The Awakening (52 page)

Chapter Fifty-four

“Over there. I see it. Hurry now,” Filaree called, and she beckoned the others to join her. Behind the rock just as Elsinestra instructed, they found the covering that concealed the opening to one of the great funnels that fed light and air from the Heights to the forest below. During peaceful times, the shafts remained open, drawing the pure air from the sky above the city, and releasing it into the woods beneath it. Intricate panels of polished Noban and plant fiber directed and magnified the light from above as well, illuminating the woods of Lormarion and making it appear as if the sun was shining directly upon everything in the forest below.

The opening that they arrived at was placed at a bend in the funnel, and it was formerly used for maintenance. The Noban, though harder than most rock, grew lusterless over time with the wind rushing over it constantly. In order for it to retain its enormous reflective power, it needed to be polished occasionally. This trap door, as well as many others scattered all over the city, were constructed for that purpose. They provided the access to the tubes so that the elves could get inside and buff the dulled wood.

The funnels had been sealed from above when the Dark Lord’s intentions became known, and thus the amount of air that circulated throughout the forest below was restricted. The light was also shut off, and a blanket of darkness covered over everything below and left the woods perpetually gloomy except at its perimeters.

The inside of the funnel was smooth and slick. It was difficult to maintain a footing upon the interior surface. Small indentations were placed strategically for the workmen to step into when entering for purposes of upkeep and repair, but it required skill and balance in order not to slip and slide onto the next curve underneath, and then all the way to the bottom. They would have to maneuver around these bends as they descended. It was not possible to climb all the way down. It was quite a long distance to the surface.

Cairn and Filaree brushed the branches and leaves off of the trap door. Together they lifted the handles and pulled upward on the panel. It resisted their efforts at first, but then it gave way with a whooshing sound, and warm, stagnant air blew into their faces, forcing them backward.

“How is your leg feeling?” Robyn asked Davmiran.

“Much better. Thank you. It was not a serious wound.” He was unconcerned.

“Good. We have a long journey ahead of us and it would only make it more difficult if you were in pain,” Robyn said. “Dav?” he asked.

“Yes,” the boy replied.

“I have not had even a moment to talk with you, to comfort you, or even to welcome you back to this world. I can imagine how difficult all this has been. You have barely had the opportunity to regain your bearings, and now you are being whisked away, fleeing from one peril to the next with practically no explanation of the why or wherefore.”

“Everything is new to me. I try to remember things, but I cannot. There is one image though that flashes repeatedly before my mind’s eye, and that face has a name; Mira. I feel her here and here,” he said, placing one hand on his heart and the other on his forehead. “Though I cannot recall any more about her, it gives me great comfort to close my eyes and gaze upon her countenance no matter how vague it may be.”

“We are each aware of her great sacrifice.”

“She gave her life for me, did she not?” he asked childlike.

“Yes, Dav, she did. She gave her life for all of us.”

“If you two do not stop talking and get ready to leave, we may not have another chance,” Cairn shouted from the edge of the exposed opening in the shaft. “We will have plenty of time for conversation when we’’re safely out of this city.”

“Thank you for reminding us,” Robyn replied with a smile. “Let us go then,” he said to Davmiran, leading him to the exit.

“I will go first,” Filaree offered.

“Let Calyx take up the rear,” Cairn said.

“We do not know what awaits us below. I will follow behind you, Filaree. You should come after me,” Robyn said to Cairn. “It is probably best if Dav has Calyx covering his back. Keep your weapons safely tucked away until you near the end.”

“And keep your arms tight to your sides,” Cairn advised.

“Agreed?” Filaree asked them all.

“Agreed,” they unanimously responded.

Filaree drew her shoulders back. “Well then, here we go,” she said as she stepped over the edge.

She disappeared into the blackness of the funnel immediately. Robyn waited a moment and then he stepped in. Just as he fell from sight, a blinding light burst over the burning city, highlighting the spires of Seramour, followed by an earsplitting boom. A cover of shimmering energy spread over the wheat fields behind them like a wave upon the seashore, rapidly engulfing everything in its path.

