Souls of Aredyrah 2 - The Search for the Unnamed One (17 page)

Reiv had little time to spend with Kerrik or
answer questions before he was whisked to a place of safety. With
his fame now spread throughout Meirla, it was only a matter of time
before Pobu and Tearia learned of it as well. Talk was that the
former Prince played roles in two prophecies. He was now believed
to be both the Transcendor and the Unnamed One. This left him, in
the minds of most, with more power than even the Priestess
possessed. He remained strangely mute about the entire experience
and allowed himself to be shuffled along by Nannaven and the
Elders, who in that short time had made it their mission to direct
his every move. They insisted he hide, at least for a while, for
they knew he was no longer safe in Meirla. And so they escorted him
to a cave tucked within the rocks of the coastline several miles
away.

The cave was not deep, more like a yawn in
the cliffs than a cavern. Few knew of its existence; it had been
used for ancient rituals long since forgotten. Its entrance was
well hidden, thick with an overgrowth of roots and mossy overhangs.
Nannaven and the Elders set Reiv up as comfortably as they could,
and provided him with some basic necessities. The only thing he
requested was that Dayn stay with him, though he would not say
why.

“I appreciate your concern,” Reiv said when
Nannaven had settled him into his hideaway, “but I will do no one
any good hidden away. I would like you to arrange a meeting of
those you know can be trusted, then send for me. There are issues
that need to be discussed. It does not matter to me where the
meeting takes place, but Pobu would probably be best. It needs to
happen soon, though.”

Nannaven agreed, then hurried out the cave
with the three Elders at her back. As Reiv watched them depart,
Dayn settled onto a mat by the fire that had been lit for their
comfort. He held his hands over the flames. “It’s cold in here,” he
grumbled. “And I hate caves.”

It rained hard that first night, and
continued without ease for the next three days. During that time,
Dayn paced back and forth with boredom while Reiv mostly slept.
Restless with confinement, and increasingly annoyed with his
sleeping cousin, Dayn marched over and nudged Reiv with his foot.
But Reiv did not move. “Why in the world do you require so much
rest?” Dayn muttered. “You seem healthy enough.” He folded his arms
and leaned down toward Reiv. “If you wanted me to come to this
stupid cave with you,” he said rather loudly, “you could at least
stay awake and keep me company.” Realizing his words had made no
impact, Dayn returned to the warmth of the fire and plopped down in
a huff.

Glaring in Reiv’s direction, Dayn cleared his
throat with exaggerated effort.

Reiv stirred, then yawned and stretched his
arms over his head. “What is there to eat around here?” he mumbled.
“I am starved.”

“There are some dates and palm nut, there in
the basket,” Dayn said with indifference. Reiv rose and tottered
his stiff body over to the food and sat down beside it. He grabbed
the basket and propped it in his lap. Munching on a bit of nut, he
eyed Dayn warily. “Why the face?” he asked.

“Why the face? Well, let me see…it’s been
raining ever since we got here. I’ve been stuck in a cold, damp
cave with no one to talk to and nothing to do. I have a cousin at
my side who could be murdered at any moment—myself included if I
happen to get in the way—and a sister who’s off with a Spirit
Keeper rounding up rebels for who knows what. You’re right, why
should I be unhappy?”

Reiv laughed. “Oh, little cousin, you are
only looking at the dark side of things. Look around you. It is
pouring down rain outside, yet you are sitting next to a nice warm
fire. You have a basket of fruit, plenty of water, a blanket, and
your favorite cousin wide awake now to keep you company.”

Dayn attempted to stay angry, but a grin won
out. “Fine. Hand me a date.”

The two of them sat munching and stared into
the flames that flickered in a tumble of ash and wood. Dayn grabbed
a handful of dried moss and tossed it onto the pile. It cracked and
sparked momentarily before turning into a curling blob.

“Tell me about Kirador,” Reiv said.

Dayn lifted his gaze from the fire and
shifted his weight as though settling in for a long dissertation.
“It’s beautiful there, I guess.” But that was all he said.

“And…” Reiv said, prodding.

Dayn sighed. “It’s more mountainous than
here. Colder, too.”

“Well, thank you for the geography lesson,
but what about the people?” The reflection of the fire glowed on
Reiv’s face, revealing sincere interest.

