The Mists of Sorrow: The Morcyth Saga Book Seven (4 page)

“What do you think?” Miko asks.

“I am not sure,” he replies. “Before I left,
I was instructed only to reveal this to you should you specifically
ask.”

“But I never would have asked if you hadn’t
mentioned it earlier,” James says.

Nodding, Brother Willim says, “True. I can
only believe that Asran wanted me to say it so you would know. I
have prayed about why I said what I did and each time receive a
feeling of peace.”

“Whether it helps or not,” James says with a
yawn, “I’m to bed.” Looking at the others near him he adds, “We got
a long way to go and a short time to get there.” As he stands up he
breaks out into a chuckle as the phrase sparks a memory from
home.

“We’ll see you in the morning,” Illan says.
“I must remain until the feast winds to a close.”

“See you then,” says James. Leaving the
table, he’s joined by Miko who’s all but dead on his feet. Jiron
sees them leaving and waves to them from the dance floor. When he
passes by Scar, Potbelly and the other pit fighters he asks, “You
guys staying?”

“For a little while longer,” Scar tells
him.

“Don’t stay up too long,” he tells them and
then heads for the exit leading to his room.

Miko walks with him until he reaches his
room. Both remain quiet, the words Brother Willim spoke still
running through their minds.

At James’ door, Miko takes his leave and
goes down to the next door which is his. Entering his room, James
creates his orb and undresses before crawling into bed. Canceling
the orb, he begins to drift into sleep.

Just before he completely succumbs to sleep,
the tingling of magic comes to him. Alarmed, he grabs his slug belt
and hurries out the door. The cry to Miko dies on his lips when he
finds one of the members of the Hand of Asran outside his door, a
soft green glow about him.

“Rest peacefully,” the priest tells him. “I
shall watch tonight.”

“Uh,” stammers James, slightly embarrassed
for running out into the hallway in his small clothes, “thanks.”
Ducking back into his room, he closes the door and returns to bed.
Chuckling at the mental picture of himself in the hallway, he’s
able to drift off to sleep.

Later in the night, a guard is walking the
battlements when a green light appears in the sky and falls to a
point to the east. He’s seen many falling stars, but none of that
color. Making the sign against evil he pulls his coat tighter
around himself and continues his watch.

The following morning James rises with the
sun. Quickly getting dressed, he buckles on his slug belt and
throws his pack over his shoulder. Leaving his room, he meets Miko
in the hallway as he’s leaving the room next to his.

“Ready?”

Closing the door, Miko nods. “Yes. The cook
should have breakfast ready when we get there.”

James grins at that, Miko had always been
one who liked to eat. It’s a marvel he’s not fat. Walking side by
side, they follow the aroma of fresh baked bread to the dining area
where everyone else has already arrived and begun to eat.

Moving through the morning diners, James
makes his way to the table where Illan sits. Ceadric is there as
well and he takes the seat to his right.

“Good morning all,” he says as he sits down.
No more than a moment elapses before a server comes with a plate of
tubers and boiled beef from the Empire’s store of goods. This
fortress had been well stocked with all the necessities by the
Empire before it fell. Illan isn’t going to have to worry about
resupplying for at least a month.

Illan nods as he sits down and says, “Looks
like you will have fair weather for travel.”

“The road north is clear,” adds Ceadric.
“Reports say the only Empire forces in Madoc are those currently
locked in battle with our armies.”

“That’s good to know,” he says as he digs
into the food.

“Be careful anyway,” warns Ceadric. “You
never know.”

“We will,” he replies.

It’s a somber mood among the companions,
each knowing that when the meal is over most will head north while
others stay behind. Even Scar and Potbelly are subdued. They’re
going to miss the rivalry they have enjoyed with Jorry and Uther.
The four of them sit off to the side and every once in awhile one
or the other raises their voices in good natured scoffing. The fact
that it is only once in awhile and not a constant series of
outbursts reveals how melancholy they are about their impending
separation.

