Chronicles of the Overworld Book 1 — Nihal of the Land of the Wind (13 page)

“Nihal, no one can see you here. Take off your cloak.”

Nihal shook her head. “No. I don’t want to endanger the rest of you.”

Pale, thin, and dressed all in black, Nihal looked diabolical. For a split second, Sennar was afraid of her. She wasn’t the same girl he’d met in Salazar. She’d changed, though he couldn’t say just how.

Once again, they got through the night without any problems. They stopped to rest shortly before dawn. After the experience of the previous day, it was wonderful to be able to sleep on the grass.

Nihal decided to take the first turn standing watch. She seized the opportunity to stretch her legs. She wanted to get her strength back as quickly as she could. She looked at the landscape around her, astonished that a little bit of paradise like this could exist in the midst of all the despair of war. She remembered the days of her trial in the Forest. It felt like something from another life.

A sound pulled her away from her thoughts. She turned with a start. It was Soana. They hadn’t spoken much since the day Soana had revealed the truth.

“Do you feel better?” The sorceress looked beautiful and powerful once again.

“Yes.”

“You can’t forgive me, can you?” Soana cut right to the point.

Nihal’s response was a curt, “No.”

She didn’t want to hurt Soana, but she had to get rid of the lump of resentment that was blocking her throat.

“That’s how it should be. I know how you feel. I know that nothing can ever make up for Livon’s death. I’d like you to know that I share your sorrow. Livon was my brother, Nihal.”

“You weren’t there when he died.”

“Your eyes tell the whole story.”

For a long moment, Nihal was silent as she fought back tears. “I don’t like being angry at you, Soana, but I am. I’m angry at the entire world. I’m angry with myself. I hate what I am.”

Soana bent her head. “I know, Nihal. I hate myself, too. I wasn’t capable of saving the Land of Wind. I left my brother to die. I didn’t know how to spare you this pain. But I’ve made a decision. When we reach the free lands, I’m going to resign from the Council. Sennar will take my place. I won’t be missed.”

This shook Nihal. “But why? You’re an important member of the Council.”

“It was my duty to watch over the Land of the Wind, to get a sense in advance for the Tyrant’s moves and to keep the Council informed. I failed, Nihal, pure and simple. I overestimated my abilities as a sorceress. Or maybe I underestimated the dark power of the Tyrant’s magic. In any case, it doesn’t matter. I’ve made an unpardonable mistake.”

“What will you do after?”

“I’m going to look for Reis. I have to know, Nihal. Not just for the Overworld, but, most of all, for you.”

Nihal looked the sorceress in the eyes. “You’ve always been a guide for me, Soana, but the ties we had are broken, and I don’t think we can repair them. But know that I still love you.”

Soana caressed Nihal’s head. “You’ve become a woman, Nihal.”

Although the night of the fourteenth day of walking found them still far from the border, their journey was about to end. In the distance, they could see the lights of an enemy encampment: more than twenty tents scattered around a small plain. The tent in the center was slightly bigger than the rest. It probably belonged to the head of the unit.

“Looks like this is the end of the road for us,” Sennar said. He took off his helmet. None of them had the slightest idea how to get to the other side of the front.

Soana, however, was not discouraged. “If there’s an enemy camp, then some of our troops are probably camped near here as well. We just need to get in touch with them.”

The sorceress settled onto the ground. “Sennar, the rocks for the magic circle.”

Sennar struggled to take off his armor. “I suppose it has its uses, but this stuff is really uncomfortable.”

He set to rummaging around in his rucksack and pulled out six rocks inscribed with runes. Soana set them at the tips of an imaginary star like the one she’d used to put Nihal through the fire test. After a while, a blue flame shone in the center. The sorceress began reciting a spell. A dense blue smoke rose up from the star and melted away into the air.

“This is how Fen and I communicate when we’re far apart. I don’t know where he is, but in all likelihood, he’s fighting on this front. I told him where we are. He’ll know where to find us when we get past the enemy camp.”

Sennar opened his eyes wide. “When we make it past the camp? How? It must be crawling with sentries.”

