Chapter Forty Two: From some ashes comes evil

In the dark, outside the reach of the Morning trees, Calin’s caravan eventually reached the top. Before them stood massive wooden doors that blocked the entrance to the city of Yera’s Crossing. The doors towered at least three stories high and didn’t seem like any force would soon budge them.

But Ta-Reen reached forward with a thick pole and knocked. From somewhere beyond the door a voice boomed its question, “Who seek sanctuary behind the tree?”

With a cough he raised his voice and answered, “Those who hide from the crimson sun.”

An immense noise of creaking wood burst into existence as the doors slid back to reveal a scene out of a fairy tale.

Inside, there were huge bleached white buildings that were built around the massive extending roots of a single Morning tree that was larger than all the others Calin had witness on his trip so far, not taller by a long shot, but thicker than one of the seven pillars they had passed, at least fifty metres across.

Most notably was that it did not have the same turquoise, or the less common green light that all the Morning trees he had encountered had. He had only seen the colour for a moment from the valley floor, but he hadn’t known the light with the distinct colour of cherry blossoms came from a Morning tree.

As their caravan eased into the courtyard overrun with the roots and pathways built over them; the light from the great tree illuminated the entire city in a glowing plume that stretched its arms into the dark night. It was a warm colour, but that didn’t lighten Calin’s mood as he waited in mute silence for something, anything to happen.

Still, he was consumed with the notion to take in as much detail as possible. Losing his memories once was one too many times.

The large Morning tree that softly basked the entire top of the pillar in its pinkish light accentuated the fact that its dark roots were in intense contrast with the white buildings that gently hugged their borders, I wonder what Kara would think of this place.

Calin craned his neck to look to the right of the gate as the largest of the buildings in the area caught his attention, it was surrounded by a high wall, but the wall couldn’t compare with the scope of the building. The only windows on its face were ten stories up and barred. The purpose of the building was clear.

The main road extended through the entire middle of the city. It’s stone paved surface extending all the way past the market square and finally disappearing into the biggest part of the Yera’s Crossing. It was bustling with people coming and going from the market place.

The square itself had a smooth statue of a woman in flowing robes holding a stone in her hands with a tree and its roots growing over and around it. At her feet a statue of a man with a friendly smile sat with little children around him. The sculpture stood in the centre, probably there to welcome the people who would visit the city.

Beyond the square, Calin couldn’t see as much detail as the road twisted out of sight.

Just then, something caught Calin’s eye closer to the buildings, the oldest of them had strange snaking blue lights dancing on the surface trying to escape their confines, but when he blinked it was gone.

He shook his head. Was he starting to go mad? No, everything in the place was mad. It was like a bad dream he couldn’t wake up from, but somehow it was certain this was all far from a dream and far from over. It was a deadly reality and he had to get Evany out of it.

Without warning, Ta-Reen jumped from the caravan shouting. “I’m quickly taking my leave. Play nice.”

Calin started from his thoughts. And craned his neck to see where the gypsy was going. The man walked over the courtyard to some people standing at the edge of a large root that arched down past them into the ground, most of them were clothed in burgundy robes or its leather counterpart that seemed custom in and around the city. But there was someone standing in the shadow of the root that Calin couldn’t quite make out. Without spending a second on the thought he dropped his head.

As the gypsy moved further away from the caravan Calin tried to get loose from his bindings, but the more he tried to shift the more pain ate at his wrists. After a while he gave up. Man...

Evany was also trying to get loose, but to no avail either. She looked distressed. Wish I could talk to her. He tried to make his eyes soft as he stared at her. But in her hazel eyes he could see her worry for him. Frustration flared in him. That girl, why can’t she understand that I will gladly do it to help her get her freedom?

The moment was cut short as the caravan heaved slightly to the side. Calin turned and was startled to see a man with shockingly white hair peer at him. The hair stuck out from under a deep blood red hood.

But what turned Calin’s insides was the look on the man’s face. Of what he could see that is. It was as if the man had bathed in ash.

The part of the face that was visible from under the hood was smooth with agelessness, but his skin had a powdery complexion, yet pale as death, only contrasted by his black lips that had a smile on them that made Calin’s heart go cold.

The hood tilted up and the dark irises of his eyes and their deep orange pupils met him and immediately made him want to scramble away. The mysterious man chuckled wickedly and glanced to the side.

“Ooo! What a pleasant, pleasant surprise, Ta-Reen! I’m delighted that you have found him. You have to understand that my master has started to doubt the boy even existed. Oh what fun!”

The face didn’t match the voice or even the tone of it. It made Calin cringe as the man of ash laughed again and kept staring at him as if he was edible. Calin tried to shift as far away as possible, but his bindings only gave him a few centimetres. It was better than nothing.

Then Ta-Reen climbed into view. His face was serious.

“I was actually hoping to see your master before I take to the Crossing. Compensation for my efforts, you see.”

The ashen white man turned that sickly smile away from Calin to his utter relief.

