Missteps V.2

Chapter 23 – Something You Should Know

With a quick sneeze, Orbris switched places with Xiladdic, who then immediately wrapped a scarf around her nose and mouth. Kils and Xiladdic went to the local general store there in Rocklyn to get supplies for the short hike to the encampment. Xiladdic was ecstatic about spending Orbris's money. Iados stopped in at the Inn.

"You're alive!" Steffan the bartender yelled as Iados walked in. He quickly came around the counter.

"I'm actually rather hard to kill." Iados laughed as the two of them shared a quick hug.

Steffan had him take a seat at the bar and gave him a drink, on the house. "I got a message from Lia a week ago, telling me that she'd found you. Said that the two of you had found a group in need and was going to help out."

Iados was glad that she seemed to have the sense not to mention that the group was full of former pirates. "I'm actually returning from a supply trip. Did she ever make it back up here to get her pack?"

Steffan shook his head. "Nope, but don't worry we're hanging onto it. Got it tucked away in a back room."

"Do you mind if I take it? I'm headed out to meet her."

"No problem." Steffan took off and a few minutes later came back out with Lia's pack. "Tell Lia sorry for me."

"For what?" Iados took the pack and sneaked a look inside. He saw that the journal was still in there.

"When my wife collected the pack, a dwarven cookbook fell out. She's been using it to cook up new recipes for the inn." Steffan rubbed his head sheepishly. "We've been getting more and more of a dwarven crowd lately."

"Really, what's going on?" Iados had almost finished his drink.

"There's talk of building a main road that connects all seven of the main cities in Marblebrooke. Of course if you're going to build something like a road, you always go to the Dwarves first."

Iados's face twisted in confusion. "But there's already a road. I just took it to Osthom."

Steffan gave a wide smile. "That's a trade road between Osthom and Dayur. Over the years small trade roads and local roads have been created, but never a Kingdom-wide system. With this new road system, it'll make trade much easier. Maybe I'll finally get to travel up to Winter Horn."

Iados finished his drink and stood up. "Well I wish you good luck with the road, and the cookbook. You'll probably get more use out of it." They exchanged goodbyes and Iados left. Not too soon after, the trio left the town and headed towards the encampment.

It took a couple of days, before they reached the camp. Their arrival back was not a quiet affair as a group of kids took it upon themselves to announce them.

"Didn't we send you with horses?" Jahill asked he and Awill approached the group.

"We ran into a complication." Kils started in on an explanation of all that happened. Iados stopped listening halfway through as he caught sight of Lia.

She was coming out of the forest along with two men with swords at their waists. Lia's arm was no longer in a sling, but it was still heavily bandaged. Her good arm had a shield strapped to it, and she held a staff.

"Lia!" Iados yelled out. Her face broke out into a wide smile as she saw him. Quickly abandoning her companions, she ran to meet him.

"When did you get back?" She asked.

He grinned. "Just now. What were you doing in the forest?"

"We just back from patrol." She wiped a bit of sweat off her forehead. "While you were gone we had another run-in with the goblins I'd met. No one was hurt, but with the kids we're being cautious."

"Sounds like you've been busy. What's with staff?" Now that Iados could get a closer look, it was an unusual staff. The wood was twisted, coming to a kind of bulbous top. The wood itself seemed to be a mixture of light and dark, but he wasn't able to tell what kind of wood it was.

Lia's eyes twinkled. "Interesting isn't it? I found it on patrol a couple of days ago." She gently stroked the wood. "I heard it calling out to me, and it led me to this beautiful oak tree. It was the only tree in the area that still had all its leaves. When I touched it, I could feel the magic radiating off of it. It took a while, but eventually it told me its command word and I was able to transform it back into a staff."

Iados whistled. "Wow, does it do anything besides turn into a tree?"

She shrugged. "Don't know yet. Now, what is this cloak you're wearing?" Lia reached out and fingered the soft material of the dark cloak.

"Xiladdic gave it to me. It's a magical, but that's all I know. I actually only got it so she could piss off Orbris, not that I'm complaining." Iados spread the cloak out and showed Lia the golden designs. The tingling sensation had stopped while Iados and Kils were talking that night in the tower. Somehow the cloak had bonded with Iados. When he brought it up with Xiladdic later, she'd laughed and said that it was normal.

"Hey, will you come walk with me? There's actually something I want to talk about." Iados asked Lia.

"Sure." Lia smiled brightly and the two of them walked into the forest. It was only mid-afternoon and even though the wind could be a bit brisk, temperature wise it was pleasant. Iados told her about Xiladdic and Orbris as they walked, finishing up as they reached the river.

