The Atheil Chronicles: A Call to Fire

Chapter 26

Night had now fallen over Orlac and both Ariana and Ryonen found themselves utterly exhausted. They had covered a fair amount of ground over the past few hours, only stopping twice to eat and rest for a bit before heading out again. They were currently trying to find the first landmark that was meant to mark their campsite, the mountains that bordered the other side of the canyon pass. According to Ryonens calculations, they should have been coming up on it soon. However, the fog was so thick above them that they couldn't see if they were getting close or not.
Ryonen pulled out the map for the third time that hour, unfurling it and running a finger over the blue line that Lamis had drawn to mark their route. He let out an audible huff of annoyance. "It should be right in front of us, I don't know what we did wrong."
Ariana glanced ahead, her eyes scanning the darkness. The trees had certainly thinned out ahead of them, but this didn't seem to help them see any better. "Maybe we're further back than you thought."
He looked up at her, then back at the map. He shook his head, his hair splaying across his shoulders in dark waves as he did so. "I guess anything is possible." He said, though he didn't sound convinced.
For what seemed like the millionth time that night, Ariana felt the irresistible urge to reach out and touch him somehow. She thought about brushing his hair back from his face, letting her fingers graze the soft skin there as she pushed his silky strands behind his ear- She stopped herself, shaking her head. You're just friends now, she chastised herself, averting her eyes from him and looking anywhere else. It was going to be hard to go back to the way things used to be, especially when she had gotten so accustomed to them being something more.
She stopped walking suddenly, her eyes drawn to the subtle change in the landscape that was just up ahead. Even in the thick blackness that surrounded them, she could make out the rock formations that were beginning to jut out of the ground ahead . "Ryonen." She said, trying to draw his attention away from the map he was still studying.
"Hmm?" He asked, not looking up.
She sighed and then reached forward, tugging on his sleeve. His eyes came up, moving over her before focusing on the rocks ahead. Relief seemed to wash over him. "Thank God." He said, rolling up the map and stuffing it back in his satchel.
They headed forward in the direction of the rocks. As they passed by them, they could feel the gradual increase in elevation that was the last sign they needed to confirm that they were, indeed, at the base of the mountain. Ryonen continued up the increasing slope, his stride seeming more confident as he now knew where they were.
Ariana looked around them. "Where are we going?" She asked him. "Aren't we going to stop somewhere for the night?"
Ryonen gave her a backwards glance. "That's what I'm doing; looking for a cave for the night."
Ariana frowned. "Ryonen, Lamis specifically warned us to avoid staying in any caves at night."
He brushed her off. "Nonsense, they're the safest place for us. We can back ourselves in and we'll be able to keep a better watch during the night."
She took a deep breath, the strain of the incline making her sides ache as she pushed herself harder to keep pace with him. "But Ryonen, there are dangerous creatures that live in the mountains. We won't be safe here. All the books said to stay away."
"Come on, Ariana, I know what I'm doing. We'll be worse off out in the open at night than we would be in the shelter of the mountainside."
Ariana sighed resignedly. She wasn't going to continue to argue with Ryonen right now; she was already exhausted from the hike, she didn't have the energy to deal with his mental sparring.
He seemed to take her silence as agreement and redoubled his efforts to climb higher up the mountainside. By the time they finally stopped in front of the cave opening, they were already a few hundred feet up and Ariana was about ready to bust a lung. He drew his sword smoothly from his side, indicating to her that she should be quiet and wait outside for him. She nodded, suddenly anxious as he disappeared into the black of the cave. She reached down nervously and ran her fingers over the hilt of her sword, glancing around into the surrounding darkness.
She turned to her left, her eyes scanning further up the sloping path of the mountain, when Ryonens voice sounded in front of her. She just about jumped out of her skin, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.
Ryonen gave her an amused look. "Are you okay?" He asked her.
"Sure." She said, her humor starting to fade as weariness took her over. "Is it good to go, then?"
He nodded. "I checked the whole cave. It's pretty small, but it will work for what we need."
They headed into the cave, Ariana lagging behind as Ryonen led the way. It was small, like he said, with a jagged roof that just barely cleared his head as he walked. It was probably only 10 feet wide by 11 feet deep with a giant boulder bordering the back wall of the cave. It was big enough for the both of them, but something about it gave her a claustrophobic feeling. As Ariana sat down on the rocky floor, she pulled her cloak tighter around her to fight off the chill that hung in the air.
Ryonen, noticing this, flicked his hand at the ground and a glowing green fire roared to life on the cave floor. Ariana edged further away from the flames, panic rising up in her as she watched for any sign that they would be drawn to her.
