The Mapkeeper and the Rise of the Wardens (19 page)

I have to get to the cavern
, she thought desperately.

Her brothers, Cadmus, and Zadok were the only ones she believed she could trust. She scanned the map one more time, searching for Wardens. There were a lot of different creatures in the centaur cavern, she realized. But the Wardens were nowhere to be seen on the map. Folding it up and returning it to her pocket, Lucy trotted toward the stable under cover of the tree line. Bending at the waist, she slipped out from the trees and crossed the short distance to the stable, using it to block her from the view of anyone in the castle. She entered through the back gate, which was always open.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing?” Quinn shouted from across the stable as Lucy grabbed the reins of the nearest horse.

“Quinn, it’s me—Lucy! I need to borrow a horse. I’ll bring it back as soon as I can, I promise!” She rushed the horse out of its stall, threw a saddle on its back, and mounted it in a single swift motion.

“How do you know my name?” Quinn demanded from the middle of the stable, hands on his hips, blocking her exit. “I’ve never seen you before in my life, and you’re not about to steal one of the castle’s horses on my watch.”

A chill ran down Lucy’s spine once again. Something had changed since she left Praxis—she could sense it everywhere she went. Quinn would have remembered her, she was certain.

Pip peered out from one of the other stalls where he was re-shoeing a mare, his brown hair falling in strings around his eyes.

“Pip! It’s me, Lucy. Tell your dad it’s me, Pip, please! I have to go, it’s urgent!” she pled with the young boy, but his stare was blank.

“How does she know my name, Dad?”

Lucy’s blood went cold. They really didn’t recognize her.

“Let’s go!” she shouted, digging her heels into the horse’s sides and flicking the reins.

“Gah!” Quinn bellowed as he dove out of the way of the galloping horse. “You won’t get away with this!” he called after her. Lucy looked over her shoulder as she urged the horse across the field. Quinn was scrambling to his feet.

Leaning forward, she urged, “Come on, old girl, I need you to run like you’ve never run before!”

She blazed down the Royale Byway into town, traversing the grassy field behind the village instead of the paved roads. Slipping between two shingled houses, she crossed a street and emerged on the western side of town, galloping toward Rhys’ hut. She didn’t dare slow the horse, certain that Quinn or the guards would be tailing her soon. She thundered past Rhys’ hut and down into the valley, skirting Glacial Lake as she pressed on toward the forest. She stole a glance over her shoulder. No one was following her yet.

She allowed the horse to rest, slowing to a trot. As far as she could see, she was alone in the center of the valley, not a trace of life stirring anywhere. Beside the path, Glacial Lake rippled, unsettled in the stiff, icy wind that blew off the Dark Sea to the north. With a shiver, she rubbed the horse’s neck in gratitude as she scrutinized her surroundings. All her senses were heightened in her state of unease. Across the lake, she noted with horror that the Tree of Virtue was indeed reduced to a smoldering stump. She clapped a hand over her mouth. She’d been halfway convinced that the queen had been wrong about the Wardens, but this was proof of at least part of the story she’d told.

She continued across the valley without incident, though her utter solitude was concerning.
Shouldn’t I have come across someone by now?
The horse walked now, the impressive, dark trees of Doldrums Forest looming just ahead. Every instinct told Lucy not to enter the dense, gloomy woods, but she had no choice. She had to reunite with her brothers and friends. She became suddenly aware that she’d neglected to arm herself with a weapon before leaving the castle.
I’ll be helpless if I am attacked
, she thought, cursing her own lack of foresight.

The forest closed around her as if clamping her in. She let her head fall back, amazed at the sheer height of the forest canopy. The air was cold and motionless in the shadows of the great trees. Strange scuttling noises and occasional low hoots were the only indicators of life around her. Lucy shivered, tightening her grip on the reins.

She pulled out the map and confirmed that the main path led to the centaur cavern. She was comforted to see the map was still animated, and that her brothers and Cadmus were still in Abodox with Zadok. The cavern was located off the path ahead—all she had to do was stay on this trail to get there.

Minutes passed, and nothing changed. The trees flanking the path all looked identical. Twice more she checked her map, tracking the progress of the little animated Lucy on horseback making her way toward the cavern. Reassured, she carried on.

The trail was wide but well-traversed. Between scanning her surroundings and checking the map, Lucy was careful to remain on the path. When another fifteen minutes passed and the scenery hadn’t changed, her anxiety increased. The woods were darker now, and colder. She pulled the map out again, and to her dismay, discovered that according to the map, she hadn’t moved since the last time she checked her progress. Her stomach sank. Something wasn’t right.

“Giddyup.” She heeled the horse into a gentle trot. A bush quivered nearby—
just a rodent or a squirrel
, she reasoned. The path widened and opened into a circular clearing. Certain that this wasn’t on the map, Lucy slipped it out of her pocket once again to examine her position. She froze when she saw two cloaked figures emerge from the shadows ahead.

