The Master's Chair (The Chronicles of Terah) (59 page)

“I guess that’s about the best I can ask of anyone that I have to depend on,” Kevin said.

Tyree nodded.

“Is he in charge of the castle guard?” Chris asked.

“No, the guard is separate from the army, at least in most provinces. Often the sorcerer chooses someone from the army for the position, but he doesn’t have to. And how the guard is organized is up to the captain and the sorcerer. You’ll have to name a new captain who will be completely loyal to you, not loyal to you just because you’re Badec’s son. You might want to give that a little thought while you’re traveling. Just like the governor, you’ll need to name a Captain of the Guard as soon as you assume the duties of the Sorcerer of Camden,” Tyree explained.

When they came to the area Kevin thought of as the compass room, Tyree took the tunnel that led up to Blalick’s house.

Kevin and Chris walked the rest of the way to Rainbow Valley in relative silence. When they got there, the others had not arrived so they decided to go outside and wait for them near the cave entrance.

About an hour later, Kevin spotted two dark shadows in the sky, slowly circling above the valley. He pointed them out to Chris and they watched as the shadows spiraled down towards the ground. Once both dragons were settled on the ground, Kevin and Chris approached.

“That was wonderful,” Joan exclaimed as she slid off of Glendymere’s neck. “The whole area is covered in a blanket of snow and it’s beautiful. I don’t know when I’ve enjoyed anything as much.”

“It really was fun,” Karl said, “once I got over the shakes at being so far above ground.”

“If there is nothing else, I think I’ll take my leave,”
Jonquin said.
“Glendymere, thank you for the invitation to the war games. I’ve had more fun over the past couple of weeks than I’ve had in centuries.  Myron, have a safe journey home. You will do well for Camden and for Terah.”
Then Jonquin stepped away, spread his massive wings, and soared off into the night.

“Well, time for me to say good night as well. You need some sleep. You have a big day ahead of you tomorrow,”
Glendymere said, referring to the fact that they had to get everything packed up and loaded the next day.
“I’ll come over tomorrow evening for a few minutes. See you then.”
Then Glendymere followed Jonquin into the black sky.

Theresa turned away from the others for a moment to wipe away the tears that had gathered in her eyes as she thought of leaving. Joan put her arm through her husband’s and said, “Let’s go inside. I need to get busy or I’m going to cry. Anyone interested in some coffee and pie?”

While Joan and Theresa busied themselves in the kitchen, the men gathered around the table. A somber air settled over them.

“I feel almost as depressed as I did when I found out about my knee,” Darrell said quietly.

“You know, you could all stay here,” Kevin said. “It might even be safer that way. I could easily travel from here to Milhaven by myself using magic.”

“If you really think it would be safer to travel by yourself, we’d understand,” Steve said, “but I plan to go to Milhaven regardless. For one thing, I’m curious about how our plans to turn the castle into a mill town will work out.”

“We need to stick together,” Darrell said. “We’re the outsiders on this world. Either we all stay or we all go, and staying here really isn’t an option.”

“I agree. It’s tempting, but it really isn’t possible,” Karl said.

“What isn’t possible?” Joan asked as she brought in a tray loaded with the pie, coffee, and cups and set it on the dining room table.

“Staying here,” Karl said as he took her hand.

“Makes a nice dream though, doesn’t it?” Joan said with a smile. “Our own little corner of the world.”

“I don’t want to leave, but there’s a part of me that is ready to get back to work,” Theresa said. “I’m probably going to cry like a baby when I have to tell Sari good-bye. I’d take her with me if I thought Ashni would let me.”

“I wouldn’t mind taking Macin either,” Darrell agreed. “Maybe one day I’ll have a son of my own. If I do, I hope he’s as decent a kid as Macin.”

“I don’t know how to say good-bye to Ashni. She’s become such a dear friend,” Joan said with a sigh. Then she put her hand on Karl’s shoulder and said, “And old tough guy here is going to have a hard time leaving Blalick.”

Neither Kevin nor Chris said anything, but they were both thinking about having to leave Glendymere. He had become so much more than a mentor to both of them.

The Tellurians sat around the table, drinking coffee in silence, each lost in memories. Finally, Joan gathered the cups, took them out to the kitchen, and set them in the sink. Karl stretched and said, “I think I’ll head towards bed. After all, we’d better enjoy our last couple of nights on mattresses. It’s back to the cold hard ground starting Sunday. And I do mean cold. That snow pack is going to be tough to deal with.”