They settled themselves down on a couple of large rocks. Silence hung in the air for a few minutes as Iados figured out how to start.

"Lia, I like you." He finally admitted. "I like how you see the world, I like the fire in your eyes when you set your mind to a task. I'm comfortable around you, and I look forward to a future with you."

"I like you too." Lia laughed softly.

"Good, but there's a problem." His face was serious as he caught her eyes. "I don't trust you."

Lia's smile dropped.

Iados continued. "You're hiding something, something big enough that you can't even write home about it. Now I'm usually alright with people keeping their secrets to themselves, but the last time someone hid something big from me, it changed my life. And not for the better." He stared her right in the eye. "I need to know what's going on." He pulled out the holy symbol and held it up. "It has to do with this, right?"

Lia reached out and took the holy symbol from Iados, not saying a word. She traced the symbol with her finger, including the singular line that looped twice.

"Kils' says that's not really Zhagra's symbol, something about the lines being wrong." Iados reached over, grabbed Lia's pack, and pulled out the journal. He flipped a few pages before he came across a drawing of the same symbol. He pointed out the singular there. "What is it?"

Lia was quiet. She didn't make eye contact with Iados, all she did was stare down at the holy symbol in her hands.

Finally, she gave a shuddering breath. "I was an unwanted child. My parents only wanted sons, so to them having a daughter was nothing more than a nuisance. I was something that was shoved aside and forgotten about. My brothers emulated my parent's behavior towards me, so I grew up alone. The only person in the world who acknowledged me, was my uncle Himo. One day, he walked in, picked me up, and carried me to his house. He told me that from then on, I was his. His home was my home." Lia's tone was wistful as she spoke. Iados yearned to ask her what this had to do with Zhagra, but he didn't want her to stop talking.

"Himo started teaching me about what it meant to be a druid. How they were the protectors of the natural order, charged with keeping the balance of the elements. How druids are the voice of nature when nature cannot speak for itself. Himo gave me a purpose in life. He was my protector, my mentor. He was the most important person in my life. All I wanted to do was to make him proud, and follow in his footsteps."

Lia took a shaky breath. "On the day I turned one hundred, the day when I was finally recognized as an adult, I was inducted as a full member of the Elder Door Sanctum. That night, Himo took me down into the basement. There's a beautiful tapestry down there, full of life and color. I'd always wondered why such a piece of art was relegated to the darkness. Himo swept the tapestry aside, and that was when I saw this symbol for the first time. It'd been carved into the stone. Himo cut his finger, and pressed his blood into the mark. The mark itself glowed, and the light radiated out to form a door. Himo opened it and we stepped through." Lia's hands clenched around the symbol, her knuckles turning white. "On the other side stood my brother, Hadarai, and several other high-ranking members of the Sanctum. They were all wearing black robes, with this symbol blazoned on them. My brother handed my Uncle a robe, this one with a red trim around the edges. He turned to me, and spoke.

"He told me how the Elder Door Sanctum was merely a cover, a disguise for their true mission. They called themselves the Order of the Black Rose. They sought to protect the world from itself. They're mission was to collect artifacts and spells and lore that was too harmful, too dangerous. Magic that could be used to wreck untold destruction and pain to the races of the world. That I could understand. Then he said, that they did it all in the name of Zhagra."

Lia gritted her teeth and had to take several deep breaths before she could continue. Her eyes had gone hard and her fist shook as she continued to clench the holy symbol. "They worshipped Zhagra, not as the God of Cruelty, but only as the God of Forbidden Secrets. He said that they rejected the evil parts, keeping only the parts that wished to save the world from itself. Their beliefs put them at odds with the followers of Zhagra who did follow him as the God of Cruelty, so they had to hide in order to protect themselves. Himo walked over to a chest then, and pulled out a black robe. He held it out to me, told me take it, to wear it, and to take the vows. To pledge loyalty to Zhagra, the God of Forbidden Secrets, and to swear to uphold the mission of the Order."

She looked at Iados with desperate eyes. "I didn't know what to do. All around me were the eyes of people who had been my teachers, who just a few hours before had welcomed me into the Sanctum. I looked at Himo, and he had the same proud look in his eyes as he'd had when I'd take the Sanctum vows. I trusted him, and I didn't want to disappoint him. I can remember my hands shaking as I took the robe from him. I didn't want to disappoint him, but I also didn't want to swear fealty to a God who up to then I'd only known as an evil deity. Swearing loyalty and fealty to a god like Zhagra, didn't feel like something you could take back later. The world started to tilt and twist as I wrestled with the decision. I don't even remember falling unconscious.

