Jhond called to her, but she didn't respond.
* * * *
Remelin found herself once again standing in the cellar, but with no clear memory of how she got there. The last thing she clearly remembered was being in the cabin on the
Horologue,
attempting to get some sleep after a very restless night. She frowned as images beset her, feeling like memories and yet somehow, not. One particularly odd one seemed to involve the sailor, Warkist. With the recall of his name, she also had a sudden memory of pain, sudden and sharp, before the memory slipped away. She shook her head in an attempt to dismiss the uncomfortable feeling that accompanied the confused images. Instead she tried to bring to mind the last clear memory she had.
She knew Jhond and Ninian had returned after the complete annihilation of Garileon Castle and that Jhond planned to go to the cellar in the nunnery at first light to put an end to the entity. She very much hoped that all this would be behind her soon and she could travel to Timendra with the two magi. It was her dearest wish to have control over her talent finally, and if close contact with Jhond would once again make him take personal interest in her, so much the better. The kiss they had shared had been even more wonderful than she had imagined it could be. The idea she might never experience it again was like a nightmare.
She was aware that since the subterfuge of her appearance, both Jhond and Ninian doubted her feelings for Jhond, but they were genuine, and perhaps, once away from the memory of what had taken place in Garileon, they'd believe her.
Jhond
would believe her. Her drifting thoughts were brought back to the here and now when a sharp pain shot across her skull. An all too familiar pain.
::Attend me!::
Remelin flinched, as much at the harsh voice booming out as at the lingering pain still throbbing in her head.
Please, no!
She knew that voice, and the memories came crashing back as if they had never left.
She had spent many weeks listening to it, trying to disobey and being punished in consequence. It had seemed like a bad dream, but now she knew it had been all too real. Though there had never been a mark on her body, the entity had caused her terrible pain. Even daring to question the entity had resulted in agony. She realized that it must have brought her back here to the hated cellar. Yet, how could that be? Jhond had broken the last contact when he destroyed the locket.
She flinched again as the thing laughed. If the grating noise it made could be termed laughter.
::You think the Eynan has freed you? From me? You will never be free. You are mine, and always shall be.::
Somehow, she sensed amusement from the entity, and it gave her a chill.
"I hid it from you while you were with him, but now he is coming, it is no longer of concern.::
Jhond was coming? Wait...
it?
She gathered her courage to ask, "What is no longer of concern?"
::That it matters not how many times he might try to free you from me, you will always wear my mark.::
"Mark?" she whispered, afraid of the answer.
::I have impressed the mark of the House of Thail on your lower back. It is part of your body, cannot be removed and you will always be compelled to answer its call. Not even the Eynan can take that from you."
She closed her eyes as a chill run down her spine. She'd never had a chance. The entity had owned her since those first days she'd stumbled across it, and she had never known. Now she had blindly drawn Jhond deeper and deeper into the trap this cruel, evil monster had devised. She was the bait, first as a stumbling mage, then as a young woman whose false image intrigued the Eynan. The only thing the entity hadn't engineered was her reaction to Jhond, the feelings that had stolen over her until he became the most important thing in her existence. And perhaps those feelings were the very thing that would give her an advantage, something beyond the entity's control. Fighting for herself was one thing; fighting for the man she loved was another.
She prayed then. To whom she knew not for she believed in none of the old gods and didn't trust that the Lords of Light really existed. But still, she prayed with all her heart that Jhond would prevail.
It laughed again, the horrible sound scraping at her psyche like coarse sand grains against her skin.
::No, child, such prayers are useless. I am the only superior being that controls your life. Worship me as is my due.::
"Never, never!" she declared. "I hate and despise you and would destroy you if it was in my power." Pain shot through her head again, and she lifted a hand to press to her temple as if she could somehow wish the pain away.
::Power? You have no power, you poor deluded child. You are but dust under my feet, mine to mould and use to my advantage as and when I need. Now you have brought to me the one thing I wanted above all else. I can be whole again and then none can stand against me. Not even the vaunted Eynan!::
Brought? What did it...
