Forsaken Dreamscape (Nevermor) (24 page)

“Nix
has agreed to meet with Rifter?” he inquired.

She
could have lied concerning that, but she saw no need to.  She owed it to them
all to be honest – she only hoped they would be honest with her in return.

“He’s
undecided.  He comes only to see how it will go, he says, but I’m hoping that I
can convince him.  Unfortunately, I think he still hates Rifter very much.”

“I
would imagine,” said Finn with little hesitation.

“Do
you remember what happened, exactly?  Between them, I mean.”

She
looked to him with hope.  Could he tell her the truth that Nix would not
reveal?

“I
can’t recount the events to you,” he confessed.  “I didn’t see it with my own
eyes, but I know there was a fight.  You will have to ask one or the other.”

Nix
or Rifter
. 
She smiled knowingly, despite her obvious disappointment.

“Then
may I ask about your eyes?”

Finn
smiled, pleased with this particular question.  He rose up and turned back to
his desk, lifting a small glowing ember in his hands.  He brought it to her so
that she might examine it more closely.  When she set her eyes on it, she
noticed that it was a smaller version of the stones that lit the room – the
very same that were in the pieces of his metal suit.

“They
glow because of
this
.  It’s called Tikilin, and it is a powerful
substance few know about.  I discovered it.  Tell me: do you know of the
crystals that grow on the island?”

“Yes.” 
Wren had seen them, but they were not as bright as they had once been.

“Not
only are they natural sources of light, but when refined, they become this. 
It’s an amazing substance infused with power.  Our glowing eyes come from
exposure to it, but it’s good for so many things, how could we not take
advantage?”

She
moved to take it into her own hand, but hesitated when he told her that.  She
wasn’t so sure she wanted her eyes to glow.

“You
can touch it,” he promised, smiling at her pause.  “It won’t have an effect on
you unless you spend years around it, as I have.  This is what our suits are
made of.  They help us jump higher and to move more quickly.  The suits also
protect us from deadly wounds.  They accelerate our healing.”

“Your
tribe is quite inventive,” she said, examining the glowing material in her
hand.  She was surprised to find that it was cool when it hit her palm, but
then began to grow hot.

“We
have to be,” he said.  “It is not safe for us to be any other way.”

Wren
looked over the Tikilin closely.  After which, she let her eyes trail back to
Finn, who was staring at her with those glowing eyes.  It made her feel a bit
strange.  Strange – because the way he looked at her was not quite reminiscent
of a long-lost friend.

“What
is it?” she asked him.  Her face grew hot beneath his scrutiny.

“Nothing,”
he said, then changed the subject.  “So you say you were looking for me – that
Rifter wants us back together.”

“Yes,
that’s right.”

“What
a coincidence,” he mused.  “Perhaps the world has guided you here.  Maybe it is
not so dead after all.”

He
paused, considering, but quickly dismissed it.

“I
have to admit, I’m curious about it all, Wren.  But at the same time, I’m not
so sure that I can leave this place.”

This
was not what she wanted to hear him say.  Had all this time they’d spent
talking been pointless?  Even after all that, he was still going to refuse?

“These
people…  They need me.  They need me more than Rifter ever did.”

“It
doesn’t have to be forever,” Wren spoke up.  “If there is a possibility that
you can have a part in fixing this world, how can you deny them that?  You
think of your struggles, but wouldn’t it be worth the effort to guarantee that
none of those misfortunes would ever happen to these people again?”

Wren
hoped that her argument was enough to convince him.  Finn took a deep breath,
and in the course of that, he considered her words.

“I
will give you my answer in the morning,” he told her.  “Despite what I’ve
thought about Rifter, seeing is believing, but I have to decide whether I’m
willing to give him a chance to change my mind.  I do want to see my brothers
again, but…”

He
trailed off, but did not return to that thought.

“For
now, there’s a place prepared for you tonight,” he said.  “You should get your
rest.”

She
gave a short nod, interpreting this as a dismissal.  It was very late in the
night by now, and even if she did not sleep, she would appreciate a few hours
of safety – and she knew Nix would be waiting for her outside.  She stood to
go.

“Wren,”
Finn piped up, drawing her attention back to him.  He was looking at her with a
sad sort of smile.  “It
is
good to see you again.  It makes me feel like
there may truly be some hope left.”

1

‘What
do you want from me, Rifter?  You want me to beg?  I never beg.  So do it if
you’ve got the balls.  Do it!  Kill me!’

The
violence of that memory shook Nix awake.  Standing there, leaning against a
post on one of the platforms, he had dozed off as he waited for Wren.  The
memory was still lingering now, but he shook himself free of it.

Don’t
do this
,
he scolded himself. 
Not now
.

A
light drizzle of rain had begun to fall in the Silent Woods, cool and constant,
but not a hindrance.  Nix stood beneath it as if he did not even notice the
brief splashes across his skin, but he rather liked it, to be truthful.  It
reminded him of a former day when he was younger, when he would sit beneath the
leaves, hunting, and his brothers had never been far away.  Could he imagine
such a life again, with his family all in one place, living their lives
alongside him?  He didn’t think so, for there was a determinant factor missing. 
Youth.
  He could never have those years back.

‘Do
it!  Kill me!’

He
clenched his teeth and stared forward, swallowing hard and trying to focus on a
few of the silent dwellers in order to distract himself.  They were certainly
still watching him.