“Well, at least this time we don’t have to worry about one of the wagons getting stuck,” Darrell said as he nodded towards Kevin.

“Maybe there’s something to be said for traveling with a world-class sorcerer after all,” Karl teased as he and Joan left for their room. “See all of you in the morning.”

Chris and Kevin were the last two to leave the dining room. While they were walking down the hall towards their rooms, Chris asked,” How serious were you about heading for Milhaven on your own?”

“I wasn’t really, unless everyone else wanted to stay here. I just don’t want anyone to feel obligated to go with me, not even you. You can bail out any time you want to. I’d understand,” he answered.

“Thanks, but no thanks. I signed on for the long haul. Count me in.”

“In that case, I want to ask you something,” Kevin said.

“Shoot.”

“Would you be willing to be my assistant when we get to Milhaven, at least for a while?”

“I don’t know how much help I’ll be, and I’ll understand if you want to find someone else who knows a bit more about how things are done once we get there, but I’ll do what I can,” Chris answered. “Let’s say I’ll serve as your assistant until after the first council meeting. Then we’ll take another look at it. You might decide that you need someone else in that spot by then.”

“I think the main thing I need is someone I can trust and that I can work with, but let me know if you decide you want out,” Kevin said. Then he added, “Let’s keep this between us for right now, okay? I have a few things I want to talk over with you, but they’ll wait until we’re on our way. We’ll have plenty of time to talk while we’re standing guard.”

“Okay. I have to admit that standing guard is one aspect of the trip that I definitely am not looking forward to. I’ve gotten spoiled sleeping in a nice warm bed all night long. It’s going to be hard to go back to sleeping in shifts.”

“If the ground is as hard and cold as I think it’s going to be, getting up for a while to sit next to a hot fire might not be as bad as it sounds,” Kevin said with a grin. “See you in the morning.”

Chapter 45

Time for Good-Byes

The next morning, Blalick and Macin were in the dining room when everyone showed up for breakfast.

“Glendymere and I discussed your journey last night,” Blalick said. “Karl told me that you are planning to pick up a road somewhere north of here so that you will not have to go back into Abernon. The road that runs along the Pooley River might be your best bet.”

“The Pooley River?” Theresa asked.

“It is one of two rivers that form the boundary between Nandelia and Brendolanth,” Blalick answered. “There are roads on both sides of the two rivers. If you were really coming from the north, the most sensible route would be along the Pooley River to the Sandover River and then on to the Kivee River. Here, let me show you what I am talking about.” Blalick pulled out a map of Calandra. “See this river? It is the Pooley. And the one it joins here is the Sandover.”

“We could follow those rivers to this one,” Steve said quietly as he pointed at the Mississippi River.

“The Kivee,” Blalick nodded. “You could cross the Kivee at Glenarbour, there is a big ferry crossing there, and then follow this road to Milhaven.”

“Which province is Glenarbour in?” Karl asked. “It looks like it straddles the Sandover River.”

“It does, but it is considered part of Brendolanth,” Blalick answered. “One of the advantages of this route is that you will not pass through any of the towns that you came through on the way here. You will cross the road you took to Abernon, but you will not even travel on any of the same roads.”

Karl nodded and studied the map. “How long will it take us to reach the Pooley River if we head due north?”

“If you have to use paths wide enough for the wagons, it is going to take five to seven days,” Blalick said.

“Ouch! We can’t spend that long heading north. Do you have any other ideas?” Karl asked.

Blalick nodded. “I could head out this morning with the horses and be there by tomorrow afternoon. Kevin can move the loaded wagons out to the front of the cave tomorrow night, and then he and Glendymere can carry them up to the camp where I will be waiting with the horses. After everything is ready there, Glendymere can fly the rest of you up to join us. If it is done under the cover of darkness, no one will know. There are not many people living in these mountains, and no one would be out just wandering around in the middle of a cold January night.”

“Sounds good to me,” Karl agreed. “As long as we can do it without attracting undue attention.”

“While they are transporting the wagons, and then all of you, Kevin and Glendymere will be on the lookout for spies as well as local farmers checking their barns. Do not worry. If necessary, Glendymere can erase all memory of the night from someone’s mind.”

“I keep forgetting just how powerful he is,” Karl said, shaking his head. “When do you want to leave with the horses? And can you handle all of them by yourself?”

“Macin is going with me,” Blalick said. “We thought we would leave as soon as we can get the horses ready to travel. If you do not have any objections, we will get started while you are eating your breakfast. Is there anything you need us to do before we leave?”

“Not that I know of. Joan?” Karl asked.

