Rising From the Ashes: The Chronicles of Caymin (34 page)

The tip of the staff sparked.

“You don’t want to be doing that.”

“Why?” Diarmit twirled the staff once and aimed it at Enat again. “I could’ve earned one of these without even trying.”

Enat smiled. “You think you earn a staff simply by being able to use magic?” She shook her head. “No, ’tis much more than that. And that’s what you’ll never learn from Angus. Come back to us, Diarmit.”

She took another step toward him when there was a sudden flutter of wings overhead. It seemed birds burst into flight from nearly every tree and Enat felt the forest floor shudder so powerfully that it knocked her off balance. She fell to one knee.

“No,” she whispered. She stood. “Give me my staff.”

Diarmit also looked around for the cause of the disturbance. “No! Stay back or I’ll use this.”

“Enough. I’ve no time for this.” She raised one hand and the staff in Diarmit’s grasp glowed white-hot.

He dropped it with a yelp of pain, and with one more gesture, she knocked him to the ground, immobile. She conjured ropes out of thin air and tied him tightly, adding another layer of magical power to bind him in place.

“I’m sorry to do this, but I can’t have you interfering again.”

She grabbed her staff and ran as fast as she could toward the village.

Enat was out of breath, clutching a stitch in her side by the time she arrived to the strangest sight she had ever seen.

Ríordán was walking slowly with Niall cradled, unconscious, across his great antlers while his mate, Osán, walked behind with Caymin draped over her broad back. The entire clan of badgers accompanied the elk, spread out, their heads up, sniffing the air as they kept guard. Beanna and a large flock of birds circled overhead. Enat heard them talking to one another as they kept watch. The other apprentices stood dumbfounded at the procession.

“What happened?”
Enat asked.

“Timmin,”
Beanna said as she landed on Enat’s shoulder.
“He attacked Caymin and other two-leg.”

Ríordán lowered his head so that Una, Cíana and Daina could pull Niall off the antlers and lay him on the ground. Una placed an ear over his chest.

“He’s alive.”

Enat went to Osán and reached up, lowering Caymin also to the ground where she cradled her head in her lap. Blood ran from Caymin’s nose and ears.

Broc approached.
“Little one?”
She nuzzled Caymin’s cheek until her eyes fluttered open.

“Stay still a moment,” Enat said when Caymin tried to sit up.

“Timmin?”

“He ran,”
said Beanna.

“He is a coward,”
Cuán said with a growl.
“He attacked the two-leg cubs without warning, and then fled when we came to their defense.”

Enat looked around, her brow furrowed.
“He is not gone. What did he do to you?”

“He still wants Péist. He…”
She shuddered with the memory.
“He used a spell to cause pain.”

Broc placed a paw on Caymin’s leg.
“The egg is waking.”

“What?”
Caymin sat up, swaying as she wiped the blood from her nose with her hand.

“What egg?”
Beanna asked.

“Péist,”
said Caymin.

“When we heard your screams, it began to shake.”

Caymin turned to Enat.
“I must go to him.”

“Give me a moment.”

Enat went to Niall, placing her hand over his chest and murmuring words. She instructed Daina to retrieve one of the potions stored in the meetinghouse.

“Give him four drops only. No more. I’ll return as quickly as I can.”

She went to Ríordán and Osán.
“Will you stay to keep watch until I return?”

“We will.”

She picked up her staff, and she and Beanna accompanied Caymin and the badgers to the sett. As they approached, Caymin stopped, rocked by the strength of the images and sensations she was receiving from Péist. She glanced up at Enat.

“He is waking.”

As soon as they entered the tunnel, they could see the illumination, rays of light emanating from the chamber where Péist had managed to dislodge his
khrusallis
from where it was buried. Wobbling within its crater of earth, the egg glowed and pulsed. Slight cracks had appeared in the shell with shafts of blinding light beaming from them.

“The worm is in there?”
Beanna asked as she hopped around it.

Caymin tried to pick it up.
“I cannot lift it.”
She looked at Enat in bewilderment.
“It is the same size. How is it so much heavier?”

Enat also tried lifting it and could not.
“I don’t know.”

Beanna strutted closer and peered into one of the cracks.
“I do not think you want him to hatch in here.”

Caymin quickly rolled the egg back up the tunnel, aided by the badgers as they pushed with their paws. Outside, they all gathered round the egg, keeping watch for any sign of Timmin.

Caymin turned to Enat.
“We cannot stay here. You know it as well as I. We bring danger to all the forest while Péist is here. Timmin will not stop, and Diarmit knows too much.”

“Diarmit is not a threat at the moment, as he’s lying where I left him, tied up,”
Enat said.

She held up her hands to stave off any further questions.
“You’re right. I’m not worried about us, but you and Péist will be targets as long as he’s this vulnerable. I hate to see you go, but I’m afraid you must.”

Caymin looked down at the egg, still rocking where it lay, and too heavy to carry.
“But how? And how long will this take?”

Enat shook her head.
“To my knowledge, no one alive has ever seen the birth of a dragon. I’ve no idea how long this can take or what will happen once he’s out of there.”

She thought for a moment.

