Land of the Giants, page 20
“It’s not as if I’m a witch or anything,” she said, for some reason desperate to defend her name.
Rimball nodded and continued his march. “It violates the All-Father’s laws,” he said, as if it were all that was needed.
“Those laws were set forth by the Arch Councilor, Elder Zacharia. Not by the Great Crystal.” Elise replied.
Rimball nodded. “Sure enough, After he had a visitation from Baetylus during prayer, instructing him to do so.”
Elise knew she had to watch herself carefully here. Her eyes flicked nervously to the cavern ceiling, where the light from the sentient crystal radiated from leagues away. She knew the reality of the crystal but dared not speak it among her people. If what Corbin said was true, then Baetylus could hear their words, if it was inclined to be listening, and could use its evil to sway the minds of the people of Fal, including Rimball.
Suddenly her mind was alive with paranoia. Was Rimball bewitched? What was this sudden infatuation with her stone? Elise knew he was not normally this chatty.
“Elder Morgana gave it to me,” she lied. Rimball raised his brow. “The stone is a powerful artifact that only Elders may wield. There is a bylaw among the Council of Elders that we may use magical artifacts to protect our people from harm.”
Rimball studied her out of the corner of his eye. Did he know she was completely full of it?
“I’m not sure I can stay with you,” he said. Elise was stunned to silence. He suddenly looked guilty, torn internally. “I-I had a vision from Baetylus. I know it sounds crazy, but the All-Father visited me. The Great Crystal warned me to stay away from you…that you will lead me down the path to destruction.”
Elise looked over her shoulder. Neither of their companions could hear a word he was saying, and they looked completely uninterested in their conversation. She had to think quickly, or she might lose a powerful ally. “We need you, Rimball. You cannot just abandon your responsibilities because of a dream.” She could hear the rushing waters ahead. They must be close to the bridges.
“I-I don’t know…” Rimball said.
“This is all a test,” Elise blurted, louder than she meant. Her voice carried across the plains, echoing back after a short distance.
Erik cocked his head and called ahead to them. “Is everything okay, Elder?” Elise turned and pressed her finger to her lips, shushing the young man. “Geez,” Erik said to Rygor, “she’s the one yelling, and I get told to shut up.”
Rimball’s interest was piqued. “A test?”
Elise put on her best poker face. “The All-Father is clearly testing your nobility as a warrior.” She spun the lie, not daring to speak the insidious truth of the Crystal to the fervent man. He was too torn and would surely see her words as open blasphemy. “Why else would Baetylus ask you to turn your back on those you love in their greatest hour of need?”
Rimball digested her explanation, silently brooding. As he moved through the tall reeds, one almost whipped back in Elise’s face as it sprang back into place. The hunter nodded to himself. “That may be. I will think on your words, Elder.”
“So you will not leave us, then?” she asked.
“I will accompany you at least to Milua Isle,” he decided. “By that time I will hopefully have a better idea of the All-Father’s true wishes for my path.”
“Fair enough.” When the hunter was not looking, she sighed with relief. She had averted disaster, if even for a short reprieve. If Rimball abandoned them, she saw no hope in reaching Bertha’s kinfolk. She had no doubt that the evil crystal would continue trying to sway him, hoping to strip of her of the precious few allies she had. All the more reason for her to get her people to Malbec, where the false god held no sway.
The rest of the day passed by uneventfully, and that was just fine with the four weary travelers. The tall grasses continued all the way to the rocky banks of Manta Bay, the mouth of the Naga River. The bay marked the last leg of their journey, being the last stretch of Falian land before them.
“Looks like we made good time,” Rygor said, as the four of them huddled on the edge of the plains.
“Hush now,” Elise scolded.
“Let the man speak,” Erik said. “It’s not like there is anyone about—”
They all fell silent when Rimball raised his hand, holding it inches from Erik’s face. Looking over his shoulder, the older hunter placed his finger to his lips then pointed northwest. They followed his direction.
Land bridges connected a myriad of fords leading out to Milua Isle, a small plot of land that the fishermen called home. They were so close to salvation. All they needed to do was make it across the network of low lying wooden bridges and contact Bertha’s cousins, who would be able to pick up the villagers with their fleet of smuggling ships and transport them to Malbec.
However, as Rimball was pointing out, Fafnir’s soldiers were hiding in wait all over the bridges.
“Damn the magistrate,” Elise cursed. “He must have known we would try this.”
“More likely he thinks we would take all the villagers across these roads to reach Malbec,” Erik whispered, trying to count the soldiers’ ranks.
