The Crystal's Chosen Page 4

  “What did you tell him?” Joran interrupted. Mier gave him a stern look, and then continued, “I told him that I was the only one home, and that the mistress of the house was away on an extended vacation. Then there was a slight thump upstairs, and he smiled—nasty smile he had! Sent chills down my spine—anyways, then he just left.”

  Joran said something under his breath and started to get up. Before he had even pushed his chair out all the way, Mier looked at him. “Sit!” she ordered.

  “But we have to…” Joran started.

  “I said sit!” Mier told him.

  “You don’t understand,” he tried again, “They’ll…”

  “Eat your food Joran! They can’t be here for another half hour at least.” Mier commanded, grabbing his arm and yanking him back down. Ky’ara looked between the two, confused by their sudden familiarity with each other.

  “But Mier...”

  “Just eat your breakfast, boy, you need your strength! My goodness! Never thought I’d see a boy who refused to eat!” Mier sat and glared at him until he looked down at his plate and began to scarf down his food as quickly as possible. Ky’ara just shook her head and began to eat as well.

  A few minutes later they were out in the stable, saddling the horses and leading them into the yard just behind the house. Ky’ara embraced Mier quickly, and then mounted her horse. “Be careful, and try not to draw attention to yourself.” Mier warned.

  “I know. Do not worry, I will be fine.” Ky’ara reassured her, “But I am worried about you.”

  “Me? I’m not the one in danger.” Mier dismissed her comment.

  “Don’t be too sure,” Joran put in, “If they suspect that you’re covering for us, they’ll prob’ly kill you.”

  Mier’s eyes widened slightly, but she didn’t back down. “Don’t fret yourself over my safety, the road is dangerous, and you’ll need to be on the lookout for trouble. Not all of Tirem is as safe as the capital,” she cautioned.

  “Mier, I want you to go somewhere safe until I come back, I do not want you to be here alone if they come looking for me.” Ky’ara felt suddenly protective of her former nursemaid. It just did not feel right, leaving her here alone.

  “Now really!” Mier started, “I can take care of myself. Hurry up and get away from here!”

  “Promise me you will not stay here by yourself,” Ky’ara pleaded stubbornly.

  Mier sighed, “Yes, dear. Now GO!”

  Ky’ara bit her lip, then wheeled her horse around and galloped across the field with Joran close behind. Mier looked after them for a moment, and then turned and made her way back to the house. “Really! The way she orders me around as though I was a delicate old grandmamma or something! And Joran! Who does he think he is? Motioning for me to just say yes just so they could leave, behind Ky’ara’s back! That boy has gotten too uppity.”

  Muttering to herself, she entered the house and began to pack up her things, preparing for her own journey away from home.

  Chapter 3: Beginning a Journey

  Muted wind howled through the darkness, whipping the trees back and forth as rain misted through their thin black needles. Thunder rumbled ominously overhead. Ky’ara huddled closer to the fire, glancing over at Joran, who was staring blankly into the flames. Their swift ride to reach the cover of the forest before nightfall had taken its toll on the boy. It was not so much the speed with which they were riding, but rather the boy’s own paranoid fear that had worn him down. He had been jittery since hearing about the man who had come to Ky’ara’s house, and while they rode he had continued to glance behind them, as though afraid they were being pursued. But as far as Ky’ara could tell, it was all for nothing. Not once had she caught a glimpse of someone following them. Still, for some reason his uneasiness was affecting her and Ky’ara was confused. She didn’t understand it all.

  “Joran,” she asked suddenly, “why is the crystal so important?”

  “Hmm?” He looked up from the fire, a guarded look in his eye.

  “You panicked yesterday when I said I had left it at home…why were you so worried?”

  “I, um, well I was just flustered anyways…” he said, not meeting her eye…

  “Joran, I’m not stupid, why is the crystal so special? What does it do?”

  “I don’t know.” Joran looked up at her and held her gaze. It took a second for his words to sink in.

