Elaina J. Davidson's Blog, page 115
May 14, 2023
Chapter 10: FAROCHIN: The Terraformed World
Grief-stricken over losing his wife in childbirth, Karydorcommands that his son be drowned. Carers choose to hide the new-born instead.The child, when his father realises his terrible mistake, vanishes without atrace.
Ages later, suffering cycles of rebirth to walk in the sametime as his son, Karydor discovers the identity of the man his son becomes and,in need of atonement, sets out to ease his path through life, hoping for afuture when he will be able to look him in the eye without guilt.
On Farochin, a world where the terraform is about to fail, Karydor,Kristyn, Echayn and Fletcher team up, hoping to save the world from theinfluences of FARA, the godhood responsible for the failure.
A
god, however, is not easily undermined.A world is not effortlessly rescued.
A father will step into that arena, though, because of thelove he bears his son. This is Karydor Danae’s atonement.
CHAPTER 10
Midgesdo more than bite; they serve as distraction.
~ Finli – Naturalist ~
Occra
Northern Coast
WITH first light they transported to a level area north of the fen. Fromthere, according to Fletcher, it was a twenty-minute walk to the bridge inquestion. On high ground, the area overlooked the fen and the ocean, as well asgiving fair view of the strange steppingstone peninsula that connected Occra tothe northern continent where Ghant was the largest occupied territory. Ghantitself was a far grey smudge on the horizon. The steppingstones were giantoutcrops of land around which the Natticus Sea swirled. Narrow stone bridgeslinked each bluff. The sound of almighty waves crashing drowned out even thecalling of the seabirds. Karydor found the transport simple to achieve.Fletcher described the region; he pictured it and landed up exactly whereenvisioned.
“Now we’re talking,” the old man grinned whenhe appeared beside him.
Kristyn, on arrival, stared out to sea. Hergolden hair lifted and spread in the fresh breeze. “Astonishing,” she murmured.“Does anyone live on those outcrops?”
“There is a lighthouse and keeper on the centralone,” Fletcher responded, “and a tavern on another to ease the crossing, butotherwise it’s deserted. Gets pretty vicious out there in the elements.”
“Hoy there!” a voice called out, causing thethree companions to jerk around.
In that movement, Karydor discovered his righthand instinctively reaching for a weapon at his hip. He possessed no weapon,but it was immediately clear to him he once wore a sword and was familiar withit. Muscle memory, he realised. In that moment, though, he forced the insightaside to focus on the newcomer. A moment later a huge smile bloomed on hisface. “Naej!”
From a copse of twisted trees, a green giantemerged, wearing light-weave trousers and tunic of a dun hue, sandals on hismassive feet. He was all smiles. “Captain! You made it!”
The two men met up and clasped arms, a gesturethat had the Sagorin lifting an eyebrow. “This is new,” he said, chin gesturingat the clasp.
Laughing, Karydor disengaged. “Seems you wereright. I am not Farochin.”
A giant hand slapping his shoulder nearlydrilled him into the earth. “Finally. So, Captain …”
“Enough with the ‘captain’ nonsense.”
Chortling, Naej shifted his attention. “Goodto see you again, Fletcher.”
“You, too, my friend. Glad you could make it.”
The giant looked to where Kristyn stoodwatching everything with interest. His olive eyes narrowed. “I feel as if Ishould know your kind, but the memory of you slips from grasp. Why is that?”
She smiled. “A long story. I am Valleur.”
His gaze sharpened. “Amber quartz. The Valleurmined amber quartz on Glorium, our homeworld, a long time ago.” He shook hisgreat head, causing his multitude of thin plaits, a mixture of grey and blackhair, to dance. “Strange; it feels akin to a dischant.”
“It is. I will tell you when we have time for thattale,” Kristyn murmured. She extended her arm. “The Valleur regard the Sagorinas friends.”
Naej gently clasped arms with her, smilingagain. “You are here to help with the imminent failure of the terraform?”
She inclined her head.
“Did anyone else make it, Naej?” Karydorasked.