“No, not that I can think of. Blalick, I don’t know how to thank you for everything you’ve done for us while we’ve been here. You and your whole family have been so terrific. I feel like I’m leaving my best friends,” Joan said while tears glittered in her eyes.

“We have been enriched by your visit here,” Blalick said with a slight nod of his head. “We shall definitely miss you. Come along, Macin. We have a lot of miles to cover.”

While they were eating breakfast the Tellurians talked about what they needed to pack in each of the three wagons, and just as they finished eating, Sari and Ashni came in to help with the packing. It took them most of the day to pack Theresa’s wagon. Then after dinner, the men packed most of the furniture and farming tools in the wagon that Kevin had driven down. Although Blalick and Karl had altered the wagon so that it now resembled a farmer’s hay wagon, they had kept all of Palladin’s little hidden cabinets so they could store the extra weapons in them.  

They left packing Karl’s new wagon until Sunday morning. After breakfast, Karl and Darrell anchored the individual cases around the sides of the new wagon, and then loaded the rest of the furniture, farming tools, and kitchen supplies. Bales of hay and bags of oats were stuffed in every spare corner and piled on top of furniture and tools. Finally, by the middle of Sunday afternoon, everything was ready. Joan and Ashni fixed some sandwiches and everyone gathered in the dining room for a snack.

“I’ve got something in my room that I want to show you. Be back in a few minutes,” Steve said as soon as he finished eating.

By the time Steve returned, the table had been cleared. He laid a stack of paper on the table and said, “Ashni, I’ve drawn a few sketches over the past couple of months that I’d like to give you and your family so you’ll have something to remember us by.” Steve spread the pictures out on the table. There were sketches of Joan and Ashni seated at their spinning wheels, in the kitchen, and out in the meadow with the llamas. He had sketched Theresa and Sari in the forest, by the herb garden, and in the workroom. There were sketches of Darrell and Macin practicing hand-to-hand combat, sparring with swords, and doing target practice with long bows. He had sketched Karl and Blalick surrounded by wood and tools, with the horses, and walking along the crest of Wildcat Mountain. There were sketches of Tyree in the sitting room with some of the Tellurians, outside with Blalick and Ashni, and in Steve’s room working on the model of the castle. Steve also had several sketches of Glendymere, one by himself, one in flight over the canyon, one with Kevin and Chris, and even one as he slept in his chamber.

While everyone was looking at those sketches, Steve walked over to Sari and handed her three sketches of Luci. One showed the condor perched on her rock in her cave, a second was of Luci perched outside on the edge of the cliff, and the third was of her in flight against a background of mountains and sky.

“Thank you for letting me go up to Luci’s cave with you, “Steve said quietly.

Sari’s face lit up as she looked at the pictures. She turned to Steve, hugged him, and said, “This is the best present ever. Thank you.”

As Sari turned to show Theresa the pictures, Steve stepped over to Ashni and handed his last sketch to her. Sari was in the foreground seated on her rock in Luci’s cave, playing her flute. Off to the side, Luci was perched on her rock with her beak extended in song. Ashni’s eyes filled with tears as she looked at the sketch.

“It is beautiful,” she whispered. Then in a slightly stronger voice she added, “Steve, I can not tell you how much this sketch means to me. I do not know what to say.”

“I enjoyed doing it and this is my way of saying thank you for everything you and your family have done for us,” Steve replied.

“Steve, I want copies of some of these. Did you make any for us?” Joan asked as she kept going through the sketches.

Steve nodded. “I’ve got about that many sketches, maybe a few more, in my room for Tyree to bring when he comes. I’ve already packed them up with my journal.”

“Why are you giving them to Tyree to bring to Milhaven?” Theresa asked. “I’m sure we can find room for them.”

“I thought it might be best not to have anything with us that connects us to this area,” Steve answered.

Karl nodded. “We don’t know who or what we may run into.”

“Just as long as Tyree doesn’t forget them,” Joan said. “I’d hate for one of you to have to ride all the way back out here to pick them up.”

~ ~ ~ ~

A little while later, while the men were checking the wagons to make sure that everything was tied down and ready for travel, Ashni and Sari helped Joan and Theresa finish up dinner. After Joan set the table and dished up the food, Ashni asked Sari if she was ready to go. When Joan objected, Ashni pointed out that Glendymere wasn’t expected until after midnight, so the Tellurians had time to eat and get about six hours of sleep if they didn’t waste any time sitting around putting off saying good-bye.

“I don’t know how to say good-bye,” Joan said through her tears.