When she looked up, Ryonen was watching her with furrowed brows. "Are you alright?" He asked, plopping down on the opposite side of the fire. He had thrown his satchel next to him and his sword was propped up against the wall next to that.
Ariana reached down, unbuckling her own sword from her waist and laying it gently on the ground beside her. "I'm okay," she said, trying to sound more relaxed than she actually felt. "I'm dead tired, that's all."
He gave her a sympathetic smile. "Get some sleep, I'll take the first watch."
She just nodded, laying down and stuffing her satchel under her head. Her eyes were trained on the flames as they greedily licked the air, throwing green light across the cave walls in flickering waves. The sight reminded her of the Luna Flos' back at Lamis' and she felt a twinge of regret at ever having left there. She had been happy there with Lamis and Ryonen, still blissfully unaware of the betrayal that was yet to come. She wished she could go back to that time and be the carefree Ariana that she was when she was there, going on late night walks on the grounds, swimming in the pond as the sun cascaded lazily from the leaves above, and stealing kisses as the stars shone like tiny suns around them.
She closed her eyes against it all, her heart wrenching at the thought of what she had lost and what she still might lose. With the sound of the crackling fire echoing off of the cave's walls, she felt herself starting to drift away. The warmth radiating off the fire was like a gentle embrace and she could almost imagine it was Ryonen's arms around her, holding her safely into the night as sleep finally overtook her.
* * * * *
Ariana was vaguely aware that she was being jostled. She tried to ignore it, her mind starting to drift away again, but then a particularly jarring movement caused her to come crashing back to reality. She opened her eyes, confused by what she was seeing. The mountain path lay behind her, the cave entrance growing fainter and fainter as she ascended. At first she thought she was floating, but then she felt a bump reverberate through her and she realized she was being carried on someone's shoulder.
She looked down and tried to scream, though no sound came out. Some sort of creature was carrying her, a great muscular tail protruding from its backside and ending with a wickedly sharp stinger that somewhat resembled that of a scorpion. Its trunk-like legs were a dusty taupe, almost the exact shade of the surrounding stone mountain. She could hear it grunting as it carried her higher and higher, the guttural sound reminding her of something she had heard before.
Oh my God, she thought, suddenly panicking as realization washed over her. The giant boulder in the cave hadn't actually been made of stone. She felt so stupid for not realizing it sooner since she had been the one researching creatures that are native to Orlac. She gazed down at the broad back of the Cave Troll, its trademark poisonous stinger swaying behind it as it continued up the mountain. She tried to move her body, kick her foot, or even just twitch her pinky, but nothing happened. Fear gripped her as her theory was proven; she had been stung by the Cave Troll and was now completely paralyzed. She rolled her eyes from side to side, hoping for any sign of Ryonen's rescue.
She heard the Cave Troll let out a deep rumbling growl and then she was being dropped roughly to the ground. The air was knocked out of her lungs as she hit the stony ground, her head smacking against a small chunk of rock and causing stars to flash across her vision. Behind her, she could hear the sounds of a struggle, but she had little time to dwell on it as she began rolling back down the mountain path. Unable to move her limbs, she was helpless as her body began picking up speed on her descent. Whenever she was facing back up toward the sky as she rolled, she was able to catch flashes of silver in her peripheral. Ryonen had come, she thought, elation filling her heart.
Her foot snagged on a rock and suddenly she was jerked in that direction, moving diagonally to the path while her flailing limp arms did little to slow her momentum. Panic began to rise in her throat as she saw the edge of the mountain growing closer and closer. She tried to scream, make any sound to let Ryonen know that she was going to fly off the side if he didn't stop her, but her voice failed her once again. Her heart seemed to count the seconds as she rolled to the edge. She closed her eyes against it, not willing to watch as she plummeted to her inevitable death.
Just as she could feel the ground fall out beneath her top half, she was stopped dead in her tracks by a pressure on the back of her cloak. Her eyes flew open and she immediately wished she had left them closed. Her upper body was hanging over the edge of the cliff, her arms dangling in the open air as she gazed, terrified, at the ground hundreds of feet below. She screamed internally as her very breath caught in her throat at the sight. Then, as quickly as she had slipped over the edge, she was being pulled back, her face thudding against the gravelly cliffs edge as she was dropped safely down to the ground. A strong hand clamped onto her shoulder, wrenching her onto her back. Her eyes looked up, expecting to see Ryonen standing over her with a relieved expression on his face, but she felt her heart stop as she gazed into the face of a stranger. 
