Seeker of the Four Winds: A Galatia Novel (39 page)

An Hour Earlier

(Josephine Rose Albright)

Loyl’s path led them up a weedy hill that
had a gradual but constant incline, which taxed the muscles and
made Josie pause a few times to catch her breath. The trees had
spaced out, letting in the light of the moon, brightening the path.
She glanced at Lars who looked energetic and refreshed. Raising an
eyebrow, she sent him an irritated frown.

“You don’t even look tired.”

“You know,” Lars replied, “if you open the
excito a little, it will increase your stamina.”

“You think I don’t know that?”

“Then why don’t you do it instead of sending
me dirty looks?”

“Maybe I don’t want to do it.”

“Maybe you’re stubborn.”

“Maybe I don’t care.”

“Trouble in lovers’ paradise?” Lindsey asked
with a smirk.

“I’m sorry, Lars,” Josie apologized, not
wanting Lindsey to enjoy herself too much. “It’s just that we
skipped supper tonight, and I’m sick of walking.”

“Aren’t we all?” Dante replied. “Suck it up,
Josie.”

Biting her lower lip, she concentrated on
climbing, trying not to think too much about what waited ahead.
Even though the rise didn’t feel like a mountain, or look like one,
she sensed they had reached a high elevation when the forest
changed to into a meadow of thick blue-green, grass, which
transitioned into scrubby lichens with large patches of bare
ground. From the distance, neatly spaced rock formations were lined
up like houses along the ancient streets of Suburbia. Growing up in
the confining underground city, she had imagined how wonderful and
carefree it would have been to live on the surface of the
Earth.

The reality was much less idyllic.

Her feet ached, her mind was consumed with
worry, while her empty stomach gurgled. Sometimes she longed for
the four metal walls of her bedroom, the carefree days of knowing
where her next meal would come from, and no concerns about vicious
animals lurking in the shadows waiting to kill her. Difficult to
put into words, but up here everything was more. More colors, more
hot, more cold, more sorrow and more joy. More real.

Her eyes went up to the sky where brilliant
white stars splattered the endless indigo canvas of the cosmos. The
night air smelled like pine trees and moonflowers. Somewhere a bird
called out with a lonely whoooo sound. This alluring world held so
much beauty, but it came with so much pain. Given the chance to
return to the bunker, would she even want to?

Prince Loyl ordered the squad to drop and
crawl commando style, pulling Josie from her thoughts. “Stay down,”
the prince ordered as everyone peered over the edge of a bluff.
Rolling farmlands spread out before them, and deeper into the
horizon, Josie saw the tip of a city circled by a tall, but uneven
wall.

“That can’t be Galatia,” Rolf said. “It’s so
big.”

“I rode through these lands many times in my
youth,” Prince Loyl said. “And I assure you no city this size has
been here until now. This is the land built by your people’s sweat
and blood. You should be proud.”

“Galatia.” Tears filled Josie’s eyes as she
wistfully looked out over the fields to the city. This land
represented security, the pursuit of happiness—which included
education, parties, laughter, marriage and a safe place to raise
children. From this vantage, they could peek down inside the wall.
The outlines of the buildings and chimneys poked up like a forest
of adobe and bricks. A million fireflies flickering in the fields
surrounding the city, adding to the charm. Propped up on elbows, or
knees, everyone fell silent to admire the view.

Lars reached for her hand and kissed the
back of her knuckles. “Home,” he said, “the most beautiful word on
Earth no matter the time period.”

“Amen to that, brother,” Dante said. “Our
illustrious mayor has been busy.”

“Yet, even with all your ingenuity, I fear
all of your hard work is about to come crashing down,” Loyl said
ruefully, regretfully.

“But I have the map right here,” Josie
patted the pocket of her cloak. “We’ve won.”

“Galatia is surrounded,” Prince Loyl
said.

“Surrounded by lightning bugs,” Lindsey
guffawed. “I think we can handle them.”

“Those aren’t lightning bugs,” Dante
informed. “They are campfires from the armies of the Alliance. How
many do you think, Loyl?”

“For every campfire, assume four to six
soldiers. And the attack comes at daybreak.”

The saliva in Josie’s mouth instantly went
dry. Her mother was down there, her sister, her niece, nephew, and
highest aspirations...

