She spoke, watching as he played what he remembered of his dreams to her. “That’s awful. It’s the other brother for sure.”
“So you think we are seeing the two brothers then?” he asked.
Iselin’s voice came, calmer this time. “Yes, when one ascends they see one of the dragons, sometimes just a bit, and others see all of them. In a few cases they will talk to whoever is ascending, but we don’t talk about it. For Elves it is extremely sacred.”
Legon wasn’t going to ask what happened for Iselin, as he didn’t want to violate what was obviously a very private memory. She put her hand on his leg. “Not to sacred you.” She smiled. “I won’t show you, but I saw him and he spoke to me. I won’t tell you what he said, but it was the most defining moment of my life.”
“He has that effect. He said something to me, I think when I changed. I only saw his eye and I can’t remember what he said.” Legon looked down, straining his memory.
At that moment Sasha walked out on the terrace in her dressing gown. “I figured you two would be up, sorry if I was rude last night Ise.”
“Don’t be, what are your thoughts?” Iselin responded.
Legon could tell from the circles under Sasha’s eyes that she woke up early and hadn’t made it back to sleep. She sat and spoke, “I think that tree is our life. I am just as much a part of Legon as he is me, and now Iselin you are part of us too. But it’s not complete.”
Iselin looked confused, not being as connected with Sasha as Legon, and he picked up the thread of Sasha’s thoughts, explaining, “You see, we always see the tree. Sometimes it dies, but sometimes, like last night, it doesn’t. Anyway, seeing pink at all was new. I’m sure you figured out that each color is one of us. The pink roses are just making their way up the tree because we just decided to be together forever, do you see what I mean?” he asked.
Iselin nodded, overwhelmed, and Sasha went on. “Legon, we need to get mother and father out of Salmont. I don’t care if Arkin is ready.”
Legon answered, “I agree. We should get Keither’s family out too. Sara’s parents left town long before we did. They will be impossible to find.” He felt the urgency emanating from Sasha, and surprisingly Iselin as well. “You two can talk about the dream or whatever, I’m going to contact Arkin.”
With that he stood and left them to talk.
* * * * *
Arkin turned around, hearing the click of the door. Barnin and a red haired man walked in the back room of the shop. Barnin didn’t smile when he turned to see Arkin.
“Nice place, Arkin,” he said sarcastically.
“It’s not as good of a cover as the carpentry shop, but not bad.”
“Right,” Barnin said, looking around. “This is Heath, he’s a class one.”
“Good to meet you,” Heath said, looking weary.
“It’s safe, don’t worry,” Arkin said, reading the look on Heath’s face. “We need to leave as soon as we can,” he added.
Barnin got to business. “I just don’t like being here. I’m sure you understand. We know we are getting people out of the Empire. You can fill us in on the road when we are rested.”
Arkin was ready to go and was just about to leave when Stacy walked in the shop, her long curls bouncing. “Who are your friends?” she asked, smiling warmly at Barnin and Heath.
“From the Cona Republic,” Arkin responded, earning a disapproving look from Barnin.
“I’m Stacy, good to meet you two,” Stacy said, bouncing forward. The two men shook her hand and relaxed a bit. Stacy turned back to Arkin. “Do you need anything before you go?”
“No, keep me posted on everything. I won’t be back for awhile. I’m leaving you in charge of Salez,” he said, picking up his bag and walking to the door.
Once outside, Barnin, Arkin and Heath made their way out of town. Once clear of the city, Barnin and Heath relaxed.
“So who is she?” Barnin asked, jabbing Arkin’s arm.
“She’s part of this cell. Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You know what I mean, robbing the cradle, huh? Good for you, old man,” Barnin teased, and Heath laughed. “Barnin said you had some talents. He didn’t tell me that was one of them.”
Arkin huffed. This was going to be a long trip.
* * * * *
Barnin looked down at his hometown. It looked the same as it did when he left. He looked down at his old house, seeing smoke float from the chimney.
So someone bought it,
he thought. His parents left town around the same time he had. He wasn’t sure where they moved to, but he figured they were taking care of themselves.
He turned to Arkin. “It’s a good thing you brought that other horse, I don’t think Emma will have one. It’s hard to tell, but it looks like there are two at Kovos’s place. How do you want to work this?” he asked.