A tall, slender man was leaning over her, his deep umber eyes surveying her with concern. He was strangely stocky around his shoulders, his arms bulging with muscles under his black sleeved tunic. He looked like he'd had a rough life, numerous scars visible on the skin of his face and body that was not covered by fabric. A nasty scar ran along his jawline on the right side of his face, thick with twisted scar tissue that disfigured his face. His hair was cut short, the strands the color of pale ash flecked with brown. He looked similar to Lamis in age, around 25, but she knew that looks could be deceiving when it came to Elves, and that he was probably much older than he appeared.
His rough voice sounded suddenly, bringing her back to reality. "I know you're scared, but I'm not going to hurt you." She must have looked skeptical because he continued. "I promise you, I mean you no harm." Then he looked at her guiltily, reaching behind him and holding up a misshapen object. "Listen, I don't want to frighten you any more than you already are, but I'm going to need to prick you with this."
Her petrified eyes flew to the object in his hand again, now seeing clearly that it was, in fact, the Trolls stinger that had previously been attached to its tail.
"It's going to hurt a little." He said apologetically.
She tried to pull away, yell at him to leave her alone, anything, but she was just as helpless as before, her voice muted and her limbs completely unresponsive. She squinted her eyes shut just as he brought the stinger down on the flesh of her bicep, the sharp point sending ripples of pain shooting up her arm. Within half a minute, though, she could feel her body start to loosen free of the paralysis. She was able to turn her head just a little, looking down at her hand where her fingers were twitching.
The man sat back, a grin flashing across his face. It seemed to transform his features, wrinkles showing in the corner of his eyes, the evidence of a lifetime of smiles there for her to see. "The first sting paralyzes and the second sting reverses it. You'll be okay in a minute or so. Don't try to get up too fast."
He was right; within another minute, the spell had been broken and she was able to move everything. He reached out a tentative hand to help her and she took it, her head spinning as she sat up. She took a deep breath, the feeling of her chest fully expanding feeling like the greatest thing in the world right at that moment. She brought up a hand and massaged her aching arm. "Who are you?"
"Tyrynion." He said, inclining his head to her.
She watched him, unsure of whether she should be cautious or not. By all appearances, he looked like he could be one of the Rebel Elves Ryonen had told her about. However, she didn't think so. There was something in his eyes that told her he was more than just his intimidating exterior. She reached out her hand to him. "I'm Ariana." She said quietly. "Thank you for helping me."
He took her hand and shook it before quickly letting it go. "Are you alright? Does anything hurt?"
She reached up a hand to her throbbing head and, when she pulled it away, there was blood shining there. "Oh my god." She said, feeling a bit faint at the sight.
He leaned forward. "May I see?" He asked, indicating her head.
She nodded and he scrambled around her, his calloused fingers running over her scalp. She felt some tenderness there but waited patiently until he came back around.
He was wiping his hands on a handkerchief that he had pulled from his tunic pocket. "You'll be alright." He said, and relief flooded through her. "Head wounds always look worse than they really are. You should still clean it, though, and rub some medicinal paste on it if you have some."
She felt so grateful for everything he had done. God only knew what the Troll meant to do with her. "How did you know I needed help?" She asked him.
"I was about to go to sleep over there in that cave," he pointed to a small opening 20 feet down the slope's path, "and I felt the ground shaking beneath me. There are a handful of Cave Trolls in this area so I figured that's what it was. You can't be too careful when you decide to camp around here, sometimes they just wander in without knowing you're there in the first place." He paused. "Anyway, I was just grabbing my sword from beside me when I saw it walking past with you on its shoulder."
"Well, I'm glad you did."
Tyrynion waved her off. "Anyone else would have done the same. I'm just glad you're alright."
Ariana smiled. "I didn't expect to see anyone else up here. I actually thought at first that you were-" she stopped, her breath catching in her throat. "Oh no, Ryonen!" She said, panicked. She tried scrambling to her feet but she was still a bit unsteady, losing her footing and stumbling dangerously close to the cliffs edge
Tyrynion caught her by the arm, steadying her. "Who's Ryonen?" He asked.
She tried to right herself but couldn't catch her balance. She gripped his arm, grateful for the support. "I'm traveling with him. He was supposed to be guarding the cave while I slept. I need to make sure he's alright!"
Tyrynion nodded, stopping down to pick up the stinger with his other hand. "Let me help you, the antidote hasn't fully kicked in yet and you won't have regained full use of your body." He waited until she agreed and then slipped his arm under hers, letting her use his shoulder to lean on as they walked.
They passed by the gigantic body of the Cave Troll, its headless corpse laying stiff on the blood splattered ground while its head was nowhere to be seen. Her stomach wrenched at the sight of it, but she was once again feeling thankful that Tyrynion had come when he did.
