***Please Note***
This is a sequel work! Book One can be found in its entirety here: http://www.candlebre.com for free! :)
Part One
On Dangerous Ground
A Rock Badger can smell blood from more than a mile away, and they prefer their prey warm and kicking when eaten. What I propose we do then, is give the man a staff to be sporting, bleed him a bit, perhaps with a knife to the gut, shallowly so it is non-fatal, and turn him loose in the hill country south of Kell. If he can make it home safely, he is of course, free to go….”
~Deliberations in the Court of Mourngrym, discussing the fate of an alleged Trentan spy
~Deliberations in the Court of Mourngrym, discussing the fate of an alleged Trentan spy
The Dreamer
Beneath the SilverRiver
“Step from the shadows, old friend.” The Enchantress of the Silver River said in a half whispered, melodic voice.
The Grand Master shuffled forward, leaning against his staff for support, his face lined with deep creases that spoke of many years enduring a steady, constant pain. “It has been too long, my dear.”
“Too long by far.” She agreed and bade him sit down.
He eased himself slowly into the chair opposite her and looked around the room. “This place…it never changes…the crystal palace beneath the sacred river.”
“Nor will it, My Lord.” She said fondly. “It is as timeless as we are.”
“Not so timeless after all then….I am old my dear, and the years have not been kind.”
“There is life in you yet…I feel it. As do you.”
“Oh yes.” He agreed, and they sat in companionable silence for a time.
“The girl?” He asked after a moment.
“The spell took the greater bulk of my powers and has left me weakened...with the war on and draining us both further, recovery will be slow and painful, but yes, I have seen to her. I suspect you already knew that though…the sacrifice of the seven will be the root of her power, but there are still things she will need.”
“The strength and wisdom of her Chosen companions.”
“Yes…she will lack both age and experience.Although powerful, she will need to draw heavily from the Chosen.That part…who she chooses, is in the hands of their god I suppose…the HighFather.”
“For all our power and all that we have done, there are still unknowns…it makes you wonder if we are not servants to the HighFather’s will as well.” The old man said with a twinkle in his eye and the Enchantress smiled in response.
“It does indeed…and if it be His will and the three come together, she will be a great healer.Her time will be short, but she will be a unifying force in the Basin.”
“At a time when it will be badly needed, but I fear this will be the last time we can intervene.”
“I sense it as well…the world is changing.There will soon be no place for the likes of us.”
“Yes…I know that Hyler was disappointed when I left him to manage the crisis in its earliest days, but I was a crutch…had I stayed, he would have deferred to me in all things…spent all his time second guessing.”
“That won’t do…not if he is to lead decisively…later.”
“At some point, he will feel in his heart that you lied to him.”
The old man sighed at this.“The situation will have greatly changed, and he will recognize that fact.It may take some time, but understanding will come.And perhaps he will one day see why I had to leave him to figure it out for himself.”
“I agree, he’ll be fine in the end…it’s poor Davis I worry about.”
“I will visit him if you assist me…come to him in his dreams. He will not fail us. There is great courage in his line…I had such hopes, but…”
“Yes…The Reckoning…most unexpected…we are not omniscient, no matter what they might believe.” The Enchantress said ruefully, and he agreed.
“If only we were.”
“So that is why you have come then? You wish to become The Dreamer again?”
He nodded. “There is strength enough in me for one more, I think. One more Dream-Walk.”
“What is it like?” She asked him, awestruck by the power he wielded when he dreamed.
He shrugged. “I could just as easily ask you what it is like to wield magic, for I have none of my own, and cannot achieve the Dreaming state without the aid of one such as you….magnificent creature that you are….ahh, if only I were a younger man.”
She blew him a kiss and smiled coyly. “Perhaps you can dream a little dream for yourself then.”
He blushed and sighed.
“Where will you go?”
“To the Crevasse of Sorrows. One of the many caves there. My body will be quite safe while I roam.”
“Just be sure you awaken before…”
He held up a hand, stopping her. “There will be time.”
She nodded, but did not believe it in her heart.He saw the pained look in her eyes and gave her hand a comforting pat.
“We will go there together then.”She told him at last.“Weakened or no, I think I have enough power in me for that.”
He smiled at her again, and they stood.
“Can you really be…everywhere at once in your dreams?”
Another nod. “Travel at the speed of thought. The whisper of inspiration in any mind.” A tired, far off look in his eyes as he took her hand. “Come…there is work to be done.”
In a flash of pure white light, they vanished from the hidden palace beneath the Silver River.
“I agree, he’ll be fine in the end…it’s poor Davis I worry about.”
“I will visit him if you assist me…come to him in his dreams. He will not fail us. There is great courage in his line…I had such hopes, but…”
“Yes…The Reckoning…most unexpected…we are not omniscient, no matter what they might believe.” The Enchantress said ruefully, and he agreed.
“If only we were.”
“So that is why you have come then? You wish to become The Dreamer again?”
He nodded. “There is strength enough in me for one more, I think. One more Dream-Walk.”
“What is it like?” She asked him, awestruck by the power he wielded when he dreamed.
He shrugged. “I could just as easily ask you what it is like to wield magic, for I have none of my own, and cannot achieve the Dreaming state without the aid of one such as you….magnificent creature that you are….ahh, if only I were a younger man.”
She blew him a kiss and smiled coyly. “Perhaps you can dream a little dream for yourself then.”
He blushed and sighed.
“Where will you go?”
“To the Crevasse of Sorrows. One of the many caves there. My body will be quite safe while I roam.”
“Just be sure you awaken before…”
He held up a hand, stopping her. “There will be time.”
She nodded, but did not believe it in her heart.He saw the pained look in her eyes and gave her hand a comforting pat.
“We will go there together then.”She told him at last.“Weakened or no, I think I have enough power in me for that.”
He smiled at her again, and they stood.
“Can you really be…everywhere at once in your dreams?”
Another nod. “Travel at the speed of thought. The whisper of inspiration in any mind.” A tired, far off look in his eyes as he took her hand. “Come…there is work to be done.”
In a flash of pure white light, they vanished from the hidden palace beneath the Silver River.
OoO
Later
The wind made a low, mournful sound as it whistled through the depths of the crevasse, and it added to the air of desolation that hung about the place.
Weak rays of winter sunlight filtered down from hundreds of feet above, allowing just enough light to see by, but little else.
The two of them walked in stately silence to the deep cave that the Grand Master had selected, and the Enchantress led the way inside.
She took his hand and guided him to the small, ordinary cot that had been arranged at the back of the cave.
He stretched out upon it and closed his eyes.She waited several moments, then held her staff over him, chanting softly in a language that had a beautiful, musical quality to it.The old man smiled as he drifted off and away from her.
Within moments he was fast asleep, the tiny smile still lingering on his face.She watched him for a moment, then bent close to kiss his cheek.He stirred slightly beneath her touch.
Half a heartbeat later, she was gone, and his dreaming began.
OoO
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