as he ran. The little creature moved surprisingly fast for having such short legs.  Nancy was just getting to her feet and reaching to pick up Chloe, when Gimble disappeared in an explosive cloud of red mist.  There was a moment of stunned silence as Nancy’s hand moved without conscious thought to cover her daughter’s eyes.  Then Chloe began to wail.  “Gimmmble! NOoooooo!”

Nancy’s legs went weak, and she fell to a sitting position in the tall grass, clutching her sobbing daughter against her chest.  Though both she and her daughter had seen more than their share of violence and death in the past year, she was having trouble processing what just happened.  One moment the kindly old druid had been chatting with them in this pristine and serene meadow, happily discussing nature magic and fawning over Chloe.   The next moment he was just… gone.

She was still sitting there, clutching Chloe tightly, muttering that everything would be okay, blinking in confusion and shock, when the elevator door opened and several dwarves emerged with weapons drawn. 

The first dwarf took one look at the scattering of blood and biomatter just in front of the doors and began to speak into his own wrist device as two others quickly charged toward Nancy and her sobbing child, holstering their weapons as they moved.   “Are you hurt?” the closest of them called out as he ran.

Nancy, shook her head slightly.  “N…no.  We’re okay.  But Gimble.  He… he just disappeared.  It was…” her voice drifted off as she replayed the explosion in her mind.

The first dwarf helped her to her feet as his companion gently took Chloe from her.  Both dwarves quickly inspected their respective human, looking for any signs of injury.  Fortunately, the griblin’s speed had put him far enough from Nancy and Chloe that only a scattering of blood droplets had reached them. 

“Let’s get you somewhere safe.  Can you walk?” The dwarf began to urge Nancy toward the elevator as his colleague carried Chloe gently ahead of them.  When Nancy stumbled in the tall grass, the dwarf simply scooped her into a princess carry and began to run with her.

*****

 

Meg, Sam, and the girls all froze when the restaurant floor beneath them shuddered, and alarms sounded throughout the promenade.  The dwarves who had been carrying in tables and chairs dropped their burdens in unison and checked their wrist communicators.   Even as Meg was shouting “What the hell’s going on!?” four of the dwarves dashed toward the humans while the others drew weapons and headed out of the restaurant.  

“Please, there has been an incident.  An explosion and hull breach.” A female dwarf called out as she approached Meg.  “We need to escort you all to a safe location nearby.”  She motioned with her hands for the four of them to move toward the back exit.  Even as the humans began to follow, the other three dwarves took up positions surrounding them.  They had only taken a few more steps when a second explosion, this one much nearer, sent a vibration through the promenade.  The lead dwarf kicked open the rear door and stuck her head through, drawing her weapon as she checked the walkway in both directions.  “All clear, let’s go.  Hurry, please!”

Throughout the station, Stardrifter dwarves were rounding up their human charges and escorting them to safety.  Their wrist communicators were updating them in real time with shocking reports of griblins exploding in several locations within the station.  At least one of the humans had been killed, and several others injured. 

The dwarves cursed quietly as they worked to prevent further casualties, some taking charge of the humans while others took weapons to hand and began to hunt for their griblin clansmen.  This was a dark day for the Stardrifter Clan, one that would bring great dishonor.

*****

 

The first thing Allistor was aware of was the sounds of crying, mixed with a chorus of voices.  Some were shouting, others cursing or issuing commands.  Next came excruciating pain.  Every part of him hurt, from head to toe.  When he took in a ragged breath, even his lungs registered searing pain.  It was as if his whole body was on fire.  

Which wasn’t far off.  He had in fact been frozen.  Even as several healing spells washed over him, his nerve endings were waking up and screaming in protest over the abuse.  They couldn’t tell the difference between thawing and burning, and just then neither could Allistor.  He let out a groan of pain, and attempted to open his eyes, but they didn’t respond.