“Whoa,” she muttered, trying to calm the horse as it whinnied and reared. Whatever was up ahead had the horse spooked. Lucy’s heart began to race and her throat constricted in fear. She jerked the reins, yanking the horse around to discover three more hooded figures pacing toward her from behind. Her heartbeat was in her throat now.

“What do you want?” she called out, her voice weaker than she’d expected. There was no reply. She couldn’t make out their faces, but she was sure they were the same cloaked figures she’d seen in the forest before. Her heart raced in terror—she was surrounded, and they were closing in.

The horse reared again. Lucy clung to the reins, squeezing with her legs to keep her balance, but she was too late. She was thrown to the ground, her head whipping back and smacking the packed dirt. Brilliant flashes of light exploded all around her, obscuring her vision. The air was forced out of her lungs and she was paralyzed by pain, lying on her back staring at the black canopy of leaves high overhead. She couldn’t breathe. The hooded figures entered her field of vision as the starry explosions of light faded. The creatures encircled her, leaning in as her senses weakened and the world faded to blackness.

Lucy heard voices all around her. They were high-pitched and they seemed to be in the midst of a number of different conversations. Someone was laughing up ahead. Was she moving? She wanted to open her eyes, but her eyelids were so heavy. She was so weak… so exhausted. She couldn’t focus on the conversations floating through the air around her. Every part of her body ached with throbbing pain. Her limbs felt weighted like lead poles. Someone was laughing again, a loud impish snicker.

Determined, she summoned all of her energy and lifted her eyelids a sliver. Through blurred vision, she made out a train of hooded figures. But they were not the same hooded figures who loomed over her in her last memory after being thrown from the horse. These creatures were much smaller, wearing colorful ragged cloaks and carrying staffs lit by glowing orbs. She was lying on her back, being carried on a litter. She struggled to turn her head to see who was carrying her, but the effort drained her and she succumbed to the darkness, her eyes closing as she let go. The voices faded into an indiscernible hum. She felt herself slipping back into blackness, where she wouldn’t feel the pain…

When she faded into consciousness the first thing she became aware of was the sound of voices. She was lying down somewhere, and two people were having a conversation in the room. She felt better. Stronger. Her limbs were still heavy, but the pain was more dull than before. She still ached from head to toe, and the back of her head throbbed.

“I think she’s waking up,” said a familiar voice somewhere nearby.

“Oh, good! Lucy, can you hear us?” another familiar voice asked.

She opened her eyes with effort. Two blurry outlines leaned over her in a chamber aglow with dim candlelight.

“Ahh…” she moaned, lifting her hand to rub her forehead. Her arm was heavy, as though it were made of stone.

“Lucy, it’s us. You’re safe now,” the first voice assured her.

It took a few seconds for her vision to sharpen. She blinked twice and squinted, bringing the room into focus. She almost wept with relief to see Cadmus and Luke leaning over her. Cadmus put a hand on her shoulder.

“You’ve had a rough day,” he joked, but concern deepened worry lines across his forehead. “You took a hard fall off your horse. You must be in a lot of pain. Here, drink some water when you can.”

She tried to sit up, but pain shot through her back and down her right leg.

“Ah!” she winced and lay back down.

“Just take it easy,” Luke said. “Try not to move too much.”

“Where am I?” she asked, her mental fogginess fading. She peered around the room. It was all rock, a small cave with all the amenities of a bedroom. She was lying under a brown wool blanket on a cot against one wall. Luke and Cadmus sat on wooden chairs by her side. There was a wooden table on the other side of the room, and a small chest of drawers with a wash basin adjacent to her cot. The cave was dim and windowless, lit by four sets of wall-mounted candleholders. A plain woven rug covered a large portion of the stone floor.

“We’re in Abodox,” Cadmus replied. “Lucy, so much has happened since you’ve been gone. We have a lot to catch you up on.”

She was so elated to see them, her heart felt as though it might burst. Tears sprang to her eyes. “I’m so happy to see you,” she replied, grinning at Cadmus and Luke. “When I came back to Praxis, the village was deserted and the queen said you were all dead and—”

Cadmus placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay,” he interrupted her. “It’s okay. We’ll talk later. For now, just rest. You need to get your strength back before we talk it all out. We’re just so glad you’re okay,” he added, his eyes reflecting his sincerity. He took her hand and squeezed it.

She squeezed back, holding his gaze. “All right, but where is Mack? And how did I escape the Wardens and make it here in one piece?”

“Mack is with the others in another room,” Luke answered. “They’re planning. We’ll tell you all about it tonight at dinner. And by the way—the kobolds saved you.” Luke smiled and rubbed her shoulder as he stood. “For now, try to drink some water and sleep a little longer. You’re not in the greatest shape right now, sis.”

