Aerenden: The Child Returns (Ærenden) (14 page)

“No
kidding?” Nick asked, pride spreading a grin across his face. “That’s fantastic
news.”

“It
is,” Cal agreed. He picked up the jug and uncorked it. After topping off Nick’s
mug, he poured another sampling into his own. “Welcome back, Meaghan,” he
directed toward the mouth of the cave. “You’ve been asleep for a while. Do you
feel better?”

“Yes,
thank you,” she responded. She exited the shadows of the mountain and joined
them at the rock. Although she still limped, Nick was relieved to see that pain
no longer lined her face.

Cal
handed her his mug. “This will help, though it’s not quite medicine. You’ll
need to see a Healer soon or you won’t get much further. There’s a village with
one not far from here.”

“We’ll
detour there tomorrow,” Nick decided. He sat down on the rock, pulling Meaghan
down with him. “For now, stay off your feet as much as you can.”

She
nodded and took a sip from the cup in her hand, choking before Nick had a
chance to warn her about its contents. He had seen her drink less than a half
dozen times, and only beer or wine Vivian and James had given her, never
liquor. Her eyes widened and she turned them on Cal.

“What
is this?”

“My
famous spirit,” Cal beamed. “Do you like it?”

“It’s,”
she hesitated, “strong.”

Cal
laughed. “I was telling Nick about May’s promotion. She’s an Elder now.”

“Who’s
May?” Meaghan asked. “And what’s an Elder?

Cal
knit his brows together in confusion before he turned the look on Nick. “Geez,
lad, you haven’t told her anything. Does she think she’s still on Earth, too?”

“Don’t
be sarcastic,” Nick muttered before addressing Meaghan’s question. “The Elders
are a panel of five Guardians who regulate the Guardian community.”

“They’re
down to four now,” Cal said. “The Mardróch got two of them a few months ago.
May was the only one they trusted enough to promote, so they’re staying short
one Elder for a while.”

“Who
did we lose?”

“Silus
and Morgan, but I’m sure that’s no surprise to you. Those two have been pushing
an aggressive agenda for too long. Their Mardróch nighttime raids were bound to
catch up with them eventually.”

“It’s
not a surprise, but it’s a shame,” Nick responded. “There aren’t many Guardians
with active powers left. Silus’ ability to bend matter and Morgan’s pyrokenesis
would have been helpful in the final plans.”

“If
we could trust them to stick to the plans,” Cal countered. “I don’t know if we
could have.”

“There’s
no way to know now,” Nick said and turned back to Meaghan. “May is my mother.
Her full name is Maiyahla. She was Vivian’s sister.” He hesitated, debating if
he should tell Meaghan any more, but decided to trust her as Cal had
recommended. He took her hand in his. “You should also know they were identical
twins. You’ll meet my mom soon and it may be hard for you to see her.”

“I’ll
be all right,” she assured him. She squeezed his hand before letting it go. “I
did fine with Cal, didn’t I? He looks a lot like my father.”

“I
should,” Cal told her. “James was my younger brother.”

“I
thought so. You and Dad have the same eyes.”

“As
did our father,” Cal said. A smile crossed his face. It only lasted a moment
before fading. “James was a good man and I’m sure he made a fine father.”

“He
did.”

Cal
nodded. “But I’m afraid you can’t address him by that name on this world.”

“What
name?” Meaghan asked.

“You
can’t call him your father. I know he was to you, but to the people on this
world, he wasn’t.”

“Why
should anyone care what I call him?”

“It’s,”
he rubbed the back of his neck, “complicated.”

“And
Mom?”

“You
should call her Vivian.”

“I
see.” Meaghan tightened her hands around her mug and drew them into her lap.
Her shoulders stiffened, but she did not press the issue. Nick realized her
leniency for Cal would not extend to him when they were alone later. “I’ll be
mindful of your request,” she told Cal. “It won’t be easy to remember to call
my parents by their proper names. I’ve been calling them Mom and Dad almost my
entire life. But I’ll try.”

