Ellowyn was quiet for a moment. “So you will…die?”
There was a short little laugh. “We will all die eventually, child. I am worth no more than this little grape. As long as I try to be a sweet one, that is all that I care to do. All the servants and learners have gone already. I would not keep any one of them behind, not when they could save themselves. The final ships are being built, and the rest of the Pry-rians will be told. They will walk away from their lands, walk away from their plows, walk away from their corn. When the time comes, they will all leave.”
“Except for you?”
“And the other Aldermastons who will not forsake their oaths. So much is changing in the world. So much attention on the rights and duties of rank. It may be several years before the Blight destroys everyone. It may happen much sooner. Those Aldermastons who have spoken of it, have seen it in vision, have called it the Black Death. A plague that cannot be stopped. A plague that will kill everyone touched by it. A plague with no cure. In another world, Idumea even, it was a flood of water. Only eight souls believed in the warning. The rest were killed by water. But that was a very wicked world. There are many who believe the warning now. Many who are hewing wood to build ships to sail away. As it gets closer, fewer will believe. That is the way of things.”
Lia’s heart was pounding. She could see the Aldermaston and Ellowyn through the gaps in the vines. Her heart was burning inside her chest and tears stung her eyes. She knew that what he was saying was true. The Medium burned its truthfulness into her heart.
The Aldermaston stopped. She saw his head bow in concentration. Then he turned and looked her way. “There is someone listening to us.” His voice shifted to Pry-rian. “Who is there?”
Lia rose from her crouch at the same time as the Aldermaston did, and their eyes met over the row of plump grapes. His eyes were gray and curious, wary. His bearded mouth was frowning – not with anger but concentration. He stared at her hard, his eyes blinking rapidly when he saw her.
His language remained Pry-rian. “Who are you, child?”
Ellowyn rose as well and looked at her with shock. “Lia!” she gasped.
Lia replied in his language, the language of her ancestors. “I must speak with you, Aldermaston. The Medium has brought me here. Brought me to you. I needed to hear what you were saying. I think you are the only one who can read this for me? Will you?”
Lia ducked beneath the vine leaves, joining the aisle where the other two were. She held the Cruciger orb before her.
His eyes widened even further. He was stunned. “Where did you get that, child?”
“It was with me, as a baby, when I was abandoned. The writing is Pry-rian, but I cannot read. It brought me here. To you, because of Ellowyn. But I think it brought me here to learn about the Blight and what form it will take. So I can warn my people about it. I serve an Aldermaston too, in Comoros. The Aldermaston of Muirwood.”
He stared at her, his eyes suddenly filling with tears. He brushed them away. “Let me see it.”
Ellowyn looked so relieved, her face was bursting. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she pressed a fist against her mouth, trying to control her sobbing. She was murmuring Lia’s name.
“What does it say?” Lia whispered, holding forth the orb. It glowed brilliantly.
The Aldermaston wiped his eyes again and looked at the writing. He studied it closely, his face intense. He shook his head in wonderment. “I can read it,” he said, his voice choked with emotion. He glanced at her. “You had this orb…as a child? In Muirwood?”
Lia nodded. “What does it say?” she asked desperately.
His expression paled. “It says…it reveals quite plainly that Ellowyn Demont must go to Dochte Abbey in Dahomey. She must warn them of the coming of the Blight. It will happen before anyone realizes it. This is her task. The Medium wills it. Her name will be spoken of for good and for evil for generations because of it.” The Aldermaston shook his head, stunned. “What is your name, child?”
“I am Lia Cook from Muirwood. I am…I am a wretched, but I am of Pry-rian birth. This is my homeland. I was sent to protect Ellowyn.”
The Aldermaston looked even more surprised. “How did you come here? I know the road was being watched.”
“We came over the mountain.”
“But the Fear Liath…how did you get past? The Fear Liath lives in the mountain. Only a maston can pass unharmed.”
Lia swallowed. “Yes.”
“You are a maston?” he said, clutching her arm in complete surprise.
“I am,” she answered.
He squeezed her so hard it hurt. Tears trickled down his cheek. “You must go then. I cannot keep you here.”
In the distance, a door opened and shut. Voices came from the manor house, speaking Pry-rian. She would have recognized Martin’s voice, but the men were not him. The Aldermaston looked back and then at her. He pulled her down amidst the vineyard. With his other hand, he pulled Ellowyn down too. He took their hands and clasped them together. He spoke in their common language next. “I will delay them. You must go at once. They will not listen to reason. They will try and follow you. Hasten to the mountain. The orb will give you guidance. If the Medium protected you on the mountain, it will do so again. You must go with all haste.”
Lia looked at Ellowyn and then back at him. “Do you know who I am?” she whispered.
The Aldermaston blinked back tears. “Yes. I know you, child. I know you. When your task is complete, I will tell you all. Go, child” He grabbed Lia’s cheeks with both hands and kissed her forehead. Then he kissed Ellowyn’s as well. He clutched the surprised girl’s hands with hers. “I Gift you with courage,” he said to Ellowyn. “You will need it in the mountain and on your journey. Now, go. Go!”
Lia hooked her arm around Ellowyn’s and tugged her with her, staying low so that the vines would shield them. They moved quickly down the row, their footfalls softened by the earth. Voices carried as they approached, the warbling tongue of that country. They were easy in their banter, comfortable.
“Did you see which way they went, Kieran?” one asked.
“Nathen said they were going to the vineyard. I think it is over there.”
“No, that is the garden.”
“Let us check there first. I want some strawberries.”
Lia panicked. Colvin was still in the garden. She was not sure what to do. The end of the row of vines led up to the woods at the base of the mountains. The garden was off to their left, past the low stone wall.