“What are kobolds?” she mumbled, her eyelids growing heavy and beginning to droop.

“They’re little forest sprites who are known to be mischievous, but they are good-hearted and will help a creature in need. They have limited magical powers that deceive the mind. The queen of the kobolds, Cleo, informed Zadok that she cast a quick enchantment that tricked the Wardens into thinking that a forest buck was Lucy. While the Wardens chased the imaginary buck, the kobolds whisked you away and brought you here. They are the keepers of Doldrums Forest. At all times they know who is present in the woods, and can sense when creatures have foul intentions.”

Fascinated but exhausted, Lucy allowed Cadmus to lift a bronze cup of water to her lips. She took a long swallow and then laid her head back down on the feather pillow.

“Cleo and the kobolds…” she smiled, closing her eyes. Sleep overcame her.

҉

Six hours later she awoke feeling alert and well-rested. She was starving. She got up, stretched, and wiped her face and neck with a damp cloth that someone had left next to the wash basin.

Over a hearty meal of roast pheasant, boiled beet weed, and baked cinnamon-encrusted arrowroot, she was made aware of everything that had transpired during her time in Algid. She sat at one of twelve massive wooden dining tables in the Abodox dining hall, a huge natural cave opposite the entrance to the cavern. She felt like a child at the centaurs’ oversized table. The centaurs sat on their plush elongated cushions, legs folded beneath them. They had comfortable cushioned chairs available for their guests. Lucy sat between Zadok and Cadmus at the table of clan leaders. Also present were Adalia, Odessa, Auriel, Enzo, Glump, Mack, and Luke.

Lucy wolfed her food, washing it down with generous gulps of honeyed mead from a simple copper stein. The pheasant was hot, tender, and juicy.

“I could eat centaur cooking for the rest of my life!” she proclaimed. Zadok flashed an appreciative grin, scooping a modest forkful of arrowroot into his mouth. He was a genteel diner compared to his fellow centaurs at the next table, who ripped fistfuls of greasy pheasant off the bone with their bare hands. The other clan leaders at the table poked at their dinners with sullen disinterest. No one had much to say. Lucy could sense the intense melancholy of the group, though she didn’t yet know the extent of the damages the Wardens had caused.

The townspeople sat at a third table, filing out as they finished their meals to make room for others. The elves occupied one of the other tables, utilizing a similar system to ensure everyone had a chance to eat. The gnomes crammed around the table furthest from everyone else, isolated in a corner of the cavern. The goblins chose the table in the opposite corner of the room from the gnomes. They growled and snapped at one another as they gobbled their food. A few Bellaux picked at their meals at a table beside the elves.

When the clan leaders had eaten their fill, the dishes were cleared and the honeyed mead replenished. Lucy was satisfied, though she dreaded hearing the story she knew was coming. She caught Cadmus’ eye. He gave her a halfhearted smile and put his hand on her knee under the table. Her heart lurched at his touch. She covered his hand with one of her own, grateful for the comfort of his touch.

“Ms. Barnes, we will begin by filling you in on what has happened,” Zadok announced, taking charge of the discussion. “Cadmus, I believe you were the last to have contact with the Mapkeeper before she was transported.”

“Right,” Cadmus confirmed. “Lucy, one minute we were standing together on the edge of the cliff overlooking the valley, and the next, you were glowing and then you disappeared into thin air! I had no idea what had just happened or where you went. Needless to say, I was worried sick.” His eyes exposed the pain she’d caused him. She longed to explain that she didn’t leave on purpose… that she still had no idea why it had happened. “I rushed back to the castle, but no one there had seen you. Before we could send out a search party, the castle sentries blew their horns. They’d spotted an army of Wardens emerging from Doldrums Forest in the valley.”

“Unbeknownst to them at that time,” Adalia interrupted, her eyes dull pools of bereavement, “the Warden army had already launched a surprise attack on the elves at our hidden tree lair deep in Doldrums Forest. This marks the first time in history that anyone, enemy or friend, has managed to penetrate the spells cast on our lair which make it impossible to find. They managed to kill nine elves before moving on,” she finished, her face paler than usual. Like many others, Lucy noticed Adalia hadn’t eaten much at dinner.

“On their way out of the forest, they came across a group of five centaurs on patrol. They too were killed,” Zadok added, his hands balling into fists in grief. Cadmus put a hand on his friend’s shoulder, sharing in his anguish.

There was a moment of silence among the leaders, each absorbed in his or her own thoughts. Cadmus resumed the narration of the painful story.