Lia's grip loosened, and she let out a heavy sigh. She hung her head. "When I came to, I was tucked into my own bed, Himo by my side asleep in a chair. I just sat there, for a long time, thinking. I thought about what I'd learned that night, and I came to a realization: that for my entire life he'd trained me to be a part of the Order. I learned the languages he'd wanted me to learn, studied lore and legends of the past where the world was harmed in some way. I realized, I had a decision to make. Do I do what he wanted me to do, and take the vow and work for him for the rest of my life? Or, do I try to find my own path?" She shrugged. "I opted for door number two. I packed a bag, and left my Uncle's house. I spent the next twenty-four years flitting from one relationship to the next. These relationships gave me a place to live, companionship, and an opportunity for new experiences as they showed me their lives."

Lia looked at Iados with a sad smile. "Something you should probably realize about elves, is that if we're not careful, time can pass very quickly. We can easily live to be seven or eight hundred years old, and when we're with our own kind, days stretch into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years in the blink of an eye. It's really only when we come into contact with races who don't have such long lifespans that we pay attention to the passage of time. Like nature, we don't really count the years as they pass by, we just acknowledge that they do and continue living. So even though it was for twenty-four years that I ran away from my Uncle and the Sanctum, it felt much less than that. My brother, Hadarai, tracked me down a few times and tried to convince me to return. I turned him down every time and went to whatever activity caught my eye next."

"What finally made you stop?" Iados had his legs crossed on the stone as he listened intently.

"I woke up one morning, covered in my boyfriend's blood." Lia stood up and stretched. "I have no memory of that night, all I know is that my boyfriend's throat had been cut and I was lying in bed with his corpse. I ran to get help. Seeing that I was the only one with him that night, and they found a knife on the floor just under the bed, they concluded that I was to blame. I was in jail for eleven months. Sitting in a cold cell, for the first time, time slowed down. I didn't have any distractions, nothing to stop me from finally confronting everything. So, I thought. Hadarai visited me a few times, telling me that he and Himo were working to clear my name. I asked him some questions about the Order, about how the worshipping of Zhagra worked, and some more of the history. He answered everything, but it wasn't enough for me. The answers he gave were vague preaches and promises. He didn't know where everything was kept after it was collected, or who had access to it. He even admitted to me, that there were some who'd turned to the dark side of Zhagra and were thrown out." Lia turned her attention out over the water. "I eventually came to two conclusions about the whole thing: the order didn't seem as high and mighty had Himo had made it seem that night, and that it wasn't for me. I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that you could just pick and choose the parts of a deity you wanted to worship. To me, it'd all seemed to be an all or nothing kind of deal."

"Maybe you can talk to Elaine about it when we meet up." Iados suggested.

Lia nodded. "I'll consider that. So anyway, finally Himo and Hadarai were able to prove my innocence. I'd been set up by the ex-girlfriend I'd replaced. She'd had a mental break shortly after the breakup, and confessed to it when she'd recovered. Himo was waiting for me when Hadarai brought me home. He suggested that I get out of town for a while, let the rumor mills die down. To that end, he gave me a job for the Sanctum. He promised me that it had nothing to do with the Order." Lia held up the Symbol. "You can see how well that turned out."

"What did you really learn from the journal?" Iados asked.

"That there were more than a few bad eggs within the Order. Himo had sent the book away with the Head Priest to keep it out of their hands. He was running out of people he could trust, and the artifact hidden at the settlement was one of the most dangerous things they'd run across. The Head Priest had transcribed some of Himo's letters in the journal. Himo mentioned me a few times, when he talked about how he wanted me to bring me into the fold and entrust the mission of the Order to me."

The akudaem whistled. "A big responsibility for something you don't believe in."

Lia shook her head. "That's just the thing Iados, I do believe in it. I do believe that there are some secrets, magical or otherwise, there that are too dangerous to be out in the open."

"Isn't that what the Circle does? Hunt down dangerous magic? Why not leave it to them?" Iados suggested.

She shook her head again. "The Circle's main purpose is study. Sure they destroy dangerous artifacts, but not before they dissect them and learn how they work. Some of the most dangerous spells that the Order have hidden away came out of the Circle's experiments. The Order serves a purpose, I just can't condone in whose name they do it in. Why do they have to do it in Zhagra's name? Why in anyone's name?" She sighed in exasperation and sat down. "I want to just sit down with Himo and ask him these questions, force him to give me the real answers."