He
had agreed to let Wren speak with Finn alone, but he felt a bit uneasy to be
away from her.  He still hadn’t figured out exactly why she was here after so
much time, and every moment he had to observe her was important.  Perhaps she
didn’t suspect there was any secret behind it – he knew she didn’t – but he
believed otherwise, and simply could not part from her until he knew what it
was.

What
do you think you’re doing out there?
he sent silently to the one he
loathed. 
What do you have planned for us?
  He received no answer.

“I
still cannot believe she even got you out of the woods.”

The
voice that rose up near him was smug, but in much better English than the
painted huntress had spoken in former days.  Calico was standing opposite him
on the other side of an archway which led to the next platform, but he did not
look at her, save for what he could see from the corner of his good eye.

She
was considerably cleaner now and had been given new clothes – a dark-colored
shirt and pant suit that fit her well – but he did not give her much regard. 
She stood beneath the rain as freely as he did, letting it dampen her loosely
braided hair and wash away the past day.

“She’s
a poor little fawn to you, isn’t she?” Calico accused with a shake of her
head.  “Something helpless to shelter.  I only imagine you see in her what
Rifter saw.  I, myself, do not see it.”

Nix
took a deep breath of the damp air.  He was not going to allow this to get him
angry.  He had more important things to worry about than this.  He kept silent,
unwilling to let her lead him on.

“Perhaps
you have fallen in love with her as well,” she went on disgustedly.  “That, at
least, would explain your willingness.”

“I
would imagine that none of them could deny love for her,” he said.  He made
sure that his voice remained flat.  There was no need for her to suspect that
it wasn’t a sincere answer.

“
Them
? 
As if you’re separated?” Calico returned with an incredulous laugh.  “You’re
all the same.  And here I thought you weren’t so easily swayed.  You saw
through her once before, but now you are weak?  Were you so mesmerized by her
white breasts that you would follow her on like a dog?”

He
felt a strong urge to laugh then, but he held it in.  The rain helped keep him
cool.

“You
should be careful of that jealousy,” he warned drably.  “It’s terrible on you.”

“Jealous
of your pathetic character?”  She choked out another laugh.  “
Humor
is
terrible on
you
.”

She
glanced at him off and on throughout her insults – he watched her secretly –
but when he did not reply to this jab, she turned away again.  The quiet
settled back in.

“Tell
me: how long since you’ve seen Rifter yourself?” he asked, peering at her through
the hair that hung down in his face.

Even
though it had not been keeping with their subject, the girl did not seem surprised
by the question.

“A
while.”  Her voice had lost much of its volume and disgust. “You know the last
time.  It was before I went back to my people and came to the woods.”

That
was right.  The course of events grew clearer in his mind.  Years ago, after he
had left the others, Calico had followed Rifter to look for him – out of
concern.  Her involvement had been short-lived, however, and Rifter had driven
her away within a couple of months.  When she had met up with Nix later on by
chance, she had never ceased to trouble him over it.

“Yes,
I remember.  You took up the scraps Wren left behind.  Then again, I do suppose
that’s the only way you could get him.”

Calico’s
eyes lit with fury.

“It
wasn’t about that,” she snapped.  “Of course you know it was about
you
,
but I was there when he needed someone to believe in him!  When all the rest of
you were uncertain of him, I was at his side!”

“If
it was such a noble position, why did you leave him?”

This
shut her down a bit.  After a moment of silence, she folded her arms and turned
away.

“I
don’t have to explain anything to you.”

She
had no warmth for him now, and he didn’t expect any.  After everything that had
happened, she would always hate him, up until the moment he bowed down to that
other – his enemy – and surrendered.  But he would never do that.  He would die
before he had to take orders from that blasted demon!  He guessed she would not
leave him be so easily, however.  She never had before.

I
have to be cruel.  It’s the only way to have peace.

“Do
be honest, Calico,” he said with an air of conceit.  “You’re the only witness
to the one competition he and I might have never known the answer to.  So tell
me: which of us was
better
?”

The
Tribal girl looked back at him in shock.  Her face became redder than ever
before.  For a moment – long enough for him to notice – she was at a loss for
what to say.

“I’ve
gone elsewhere now,” she returned hatefully, turning her face from him.  Her
refusal to answer was enough to please him, though he knew good and well that
Rifter hadn’t had anything to do with her at all, but it had done well to shut
her up.  Hopefully, from now on she would refrain from talking to him.

Now
all that was left to do was enjoy the silence and the rain.  Wren would be back
soon.

2

It
was not difficult for Wren to locate Nix after she’d left Finn’s hut.  He was
braving the mist of rain, waiting for her at the end of the walkway where the
bridge branched out farther into the village.  Nix noticed her easily, turning
her way, and Wren found herself offering him a smile.

“Here
I am,” she said.  “Back in one piece.”

“So
it seems,” he admitted.  “Did you have any luck convincing him?”

“He
says he will give an answer tomorrow.  He’s reluctant to leave the people here,
but I haven’t given up yet.”  She said this, but shrugged helplessly.

“It’s
no wonder he’s reluctant,” Nix commented, snagging her attention.  “Something
has attacked them recently.”

“What?”

Nix
turned his face to peer across the area, and for the first time, Wren noticed
the signs of damage.  There were large branches laying over the walkways,
broken from the trees that the village was built upon.  A few of the huts had
been patched.  Why hadn’t she noticed this coming in?

I
wasn’t looking for it.  I took this safe haven for granted.

“What
do you think?” she asked, seeking whatever wisdom he had on the matter, but he
did not look at her when he responded.