Vagrants: Book 2 Circles of Light series (29 page)

‘Greetings dear one.
How do you fare after such a night?’ She felt faint amusement in
Fenj’s mind before he replied.

‘Dear Lorak the
Gardener has been scolding me as if I were still a hatchling. In
truth Kera, I do not know if I could share strength such as last
night within the next days. It is long indeed since I spent so much
power. I wonder if I can regain even half of it.’

‘’Course you can,’
Lorak interrupted robustly. ‘A few days of everyone fussing over
you and a goodly dose of my potions, and you’ll be good as new.
That you will.’

‘We must trust this
splendid creature then Kera!’ Fenj’s eyes whirred briefly then
paled, but to a misty shade rather than the frightening dull slate
of earlier.

One of the Snow
Dragons, Talli, moved beside Kera and Dessi to join Mim. Mim
watched as they settled themselves around him. He smiled slightly,
spreading his hands palms up in a gesture of
helplessness.

‘I do not know where to
begin or what parts to tell you.’

Kera’s eyebrows
lifted.

‘Believe me Kera, I do
not know how my mind holds all that the Silver One filled it with.
Madness would result if you insisted on learning all that is in my
head.’

He began to walk to and
fro. ‘First of all you must understand that her knowledge, absorbed
through memories of all the previous Silvers, as when Ashta and I
became soul bonded, is older than any other in this world. The
beginnings I do not understand. I think I will be able to consider
the first memories only when the present Silver One is
dead.’

Dragon eyes whirred in
consternation and Fenj mind spoke the group.

‘No Silver was hatched
this cycle Mim. Are you saying that you intend to send this Silver
beyond, with no successor? She holds all our history.’

Mim projected calmness
to the Dragon minds. ‘I have told you – I am the one who holds all
your history now, and I believe her understanding is as confused as
is mine. It is all there, but there are little or no explanations.
If this Silver dies – and die she will, her madness precludes her
going beyond – I can put these memories into a new hatched Silver
in the future, one who will still be whole of mind.’

Kera broke the ensuing
silence. ‘So these Silvers are almost like our archivists, or the
humans’ recorders? Do you know if they have always been solitary
Dragons and dwelt across the Wilderness?’

‘They have always
preferred to be separate, but like Ashta’s mother Hani, the first
ones still stayed in contact with the various Treasuries. They
attended the Gatherings so they might learn the names of all the
Kin.’ Mim resumed his pacing. ‘Something happened to make one of
the Silvers flee to the rising sun. When we have the time, I may be
able to decipher why.’ He shrugged. ‘It is all confused Kera. It is
mostly sequential I think, but a great deal seems to muddle even as
I look at it and I can make no sense of it. And,’ he added
ruefully, ‘I can find nothing clear in this Silver’s mind of Dragon
Lords.’

‘The circles though
Mim,’ Kera asked. ‘Is there anything helpful to us concerning
them?’

‘A little I think,
probably all in fact. But such knowledge is deep in one of the more
confused clots of her mind. The pendants,’ he touched the oval
shape hanging from its chain at his neck, ‘they are deeply
important somehow and hedged about with barriers. I feel the
Silvers feared something, something far stronger than they, might
penetrate all the lore they hide within themselves, and that is why
there is confusion.’

‘You mean a kind of
protective device, muddling all the important things whenever they
felt challenged or threatened?’

Mim sighed. ‘And each
time a new Silver physically challenged her predecessor, so the
memories became ever more deeply hidden.’

The Snow Dragon Talli
asked: ‘Can you destroy the Silver One Mim? From this distance? I
would guess not.’ His eyes flashed frozen rainbow hues. ‘You will
have to cross the Wilderness and face her, or summon her here, will
you not?’

‘If I summoned her
here, could I shield all the races who use the mind speech – those
of Gaharn, of Sapphrea, of the Middle Plains?’ Mim squared his
narrow shoulders. ‘I could not dare that risk. I will go to her
when the time comes.’

Ashta and Jeela moaned
as Talli lowered his head in acknowledgement of the Dragon Lord’s
words.