“Sentries can fall prey to drowsiness, Sennar; you know exactly what I mean. We’ll go forward as soon as we’ve heard from Fen. You’ll pretend to be a messenger, then you’ll put them to sleep. The wood sprites can fly over the area and Nihal and I will walk.”

Sennar didn’t like playing the hero, but he managed to convince himself that it was the only way to get past the enemy.

After two days of waiting, they all began to worry that Fen had not received the message. Only Soana remained optimistic.

“He’ll answer.”

On the morning of the third day, a dove came to them. Around its leg was a bit of paper containing brief instructions written in a very clear hand along with a few unfamiliar runes. Nihal couldn’t help but think that Fen had probably wanted to send the sorceress a secret message. Dreams lie, she told herself.

“We’ll have to act tonight. You should get going, Sennar.”

All night long, Sennar had fantasized about the moment when he would perform heroic deeds to free the Overworld from the Tyrant’s yoke, but now he felt far more fearful than he’d anticipated.

After some hesitation, he mustered up his courage, mounted his horse and prepared to go.

“Sennar!” Nihal stood not far from him, a smile on her face for the first time in days. “Good luck. Come back all in one piece!”

Sennar winked. “It will be a piece of cake.” He headed off.

It was hardly a peaceful wait. Nihal was upset by the idea that her friend was risking death. She couldn’t stand the idea of losing another person who was dear to her. She brooded the whole day, tense and preoccupied.

Phos did his best to distract her. “Cheer up! Just think—in a little while we’ll be leaving here. I can’t wait to be in the Land of Water. Rivers, endless forests, other wood sprites, peace …”

Nihal wasn’t listening. She alternated between biting her nails and fiddling nervously with her sword.

Not a sound came their way from the encampment; that was a good sign. They would probably have heard a ruckus if Sennar had been discovered.

Then night fell.

The plan was to meet Fen beyond the encampment at dawn, along the Great River. The wood sprites flew off, going as high as possible so their little lights would be less visible. Soana and Nihal also set out.

When they passed the entrance to the encampment, Nihal used magic to create a little flash of lightning, which was the sign they’d agreed upon in advance. Her heart in her throat, she waited for Sennar’s response. It felt like an eternity before he appeared from behind a tent, safe and sound. She would have liked to run to him and hug him, but she managed to restrain herself and simply whispered, “Are they all sleeping?”

“I think so. It took ages—this place is enormous. On the plus side, I managed to snag a couple of things. …”

Sennar pulled two long swords out of his bag, one for himself and one for Soana.

Even though everyone in the camp was sleeping, they slithered through the grass so as to make as little noise as possible. Aside from the Fammin, there were many men, as well, and some dwarves. All of them slept peacefully, their hands still clenched around jugs of cider, their open mouths emitting noisy snores. They had been celebrating the deaths of the innocent inhabitants of the Land of the Wind.

Nihal felt an overwhelming desire to set the camp on fire and watch them all die in its flames, but a thought held her back:
Not yet. All in good time.

The camp seemed endless. They moved slowly until the last outpost came into view. One last obstacle stood between them and Fen and safety. Nihal was excited at the prospect of seeing Fen after so long.

“Evil sorcerer! Traitor!” The cry rang through the night air.

Two Fammin appeared out of the darkness. They were far away but quickly gained ground.

“I thought you put them all to sleep,” Nihal yelled.

In a split second, she sized up the situation. There was no point in hiding. The best plan was to confuse them. She drew her sword and charged the two enemies.

The Fammin charged her, as well, but Nihal was not cowed. After a few passes, Nihal began to retreat. What little strength she had regained was already gone.
I can’t do it
. A splitting pain shot through her side. Her sword felt like lead.
I’m not going to make it
.

A bolt of green lightning passed over her head and incinerated the Fammin. Nihal turned, surprised.

Sennar was looking at her mockingly. “You’d better come up with a good way of paying me back. That’s the second time I’ve saved your life!”

“Enough chit chat, you crazy sorcerer. I don’t want any more surprises,” Nihal answered with a smile.