It was only then she realized she held something in her hand--a small box--and she instantly recognized what it was. Her anger died, swallowed up by despair and regret as her tears overflowed and ran down her cheeks. "Oh, Lords, what have I done? What have I done?"
* * * *
Amired forced himself to stop grinding his teeth and instead let loose his anger. "For the Lords' sake, Warkist, stop your damned complaining! Climbing this Lords' forsaken mountain is not my idea of enjoyment either, but moaning about it non-stop isn't going to make it any easier. If that slip of a girl can repeatedly climb up here to that nunnery, I'm sure you can make it. Keep your mouth shut and get moving!"
Amired didn't add yet again that Warkist's insistence on carrying his short sword in his hand hardly helped him keep his balance on the difficult parts of the climb. They'd already had that discussion twice, and Warkist was of the firm opinion it was better to be prepared. As the man wasn't exactly enthusiastic about wielding weapons, Amired decided to leave well alone. At least the man had left his pistol in its holster, so Amired decided to let him be.
Warkist scowled, but was smart enough to keep his mouth shut as he continued on up the rough path with Amired close behind him.
A minute later, Warkist asked, "Are there any dangerous animals up here?"
Amired sighed. "Not that I know of. Remelin never mentioned anything like that."
Warkist stopped and turned around. "But she didn't say there weren't any either, did she?"
"Warkist, stop wasting both our time and get moving. Our help might be needed up there."
"Nobody asked me if I wanted to help," Warkist grumbled, as he turned back to the path.
"I'm not nobody. I'm your captain," Amired snapped. "Enough of this, Warkist, and get--"
Whatever Amired was about to say Warkist would never hear as the sailor yelled at the top of his voice, "Captain!"
Amired felt the hard thrust as Warkist shoved him aside. Out of the corner of his eye, Amired saw the ground unexpectedly coming up to meet him. Even as he grunted in pain when his shoulder hit rock, Amired watched the metal glinting in the bright sun as Warkist's sword whisked past about three feet overhead. Amired was shocked to see the weapon slice through the thick body of the largest snake he had ever seen. He watched in awe as the two halves of the animal fell either side of him and he found himself staring into the wide jaws of the snake. He'd never seen fangs so long. He dreaded to think of the kind of death he'd have suffered if the creature had bitten him. His awe turned to utter shock as the remains of the animal shriveled up and disappeared in two puffs of smoke.
Amired stared up at Warkist, who stood there panting, looking as astounded as Amired felt.
"Thank you, Warkist. You saved my life."
Amired's words seemed to break through the rather stunned state Warkist was in. The sailor straightened up and a broad smile split his face. "I did, didn't I?"
"Yes." Amired was pretty sure it'd be quite some time before Warkist let him forget this.
Warkist leaned down and offered Amired a hand, which the captain took gratefully. He'd never even seen the...whatever it was until it was too late.
Amired shuddered. "Though I'm not sure from what."
Warkist's uncertainty returned. "No, I... Lords, what was that? I was terrified enough when I thought it was the largest snake I've ever seen, but now..."
"Now we have to assume it was a creation sent by the entity."
"I was right to keep my sword to hand, wasn't I?" Warkist pressed, raising an eyebrow.
Amired found himself smiling as he replied, "Indeed, you were. Would that you showed such thoughtful determination while at sea." Amired drew his own weapon. "And now we have to be even more vigilant."
Bristling a little at the backhanded compliment, Warkist pulled a rag from his pocket and wiped the blood from his blade. He straightened his back, looked squarely at the captain, and said, "I'll continue to lead the way, eh, Captain?"
Amired kept the smile from his face as he inclined his head in agreement. This was certainly not the Warkist he had come to expect, and Amired found perhaps he was the one being taught a lesson.
* * * *
"Remi!" Jhond repeated. When there was still no response from her, he glanced at Ninian, who edged nearer to Jhond, while keeping a close eye on Remelin.
