The Dawn of the Raven Omnibus 1: Episodes 1-5 (11 page)

When they entered the hut where Raveena was being treated, it
was obvious right away that her condition had improved dramatically.  Her skin
was a very healthy tone now, and her breathing was regular.  She now just
appeared as a normal, healthy person in a deep sleep.  Osthra gently pulled
back the bandages from Raveena’s wound to show them that all signs of infection
were gone.  The wound appeared to be clean and healing properly now.  She
gently replaced the bandage so as not to disturb Raveena’s rest, and then they
all stepped quietly out of the chamber. 

“She’s doing
much better.” Osthra told them.  “She just needs to keep resting, but the worst
is over.  I believe that your friend will be fine.”

Zorin beamed.

“Oh, great
work my love.  Tremendous.  Now please, dear, go get some rest.”  He gave
Osthra a kiss on the cheek.  Then, he turned to Kiella.  “See?  What did I
say?  She is the best.  A miracle worker.”  He was so proud and so happy that
he couldn’t help but laugh.  Kiella was very grateful, and thanked Osthra
graciously.  Kiella watched as Osthra headed back to the same house that Zorin
had pointed out as his own the night before.

“She is your
wife?” Kiella asked.

“Oh yes.  Of
many many years.”  He turned and gave Kiella a wry grin.  “Oh, you think our
age difference is quite scandalous, do you?”  Kiella was a bit surprised. 
After all, Zorin appeared at least thirty years older, if not more.  “You think
I robbed the cradle, eh?  Well, I don’t suppose you’d believe me if I told you
it was the other way around?” 

Kiella didn’t know what to make of this.  Zorin explained.

“You see,
Osthra’s gift, her natural power, is to heal.  Her whole being is naturally
infused with a healing force.  As a result, she is constantly healing herself,
and her body ages at an unbelievably slow rate.  Even I, just by being near
her, have seen my rate of aging decrease monumentally since we’ve been
together.  She is, as far as I know, the oldest being in the realm.  Oh, the
things she’s seen, the life she’s lived.  You’ll have to talk to her someday. 
But, for now, she must rest.  Your friend was very close to the other side. 
Very close indeed.  She was very close to being out of even Osthra’s reach to
save.  And she worked on her all night long.  Healing such as that is a great
tax on Osthra.  She may sleep for days now.”

It took Kiella a while to grasp all of this.  She was so
grateful to Osthra, and so intrigued by their story.  Finally, she broke the
silence.

“She’s
really older than you?” she grinned as she said this.

“Yes!  I kid
you not!”  Zorin’s old eyes sparkled with joy as he gave a hearty laugh, and
led Kiella back into the center of the village to pass the day.

When her eyes opened, Raveena had no idea where she was, and
no recollection of how she’d gotten there.  She combed her memory for any clue,
but found nothing.  The Gekken and their battle with the Raganeans was the last
thing that came to her.  Everything after was in a fog.  She looked about the
small, quaint room.  Eventually, her gaze found the door, and a young woman who
sat next to it.  The young woman suddenly became aware that Raveena was awake,
and she came and offered her water.  She spoke in a kind, warm voice.

“It’s okay. 
Here, drink some of this.”

Raveena drank, though she was beginning to feel a sense of
panic since she was so disoriented.  “Where am I?  Who are you?” she asked.

“I am
Lorith.  You are in our village, among the Elken.”  Lorith saw Raveena’s eyes
turn to fear.  “Oh no, don’t worry.  You are our guest.  Your friend, she is
here.  I will go get her.  Just relax.”  With that, Lorith stepped out the door
and disappeared. 

Raveena was completely confused.  She wasn’t even sure who
the friend could be that Lorith had referred to.  It took incredible effort,
but she was able to get to her feet.  The beauty felt a terrible pain in her
lower abdomen, and examined the wound that she found to be the source of the
pain.  She lifted the bandages and saw that it appeared to be healing well. 
Visions of the end of the battle with the Gekken returned.  She remembered the
leader.  She remembered the sting of his sword, and the look on his face as his
head sailed through the air following her lethal blow.  Then, she remembered
her people, and the threat of the Gekken that only she could warn them of.  She
gingerly made her way to the door and stepped outside.