“He’s awake!” Allistor heard Helen’s voice cry out, half shout, half sob.  He felt hands on his shoulder and chest, and the sensation made him scream.  The sound that escaped his half-frozen throat was more of a strangled moan, but it was enough to make his point.  He felt the hands quickly lift away from his body.  Despite the pain, his lips twitched briefly when he heard Helen’s next words.  “You friggin idiot!  What were you thinking?  You should have died out there!”

The moment the words registered, he remembered.  His heart began to race, and he struggled harder to open his eyes.  “Amanda?” he managed to croak.  Immediately, all the voices around him went silent, only the sound of crying remaining.  He heard Helen sob again, and his heart sank into his stomach. 

“She’s… gone.  There was nothing we could do, Allistor.  I’m so sorry.” There was a pause as she broke down, crying and sniffling.  Allistor managed to open one eye enough to see a blurry image of her leaning over him, her hands covering her face.  “You managed to save William, I think.  He’s unconscious, but alive, barely.  Amanda, she… sacrificed herself.  To make sure you could save him.”  Allistor felt more heals wash over him, and managed to open his other eye. 

As his vision cleared, he turned his head to the side.  Looking up from the floor and past Helen, who was kneeling beside him, he blinked away tears and saw the jagged opening in the station’s hull.  The force field that had sealed the breach glowed faintly.  Laying between him and the hole was the tiny body of William.  Ramon and two others were kneeling next to him, all three of them casting repeated healing spells. 

Allistor tried to roll over, but his muscles didn’t respond.  And the attempt caused his abused nerve endings to scream even louder, making him groan in pain. 

“Don’t try to move!” Allistor thought the voice was Cogwalker’s.  “Ye were exposed to the vacuum of space.  The motes inside ye kept ye alive, but yer body was nearly frozen, and needs time to warm up.  Ye just lay there and recover!  Any movement right now could do more damage.  Here, drink some o’ this if ye can.” Allistor saw a flask move into his field of vision, then felt a small amount of liquid dribble into his open mouth.  He couldn’t taste it, but he felt a warmth in his throat and chest when he swallowed it down.  “Yer friends be healin’ ye as fast as they can.  Let em do what they’re doin for a bit.”

Allistor wasn’t in the mood to listen.  He closed his eyes and pictured Amanda floating away from him as he reached out.  His pulse hammered in his ears, and he could feel more tears run freely down his face.  When he tried to speak, his voice sounded slightly better.

“What… happened?”

This time it was Harmon who answered.  “The griblin’s vest was wired with explosives.  When it went off, the blast opened a breach in the hull.  There have been other explosions as well.  We’re still trying to gather information.  I will handle this, my friend.  You rest.  We very nearly lost you.”

“Stupid fool!” Helen grumped at him, causing him to open his eyes and see her face pasty white and her eyes red and puffy.  “Brave, but stupid!  Don’t you ever do that again!”  She smacked his shoulder, causing a new flair of pain.  Allistor gritted his teeth and tried not to show it. 

Instead, he took a few deep breaths, the pain in his lungs slightly less now.  Another wave of heals washed over him, and the pain lessened further.  He licked his lips before asking, “Anyone else?”

“What?” Helen blinked at him, momentarily confused. “Oh! No, some injuries, but nothing serious.  And no one else was killed, thankfully.  Well, none of our people.”  Allistor saw her glance briefly in William’s direction, a look of doubt in her eyes. 

“I’m fine, go help William.” He rasped at his best friend. 

“William is getting plenty of attention.  And I’m not so sure you’re out of the woods yet.  So shut up and let us help you.” Another wave of healing magic.  Allistor coughed, and a splatter of blood sprayed into the air, some of it coming back down to land on his face.  Strangely, there wasn’t much pain. “See! You’re all messed up inside.  Your body tried to decompress out there.  You’re lucky you didn’t burst like a water balloon.”

Harmon’s voice came from somewhere outside of Allistor’s field of vision.  “Actually, when a body is exposed to space…”  Allistor saw Helen’s gaze rise above his head, and the look on her face silenced the ruler of the entire orcanin race.

