The Ogre Apprentice (21 page)

While she spoke a gust of wind hit and Justan saw what she was talking about. Little flecks of blue flickered across the treetops like a thousand tiny lights among the sea of green. Jharro trees were leafy evergreens and their large waxy leaves were green on top, but had a light blue underside.

“I see. I guess I thought they would stand out more,” Justan said.

I can smell them
, Gwyrtha said, inhaling deeply.
They smell of music
.

Justan didn’t catch the scent, but Beth breathed in deeply, closing her eyes for a moment as if she had heard what Gwyrtha said and agreed. “You’re actually looking out over a valley, believe it or not. But that’s only part of it. The reason they don’t stand out is that the shape of the trees is . . . Well, you’ll understand when we get there.”

They continued down the path until it connected with one of the main palace walkways. When they arrived at the gates, the guards didn’t want to let Justan and his bonded pass, but Beth assured them that she would act as their escort. There wasn’t much the men could say to this and they acquiesced, letting them through.

They entered the city proper, heading in the general direction of the marketplace where Justan had been before. He turned to Beth. “I’m curious. Why is it that you feel you owe my mother?”

She smiled. “I didn’t have the best example of a mother growing up. When the wizards brought me to the Mage School I was happy to be there, but I wasn’t very talented and, to tell you the truth, I was a bit of a brat. Wizardess Sherl was one of my teachers and she didn’t put up with my attitude. I hated her for it at first, but eventually I figured out that she was looking out for me.

“When I made apprentice, she became my master and she was great. She took me under her wing and taught me so much. It was more than just magic. She taught me how to be tough.”

Justan chuckled. “You’re not the first person to tell me that. When I was growing up, she was always taking the other kids under her wing. Even the kids that were mean to me respected her.”

“Yes, but she was more than that to me,” Beth said. “In many ways Sherl is more of a mother to me than my real mother.”

Justan shook his head. “Now I find out that I have an older sister. It seems like every time I talk to someone who knows my mother I learn something new.”

“I’d be honored if that were the case,” she replied. “You know, when I wanted to leave the Mage School to marry my boyfriend, your mother tried to talk me out of it. She told me to be patient and wait until I was a mage. We argued and I defied her. But when the council decided to quell me, she fought them. She lost that battle and it wasn’t until years later that I learned that she’d resigned from the Mage School because of it. Over me.”

“I see. I . . . guess I never thought of it that way before,” Justan said.

“Now you can see why I can never repay her for everything she’s done.” Beth’s said, her voice laden with emotion. “I still can’t believe that all those years I spent in Pinewood, she was living in Reneul. I even went there to see Testing Week a few times and I never knew she was there. I would have visited with her for sure, if just to let her know that I was okay.”

“Don’t feel bad about that,” Justan said. “Not many people knew. Heck, even I didn’t know that my mother was a wizardess.”

“I’m actually surprised by that,” she replied. “The way that woman used her magic, anyone with mage sight would have seen it. She put wards on everything. Even my schoolwork. She knew before I came to class whether I had completed it or not.”

Justan pursed his lips. “Yeah, well evidently I was dense growing up.”

“Hold on a second.” Beth slowed down as the market area came into view. It was getting close to noontime and the streets were bustling. “I think we’ll take a different route.”

She took a turn and headed down a side street, leading them into a section of the city that Justan hadn’t been shown on his previous excursions. It was a poorer area. The people here lived in tall buildings that looked like small squat houses stacked on top of each other. Justan could tell that the buildings were not made of the same white brick as the rest of the city, but were instead made of rougher brick or wood and then painted white. Smaller slower moving canals passed through the area in a web-like pattern, separating each building.

They traveled through the area by a series of unadorned wooden bridges that connected each of the buildings. The people in this area wore clothes that were a bit more worn and drab than the Roo-Tan in the rest of the city. Justan noted that most of them wore brown ribbons in their hair.