“Then do not. We will see each other again. I am sure of it,” Ashni said as she clasped the human woman’s hand. She had never developed so much affection for a human before, and she was sure that her life was going to feel quite empty for a while.

Meanwhile, Sari couldn’t say a thing to Theresa. All she could do was hold her and cry. Finally Theresa gently pushed Sari back, wiped her eyes, and said, “Go on now. This isn’t going to get any easier. Here, I fixed some tea for you and your mother. Take this with you and think of us when you drink it.”

“Teri is right, Sari. Come along. It is time to go. They need to get some rest.” Ashni picked up the pictures, put her arm around her daughter, and gently led her out of the dining room.

A few minutes later, the men came back in. Seeing his wife in tears, Karl put his arm around her and said, “Come on. Let’s eat dinner and get some rest. There’s no telling when we’ll get the chance to sleep in a comfortable bed again.”

After dinner, everyone headed off to the bedrooms to try to get a nap before leaving. Kevin got up a little earlier than the others so that he could float the wagons down to the cave entrance without anyone else around. When he reached the wagons, he found that Ashni and Sari had loaded the wagon seats with bags of sandwiches, a wide variety of cookies, and a couple of cakes. Some of Kevin’s favorite strawberry preserves were sitting on Theresa’s wagon seat, right next to a big bag of chocolate chip cookies that were obviously intended for Chris. Draped over each of the wagon seats were heavy wool lap blankets for the wagon drivers.

By midnight Kevin had the wagons moved out to the clearing in front of the cave, ready to carry north to Blalick’s camp. He was standing in front of the wagons looking at the heavy black sky when he felt rather than saw a shadow move across the clouds. A couple of minutes later, Glendymere settled in the snow beside him.

“Are you ready to go?”

“If you mean have we packed, the answer is yes. If you’re asking if we’re really ready to leave this valley, the answer’s a resounding no.”

“Ah, but this is what it’s all been about, getting you ready to move on. Now that the time is here, I have to admit I’ll hate to see all of you go. I’ve come to rather enjoy having you around,”
Glendymere said.
“Are the others about ready?”

Kevin nodded. “They’re all up. They’re having coffee in the kitchen.”

“Good. Then shall we take the wagons?”

“I guess so.”

“I’ll take two. You bring the third. Then just follow me.”

“Maybe I should let them know that we’re going.”

“I already have. I also asked if anyone had any last minute things to throw on board. No one did, so I guess the wagons are ready. Let’s go
,” Glendymere said as he and two of the wagons lifted straight up. Kevin took the last wagon and followed.

It took them about an hour to get to Blalick’s camp with the wagons. When they got there Blalick was standing next to the campfire and Macin was with the horses in a small clearing about a quarter of a mile away. After the wagons were spread out in a circle around the campfire, Kevin and Glendymere headed back to Rainbow Valley.

When they were about fifteen minutes out, Glendymere let Chris know that they would be landing in a few minutes and as soon as Glendymere and Kevin touched down, the others came out of the cave entrance, ready to go. Although Kevin had gotten used to seeing them in long hair and beards, seeing them in their padded sweaters and long cloaks gave him a quick chuckle. They all seemed to have gained about thirty pounds since last night.

While the others climbed on Glendymere’s back, Chris joined Kevin and handed him his sweater and cloak so that he could put them on before they headed north. “Are you sure you can support me for that long a flight?” Chris asked Kevin quietly. “I could squeeze up there with the others.”

“There’s no need to crowd them any more than they’re already crowded. Relax. I just carried a loaded wagon up there without any problems. I won’t let you fall,” Kevin whispered back.

“Of course he won’t let you fall, and if he does, I’ll catch you,”
Glendymere answered Chris privately.
“It’s good for the others to see that you have faith in his abilities, so, like he said, relax.”

When they landed near the campsite, Blalick and Macin greeted them with hot coffee. While they were drinking their coffee, Kevin mentioned that Ashni had left surprises on the wagon seats. After everyone inspected the blankets and the bags of goodies, they asked Blalick to tell Ashni that she had their undying gratitude.

Blalick laughed and said, “From what she told me, she is planning to send out some supplies every couple of weeks while you are on the road.”

“How?” Joan asked.

“Well, I do not think she has mentioned it to Glendymere yet, but she is planning to use him as a delivery man,” Blalick said, grinning.

“Humph! We’ll have to see about that. Every couple of weeks you said? What does the woman think I am? I have better things to do than run fresh bread out to this crew!”

“He will do it,” Blalick laughed, “or else he can live with her.”