Allistor lay there for what seemed like an eternity.  While the pain in his body faded, the pain in his soul deepened.  He thought back to moments shared with Amanda, little things like a mischievous smile, the sound of her snoring in his ear, the twinkle in her eye as she came at him with a scalpel in hand.  And lastly, her hesitation at walking onto the space station. 

“She was right.” He mumbled to himself. 

“What was that?” Helen leaned closer in order to hear him better.

“She was right.  She was afraid of this place, and it killed her.”

Helen shook her head, having no words for him.  Somewhere behind him, Harmon answered.  “This place did not take her from you, Allistor.  Some ONE was responsible for this.  And when we discover who that is, you and I will seek retribution together.  This I swear upon my throne, and the lives of my people.” Allistor gasped as the swirling glow of a binding oath enveloped his body.  “Ah, I’m sorry my friend.” the orcanin stepped into sight and bowed his head. 

“Ye’ll have to get to em before we do.” Cogwalker had ceased issuing orders into his comms and rejoined them.  “This be our responsibility.” He bowed deeply to Allistor.  “On behalf o’ me clan, I offer our deepest apologies, and acknowledge the life debt we owe ye.  I dunno yet what has caused this, or who be behind it.  But know that the Stardrifter clan meant ye no harm.  It be our great shame to have this happen to ye on our watch, and we will make it right.”

Allistor found himself unable to find words to respond.  He acknowledged with a nod of his head, which seemed good enough for the dwarf who bowed deeply once more before turning away. 

Allistor closed his eyes again, and was wallowing in his grief, sinking into a dark place, contemplating revenge.  He was beginning to embrace that darkness when he heard several gasps, then some quiet cheering.  He opened his eyes and turned his head just in time to hear Ramon say, “He’s waking up!  He’s gonna be okay!”

Two of the bodies between Allistor and William stood up to hug each other, clearing a path for Allistor to see his squire’s eyes blink a few times as he lay on the station floor.  A moment later, they opened fully, and Allistor saw the boy’s confusion and pain.  Once again his heart wrenched, and he gritted his teeth against the physical aches as he moved an arm to reach out toward William.  More heals washed over both of them, and he heard a tiny, rhaspy voice ask, “What happened?”

Still kneeling on the other side of the boy’s prone body, Ramon leaned closer.  Eyes filled with tears, he spoke softly, his voice thick with grief.  “There was an attack.  You and Amanda were pushed out into space.”  He paused, then shook his head, unable to continue.  His eyes fell to the floor, and cleared his throat.

Allistor’s eyes found Harmon’s.   “Please, I need to be the one to tell him.  Would you…?”

“Of course.”  Harmon crouched down and effortlessly lifted Allistor off the floor.  He turned and took two steps, placing Allistor so that he was sitting upright next to William, his back against the bulkhead.  Allistor took a few deep breaths, both to deal with the physical pain, and to give himself a moment to prepare.  He saw William’s questioning gaze fixed on him, and almost lost it.  One more ragged breath, and he began.

“Hey, buddy.  I’m so glad you’re still with us.  That was a scary thing.”  He paused for another breath.  “I want you to know that Amanda saved you.  I tried, but I wasn’t close enough to grab you.  She pushed you to me so that I could bring you back in here.  She loved you so much, and her last thought was of you.”  His voice cracked, and he had to swallow a few times.  The look of horror on William’s face as he remembered what happened and processed the loss of Amanda nearly broke Allistor.   All around them people were openly sobbing, watching the young squire’s heart break. 

All the dwarves in the corridor with them took a knee and bowed their heads.  Allistor noticed that more than a few of them were shedding tears of their own. 

Helen broke the silence, kneeling next to the boy and placing a gentle kiss on his forehead.  “She will always be with you, William.  Her love for you, her quick thinking and acting to save your life… that was her gift to you.  She’d want you to think of her and smile, to remember the good times you shared.  She’d want you to live a long and happy life.”