They were silent as they descended the mountain, Ariana's eyes peeled for the entrance to the cave. When they finally reached it, she felt her heart thudding in her chest as she wondered what scene she'd be walking into. Tyrynion entered slightly ahead of her, his one arm held back behind him for her to grip as he stepped into the cave. The green fire was still glowing in the middle of the open area while, beside it on the stone ground,  Ryonen lay unmoving.
She dropped down onto her knees next to him, her hand running over his face. "Is he going to be alright?" She asked Tyrynion, not bothering to look up. Her eyes were trained on Ryonen, looking for any sign he was still alive. Her fingers found the soft spot under his jaw and felt for a pulse. The steady beating of his heart thumped against her fingertips, her breath coming out quickly as she exhaled in relief.
Tyrynion kneeled down beside her, looking over Ryonen. He reached out, pushing back the fabric from around his wrist until it was half way to his elbow. Then, he picked up the stinger and pricked Ryonen on the exposed skin there, just as he had Ariana. After a few stressful moments, she could see him begin to stir, though he didn't open his eyes.
"Why isn't he waking up?"
"The longer it's been since you've been stung, the longer it will take to come out of it."
Ariana brushed his hair back from his face. "But he will wake up." She said, clarifying.
Tyrynion nodded and she sighed. She tucked his cloak around him and grabbed her satchel from across the cave, positioning it under his head. When she was done, she went back to where she had been sleeping earlier and pulled her legs up to her chest, throwing her cloak around them so she was completely wrapped up.
Tyrynion stood up and was about to leave when Ariana stopped him. "Wait, you're going?" She asked.
He turned his dark eyes on her. He looked uncertain. "Do you not want me to?"
She looked over at Ryonen's limp body and turned back to him. "Please stay." She said, feeling so small as she did so. She felt embarrassed to admit it, but she didn't like the idea of being alone in the cave after what had happened, especially since Ryonen was incapacitated.
Tyrynion crossed the space to settle a few feet from her, his long legs folding under him. "Okay." He said.
Ariana gazed into the fire, her thoughts churning around in her head, then turned to Tyrynion. "Can I ask you something? What are you doing in these parts? I thought anyone around here was supposed to be-"
"Evil?" He finished.
She blushed, though she wasn't sure he saw it due to the darkness. "I didn't mean to insinuate-"
"I'm not insulted." He said, leaning back on the palm of his hands. He looked thoughtfully at the fire. "I was a soldier once, part of the royal guard of Peridien." He looked up at her. "Do you know where that is?"
She nodded. "Ryonen told me about it." She said, then paused. "Were you there when it fell?"
Tyrynion's eyes got a faraway look in them. "I was not. I had already resigned my position a few years prior to that. I was far away when the city burned."
Ariana was quiet, the crackling of the flames as they flickered in the air was the only sound to be heard throughout the cave. "So why are you here?"
He sighed, reaching up to run a hand over his short hair. "I'm in exile."
"Why were you sent into exile?" She asked.
Tyrynion shook his head. "No, no one sent me into exile. I did it to myself."
She furrowed her eyebrows at him. "Why would you do that?"
He hesitated, pain crossing his features. Though she couldn't be sure of it, he looked regretful. "I had sworn to protect someone with my life, but I failed in my duty. They were murdered right in front of me and I was completely helpless to do anything about it." He paused, his deep umber eyes seeming to flash in the light of the fire. "It's been over 20 years since that day and I still regret it as if it just happened yesterday."
The fire popped and Ariana's eyes were drawn away from his face. "That was a long time ago, though. Have you really been here all this time?"
"Yes." He said, and his rough voice sounded so soft now. She could feel the pain running right under the surface of it.
"That had to have been lonely." She said, looking at his face.
He shrugged, crossing his arms. "I suppose it was."
A silence fell between them once more but, this time, neither one of them broke it. They both sat looking into the flames, lost in their own thoughts. Ariana felt a sadness for him, for the life he had been living these long years. He had exiled himself to the worst place he could imagine and forced himself to endure it as penance. She couldn't imagine being in this dark and dismal place for over 20 years; she would have gone mad. They had only been there for half a day but Ariana already felt the gloom getting to her, the fog seeming to seep into her bones and leave a chill that couldn't be driven out. It wasn't just the temperature, it was the mood of the place. There was an undeniable feeling of dread that came from it, the vision of the dying landscape making it feel as if hope were lost there. Maybe it was.
