Taming the Elements: Elwin Escari Chronicles: Volume 1 (48 page)

The sun was warm in the blue sky, but the breeze was cool.

Elwin sat on a green field speckled with white flowers. He picked one. Rounded at the base, it narrowed toward the top, then flowered outward making lips all around. He wasn’t sure what it was called.

A woman stood before him. He had not noticed her a moment ago.

She wore a simple white gown with long sleeves. Her long blond hair hid her face as she bent over to pluck a flower. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and sniffed the petals. Her smile made the day seem brighter. Her eyes were crystal blue, like his, and she had smooth cheeks.

He would place her age at not more than twenty years.

“These are tulips,” she said. “They were always my favorite flower.”

“Your voice,” Elwin said. “I know your voice.”

“As you should,” she smiled.

“Who are you?”

“My name is Athina.”

Elwin remembered his dreams. Zeth had been in all three of them. Then he realized, “Asa wasn’t real.”

“None of it was,” she said. “Yet, it was more real than you know. But that is over now.”

“You were the one singing,” Elwin realized. “What is happening?”

“Abaddon, the Seeker of Souls, has been battling for
your
soul,” she said. “And he lost.”

He remembered falling asleep in the cave and being chased through the shadow realm. His dreams that followed had seemed as real as …
this
.

“I am still dreaming.”

“Yes, in a way,” she said. “And you will wake soon.”

“I don’t understand,” Elwin said. “How were my dreams a battle? How did I win?”

“Abbadon is the greatest deceiver the world has known,” Athina said. “He was trying to poison your soul with greed, malice, and hate. But he was blinded by his own vices, and you could not be corrupted.”

Elwin looked away from her.

“What is the matter?”

“I remember how angry I was,” Elwin said. “I was ready to kill Zeth. If I had stayed for much longer, then I think I would have. What does that mean?”

“There are those in this life who are born to oppose the evils of this world,” she said. “Destroying evil does not make you corrupt. Finding joy in your heart in
causing
destruction is what makes one evil. Did you find any joy in the moment you decided to kill him?”

“No,” Elwin said. “It felt wrong. I never want to kill anyone ever again. I only wanted to save Asa. I would have done anything to save her. I would have killed everyone in that room to protect her from them.”

“That was Abaddon’s error,” Athina said. “Your actions were born from a place of love, not hate or malice. That is why Abaddon could not gain power over you. He
is
malice, hate, and deceit. Every time you denied him, he lost power over you.”

Elwin stood up. “Your voice. You sang to me in every one of the dreams. I heard you my first night in the shadow realm. Who are you really?”

“You are my heart, Elwin,” she touched his face. It made him feel at peace. “I am with you everywhere you go.”

Her skin began to fade, as if she was an apparition.

“Wait,” he said. “What happens now?”

“You must wake,” she said. “And always remember … The good that is within you is greater than the evil that is in the world.”

Then she was gone.

Elwin’s eyes began to lull. He sat down. The ground was soft like a feathered bed. He laid on his side. Perhaps he would rest for just a moment.

Elwin blinked several times. His eyes were dry.

Light filled the cave, but his surroundings were slow to focus. Feffer and Daki stood over him, holding their weapons. Taego watched him with unblinking eyes.

“They’re blue.” Feffer’s voice held a tone of disbelief. He lowered his sword and looked at Daki. “His eyes are blue.”

“What else would they be?” Elwin said.

Daki smiled, “The Darkness of Spirit is no longer in you.” He sheathed both of his blades with a single motion.

Elwin tried to sit up, but his muscles were slow to respond. Both Feffer and Daki rushed to help him into a sitting position and leaned him against the cavern wall.

“I feel like I have been running for days without sleep,” Elwin said.

“What happened?” Feffer said.

Elwin thought about his dreams for a moment. They felt like memories of events that had happened rather than dreams. He could remember the feel of holding Asa. In that dream, he had memories of being married to Zarah. He felt his cheeks flush. Those memories would be difficult to forget.

“I was dreaming,” Elwin said, “but I wasn’t. It is difficult to explain. I don’t think that I understand it myself.”

“But,” Feffer said, “you are fine, now?”

“I think so,” Elwin said. “I just feel really weak.”

“Perhaps, we should rest here for one more day,” Daki said.

“No,” Elwin shook his head. “I need to get to Goldspire. I need to get to Zarah as fast as possible. And Jasmine. Give me a few moments. I think I can sit a saddle.”

“Elwin,” Feffer said. “We will only be delayed by one more day. It has been several tendays.”

“I found them last night,” Elwin said. “Before I was
taken
. I need for her … uh … them to know that I am alright.”

“Can’t you find them, tonight?” Feffer asked.

“I am going to try,” Elwin said. “But I am not sure how I even did it. I just remember that I had nowhere else to run. Then, I closed my eyes, preparing to be … I thought I was going to die. But, when I opened them, there she was. Then, I was taken.”