William face crumpled as he cried, but after a few moments, he managed to whimper, “Okay, I’ll try.”

*****

 

Within the hour, all of Allistor’s people had been rounded up and escorted back onto the Phoenix .  Helen had broken the news to the others as Allistor and William were carried to the ship’s infirmary.  Allistor felt like a coward for not telling them the bad news himself, but he just couldn’t face them right then.  He was mentally and physically exhausted, and just wanted to hide in a dark room and grieve. 

William had fallen asleep, thankfully, and the only other person in the infirmary with them was Meg.  He had asked her to leave them alone, and she had responded with threats and insults that were so Meg that Allistor wanted to hug her.  Then she went quiet and just stared at him for a moment, before bending to kiss his forehead.  He heard her mumble “Stupid boy” before she’d turned and grabbed a chair to pull over next to his bed.

Harmon had them hold orbit for a while, an escort of a dozen orcanin ships surrounding them for protection while his people cleared all the airspace for a thousand miles in every direction.  When it was clear that the path from the station to Invictus was secure, the Phoenix took them home. 

Allistor wanted to walk from the parking garage back to the tower, but Meg forbid it.  He and his squire were both transported on hover pads, his people gathered around him, and a small army of heavily armed and angry orcanin surrounding them.   Sydney and Addy walked on either side of William, each holding one of his hands as he slept.  The girls were humming a sad tune that sounded like a lullaby, and Allistor hoped it would keep William asleep for a good long time. 

Back at the tower, most of his party broke off to share the news and answer questions.  Sam organized people to send to each of the Strongholds to relay the information in person. Meg and Helen accompanied Allistor, William, and the girls up to their quarters.  Meg tried to tuck Allistor into bed, but he just couldn’t face the bedroom he and Amanda had so recently shared.  Meg eventually agreed to let him sit quietly on the sofa with his feet up and half a dozen blankets covering him.  Helen and the girls put William to bed, then returned to sit with Allistor and Meg. 

“Can you eat?” Meg asked.  “I can have some food sent up.  Whatever you want.  I… I don’t know what to do for somebody that nearly froze and exploded at the same time.  Maybe some warm soup?” the woman chattered, clearly rattled.

“Meg, I’m okay.  Really.  And if you don’t quit being nice to me, I’m gonna get off this couch and try to kiss you.” He gave her a small smile as he said it, which grew a bit wider when she snorted at him.  The smile faded quickly when he saw more tears forming in her eyes and she looked away.  Her moment of weakness triggered something in him, and he cleared his throat.

“She loved you, Meg.  Just like I do.  You’ve been a friend and mother to us since day one, and now that she’s gone, I’m gonna need you even more.  So let’s all have a good cry, and tomorrow or the next day we’ll all get together and say goodbye.  We’ve all lost enough people this year to know that we can’t dwell on our sorrow.  We’ve got to get up and keep living.”  He paused, looking from Meg to the girls, then to Helen.  “You know that’s what she’d want us to do.”

The others all nodded their heads, the girls hugging each other tightly.  A short time later, the two of them went off to their rooms.  Meg muttered something about making sure everyone got fed before lightly slapping Allistor’s cheek a couple times and planting another kiss on his forehead.   As she stepped onto the elevator, Helen made a show of settling into the armchair she occupied, putting her feet up on the coffee table. 

“Don’t mind me, I’m just gonna hang out here for a bit.  Make sure you don’t do anything stupid.  You look fully healed, but if you try n get up off that couch I’ll smack you so hard you won’t remember your name.”

Allistor shook his head.  “I love you, too.  Could you maybe take three or four of these blankets off me now?  I feel like Fuzzy’s laying on top of me and-”  He froze, his eyes widening the same time as Helen’s.  “Oh no.  Fiona!”

“Don’t you move!  I’ll handle this.” Helen was already on her feet.  She quickly snatched all the blankets off of Allistor as she rushed past him, then threw one back over her shoulder as she realized she’d taken them all. It hit him in the face.  A moment later she was on the elevator and gone.

