Chapter Seventeen

Lurking Threats

‘Maybe I should go looking for him?’ I wondered, tapping a pen against my desk. Two days had passed already, and I didn’t feel any closer to making progress. The Vulin didn’t have any updates for me, and their work would be slower now that rescues from the prison had begun to appear the previous night.

I sighed and sat back in my chair. Wandering into the prison was a stupid idea. Given the differing flow of time, I couldn’t be certain that Nalithor would still be there when I entered—and he might have to wait days for me to come out.

That didn’t stop the idea from being tempting. I had finished reviewing and responding to all the reports waiting for me. With that done, I wasn’t sure what to do with my time. The Vulin didn’t want me to wander too far away, for fear of me coming across any “work” that would be better approached with Nalithor’s help. I also wasn’t interested in helping with the rescues much.

Many of the rescues required healing and aether infusions, and none of them shared an elemental affinity with me. I would do more harm than good if I attempted to help heal anyone.

‘Sitting here isn’t useful either.’ The corner of my eye twitched.

“Reiz’tar, I brought you some tea,” Yumeko called before striding into the study. I glanced over at her, noticing almost immediately that the Vulin looked exhausted.

“I’m done with my work. Anything I can help with?” I offered, lifting the tea off the tray she offered me.

“I’m afraid not, Reiz’tar.” Yumeko shook her head. “Everyone to flee the prison has an affinity for earth and earth alone. Ah…unless…”

“Unless?” I probed.

“They are all malnourished,” Yumeko began slowly, “if it wouldn’t trouble you, we could use more hands preparing food.”

“Some hearty meals to restore their strength?” I murmured, earning a nod from the Vulin. “Very well. Once I’ve finished my tea and put everything here away, I’ll see about making something for our rescues to eat. How goes your healing endeavors?”

“They are very damaged, Reiz’tar, physically and mentally.” Yumeko frowned, folding her paws in front of her. “Through magic and medicine, we can easily heal their wounds. Some take longer than others. However, they will need a great deal of mental care before they can reintegrate with society.”

“Worse than the other prisons?” I asked, earning a hesitant nod in reply. “Then this prison has likely been around longer…”

“I agree, Reiz’tar.” Yumeko nodded again. “We believe the wind chamber may be nearby as well.”

“Hmmm…” I tilted my head, falling silent for a few moments. “Yumeko, were any of the prisoners Zehylor?”

“Two thus far, Reiz’tar.” Yumeko gave me a quizzical look.

“Any children?” I prompted, but she shook her head. “I think we might find the Zehylor children in one of the prisons, but we don’t have any information regarding their abilities. Some of you share Nalithor’s ability to speak any language, do you not? I want you to see if the Zehylor from the earth prison have any knowledge regarding our missing demigods.”

“I will do what I can, once they wake up.” Yumeko faltered, her gaze falling to the floor. I frowned at her.

“They’re in that poor of condition?” I probed.

“Yes…” Yumeko released a heavy sigh. “Their condition has stabilized but they have yet to wake. Given their wounds, we believe they were tortured.”

“So, their slumber may have been induced by trauma.” I sighed, sitting back in my seat. “Is their condition stable enough for them to be transported to Dauthrmir?”

“No, Reiz’tar.” Yumeko shook her head. “The most recent group of rescues were in such poor condition we had to re-prioritize our resources to heal them. Without immediate attention, they would have died—and several remain in critical condition.”

“I see…” I murmured, considering it. “Then you should return to your work. I wouldn’t want anything to happen because I was taking up your time. I’ll finish up here soon and then get to work on making more food for everyone.”

“Thank you very much, Reiz’tar.” Yumeko curtsied to me before taking her leave.

I tapped my fingers on the arm of my chair, sinking into thought. It struck me as strange that the Zehylor had been the focus of torture. We had come across numerous Zehylor in the other two prisons, and in the Abrantia Valley, as well. The more I thought about it, the more I was inclined to believe our enemies wanted something with them. What, I couldn’t guess at. I knew too little about their race.

I pulled a sheet of blank sheet of paper over to me and lifted my pen again, swiftly writing a letter to my father. We needed to know more about the Zehylor, and we still had the rescues from the light and dark prisons in our care. With them now in better condition, I hoped that we could gain some insight.

A short while later, I found myself standing in the kitchen and staring blankly at the variety of ingredients in the pantry. I wasn’t entirely sure what sort of food would give the prisoners back their strength and eventually decided on a hearty stew with a mix of meat, vegetables, and potatoes. It seemed like a quick way to create a balanced meal, at any rate.

