EMERALD EYES

Crystalyn chafed at yet another delay. The pace set by the Vale refugees was maddeningly slow. Crossing the Even Flow River had cost hours yesterday. RaCorren’s recent request was the third pause asked for and barely after midday. How many rest stops did the people need in one day? Her first inclination was to deny it, but then a thought occurred to her. Crystalyn could use the time to gather information, something she should have done several stops ago.

Crystalyn glanced sidelong at RaCorren as he strolled beside her warhorse, walking beside her as if out for a daily jaunt in the woods. They’d left the Vale behind a day ago, yet he showed no sign the distance traveled bothered him. One would think she’d have gotten used to the Valens’ prowess with slipping through forests at will.

“Your request is granted with a condition,” she said to the towering Valen liaison, getting his attention. “Send someone to fetch Durandas for me. I’ll await him at the hill’s farthest edge, we stop there for half a bell, no longer,” she said, pointing to the top of the small mountain they climbed.

Without missing a step, RaCorren bowed low. “Your command is my wish, Sarra’esiah,” he said. Straightening, he darted between a mixed group of Valens and human druids who strode with their families, those who remained.

Crystalyn tracked his progress by his great mane of golden hair until the crowd swallowed even someone of his tall stature. Apparently, he intended to perform the task personally, which shouldn’t have surprised her. For reasons unknown, he had taken it upon himself to attend to her since leaving the quarry.

Giving up on fathoming what motivated a Valen, Crystalyn urged the warhorse to gallop the rest of the way up the hill. The great horse needed little prodding; its powerful muscles required flexing. A day of slow trotting had done little for them. At the final, steepest part of the slope, a log lay. Instead of going around, Crystalyn sailed over it, exhilarating in the feel of all four legs leaving the ground and a perfect, almost gentle landing on the other side.

The Lore Mother stood at the top beside her mom. As she rode up and dismounted, neither woman looked happy.

“A leader should refrain from foolhardy chances at an accident,” the Lore Mother said.

“So should my eldest daughter,” her mom said.

Crystalyn patted the warhorse’s front dark shoulder affectionately, the color giving her an idea for a name. Saying it aloud, she tried it out. “Murk is strong and surefooted, I was perfectly safe.” The horse gazed at her placidly. He seemed to like it, as she did.

“I was speaking of the horse. We do not have enough to go around,” the Lore Mother drawled.

Crystalyn glanced at her sharply. Her luminous eyes were as equable as the horse, her face smooth. She changed the subject. “The refugees desire a rest. I’ve sent for Durandas, when he gets here, I have a task for the two of you.”

“What of me?” Sureen asked

Looking around, she found Hastel nearby, beside Atoi. She gestured to him to watch Murk. As the dark horse cropped a clump of green mountain grass, she left the reins hanging on the saddle horn, turning to the two women. “Glad you asked. I’ve been mulling something over for a while. Walk with me, both of you.”

Warmed by the sun radiating brightly above her right side, Crystalyn climbed toward the peak. Round and wide at the top, the view was only a hill sloping away. Crystalyn walked downhill until the area below spread out before them, the two other women coming up to stand one on each side of her.

The forest thinned. A hillside, sloping down, waved with tall stalks of grass and sagebrush that swayed gently from a light breeze. In the distance, the ground leveled and uniform fields claimed great squared chunks of land. “Tell me what to expect from here,” she said quietly.

The Lore Mother waved an age-spotted hand at the expanse below. “This particular hill, known as Barren Mount, slopes gently to the Great Plains to the east. The route is a good one. The refugees shall have an easier journey to Brown Recluse.”

Leaning forward, her mother glanced at the Lore Mother. “Barren Mount is southeast of the Vale, is it not?”

“Yes,” the Lore Mother said.

Crystalyn grew alarmed. “Isn’t that taking us away from Jade?”

Durandas said from behind them. “A necessary deviation to avoid Silent Blade,” He halted beside the Lore Mother. “Many of those from the Vale would be an easy mark for the filth that frequents the town. Bypassing it in exchange for a slightly longer though safer route is well worth it. What did you wish to speak with me about?”

Crystalyn kept her face smooth with difficulty. How many days’ distance between her and Jade had he cost her by not consulting with her? She was ready to throttle the man, but she needed his talents first. “I want to speak with Jade.”

Durandas clasped his hands together. A frown crinkled his forehead between his bushy white eyebrows. “A contacting of that magnitude would drain me for bells. We still have dangerous lands to pass through.”

Crystalyn had grown tired of excuses. “Perhaps I used the wrong word. I have to speak with Jade.”