The people stared at Justan and his bonded as they passed by. They had obviously heard of the visiting strangers and were curious but friendly. Most of them knew Beth on sight and greeted her with smiles and waves.

“Do you come this way often, Beth?” he asked.

“It is the quickest way to my house from the palace,” she explained.

 “You live out here?” Justan was surprised. He had never seen their place, but he had assumed that they lived close to the palace.

“No. We have a nice little home that’s not surrounded by canals. It’s just outside the city,” she clarified. “Between here and the grove. When I first came here, Hilt was living at the palace as Xedrion’s guest. I grew tired of it. Having all those servants around? My parents would have loved that, but a woman wants her privacy. That’s one of the reasons why I choose to travel through this part of the city.”

Justan wasn’t sure how this section of the city meant privacy. A group of excited children started following behind them, chatting and pointing at Gwyrtha and Deathclaw. All the attention made Deathclaw uncomfortable.

“I do not like this,” the raptoid grumbled. “All these humans staring. Must we go this way?”

“Oh calm down, Deathclaw,” Beth replied. “I’m taking you this way specifically to avoid extra attention. There is a small gateway out of the city not far away from here. I know most of the guards who are posted there. They won’t give us any trouble.”

“Very well, but can you at least take your child now?” The raptoid complained. The child was clutching tightly to his hand and had one of his knuckles tucked into her mouth. Drool was running down the scales of his arm and dripping off his elbow in a long string.

“Sorry. Sherl-Ann is much happier this way. If I took her, she would just cry,” Beth said, a small smile curling the corners of her mouth.

Justan shared her amusement. “Besides, Deathclaw, carrying a baby makes you much less frightening to the locals. With her in your arms you look nearly as cuddly as Fist.”

Deathclaw hissed, knowing he was being teased and not happy with the comparison. “Must she gnaw on me like this?”

“Yes,” said Beth. “She’s a baby. That’s what they do. Don’t raptoid babies do the same?”

Deathclaw’s brow ridges tightened. “I never had a successful brood of my own. I mated many times but something happened to the clutches of eggs . . . my memory . . .” He shook his head. “There is much lost to my mind.”

 Beth gave him a sympathetic look and said, “I’m sure you would have made an excellent father.”

Deathclaw smiled in agreement. “With an adult pack of my offspring I could have conquered the desert.”

The statement sounded quite arrogant, but Justan didn’t disagree. If Deathclaw’s children had been gifted with the same amount of intelligence and control over their bodies that Deathclaw had, they would have been a force indeed.

They soon reached the outskirts of the city. Roo-Tan’lan did not have a city wall on the forest side. The likelihood of invaders coming from within the forest was a small one. The wide canal that ran across the city’s edge sufficed as the borderline. The small gateway Beth had spoken of was only a city gate in the loosest sense. It was basically a set of pillars on either side of the bridge that led into the forest. The two guards that were stationed there were a surprise.

“Sir Edge!” said Poz. The academy graduate stood suddenly from the ground where he had been lounging, his back to one of the pillars.

Jhexin didn’t bother to stand, but looked up at him with a frown. “What are you doing out this way? I did not think father wanted you wandering the city without an escort.”

“I’m with Beth,” Justan replied. He raised an eyebrow at him. “What are you two doing here? You seem pretty relaxed for guard duty.”

Poz’s freckled cheeks reddened, but Jhexin wasn’t cowed. “Father wants the academy warriors to experience all the responsibilities that we Roo-Tan warriors have. He has placed me in charge of Poz’s responsibilities.”

“And you chose this post because you knew it would be easy work,” Beth surmised.

“I was-uh, just listening to my trainer, sir,” Poz said to Justan. “You know, doing things the Roo-Tan way.”

“Right,” Justan said, shaking his head in amusement. He was pretty sure that Faldon would not have approved of an academy representative taking such a lax attitude on guard duty, but it wasn’t his place to reprimand him. Justan wasn’t officially part of the academy yet. “Well, keep at it.”