The meal finally comes to a close and the
companions make their way to the courtyard where several Raiders
have already prepared horses for travel. As the others mount, Delia
comes to Illan and gives him a hug. “Your Alaina would have been
proud by the way things have turned out for you,” she tells
him.

A slight tear comes to his eye as he
replies, “Yes. I think she would.” He helps her into the saddle and
then turns to James. “There will be fresh horses waiting for you on
your return.”

“I appreciate that,” he says from the back
of his horse. “Expect us in a week.”

Illan grins. “If you make the trip in a week
you will definitely need other steeds.”

“Good luck to you all,” Ceadric says. To the
sides of the courtyard, all the Raiders stand at attention in
respect for those who are leaving.

Once everyone is mounted and ready, James
salutes Illan smartly and then turns toward the gate. Making their
way out from the keep, he can’t help but glance back one more time
to the friend he’s leaving behind. He seriously doubts that things
would have turned out so well if Illan had not been with him. Not
for the first time does he wonder if another had a hand in such a
stroke of good fortune. It’s been awhile since Igor’s made an
appearance and he wonders what he may be up to.

Behind him ride Miko, Jiron and Aleya, and
then Brother Willim. The other two remaining members of the Hand of
Asran are there to bid him farewell. They will leave later in the
day to return their fallen brothers to the temple.

Next come Delia and Tersa, the pit fighters
and then finally the recruits. As the last rider leaves the gate
and they close, he gets them up to a fast gallop. The road ahead is
deserted, which is what they were expecting. Who in their right
mind would be traveling in a war zone anyway?

Keeping a fast pace, they make Saragon in
two days. Along the way they encounter the occasional Madoc patrol
which does little more than find out whom they are and where they
are going before allowing them to continue.

They make camp at Saragon the second night.
The last time they were here it was occupied by the Empire and
gangs of slaves were reconstructing the city. That is until the
slaves rose against their captors to give James and Jiron a chance
to escape the city.

He remembers the old man Derrion, whose
family had kept a secret given to them centuries past. That secret
eventually led them to Ironhold and the Star of Morcyth. James has
not forgotten his promise to tell the tale of the last fight when
Derrion led the slaves in revolt here to allow them a chance to
escape. He plans to when time and opportunity permits.

Tents of Madoc soldiers dot the landscape in
front of the gates. The soldiers appear fairly lax. Now that the
lines are far to the south once more, they can afford to drop their
guard some.

“A bit different than the last time we were
here isn’t it?” asks Jiron as he comes to stand next to James. They
didn’t bring any tents with them, just bedrolls and gear for
inclement weather. He plans to move fast and the added weight would
only slow the horses down.

“You can say that again,” replies James. “I
thought for sure that they had planned to stay.”

Scar and Potbelly make their way from the
soldier’s camp where they had been finding out the news of the
local area. Coming straight to James, they stop just before him.
“It’s clear to the north,” Scar states.

“Yeah, appears the reports Illan received
back at the keep were accurate,” adds Potbelly. “Except that the
Merchant’s Pass is now open. Looks like we won’t have to make the
added trip all the way to Dragon’s Pass.”

“Excellent,” Jiron says, happy that there
will be a few less days before they begin the search for Tinok. “We
can escort them to the Pass and then head back south.”

The sound of sparring comes from where Stig
is drilling with Devin and Moyil. The recruits have become fighters
of some skill, though nothing to the degree of the pit fighters.
Against regular opponents, thieves and such, they should be able to
hold their own. Devin, aside from the sword, puts in some practice
with the spear James had given him so long ago. Why he still
carries it is a mystery. Maybe it’s due to the fact James had used
magic to harden and sharpen it, it’s really quite a good
weapon.

“We’ll be at the Pass in little over a day,”
Potbelly says.

“Good,” James says as he glances over to
where Delia and Tersa are talking with Aleya. He makes his way over
to them and their conversation halts when he draws close.

“Excuse me,” Aleya says. She then gets up
and walks over to Jiron. Taking him by the hand they walk some
distance from the camp.