"So, what's stopping you?" Iados picked up a rock and threw it in the water.

"I'm afraid." She admitted. "For so long Himo has been this larger-than-life figure to me. Now, here I am seriously doubting his teachings, and his love for me. Iados, he was the first person in my life to make me feel loved. I want to believe that his love for me is real, but what if I was just a pawn in all this? A piece he molded to fit a part?"

Iados stood up and knelt down in front of Lia. "Then screw him. Take what he taught you, and become better. Find the answers for yourself, and when you're stronger confront him. I'll be right by your side when you do." He covered her hand with his.

Lia smiled and leaned her head down to rest against his forehead. "Thank you."

Iados leaned back. "I have to say, that was a lot more than I was expecting."

"Yeah, sorry for just unloading like that." Lia smiled sheepishly. "I've been wanting to tell you for a while, and I know that eventually I'll have to tell the group too."

Iados grimaced. "Well, speaking of information that the group should probably know, I've got a secret of my own."

Lia titled her head. "Is it about the last person who kept a secret from you?"

He nodded. "It was my old captain, Captain Eldon. He'd been captain of The Howling King for over thirty years. He considered every man, and occasional woman, who was part of his crew, part of his family as well. He taught me how the world worked outside of Esterwill. All of us followed him faithfully, and without doubt."

Iados sighed. "About a year and a half ago, we came across a solid jade key. The moment the Captain laid his eyes on it, he couldn't tear his gaze away. That key was why he'd gone to sea in the first place. He'd spent his whole life practically searching for that key. He said that the key unlocked wishes. That's when he showed us a map that had been left to him by a relative. The map led the way to a city that'd been buried by the ocean centuries ago. Captain Eldon proclaimed it to be his final treasure hunt, and all of us were excited to help his dreams come true." Iados picked up another rock and threw it into the river. "The Captain nearly bankrupted himself buying magic potions enough for us all to breathe and swim underwater. He wanted us by his side, and we were honored to be there."

The green eyes unfocused as he gazed over the water. "The city itself was gorgeous. Most of the buildings were still intact, and all worn smooth by the water. If you can believe it, there was an underwater waterfall smack dab in the middle of the city. Colorful coral and the most beautiful fish I've ever seen had taken root and made the city their home. Even underwater and abandoned by its people, the city seemed full of life. On the outskirts of the city was a large temple. When we tried to enter it, we discovered that the doors were locked, magically. Captain Eldon had planned for this, and easily opened it with a magic cube. That was only the beginning. We had to be on guard as we headed for the inner chamber, there seemed to be half a dozen traps. We lost a few crew members to the traps. They were some of the most complex traps we'd ever seen. I'm surprised more of us didn't die. Finally we made it to the inner chamber. The chamber was large, with a vaulted ceiling that was so high we couldn't see the top. The room was large enough that we could have fit our whole ship in the room. Sitting along the far wall, was a large golden birdcage with a jade lock and chains that encircled it."

Lia's eyebrow went up. "A birdcage?"

"It looked like a birdcage, but the main point was that it was very large, locked, and occupied." Iados shook his head. "Inside, sitting on a bed of pristine pillows, was a blue-skinned woman. Her eyes were large with only pinpricks for pupils that seemed to float in a milky sea. She had finned ears and spikes that jutted out of her head and formed like a faux crown on top of her head. Silver hair floated around her in the water. She was dressed in large white pantaloons, and a deep green vest that was secured only above her bosom. Multiple rings set with large jewels adorned her fingers, lavish earrings hung from multiple points of her ears, a large pendant hung from a choker at her neck, and around her waist was a golden sash. She was gorgeous, and she knew it. She was also very large. When she stood up, she was easily fifteen feet tall, if not more. When she spoke, it was like the sea itself was cresting over my ears." Iados looked over and saw Lia's disbelieving face. "I know it sounds weird, but I swear that's what it was like."

He shook his head. "Anyway, she asked us why we had come such a long way. Captain Eldon walked forward and brought out the jade key. Her gaze immediately locked onto it, and she grinned. 'I take it you want to make a deal in exchange for my freedom?'." Iados raised his voice trying to make it sound more feminine. "Captain nodded, and she replied that a deal could be made. So, the captain unlocked her cage. He was shaking as he walked up to it. Several members of the crew, including myself and Awill, tried to protest that we should make the deal before the cage was unlocked. It was Jahill who told us to have faith in the captain. The captain inserted the key, and the chains and lock began to crumble into dust. The entirety of the cage dissolved into little beads of light until there was nothing holding the woman back any longer. She took a step forward, and as she did her form shrank until she was around six feet tall instead of fifteen. For a few minutes all she did was just walk around us, a large smile on her face. Finally Captain Eldon cleared his throat and drew her attention."