Durandas’ frown deepened. Folding his hands behind his back, he paced along a narrow animal path that followed the ridge a short way, and then he turned back, his white robe brushing through the clumps of grass. “I distinctly recall we agreed contacting your sister may put her in grave danger.”

“The time has come to take that chance.” Crystalyn put her hand on the Lore Mother’s shoulder and squeezed gently. “Will you help him complete the contactings?”

The Lore Mother patted her hand and nodded as she spoke. ‘“Contactings’ imply more than one, dear.”

Crystalyn smiled. Though she knew it cruel, keeping them off-balance made for easier manipulation. Besides, she should exercise her authority when appropriate. “Right after Jade, we contact Camoe.”

Pacing to a point on an animal trail that only he knew as the boundary, Durandas froze in mid-step. Then, pivoting on a heel, he spun to look at her, his blue eyes bright. “You ask much from two old ones.”

Crystalyn’s anger spiked, but she quelled it. “The Lore Mother grows old, you grow younger every time the two of you use together. Do not make the mistake of thinking I don’t know how the symbiotic, parasitic relationship works between a User and an Interrupter.”

Durandas blew out a breath. “Very well, I shall make the attempt though I cannot speak for the Lore Mother. As I said, the contacting is dangerous and requires her to make her own decision.”

“The prophecy vessel is right,” the Lore Mother said. “We may learn much by ascertaining Jade’s location. This is a good place to attempt it away from the others. Join me, old one,” she added, sitting cross-legged on the wildlife trail, likely made from the small herds of deer and elk they’d spotted along the way.

Durandas flashed a small grin as he sat facing the Lore Mother on the path he’d only moments before been pacing. “I shall take focal point.” Reaching into a pocket of his white robes, he removed the leather strap with the glowing white stone tied in the center. Making certain the contact stone touched his forehead, he tied it in the back.

The Lore Mother set two larger green crystal orbs triangularly away from the white stone of his leather strap.

The warm scent of her mom wafted into her senses as she leaned close and spoke softly into her ear. “Are you certain this is wise, daughter? The Dark Users have developed a stronger ability to break into these transmissions.”

The Lore Mother’s aged head swung abruptly toward them. “Prepare to sever the connection at the first sign of a Dark attack, Sureen. Crystalyn, you may begin picturing your sister in your mind and calling her name. We are ready.”

Crystalyn thought of Jade, how her auburn hair always had a stray lock that insisted upon covering an eye, her habit of sucking her bottom lip into her mouth, and how she looked up to her for protection and friendship. Only three days had passed, but she missed her little sister badly already.

The Lore Mother’s glowing eyes flared bright.

His blue eyes vanishing behind their own burst of white radiance, Durandas sat transfixed. Triangulating from the white stone on his forehead to the two green orbs, an image stacked upward. Three-dimensional, the image formed quickly as countless cubes making the image stacked faster and faster from the ground up.

Inside the triangle, Jade bounced in the saddle of a great warhorse galloping at top speed. Shrubbery and bare ground passed by in the background too fast to make out the landscape. “Can you hear me, Jade?” Crystalyn asked aloud.

The image of Jade galloping through a faceless background continued uninterrupted.

“You have to make contact for the contacting to triangulate,” her mom said. “Give the image a light touch. We both shall, you on one side, me on the other. Think about your sister, I shall think about my daughter.”

Crystalyn set her palms on the top surface of the image and tried again recalling the way Jade sometimes pulled her bottom lip into her mouth when worried. “Jade, can you hear me?”

Jade started. Then she looked up. “Crystalyn? Where are you?” Jade’s voice reverberated through her mind, as if from a great distance.

Crystalyn nearly cried out with joy and then spoke aloud. “Coming to get you, tell me where to come.”

Glancing over her shoulder, Jade’s eyes widened with fright. She lowered her head, matching her dark horse. “I don’t know where we are; spiderbees are after us. We’re galloping toward a dark lake.”

“Where is there a dark lake, a huge one?” Crystalyn asked aloud.

“Bracken Lake?” asked her mom.

Crystalyn’s focus remained with her sister, as Jade tightened her grip on the saddle horn. “Who’s us?” Crystalyn asked silently.

“Dad! Dad is with me, and he’s changed, Crystalyn, he’s strong! We’ve escaped from the soldiers, and once he kills the spiderbees, we’ll meet you in Brown Recluse. You don’t need to come get me,” Jade said aloud, the tone of her voice even. Then she glanced fearfully behind her again.

Her mom’s urgent voice broke in. “The contacting is closing!”

Crystalyn’s anxiety nearly stole her speech. “NO! Jade, make certain Dad uses wood against the spiderbees, it’s the—” Vanishing, one by one the blocks picked up speed and disappeared in reverse order as fast as they had stacked Leaving her palms touching only air.