Chapter
Twenty

Tika and her companions
had refused, politely, Hargon’s offer of accommodation within the
lodge. They preferred to sleep under the stars with the Dragons, as
they had each night of their ten-day journey from Gaharn. Kadi and
Kija came back together long after the lodge was dark and silent.
But they said nothing of where they might have bee, settling
quietly to sleep beside Brin and Farn.

Before dawn Sket lit a
small fire and set water to boil as the other Guards slept on.
Farn, much restored by a longer rest, left with Brin to hunt for
some breakfast. Gan fixed Kija and Kadi with a determined
stare.

‘Did you go to Return
last night?’ he asked sternly.

Kija’s prismed eyes
whirred in annoyance at Gan’s tone. ‘It is not far for a Dragon to
fly,’ she retorted. ‘But yes, we thought we would have a look at
the area.’

‘And?’

‘And we felt Rhaki.’
Kadi replied. ‘We felt his mind, but sensed his body is very weak.
The tower he has made must have taken very nearly all his strength
and the blocks of stone are imbued with his own power also. We
think that is why the Merig could not sense him before.’

‘But clearly he is
regaining his strength now.’ Kija added.

‘So if we had reached
here a few days sooner,’ Kemti mused, ‘we could perhaps have ended
this.’

‘We travelled as fast
as was good for Farn,’ Tika snapped.

‘And he is restored
more than I dared hope,’ Gan soothed. ‘We could not have guessed
that Rhaki might have so drained himself to be an easy conquest so
we are no worse off now.’

Tika smiled briefly at
Gan’s support but scowled as she looked back at Kemti.

‘I meant no criticism
dear one,’ Kemti was truly sorry to have unwittingly offended
her.

‘There is a group of
men on their way here,’ Kija said. ‘They are not covered in the
same way as Hargon’s men.’

Gan frowned. ‘Hargon
said nothing of any other company joining him here.’

‘They had green
coverings,’ Kadi said helpfully.

‘Seboth of Far then.’
Tika warmed her hands round the bowl of tea Sket handed her. ‘I
wonder why he’s coming here now?’

Lamps shone in the
servants’ side of the lodge and Navan appeared on the steps. He
glanced towards the small fire Sket was tending, hesitated, then
walked across to join the group gathered there. He saluted Gan and
Kemti, caught a gleam of warning in Gan’s eye and saluted Tika as
well.

‘Seboth’s men
approach,’ she said. ‘Why is that do you suppose?’

Navan stared at her.
She flipped her hand.

‘Kija and Kadi saw
them, no ‘foul use of the power’.’

In the slowly
lightening sky her eyes glinted like chips of green ice.

‘I do not know. We have
had no message from Far.’ But even as Navan spoke, a konina’s hoof
beats could be heard coming up the last slope to the plateau
through the woods. A voice called a challenge and another voice
replied. In moments a rider came into view, guiding his mount to
the stable block beyond the lodge. Navan strode back to the
building as a green uniformed arms man headed to the main door. He
hesitated, glancing back as a rush of air and swish of wings
announced Farn and Brin landing.

Khosa picked her way
fastidiously across the dew-heavy grass towards the
Dragons.

‘I listened to dreams,’
she announced. She slitted her eyes against the rising sun and
shook a front paw vigorously. ‘Most of these two-legs are very
simple minded compared to most of us.’

Tika rolled her eyes
but waited for the rest of Her Majesty’s information.

‘The chief among them
-’

‘Hargon.’ Farn said
frostily.

‘Hmm, yes, Hargon. He
is confused. He has always believed completely -’

‘In the foulness of the
power,’ Farn interrupted again.

Khosa spat at the blue
Dragon, turned her back and began to wash herself. ‘If you are not
interested -’

‘We are Khosa,’ Tika
said quickly, giving Farn a warning nudge.

‘Very well then.’ The
Kephi wrapped her tail across her front paws. ‘Hargon has always
believed, truly, that anything to do with the power is bad.’ Kija’s
eyes whirred briefly and Farn concentrated on studying the
clouds.

