The Legend of Valtera: Chapter 16
The days looked the same, the nights not much different, as they continued south through the valley in Rodor. It took a week before trees began to sprout and the land rose into the lower mountains towards the center of Valtera. Kael and Prea both sighed in relief as they entered back into the protection of the woods. They had put up with the uncomfortable openness for as long as necessary, but both would always prefer the forest and their bodies relaxed as nature welcomed them home.
Sunlight was fading, inching away to the west as it followed its blazing source. The trek became more arduous as the elevation rose and the hikers were forced to truly climb for the first time on this journey. They weren’t at it long before night fell and darkness spread, making it impossible to continue. Camp was made, wood collected and a fire started as the temperature dropped. Once the flames had grown enough to provide warmth, the two travelers sat down and pulled out food for dinner.
“So we’ve made it to the mountains. What’s next?” Kael asked between bites of food.
“We-ll…” Prea drawled, looking down as she focused all of her attention on her food.
“Well what?” he asked.
“Well…I’m not entirely sure what we’re looking for next,” she answered vaguely, shifting her focus to the fire.
Kael’s body stiffened and his eyes narrowed across the swimming flames. He waited in tentative expectation for her to elaborate. But she didn’t and refused to meet his eyes.
“What do you mean?” Kael pressed.
“I know the poem and I can tell you the next verse, but I don’t know what it means or where it leads to,” Prea explained reluctantly as she finished her dinner. He continued to stare at her, silently attempting to elicit some sort of reaction or answer.
“Let’s talk about it more tomorrow. Can we?” She was tired and didn’t want to get into this discussion tonight. She wasn’t in the mood for an argument.
Caught off guard by her sudden request, he paused before responding. “Sure…that’s fine,” he said hesitantly. She didn’t look like she could stay awake much longer, let alone participate in a heated discussion.
Her muscles were leaden and her eyelids drooped as she reclined back against her pack, positioning herself for sleep. There was only so much that she could know, only so many answers to be had before a leap of faith was needed. Prea had known before she left that she didn’t have all the answers; there were some things that she needed to figure out along the way. They had finally reached that point.
Prea woke a few times during the night as a chill ran up her spine. Each time, the fire was fading, smoke billowing up through the branches. So she stumbled in the dark, gathering kindling and stoking the fire alight.
Even after the interrupted sleep, she was surprised when she woke the next morning to find Kael already enjoying his breakfast. That’s odd, he’s never up before me, Prea thought as she propelled herself into a sitting position.
“Morning,” Kael greeted quietly from his seat across the fire.
“Morning,” Prea replied and stretched her arms above her head, twisting the soreness out of her tired body. “How did you sleep?”
“Pretty good, considering. I always sleep better under cover rather than out in the open,” he answered. “What about you?”
“I will always feel safer in the woods than in a valley. I woke a few times to the fire dying. Other than that, I slept pretty well,” Prea replied as she dug breakfast out of her pack.
As usual, they ate quickly and didn’t dally in their preparations for the day. After the fire was dusted, they trekked higher up the mountainside and the undergrowth flourished under the lush canopy of trees. The rough trunks provided welcome support as the slope steepened and slicked with needles and leaves. Kael was either better prepared or had more experienced as he remained surefooted during their climb. Prea, on the other hand, couldn’t help but slip and slide; her arms constantly waving in an attempt to keep her balance.
“Care to explain?” Kael asked when he couldn’t bear the silence anymore.
“What? Oh, yes,” Prea responded. “I guess I do need to explain.”
“Yes, please do.”
Where to begin? “Like I told you in Flint, I started out only having an overall plan and destination. But I didn’t know specifics. Once I reached the mountains, I thought I’d figure it out as I go along,” Prea admitted as she began her explanation. “If the poem spelled it out, someone would have found the stone long ago.”
“Okay…” Kael added, unsure.
“Anyway, the next verse of the poem is Listen close for the song of the stars, to lead you down the path near or far. I know this is the direction, I just don’t know what I’m looking for. I’ll know it when I see it…hear it…feel it. Much like why I trusted you, it has more to do with feeling rather than knowing. And I have faith I’ll find it, whatever it is.”
“Song of the stars? Down the path near or far?” Kael repeated. “You don’t have any thoughts?”
“About the song of stars? No. But I figure the song will reveal a way to cross the mountain easily as opposed to climbing over the peak. There has to be a quicker way,” Prea insisted. “If Aylin and Ciro lived in the mountains and traveled around the island, then it would be beneficial to have another way to cross other than the full climb and descent. That would just take too long, don’t you think?”