By the time I’d finished making several pots of stew, I’d also baked bread and other treats. It proved to be an excellent way to keep my mind off how long Nalithor was taking to deal with the prison, but once I was done my thoughts immediately circled back to him. I was starting to understand how he must have felt while I was inside the dark prison.

I shook the thoughts from my mind and lifted all the food with my darkness, carrying it out of my cottage. Nearby, the Vulin had opened a second cottage for the prisoners with the worst wounds. Outside, there were dozens of tents for the rest of them. Instead of starting fires for warmth, the Vulin had placed metal contraptions filled with fire crystals throughout the camp.

“Ah, Reiz’tar!” Yumeko exclaimed when I approached her. She motioned toward a long table. “I did not think you would make so much! Please, set them here.”

I did as I was told and set the pots of soup on top of the grates that covered yet more fire crystals. The items I made that didn’t require heat filled nearby baskets. Once done, I stretched my arms above my head briefly and then turned to watch Yumeko as she poked through the selection of food. A steady train of other Vulin brought more and more food, soon requiring two more tables.

“This much?” I asked.

“Indeed, there are so many of them.” Yumeko nodded, glancing past me. “More than the other two prisons combined. Given that, among non-Devillians, earth is a more common elemental affinity…”

“If you’re right, the other prisons will be swarming with prisons as well.” I sighed, before turning my attention to the sound of light footsteps. Several children stopped, squeaked, and ducked behind the edge of a tent when they spotted me.

“There, there,” Yumeko beckoned them. “Arianna-z’tar is the partner to the god who freed you. You needn’t be frightened.”

“Not…not a scary god?” one of the boys asked, eliciting a whimper from his companions.

‘Well, not yet.’ I decided to keep that thought to myself and smiled at them instead. “Well, I certainly hope I’m not ‘scary.’ If anyone will find me scary…”

“…it would be the deities who scared you,” Nalithor finished, striding toward us. I looked at him in surprise. His presence was entirely shielded, even from me.

“Ah, you have returned, Rely’ric!” Yumeko smiled brightly. “You have finished, then? Have we more wards to care for?”

“…no.” Nalithor shook his head subtly before turning to look at the group of children. “You’re hungry, are you not? Don’t let us stop you.”

The kids nodded to themselves before darting past us to clamor for Yumeko’s help in searching for food.

‘Care to explain what that was about? And why you’re shielding your power?’ I returned my attention to Nalithor as he stopped beside me.

‘After I’ve got some of your cooking for myself, certainly.’ Nalithor tugged one of my ears briefly before reaching past me to fetch a bowl.

I crossed my arms and tapped one foot while waiting. Once he had his choice of food, we returned to our cottage and Nalithor plopped down on the nearest sofa with his food.

“The people outside are merely half of what I found in the prison,” Nalithor stated as he tore his bread into chunks, dropping each piece into his soup. “The rest… Suffice to say that they succumbed to corruption or to aetheric poisoning. They have been taken care of.”

“Half?” I stared at him. “Corruption or aetheric poisoning as in you don’t know which, or—”

“Some from one, some from the other,” Nalithor offered, shaking his head. “I also found four beast hearts being created, unlike the one you destroyed in the dark prison. There were many more guards as well, and a connecting ‘bridge’ to the wind chamber.”

“And you didn’t go there?” I raised an eyebrow at him.

“Tempting as it was…no. I’m aware we don’t have the space for more rescues, yet.” Nalithor grimaced. “We will have to focus on healing and relocating the earthen chamber’s prisoners first. Once finished, you and I will go to the wind prison together. Given the additional time they will have to prepare, I believe our combined presence will be necessary to deal with the guards and any traps they might lay.”

“Hmmm…” I settled in a chair across from Nalithor and leaned on the armrest. “Are you sure the guards will get several days of preparation time? Only a few hours passed for you within the prison, right?”

“There are no barracks within the prisons,” Nalithor stated, shaking his head. “However, there was a room of portals. I believe they have a rotating guard, with their men coming in from an external source.”

“So, the longer we spend here, the more time they have to prepare.” I pursed my lips. “And the reason you’re hiding your presence?”

“Because I slew two Jivyador within the prison,” Nalithor offered, making a vague motion with one hand. “However, they were prisoners as well and were mad from exposure to beast blood. It appeared that they had been forced to drink nothing else.