Durandas leaned back on his hands, the glow of his eyes winking out. “That is as long as I dare if you want to attempt a second contacting. You should tell Sureen what you wish to communicate with Camoe. I do not believe he has the sense of your mind. Please assure it is brief.” His eyes burst into the familiar radiance. The three-dimensional image stacked into the triangle faster this time. Contacting someone she’d never met might not work, but she was determined to try.

Crystalyn thought about what little she knew of the druid from Jade’s descriptions. At first, Camoe had wanted to kill Jade, believing her a creature made by dark magic. Then he’d helped her escape the Dark Citadel, saving her life numerous times with the help of a magical creation made by a Dark User. Crystalyn owed the druid much for saving the one she cared most about in the world.

A three-dimensional image filled the triangle, vivid and life-like with rich detail right up to her palms. Garbed in the brown and green kell leather of the forest, a silver-haired man with matching close-cropped beard ran nimbly along a well-beaten trail.

Behind the man, a tall smooth-faced man with four long-bladed spear tips poking over his shoulders followed. The tall man led a muscular man wearing a black half cloak by a rope tied at the wrists. A wide man wearing a great axe strapped to the side of his brown kell leather brought up the rear.

Crystalyn concentrated on the man leading the procession. “Camoe Shadoe, I would speak with you about Jade.”

The silver-haired man slid to a stop, those behind halting abruptly. His firm but soft tone carried a promise of violence into the recesses of her mind; he was one who knew how to dispatch an enemy with proficiency. “You have but one opportunity to identify yourself before I sever this connection.”

“I am Jade’s sister, Crystalyn.”

“Why do you hide from my view?”

Crystalyn shrugged though he’d just admitted to not seeing her. “I’m not certain why you can’t see me, but I can you. I’m Jade’s sister, and I have knowledge of her whereabouts.”

Camoe glanced up, his blue eyes fading to light gray. “How do I know you are truly her sibling?” he asked, his words ringing softly in her mind.

“There’s something you both know, but others may not. When Jade fell into the underground grotto into the water, you started a fire to keep her from freezing to death.”

Camoe’s eyes darkened as his eyebrows rose. “What happened after the fire burned low?”

Crystalyn wracked her memory. Only one thing stood out from Jade’s retelling of her harrowing escape. Though she didn’t think it what the druid searched for, she mentioned it anyway. “Something bad sniffed outside your hiding place.”

Camoe smiled, lighting his now dark blue eyes briefly. “Yes, I suspect they were Dark hounds. I greet you, elder sister of Jade. What is the nature of this contacting?”

Though Jade had spoken of it, Crystalyn found the druid’s eyes unnerving for some reason. One would think it wouldn’t bother her after spending time with Broth and his marvelous hourglass color-changing orbs. “How close are you to catching up with Jade?”

“Judging from their speed, we should only be a few bells behind. Have you had word of her?”

“Yes, I have. Jade’s nearing Bracken Lake. Is a more direct route available from where you are?” Crystalyn asked, wondering why Durandas had said Camoe was only one or two bells from catching up with Jade. But it didn’t matter now, her dad was with her sister.

Camoe looked off into the distance. “Yes, there is such a route. Our time of overtaking them would halve… your sister’s faith in you is not without merit,” he said, looking up. Then he froze.

Gaps of blackness pockmarked his face, bursting through the background surrounding him. Tendrils of darkness popped out along the top, writhing like stalks from an underwater plant disturbed by the passage of something immense.

Crystalyn jerked her hands from the triangle as the foulness of the tendrils permeated her mind. Darkness profound and absolute engulfed her. In the blackness, an immensity moved, slipping close. Sliding around her mind, it squeezed, compressing upon her the sense of unrelenting dominance birthed from an ancient arrogance.

The indomitable will knew only subversion for it had not known thwarting. The blackness within the darkness had no concept of it, which raised Crystalyn’s ire. Thwart it she would.

Crystalyn envisioned her golden symbol and wrapped it around her awareness as the immensity struck, beating down upon her with wave after wave of arrogant domination. Resolute, she held strong. No one, no thing, would do that to her. She fought back. Expanding her symbol, she pushed outward, pressing the arrogance back, bit by minuscule bit.

Abruptly, the dominant will popped. Behind it, the immensity recoiled in surprise. Swelling, it expanded beyond the boundaries of her comprehension. Slowly, almost serenely, a great axe swung out from the vast immensity. Picking up a sense of speed as it fell, the axe chopped into her symbol, bursting it into immeasurable pieces. The great axe rose and again descended.

Crystalyn could not stop it.

A powerful concussive ting resonated through her mind, and the colossal axe halted abruptly, frozen a hair’s breadth away from the sense of who she was and what she knew of herself. A thin barrier of intense azure rippled but held firm.