“We’re going to need help.”

She cast a spell to help make the egg light enough for her to carry, and the motley group made its way back to the village, the badgers circling them as their guard.

When they arrived, the giant elk were lying there placidly, while the apprentices waited in agitation.

Niall was sitting up, holding his head, but the girls were pacing.

“What is it?” Una asked when she saw the glowing orb in Enat’s arms.

“I’ll tell you all more later, but for now, we need your help.”

Enat groaned a little as she set the egg down. She turned to the apprentices. “Cíana and Daina, can you gather a large bag of food, enough for a full moon cycle? Una and Niall, I need for you to gather a large quiver of arrows if you would.”

“I can do that myself,” Niall said.

“No!” Enat took a breath. “I don’t want any of you going anywhere alone just now.”

They left to do as she asked, and she went to the elk.
“May we ask a great boon of you? Caymin and Péist need safe passage from the forest. His egg is very heavy now, too heavy for us to carry, but I believe you can.”

Osán inclined her head.
“We will help.”

Broc whickered, and Caymin dropped to her knees.
“Where will you go, little one?”

“I do not know,”
Caymin said, her voice cracking as she buried her face in Broc’s fur.
“I just got you back, and now I must leave you again. But you are not safe while Péist and I are here.”

Caymin sat on the ground with the badgers gathered close, nuzzling her. In a short while, the others were all back – Niall and Una with a quiver bristling full of arrows, Daina and Cíana with a soft woven bag stuffed with food.

“Thank you,” Caymin said, standing to accept the things they brought.

Suddenly, the full realization that she was leaving the forest forever came over her and her eyes pricked with tears.

“We’ll see you again,” Cíana said, enfolding her in a hug. “I know it.”

Caymin didn’t see how that could happen, but didn’t trust her voice. She simply nodded. Daina hugged her also.

She climbed up onto Ríordán’s back, and Una and Niall together wrapped Péist’s egg in a cloth and hoisted it onto his back in front of Caymin. The giant elk got to his feet. Osán stood beside him.

“I can’t leave the others,” said Enat. “But I’ll walk a way with you.” She turned to the others. “Stay vigilant. Timmin is here and may return.”

As the two elk led the way out of the village, she said,
“I wish to stop by our cottage first.”

There, she disappeared inside, returning a moment later with Caymin’s old cloak and a bundle wrapped in a cloth.

They walked through the forest, Caymin having to bend almost flat against Ríordán’s back occasionally as he walked under low hanging branches that caught on his antlers and snapped back at her. The badgers accompanied them, and Beanna perched on Osán’s back.

They climbed the hill to the standing stones.

“This is as far as I can go with Timmin still here,”
Enat said. She handed the cloak and the bundle to Caymin, saying,
“I’ve been saving this, but I think you should have it now.”

Caymin unwrapped the cloth to reveal Enat’s bow, polished and carved with runes and spirals.
“I cannot accept this. It is yours.”

“I want you to have it.”

“It is so beautiful.”

“One thing more.”
Enat pressed something into Caymin’s hand.

Caymin stared at the dragon brooch Timmin had taken from the northman.

“I cannot think of anyone more worthy to wear this than a dragonmage,”
Enat said.

Tears spilled from Caymin’s eyes as she looked down at Enat.
“I cannot find words enough to thank you for all you have done for me.”
She looked at the badgers gathered around, staring up at her.
“Take care of one another. I will return if I can.”

She could see nothing as Ríordán ambled down the far side of the hill, taking care to place his hooves so as not to jar Caymin and Péist. Tears fell freely down her cheeks and she did not try to stop them. She only pressed her old cloak to her face to stifle her sobs.

“Do not cry, little one,”
said Beanna, flitting over to sit on her shoulder.

“I will miss all of you so much,”
Caymin said.

“You will not miss me. I am going with you.”

Caymin raised her tear-stained face.
“You are?”

“You need someone to look after you and the worm.”

CHAPTER 23

Nowhere to Hide

T
he western sky was streaked with reds and purples, and still the elk walked on. Caymin looked around in a daze.

“Where are we going?”

Osán glanced back at her.
“Enat asked us to take you toward the setting sun. She said you would be closest to the endless water there.”

Caymin pressed her hands to the wrapped egg cradled between her legs on Ríordán’s broad back. It was growing warmer.
“Why would we need to be near the endless water?”

“I do not know.”

Beanna sat nestled securely on Osán’s back.
“She must know something we do not.”

Caymin’s stomach growled, but she did not wish to eat while the elk plodded on without stopping to graze.

Ríordán must have heard.
“You should eat, little one. You do not know what you will face when we leave the protections of the forest.”

Caymin reached around to the bag of food, and pulled out some bread and cheese. She offered some to Beanna, and ate as darkness fell completely. Behind them a sliver of a moon rode high enough to be seen through the trees.

She tried to remain vigilant. Enat said she had taken care of Diarmit, but he had escaped before and Timmin was still a threat. If he knew they were on the move, he might be desperate enough to attack again.

Despite the danger, the rhythmic sway of Ríordán’s walk lulled her to sleep. She did not know how much time had passed when her head snapped up.