Siege of Stone

CHAPTER 74

The expedition from Cliffwall pushed through the mountains, where the air was thinner and the cold air blew harder. Verna looked behind them, imagining the desert canyons they had left far behind, then turned in the direction of Ildakar. That was their destination, and she couldn’t wait to see all the wonders Renn had promised. By now, the road was more apparent, recently trampled by the large, half-stone expeditionary force that had marched away from the legendary city.

On his warhorse, General Zimmer led the group. Oliver and Peretta made notes of their travels and exchanged stories with young Amber. The other scholars looked sore and dirty, tired of the long journey. None of them had ever left their isolated canyon before.

Within days, the terrain transitioned to forested foothills, winding down to a watershed where streams provided all the drinking and bathing water they needed. They toiled up the next ridge, reaching the rounded top only to see another ridge ahead of them.

Verna began to lose hope that they would ever find their destination, but Renn grew excited as they climbed the next line of hills. “This is it, I think. The plains of Ildakar are just ahead.” He inhaled deeply, as if the air smelled different to him. “It will be so good to be home.”

Verna would be glad to see Nicci and Nathan again, to talk with them, and she would trust their assessment about Ildakar.

“I smell smoke,” Oliver said as they worked their way through the trees. A drizzle had continued throughout the morning, and Verna was wet. Her gray-brown hair hung limply against her skull, and she tried not to look as miserable as she felt.

“How can you smell anything in this?” Peretta asked.

“I have always had a keen sense of smell.”

General Zimmer and the scouts crested the ridge and rode out of the sparser pines. Ahead, they saw grass-covered hills and a broad open valley. Renn pushed forward to get a better view. “It’s Ildakar. That is the plain. That’s—”

Zimmer raised a hand, commanding them to stay within the shelter of the trees. “We don’t want to be seen.”

Verna, Amber, Peretta, and Oliver crowded forward. Renn stood with his arms at his side, his mouth open. “By the Keeper’s beard!”

The grassy hills to the north of the great valley were scorched black. Out on the plain Verna saw a huge army, thousands upon thousands camped in rows with a few tents dispersed among the troops. The soldiers were moving, marching, forming precise groups, a military force vastly greater than the invasion army they had buried under the avalanche.

“That looks as big as the entire population of Tanimura,” Amber said in a trembling voice.

Verna looked beyond the countless warriors. Ildakar rose up like a beautiful island covered with tiers of buildings, layers of neighborhoods piled up to the summit of the plateau. It was indeed a magnificent city, and it was under siege.

Tears leaked down Renn’s cheeks. “General Utros is awake. Look what they have done to Ildakar!” He shaded his eyes, scanning the high, protected upwelling of the city. “I can barely make out the top of the plateau in this drizzle. I see the ruling tower, but I can’t find the pyramid. It seems to be gone.”

Peretta narrowed her dark eyes. “I see a pyramid, but it is broken. What did it look like before?”

“Something happened in my city,” Renn said. “Something terrible. We’ve got to help. We need to fight for Ildakar.”

The seven other Sisters of the Light gathered, waiting for the prelate to issue orders, but Verna wasn’t sure she had anything to offer. “We have several gifted with us. My Sisters and I can use some magic. You, Renn, are also a wizard, but this won’t be like creating the avalanche. Look at the size of that army.”

“I have only a handful of soldiers,” said Zimmer. “What can we possibly do against an enemy force like that?”

Renn groaned. “Ildakar is full of gifted men and women at least as powerful as I am. We have to figure out how to sneak through the walls, so I can rejoin the duma. They will need my help.”

As Verna looked at the entrenched army that stood between them and the city, she had no answer for him.