Those Who Fear the Darkness (BloodRunes: Book 2) (27 page)

“Of course.” Her heart sank.

“So when do we leave?” She inquired, refusing
to contemplate the Oracle’s words further. The predictions of her
future were not exactly bright. Layna might still be able to tell
her why the girl’s parents were in her head.

“We?” he asked quizzically.

“Yes, we. I’m coming.” She stated, daring him
to oppose her. Marak snuck forward on her arm menacingly. He had
been fairly quiet since Gerald’s and Evelyn’s deaths, and Katya
worried he may have been damaged in the scuffle. He settled back
in, however, as Gryffon did not seem inclined to argue.

“Alright then,” he acquiesced, and surprised
her by not asking for an explanation. “How soon can you be
ready?”

“I’m ready now.”

“Gryffon,” a woman’s voice floated into the
room from the doorway. Katya glanced over to see an old woman who
had been by several times to see Layna and help heal her. She
hadn’t spoken much during the visits, but had always been pleasant,
and Katya got the feeling that there was much more to this woman
than she let on.

“Aileen,” he greeted her.

“I couldn’t help but overhear,” she stated,
pausing a moment to collect her thoughts before holding her hands
out in front of her in a gesture of futility. “I wish I could go
with you,”

Katya opened her mouth to protest that it was
likely to be a grueling journey and no place for an old woman, but
Aileen saved her from the need, “but my presence would
simply…complicate things.”

It was an odd way of saying she’d just slow
them down. So what did she want?

“There is also much I need to do here with
all that has happened. I’ve been trying to get the council to see
how important Layna is, but they are more interested in the events
in Gelendan. Please, you must convince them to help her.”

“I’ve already tried talking to them,” Gryffon
began, but Aileen held up her hand.

“No, not the council. The Three. At the
source. You are traveling to the resting place of the Kiani Stones,
the ancient connection to the gods as you call them. Please, you
must convince them that their intervention is necessary! This has
gone much too far.”

Gryffon looked as confused as Katya felt.
“The Word from the Three was that if we take her there she would be
healed. Won’t they already help her without convincing?” His
features transformed into worry.

“I sincerely hope so, but we can leave
nothing to chance.”

“I’ll do everything that I can for her,” he
promised, the concerned look growing more pronounced.

Aileen paused for a moment in indecision, her
body rocking slightly back and forth betraying her inner turmoil.
“Take this,” she said finally, holding out a small object to him.
He took it from her and held it up. It was a large scale of some
sort. He shifted his wrist so that it was displayed to Aileen.

“What is this?”

“It will help the Kiani Stones recognize the
need. Put it near them and they should respond.”

Aileen hurried out of the room and Gryffon
pocketed the scale. He turned back to Katya, who had been watching
the interaction with interest. “Are you sure you want to get
involved in this?”

“Definitely.”
No, not really.

“And there’s nothing you need to do before we
go?”

“Nope, like I said, I’m ready now.”

It took Gryffon considerably longer to be
ready himself, especially as he had to clear the journey with the
council. Luckily, none of them was likely to go against the Word,
and very few had any objections at all anyway. Katya wouldn’t doubt
it if some were partially glad Layna would be gone - and with her
the drama she’d brought.

Katya snorted to herself. That way they could
full-heartedly believe the lies told by the witch Jezebel with no
one around to point out how stupid they were being. Katya had
suspicions that Jezebel was behind what had happened to Layna, and
had been toying with the idea of doing everyone a favor and getting
rid of the woman. The thought made her feel dirty, however, it was
a little too reminiscent of her work for Karl and she wasn’t quite
ready to face that again. Not to mention the upheaval it would
cause. It may put too much pressure on those with access to the
palace and Katya’s story wasn’t that airtight.

It didn’t matter now anyway as they were
already on their way to the source of the river - Jezebel would
just have to wait. They were able to travel much of it by water,
and they were currently floating swiftly with the help of several
magical enhancements in addition to the rowers.

Katya sat on the side of the vessel and
unwrapped the package that Layna’s father had entrusted her with.
It was a beautifully made box, though Katya could not figure out
how to open it. Under different circumstances Katya was sure she
could have made a small fortune off it. As it was, she only wanted
to know why it was so important. It couldn’t just be the wealth
that they wanted passed on to their daughter, could it? Gerald had
seemed much more frantic for her to deliver it to Layna than for
the money.

She deserves to know who she is too…

*

Nathair marveled at his newfound power.
Though he had momentarily lost control to the presence and allowed
the woman to escape before she could tell him more about the
situation, he still had pushed it back down and was confident that
it eventually would simply absorb into him, so that his
transformation to the god would be complete. Obviously since it was
he that was the god, this other essence must simply be the last
person who held the stone and got drawn into it because they
weren’t strong enough. As the god that he was, Nathair saw no
reason not to take over the world.

*

Nuko had been spending much of his time
evaluating his situation. He was currently content to ignore the
host and allow it to assume that it had regained control of its
body whilst he determined what had transpired since he had been
whole as well as what the best course of action for the future
would be. It was obvious from the state of the land that his peers
had succeeded in their task of leaving behind their essences, but
for whatever reason - be it that the society had simply outgrown
them or that their vessels had been compromised - the people seemed
to have lost their way. And - Nuko thought with intense enjoyment -
not only had the people begun to turn their backs on the Three, but
even in his half-awake state he had managed to attract and
manipulate a host into creating a new belief system based solely
around himself which while he had slumbered had blossomed into a
full-grown religion. His amusement rippled through his being.

