The Silver Arrow (10 page)

He walked over to another spot,
following something on the ground and stopped, bending down to pick
up a twig. He discarded it after a quick sniff and turned to face
Lord Almaric for a decision.

“Knowing that one of the two
people they were after was badly injured did not make any
difference to him. An Ackalan was just as deadly in his dying bed
as one badly injured; and seeing them with the Anamerian, he knew
that only death would break them from their preposterous oath to
protect him. What to do?” Almaric thought as he sat on his horse
weighing his options. After a second, he looked straight at his
men; he’d made his decision.

Elena ran through the back
gate, sending it swinging behind her as she made her way into the
building. The rainy season seemed to have lasted longer
than most years she could remember. Taking off her wet shoes and
cloak, as was custom, she hurried up the stairs, lifting her
dress over her ankles to give herself some room to run.

She ignored the turned heads
and eyes that followed her briefly at her entry. People with family
members under care gathered in the foyer talking as she made her
way up several flights of stairs. Along the balcony, she walked
past two closed doors to her right and stopped three feet from
the open door in front of her. Taking a deep breath, she stepped
forward, parting the curtain that draped the doorway.

The room was quiet, with Berta
the earth healer sitting on the right side of the bed where Iseac
lay while his parents, Rita and Lenard, sat on the opposite
side; both parties looked up to see her walk in.

A sense of anguish suddenly
overcame Elena, breaking her composure as she stared at Iseac,
overcome with dread. So it was true that he was dying.

Rita walked over to Elena as
she stood by the door, staring at Iseac. She placed her arm over
Elena’s shoulder and escorted her out of the room.

“Is he going to be all right?”
Elena asked, finally finding her voice.

“Yes, child,” Rita replied.
“He’s going to be fine now. All he needs is rest.”

“I want to see him; I want to
be with him when he awakens.”

“You can,” Rita, cutting in
before Elena could say another word, “as long as you promise to
make sure he doesn’t move much when he awakes.”

Lenard stepped out of the room
and bowed his head slightly in greeting.

“
Kru haya no-nah
,
Elena,” Rita said in their native tongue, which means “peace and
prosperity.”

Elena’s fear of the worst was
still abating as she responded in like manner.

“We should leave now,” Lenard
said to his wife as she gave Elena a hug.

“I know he will be pleased to
see you,” Rita said, letting go.

Lenard was waiting as Rita came
to join him, and they made their way downstairs. Elena, now
feeling more reassured, made her way back into the room.

She sat by
Iseac’s bedside, whose arms, shoulders, and just above his
chest was naked. The rest of his body was covered by a
blanket.

There was a piece of cloth
wrapped around his head, his eyes closed. His face was solemn and
peaceful, and this was the man she was supposed to be betrothed
to.

“He is a strong man.” The
familiar voice of Berta came from the opposite side of the bed,
breaking Elena’s chain of thoughts.

“I was able to set his broken
bones and applied an ointment that will heal his wound. I also gave
him something to help ease his pain and bring down his fever; the
rest is up to him now.”

“
Ma-u arura
,” Elena
said, which means “I'm grateful.”

“How long have you had him in
your care?”

“Since last night,” Berta
replied. “He was found by what used to be Ahyoo farm past Lake
Manori.”

The farmland was no longer well
maintained by its new owner and was covered in weeds.

“He was lying on a
black horse.”

“Durack,” Elena muttered as
Berta continued to speak.

“He had cuts on both sides of
his body by something that left a strange residue on his flesh that
I had to clean out.” She turned to look at Iseac and, as if talking
to herself, said, “Whatever Iseac has gotten himself into, let us
hope he can get himself out, as it appears he did something worth
taking his life.” She did not mention the arrows she removed from
him were Golans’.

A Golan’s arrow was designed to
break inside its target; it had four claws like tentacles behind
the arrow head, which broke easily if one was not careful. It was
tricky, but Berta had done it.