“They’re all dark-haired like Alicine,” Dayn
said, “and not as tall as you and me. They’re very religious and
have many festivals. A matter of fact, the day I left we were at
the Summer Fires and—” He frowned.

“What about the summer fires? The summer
fires what?”

Dayn shrugged. “When I left everyone was at
the Summer Fires Festival. That’s all.”

“Must I drag every word from you? Tell me
about it, more than two words at a time if you do not mind.”

Dayn filled his lungs, then expelled the air
into the cheeks of his disgruntled face. “Summer Fires is a big
festival, probably the biggest of the year. I was bound and
determined not to go—I hate going to those things—but Alicine
tricked me into it. She was being crowned Summer Maiden, and it
meant the world to her.” He paused, noting the question forming on
Reiv’s face. “Summer Maiden is a girl thing…hard to explain.
Anyway, she had worked for months on that dress of hers—”

“The dress with the flowers? You mean to say
she made that dress herself?” Reiv was clearly impressed.

“Yes. Well anyway, I’d pretty much avoided
all the festivals this past year, ever since I found out I was a
demon, or rather, ever since I came to believe I was. But even
before I’d found out, it was always miserable going to those
things. I always ended up being laughed at or insulted in one way
or another. Well, to make a long story short, I went and ran into
Falyn—”

“Falyn? I have heard that name. Alicine said
something about her before, I think. That is the girl you like, is
it not?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Dayn said.
He stabbed at the embers with a stick, sending a funnel of sparks
rising with the smoke.

“Why not? You must like her; otherwise you
would not mind speaking of her.”

Dayn tossed the stick into the fire and
wrapped his arms around his bent knees. “It doesn’t matter whether
I do or not.”

“She does not return your feelings?”

“I don’t know. It never came up.”

“It never came up? You mean she does not know
how you feel? You never told her?”

“No, I never told her,” Dayn said crossly.
“God, Reiv, can’t you let this go?” Dayn rose abruptly from his
spot by the fire and headed for the mouth of the cave. He stood
facing out, arms crossed, and stared through the raindrops trailing
from the overhang.

Reiv followed him over and stood next to him.
“I understand how you feel, cousin. I, too, have been wounded by
love. First Cinnia, then…well, never mind.”

“My sister loves you, you know.”

“Oh, no. If you refuse to speak of Falyn,
then I refuse to speak of Alicine.”

Dayn nodded and continued his mute
contemplation for a long moment, then said, “I love Falyn. I’ve
loved her for as long as I can remember. She’s smart and beautiful,
and she never treated me badly. Not like the others. There’s
nothing about her not to my liking, except her brother Sheireadan.
He despises me and would never allow me to have anything to do with
her. I received many a black eye and bloodied nose for a look in
Falyn’s direction, but I didn’t care. She was worth every licking I
ever took.”

“Surely she knows how you feel about her,
Dayn. After all, your face does have a tendency to reveal every
emotion.”

Dayn forced a laugh. “Well, she mostly saw my
backside. I was usually running in the opposite direction.”

“You said she treated you kindly when others
did not. Are you sure she does not return your feelings?”

“It’s probably just pity,” Dayn said. He
lowered his gaze and kicked a pebble with his toe. “It wouldn’t
have mattered anyway. The day I left I’d found out all the fathers
had made a decision about me. They decided I’d never be allowed to
take a wife. They didn’t want to risk any offspring from demon-kind
like me. I guess I can’t really blame them. At the time I thought I
was a demon, too. At any rate, that’s when I decided to leave.”

“So how does Alicine figure into the picture?
I doubt you invited her to come along.”

“No, she was definitely not invited. She came
looking for me and refused to turn back when she found me. By then
I was almost to the cave and bound and determined not to go home.
You know how stubborn that sister of mine can be. Well, I matched
her for it that day. So, we went in together.”

They headed back to the warmth of the fire
and sat across from each other, talking about things they had never
had much time to talk about before. Reiv told Dayn about his former
life as a prince, while Dayn told him about his and Alicine’s trek
to Tearia, beginning with the adventure in the cave. He told him
about the winding tunnels and snaking river, the strange markings
and mysterious chambers, the bubbling pits and swarms of flying
rats. As he spun the tale, he grew more animated, his arms waving
wildly when he came to the part about the monstrous demon. His
shadow loomed across the wall, the image contorting with his every
move. Reiv watched with rapt attention.