“The soldiers ring the city like a mile-wide
donut,” Dante said, rolling onto his back and giving a defeated
sigh. “How are we going to cut through to enter the hole in the
middle?”

“Why don’t we just show the army guys the
map and be done with it?” Josie asked.

“If only it were that simple,” Loyl replied.
“The Western Alliance is hungry for the spoils of Galatia.
Approaching any one of these armies will yield unpredictable
results. We need to get the map to the Regalan in charge—Prince
Gerard no doubt.”

He reached for the book holding the map, but
Josie had an uneasy feeling, and hefted it away. “I’m sorry,” she
said, clutching it protectively to her chest. “I don’t like that
idea.”

“And why not?”

“It’s not your city or your species at stake
here. I can’t hand it over to anyone except Mayor Wakeland.”

Prince Loyl’s brows narrowed. His pupils
constricted as he studied Josie with a probing stare meant to
challenge her position, but she did not back down. The other squad
members shifted uneasily.

“C’mon, Josie,” Lindsey said, giving the
prince an apologetic glance. “He has risked his life a hundred
times over for us.”

“For us?” Josie said sharply, remembering
the somber warning Mayor Red had given her before the squad had
left for the mission. “Or for Regala D’Nora?”

“Josie,” Lindsey admonished. “I can’t
believe you’d raise such a question.”

“I don’t mean to be rude, but the security
of Galatia trumps politeness. Prince Loyl knows better than any
humanoid that we are who we say we are—the last survivors of the
human race—which means First Rights belong to us. Considering how
close Regala D’Nora is to Galatia in geography, King Doyl might
think it’s in the best interest of his kingdom for the map to stay
lost.”

“Josie,” Dante said. “Be reasonable, if
Prince Loyl wanted to betray us—he had plenty of chances to do it
already.”

“Prince Loyl, I trust you entirely, but I
have never met your father or your major prince brother. If the map
is given to one of them, can you guarantee what they will do with
it?”

“No,” Loyl’s right ear twitched and his
voice lowered an octave, “I cannot.”

“Before we left on this mission, the mayor
ordered me to hold onto the map until he personally took possession
of it. And that is what I intend to do.”

“Josie,” Rolf said. “You seem to be
forgetting that Prince Loyl is in charge here.”

“And you seem to be forgetting who put him
in charge—Mayor Wakeland. When the mayor’s orders conflict with the
prince’s, I follow the mayor’s. No offence, Prince Loyl, it’s just
how I roll.”

“Your loyalty to the mayor is admirable,”
Loyl replied. “Perhaps it is best this way. Although I would never
raise my sword against any of you, my dear friends, I cannot and
will not raise it against my father’s soldiers, which puts me in a
quandary.”

“I see,” Josie said, her voice reflecting
disapproval. “You plan to be Switzerland.”

“I don’t understand the reference.”

“She means you’re going to remain neutral,”
Lars said.

“
If
I can remain
neutral—yes.”

“If you can’t?” Dante asked.

“My life and loyalty
belongs to Regala D’Nora. That’s just how
I
roll.”

Now that he put it that way, Josie
understood his dilemma. Just as she could not hand him the map
without contravening the mayor’s orders—Prince Loyl could never
directly oppose Regala D’Nora.

“We would have never made it this far
without you,” Josie replied. “You have done more than anyone to
help Galatia and I am eternally grateful.”

“Me, too,” Lindsey added.

“So, this is where we part ways, my friend,”
Dante said, crawling over to shake the prince’s hand.

“It is been an honor to serve under your
command,” Rolf added.

“And it’s been an honor to lead the Red
Squad. Someday soon, if the fates should allow it, I hope you will
be my guests in Regala D’Nora. I would enjoy giving you a personal
tour of our finest city among the trees. There’s nothing like it in
all of the world.”

The men shook his hand, but Josie made the
prince give her a hug. Lindsey wheedled a hug from the prince as
well and took her time letting go.

And with that, Prince Loyl of the House of
the White Rose slid feet-first over the edge of rise. Josie watched
him climb down the steep crags, a feat no human would dare try
without serious rock climbing equipment.

“Now what?” Lindsey asked to nobody in
particular. “How are we going to get the map to the mayor?”