“The good news is he’s gone
through the worst part and will recover with time.”

Though the words were
comforting to hear, Elena could not help wondering how Iseac ended
up in this state.

Berta continued to speak. “His
horse was tied to an Ackalan named Mosley, who is next door. He too
was lying on his horse with two arrows sticking out of him, one in
his chest and the other in his leg. He was unconscious as well when
he was found.”

“An Ackalan,” she said,
somewhat surprised, but doubtful.

“Yes,” Berta replied. “He
sounds like one of the men from the east.”

Berta was above her middle
years based on the season’s cycle, around fifty-six years. She had
her hair tied in a knot and her sleeves rolled up just below her
elbows.

“I will be back before
midday to check on him,” she said as she rose from her
chair. “The maids will bring some soup for him in the morning, if
he has the strength to eat, and also something for you, my child,
if you are staying through the night.”

Something about Berta's tone
was reassuring; Elena knew it was going to be all right because she
said so. Berta placed one hand on the side of the bed,
eyes staring at Iseac.

“I still remember him as a boy.
Now he carries the weight only his kind can, which cannot be
shared,” Berta commented as if speaking about some stranger.

Her words made no sense to
Elena, but she did not care; the only thing that mattered was that
he was going to be okay.

She watched Berta walk out of
the room, closing the curtain behind her.

It had been almost four years
since she last saw him. Iseac never sent any message or tried to
contact her. All of a sudden here he was, back from who knows
where, half dead. She stared at his face; it was not the face of
the young man she could remember from a few years ago. His face was
harder and more intent.

“Where have you been, and why
are men after you?” she wondered. As she took Iseac’s hand and
squeezed it gently, his eyes shifted then behind his closed
eyelids.

******************

Iseac was running as fast as
his legs would take him, trying to put some distance between him
and the squalling sound of the Rhanagos that drew closer and
closer. While he was running, he spotted a speck of light through
the trees, so he changed direction and started running toward the
light, which slowly grew the closer he got. Rhanagos avoided the
sun, so he knew that once in the light, he would be safe. As the
relief of finding an exit was kindled, something snagged his feet,
sending Iseac to the ground. He was able to cushion his fall by
placing his hands in front of him, which saved him from more than
the little cuts he received on his cheek and palm. Those didn’t
matter. He could see the sky and the field of grass between the
trees a few feet away. He continued on all fours and was jerked
back.

Iseac broke out in a cold
sweat, realizing his leg was tangled by some vines. He focused on
getting his foot free while trying to ignore the chirping sound
that was getting close.

With shaking nerves, Iseac
hurriedly untangled his leg, but the Rhanagos were already on him.
They dove straight for him like bees to their hive as he waved his
hand in the air, creating a shield of wind. Like drops of rain,
they hit it, claws and teeth exposed as they tried to claw their
way to him.

Iseac hurried out into the open
field and, while still trying to catch his breath, looked back more
than once to make sure none came through. He moved away from their
eerie chirping as he could hear their beating wings around the edge
of daylight.

A gentle breeze brushed over
the open field of rich green grass higher than Iseac’s knee, which
was illuminated by the morning sun. He walked along the grassy
plain with his path closing behind him until he got to a point
where there was a steep drop. That was when he realized where he
was−on a mountain overlooking the city of Bayshia, which he
recognized immediately by the great wall.

Like an eagle, Iseac’s vision
became sharper, as if the city was drawn close to him. He could see
faces clearly as one standing next to another. When he looked
around, he found himself in the midst of the people. As he moved
through the crowd, he caught a flicker of light at the corner of
his eye. It was bright enough even in daytime to get his attention,
and it didn’t go away. No one else appeared to have noticed. The
glow was like a candle in the middle of a dark room, and he was
close to it. Curious, Iseac made his way to the general area as
faces flowed past him like the wind. He stopped at the corner of
one of the buildings and peeked.