“Taken by what?” Feffer asked.

“Abaddon,” Elwin said. “The Seeker of Souls.”

Feffer stared at him with a blank expression. Daki looked toward the exit.

“Help me up,” Elwin said.

Feffer and Daki both offered him a hand. He let them do most of the pulling and used the cavern wall to steady his legs. They felt weaker than he wanted to admit.

“I can ride,” Elwin said. “You will have to help me into the saddle.”

Daki crossed his arms over his chest. “I will take us to the pass. But I will not take us farther, until you have rested.”

Feffer was nodding, and his mouth made a slight frown.

“Alright,” Elwin said. “Where is this pass?”

“We will travel west along the mountain’s base,” Daki said. “Then we will come to a crevice that will pass us through the mountain, rather than over it. It will save a day or more of travel. On the other side of the pass will be the Mystic Valley. This is giant territory, so we need all our strength.”

“I am fine,” Elwin said. “By then, I will be as good as new.”

Elwin ducked to walk out of the cave opening, and Feffer followed close behind. His legs wobbled with each step, but he forced them to comply with his will to leave the cave. Elwin had to move bushes and limbs aside to pass through the copse. He was careful not to let them fling back at Feffer.

On the other side, the trees were not as thick but still thick enough to hide the opening to the cave. The rock face behind the thicket went straight up. Even craning his head, he could not see the top of it.

“A whole mountain,” Feffer said. “And I never even saw it.”

“It was dark,” Elwin said. “I didn’t see it either.”

Elwin realized he had been moving his shoulder around without the lingering soreness. He pushed his shirt aside. The black lines were no longer there. There was a round, pink scar about the size of the tip of his small finger. “The lines are gone,” he told them.

Feffer let out a long sigh. “I would be lying if I said that I was never worried.”

“Maybe we will survive this after all,” Elwin said.

Feffer raised an eyebrow. “Did you not hear, Daki? We have to pass giants.”

“I just fought the Seeker over my soul and won.” Elwin shrugged. “I think I can handle a few giants. Besides, I don’t think giants can fly. Have you heard that they can?”

“No,” Feffer said, “But neither can I. And don’t be pompous.” He shivered. “Let’s not talk about that other thing. You’re fine now. Let’s just get out of these woods.”

“We have to wait for Daki.”

Feffer slapped at a bite-me on his neck. “Where in the abyss is he?”

As if summoned, Daki exited the copse, the bushes did not so much as rustle. A small pouch of white leather hung from a cord around his shoulder. A moment later, the copse rattled as if shaken by a giant’s hand, and Taego emerged.

“Finally,” Feffer said swatting at a fly. “Can we get out of this giant and bite-me filled abyss already?”

“If fate smiles upon us,” Daki said, “we will not see any giants. I can do little about the insects.”

“Well,” Feffer said. “Pardon me, if I don’t trust
fate
. Fate has not been to kind to me over the last couple of tendays.”

“Don’t mind him,” Elwin said. “He is always grumpy until he has eaten.”

“We are not far from sucrais.”

“Sucrais?” Feffer asked.

“Bushes that hold red berries the size of a fist.”

“Lead the way,” Feffer smiled.

Chapter
2
7

Hunting Grounds

Elwin looked up. A tower of grey cliffs stretched up for leagues on either side of him, just wide enough for light to squeeze through. In a few places, both sides would come together, making a bridge across the narrow passageway. They had to coax Haven to climb over or crawl under the joining boulders. But for the most part, they could just walk, sometimes two abreast.

Elwin followed behind Daki. Ahead of the Chai Tu Naruo, Taego lumbered forward as far from the horse as possible. Feffer trailed them at a distance to keep Haven under control. Despite two days of traveling with the bear, the horse remained skittish. Not that he could blame her. Traveling with a bear wasn’t exactly an everyday occurrence.

He had to admit, the bear seemed more docile than even Haven. Elwin no longer worried whether the bear would grow hungry and decide to eat anyone. In fact, the bear seemed to prefer berries and nuts to anything else. He snubbed rabbit but loved fish. But Haven didn’t seem convinced the bear was harmless. Maybe she would with time.

Elwin liked riding her, but it felt good to be using his own legs again. He felt stronger than he had since before leaving Justice. It had taken half a day to reach the pass, then they had camped the remainder of that day to rest. That night he had entered the shadow realm to find the protective sanctuary around his body in tact. He had tried to find Zarah, but he could not figure out how to do so. Focusing on a location, he could
will
himself to
be
there, but no matter how he had focused on Zarah, nothing had worked. He felt like a coward, but it had actually been a relief. Elwin may have
defeated
Abaddon, but he still feared him. He did not want to feel those unseen eyes on him ever again. Now, he knew what lurked beyond sight. He felt a chill and shivered.