*

Nathair laughed out loud though the map he
was currently perusing was not particularly humorous. He was
feeling rather giddy for no reason and he looked over the view once
more. It was a topographical map from one of his informants which
showed both Treymayne and Gelendan. From his connection with Katya,
he could tell that she had stayed in the capital for some time
before setting out along the river northward. As of yet, he had not
been able to ascertain the reason for her northward travel.

He had returned to his throne and made full
use of his new form to intimidate the council and the country into
following his every will. Most of them were convinced he was a god
- which is the way he wanted it - and those that doubted would soon
either be convinced or be erased. While the stories of his power
spread across the land, Nathair felt confident enough to pursue his
girls, and was in the midst of determining what they were up to.
Katya’s mind had grown stronger, and he was no longer able to
simply ‘sit in’ on her thoughts to see what she was up to, but he
could at least feel where she was from their intriguing connection
and from that he knew that they were traveling northward. So far,
he had come up with nothing interesting they could be traveling
towards, following the river to its source.

*

Nuko had allowed his thoughts to be drawn in
by the host’s in his boredom, having no immediate plans to fulfill,
when he suddenly realized what the relevance of the source of the
river was.
NO!
He mind-shouted to the host, though the
lesser being could have no idea what he was talking about.

This was impossible!
How could they
still
be interfering with my plans!?
The source was where
his peers had hidden their essences, thinking that it would be safe
among the mountains, allowing them to communicate with the masses
through the river without giving away their exact location. Could
it be possible that they were actually still here? That they had
allowed the world to forget about them without taking action? Nuko
thought about the passive natures of the others and snorted, as
much as he could so without control of the body, but even so
launched into an elaborate plan to intercept them. He was NOT about
to be pushed back into his prison again.

*

Nathair suddenly decided with a feverish
conviction that whatever the reason was for his girls traveling
northward, that he must stop them. They were getting farther and
farther away from him. It didn’t matter what they were after, he
needed them by his side. As the country realized his Godhood, they
should be there to back him. Their power and support would allow
him to spread his will farther than he alone would be able to.

He could send them as emissaries to the
farthest reaches while he concentrated his power on the more
populated regions, making sure that he did not make the same
mistake as the Dark King by ignoring the majority of the people
just because they were commoners. He knew better than to
underestimate any group of people and was well knowledgeable enough
to realize that though they may represent only a tiny number in the
percentage of wealth and power in the kingdom, their sheer number
of bodies made them a worthy foe if it came to a physical
confrontation.

Having two extremely beautiful and powerful
women to represent his interests among these groups would greatly
benefit him.

He called for an attendant, and one came
quickly in. The servants nearly cowered before him now - a fact
which he found amusing, but also inconvenient as it tended to make
their actions be somewhat clumsy - and it kneeled before him
subserviently. Nathair waved him to his feet, much rather speaking
to the man’s face to be sure that he was understood than blurt out
his orders to the top of someone’s head.

“I will need to be away for a few days. No
traveling arrangements will be required as

I am fully capable of attending to those
myself,” Nathair smiled inwardly as the man’s face paled. “However,
to ensure that there are no complications with the new order of
things I think that there are some precautions I will need to
take.” He paused for dramatic effect even though the servant only
looked confused. “Examples will need to be made. I will give you a
list of names.”

The man was quaking like a leaf in a
hurricane now and his eyes widened. Nathair gave him his toothiest
grin. He would do away with the pesky Order at the same time as
getting rid of those who still insisted he need a council to
approve his will. He was a god! His will was law. Those who didn’t
see that needed to be dealt with before they could spread their
poison any farther. A public display of this magnitude would prove
to those who insisted on hanging on to the thought that he was
simply using an elaborate illusion like those at Temple that his
form was indeed a reality.

He allowed the servant to sit whilst he
compiled the list. The man’s hair was almost completely soaked in
sweat by the time he was done, and a droplet was dripping down the
side of his face. Nathair handed him the list with a smile.

He left hurriedly, nearly tripping on his own
feet on his way out the door. Nathair smiled a self-satisfied
smile. He was much looking forward to this showing of his power. It
would not only guarantee the obedience of the nation, but it would
help satiate the hunger for blood that even the rarest of steaks
had not been able to quench as of late. He couldn’t stop thinking
about the feast in the woods when he had first discovered his new
talents.
Not to mention the pure rush of power from them as I
bit their heads off…
Nathair’s eyes rolled back into his head
and he started salivating at the thought. He quickly shook it
aside. It would do no good to be drooling all over the place should
one of the servants arrive. He focused his thoughts instead to his
plans after the lesson had been taught.

His quarry was traveling by water, which was
not the ideal terrain for his new form to fight. Though perhaps he
could simply burn the entire vessel from the air and not even have
to worry about an actual combat. He could easily sweep the water
for survivors and pick them off one by one, or should they reach
land, they would stand no chance against him. A magical attack was
plausible as well, but it would be good practice for his new form
to see what it could do.

Nathair stopped short. He couldn’t just
incinerate the boat, he needed his girls alive. What had he been
thinking? A voice in the back of his mind piped up with an
explanation ready,
they are both powerful talents, no doubt they
would survive such an assault.
Nathair resumed the pacing he
had begun while planning. He must have already come to the
assumption that they would survive and his mind was just running
faster now with his newfound talents so he had gotten ahead of
himself.

That must be it….

CHAPTER 17

Jezebel strolled out of her suite and glanced
around for an attendant. She had heard nothing from the King and
she was beginning to become bored with this task. Playing nice was
getting old. The council had already accepted her presence and was
now attending to its own policies, content to ignore her.
Just
as the King now seems to be.
She had enjoyed the excitement of
the Baron’s oh-so-unfortunate death, as well as the wonderful way
that her scheme with the Lady Aria had gone.