Iados drew himself up in an imitation of his captain. "'The deal'? He reminded her, and she clapped her hands. 'Of course, your deal. Here it is, in exchange for freeing me, I'll allow you and your crew to live.' Captain Eldon sputtered, 'But that's not what I want!'." He sighed. "Meanwhile, the rest of us were all flustered. We never went anywhere without expecting a fight, but we had no idea what this woman could do. She floated over to Captain Eldon, knelt down to his height, and smiled serenely. 'If you want, we could make another deal. There'd be a price of course. Tell me your wish.' Captain didn't even hesitate when he said that he wanted to be reunited with his wife and son." Iados hung his head as he sighed again. "None of us could blame him for that. We all knew that he blamed himself for their deaths. The woman reached out and stroked the side of his face. 'That can easily be done. The price though would be rather steep.' Captain said he'd pay anything. She stood up, faced us, and counted. 'Your price, are the lives of the twenty-three members of your crew here before me.'"

Iados punched the ground and jumped to his feet. He started to pace. "At that we all started to shout and back up to the doors. Even Jahill yelled out that it was too much, and that we should leave. Captain Eldon didn't even look at us. I don't remember him saying the words, but he accepted her deal. She got a very smug expression on her face as she summoned a trident to her hand. She knelt next to him again, and said he'd made a smart decision, and that she'd reunite him with his family. She speared him through the back, the prongs of the weapon jutting out of his chest. We watched as she grew in height again, and shook off the captain's body from her trident. She reached up and touched the pendant at her neck, and three water elementals materialized around her. She told us that we all belonged to her now, that we were her servants and slaves. Well, we were all pirates, so we did what we were good at, we fought. It was no use, in the water the elementals were faster and stronger than us. I watched as some of my crewmates died, while the others were captured, and strung together with golden chains." He ran a shaky hand through his hair. Lia didn't know what to do, so she just sat there on the rock and listened.

"Jahill yelled for us to regroup. Awill pulled me and another with her. Jahill had something clenched in his fist. He told us to hold onto him, tightly. With the elementals bearing down on us, he opened his hand. There was a silver bead. Jahill spoke a single word and a bright light shined out. The last thing we heard was the woman yelling at us that we would eventually come back to her. When the light died down, we were back on dry land, a few miles outside Osthom." Iados took a breath. "That night when we camped on the beach, we all noticed it." He held us his right hand, and pointed out a small black dot in the center of his palm. "Of the six of us who'd managed to get out, none of us had had that mark before we met her."

"But at you did escape." Lia confirmed.

Iados chuckled. "That's we thought. That same night we were attacked by a water elemental who came out of the sea. It grabbed Ingil and dragged him away, disappearing beneath the waves. We tried to save him, but to no avail. After that, we all decided that the best course of action was to split up and stay away from the sea."

"Why didn't Awill and Jahill split up?" Lia asked.

"Awill grew up with Jahill by her side, she'd rather die than be separated from him." Iados sat down. "You're only the second person I've ever told that story to."

"Who was the first?"

"Kils, and only because we got attacked by an elemental while in Osthom." He shivered as the memory came back. "It was a close call."

Lia leaned towards Iados. "Any idea on who the woman is? Or what she is?"

Iados shook his head. "Haven't really had much time to research her. Joined up with you and everyone else in Rocklyn only a few weeks after we escaped."

The elf smiled. "Thank you for telling me."

He shrugged. "Well, I made you tell me first."

"Do you trust me now?" Lia asked, her voice filled with hope.

Iados smiled and leaned forward. He caught her lips with his and kissed her deeply. "I just wanted to make sure you weren't evil or anything." He teased.

"So, are we back to 'casual' then?" Lia's eyes twinkled as she wrapped her arms around Iados's neck.

"Actually, I was thinking about trying out that whole dating thing. You know, the one where I'm your boyfriend and you're the girlfriend."

"We could do that, or if you're still uncomfortable with being called my boyfriend, we could call you my girlfriend and I could be your boyfriend?" Lia teased.

Iados laughed. "As long as you're patient with me. You might have twenty-four years of practice, but I'm still new to this."

She smirked. "Deal." They kissed again.

The ground began to rumble beneath their feat, and rising over the tree line, they saw a massive stone fortress come to life.

"Well, that'll definitely make winter easier." Iados joked.