“You get Brack and Margaret out tonight if you can, I’ll wait here a few days. Tell them to post a sign about being out of town or something. We don’t want the townsfolk to wonder why they went missing.” He paused. “Heath, if they don’t want to come, put them to sleep then contact me and we will get Laura, Edis and Emma out tonight instead.”
Barnin didn’t care for this part of the plan. There was no reason to suspect that anyone was in danger, but Arkin didn’t appear to be taking chances. Barnin was going to have to explain to Brack that his son was dead. Arkin would have done it, but Barnin wouldn’t let him. People couldn’t know that Arkin was back in town, and if Barnin was being honest with himself he figured Brack would lose it and blame Arkin, making a scene.
“Are you going to be alright getting them out?” he asked.
Arkin looked at them. “Yes, we are going to head west, straight to the coast. If we take normal roads, that will add a month to our travel time. This way we can make it in three, maybe three and a half weeks. Do you remember the locations of the safe houses and food caches?”
Arkin had gone all out for this, arranging food drops, the whole nine. Barnin was amazed at how many contacts the man had. It made traveling fast and easy. They wouldn’t have a hard time until they hit the border. “Yeah, I do. Don’t worry, we can get across without any problems, it is only the large groups that have issues making it across the border,” he said, forestalling any questions, then adding, “What are you going to do if you hit trouble?”
Arkin smirked. “Take care of it, why?”
Barnin fought a grin. “Are you sure? That’s some nasty country you’re going to be crossing, and there are two of us in case we run into any issues…” he trailed off, seeing if Arkin would take the bait.
Arkin scowled. “Barnin, I’ve been doing this a lot longer than you, and I’m a class two. I think I can handle it,” he said, his tone clipped.
“That’s what I mean, you’re like sixty aren’t you, I mea…”
“Forty, and I can still take you…” Arkin said in a deadly whisper. Heath snickered.
Barnin slapped Arkin’s shoulder. “Yeah, I still got it. Don’t get killed,” he said, standing and walking off before Arkin could retort.
A day later Barnin and Heath waited outside of town as Brack and Margaret approached on horseback. They rode out to see them. “Did people buy it?” Barnin asked.
Brack was still shaken up about the news of his son, but raised his chin. “We told people we were going to visit my parents. They won’t be looking for us for a few weeks. How are Laura and Edis going to get out?” he asked.
“Another team is taking them and Emma out, don’t worry about them. Come on, let’s go.”
There wasn’t a lot of talking, Barnin didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to console them. All he could do was promise that Keither was fine and waiting for them. It was morning and they were about a day away from the end of the road, where it would split in three directions.
“Heath, you in range?” Barnin asked.
“Yeah, but not for long, what you want me to do?”
“Call it in. Tell him we’re clear.”
Brack and Margaret looked confused. Margaret spoke, “Call it in? What do you mean?”
Barnin looked to see Heath’s eyes slide out of focus and then back in. He nodded to him and Barnin spoke. “Heath can use magic. He’s telling our guy in Salmont that we haven’t had any problems and to go get Legon and Sasha’s family.”
Brack coughed a hard laugh. “What, he’s not doing it himself?”
“Who Legon? No, he can’t,” Barnin said.
Brack shook his head. “Ungrateful. He gets our son killed and then won’t even stick his neck out to save his parents. What is he doing? Probably doing something with that demon girl.”
Barnin’s hands gripped the saddle and he tried to calm himself. Heath spoke out, “Who is a demon?” he asked, his tone acidic.
“What, you don’t know? Sasha. The little tramp is possessed. Should have taken her out a long time ago,” Brack said, and Margaret nodded.
Barnin moved in a flash, drawing his blade and blocking Heath’s just in time to save Brack. “Heath, no!” he shouted.
Heath was growling in Elvish and Barnin saw his hand rise “they don’t know what they are saying don’t do this.”
Heath looked at Barnin and then past him pointing to Brack and Margaret, who looked mortified. “Why should we save them? They insult those whose feet they aren’t worthy to clean!”
“Now, you wait here just a moment…” Brack started but was cut off by Barnin.