Standing in the alleyway,
covered by a silver aura, was a young man with a bow in one hand.
The impression of the aura around the young man sent flashes of
Iseac’s dream to his mind. He pulled his head back and leaned
against the wall in disbelief. After a second, he took another
peek, but this time with a little more caution. Another person
stood next to the one with the bow and arrow; this person seemed to
illuminate the first. Iseac somehow knew that the second individual
whose hands were glowing through his gloves was just as powerful.
He couldn’t see the face of the second person, as his back was
toward him, nor could he hear their conversation, even though he
could tell that they were talking.

He needed to get closer to hear
what they were saying, but even more than that, he wanted to find
out who the second person was. He looked around and spotted a
building that was closer. “Perfect,” he thought. It would provide
the cover he needed. Iseac quietly withdrew from his hiding place.
When he thought he was far away and would not be heard, he started
running to the new location. Halfway to the next building,
everything around him suddenly started pulling away. The harder he
ran, the stronger the force became, until he was pulled into the
air. Desperate, Iseac tried to grab unto anything he could find,
but there was nothing. He turned midair, facing a ball of light as
he was pulled higher and faster into the sky.

Everything became a blur, and
he closed his eyes.

**********************

Squinting, Iseac opened his
eyes as his bleary vision slowly came to focus. Looking down on
him, shaded by the light behind her, was a woman he couldn’t
clearly see.

“How do you feel?” she asked in
the gentle tone used by caregivers to a patient. She moved to his
side and propped the pillow behind him.

“Fine,” Iseac replied, his
voice hoarse. His throat was dry and it tingled as he moistened
it.

With his head propped up, Iseac
turned to get a better look at the woman as she moved from the side
of his bed to the corner of the room, but her back was turned away
from him.

She began fixing something he
could not see, but he could hear the clacking sound of spoon
against metal with steam forming around whatever she was
preparing.

Since he couldn’t see her face,
Iseac took the opportunity to look around his room. He thought the
place looked familiar as he returned his gaze to the woman who was
now making her way back to him. He recognized her even though she
had changed from the young girl he once remembered.

‘Gina?’ he was about to say
when someone else walked into the room, drawing his attention. The
look on his face lit up in surprise.

“Elena,” he said with a broad
smile as she ran over and hugged him. It felt good holding her in
his arms again. Her presence seemed to ease all his pain as he
smiled back at her.

Iseac tried to sit up straight,
not thinking of what he was doing. His body quickly reminded him
that it was a bad idea as a jolt of pain ran through his side; he
ignored it, clenching his teeth.

Gina, who was almost pushed out
of the way, grunted under her breath twice to get their attention,
and after another second of being ignored, she spoke up.

“Sorry to bother both of you,
but I was told to ensure that he eat something as soon as he was
up.” Elena released her grip on Iseac and turned to look at
Gina.

“I’ll take that,” she said as
she reached out for the tray, which Gina gladly handed over.

“I’ll make sure he eats
everything and return it to you once he’s done.”

“Then I will leave you two
alone,” she said to Elena as she excused herself and left the
room.

Iseac stared at her, amazed by
how much she had changed. Her youthful mannerisms were still there,
but inside was a now beautiful woman. Her hair was pulled back from
her face, held in place by a yellow ribbon.

The last thing he remembered
was fighting Agoras at the outskirts of Bremah and some creatures
that took on human form. He was supposed to be dead, so how did he
end up in his hometown of Tru’tia? As other thoughts ran through
his head, he asked, “How long have I been here?”

“Five days,” she replied in her
so-familiar voice that felt melodious to him.

“For a while, Berta wasn’t sure
you would make it. Your fever took longer to break than Berta had
thought.” Elena didn’t mention she had been coming every day to
check on him since arriving at Berta’s.

“You were found lying on
Durack, with his reins tied to the horse of an Ackalan.” There was
a hint of another discussion to come.