“I’m not convinced their allies won’t come running to see what happened to them and would prefer not to make myself a target yet.”

‘What in the hells is going on?’ I nibbled on the back of my index finger, falling silent while Nalithor devoured his meal. ‘We know the various factions of Jivyador seem to despise each other, but that’s a bit…much. I doubt it was merely a method of torture. Some manner of experiment, perhaps?’

“How much time has passed?” Nalithor inquired.

“Hmmm? A few days. Enough for me to have finished reviewing and responding to all the reports I received,” I answered. “The Vulin are reluctant to let me assist them with the people you rescued, and since I have no affinity for earth I can’t help with the healing.”

“I will see what I can do to expedite the process.” Nalithor set his bowl on the coffee table and then shifted his fiery gaze to me. “The moment we have room to rescue more people, we will leave to conquer the wind prison. Until then, we will rest and determine how best to attack.”

“Hmmm, if you say so…” I murmured, frowning.

“What is it?” Nalithor’s expression softened as he examined me. “Are you feeling unwell?”

“Nothing of the sort.” I shook my head. “It’s just…I have this feeling that we aren’t going to find anyone to rescue this time. Maybe the wind chamber simply hasn’t been breached yet, but…”

“It is oddly silent.” Nalithor rested back against the sofa briefly but was soon on his feet again. “I am going to bathe, and then see about healing the freed prisoners. Once I’ve finished, we will rest for the night and begin anew tomorrow. I want you to wait here, or in bed, for my return.”

“You don’t want me to help you work?” I raised an eyebrow.

“The presence of one deity is enough to frighten them. Two…” Nalithor smiled when I pouted and nodded my understanding. “I will return soon.”

Once he was gone, I let out a frustrated sigh and stalked through the cottage with the intent to get ready for bed. I couldn’t explain why I felt like we wouldn’t find any living prisoners in the wind prison, but I knew better than to question my intuition. It was right more often than not—a fact that, in this instance, put me further on edge.

I shut my eyes and sent tendrils of power through the system of tunnels and caverns, searching for any trace I could find of the wind chamber. To my dismay, I found it within minutes. It wasn’t far from our camp at all, or from the earth chamber.

“Oh, a new little playmate. Won’t you join me?” The singsong voice sent a chill down my spine. My eyes snapped open and I hissed. That was a Lari’xan, and it did not feel right.

I turned away from the bathroom and stalked through the cottage, out the door, and followed Nalithor’s scent. When I found him, he was sat beside an unconscious Zehylor’s bedside.

‘We are not waiting,’ I stated, crossing my arms.

‘Arianna…’ Nalithor began to protest, ‘I require rest. It’s been a mere few hours since leaving, for me.’

‘We can feed and then leave.’ I narrowed my eyes at him. ‘I sent my magic out to look for the wind chamber. Something is terribly, terribly wrong with the Lari’xan in it.’

Nalithor’s expression darkened. A moment later, he turned to look at Yumeko, eliciting a yelp from her. “Send word to our allied Lari’xan and inform them that something is wrong with their comrade who rules wind. Now. I will watch over your charges until you return.”

“We’re going to wait?” I sighed at Nalithor.

“Yes. If the Lari’xan of wind has been compromised, there are two possible outcomes with you.” Nalithor gave me a sharp look before returning to his healing work. “First, the corruption could take hold of your wind affinity if you go where the Lari’xan, or some aspect of it, is behind held. Second… One or both of us attempts to slay the corrupt being.”

“The latter of which would likely still lead to the first, since neither of us is capable of killing one of them.” I grimaced, shaking my head. “Fine. We will wait. We’re going to have to bring the other Lari’xan with us to the prison. I agree with your assessment.”

“Good. Now, be a dear and hand me those bandages, won’t you?” Nalithor pointed at the low table behind me.

“Here.” I handed them to him. “We should probably have all these people moved to your domain, at the very least.”

“Our domain.” Nalithor paused long enough to shoot me a pointed look, then resumed bandaging the Zehylor’s wounds. “If we are to relocate everyone, I will have to expend a great deal of my power to further heal them all. While I am sure you wouldn’t mind assisting me in regaining my strength, I am not convinced we have the time to spare.”

“True enough, though if the other Lari’xan assist us, we shouldn’t need to use as much power,” I pointed out. “Given this is a…‘family matter’ for them, they should be more inclined to act.”

“We can hope.” Nalithor shook his head. “For now, lend me your power so that I don’t deplete myself while working.”

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