  “What do you mean, you don’t know? As in you don’t know, or as in no one in your organization knows? And if you don’t know what it does then why…”

  “I don’t think anyone knows!” Joran interrupted, “All I know is that A’kiina was supposed to protect it…it has some sort of power that we need to help stop our enemies, but we don’t even know how to use it. But we know they want to get it away from us, so we have to keep it safe…”

  “That man, was he one of your enemies?” Ky’ara broke in suddenly,

  “Err..who?” Joran asked, confused by the change of topic.

  “The man who came to the door this morning. He could have been anyone, but as soon as Mier described him, you started to look frightened. Why? Do you know him?” Ky’ara inquired.

  “Yeah,” Joran muttered darkly, “At least, I know of him.”

  “Stop being so cryptic,” Ky’ara told him impatiently.

  “It’s a long story, and none of your business. Why don’t you just get some sleep?” Joran evaded her gaze and tossed a stick into the fire.

  “I think I need to know,” she insisted. “One of my closest friends and mentors is dead, along with nearly two dozen other people, supposedly due to a piece of rock that nobody knows anything about! I was told to travel to a place that is not on any map I have ever seen, with a fourteen year old…”

  “Fourteen and a half,” he interrupted sulkily. Ky’ara ignored him and continued.

  “…a fourteen year old thief to guide me, and we are possibly being pursued by enemies I’ve never seen or heard of. And along with all that, I can suddenly work magic—which is illegal in case you didn’t know!”

  Her voice had risen now, her patience wearing thin. “How can you tell me that I should not worry about it? I met you yesterday and already you are telling me someone is an enemy without even giving me an explanation! For all I know you and your organization are the ones behind the assassinations! Just because I am trusting you to lead me to Doraicolé does not mean I trust you unconditionally. So unless you want me to turn around and go back right now…”

  “Fine!” Joran interrupted, slightly taken aback by the accusation. He stared blankly into the darkness for a moment, and Ky’ara began to wonder if he was actually going to say anything. Finally, he spoke.

  “About five years ago my family and I lived in a small village far to the west and south from here. Times were hard, what with the ridiculous taxes and the drought, but we were able to manage with our small farm. My father would sell some of our produce at the village market, and we earned enough to survive on.” He sighed, staring into the flames once more, not meeting her eyes.

  “One day a man came and tried to take my sister away. He claimed that she was to be trained as a lady-in-waiting to the princess, but for some reason my sister didn’t believe those were his real intentions. Mother needed her to help around the house and in the garden, and so my sister respectfully refused his offer.”

  He paused, then took a deep breath and continued, his voice a faint whisper. “The next day my father never came back from the market. Darkness fell, and my mother stayed up waiting for him. I never saw what happened to her after that. Elrackon attacked and destroyed our house that night. I only survived because my sister dragged me out of bed and we ran into the forest. Somehow, she knew of a secret passage underneath an oak tree, it led us to a series of tunnels, and she guided me through them—in the dark.”

  He glanced at Ky’ara; she had sat through the entire narrative without saying a word.

  “Where did it lead?” she prompted, looking up at him af
ter a moment of silence.

  “To the cellar of a house,” Joran answered evasively, “You see, my sister had joined a secret organization a few years earlier, without telling me or my parents. She knew the man who had come to get her, at least from description. His name is Keerason, and he has squinty eyes, a long nose, and a very distinctive speech impediment.”

  “So you think he was the one who came looking for me?” Ky’ara asked shortly.

  “I’m almost positive,” Joran replied firmly, “He pronounced your name Keera. No one else I’ve ever heard of has a problem pronouncing “Ky” and “ara” like he does.”

  “So is his name actually Ky’areson?” Ky’ara asked absently, her mind focusing on this miniscule detail while she tried to absorb what he was telling her. Joran nodded.

  “But see, it’s not so much him that we need to worry about,” the boy started to explain, “His partner Iregh is the one to watch out for. The problem is, where you find one, you soon find the other. No one is quite sure how they correspond so quickly, but it must be some secret magic, because Iregh is a really powerful mage.”

  “Hmm.” Ky’ara was still considering what he had told her, trying to piece together the facts and fill in the empty spaces where Joran had left some things unsaid.

  “Another thing…well, you probably already figured it out, but Iregh and Keerason are connected to someone pretty high up in the government.” Joran added hesitantly, looking to see how she would take this.