The big man nodded. “I heard that Larikiwashed up on Anaphus and went to check on him. He got bashed about pretty badlyand is still at the healer’s in Napi Vale. I promised to sneak back in andcollect him in about a week.”
“Glad to hear it,” Karydor said.
“No need to blame yourself for what happened.That wave? There was no besting it.”
Karydor shrugged. While that was true, it didnot serve to mitigate his feeling of guilt. He changed the subject. “And justhow did you manage to ‘sneak’ in? You?” Grinning, he indicated the overtpresence of a giant, one with obviously green skin no less.
Naej roared laughter. “I have my ways!”
“Glamour,” Fletcher pointed out.
Rolling his eyes, Karydor said, “We areinvited to a meet on the bridge at ten bells.”
The Sagorin gaped at him. “The sorcerer’sbridge? How in hell did you manage that? No one has set foot on that bridge inmore than fifty years.”
Karydor smirked. “I have my ways,” he said,which caused the giant to roar laughter. He readied to deliver a back slap, anaction Karydor fortunately had the foresight to duck away from.
“Oh, behave,” Fletcher muttered, “both of you.Let’s get to walking.”
The Fen Path
THE PATH wound down to bog territory. It stillstank, but here the ocean breezes somewhat lessened the stench. In single filethey negotiated a sliver of a path through the insect-ridden stagnant ponds.Periodic white stones revealed the way.
“In the past this place was more visited,particularly by leaders in the know, and the residents of yon strongholdconsidered it wiser not to dump folk into the fen,” Fletcher informed whenKristyn asked about the marker stones.
“Why can’t we see this stronghold? It’s soflat,” Kristyn said.
“I think the main question here should be …”Naej began, only to be interrupted.
“Sagorin, one would swear you never ended upin the ocean,” Fletcher muttered. “You’re like a youth with your ‘insights’.Have you not questioned me to near death already?”
Karydor, at the head of their column, halted andturned. “Yes, Naej, how is it you show little ill from that dunking?”
Thick grey eyebrows beetled upward in a greenface as the Sagorin came to standstill along with the others. “Were you nothearing me back on Walkin? I am immortal. A dunking …”
Karydor held a hand up. “I thought you werebeing facetious.”
Naej shook his head.
Blinking, Karydor simply stared at him.
Shrugging, Naej stepped forward, forcingeveryone to go on moving, including Karydor, who wordlessly swung around again.As the Sagorin walked, he talked. “A storm such as we endured curtails theability to employ our talents, which is why I did end up in the water unable totransport out. Had I been able to, I would have fetched everyone away tosafety, but it did mean I could not drown. Think about it, Karydor. That wassome event; we should all be dead. Yet three of us made it. What does that tellyou?” Karydor did not answer. Huffing about stubbornness, Naej went on. “Larikiis a Sylmer, which means, the moment he is immersed too long, his legstransform into a fish tail. He, too, could have helped us to safety, kept usafloat, swum us to calmer water, but unfortunately, he suffered severe breaksand bruising when a portion of the deck bore him into the depths. He survivedit, because he breathes under water, but it took him a while to free himselffrom the wreckage. Yes, only an immortalSylmer is able to walk on two legs.”
Karydor growled under his breath.
“And then there is you.”
Without turning this time, Karydor halted …and waited.
Between the two men, Fletcher and Kristynglanced at each other, but neither dared interfere. Crossing his arms over hismighty chest, Naej braced with one foot tapping the soggy ground impatiently.“It took me a while to figure it out. Your mind-set wasn’t that of a youth.Your insight spoke of otherworld knowledge. The sometimes-instinctive actionsyou took, much like you reaching for a sword earlier, revealed your musclememory knew of a different way …”
Karydor swung around. “Just spit it out.”
“Reborn, my friend. You will remember who youwere at the same age when you underwent your Immortality Ritual.”
Much like a statue, Karydor did not move,other than a flicker of his left eyelid.
“We cannot wait for that,” Kristyn said.
The Sagorin lowered his gaze to her.“Meaning?”
“Meaning Karydor achieved the Ritual at an agethat will see most of Farochin dead before it will come to pass again. Valleurlive long.”
