Adventurers Wanted 2) The Horn of Moran (35 page)

“I fear that she does not wish to be healed,” Alex said slowly. “I can feel a great sorrow in her. A longing for something that is lost.”

“You see many things, healer,” said Nellus. “I will tell you what I know of Tara. Perhaps that will aid you in healing her.”

“She has moved closer to the wall in the night. I do not know what I can do for her.”

Both companies gathered around Alex and Tara as Alex talked to Nellus. They all looked troubled, and Alex wished he could tell them something to comfort them.

“You have an elf in your company,” said Nellus, looking at Sindar. “Perhaps he can call her back from the wall?”

“I have been to the wall before,” Sindar replied, a pained look on his face. “I do not wish to return there and would do so only if Bregnest commanded me to.”

“I will give no such command,” Bregnest was quick to reply. “I know you would go if I asked this of you, Sindar, but I will not put you through that trial. I would not command you to do such a thing, not even if Tara were my own child.”

“My apologies, Sindar, Bregnest,” said Nellus, bowing. “I do not know much about the wall, and I asked before thinking.”

“There is no harm,” Sindar replied. “I can tell you that to call someone back from the wall requires great power. The one time that I attempted to do so, it nearly destroyed me.”

“Then we have a sad journey ahead, and must carry sadder tidings to Tara’s family,” said Nellus with a deep sigh.

“She has not crossed the wall yet,” said Alex defiantly. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and pushed away the sorrow that had built up inside of him. “Nellus, tell me all you can about Tara.”

“What do you wish to know?’ Nellus asked, looking shocked and surprised by Alex’s sudden outburst.

“Tell me about her family, her adventures, what she was like—everything you can think of.”

“As you wish,” said Nellus, pausing for a moment to collect his thoughts. “Tara is the youngest daughter of King Nordal from the land of Kess. She has two older sisters and three older brothers. She is greatly loved by her family and by all in the kingdom. She was only allowed to undertake this adventure because her father thought it sounded fairly safe. She has a great talent with animals and can calm even the most angered or fearsome of beasts.”

Alex asked Nellus a few questions from time to time as he continued to talk, trying to understand what Tara was like and why she was so sad. He learned that she had gone on three other adventures and had found some success as an honorable adventurer.

Once Nellus had finished, Alex asked each of his company to tell him their own impressions of Tara. They all spoke highly of her. They agreed that she had a temper and that she had definite ideas about things. She would argue her point of view as far as she could without offending her companions, and then would accept whatever decision Nellus made without argument.

The information was interesting, but none of it seemed to answer the questions that Alex had. He wondered what Tara’s great sorrow was and what the reason for it could be. He could feel the depth of her sorrow as if it was his own, but he could not see any reason for it in what Tara’s friends told him.

“Does she have elf blood in her?” Alex asked, remembering Sindar’s comment.

“She does,” Nellus answered. “Her mother was half-elf.”

“Was?”

“Her mother was killed several years ago when Tara was young. I don’t think she can even remember her mother, so I didn’t mention it before.”

“How was her mother killed?” Alex questioned.

“Bandits,” Nellus replied slowly, looking toward the three bandits they still held captive. “She was traveling to see an oracle and her company was attacked. Only one of the company survived, and he died of his wounds after telling the story of what had happened.”

“Very well,” said Alex, deciding in his own mind what he must do for Tara.

“I don’t see how anything we said could help you heal her,” said Nellus sadly. “I had hoped that it might, but . . .”

“Your hopes are not in vain. Your words have cleared my own thoughts and driven out my doubts.”

“Then you know of a way to heal her?” Nellus questioned.

“Yes,” said Alex in a determined tone. “I will call her back from the wall. I will free her from the sorrow that drags her down, if I can.”

“But you are not an elf.”

“No, I’m not,” said Alex. “But I am a healer, and I have been to the wall before. The shadow lands hold no fear for me. I will go.”

“Alex,” said Bregnest looking worried. “I know more than perhaps anyone about your journeys to the wall. I must warn you against returning there again.”

“I thank you for your concern, Bregnest. However, this is a burden that I must carry,” Alex replied. “You know a great deal about my journeys to the wall, but you do not know all.”

“Then be careful, my friend,” said Bregnest with a slight bow. “We will await your return.”

“Journeys?” Nellus asked, stunned. “You have been to the wall more than once?”

“I have been to the wall three times,” said Alex. “Twice I went before I knew about the wall and the shadow lands beyond. Those times friends of great power called me back. The third time I went by my own choice, knowing what I would find there. I went to call back a friend and free him from a terrible burden.”

“And you are willing go there again—for a stranger?”

“I will help Tara, though I have never met her,” Alex answered firmly. “This is the burden I carry now, and I will help in any way that I can.”

“Then go, Master Taylor,” said Nellus, looking almost as worried as Bregnest. “We will watch and hope for your success.”

Alex nodded, sitting for a moment, gathering his thoughts and working his magic. He knew what he would find at the wall, and he knew that the shadow lands would call to him as they had before. He focused his mind on his friends, the people he cared for on this side of the wall, and on what the future might hold for him. Alex thought of his hopes and dreams, everything that would keep him anchored to this side of the wall and to life.

Once he was ready, Alex took Tara’s right hand in his own left hand. Pausing for a moment to focus his magic, he placed his right hand on top of Tara’s hand. Softly, he called her name.