“I
appreciate that,” Cal said. “Let’s leave the serious topics alone for the rest
of the evening. Dinner should be done soon and I imagine you two are starving.”

“And
then some,” Meaghan agreed. “It smells heavenly, by the way. I don’t even care
what it is. I want to eat until I can’t move.”

Cal
laughed and scooped her into his arms, shaking his head when she started to
protest. “No walking,” he reminded her. “You’ll have plenty of time to agitate
your injury tomorrow. Tonight, let’s feast. And when we’re done, let’s empty
the jug of its spirit. It’s time to celebrate your homecoming.”

T
ONGUES OF
fire cast halos into the abyss, commanding them to their deaths in the near
endless dark. Where the light found a place to settle, it revealed more than
Meaghan wanted to see. The walls bled water, a slow seeping which trailed
mineral formations behind it. Thousands of years had crafted the formations
into shapes. Some became distorted animal outlines while others twisted into
writhing ghosts. Where water oozed from the ceiling, it hardened into sharp,
gray icicles that reached for her when she passed beneath them. Although she
knew the sinister shapes were only a betrayal of her imagination, fright still
kept her within a step of Cal. At times, she trailed so close she almost ran
into him when he stopped.

They
had been traveling through the caves since morning. Their route traversed
narrow passageways and cramped rooms, forcing them to stoop to pass. They
wandered up steep slopes and down into valleys, over rivers and beside canyons.
She had never realized caves could be so complex, but Nick explained that hundreds
of miles of cave systems interconnected the mountains. They could be dangerous
for those who did not know them well. Folklore told of fierce warriors driven
into them by advancing armies, lost forever. Nick shared some of those stories.
While they frightened Meaghan, Cal chuckled at the story, unconcerned as he led
them through the underground maze. He stopped every so often to lay a hand on
the wall, nodding in the direction they should follow.

In
his other hand, he held a torch fashioned from a short tree limb wrapped in
cloth. Nick carried a similar torch. Both torches burned steadily, never waning
despite the hours they wandered. Mesmerized by the limitless flames, Meaghan
watched the fire dance in front of her, and marveled at Cal’s command over his
power. She hoped someday she could gain the same control, but she had her
doubts. Since she had met the man, his emotions controlled half her mind. She
fought to separate them from her own, but found the chore exhausting. Her power
continued to grow stronger on this world and she had yet to figure out how to
manage it.

After
they stopped for a lunch of leftovers, they entered a cavern so large Meaghan
could not see the ceiling. An eerie glow emanated from above, bathing the room
in faint light. To their right, a landslide of boulders and small rocks blocked
the path. And to the left, a pebble-laden shoreline descended into the
ink-black waters of a lake. The lake stretched out in front of them, its far
shores obscured by dark and distance. She could hear splashing as fish leapt
from the water and dove back under the surface. An occasional ripple indicated
movement. She watched several dance in succession close to the shore, and then
a large one drifted toward them.

Cal
moved in front of Meaghan as Nick stepped forward to do the same. A line of
spikes broke the water from the center of the ripple. Following the spikes, a
head emerged. Two round, milky orbs came next, protruding from a bulbous face
covered in scales. Metallic colored lids descended over the orbs several times
in quick succession and Meaghan realized the creature was blinking. A serpentine
tongue flicked from its gaping mouth as it rotated its orbs to focus on Cal,
then it climbed onto the shore, revealing a toad-like body and elephantine
legs. Although it stood the height of a large dog, its body held twice the
mass. It pawed thick, webbed feet into the dirt, and then settled them.

“What
is that thing?” Nick asked.

“I
don’t know,” Cal responded. “There are a lot of weird beasts down here that
don’t exist on the surface. Keep your eyes on it. I’ll try to clear the path.”

Cal
managed only a few steps toward the rockslide before the creature let out a
high-pitched howl. Cal froze, but the effort came too late. Without any further
warning, the animal charged toward them, its massive legs spraying rocks behind
it.