“Gods, you really put yourself through an
ordeal to escape the pain of that girl,” Reiv said with
amusement.

Dayn chortled. “I suppose I did.”

“Will you go back for her?”

“Go back for her? I don’t know. I mean, I did
promise Alicine I would take her back to Kirador, but I keep hoping
she’ll change her mind. I keep hoping you’ll change her mind.”

Reiv’s face grew solemn. “I cannot keep her
here, Dayn. Her heart belongs in Kirador, at least most of it does.
No, she must return home and you must be the one to take her.”

Dayn picked up a twig and chewed on it
absentmindedly for a moment. “You know, if we do go back, I’m going
to walk right up to Falyn and tell her how I feel about her. I
mean, if I can make my way through a cave, escape a demon of the
deep, and put up with the likes of you…why, I should be able to do
almost anything. Yes…I do believe I’ll march right up to her and
kiss her on the mouth.” He smiled dreamily. “Right on the
mouth.”

“So you have not kissed her before then?”
Reiv asked.

“Of course not! I’m only sixteen. Even if I
had been allowed to court, it wouldn’t have been until I was
seventeen at least.”

“Court? What does that mean?”

“You know, when a boy is allowed to visit a
girl at her parents’ house and get to know her and at first they’re
only friends, but then if it goes well you can kiss her—but not
when the parents are around, of course.”

Reiv’s surprise surpassed even his reaction
to the cave story. “You mean to tell me you are sixteen…and you
have never been alone with a girl…
and
you have never kissed
one?”

“Of course not! It would not have been
proper.”

Reiv burst into hearty laughter. “Gods,
cousin, a boy as healthy as you would have been wedded and bedded
by now in Tearia.”

Dayn felt his face blush three shades of red.
“I can’t believe you said that. Just because I don’t walk around
half naked, staring and touching and kissing like the people here
do.”

“We do not stare and touch and…well…we do
stare and touch and kiss, but it is a natural thing. Nothing to be
ashamed of. You do not know what you are missing.”

“Yes, I do. I mean, when I picture Falyn, I
get all goosy.”

“Goosy?”

“Yes, you know,
goosy
.” Dayn
demonstrated with a bodily display of quivering happiness.

“I never heard it called ‘goosy’. How did you
come by that expression exactly? Does it have something to do with
a goose’s neck?” Reiv looked completely serious.

“A goose’s neck? No. Goosy. Like a bump. You
know.”

“A bump? I should think it would be more than
a bump.”

Dayn stared at his cousin like he was talking
to a two-year old. Then Reiv’s meaning became clear. “Oh, you
think—God, Reiv, I’m not talking about that! I mean bumps like on
your arms, not—” Dayn threw his hands up in exasperation, then his
eyes grew mischievous. “But as for the other, I swear it can be so
annoying, can’t it? I mean, I see Falyn walking my way and evil
thoughts seem to take me over, body and mind.” He grinned and found
himself squirming. “I think we’d better change the subject. I’m
picturing her as we speak.”

“Well, you had best get your mind off of your
bump in a hurry because someone has come to call,” Reiv said.

“What—who?” Dayn turned his head to follow
Reiv’s gaze. Jensa was making her way toward them, her clothes
drenched through and clinging to every part of her body. Dayn
groaned and lowered his forehead into his hand. “Oh, god, please
not her. Not now,” he muttered, shaking his head.

Reiv looked at Jensa, then Dayn, and his
laughter returned. “Go on, cousin, where are your manners? Are you
not going to rise to greet her?”

Dayn shot him a glare. “Not funny, Reiv.”

“What’s going on with you two?” Jensa said.
She walked over to the fire and sat down next to Dayn, her knee
touching his, and held her hands out over the flames. She leaned
across him and reached for a blanket, pulling it across his lap to
hers.

Dayn looked past her, struggling to keep his
eyes averted from her barely clad body. “I need some air,” he said,
and jumped up and headed out into the rain.

“What in the world is he doing?” Jensa said.
“Doesn’t he realize how hard it’s raining? Didn’t he see how soaked
through I am?”