Raveena was shocked by what was out there.  A perfect, ideal
village.  Children giggled and played, and adults appeared to be happily going
about their daily work, all in a setting that seemed in unison with nature and
the forest itself.  She was amazed by it, yet her mind was set to a single
purpose: she knew she must return to her home as quickly as possible to save
her people from being destroyed by her grave mistake.  It was all coming back
to her now; how she had gone first to the Raganeans, how they had detained her,
how she had now lost more time, who knows how long, while recovering from her
wound.  As impressive and idyllic as the setting around her was, Raveena knew
her focus could not stray from what she needed to do.  There was too much at
stake.

Lorith returned, with Kiella, Zorin, and several other Elken
in tow.  Lorith tried to take her back to bed to rest, but Raveena refused. 
She interrupted the greetings that the others offered.

“I’m sorry. 
Thank you so much for letting me rest, and for helping me recovery.  I sincerely
appreciate all of your aid.  But there is no time to spare.  The Gekken have
returned.  I must get back to my people to warn them.  And please, you must
help us to drive them back.”

Zorin’s look turned to sadness.

“Oh,
please.  Please take your time and rest.  Your wound has barely knit.  You need
much more rest.”

“No” Raveena
insisted.  “There is no time.  The rest I’ve had will have to do.  Thank you. 
I really appreciate all you must have done for me.  But the threat is real. 
The Gekken are coming.  Please, you must help.  It will take all of us to stop
them.”

Zorin’s look turned from sadness to scorn.

“You want us
to fight for you?”

Raveena’s mind was still on only one track.

“Yes.  You
must.  If the Gekken aren’t stopped, no one in the realm is safe.  We are all
in danger.”

“My lady, do
you know where you are?  Do you know who we are?”

Raveena thought carefully.  She began to remember heading
towards the Forbidden Forest.  Were these really the exiles, then?  Still, she
couldn’t let it matter.  

“I’m sorry. 
I mean no disrespect.  You are the exiles?  If so, I apologize for violating
the truce.  Still, you must see that it was necessary.  Our whole realm must
unite.  If the Gekken get a foothold, if they bring their entire army, all will
be lost.”

Zorin could see both the fear and the anger in her eyes.  He
knew there was no reasoning with this human.  It had been a nice, refreshing
visit with Kiella, but he knew that would all be over soon.  He insisted that
Raveena at least come get a good meal in first.  They could discuss everything
else after.

The meal was, again, amazing, but Raveena never even noticed
the taste of her food.  Her mind was too focused, too obsessed with what needed
to be done.  As soon as the meal was over, Zorin gave her a forum for
discussion, and Raveena wasted no time pleading her case.

“I have seen
them.  I have faced them.  They are here, and they are stronger and more
dangerous than ever.  What I faced was just a small party.  There will be more,
and they will be powerful.  They will sweep the entire realm if we do not stand
together and stop them.”

Zorin could see the sincerity in her eyes.  He knew she
believed this to be true.  He paused for quite a while before he responded.

“I am
sorry.  I don’t know what it is you want or expect from us.  Your people
banished us over one hundred years ago.   We are not welcome outside of this
forest.  Your people have chosen lines, they have proven that they are serious
about enforcing them.  Elken have crossed in the past, and they have been
killed for it.  And now, you expect us to go out and protect your people from
the Gekken?  How do we know if we cross the line, we will not be seen as the
threat?  No, no.  We will not break the truce.  We have finally embraced it. 
We are happy here.  We are at peace.  War?  No.  No more war for the Elken.  We
have fought as much as we care to fight.”

Raveena’s pulse pounded.  Rage clouded her judgment.

“You are a
fool.”  She stated as she looked Zorin straight in the eye.  “The Gekken won’t
stop with the humans.  All in this realm will fall in their path.  You may be
safe here until the humans have been wiped out, but then they will come for you
too.  We need an army.  You must compel your people to come with us and fight.”