Nick
lowered his torch and swung it at the creature. He missed, and the beast circled,
its speed quickening. It lowered its head, pointing its sharp spikes at Nick’s
stomach, and then let out a pig-like squeal when Cal’s torch met its backside.
It reared up, rounding to face its attacker.

Cal
took a step back as the animal continued to stand on its hind legs, using its
webbed feet to try to push him down. He fenced it off with his torch, the fire
trailing and leaping as he swung it through the air, then he waved a hand
toward the rockslide and the earth rumbled. Rocks fell, rolling away from the
path to reveal a small opening.

“Go,”
Cal commanded. “I’ll catch up.”

Nick
pulled Meaghan onto the pathway. He ran, but she planted her feet, tearing her
arm from his grip when the steady fear she had sensed from Cal changed to pain.
She turned, hurrying back into the cavern before Nick could stop her. Cal lay
on the ground, his torch several feet away. The beast advanced on him and he
struggled to his feet only seconds before webbed paws knocked him back down.
Meaghan felt his pain spike.

The
creature reared up, and she dove for the torch. Brandishing it, she attacked the
animal, knocking it away from Cal before it could crush him. She rolled with it
down the embankment, and then felt her leg snap when she hit a rock. Her own
intense pain joined with Cal’s in her mind. She opened her mouth to scream, but
inhaled water instead as the lake swallowed her and the creature, halting their
descent.

Weighted
by her clothes, she sank below the surface. She let go of the deadened torch
and struggled to find the lake floor with her feet. She felt only a current as
the beast moved underneath her. Thrashing her arms, she tried to swim but her
sweater weighed her down. She stripped out of it, kicked again, and found
purchase when her feet struck the creature’s back. Using all of her energy, she
launched up, breaking the surface of the water.

Air
rushed over her skin. She gasped a large breath before teeth clamped around her
injured leg and pulled her back down. The urge to scream almost forced her to
take another breath, but she curbed the reaction in time.

Black
water blinded her eyes. She heard nothing but her own frantic heartbeat and the
whoosh of the creature’s body as it descended with her into the depths. She
struggled, and then renewed pain shot through her as the grip on her leg
intensified. Cal’s emotions muted. Her lungs burned. Instinct finally forced
her to inhale water as the black haze of unconsciousness fringed her vision.
Death would not be far behind. She lost her strength and then a roar filled her
ears. She flew upward, floating, spinning in a whirlwind of pressure, and then
she fell.

Her
back hit the ground. Too weak to move, she stopped fighting and accepted whatever
came next. Softness pressed against her lips, separating them. Air filled her
lungs. She choked, coughed, and then hands pulled her onto her side. The water
in her lungs rushed out, and she succeeded in taking her next breath on her
own. Although labored, it felt like the greatest accomplishment of her life.
She struggled to rise, but failed when dizziness overcame her.

“The
beast is coming back,” she heard a distant voice say. “The water spout didn’t
deter it.”

“Take
her,” someone else responded. She thought she recognized the second voice as
Cal’s. Arms lifted her and she floated through the air again.

She
forced open her eyes. Nick held her. Cal ran close by. They fled into the
passageway. Cal raised a hand, flipping it toward the opening and the stones
tumbled back into place. Seconds later, darkness descended around them.

Meaghan
heard the sound of stone scraping stone. A spark shot from the wall, then turned
to fire as it caught the cloth on the remaining torch. Frantic scratching and
scraping emanated from the pile of rocks blocking the entrance and Nick and Cal
continued running. Up ahead, the pathway glowed from another opening. Rocks
scattered behind them, tumbling from the pile as the creature made progress.
Cal directed them into the new opening, and then waved his hand to seal it.

Brightness
seared Meaghan’s eyes. After half the day spent in shadows, they burned from
the light, and she squinted to allow them to adjust. The walls and ceiling of
the cave sparkled with hundreds of multi-faceted crystals in varying sizes.
Each cast a soft white glow from its center, turning the darkness of the deep
earth into daylight.