“First things first,” Dante said. “Loyl
would never purposely give away our location, but when his fellow
Regalans see him again after such a long absence, especially if
they have gotten wind that he was on a mission for Mayor Wakeland,
they might get suspicious.”

“Then we better lose ourselves,” Lars said,
peering down the cliff. “Two Regalan scouts have already spotted
Loyl and are coming toward the cliffs.”

“Sweet mother of mercy,” Dante said, “With
their night vision, they’ll have seen us too.”

Dante motioned for the rest of the squad to
follow him. He led them along the cliff’s edge until they came to a
lazy stream dotted with brown boulders. They stopped on a rocky
knoll, about two hundred yards behind an army.

“We’re going to have to sneak through the
line somewhere,” Dante said. “We’ll be less conspicuous among a
Commoner army, so let’s find where they’re camped.”

“We’ll never get through the lines dressed
like this,” Lindsey pointed out. “Maybe we can take down a few
stray spear chuckers and take their uniforms.”

“You’ve watched too many movies,” Josie
replied.

“What if we Mind Wander into the city?” Lars
suggested. “There’s a chance we could run into someone else in a
wander who can give us an update, help us decide what we need to do
next. If that doesn’t work out, at least we’d be gathering
intelligence as to the path of least resistance.”

“That’s a great idea,” Dante said. “But
that’s more than a hundred yards and only a handful of people can
manage that distance. I know it’s out of my range.”

“Don’t look at me,” Rolf said. “Twenty feet
is my maximum.”

“I’m good,” Lindsey said.
“But not
that
good.”

“It’s not out of my range,” Josie said. “Nor
Lars’s. He can go for miles.”

“Really?” Dante’s eyebrows arched.

“Really,” Lars said. “But Josie is the
better choice out of the two of us. She’s the only person I know
that can reach through the Mind Wander to tap someone in the
physical world.”

“Red Wakeland can do that,” Lindsey and
Josie said simultaneously. “The entire unit heard him speak while
he was in a wander.”

“Well, he’s in there, and we’re out
here.”

“It has to be you, Lars,” Josie said. “I
fade too fast and go comatose.”

“With enemy soldiers everywhere,” Dante
said, “anything that makes you immobile is out of the
question.”

“I can handle a Mind Wander of that
distance—no problem,” Lars said.

“It’s worth a shot, kid. But let’s plant
your body in a safer spot before you go in.”

They moved downstream away from the
Hunterdon army and took refuge behind a set of large boulders. Lars
sat down cross-legged behind the largest one and loosened his cloak
from around his neck. Like Josie, despite having purchased a change
of clothing at the port of a small fishing village, in a fight he
preferred the armor given to him by Mr. Bayloo. His ruminating dark
eyes stared straight ahead into nothing as he went into a mystical
state, preparing to slip away from his body. A faint glow flared
behind the whites of his eyes and she knew that he was traveling
that space between the physical world and the spiritual.

Knowing Lars was floating up there above
their little gathering, able to see the squad while invisible to
them, Josie glanced upward and whispered good luck. She felt a
flutter of energy, like the buzz of an electric back massager,
touch her lips—Lars stealing a kiss at a time like this? That
rogue. She tossed her head to the air, spinning around in the vain
hope of catching a glimpse of his spirit floating off to the
city.

“Good luck, Lars,” she whispered into the
breeze. “God speed.”

..............................

After ten minutes of waiting, Dante began to
pace. Josie assured him that ten minutes in a wander was nothing
for Lars. By twenty minutes, Lars’s body had slumped over. Josie
gently eased him into a reclining position in the grass.

“At thirty minutes, even Dr. Steelsun begins
to fade,” Dante said nervously, going to shake Lars out of the Mind
Wander, but Josie stepped in front of him.

“I don’t know what Lars’s father is capable
of, but Lars and I have gone over thirty minutes lots of times. Be
patient.”

“Go find him,” Dante ordered.

She had just sat down beside Lars, and
slipped out of her body, when she saw a bright blue star like a
spotlight floating toward the squad over the western troops. Lars.
She noted that even the humanoids carried a faint glow in their
chests, but none so brilliant as her boyfriend. When she reached
Lars, she wanted to throw her arms around him in thanksgiving, but
one look at his careworn expression told her something was terribly
wrong. What could have disturbed him more on an already disturbing
night?