  “Is it not interesting,” Ky’ara said slowly, “that I have never heard of these people? I have been associating with those in royal circles since I was born, and I was on the Council, you know.”

  Joran frowned as she brought this fact back to his attention. “I’d forgotten. I wonder how they’ll react to that.”

  Ky’ara narrowed her eyes, “What do you mean? And who are They.”

  “Well, um…the organization I belong to isn’t really on the best of terms with the government…it’s not illegal!” he said hurriedly upon seeing her expression, “not technically anyways, because the government doesn’t even acknowledge its existence officially.”

  “That does not mean much.” Ky’ara pointed out, “If you harbor mages and have a magical talisman, I am fairly certain that qualifies as illegal. But I suppose I can tolerate that, for now. The government is not as…honest…to the general public as I once thought.” Her thoughts flashed back to the interrogator, and his warning for her to keep quiet about what had happened.

  Joran shrugged. “Even the King doesn’t know what really goes on his kingdom. At least, we think he doesn’t...hundreds of people are dying every year from sickness and starvation as the rich people get richer and the poor go hungry because the little they manage to glean from the land is taken in the name of the “greater good” of the kingdom. Trolls have been seen frequently in the borderlands of the kingdom, but none of the ‘privileged’ citizens know, because the government has such a chokehold on communication—no one can afford to send a letter or travel except the elites, and they’re encouraged to stay close to the capital. Our kingdom is starting to decay quickly, and the few good people in government are completely oblivious! The Overseer of the Council knew, we’re fairly certain, because we suspect he had close contact, with the…er…person…who my organization is fighting. The Destroyer.”

  An involuntary shiver ran up Ky’ara’s spine, and she was suddenly cold. It’s just a name, and a rather ridiculous one at that, she thought, irritated at herself for reacting.

  Joran looked thoughtful for a moment, “I wonder why they killed him? Or maybe the attack was targeted at A’kiina, and he was just unlucky and they didn’t care enough to warn him? Hmm, I dunno.”

  Ky’ara was about to reply to this, then thought better of it. I don’t think he would like knowing that I am the Overseer’s niece. Even if my uncle never had much to do with me, Joran probably wouldn’t see it that way.”

  Suddenly it hit her: she was traveling to the headquarters of an illegal organization, delivering a magical object that, for all she knew, could be some sort of weapon. Joran had readily admitted that his people were, in an indirect way, fighting against the king and other nobility (which would actually include herself.) She felt exhausted and confused, and the desire to talk left her. She had heard enough.

  “Try to get some rest,” she sighed. “I’m going to bed.”

  Her sudden announcement left Joran slightly unbalanced. He looked at her speculatively as she stood and laid out her sleeping roll near the fire. Finally, shaking his head, Joran moved to the opposite side of the fire and crawled under his own blankets, falling asleep nearly as soon as his head hit the pillow. Ky’ara had no such luck. Her mind was in turmoil as she tried to sort out what she was feeling. Her lack of loyalty to her king and the government that she had once been a part of was puzzling. Somehow, subconsciously, it seemed that she had decided to side with this boy, and his ‘organization’. Questions and thoughts tumbled and spun through her mind.

  When sleep finally claimed her, it offered no respite from the trouble that had plagued her waking thoughts. Instead, alarming nightmares left her tossing and turning for most of the night. She was searching for something, running through a world of darkness, but never reaching, not even knowing, what she was chasing. And there was a continual sense of being watched. She saw herself shouting strange words and unleashing a power that threatened to wrench itself from her control. Images of friends and relatives dead and alive swirled in and out of her haunted dreams. The last figures she saw before dropping into a more peaceful sleep were those of her long-dead parents.

  * * * * *

  Dawn found Ky’ara awake and with a firm decision settled in mind. After a quick wash in the nearby stream, she dressed and returned to find Joran at the coals of their fire, cooking breakfast. Hardly a word passed between them as they ate the slightly burned meal. As they started to break camp, Ky’ara couldn’t keep quiet any longer. “I am not going any farther than Doraicolé,” she blurted.

  “What?” Joran asked, confused by her unprompted comment.