Soana and the two teenagers left the enemy encampment at a run.

They ran without stopping until they reached the banks of the Saar, where the wood sprites had been waiting. The pain in Nihal’s side was so fierce she could barely breathe.

“Let me see.”

Sennar lifted her tunic. The bandages were stained with blood.

Deaf to Nihal’s protests, Sennar made her lie on the ground and began to recite spells. She relaxed, her breathing became more regular, and in little time she felt well again.

“Thank you, Sennar. Thank you for everything.”

She looked up at the sky between half-closed lids. It was turning pink. In the glimmer of dawn, she saw three green spots drawing closer. Dragons.

Fen and his men had found them.

They were safe.

Later, the knight whispered something to Nihal. It was something about Gaart, but she was too tired to understand. She slept through her first dragon ride.

Nihal and the others were taken to a border village in the Land of Water. Soana had insisted on a modest welcome because she no longer considered herself a member of the Council and did not want to be a guest of Galla and Astrea at Laodamea.

The village was called Loos and it was one of the few where both nymphs and human beings lived together. It was a pleasant place, designed to facilitate the cohabitation of two such different races.

Houses were necessary for the humans, while the nymphs required trees where they could take shelter at night. Some parts of the village, therefore, were full of little houses on stilts sticking up over the water, while others were forested.

In the beginning, Nihal was stunned by the verdant chaos of Loos.

She and Soana were guests of a fisherman. The man was very kind to Nihal. After first seeing her so tired and battered, he made her stay in bed for two full days without allowing her to lift a finger. But her dreams came along punctually each night, and her pain was renewed each morning. She did everything she could to recover as quickly as possible. As soon as her legs would support her, she began to slip outside and wander around the splendid land.

And then there was Fen.

His encampment wasn’t far from the village, and he often came to Loos to see Soana. Nihal anxiously awaited his visits. It hardly mattered that he didn’t come for her, but for Soana—Nihal’s fantasies were all she had left. They helped keep her sad memories at bay.

Fen treated her with tenderness; they would talk and spar together. When she was dueling, Nihal’s mind would empty. It was to the best way to escape her sadness. With her black sword in hand, it seemed she could still feel Livon’s life pulsing through it. Her body would begin to move on its own, and her mind would go blissfully blank.

Sennar threw himself into his studies. He had argued forcefully against Soana’s decision to leave the Council. Of course he wanted to become a member right away, but not like this. He was fond of his teacher, and it did not make him happy to see her renounce her position. But Soana would not budge, so Sennar was forced to accept her choice. He resolved that if it was his destiny to join the Council, the least he could do was prepare to do so to the best of his abilities.

He spent his days deep in the books of the royal library and only returned to Loos in the evening, tired and hungry. Often, he was so tired he didn’t even bother to visit Nihal. But though their customary sunset conversations became increasingly rare, he hadn’t forgotten her.

One day, Nihal went to train in the woods where Phos and his companions had set up residence. Things weren’t going very well for the wood sprites.

“The nymphs treat us like servants,” Phos had complained. “In your eyes, they’re beautiful and full of grace, but let me assure you that they’re unbearable. ‘Bring me this.’ ‘Fetch me that.’ We didn’t come here to be their pages!” It was clear that soon the wood sprites would be migrating elsewhere.

That day, though, there was no one in the woods except for Nihal. Deep in concentration, she sent her sword slashing through the air. Sennar appeared silently, as usual, but Nihal had learned to perceive his presence.

“You’re not studying today?”

“No, I’m not studying today.”

Sennar handed Nihal the scroll he’d been carrying under his arm.

“I found this for you. I’ve been looking for it for a while.”

The crumpled and slightly charred page contained a big drawing of a city with extraordinarily high buildings over which a white tower reigned. The blue hair of half-elves going about their daily business was visible among the buildings. Below the image, an inscription in elaborate calligraphy read: “City of Seferdi, Land of Days.”

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it? It’s the only testimony to your people I was able to find in the library. I thought you’d be happy to have it.”

Nihal didn’t answer. She looked again and again at the timeworn scroll. Her eyes filled with tears.