“Ta-Reen,” The man said. “My dear Ta-Reen, you will be compensated in due time, once I’ve taken the boy from your hands.” It was said in a voice that could either be for comfort or masking a death threat, Calin wasn’t sure. Whatever it was, it still made him shiver.

Ta-Reen seemed to have handled with this man before as he said, “No, Xyri I will not be left without the reward this boy is worth. He is the last male heir of his entire clan, and your ‘master’ knows it. So I will gladly hold on to the boy until I get what I bargained for.”

The ashen man threw back his crimson red hood and licked a finger with a tongue which could only be described as the colour of a pressed plum. A mere moment later, Xyri made tisk tisk sounds.

“Ta-Reen, you annoy me sometimes. But seeing as you have the boy, I will budge a little. We’ll have it your way, you can take the boy to Prison’s hold and I will see to it that as soon as my master arrives that you are paid the agreed reward in exchange for the boy. Is that agreeable to you?”

Grimly, Calin watched as the gypsy agreed. Somewhere of to the right the voices of strangers moved past. Ta-Reen lowered his voice. It was certainly too low for Evany to hear as he asked, “Xyri, what does your master plan to do with the boy? Call it curiosity.”

The ashen man leaned towards Ta-Reen and said in an equally soft voice, “Oh I like whispering, it’s such fun.”

Ta-Reen shot the man a glare and Xyri just huffed before whispering, “To kill the boy of course, but first to use him to fish out the boy’s own father.”

Even only barely hearing that conversation the damage was done. He got cold to the bone, his heart raced erratically. Everything was a blur. He could hardly concentrate on anything else other than his heart trying to break free of his chest. But what caught his attention again was Xyri asking in a sweet voice that dripped with malice.

“What about the girl? I do so like humans. They tend to scream when I hunt them through the forests.”

Immediately Calin thrashed at his bindings. He wanted to rip that smile from the black lips of that man. But Xyri chuckled again.

“Oh my, the mythical son of the legendary Darrus wants to protect a human? That is fascinating! Ta-Reen you have to let me explore this, it is simply delicious.”

Then the old gypsy turned and his voice was like stone as he said, “No... I will meet with you again when your master arrives. Now get off!”

The ashen man pouted.

“No fair.” But he swooped down from the caravan and disappeared from sight like a wraith. Suddenly Calin was afraid. Not for himself, but for Evany. That creature of a man had looked like he was not used to be denied anything.

***

When the caravan eased back across the courtyard towards the large building to the right of the gate, the sick feeling growing in Calin’s stomach from the presence of Xyri wasn’t even remotely lessening.

Of all the people Calin had met through his life, that man was the only one to truly scare him down to his core.

On top of that, everything Xyri and the gypsy had talked about had sounded like they were speaking about a different boy. But... they had spoken about him and that made him wonder what this secret was.

A secret that went so far as to drive people beyond the edges of their world to acquire; it was a mystery that wouldn’t budge, even though Calin tried desperately to remember things that were wiped from his memory with the fall from the cliff.

By the time they reached the large building, his head throbbed with his effort. When he looked up the forty meter sheer wall in front of him, he again spotted a row of windows close to its top; they were all blocked with bars as he had guessed. So the building is Prison’s Hold. The thought lingered with resignation.

A few seconds passed before their captor walked over the roof towards them and grabbed Calin forcing his hands behind his back and tied it tightly. He was trying to catch breath. But his face was suddenly pressed into the hard wood while the gypsy was cutting the rest of the bindings. The pressure eased a moment later and he looked as Ta-Reen did the same to Evany.

It wasn’t more than a few minutes, before Calin was on the ground heading towards the building with the barred windows. Evany was on the other side of Ta-Reen.

At the edge of the wall there was a smooth tunnel that led into the building. Stepping inside, it became darker, but only for a moment.

They reached an inner courtyard almost overflowing with guards training with swords, bows and even hand to hand combat. There must have been hundreds of them.

From the side a guard approached them and said, “What is your business in Prison’s Hold?”

The gypsy jerked Calin forward and said, “I’m here to sign this one in. Is there a cell where I can leave these two while I do that?”

The guard regarded Calin for a second and nodded.

“This way.”

A shove came from behind. He stumbled as they moved to the left of the compound. About fifty metres from the tunnel, that seemed to be the only exit, the guard unlocked a room with a solid iron door and stepped out of the way.

The gypsy quickly asked the guard to undo the bindings. A grimace splayed his lips at the feeling of the sword sliding between his wrists. Finally, Ta-Reen dragged the scarf from Calin’s mouth and said, “I will be back for you.”

Coughing wildly, Calin caught his breath before demanding, “What about Evany?! You said you’d let her go.”

Ta-Reen shoved him into the cell and he tumbled to the hard floor, but didn’t miss as the gypsy said, “In due time, when I get my reward I will let her go, but for now she can stay with you until I can organize your new housing.” The gypsy laughed and sent Evany into the cell as well.

The iron door closed, stealing the little light that had come in from outside, enforcing the fact of being trapped.