Jarka Ruus

TWENTY–SIX

The huge curved horns of the Galaphile's bow swung slowly about to point like a compass needle toward the four who stood frozen on the muddy shoreline. There was no mistaking that she had found what she was searching for. Through the fading screen of mist and twilight's deepening shadows, the vessel settled onto the reed–choked surface of the bay, not fifty yards away, and slowly began to advance. Her sails were furled and her masts and spars as bare and black as charred bones. She had the stark, blasted look of a specter.

«What do we do?» Khyber hissed.

«We can run," Pen answered at once, already poised to do so. «There's still time to gain the trees, get deep into the woods, split up if we have to …»

He trailed off hopelessly. It was pointless to talk about running away. Ahren had already said that it was too late to hide, so running would not help, either. The Galaphile had already found them once; even if they ran, it would have no trouble doing so again. Terek Molt would track them down like rabbits. They were going to have to make a stand, even without an airship in which to maneuver or weapons with which to fight. Ahren Elessedil's Druid magic and whatever resources the rest of them could muster were going to have to be enough.

What other choice do we have? Pen thought in despair.

The Galaphile had come to a stop at the edge of the shoreline, advanced as close to the mud bank as her draft would allow. Atop her decks, dark figures moved, taking up positions along the railing. Gnome Hunters. Pen saw the glittering surfaces of their blades. Perhaps the Gnome Hunters simply meant to kill them, having no need to do otherwise.

«Do you see how she shimmers?» Ahren Elessedil asked them suddenly. His voice was eerily calm. «The ship, about her hull and rigging? Do you see?»

Pen looked with the others. At first, he couldn't make it out, but then slowly his eyes adjusted to the heavy twilight and he saw a sort of glow that pulsed all about the warship, an aura of glistening dampness.

«What is it?» Khyber whispered, brushing back her mop of dark hair, twisting loose strands of it in her fingers.

«Magic," her uncle answered softly. «Terek Molt is sheathing the Galaphile in magic to protect her from an attack. He is wary of what we did to him last time, of another storm, of the elements I can summon to disrupt his efforts.»

The Druid exhaled slowly. «He has made a mistake. He has given us a chance.»

A rope ladder was lowered over the side of the airship, one end dropping through a railing gap and into the water. A solitary figure began to descend. Even from a distance and through the heavy gloom, there was no doubt about who it was.

Pen glanced up again at the cloaked figures lining the Galaphile's railing. All their weapons were pointed at himself and his companions.

«Khyber," Ahren Elessedil called softly.

When she looked over, he passed her something, a quick exchange that was barely noticeable. Pen caught a glimpse of the small pouch as her hand opened just far enough to permit her to see that it was the Elfstones she had been given. Her quick intake of breath was audible.

«Listen carefully," her uncle said without looking at her, his eyes fixed on Terek Molt, who was almost to the water now. «When I tell you, use the Elfstones against the Galaphile. Do as you have been taught. Open your mind, summon their power, and direct it at the airship.»

Khyber was already shaking her head, her Elven features taut with dismay. «It won't work, Uncle Ahren! The magic is only good against other magic—magic that threatens the holder of the stones! You taught me that yourself! The Galaphile is an airship, wood and iron only!»

«She is," the Druid agreed. «But thanks to Terek Molt, the magic that sheathes her is not. It is his magic, Druid magic. Trust me, Khyber. It is our only chance. I am skilled, but Terek Molt was trained as a warrior Druid and is more powerful than I am. Do as I say. Watch for my signal. Do not reveal that you have the Elfstones before then. Do nothing to demonstrate that you are a danger to him. If you do, if you give yourself away too early, even to help me, we are finished.»

Pen glanced at Khyber. The Elven girl's eyes glittered with fear. «I've never even tried to use the Elfstones," she said. «I don't know what it takes to summon the magic. What if I can't do so now?»

Ahren Elessedil smiled. «You can and you will, Khyber. You have the training and the resolve.

Do not doubt yourself. Be brave. Trust the magic and your instincts. That will be enough.»

Terek Molt stepped down off the ladder and into the shallow water, turning to face them. His black robes billowed out behind him as he approached, his blocky form squared toward Ahren Elessedil. He radiated confidence and disdain, the set of his dark form signaling his intent in a way that was unmistakable.