‘But he is most
impressed with all of us but uncertain now about his beliefs. It is
many generations since the great disaster he talks of actually
happened.’ Khosa paused, her eyes following a black shape, which
flapped heavily from a tree and flew round the side of the
lodge.

‘And?’ Tika drew the
Kephi’s thoughts away from a possible meal.

‘Hmm? Oh yes. Well,
Hargon seems to think we are all very trustworthy.’ Khosa gazed
innocently from Tika to Gan. ‘He is deeply alarmed by the Grey
One’s power. He knows he cannot destroy him and his fear increases
daily. Hargon’s eldest child has a strong mind – I felt he could
touch the power if he could be persuaded that it was not the evil
thing his father has always maintained it to be. And the next child
– the girl,’ Khosa paused, her turquoise eyes gazing at each of her
audience in turn. ‘Unless she is helped to understand, and very
soon, her mind will go wild.’

Tika nodded slightly,
as if this was not a surprise to her somehow.

‘The youngest child,’
Khosa continued, her tone now icily flat in their minds, ‘already
links with the Grey One. He must die.’

While that dreadful
last sentence sank into their minds, Khosa added, almost
irrelevantly: ‘Navan accepts the power. One of his female relatives
I think – anyway, he is open and can be trusted.’

The silence when Khosa
finished her report was total as they absorbed all the implications
in the Kephi’s words.

Doors opening and brisk
footsteps from the lodge stirred them from their thoughts. Tika
locked her gaze with Kija’s golden eyes. ‘We must move very fast.
There is no more time left to waste before we face him.’

Affection wrapped
around her from all the Dragons as they, more than Gan or Kemti,
understood that Tika meant ‘I’ rather than ‘we’.

Hargon and Navan had
reached the group by then and Tika turned to face them, unaware of
how pale she appeared or that she was shivering.

‘Good day my, erm,
friends. I have received word that Lord Seboth of Far, with four
squads of armsmen is now approaching.’

Tika sliced her hand
sideways, interrupting Hargon.

‘We leave now Hargon.
We must reach Return and quickly.’

He gaped at her but
swallowed any reply he may have been contemplating as Farn rested
his long nose gently on top of Tika’s head.

‘Can you send
messengers to your townsfolk – warn them Dragons approach who will
do no harm but are come to help them?’

To her companions she
added privately: ‘A panic is the last thing we need – it would play
straight into Rhaki’s hands.’

Navan glanced at his
Lord and at Hargon’s nod, set off running for the barrack room and
stables, calling orders as he ran.

‘Hargon,’ Kija’s voice
smoothed through Hargon’s mind. ‘I believe I saw scattered woodland
north west of your town? I suggest you make for that area, do not
charge straight into the town. How long will it take you to get
there?’

Hargon had caught the
undertone of urgency now. He pursed his lips. ‘Two days, maybe a
little less but if I push too hard, the men will arrive
exhausted.’

Tika nodded. ‘Try to
get there fast but still fit to fight. I hope you and your men will
have nothing to fight after all, but I would rather you were
prepared for any eventuality.’ There was the very slightest
hesitation before she finished firmly: ‘Your children must
accompany you.’

‘But that’s ridiculous!
If there is any likelihood of trouble, my children are safer
here!’

‘No.’ Tika looked
steadily into Hargon’s blue eyes. ‘This is of the greatest
importance Hargon; your children must all be there.’

The Lord of Return
opened his mouth to argue further but crimson Brin lowered his head
to Hargon’s level.

‘She speaks the truth
Hargon. I will carry your female child myself if she is too weakly
for such a ride with your armsmen.’

Hargon was at a total
loss now and Kemti said softly:

‘We should really be on
our way Lord Hargon. There is little time to spare in arguing minor
details.’ Kemti bowed politely and turned away to fold his bedroll
into his pack. The other Guards hastily followed his lead and
Hargon realised he was indeed wasting his time here in fruitless
talk.