They made as if to step through the gateway, but Jhexin leapt to his feet and stood in front of them, raising his arms. “Wait. Where are you going?”

“I am taking Sir Edge to the grove,” Beth said. “Now kindly step aside.”

Jhexin frowned. “I am sorry, Listener Beth, but I heard father say that he wished to speak to Sir Edge before he went to the grove.”

“Is that so?” she said. “Well, things have changed. He needs to go there now. Tolynn wishes to speak with him.”

“She does?” Jhexin started to lower his arms, then thought better of it and firmed his stance. “Still, you must wait. I will not let you leave until I hear from father.”

“We’re leaving,” Beth said firmly, her hands balled into fists.

Deathclaw held Sherl-Ann out towards her. “If you will take your child, I will clear the path.”

Jhexin’s hand went to the Jharro sword at his waist. Poz reluctantly grabbed the hilt of his own sword and gave Justan a pained look.

“That won’t be necessary,” Justan said, raising his own hand to stop things from escalating further. “Jhexin, did Xedrion specifically give the guards instructions to keep me from leaving the city?”

“No,” Jhexin admitted. “But like I said, I heard him tell you-,”

“Then get the hell out of our way,” Beth snapped.

She strode forward, forcing Jhexin to make a decision. Either he stepped aside or he’d have to restrain her physically. At the last moment, he grimaced and allowed her to shoulder past him.

“You do realize that I will be in trouble for this,” Jhexin said, his voice filled with anxiety.

“It won’t be that bad,” Justan assured him as he walked by. “I’ll likely be back before Xedrion hears I was gone.”

Beth left the bridge and took Justan down one of the pathways that led into the forest. It was a narrow trail, but well-traveled and free of undergrowth. It didn’t take long for the sounds of the city to fade behind them, replaced by the rustling of leaves and the low thrum of buzzing insects.

Justan looked back the way they had come. “I feel bad about what we did to Jhexin and Poz back there,”

“They would not have been able to stop us,” Deathclaw replied. “At least this way they get to retain their dignity.”

“A fine point,” Beth agreed. “Come on. The grove is just a short walk ahead.”

It ended up that her idea of a short walk was a four mile trek along a twisting trail through the forest. The trees here were a mix of tall magnolias and other leafy evergreen trees with occasional palm trees mixed in. After the first mile, the valley Beth had spoken of began. As the trail sloped downwards, the air grew more humid. Justan found himself sweating profusely and swatting at tiny bugs that seemed to follow him around like a small cloud.

“Do you travel this way often, Beth?” he asked.

“A few times a week,” she replied. “More when I can. The grove is worth it. You’ll understand why when we get there.”

Do you smell it now, Justan
? Gwyrtha said enthusiastically. Neither she nor Deathclaw seemed bothered by the bugs at all.
It’s wonderful
.

I’m not sure
, Justan replied through the bond. The humidity was so thick it was hard not to gasp.

I think I smell what she’s talking about
, Deathclaw sent. Sherl-Ann was fast asleep now and the raptoid was keeping his strides steady and even so as not to jostle her.
It’s strange, a scent I have not experienced before
.

Frowning, Justan shut his mouth and breathed in through his nose, focusing and extending the enhanced senses that his bond with Deathclaw gave him. Finally, he found what she was speaking of. “Beth, what’s that smell? It’s almost minty.”

She smiled over her shoulder at him. “You smell that already? It’s Jharro sap. Wait until you’re amongst the trees. It’s a heady experience.”  

The grove . .
. said a dusty voice from the corner of Justan’s mind.
I remember this smell
.

Artemus
? Justan said, surprised. The spirit of his great grandfather had been getting stronger over the last week, gaining control of the Scralag bit-by-bit. They’d had brief conversations at night, but this was the first time he had spoken to Justan during the day.
You mentioned before that you have been to the grove. What were you doing there
?