«Move to one side, Khyber," Ahren said quietly, his voice taking on an edge. «Remember what I said. Watch for my signal. Pen, Tagwen, back out of the way.»

The boy and the Dwarf retreated at once, happy to put as much distance as possible between themselves and Terek Molt. The warrior Druid's chiseled face glanced in their direction, a slight lifting of his chin the only indication that he noticed them at all. But even that small movement was enough to let Pen see the rage that was reflected in the flat, cold eyes.

When he was twenty feet from the Elf, he stopped. «Give up the boy. He belongs to us now. You can keep the old man and the girl as compensation for your trouble. Take them and go.»

Ahren Elessedil shook his head. «I don't think I care to take you up on your offer. I think we will all stay together.»

Terek Molt nodded. «Then you will all come with me. Either way, it makes no difference.»

«Ultimatums are the last resort of desperate men.»

«Don't play games with me, outcast.»

«What has happened to you, Terek Molt, that you would betray the Ard Rhys and the order this way? You were a good man once.»

The Dwarf's face darkened. «I am a better man than you, Ahren Elessedil. I am no cat's paw, underling fool in league with a monster. I am no tool at the beck and call of a witch!»

«Are you not?»

«I'll say this once, Ahren Elessedil. I got tired of the Ard Rhys—of her disruptive presence and her self–centered ways. I got tired of watching her fail time and again at the simplest of tasks. She was never right for the position. She should never have assumed it. Others are better suited to lead the Druid Council to the places it needs to go. Others, who do not share her history.»

«A full council vote might have been a better way to go. At least that approach would have lent a semblance of respectability to your efforts and not painted all of you as betrayers and cowards. Perhaps enough others on the Druid Council might have agreed with you that all this would not have been necessary.» The Elven Prince paused. «Perhaps it still might be so, were someone of character to pursue it.»

He made it sound so reasonable, as if treachery could be undone and made right, as if the conversation was between two old friends who were discussing a thorny issue that each hoped to resolve. «Is it too late to bring her back?» he asked the other.

The Dwarf's face darkened. «Why bring her back when she is safely out of the way? What does it matter to you, in any case? You have been gone from the council and her life for years. You are an outcast from your own people. Is that why you think so highly of her—because she is like you?»

«I think better of Grianne Ohmsford than I do of Shadea a'Ru," the Elf replied.

«You can tell her so yourself, once we are returned to Paranor.» Terek Molt came forward another step, black cloak billowing. One hand lifted and a gloved finger pointed.

«Enough talk. I have chased you for as long as I care to; I am weary of the aggravation. You might have gotten away from me if those Rovers hadn't stranded you in this swamp and then betrayed you to us. Does that surprise you? We caught up with them early yesterday, trying to slip past us in their pathetic little vessel. That Captain was quick enough to tell us everything once he saw how things stood. So we knew where you were, and it was just a matter of waiting for you to show yourselves. Using magic was a mistake. It led us right to you.»

Ahren nodded. «Unavoidable. What have you done with the Skatelow and her crew?»

The Dwarf spit to one side. «Rover vermin. I sent them on their way, back to where they came from. I had no need of them once they gave you up. They'll be halfway home by now and better off than those who so foolishly sought to use their services.» He looked past the other now to Pen. «I am done talking. Bring the boy. No more arguments. No further delays.»

Ahren Elessedil's hands had been tucked within his cloak. Now he brought them out again, balled into fists and bright with his magic's blue glow. Terek Molt stiffened, but did not give ground. «Do not be a fool," he said quietly.

«I don't think Pen should go with you," Ahren Elessedil said. «I think you intend him harm, whether you admit to it or not. Druids are meant to protect, and protect him I shall. You have forgotten your teachings, Terek Molt. If you take one step nearer, I shall help you remember them.»

The Dwarf shook his head slowly. His gloved hands flared with magic of his own. «You are no match for me, Elessedil. If you test me, you will be found wanting. You will be destroyed. Step aside. Give the boy to me and be done with this.»