At first light, they had entered the crack in the mountain. A full day of travel had taken them most of the way through the pass. Before long they would emerge into what Daki had called the Mystic Valley. And it couldn’t come soon enough. The Elements felt different here.

He could feel the power of Air, but the power of Earth overpowered almost everything. If pressed, he could probably tame enough energy to fly, but it took effort to even pull Air into his essence. He had tried to open himself to the power, but he had to actively focus to draw any in. And it was too exhausting to be productive. He could sense the power of Water even less, though Fire was still in abundance. Heat still emanated in the rocks and air around them.

Still, even Fire paled in comparison to the overwhelming power of Earth. Many times, he found himself opening his essence to Earth without thinking about it. The last time he had tamed power without knowledge, he had killed someone. Fortunately, releasing the power was the same as it was with Air; otherwise, the experience could have ended in disaster. Being that there was a mountain on all sides of him and all.

“We are almost there,” Daki said.

Without seeing the sun, he couldn’t track the hours. But when they had stopped for lunch a few hours past, Daki had said it was noon. If Elwin had to guess, he would say it was the sixteenth hour.

Long before seeing the path widen, Elwin felt the power of Air rush toward him. He almost opened his essence to it just to feel the power fill him, but he refrained. His essence felt no lasting effects of the battle for his soul, but he wanted to conserve his strength for what may lay ahead.

A few more paces, and Elwin could see the bright of day. Judging by the sun in the western sky, he had been correct on his estimation of the hour.

Taego stopped at the opening and Daki knelt down. He placed a hand on the bear’s back and peered into the valley.

Elwin looked over Daki’s shoulder. Extending from the opening, countless large boulders, stacked atop one another, sloped downward into a natural stair-like formation. To his right, the rocks of the mountain rose to great heights and stretched far to the north. Below and above, trees had grown as far as the eye could see. Beyond the trees at the edge of the horizon, he could see white peaks rising into the sky.

“Wow,” Feffer said in Elwin’s ear.

“Welcome to the Mystic Valley,” Daki said. “My people use this for a training ground.”

“Training?” Feffer said. “Aren’t there giants?”

“Of course. How else could we train to hunt giants?”

“You
hunt
giants? Why would you do that?”

“If we don’t hunt them, they will hunt us. And when their populace grows, they venture into the soft lands. We have an agreement with your king to keep this from happening.”

“Wait,” Elwin said. “Your people have an alliance with Justice?”

“Of course. We are neighbors.”

Feffer leaned over Elwin’s shoulder and looked into the valley. “Well. I am not interested in hunting giants. In fact, I would like to never meet one. So, how can we make that happen?”

“Once we reach the valley floor, we will travel north alongside the mountain. This is where the forest is not so thick with trees, but the pass is narrow. So the giants avoid it. Once we reach the river, we will travel north and west.”

“What river?” Feffer said. “There is no river on my map.”

“He has taken us this far,” Elwin said. “If he says there is a river, then I believe him.”

“I know,” Feffer said. “I believe him. I just don’t understand how a cartographer missed an
entire
river.”

“The river comes from snow melting in the mountains,” Daki said. “It then empties into the mountain and travels to the Depths. The men of cities have no use for it. That is probably why it is not drawn on your maps.”

“Why are we still standing here?” Feffer said.

“I must warn you,” Daki said. “The giants will sometimes come here for game, and they are rarely alone. We must travel with caution. If you see one, there will be more.”

“Wait,” Feffer said. “You just said they avoid it here.”

“They do. Mostly, they visit the river. But sometimes they chase their game here.”

Feffer took in a deep breath. “Maybe giants aren’t as bad as the stories say.”

Daki laughed as if Feffer had told a great joke. “I don’t know the stories you have been told, but the Jojindun tribe will kill you simply to enjoy watching you die.”

“Do they really eat people?” Feffer asked.

“Yes. But, they will make sport of your death first.”

“Sport? What do you mean?”

Daki shook his head. “If we come across any Jojindun, you will see what I mean. We should move quietly.”

“How is the
bear
going to move quietly?” Feffer asked. “And what do we do with Haven?”

“Taego can move with stealth when he needs to,” Daki said. “And I will speak with Haven.”

“You’ll speak with Haven?” Feffer said doubtfully.

Daki nodded but gave no reply. He moved to the horse, stroked her side and murmured in her ear. She nuzzled him when he was finished.

“What did she say,” Feffer said with mockery in his voice.

“She will move quietly,” Daki said in a serious tone.

“Are you sure it won’t be better to go over the mountain?” Elwin said.

“There is less cover for us,” Daki said. “And it will take us a tenday or more to circle the valley by climbing the mountain. We have at most three days through the path I know.”

“Through the mountain then,” Elwin said.

“Lead the way,” Feffer said. “Lead the thumping way.”