  “I will bring the crystal to the city, but then I am leaving it with you and turning around to go straight back home,” Ky’ara explained.

  “If that’s the case, then why don’t you just give it to me now!?!” Joran exclaimed, “Why even go as far as the city walls if all yer gonna do is leave?”

  Ky’ara hesitated. She had thought about it… “A’kiina told me to bring it to Doraicolé, I have to keep my word. But I will not go beyond exactly what I promised. I do not want anything to do with this ‘organization’ of yours!” Ky’ara yelled. Why am I getting so upset? She had just meant to tell him that she wanted to get home to Mier as soon as possible. It was strange, there was a buzzing noise in her ears, and she suddenly felt lightheaded.

  “You can’t just walk away from this!” Joran yelled, “I may not understand everything, but I know that you were chosen for a reason, and that goes beyond just bringing the crystal back to Doraicolé!”

  “Oh, please.” Ky’ara rolled her eyes, “A’kiina chose me because she had to, there was no one else around before she died.”

  “A’kiina didn’t choose you,” Joran stated, “The crystal chose you—A’kiina wouldn’t have told you to take it to Doraicole otherwise. She would have made you give it to M—someone else.”

  For a second there was silence. Ky’ara felt an intense pressure at the base of her skull. She struggled to push it away as she spoke.

  “What do you mean by that? If the crystal ‘chose’ me, like you say, then it had better unchoose me quick. And if it is the reason I have magic, then it had better get rid of that too. Because I do not want magic, and I will not use it!”

  “You are jumping to totally random conclusions! The crystal can’t “give” anyone magic, and you can’t just get rid of magic! Besides, you need training! If you don’t learn how to use it, it’ll break out unexpectedly! You could...” Joran raged
, his temper getting the better of him.

  “I do not care! I will ignore it, and it will go away.” Ky’ara interrupted.

  “You could end up hurting, or even killing someone if you don’t learn to…” Joran yelled.

  “Shhhhhhh!” Ky’ara suddenly cut him off, her attention drawn elsewhere.

  “Why should I stop!?!! You’re a spoiled rich brat and you need to learn that not everything is always under your control…”

  “Would you be quiet!?!” she ordered, suddenly forgetting their quarrel, “I hear something!”

  Joran closed his mouth with a snap, looking around suddenly with a frightened expression. A single moment of silence reigned. Then a feral roar split the air and a full-grown Ungh troll charged into the clearing from just behind Ky’ara. She instinctively ducked and rolled to the side as it swung at her with its crude weapon. Wasting no time, Joran grabbed his knife and flung it at the creature, simultaneously hurling himself out of the way. The weapon buried itself hilt deep in the troll’s left shoulder. Ky’ara was surprised. Supposedly regular knives couldn’t pierce an Ungh’s thick hide unless they were thrown with such skill and force that they entered at the exact right angle. How did Joran do that?

  The troll turned and swung one of its massive, hairy arms at the boy. Joran ducked and rolled to his feet near Ky’ara as she drew her sword with a shout. Grunting, the Ungh wheeled around and started for her, its short, spiked club raised. Ky’ara parried as it swung at her, then slipped her sword around the weapon and opened a shallow gash on the creature’s chest. Ignoring the injury, the troll swung at Ky’ara. Pain shot through her arm as her sword connected with the club, and she almost dropped her weapon. Grimly, she grasped the sword with both hands and twisted it up and away as she lunged backwards. Joran came at the creature from the side, a stout tree branch in his hands. Is he trying to get himself killed!? Ky’ara thought as the beast shattered the piece of wood and flung the boy away.

  As the troll turned back to her, Ky’ara swung her sword down and around, trying to get at its side. It blocked her blow easily, and she continued to duck and parry, carefully avoiding the massive club as it swung down at her. She rolled and came up behind it, slashing at the back of its legs as the monster turned. Seeing her opening, Ky’ara swung up and in, catching the troll full on the chest. There was a crunch of bone as her sword connected with its ribs, but the blow hardly drew blood. The club crashed down on Ky’ara at the same time, tearing into her left arm and shoulder. Luckily, none of the spikes were placed on the side that hit her, but the force of the blow threw her to the side, and her sword went spinning away.