“They emerged from the forest in vast numbers. We had no idea they had the potential to form an army this large. They filled the valley, a great black hooded throng. They made their way to the Tree of Virtue—” he paused, glancing at the Bellaux. They were pale, their expressions detached. Odessa had the vacant look of someone who had cried all the tears she had within her. Her face was drawn, her eyes dull and lifeless. She glanced up at Lucy, aware that her turn to speak had come.

“They burned our home. They surrounded us and torched our tree. We lost everything. Six of us managed to escape by jumping into Glacial Lake and swimming out as far as we could. The Wardens didn’t follow us into the water. The rest of our sisters…” she stopped, choking on her words. “I’m sorry, please excuse me.” She pushed back from the table, covering her beautiful face with both hands and running out of the dining hall. Auriel’s chair scraped the stone floor as she scooted her chair back and ran after her sister. They disappeared, rounding the bend onto the main cavern footpath.

Lucy’s heart broke for the Bellaux. At the table, no one spoke or even looked at one another. It was a moment of shared anguish. Even Glump had the decency to twiddle his thumbs rather than make a smart comment.

Sighing, Cadmus continued. “What the Wardens did was beyond awful. It was an attack unlike anything we have ever seen. After burning the Tree of Virtue, they stormed the village, where they began to gather up the townspeople. Men, women, children, it didn’t matter. They did not discriminate.” He met Lucy’s gaze, his blue eyes strained with pain. Hot, silent tears slipped down her cheeks.

“By that time, the castle guards, your brothers, and I were riding to the village at top speed, ready to fight. But suddenly, the Wardens stopped the attack. The lead Warden, who is no different from the others by outward appearance, waved them off and they retreated back across the valley into the forest. We still don’t know why they stopped. They were receiving very little resistance from the villagers.” He pounded the table with a fist in anger. “If we’d gotten there sooner, we would have saved lives.” His eyes watered. “They took a number of people away with them. The taken ones haven’t been seen since.”

Once again the leaders were silent. Lucy wiped tears from her cheeks. She found that she was as devastated as the rest of them. As the Mapkeeper, she was supposed to protect them, but she hadn’t been there when they needed her most.
I failed them
, she thought with frustration.

“I saw them, you know,” Lucy spoke up. “The Wardens had me surrounded in the forest. It was the strangest thing—I was tracking myself using the map, but I didn’t seem to be making any progress along the trail. I knew you were all here because the map showed me.”

Cadmus and Zadok appeared surprised.

“That’s a useful tool,” Zadok remarked.

“Yes, it showed me everyone’s locations after I left the castle,” Lucy agreed. “That’s how I knew the queen’s story wasn’t the whole truth. She told me some of what you just told me, but she believes you are all dead. I think she’s under some sort of spell. She refuses to leave the king’s side, and she seems almost… weighed down by the chamber. She’s not herself in there.”

“I was noticing the same thing before we left the castle,” Mack agreed from the other end of the table.

“And the guards. I don’t trust them,” Lucy added. “In fact, I’m not sure who I can trust anymore, except this group.”

Zadok met her gaze. She’d only spoken a partial truth. She never doubted Zadok’s credibility, but there were others at the table that she did not trust. She eyed Glump. He was glaring at his hands, which were clasped in his lap.

Looking around the circle, she noticed several leaders were missing. “Where’s Bade? And Rhys?”

“Bade claimed to be going to the Dour Mountains to secure the allegiance of the trolls. That was three days ago—we haven’t heard from him since,” Adalia muttered. “That was when we all met and decided that Abodox was the safest place for us. It’s large enough to provide more than enough shelter for all the clans. The network of caves is so vast, it seems endless. We are very grateful to you and your clan, Zadok.”

“It was the least we could do,” Zadok replied, nodding.

“As for Rhys,” Cadmus added, “we haven’t seen him since the day of the attack. He has been the subject of several discussions. Some of the villagers claim they saw him whisper something to the lead Warden before the attack was called off. That is a grave accusation. I prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt, but if the accusation is true, it can be inferred that Rhys may be collaborating with the Wardens. These are all scenarios we have been debating over the past few days.”

“It’s obvious he’s involved in some sort of foul play,” Glump snarled. “He is seen whispering something to the head Warden and then without warning, the attack is called off. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why those creatures didn’t chop his head off like they were doing to the rest of Praxis,” he remarked, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

“On the map, I saw him working in his lab when I rode from the castle to the forest,” Lucy added.

“He’s probably helping them—making potions for them to use against us!” Glump shouted as he jumped to his feet. His standing height wasn’t much taller than his sitting height. In his anger, his oversized, pointed green ears were tinged red at the tips. “I know some of you are thinking I shouldn’t have a say since the goblins weren’t attacked, but I signed on to this alliance, and I’m sticking to it. Just because our mountain caves weren’t in the path of destruction doesn’t mean the Wardens wouldn’t have attacked us too, given the opportunity.” He slid back into his seat with a dramatic swallow of honeyed mead.