“Nigel, can you tell me where Fuzzy and Fiona are?” Allistor asked the ceiling.

“ Fuzzy and Fiona left the Wilderness Stronghold several hours ago, and have not returned.  However, Master Daigath is currently at that facility, and has expressed a desire to speak with you, when you feel up to it.  Please accept my condolences on the passing of Lady Amanda, sire.  She will be missed by all .”

Allistor felt a lump in his throat.  After a long moment, he managed to swallow.  “Thank you Nigel.  Please instruct Helen to find Daigath at Wilderness.  And let Daigath know he’s welcome here anytime.  Explain to him that if I tried to go see him now Meg would be very angry. 

“ Of course, sire .”

Despite the jumble of emotions and thoughts racing through Allistor’s head, he closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.   When he awakened several hours later, he found Daigath sitting in the chair Helen had vacated.  On the table between them was a pile of neatly folded blankets.  There was also a plate of fruit with a cup of chicken soup sitting in front of Allistor.  Daigath appeared to be finishing one of Meg’s scones, popping the last bit into his mouth and chewing calmly before swallowing.

“Fiona will be okay, I believe.” He smiled at Allistor.  “I was nearby when her bond with Amanda was severed.  I am sorry for your loss, Allistor.  She was a wonderful lady, and I quite liked her.”  The elf bowed his head slightly.

“Thank you, Master Daigath.  I’m sorry I was asleep when you arrived.  I hope you haven’t been waiting long?”

Daigath shook his head.  “When you are as old as I am, ‘long’ is a relative term.  I understand you nearly perished yourself today, saving young William.  I know that in the coming days you will doubt yourself, even berate yourself, and feel guilty for not saving them both.  I spoke to Harmon, and he told me exactly what happened.  There was nothing more that you could have done.  In fact, it was a miracle you were able to retrieve William.  An act of great sacrifice from Lady Amanda.  Yet another reason to admire her.”

Allistor shook his head, tears forming again.  “I could have saved them both.  I teleported myself out there without calculating how fast they were going.  I should have known better,  If I’d only jumped further out…”

“No!” Daigath leaned forward in his seat.  “If you had taken the time to do that calculation, assuming you are even capable of getting it right, they would have been out of range of your Dimensional Step spell.  By acting quickly, you got yourself close enough that Amanda was able to help you save William.  That was the best possible result in the circumstance thrust upon you.  You need to get those ‘if only’ thoughts out of your head.  Such unfounded self-doubt might cripple you, and there are many thousands of people out there depending on you.”

Allistor sat there in silence.  He had grown angry as Daigath lectured him, and had to restrain himself to keep from lashing out.  The old elf watched him, his face stoic as Allistor took some deep breaths and considered his words.  Despite his anger, and his self-doubts, he found some comfort in his mentor’s words.

“I will try.” He unconsciously echoed Williams words from earlier. 

Daigath nodded once, leaning back in his chair and producing another of Meg’s scones.  “Helen is with Fuzzy and Fiona.  I put Fiona to sleep, to give her time to adjust to the loss of her bond, and to keep her from causing any harm in her grief.  I expect she will survive, though I do not know what her mental condition will be.  Fortunately, the bond was relatively new.”

“Thank you for that.  And for coming here.”  Allistor paused. “When you spoke to Harmon, did he give you any indication of who did this, or why?”

Daigath shook his head.  “Our mutual friend is literally scouring the Collective for information.  He has applied the full weight and might of the Orcanin Empire to the problem, and has recruited many of your allies as well.  Including the Or’Dralon.  The Stardrifter Clan is also creating quite a stir already.  They will not rest until they have punished those responsible and restored their honor.”  The old elf paused to take a bite of his scone, chewing thoughtfully for a moment.  “I must say, I would not wish to be the one responsible for this cowardly attack.  They now have some very powerful forces aligned against them.”