A voice raspy with ancientness and long disuse boomed from out of the immensity. “You dare to interfere in my domain? Consequences shall arise from your action.” The axe withdrew. The immensity receded.

Crystalyn found herself looking at the pale face of Atoi, her passionless emerald eyes staring up at her unblinking. A sudden, powerful scene opened inside her mind.

The first of three oblong winged shapes closed the distance between it and the dark child-like shape fleeing across a brown desert of sand. The winged shape stretched four giant legs downward, the shadowy hooked ends of its claws opening and closing with anticipation of prey within grasp.

The child shape veered sharply toward a formation of red and brown rocks. As the shape turned, Crystalyn saw an oblong object cradled at the waist shimmered with darkness. A second winged shape swerved to overtake the running child. Beneath a large pile of sand, a shadowy opening swung into view.

The winged shape arrived first, pulling up to hover in front of the enticing darkness. Crystalyn willed the child shape to go faster. The tiny shadowy child sped up, racing under the grasping claws at the entrance, merging into the darkness.

Crystalyn gaped at her tiny companion, a string of questions burbling from her mouth. “Was that you? Did you help me? What did the winged beasts want with the Dark Child?”

Atoi stared, her dispassionate face uninterested. “What?”

Crystalyn’s anger rose. “Don’t tell me you don’t know. You had to have been the one who stopped that monstrous axe and then projected such a strong image to me. Broth would not have done it without an explanation.” “Isn’t that right, my Broth?”

“I sent no image, Do’brieni.”

Broth’s assurance only elevated the ire. Crystalyn wanted answers from the dark thing; it had interfered to show her something of importance. “Is there something under the brown sand we should know about?”

Atoi gazed at her unrelenting.

“What happened?” her mother asked.

Ignoring the question, Crystalyn took a step toward the little girl. Bending face to face with her, she spoke as clear as she could. “Tell me, blast you! Or I’ll leave you here for the Dark Users to find. What attacked me? What were those dark shapes in the desert? Where were they?”

Hastel said, led the horses closer to his charge. “Here now, mistress. Let’s have no threats,” he said quickly.

Slowly and deliberately, Atoi turned and faced southwest.

Drawing the horses ups short, Hastel stopped moving, his one eye blinking in surprise. “Blast!”

Crystalyn hated to ask the question foremost on her mind, but she had to. “Is that the way I should go?”

Atoi stared at the southwest without moving. Beyond her, a gentle slope led toward cultivated fields.

Crystalyn sighed. “I suppose I have my answer.”

Her mother moved beside her. Crystalyn drew comfort from her steadfast presence. “Are you certain you can trust her? Can you believe the Dark Child she hosts?”

Crystalyn wasn’t certain she had faith in anyone but herself and her father and sister. “Jade is safe with the one I know I can trust, my dad. I will meet them or send for them as soon as the refugees are safe, after I’ve discovered what the Dark Child has to show me.”

Her mom smiled. “Your father is the best thing for her.” Her face smoothed. “And what of me, can you not trust me?”

Crystalyn kept her own face smooth. “I’m not certain I even know you, not yet. But I do have something in mind which will go a long way toward earning my trust.”

Raising her head of rich brown hair, her mother compressed her lips. “What must I do?”

“Go to Jade, help Dad protect her.”

Her mother’s eyes flashed a bright green, a sign of her quick anger, which Crystalyn now recalled. “I do not wish to leave you, my daughter. My youngest daughter is safe with your father. He has certain capabilities, even he is not aware of.”

“I am a survivor on this world, Mom, but you wouldn’t know. I have friends who fight for me. Jade, however, has to have help. Something is always after her. Why, I don’t know. Your being with her would ease my fears. I’ve seen the power you draw from the Flow.”

Her mother stared. “You can see it? Have you tried to access it?”

Crystalyn pushed her impatience to the side. “You’re changing the subject. Will you go?”

“I shall go to them by way of the Vale and combine two… requirements I am to fulfill, though I truly do not wish to leave you. Her mother’s gaze flickered to the ground behind her. Her smooth facial features remained serene. “I imagine I should aid with your healing of those two before I depart.”

“What two?” Crystalyn spun around, making her question rhetorical.

The Lore Mother and Durandas lay crumpled on the ground. Though their chests rose and collapsed normally, her guilt at not thinking of them ascended with her rising anxiety. Even now, a mind worm could be assaulting them as it fed upon their neural processes. Once she saved them, and she would, she’d send them both back to Surbo to help fight the assault on the capitol city of the White Lands. Crystalyn attached her awareness to her golden symbol and sank into Durandas first.