They faced each other across the short stretch of mud and shallow water, two identically cloaked forms born of the same order but gone on separate paths. Elf and Dwarf, faces hard as stone, eyes locked as if bound together by iron threads, poised in a manner that suggested there would be no backing down and no quarter given. Pen found himself tensed and ready, as well, but he did not know what he would do when doing something became necessary. He could not think of anything that would help, any difference he could make. Yet he knew he would try.

«Your ship," Ahren Elessedil said suddenly to Terek Molt, and nodded in the direction of the Galaphile.

The Dwarf turned to look, did so without thinking, and in that instant Ahren attacked, raising both hands and dispatching the elemental magic that he commanded in a burst of Druid fire. But it was not the other man he targeted; it was the warship, his elemental magic striking the vessel with such force that it was rocked from bow to stern. The infuriated Dwarf struck back instantly, his own fire hammering into the Druid. Ahren Elessedil had just enough time to throw up a shield before the other's magic knocked him completely off his feet and sent him sprawling in the mud.

It was a terrible blow, yet Ahren Elessedil was up again immediately, fighting off the warrior Druid's second thrust, steadying his defenses. Now arrows and darts cast down by the Gnome Hunters who were gathered at the railing of the Galaphile began to rain on the beleaguered Elf. Pen and Tagwen threw themselves out of the way as a few stray missiles nearly skewered them, then began crawling toward the protective shelter of the trees. Khyber screamed in rage, bringing up her own small Druid–enhanced magic to protect herself, and crouched down close by Ahren, poised to strike but still waiting on her uncle's command.

Ahren Elessedil was fighting for his life, down on his knees with his hands extended and his palms facing out, as if in a futile effort to ward off what was happening. His protective shield was eroding under the onslaught of Terek Molt's attack, melting like ice under searing heat. Yet once again, he chose to strike not at the Dwarf, but at the warship, diverting precious power from his defenses. Pen could not understand what the Elf was thinking. Ahren already knew that the ship was protected, that it was a waste of time and effort to try to damage her. Why was he persisting in this method of attack?

Yet suddenly, improbably, the Galaphile began to shudder, massive hull and ram–shaped pontoons rocking as if caught in a storm instead of resting in shallow water. Something of what Ahren was doing was making a difference, after all. Terek Molt seemed to sense it, as well, and redoubled his efforts. Druid fire exploded out of his fingers and into the Elf, staggering him, crumpling his shield. Pen heard Ahren call out to Khyber, the signal for which she had been waiting, and immediately she had the Elfstones in hand, arms outthrust. Brilliant blue light built about her fist, widening in a sphere that caused the boy to shield his eyes.

Then the magic exploded from her clenched fingers in a massive rush that swept over the Galaphile like a tidal wave. For a single instant the Druid warship was lit like a star, blazing with light, and then it burst into flames. It didn't catch fire in just one place or even a dozen. It caught fire everywhere at once, transformed into a giant torch. With a monstrous whoosh it detonated in a fireball that rose hundreds of feet into the misty swamp sky, carrying with it the Gnome Hunters, bearing away a twisting, writhing Terek Molt, as well, the latter sucked into the vortex. A roar erupted from the conflagration, burning with such fury that it scorched Pen and Tagwen a hundred yards away, sweeping through the whole of the Slags.

In seconds, the Galaphile and all who had sailed her were gone.

* * *

Pen looked up from where he lay flattened against the mud and scorched grasses. Smoke rising from his blackened form, Ahren Elessedil lay sprawled on his back at the shoreline. Khyber knelt in shock some yards away, her arms lowered, the power of the Elfstones gone dormant once more. Her head drooped, as if she had taken a blow, and the boy could see her eyes blinking rapidly. She was shaking all over.

He forced himself to his feet. «Tagwen," he called over to the Dwarf, finding him through eyes half–blinded by smoke and ash. Tagwen looked up at him from where he was huddled in a muddied depression, his eyes wide and scared. «Get up. We have to help them.»

The boy staggered across the flats, head lowered against the heat of the still–fiery bay. Flames and ash–smeared waters were all that remained of Galaphile. Pen glanced at the charred mix, baffled and awed by what had taken place, trying unsuccessfully to make sense of it.

