he is the cause of them,” Robyn commented.
“We must find the Gem!” Cairn said. “Davmiran must find it. If we can locate it and free it from whatever is constraining it, then perhaps the trees will want to live once more. Isn’t that what we are hoping for? Isn’t that why we were summoned to Dav’s side to begin with?”
“If that is what’s causing them to behave this way,” Filaree said. “We don’t know for sure. No one does.”
“You should contact Promanthea, Robyn,” Davmiran said. “You have waited long enough.”
Scowling, Robyn’s face reddened. This was an uncomfortable and difficult subject for him. Doubts plagued him that he didn’t wish to confront. Doubts and suspicions.
“I shall. And my father too,” he added. “They both must hear from me. I need to tell them I can’t return in any case.”
“Maybe they can tell us something that may help here. We can’t remain in Parth forever. We must begin the quest as soon as possible,” Filaree said. “Each day, each moment we delay is dangerous. I’m beginning to feel as if we’re in a cage, not a shelter. The boy is strong, we all agree. We have spent weeks working with him. Maybe we should leave now,” she said. “Robyn? You were the one who said we must accelerate his training. How much time do we have?” Strong, but not strong enough , she brooded.
“I will speak with Promanthea,” Robyn replied. He was tentative, worried. His whole demeanor changed. “Let us discuss this further after he and I confer.”
“Good,” Cairn said.
“Okay, later,” Filaree replied, after a moment’s hesitation. “And you, Dav? What do you think?” She looked at him, but he didn’t respond.
Davmiran’s senses reeled. Though he appeared settled, the shards assaulted his thoughts with a thousand images, flooding his mind with memories. His head felt as if it would explode as the visions rushed madly before his inner eye. In opposition to this chaos, the ring washed his soul in rivulets of power, calming him, helping him to maintain his equilibrium. Reaching under his shirt, he grasped it tight in his hand. Behind shut eyelids, a familiar face loomed, though he could not put a name to it no matter how hard he tried. The voices of his friends called to him, but they were muffled and unclear.
His lips struggled to mouth the words. “We… we must wait for the sister’s return. Promanthea knows this. He will tell you.” The voices of the dead screamed in his head. “She… she has something. Something important. Something I need.”
Chapter Seven
Fallean closed his fist and stilled the magic. Turning, he confronted his captors, a look of resignation upon his face. He hung his shoulders and slumped forward, trudging along with the others. Shaking his head so that only they could see, he signaled to his companions to fall in line behind him. They allowed Madar and Teren to lead them up the path and into the woods ahead.
The trees reached out their branches to the trespassers, catching their already ragged clothing and shredding it further. Twigs wrapped around their boots like snakes and their heels sunk into hidden holes, forcing them to stare at the earth so they wouldn’t trip and fall. Dust rose from the dry soil with each plodding step, and hung in the dead air, making it difficult to breathe.
The uneven path was littered with rocks and other debris in various stages of disintegration. It forked a number of times and Madar grizzled his brow and pondered each one before choosing which to follow. He had never been in these woods before and he knew only that to get to Peltaran they had to march through them and over the rise upon which the pathetic trees grew. The alternative was to walk around the perimeter of the forest, and that would take too much time. If they tried that on foot, they would never reach their rendezvous point by the required date as they had no horses or wagons to speed the journey. The deadline was fast
“We must find the Gem!” Cairn said. “Davmiran must find it. If we can locate it and free it from whatever is constraining it, then perhaps the trees will want to live once more. Isn’t that what we are hoping for? Isn’t that why we were summoned to Dav’s side to begin with?”
“If that is what’s causing them to behave this way,” Filaree said. “We don’t know for sure. No one does.”
“You should contact Promanthea, Robyn,” Davmiran said. “You have waited long enough.”
Scowling, Robyn’s face reddened. This was an uncomfortable and difficult subject for him. Doubts plagued him that he didn’t wish to confront. Doubts and suspicions.
“I shall. And my father too,” he added. “They both must hear from me. I need to tell them I can’t return in any case.”
“Maybe they can tell us something that may help here. We can’t remain in Parth forever. We must begin the quest as soon as possible,” Filaree said. “Each day, each moment we delay is dangerous. I’m beginning to feel as if we’re in a cage, not a shelter. The boy is strong, we all agree. We have spent weeks working with him. Maybe we should leave now,” she said. “Robyn? You were the one who said we must accelerate his training. How much time do we have?” Strong, but not strong enough , she brooded.
“I will speak with Promanthea,” Robyn replied. He was tentative, worried. His whole demeanor changed. “Let us discuss this further after he and I confer.”
“Good,” Cairn said.
“Okay, later,” Filaree replied, after a moment’s hesitation. “And you, Dav? What do you think?” She looked at him, but he didn’t respond.
Davmiran’s senses reeled. Though he appeared settled, the shards assaulted his thoughts with a thousand images, flooding his mind with memories. His head felt as if it would explode as the visions rushed madly before his inner eye. In opposition to this chaos, the ring washed his soul in rivulets of power, calming him, helping him to maintain his equilibrium. Reaching under his shirt, he grasped it tight in his hand. Behind shut eyelids, a familiar face loomed, though he could not put a name to it no matter how hard he tried. The voices of his friends called to him, but they were muffled and unclear.
His lips struggled to mouth the words. “We… we must wait for the sister’s return. Promanthea knows this. He will tell you.” The voices of the dead screamed in his head. “She… she has something. Something important. Something I need.”
Chapter Seven
Fallean closed his fist and stilled the magic. Turning, he confronted his captors, a look of resignation upon his face. He hung his shoulders and slumped forward, trudging along with the others. Shaking his head so that only they could see, he signaled to his companions to fall in line behind him. They allowed Madar and Teren to lead them up the path and into the woods ahead.
The trees reached out their branches to the trespassers, catching their already ragged clothing and shredding it further. Twigs wrapped around their boots like snakes and their heels sunk into hidden holes, forcing them to stare at the earth so they wouldn’t trip and fall. Dust rose from the dry soil with each plodding step, and hung in the dead air, making it difficult to breathe.
The uneven path was littered with rocks and other debris in various stages of disintegration. It forked a number of times and Madar grizzled his brow and pondered each one before choosing which to follow. He had never been in these woods before and he knew only that to get to Peltaran they had to march through them and over the rise upon which the pathetic trees grew. The alternative was to walk around the perimeter of the forest, and that would take too much time. If they tried that on foot, they would never reach their rendezvous point by the required date as they had no horses or wagons to speed the journey. The deadline was fast
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