“Oh my dear”
Zorin smiled and laughed.  “You clearly don’t know anything about the Elken.  I
am too old to go to war.   I am in my twilight.  This is my time to rest, to
enjoy what time I have left sitting back, watching the young ones, teaching
whatever I can to whoever has the patience to listen to an old man.    As far
as the others, I could command no army to follow you.   It does not work like
that.  The Elken are a free people.  They live by no one’s rules but their own,
follow no command but the will of their own heart.  We have no army.  We never
have.  And I may seem like a leader of sorts, but I assure you, my position is
ceremonial in nature only.  I have no real power, except that which they choose
to give out of respect.  No, I cannot and will not command any Elken to join
your cause.  If an Elken chose to follow you, likewise, I could not stop them,
but that choice would be theirs to make.  I can dictate nothing.”

Disappointment and sadness filled Raveena’s heart.  Yet, she
did find it within herself to thank him again for the aid she had received. 
She asked Kiella how soon she could be ready to leave.  Kiella was shocked, and
hated the thought of leaving, but she still felt that her place was with Raveena. 
She knew how scared Raveena was for her people, and she felt guilty because of
how her people had treated her, and felt responsible to help her reach her
people as soon as possible.  Kiella thanked Zorin and the Elken for their
graciousness and generosity.  Raveena grabbed her belongings, and then
announced to Kiella that it was time to go.  With a heavy heart, Kiella waved
goodbye to the Elken as she headed back into the thick woods.  She had enjoyed
her time in the Elken village so much.  She wondered if she would ever return.

They were not making good time.  Raveena clearly needed more
rest, but she was too stubborn.  Her pace was not great, but it was
relentless.  Still, as dusk drew close, they had covered little ground.  They
finally stopped to make camp, with Raveena finally giving into her
limitations.  They had only been settled for a few moments when they became
aware of the sound of steps behind them.  Both Raveena and Kiella’s heads
swiveled back immediately, for fear of an oncoming attack.  Instead, they saw a
cloaked woman.  Kiella grew hopeful, and when the figure reached their camp and
pulled down her hood, Kiella’s hopes were realized.

Shyrea stood before them.  Without a word, she sat down with
them, and began putting together kindling for a fire, as she knew that with the
darkness would come the cold.  Raveena recognized that she must be an Elken,
and could tell by Kiella’s reaction that she likely was not to be feared, yet
she was still uneasy.  Kiella broached the silence.

“Thank you. 
Travel has been hard.  We can really use the aid.”

Raveena remembered what Zorin had said.  She stared at the
beautiful young Elken woman as she worked the fire, but the Elken woman’s eyes
stayed steadfastly to task.  When the fire was completed to her satisfaction,
she finally sat back and relaxed, and spoke.

“I know of
the Gekken.  I have seen them.  I heard what you said in the village.  I will
join you, if you’ll have me.”

Kiella smiled.  Raveena nodded.  Shyrea prodded the fire with
a stick and it spit out sparks and grew intensely bright and warm.  Before
long, they all laid back to go to sleep.  They would need their rest: a long
journey lay ahead.

To Be Continued

In

Episode 4:

Strange Bedfellows

The Dawn of the Raven

Episode 4:

Strange Bedfellows

When Raveena awoke, she still felt exhausted.  Her gut still
ached where her wound was.  She checked it to make sure that the pain wasn’t a
sign that infection had returned, or that she hadn’t suffered a setback in its
healing.  It still appeared to be healing well.  She would just have to push
through the pain. 

As she prepared to leave, Kiella was still sleeping, but the
Elken woman was nowhere to be found.  “Perhaps she changed her mind,” Raveena
thought to herself.  She wasn’t sure about her.  She knew that they would need
any help they could get, but the woman was a complete stranger to her, and an
exile.  Raveena wondered if she could really trust her, but reminded herself
that they were not in any position to refuse aid.  Raveena nudged Kiella, and
Kiella stretched and rubbed her eyes.  Once it appeared that Kiella had her
wits somewhat about her, Raveena asked her if she knew where the Elken was.