Daki nodded and turned from the crevice. He leapt, more than stepped from rock to rock, and he bounded far ahead of them toward the valley. If Daki’s steps made any sound, Elwin could not hear it.

Taego took precise steps, no louder than Daki’s. In the same fashion as Daki, even Feffer sprung from rock to rock without a sound.

Haven moved to follow Feffer without being guided. Elwin reached for her reins out of reflex but missed. She moved with more precision than Taego had, and even the horse made little sound. He took a breath and moved to follow.

However he tried to avoid them, every twig and bramble on the boulders seemed to jump beneath his feet as he stepped. Every step made a crunch, even when it appeared there was nothing to crunch.

Daki stopped ahead.

When Elwin caught up to him, Daki turned and whispered, “Do you think that you have the energy to fly?”

“Yeah,” Feffer said. “
Maybe
you can make less noise by flying.”

Elwin felt his cheeks flush. “I can fly, but shouldn’t I preserve my strength?”

Daki shook his head. “We will attract attention unless we move with stealth.”

“I could move slower. Maybe I could miss more twigs?”

“You already move too slowly, and we do not wish to camp in the open. We must reach our destination before nightfall.”

“Maybe I could just follow you and Feffer more closely.”

“It is not our path that makes our movements quiet. It is training.”

Feffer’s voice was a harsh whisper. “What he’s trying not to say is that you move louder than a deer in rut. You need to thumping fly. And try not to make any noise doing it for Life’s sake.”

Elwin felt a twinge of anger but bit his tongue. He took a quick breath and said, “Fine. I’ll fly.”

He had no reason to avoid taming, and he had tested his essence many times since waking from the
dream
. He felt normal. Still, Elwin hesitated before opening his essence to Air. In truth, he
wanted
to fly. He missed the rush of wind around him. So, why did he fight so hard to avoid it?

As he opened his essence to Air, memories of his dreams became vivid in his mind, and he realized why he had been avoiding taming. There was a moment in that dream when he had
known
how to tame all of the Elements. And he had been ready to kill with them. It
had
been just a dream, but Elwin thought he remembered how to tame the Elements to kill. Above all else,
that
made him afraid. Anything that had come from Abaddon, even knowledge, could not be good.

He took a deep breath and tamed flight. A slight breeze stirred, making the leaves on the ground rustle, and knocked a small pebble fall off the closest boulder. It skipped down the mountainside. Reverberations from stone striking against stone echoed into the valley.

Feffer turned his head and stared at Elwin with wide eyes. He shook his head and breathed, “Dragons take me. After all we’ve been through, we’re still going to die.”

Elwin felt his cheeks flush as he rose a few feet off the ground. He began to pull Air from above, rather than all around. The leaves below settled.

Daki breathed a sigh of relief and said, “Come.” Then, he continued leaping down the mountain, and Feffer followed after him.

Taming Air, Elwin became more aware of his companions movements. He did not have to look behind him to know Haven followed, because he could feel movements in the Air as she stepped. What had Daki said to her to make her step so softly? It didn’t matter. Whatever it had been, it worked. Though the horse was the loudest of their group, he could only make out a faint clopping with her steps.

Daki led them along the mountainside, and Elwin followed, trying to watch everywhere at once. He did not see how an
entire
race could be inherently evil, but he did not want to find out why they were infamous first hand either. But, none of the trees rustled or shook. Surely, they would have heard a giant coming a league away.

The boulders leveled out and gave way to grass as the mountain met the valley floor. Daki moved from boulder to boulder, keeping the forest and trees to his left. They traveled with few words beyond discussing the best path. Feffer’s eyes watched the trees as intently as Elwin. Even Daki’s eyes were wide and alert.

By the time the sun fell beyond the mountains, Elwin felt exhausted. Not from the exertion of taming Air for an extended period, but from staring at the unmoving trees. When Daki stopped, Elwin almost flew into him.

“We will rest in this cave,” Daki whispered.

Elwin looked to the mountainside to his right. He could not see any caves. A boulder the size of a farmhouse nestled up against the mountain.

“What cave?” Feffer said quietly.

“Come.”

Daki walked around the massive boulder. At the boulder’s base, there was a small crack. It was just large enough to squeeze into. Beyond the hole was darkness.

Elwin eased to the ground and emptied his essence.

Feffer said what Elwin had thought. “I don’t think Taego and Haven can fit in there.”

“It is much larger on the inside,” Daki said. “Taego and I have slept here before, but you will have to tether Haven to a tree.”

Feffer tied Haven off on a nearby tree, then returned to the small opening.

“So,” Feffer said, “do we have anymore of those berries?”

“No,” Daki smiled, “but we passed over game tracks. If you will gather some wood for a fire, I will find us a meal. Gather enough to last the night. After the sun leaves the sky the cave will become dark.”