“Brack, Heath, stop.” the two men didn’t speak. “Heath, they don’t understand. Think of where they live.” He turned to Brack. “Don’t say that Sasha is a demon, she has a medical condition.” He held up his hand, cutting Margaret off before she could speak. “Look, there is something I’m not telling you.” He paused. “When Kovos died Legon was trying to save him, trying to kill an Iumenta with magic.” Brack’s face blanched. “When he used that magic he changed. Brack, Legon’s an Elf, and not just any Elf. He is the head of a great Elvin house. Sasha is his adopted sister, and the Elves recognize her as a lady of a great house now.”
Margaret spoke first, incredulous. “You mean they are royalty?”
Heath spoke, more subdued. “Yes, both are, and the Cona Republic sees them as such. Legon didn’t come because it was too dangerous for him, and it’s not like an Elf could move around the country now, could they?”
Barnin explained everything to them, leaving nothing out. He explained dragons and magic to them, telling them how they had been influenced. By the end both Brack and Margaret looked even more defeated than they had two days ago.
“So, we have been used? We have had our hearts and minds twisted to make for a better workforce?” Brack asked. Barnin nodded, and Brack spoke again, “And they killed our son and made that poor Sara girl into a whore?”
Margaret spoke. “And Sasha? What, they don’t want those with problems influencing the breeding population, so they make us hate them?” She asked, choking.
“Yes. When you get to Manton, you will see. There are people like Sasha and worse. There are those that are blind, deaf, crippled—you name it. For many of them in the Cona lands, once they are taken into the queen’s care they are slaughtered like a lame horse. Sasha, however, was functioning, so she would have likely shared Sara’s fate,” Barnin said.
Margaret looked like she was going to be sick, and a fire lit in Brack’s eyes. “What do the Elves and the resistance need to kill the Iumenta?”
Heath answered, “The Cona Republic needs able smiths.”
“Then we need to get a move on, don’t we?” Brack said, shaking with anger and determination.
* * * * *
Arkin slid his hand along the wall of the cottage for what he hoped was the last time. This was her house, his first failure, his best friend. Over the years this place was an addiction for him. He kept coming back, never changing anything, just walking around and sitting by her grave. This would be the last time, he told himself. There would be no reason to come to Salmont ever again.
Heath’s voice came fuzzy in Arkin’s head. “We are clear.”
“Good luck,” Arkin said, and Heath was gone.
Arkin walked out of the cottage, resisting the urge to look back at it. Carefully, he made his way around town until he was in the woods just beyond Edis’s property. Here he would wait until nightfall.
* * * * *
Emma walked in the back door of the house with a sheet from the clothes line. She looked behind her to the woods, feeling like she was being watched.
“What is it dear?” Laura asked kindly.
“Nothing. You know how sometimes you feel like you’re being watched, but there isn’t really anything there?”
Laura smiled. “That’s just good old-fashioned paranoia, and perfectly normal…”
Edis came in the front door. “I’m beat. What’s for dinner?”
“Good to see you too,” Laura said frostily.
Emma contented herself by listening to Laura and Edis’s friendly bickering. She helped with dinner and afterward she was at the table reading when she heard a knock at the back door.
Edis got up, moving to the door. “Who would come in the back?” he said, opening the door. “Arkin?”
Emma turned in her seat to see the town’s old carpenter walk in the back door of the house, take a look outside, and close the door. “Good, you’re all here.”
There was a rush of voices, everyone asking questions and Arkin trying in vain to stop them. “I will explain everything, but you have to let me talk,” he said firmly.
He sat at the table and Laura and Edis sat on either side of Emma, just like she was one of their children.
Arkin spoke, “There is a lot that you need to know. It’s best I start at the beginning.”
Arkin explained Legon’s parentage about his mother being human and his father being an Elf. Then he told of their trip and of the royal guar. Emma tensed with Edis and Laura when he said what was about to happen to Sasha. Emma reaffirmed her vow that she would someday make everything up to Sasha. Arkin went on talking about finding Sara and what had been made of her. He showed them magic, producing a small emerald flame in his hand. It was too much for her to take in. Never had she suspected that Arkin was more than a carpenter. All of a sudden her encounter with a dragon didn’t seem so unlikely.