James looks questioningly to Delia and Tersa
but they don’t offer any explanation. Shrugging, he sits down with
them. “The Merchant’s Pass is open,” he tells them. “We’ll be there
day after tomorrow.”

Tersa gets a sad look on her face and Delia
pats her on the knee. “So we’re not going all the way to Dragon’s
Pass?” she asks.

James shakes his head. “No, you should be
safe once you’re within Merchant’s Pass,” he says.

The sad and worried look comes to her face
again as she glances over to her brother.

“He’ll be okay,” she assures him.

“I know,” she replies sadly.

Delia glances to James and says, “She’s
worried for her brother.”

“Hey,” he says reassuringly, “We’ve been
through some tough situations before. I’m sure everything will turn
out alright.”

“Besides,” offers Delia, “Aleya will be with
him.” That brings a smile to Tersa’s face. “How much of a risk will
he take with her along?”

“You have a point,” she admits.

At the mention of Aleya, they all turn to
watch them sitting on Jiron’s blanket together. Her head is lying
on his shoulder and his arm holds her tight.

“I made her promise that if they were to
marry to wait until they returned to The Ranch so I could be her
maid of honor,” she tells them.

“I doubt if that boy will ever ask her,”
Delia says. “It took Cassie to work on Tinok before he even thought
to ask.” Sadness comes over them at the mention of Cassie and
Tinok. Both lives have taken a definite turn for the worse. Cassie
died and Tinok is facing an unknown fate at the dark of the
moon.

“We’ll see,” James says. Then to change the
subject he asks Delia, “What do you plan to do once you’re
back?”

“Start up with trading again,” she says. “I
doubt if any trader over in Cardri knows half as much as I do about
what it’s like over here and what is needed. My wagons should still
be with Roland and hopefully the horses too. I told him he could
sell them if he needed to.”

“I doubt very seriously if he’ll need money
that badly,” replies James. When he left, a bag of gems still
remained in the chest sitting in his room from the last expedition
to the cave under the Merchant’s Pass.

“We’ll see,” she says. “May have to hire
more guards, though.” She then nods over to where the seven
recruits are congregating around the fire. “They may not be enough
in an emergency.”

Giving out with a yawn, James stands up and
says, “This might be a good time to turn in. We still have a long
way to go.” He then turns and makes his way over to his bedroll. On
his way he lets everyone know it’s time for sleep. Lying down, he
hears the sound of the rest beginning to turn in.

Next to him, Miko is already asleep. Still
worn out from the extensive healings he did back at the keep, not
to mention the grueling ride of the last two days, he turned in
some time earlier. His now familiar snores disturb the quiet of the
night.

He lays there for awhile, unable to sleep
despite the fatigue he feels. Staring up at the night sky, he
stills his thoughts and begins to breathe deeply. This method of
calming his mind has at times aided him in falling asleep.
Gradually he sinks further toward sleep. Just before he completely
succumbs, Miko’s arm suddenly begins thrashing and strikes him in
the side.

Jerked back into wakefulness, he grabs
Miko’s arm before it has a chance to strike him again. He can hear
him moaning and from the light of the campfire, sees his other arm
thrashing slightly.

Sitting up, he takes his free hand and
places it on his friend’s chest. Shaking him slightly he says,
“Miko, wake up.” But he continues to thrash in whatever dream has
hold of him.

Then from behind him a green glow suddenly
springs to life and Brother Willim moves toward them. “Do you feel
that?” the priest of Asran asks.

“What?” asks James.

“Something…” he says then trails off when he
sees Miko there on the ground, thrashing around slightly.

Giving Miko a firmer shake James says a
little louder, “Wake up.”

With a gasp, Miko sits up and quickly looks
around. Panting and sweating, his eyes finally settling on James.
“Oh man,” he says, voice trembling.

The light from Brother Willim disappears and
James glances back at him. “It’s gone now,” the brother says.
Looking around the camp, he finds they are the only ones awake.

“You okay?” he asks his friend.

“It was just a dream,” he finally breathes.
That’s when he notices James has hold of his arm.

“Sorry,” apologizes James as he releases his
arm, “you were thrashing about.”