“You go first,” Cairn urged Davmiran, unwilling to leave him behind with what was so swiftly approaching.

The boy heeded his prompting and rushed over the rim of the funnel. He dropped down and was gone from sight. Cairn hesitated for just a second, careful not to jump in too quickly and crash into the boy on the way down due to his heavier weight. After stepping in, he looked up at the fading aperture as he rapidly descended, anxiously searching for Calyx’s shadow to appear on the edge, but he went flying around the first bend before he saw what he hoped for. Darkness overwhelmed him and his velocity increased. A quick burst of light brightened the obscurity of the shaft, reflecting off of the Noban panels and blinding him temporarily. The air crackled around him and his skin tingled and burned. He continued to stare into the blackness above him, desperately hoping that Calyx escaped before he was engulfed by whatever it was that he saw happening in the city as he left him behind.

Filaree pressed her arms tight to her side, pointed her toes and sped down the funnel. She felt the pressure build in her ears as she gained speed. After she cleared the first bend, she learned how best to navigate, shifting her body left and right. She had no idea how long it would take her to reach the bottom, and she prepared herself mentally for whatever she might encounter down there. Since the darkness was so complete despite one faint moment of luminosity, she had difficulty maintaining her perspective, though her body recognized instinctively whether she was prone or upright.

A putrid smell assaulted her senses and a tiny reddish pinpoint of a light appeared below her. The point rapidly increased in diameter as she neared the ground until it became a gaping hole. She hit the surface with a thud, somersaulted to an upright position and drew her blade all in one fluid motion. It immediately occurred to her that the bottom of the shaft was unprotected. No seals secured the aperture. She took a step to the left and felt as if she was crushing nutshells under her feet. Looking down, she saw that the ground was in motion as thousands of tiny insects, much smaller than those that attacked the city above, scurried out of her way.

As her eyes grew accustomed to the light, she saw that the tree trunks around the opening looked strange. Observing them more closely, she realized that the bugs underfoot were running rampant all over the vegetation, consuming the trees themselves. She saw corpses in the distance and one large dead troll nearby whose heart was pierced by a bolt from a crossbow. There was no other sign of life anywhere within her scope of vision. Fires were burning out all around her, untended and unfed. Garbage and debris littered the ground and a rancid smoke clogged her nostrils.

Robyn flew out of the funnel within another instant. He righted himself and joined Filaree. Neither of them spoke a word. They waited with bated breath for Cairn to emerge, but to their surprise, the boy fell to the ground next. Robyn assisted him to his feet and looked at him with a question in his eyes. Before Dav had a chance to respond, Cairn fell from the shaft to the earth beside them. He immediately stepped away and looked upward, seeking some sign of the Moulant’s approach.

To his great relief, he heard a swoosh, saw the big animal slide heavily from the tube and land upright on his back legs with unbelievable agility. Cairn sidled up next to him and dug his fist into his soft fur.

“A part of the battle has already been fought,” Filaree said aloud, breaking the silence.

They could see the carnage everywhere and the movement underfoot and all around them.

“The bugs that Colton unleashed above seem to have spawned some smaller cousins, and they are wreaking their havoc here as well,” Robyn said.

“Insidious fiends,” Cairn stated with a scowl.

“We can do no more to combat them down here than we did in the Heights. We must leave right away,” Filaree said. “This battle is not yet over, I suspect.”

“Is everyone all right?” Robyn questioned.

They all nodded.

“We are near the northern-most point of Lormarion. It should not take us long to reach the perimeter,” he continued. “It is still daytime despite the darkness. If we can get out of the woods with no further incident, we will have a few hours of sunlight.”

They walked cautiously through the detritus of battle, sidestepping the dead. Cairn broke from the group without a sound and walked a few paces to the east. He crouched down over something and removed his gloves.

“Robyn? Can you come here?” he called.