As Lia poked her head above the hedge of gravepines, she saw the two Pry-rians enter the garden. They wore leather hoods and vests and each had a gladius at their belt. They approached the cropping of brush where she had left Colvin hiding.
Lia bit her lip and held her breath. Sidling up behind a thick pine, she glanced through the maze of trees at the garden at the two Pry-rians. Both were wearing woodsman garb, like Martin. Both had gladius’ belted to their waists and leather tunics with hoods. She stared at them and pressed the thought at them:
Find Ellowyn. She is missing.
“Do you see the size of these? I’ve never tasted one so sweet. Here, try one.”
“No, I want a plum. They are rare. I want to take a few with me when we go to the ships. I have never seen one so big.” The branches hissed as they were disturbed for the fruit.
Find Ellowyn. She is missing.
Lia pushed the thought again.
“Do you see the Aldermaston or the girl?” one of them asked. “Do you think everything is all right?”
“What is wrong?” Ellowyn whispered in Lia’s ear.
Lia raised her hand to silence the girl, focusing on the two men. She stared at them, directing her thoughts fiercely towards them.
Go look for her!
The two men plucked at fruit from the garden. One looked towards the alder trees. “I do not hear them.”
“Hear what?”
“I do not hear the Aldermaston or Ellowyn. Where do you think they went?”
One spoke with a mouthful of fruit. “The vineyard. I told you.”
“Are you sure?”
“Why are you worried?”
“I do not know. I just am. Let us go see where they are.”
The other grunted noncommittally.
“No, we should go see. Come on.”
“All right. Let me grab one more.”
Lia watched with growing dread each moment they lingered in the garden. Then they went out past the main ledge of the garden and walked towards the trees. Lia closed her eyes, grateful. When she opened them again, Colvin had slipped over the wall in front of her, landing in a crouch. She was relieved to see him. After fetching a pinecone, she tossed it towards him, drawing his attention to their location. He kept low and joined them in the woods.
“Colvin!” Ellowyn gushed, throwing herself at him and hugging him fiercely. She pressed her cheek against his chest, her eyes squeezed shut and the look of pure delight and relief on her face. He stared at Lia helplessly, his hands opening and clenching awkwardly, looking at her with bewilderment. Lia gave him an exasperated smile and mouthed,
embrace her
, as if he were the biggest idiot in the world. One of his hands patted her back gently. She was much shorter than him. She gazed up into his face adoringly. “You came for me,” she whispered. “You came, just as you promised!”
He nodded, still looking conflicted about her surge of emotions. “I promised you I would. But I could not have done it without Lia’s help.” He glanced at Lia. “Where is the Aldermaston? You did not…harm him, did you?”
Lia grinned at the question and shook her head. “No, he let her go. The daylight is fading. We must climb the mountain even in the dark. We cannot stay here.” Lia grabbed Ellowyn’s arm. “I hope you are you ready for your task. This is not the only mountain we must climb together. There is so much I have to tell you both.”
* * *
The moon was bright in the sky and Lia was exhausted. Sweat drenched her face even though the night was cold. She used every trick she had learned from Martin. Backtracking to disguise their trail. Crossing over rocks when possible to not leave a mark. Leaving false trails in another direction. When the darkness closed in, she stayed near Colvin and Ellowyn, retreating often to mask their passing as they ascended the mountains.
It was clear they were being pursued.
The glow of torches shone as pinpricks in the dark, moving and wending up the mountain pass behind them. Lia knew they would not stop. When she needed to use the orb for direction, she would shield the light between their bodies, or go inside a hollowed-out trunk of a giant redwood. It seemed that no matter what they did, the train of torches was never far behind.
Lia puffed with the exertion, weary to the bone but knowing they had to race Martin and the others back to the village where Pen-Ilyn waited with his boat. With water separating them, it would ease their pursuit. Martin would not know of their plans, though he might guess at it. She looked up at the moon and saw it ringed with frost. She could see the breath coming out of her mouth as she panted. Cold settled in around her. Fog began to form in the air, gathering in wisps.
Oh no
, she thought with dread. It was starting again.
Hurrying forward, abandoning her makeshift broom, Lia caught up with Colvin and Ellowyn. It was not difficult, for Ellowyn was staggering with weariness and Colvin had a hold on her arm to keep her on her feet. He soothed her with encouragement and looked at Lia as she advanced.
“The mist,” he said flatly.
“I know,” she replied. Fear began to squirm inside her. The moon was veiled in gauzy vapors that seemed to rush in from every direction.
“I am cold,” Ellowyn whimpered.
Lia was not, so she released her cloak and covered the other girl’s shoulders with it. She gave Lia a grateful look and hugged herself.
The mist descended over the heights of the trees, weaving through the woods in every direction, concealing even the light from the torches behind them in the gloom. The woods were thick and oppressive. They still had not reached the summit yet. It would be a while before that happened still.
“How far behind are they?” Colvin wondered.
“I have tried to throw them off our trail, but nothing has worked so far. They are moving faster than we are, but are closing the distance more slowly. My tricks are giving us more time, but not much. It will be easier on the way down. We may reach the valley floor by dawn and then cross the valley by mid-day if we do not stop.”
“I need to rest,” Ellowyn said. “I can scarcely breathe.”
From behind them, the Fear Liath roared. The trio stopped at the sound. It was the same as before and it struck terror inside them. Ellowyn’s eyes were as wide as dishes and she quailed with fear. “What was that!”
Colvin stared down the mountain. “It is behind us?” he said in disbelief.
Lia understood. It was not hunting them at all. “Martin,” she whispered.
Ellowyn grabbed Colvin and buried her face against his tunic. “What is it?” she said, her voice quavering.