Her attention was drawn back to the present, just then, as Ryonen started waking up across the cave, his feet kicking at the ground weakly as he began to stir. Ariana stood up suddenly, rushing to his side. His eyes flew open and she could see the bewilderment there. He was trying to sit up but his arms were only twitching beside him.
She reached out a hand and ran it over his cheek. "Slowly." She said, meeting him gaze. "You've been stung by a Cave Troll, you were out of it a long time so it might take a bit for you to feel back to normal." He looked up at her, his eyes questioning. "I'm alright." She said quietly, her other hand grasping his. "Just a few scrapes and bruises."
She saw the relief flood through him and he visibly relaxed. He closed his eyes and rotated his head. His hand was now squeezing hers, his fingers rubbing against the skin there. He was once again trying to sit up and, this time, she aided him, applying pressure to his back as he finally managed to get into a sitting position against the stone wall. He was looking up at her, his face relaxed, when his eyes suddenly zeroed in on something over her shoulder.
In the split second it took for her to realize what he was seeing, he was already up, his sword held loosely in his hand. "Ryonen, wait-" She started, but he had already lost his footing and tumbled to the side, hitting the cave floor hard as his sword clattered away from him.
"Shit." She muttered, running to him and grasping his shoulders. He was trying to stand again but she held him still. "Ryonen, stop. He isn't an enemy, he saved me from that Troll."
"You have no idea who he is." He said, his voice unsteady but the strength already beginning to return to it.
"I do." She said firmly. "He saved my life."
"He's probably one of the Rebel Elves." He responded. The adrenaline from seeing a stranger in the cave seemed to have broken through the last of the hold the paralysis had on him. He seemed to be fully alert now, besides the lack of balance.
"No, he isn't." She repeated, giving him a look to stop.
He took a breath, looking past her at Tyrynion. His eyes were hard, untrusting. "If he's so good, why is he in a place like Orlac?"
"I could ask you that same question." Tyrynion's gravelly voice replied.
Ariana glanced back at him. At some point, he had stood up and was now facing the two of them. She sighed. "The specifics don't matter right now. I've already covered that with him while you were passed out. He's not a Rebel Elf."
Ryonen pursed his lips. "No offense, Ariana, but you have a tendency to be a little too trusting."
She let her hands fall from his shoulders, hurt rising up in her chest at his words. Any relief she had felt at seeing him again had now vanished. She narrowed her eyes at him. "I guess that's true." She said slowly, stepping back. "You would know, right?" She watched as the meaning of her words hit him full in the face. He cast his eyes down to the ground, not willing to meet her gaze. She threw one last glare at him, thoroughly irritated, before she turned to face Tyrynion. "We're headed to the Eastern Kingdom and we were told that this was the shortest route there." She said, answering his question from earlier.
Behind her, Ryonen made a noise of protest but she ignored him. Tyrynion's dark eyes were surveying her over the fire. "Why through here, though? Shortcut or not, this is a dangerous place. Whatever reason you have would have to be worth the potential for death."
She hesitated, biting her cheek. Maybe she was too trusting, she thought, thinking back on how quickly she had accepted both Ryonen and Lamis into her life. However, her time here in Atheil had taught her that you sometimes have to put your faith in others in order to survive. She never would have made it if she hadn't chosen to trust the Veluke, though Ryonen had warned her against it. Even Lamis had been a gamble; Ryonen hadn't known if he were enemy or friend when he chose to put Ariana's life in his hands. Time and time again they had relied on others to help them, so why not now? If Tyrynion hadn't intervened when he did, who knows what would have become of her. He didn't have to fight on her behalf; he could have just turned a blind eye and left her to her fate, but he didn't. He had killed the Cave Troll without hesitation, saving her life in the process. If that didn't prove he was sincere, she didn't know what would. She took a breath. "We're on the run from Malor's assassins." She said, finally.
He raised his eyebrows. "Why?"
"It's a lot to explain." She admitted, looking back at Ryonen's stony face as he stood leaning against the cave wall. "It might take a while to get through it all."
Tyrynion shook his head, sighing. He raised his hands to indicate the surrounding cave. "I have nowhere better to be and, I dare say, you don't either." He said calmly.
Ariana took in a breath, crossing the room to her spot from before. As she once again settled onto the ground, she glanced across the cave at Ryonen. His eyes, shining brilliantly in the glow of the fire, looked like flaming green orbs as he met her gaze. She could see a hostility within them that made her suck in her breath, but she turned away from him and toward Tyrynion, who had also taken his spot from before.
"Okay," she said, nodding her head as she gathered her thoughts, "this is how it started." She began to tell the story once again from the beginning, her voice quiet at first before growing more confident, as the night wore on around them.