“I guess. But what do you think this path is?” Kael prodded. He didn’t know where she was going with any of this, but she had clearly given this whole thing a lot of thought. “And what if we don’t find it?”
“I assume that it’s either a hidden path through the rocks or maybe a tunnel under the mountains. As for not finding it…I’m prepared to go the distance and travel over the mountain if I have to,” Prea answered with unwavering conviction. “You can always turn back. Whenever you want, Kael. Know that.”
Kael looked sideways at his companion, surprised by her sudden change of topic. He shook his head and sighed. “I’m not turning back. Wherever you go, I’m going. I wish you’d believe that.”
“I do believe that. Trust me, I do. It’s just I told you the mountains and now I’m telling you I don’t know what’s next. I just don’t want you to feel like you have to be here,” Prea muttered as she climbed.
“Don’t get me wrong, I still don’t know whether or not I believe you, but now it’s finally getting interesting. So what’s the plan then?” Kael wondered.
Prea remained quiet for a few moments as she considered their options. They had followed the valley river up into the woods and stayed on the north side through the trees.
“I think the river is a good place to start. There’s no other direction or path out here, just the river. The water will lead us north to its source and I figure it’s our best option,” she disclosed. “Water is a powerful element; any clue is likely close to the convergence of the elements. The more elements, the closer we’ll be,” she claimed. “What do you think?”
Kael shrugged next to her as he walked. “Sounds reasonable to me, but I’m just following your lead on this.” And he spoke the absolute truth; he was just along for the ride.
“The river it is then.”
* * *
The water flowing in the river next to them remained steady, though it narrowed as they climbed. There were a few breaks in the trees where the clear blue sky peeked through overhead and openings among the branches that framed the valley below. The weather was heating up, but between the canopy of leaves and the higher altitude, it wasn’t much of an issue. It was pleasant during the day, but the temperature still dropped each night, forcing the travelers to maintain a fire or risk it getting too cold.
When visibility lowered once more, the companions moved quietly through their evening routine before they both relaxed by the fire and drifted off.
A deep howl of agony broke the silence of the night, propelling Prea into a sudden seated position as she scanned the surrounding darkness to find the source of the noise. Her pulse was pounding wildly in her ears and her breathing quickened as she was reminded of her mother’s screams all those years ago. What she found had her blood crystallizing into ice and her stomach tightening into a giant knot.
Black surrounded the camp with ribbons of smoke the only remnants of the once-lit fire. The screams continued to pierce Prea’s heart like an arrow as she looked across the embers and saw Kael struggling on the ground, arms thrashing, his head caught in the strong jaws of a large wolf.
Wolves? There are wolves in these woods? Instinctively Prea jumped to her feet, her thoughts frantic and incoherent. With fire the only weapon available, she grabbed a piece of smoking kindling, the flame immediately reigniting at her touch, before yelling and waving her arms in an attempt to distract the wild beast. She quieted as a shiver swept down her spine. Faint growling crept up behind her, forcing her head to spin like an owl’s in order to search the area for more predators.
Kael escaped the clutches of the wolf’s teeth and scrambled to standing, backing away from the enemy threat. Somehow his mind still worked; he quickly appraised the situation, grabbed more kindling and began stoking the fire back to life in an attempt to scare off the wolves. Prea, on the other hand, continued to wave her hands, jump around and scream as loud as she could while she circled the camp defending her companion and their position from the possibility of attack.
Kael managed to get the fire burning again and fed the flames with more wood until it blazed like the sun on the forest floor. In the sudden influx of light, Prea detected the rest of the pack spaced evenly around their camp, growling as they retreated from the fiery weapon. She kept up her defensive position, guarding her camp until the wolves shrunk back into the darkness, completely out of sight. Only then did Prea drop the torch she was holding, turn her back to the woods and tend to Kael who had blood streaming down his back.
“They’re gone,” Prea declared. “Are you all right?” He gave no response. “Kael, are you all right?” Prea demanded once more, as she scrounged through her pack in search of medical provisions. Kael stayed quiet as he sat in front of the flames with his hand covering the back of his head. Prea moved behind him and pulled his hand away from the wound. “Kael, how are you feeling?”
“Huh?” He was dazed as he examined his bloody hand. “It…it hurts. How does it look?” he added anxiously.