They all walked toward where Cairn was stooped over the body of a warrior clad in a light-colored armor, uncharacteristic of the elves in the south. He lay upon his stomach and his head and his helm had been cleaved clean through. Carefully, Cairn turned him over.

“He bears the sigil of Eleutheria,” Robyn remarked over the scholar’s shoulder. “Do you see the etching on his breastplate? A snow-capped mountain upon a sea of ice?”

“I thought the elves of the Ice Kingdom never ventured out of their own domain,” Filaree said.

“They never did,” Robyn exclaimed.

“Well, they’’ve done it now,” she said.

“I wonder what could have stirred them so to abandon their isolation. They have always been very opposed to mingling with the world in any way. I have been there more than once, and I can testify to their adamancy.”

“We should not question whatever it was that caused them to come all this way. I can only imagine what kind of reception we would have received had they not been down here before we arrived,” Cairn remarked.

“There is another body over here,” Davmiran said, pointing to a nearby tree. “He seems so young.”

“No younger than you, my friend,” Cairn said. “Though I venture he is many tiels older than you suspect.”

“The elves age differently than we do,” Filaree said. “I wonder how many they have lost here. I see few compared to the numbers of the enemy.”

“They are fierce fighters. It would not take a multitude to defeat a slovenly foe such as this one. But I am afraid that they could do nothing to combat the bugs either,” Robyn said.

“It will take magic to do that, not metal and stone,” Filaree replied.

“Would that we had the time,” Robyn frowned. “Or enough power now.”

“We do not,” Filaree said. “We know that, Robyn. It is a great misfortune, but we must leave that task to another.”

“If there is another who is capable of the work,” Cairn said.

“Let’’s go. We waste precious minutes here. We know not what awaits us in the countryside,” Filaree said.

“I agree too, though it feels wrong to leave like this,” Robyn said.

“We can do nothing else. More is at stake this moment than the city of Seramour. It was built once. It can be built again,” Cairn said. “The boy here cannot be replaced,” he said, putting his arm on Dav’s shoulder.

“Yes, I know. I am behaving like a child. The fabric weaves of its own will,” Robyn said with pursed lips. “Come. Follow me,” he motioned as he stepped away from the others.

Adrianna awoke to the feeling of something crawling all over her. She brushed the insects off of her shoulders and chest and shook them from her legs. She was propped against a broad tree that was partially eaten already and her body was covered with the leaves and branches that had fallen as the bugs ate away at the main trunk. A shelter of sorts had been created around her by the debris, and she sat inside it and surveyed her situation.

A sharp pain shot through her womb, and then the sound of Colton’s laughter repeated itself in her troubled mind. Her legs were damp and bloody, but she felt better for the murder she committed.

I would not have that thing growing within me.

Then, almost immediately, a wave of remorse washed over her, threatening to drown her in intensity. Her feelings for the Dark Lord were confusing and painful. At times she was overwhelmed by a uncontrollable and complete rush of love for him. At others, she reviled him and cursed his arrogance. But her devotion always returned, filling her with guilt whenever she thought badly of him. She could not hate him for long, despite what he did to her. In the end, she adored him and forgave him all his trespasses.

She even began to believe once again that everything that happened was her fault, and she despised herself for what she had just done. She was not worthy, and now she deserved even the worst of his wrath. She would bow before him, grovel at his feet and beg his forgiveness. Her thoughts returned repeatedly to him, his beauty, his power, and all she could do was imagine ways in which she could win his love back again. He teased her with his domination, and she truly believed he did care for her at one time. She would rescue the elf and bring him safely back, and then he would forgive her. After all, it was not the Master’s child she murdered.

She heard a sound in the distance and stilled her movements, her defenses immediately piqued. She had missed the battle that raged around her having been unconscious and unaware during most if not all of it. Fortunately, the debris of the forest and the bugs themselves had concealed her insensate body and kept her safe from serious harm. The rotten odor of the insects verily concealed her own human smell from others, better than any purposeful attempt on her part could have. Even the bugs were glorious—Colton’s creations, more products of his genius. She shifted silently and a tremor of pain coursed through her body.