"It still has her in its thrall," Ninian whispered. There was no doubt now, and Jhond's expression hardened as he began to intone the words of a very powerful spell, its intent being to destroy any servile bond created using magistry.
Ninian stepped back, trusting the spell didn't harm Remelin in the attempt to free her from the entity's influence. Abruptly, Remelin fell to her knees, dropping the small box beside her and burying her face in her hands as she wept bitterly.
"What have I done?" she cried brokenly.
Ninian shot a glance at Jhond, relieved to see he'd immediately aborted the spell he was casting. Jhond quickly knelt beside Remelin, as Ninian grabbed up the box and cast out his talent to try to protect them, while Jhond was distracted by Remelin.
Jhond called her name again, but she continued to cry. He grabbed her and pulled her up to face him. He shook her, shouting, "Remi!" This time, her head shot up, and she registered his presence.
"It is too late," a strangely grating voice declared.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry," Remelin said, holding on tightly to Jhond, tears still streaming down her cheeks. "I swear I didn't know. It made me forget what had happened, how I got here. It told me just now that it had put the mark of Thail on my body, trapped me in its--"
"Stop whining you stupid child," the disembodied voice interrupted. "You were only ever a means to an end; an end that is at last within my grasp."
"Not so," Ninian said. "You think you are so clever, but you lack that one vital thing. You have no substance."
"Do I not?"
Jhond was surprised to feel amusement from the entity. There had never been any sense of emotion before, not like this. He glanced at the box in Ninian's hand and wondered if it was the presence of the other half of the whole that brought about this apparent change. Was the disembodied essence of the entity able to tap into the majority portion still trapped within the crystal? He had to accept the possibility. He was the Eynan; he could fight this. He
would
destroy it. He reached out and took the box from Ninian.
"Go, Ninian. Now!" Jhond ordered, shoving Remelin toward him. "Take her out of here. Get her to safety. Find Amired...he will help." Jhond was already centering his talent so he could draw on his power to its full extent. He sensed he would need every trick he could come up with to fight this thing, which had long ago been created to destroy him. Just this portion had proved to be very powerful and had already found a way to get through his shield to affect Remelin at a distance. He was grateful it hadn't managed to reintegrate itself; the Lords knew how powerful it would be if that happened before he had it under his control.
"No!" Remelin shouted. "I won't leave you to face it alone."
Ninian shared a long look with Jhond, and he knew Ninian wasn't happy to leave him either. However, he knew Ninian would obey him. He was also aware Ninian would be back by his side as soon as humanly possible. Amired should be well on his way to the nunnery by now and would be ready to help in any way he could. Once Ninian was sure the young mage was safe, he would return, intent on helping Jhond defeat the entity. Ninian gave a slight smile, broke eye contact, grabbed hold of Remelin and pulled her away from Jhond.
Still, Remelin struggled against Ninian, trying to return to Jhond.
"Don't be a fool," Ninian said urgently. "Do as the Eynan commands. You are hindering him, not helping."
"Go!" Jhond shouted.
He was as ready as he could be, and the last thing he needed now was a distraction, and if fear for anyone could hamper Jhond, it would be Remelin. He could feel the charge building as the entity prepared its response. Abruptly, a bolt of energy was barreling toward him, and Jhond threw up a defensive barrier.
"Stop disturbing his concentration!" Ninian demanded, grabbing hold of Remelin's chin and making her face him. She pursed her lips, sighed, then dropped her gaze and nodded.
Jhond heard Remelin muttering under her breath, but was relieved also to hear her skirts swishing against the rubble as she stumbled away with Ninian.
However, his relief was short-lived as the area behind him was filled with the rumbling sound of falling rock.
Jhond swung around to see the base of the cellar steps filling up with chunks of rubble and clouds of dust as the ceiling caved in, Ninian shoving Remelin aside as he dove out of the way. At the same time, harsh cackling laughter reverberated through the space.
It was a sound Jhond had heard before, during his first contact with the cracked crystal when the sound had filled him with horror. Now he understood where it originated.