It happened much slower than the last time he’d worked this magic. Alex called Tara’s name three times before he felt himself moving away from his friends under the oak trees. Slowly his vision cleared, and once more he found himself climbing a grass-covered hillside in a shadowy land.

Tara was not standing at the top of the hill. Worried, Alex hurried to the hilltop, and looking down the far side, he could see the stone wall that divided the land of the living from the land of the dead. There, about halfway down the hill, stood Tara. She looked confused and afraid, as if unsure which way she should go or what she should do.

“Tara,” Alex called softly, moving down the hill toward her.

“Have you come for me?” Tara asked as Alex approached. “Am I to go over the wall then? Does my mother wait there?”

“Calm yourself, Tara. I have come for you, yes, but not to take you across the wall.”

“But my mother is there,” Tara protested.

“Your mother is not beyond the wall, Tara. Your mother was half-elf and has gone to the halls of waiting with her people.”

“How . . . how do you know this?” Tara questioned as she searched the wall with her eyes.

“I know many things, and I know that if your mother was beyond the wall we would see her there now, waiting for you,” Alex answered. “Let go of your desire to find her there, before it is too late.”

“I . . . I do not remember my mother,” said Tara with a sob. “I can’t even remember her face. I hoped to see her here, but . . . there is nothing.”

“Your mother is alive in you, Tara. To see her, all you need to do is look in a mirror, or at your sisters and brothers. Your mother is alive in all of you.”

“Who . . . who are you?” Tara asked, looking away from the wall and sounding tired and confused.

“I am a friend. I have come to help you, but you must also help yourself.”

“I do not know you. Why should I trust you or believe anything you say?”

“We have never met, that is true. But your friends, Nellus and the rest of your company, have told me about you, and I feel that I know you.”

“Perhaps you know something of me, but that is no reason for me to trust you,” Tara pointed out.

“You speak truly, so to win your trust, I will tell you something of myself and how I came to know you.”

Alex told the story of how he and his friends had rescued Nellus and his company from the bandits. He also told Tara about his attempt to cure her and Nellus’s request that Sindar call her back.

Tara listened to all that he said, but she did not speak.

“Last of all I will tell you this,” said Alex. “I am a warrior and a healer. I am also a wizard. Because of this, I know and feel your sorrow. I have felt your sorrow as if it were my own. I know how much you wish to see and remember your mother. I know what it means to lose a mother, Tara, as I have also lost my mother.”

“You know much and say many things,” Tara replied slowly as Alex paused. “I feel that I should trust you, and I hope that you can help me. I feel so lost, and I don’t know what to do.”

“I will help you,” said Alex. “Seeking your mother here will do you no good, and your sorrow only weighs you down. You must let go of your sorrow, but remember your mother. Seek joy and fulfillment in life, Tara, as your mother would wish you to.”

“You speak well,” said Tara, turning to look back at the shadow lands. “I will do as you ask.”

“Then come,” said Alex, taking Tara’s hand. “We must return to the world of light and leave the shadow lands behind us.”

“They look so pleasant,” Tara said softly as Alex led her up the hill.

“Those beyond the wall find them so. Your time to cross over the wall is far distant. Now you must return and look for happiness in life.”

“I will try,” said Tara, her voice almost a whisper. “It will be difficult, but I will try.”

“Then you have already won a victory,” said Alex as they reached the top of the hill. “I hope that you will have many more.”

Alex opened his eyes and looked up at the concerned faces around him and gave them a weak smile. He turned, and after a moment, he spoke to the young woman by his side.

“Tara,” Alex said softly, squeezing her hand. “Tara, can you hear me?”

“Yes,” Tara replied weakly. “Where are we?”

“We have returned.”

“Returned? Returned from where?” Tara asked as she sat up, her voice growing slightly stronger. She looked at Alex in wonder and confusion. Her expression changed suddenly, as she looked wildly around for the bandits she remembered had attacked. It took a few minutes to calm her down, and as her fears vanished, the confused look returned.

Alex smiled at her and leaned forward. He whispered a few words in her ear, and then, sitting back, he spoke a single word.

“Remember.”

Tara looked puzzled for a moment, and then she burst into tears. She clung to Alex’s hand as she cried, as if afraid to let go. The members of both companies quickly busied themselves about their camps. For a long time, Tara continued to cry, and Alex did his best to comfort her.

“Thank you,” Tara said at last. “Thank you for helping me.”

“It was . . .” Alex began and stopped. “It was my very great pleasure to help you.”

Tara smiled and kissed Alex’s hand before letting it go.

Alex felt slightly embarrassed by the attention, but he said nothing. He felt sure that, in time, Tara would be able to let go of her sorrow and look forward to all that life had to offer. Alex gave Tara some privacy so she could recover herself to face her friends. He was relieved, even relaxed, and it felt like a great weight had been lifted from his own heart as well.

“You are most kind, Master Taylor,” said Nellus when Alex joined the others at the campfire. “We are even more in your debt.”

Alex nodded. He knew that Nellus and his company would honor him, but it seemed like a small thing. What mattered most to him was that Tara had returned by her own choice, and that he had been able to help her.

“Once again, you risk your own safety for others,” Sindar commented softly.

“What safety did I risk?”

“You went to the wall of your own free will,” Sindar answered. “There is danger there, even for elves, yet you went to help a woman you do not know and to whom you owe nothing.”

“I went because I could help. I chose to help Tara rather than let her cross the wall alone and before her time. There was little risk to myself.”

“So you say,” said Sindar, looking troubled. “But the wall is always a dangerous place for the living, no matter how strong they are.”