Prea took the cloth in her hands and wet it with some water before gently blotting and wiping the blood from the wound. There were a few large gashes as well as puncture wounds all over the back of his head, the base of his skull, down to the top of his neck. She took her time separating his hair and skin, cleaning both until she could properly see the wounds that had yet to stop bleeding. The cloth was drenched in his blood and she left to get a new piece.
“Hold this. Keep pressure on it,” Prea ordered and Kael’s blood stained hand came up to meet hers.
She was careful and cautious as she moved through the forest in search of the river where she refilled her container with fresh water before returning to camp. After finding another piece of clean cloth, she resumed her treatment of Kael. Removing the dirty cloth, she threw it in the fire and watched it burn as she replaced it, adding pressure to the wound. She handed him the water.
“Here, rinse your hands off,” Prea instructed. Kael did as she said, flinching as his head moved under her hand. “That’s not a good sign,” she muttered under her breath.
Prea rummaged through her pack again, this time looking for the remaining solution the apothecary had given her back in Flint.
“Here take some of this for the pain. It will help,” Prea promised, handing the turmeric solution to Kael. “How are you doing?”
“The pain is…intense,” he mumbled in response, pulling away from her slightly. “I feel sick.”
Prea backed away from the fire until she met the uneven bark of a nearby tree.
“Come here,” she ordered, tugging on Kael’s shirt. “Come lay down. Right here. Come on,” she said, patting her lap. Kael gave her a half-hearted grin and did as she asked, scooting back towards her. He slowly lowered himself down, positioning his head carefully in her lap.
“Thank you,” he whispered into the flames.
Prea smiled sadly in the dark. “Just relax. Get some sleep. I’ll watch over you,” she whispered in reply as she stroked his hair. Her soothing touch and familiar presence lulled him to sleep and she took comfort in her own motions, feeling her pulse beat with the stroke of her hand. She focused on the weight of Kael’s head in her lap, his steady breathing and the warmth of the fire to keep her calm.
The further they traveled, the worse things seemed to get. First her hallucinations, then the fall and now an attack from a pack of wolves. They were lucky, although Kael would probably think differently under the circumstances; it could have turned out a lot worse. But Prea thought it fitting she was the caretaker; now it was her turn to repay his kindness.
Only at times like these did doubt enter Prea’s mind. She had been in such a rush to save Carr that she hadn’t thought of any of the ways things could go wrong on her quest. Maybe if she had thought about it, prepared more or been patient, then things would have gone differently. But then again, there was no use in second guessing her decisions. Things happened, she was where she was and there was nothing she could do to change the past. All she could do was plan better for the future. They would have to be more careful, make their camp more secure and be more aware of their surroundings. They couldn’t risk any more of these incidents happening in the future.
Kael stirred.
“Shhh. Sleep. Just sleep,” Prea whispered and smoothed his hair, sweeping a few strands off of his face. After he stilled, she took that time to strategically remove the cloth and check his wound. Prea noted that it had stopped bleeding and still looked clean. Relieved, she finally allowed herself to relax and, with the crackling of the fire, she soon drifted off herself.
* * *
A rustling noise woke Prea early the next morning, her muscles tight and stiff from her awkward position against the tree. Kael had moved, his head was still in her lap but now he was facing her. He turned away before she could stop him and rolled over onto the back of his head. He shot up, woken by the sharp stab of pain.
“Oww,” Kael cried, his hands moving to the back of his head.
“Watch it, you don’t want the bleeding to start up again,” Prea directed as she moved to check his wound.
“I know. I’ll have to be more careful,” Kael said as Prea crouched behind him and began her examination. She parted his hair and brushed it out of the gashes where the openings were crusted over with dried blood. “How does it look?”
“It’s not bleeding anymore, so that’s good. But you should take some more of the turmeric solution for the pain,” Prea instructed as she retrieved the solution from her pack and offered it to Kael.
“Thanks,” he replied.
Prea studied her companion closely; he looked tired and sore. They would have to take their time whenever they set off again. It would do neither of them any good to rush and risk more harm. They were ahead of schedule and could take their time for a bit as the goal of midsummer was still days away. She had yet to reveal that clue and didn’t want to worry him now with the information.
“What?” he asked when he caught her staring.
“Nothing,” she answered shaking her head and averting her eyes.
“I’m fine, Prea. Truly,” he assured her.
Prea wasn’t that convinced but nodded anyway. She would continue to watch him and worry. That was her life, wasn’t it? It was hard, nearly impossible, to turn off the worry and anxiety once it was triggered. She still worried about Alvie and Carr, obviously, and always would. But Kael now belonged among those ranks.