He reached Khyber and knelt beside her. He touched her shoulder. «Khyber," he said softly.

She did not look up or stop shaking, so he put his lips to her ear, whispering, «Khyber, it's all right, it's over. Look at me. I need to know you can hear me. You're all right.»

«So much power," she whispered suddenly. She stopped shaking then, her body going perfectly still. A long sigh escaped her lips. She lifted her head and looked out across the fiery surface of the wetlands. «I couldn't stop it, Pen. Once it started, I couldn't stop it.»

«I know," he said, understanding now something of what had transpired. «It's all over.»

He helped her to her feet, and they stumbled together to where Tagwen knelt beside Ahren Elessedil. Pen knew at a glance that the Druid was dying. A handful of arrows and darts had pierced him, and his body was blackened and smoking from the explosion. But his eyes were open and calm, and he watched their approach with a steady gaze.

Khyber gasped as she saw him, then dropped to her knees and began to cry, her hands clasped helplessly in her lap, her head shaking slowly from side to side.

The Druid reached out with one charred hand and touched her wrist. «Terek Molt tied his magic to the Galaphile," he whispered, his voice dry and cracked with pain. «To protect her. When I attacked, he strengthened the connection until he was too committed to withdraw it. The Elfstones couldn't tell the difference. To them, the Galaphile was a weapon, an extension of Molt. So it consumed them both.»

«I could have helped you!»

«No, Khyber.» He coughed and blood flecked his burned lips. «He couldn't be allowed to know that you had the Elfstones. Otherwise, he would have destroyed you.»

«Instead, he destroyed you!» She was crying so hard that she could barely make herself understood.

The ruined face tilted slightly in response. «I misjudged the extent of my invulnerability. Still, it is a reasonable trade.» He swallowed thickly. «The Elfstones are yours now. Use them with caution. Your command of their power …» He trailed off, the words catching in this throat. «You've seen the nature of your abilities. Strong. Your heart, mind, body—very powerful. But the Stones are more powerful still. Be wary. They will rule you if you are not careful. There is danger in using them. Remember.»

She lifted her tear–streaked face and looked over at Pen. «We have to help him!»

She was almost hysterical. Pen was frightened, unable to think of what to say to her. There was nothing they could do. Surely she could see that. But she looked so wild that he was afraid she might try something anyway, something dangerous.

Ahren Elessedil's hand tightened on her wrist. «No, Khyber," he said. He waited until she looked back at him, until she met his terrible burned gaze. «There is nothing to be done. It is finished for me. I'm sorry.»

His eyes shifted slowly to Pen. «Penderrin. Twenty years ago, when I sailed on the Jerle Shannara with your father, a young girl gave up her life for me. She did so because she believed I was meant to do something important. I would like to think this is part of what she saved me for. Make something good come out of this. Do what you were sent here to do. Find the Ard Rhys and bring her back.»

He took several sharp, rattling breaths, his eyes holding the boy's as he struggled to speak. «Ahren?» Pen whispered.

«Promise me.»

The Druid's eyes became fixed and staring, and he quit breathing. Pen could not look away, finding in that terrible gaze strength of purpose he would not have believed possible. He reached out and touched the Druid's charred face, then closed those dead eyes and sat back again. He looked over at Khyber, who was crying silently into her hands, then at Tagwen.

«I never thought anything like this would happen," the Dwarf said quietly. «I thought he would be the one to get us safely through.»

Pen nodded, looking out over the burning lake at the flames licking at the twilight darkness, staining sky and earth the color of blood. The surface of the water burned silently, steadily, a fiery mirror reflected against a backdrop of shadow–striped trees. Smoke mingled with mist and mist with clouds, and everything was hazy and surreal. The world had an alien feel to it, as if nothing the boy was seeing was familiar.

«What are we going to do?» Tagwen asked softly. He shook his head slowly, as if there were no answer to his question.

Penderrin Ohmsford looked over again at Khyber. She was no longer crying. Her head was lifted and her dark features were a mask of resolve. He could tell from the way she was looking back at him that there would be no more tears.

The boy turned to the Dwarf. «We're going to do what he asked of us," he said. «We're going to go on.»