Huge green arms loosened. “He is Valleur?” She nodded. “Well … fuck.”
Glaring up, she demanded, “And what does that mean?”
“The dischant sunders in hearing you claimrace. You lot deliberately made us forget, but now I remember the Valleuragain. If Karydor is Valleur … man, we’re talking old. Before the split between the golden and dark kind.”
Suddenly alarmed, she whispered, “Do not say the dark kind name.”
Licking his lips, Naej nodded.
“Interesting that you would know of such asplit,” Fletcher murmured.
The Sagorin gifted him a baleful look. “I amno seer, Trinian. I happened to cross paths one day with a survivor of saiddark kind and he told me a story one drunken night, a story I have neverforgotten. See, he spoke his name and had I not been immortal I would surelyhave died. In the morning he did not remember, but I did.”
Karydor reanimated. Swearing foully, he tookto the path once more.
The Fen Bridge
FLETCHER’S claim of a twenty-minute walk from theheight they arrived on was off the mark. The path through stinking poolstwisted and meandered so much, it was closer on two hours before a bridge cameinto view. By then tempers were frayed, for every step was plagued by flies,mosquitos and other flying leeches. The bridge was there, but no sight of astronghold.
“It’s shielded,” Kristyn discerned. “This iswhy we cannot see it.”
“In the past the invited found the edificewaiting, but no one sees it now,” Fletcher added. He scratched at his chin. “Iwonder who is within. There is no record of the sorcerers who left Trin andthere is no record of them here.”
“Only one way to find out,” Karydor growled,and stepped onto the bridge.
“Foolish,” Fletcher muttered, but it wasalready too late.
At the far end a form materialised as ifexiting a doorway. It did not approach; it waited. As Fletcher set foot to thestone walkway, another form appeared. Kristyn, about to follow, found herselfdetained when Naej gripped her shoulder and halted her. “We wait. Someone needsto remain outside … in the event.”
Glancing over his shoulder, Fletcher noddedhis agreement and, thus, huffing, she stayed put. Karydor meanwhile strodeacross. His temper had now taken over.
The first form, a tall man hooded and cloaked,stepped forward and held one gloved hand up. “Halt. Do you know who you are?”
Frowning, Karydor came to a stop. The wordsmade sense to him, and yet it was not Farochin the man spoke. How did … whatdid … what was …
“Valleur!” Kristyn shouted from somewhere.“Don’t go with them!”
His skin erupted into gooseflesh. Why not? Ifthis was a Valleur speaking Valleur, then surely … An instant later he lost allsense of time and place. Darkness overtook his world.
“NO!” Kristyn screamed as Karydor vanished.
The two forms disappeared also, and so did thebridge. Fletcher discovered himself summarily dumped into foul fen treacle.
“What the fuck?” Naej hollered. He waded intothe stinking water to retrieve Fletcher, hauling the man backwards with massivehands under frailer armpits. “What just happened?”
Back on the sliver of dry path, the Trinianspat dirty liquid from his mouth. “Probably get the runs,” he muttered.Spluttering some more, he straightened.
“Fletch?” Kristyn demanded.
The old man sighed and gave a wry shrug. “Theywere waiting for him.”
“Well, yes …”
“No, Kristyn, I mean they were waiting for Karydor.”
“Explain that!” Naej roared.
“Valleur,” Kristyn whispered, her tawny eyeswidening. “They knew he was here.” She licked her lips when Naej dug his hugefingers into her shoulder and then stared up at the Sagorin. “The dark kind youmentioned earlier? Karydor lays claim to that bloodline.”
“And they were waiting for him to come tothem,” Fletcher said.
The Sagorin stared at the emptiness ahead.“Because his name is a word of power, one able to unmake a terraform.” Heglared at the Valleur staring up at him. “Why would a Valleur wish for failure here?”
She grimaced. “Some Valleur still fight thewar. Humankind won and the wounds and scars are still fresh.”
“And Farochin, despite what the locals think,is all about humankind,” Fletcher added.
FAROCHIN
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