“Aye, this is the central path to Malbec,” Rygor agreed. “The old goat thinks to block our path.”
“Then that is to our benefit,” Elise said, drawing more than one odd look. She cocked her head and explained, “They are expecting a stream of villagers to come pouring out of the plains, unsuspecting of their trap. Which means four sneaky river rats have got a shot.”
Rimball agreed.
“We should stick to the riverbank,” Elise said, laying out a plan. “The waters around the bay are supposed to become treacherously deep out of nowhere, and the currents are said to be fickle at best. If we make it close enough, then it will be a short swim to bypass their position and use the bridges as shelter from their prying eyes.”
“Which might not be that much of a problem anyhow, since they are watching Fal and not Malbec,” Erik finished for her, impressed by the Elder’s logic.
They all agreed it was as sound a plan as any. Rimball kept watch, counting beats until one of the guards looked their way. One by one they took turns slipping from the tall grass and sneaking across the rocky banks of the bay. Rygor barely made a splash when he slipped into the water, hobbling low so that it came right up to his neck. Rimball flicked his fingers and Erik did likewise, moving like a shadow across the large rocks.
Elise felt her heart pumping hard. When Rimball gave the signal, she froze in place, missing her opportunity. The guard shifted back to his post, watching in their direction for any signs of the Falian traitors. She felt foolish, caught under Rimball’s frown.
“You ready?” he signaled. Elise shook the tension out of her hands and blew all the air out of her lungs, rocking her neck back and forth to loosen up. She looked at Rimball and gave a thumbs-up. The guard turned away to check the other side of the bridge, and Rimball gave the signal.
Staying low to the ground, Elise scrambled out of the tall grass across the rocky banks of the lake. She was surprised how cold the rocks felt. Their surface was slick, like a layer of invisible water clung to them. The tip of her boot lodged sideways in the crevice between two of the wet boulders and she lost her footing. Elise panicked, hearing the sound of her torso hitting the rock. It sounded like the cracking of a whip followed by a wet slap.
Erik moved to get out of the water and help, but she held her hand out for him to stay put. Shaking her head to straighten out the bank, Elise watched the bridge carefully. The guard still had his back to her. Too scared to rise, she stayed on her belly and groped down for the boot. The tip of it was too lodged to break free. Not daring to take her eyes off the soldier she blindly groped for the buckles of her boot and flicked them off with the swiftness of a master thief. The twisting tension was relieved when she slipped her foot out.
The guard began to turn in her direction. Elise moved across the rock on her belly with such an urgency she hardly paid any mind to the scrapes the rocks were leaving across her neck and forearm. The guard was just facing their direction when she plopped into the water with a tiny splash, falling in face first. He craned his neck forward, squinting to try to make out where the sound had come from.
The water was still. Wide-eyed, Elise leaned her back against the large boulder that jutted out from the bank, terrified to even breathe, Rygor and Erik on either side. They were safely protected from the soldier’s view by the large rock and remained perfectly still until he finally looked away, heading to the other side of the bridge.
Elise did not even hear Rimball enter the bay and almost yelped when his head bobbed out of the water right in front of her. Her face felt hot when the hunter lifted his hand out of the water, holding her abandoned boot. Embarrassed, she took it and followed his lead as they skirted the banks.
Every time a soldier turned in their direction, they had to find shelter. Sometimes that meant splitting up into pairs. They came to the ford of rocks and used them as cover to make their way east, deeper into the lake and further away from the soldiers’ watch.
Elise counted eight more of Fafnir’s men as they moved through the water. Her legs were getting tired, and the water was growing colder by the minute. Rygor’s lips were turning a pale blue and trembling. She realized her fingers were numb when she saw her hand touching a large rock but felt nothing.
Rimball gave them a signal. “Just a little farther.” She nodded, her neck uncontrollably stuttering three more times before she gained control and followed.
They had to pass a couple more of the low land bridges, remaining under cover of the river boulders before getting to a point where the walkways were tall enough to swim underneath. All they had to do was get under them, and the rest of the passage should be easy sailing. The only problem was that a soldier kept lookout on either side of their entry point.
Rimball worked as a lookout, carefully watching as the men patrolled the bridge, looking past where the companions tread water, far in the distance to the plains and woods beyond. He gave the signal and they made a beeline for the bridge.
As soon as they were underneath, Elise hugged one of the wooden posts, relishing the reprieve it brought to her aching limbs. She did not even care that the green slimy residue clung to her clothing, though it stank like rotten fish. They all rested for a moment, using the beams as support to gather their strength.
“What’s next?” Erik asked.
“We will pass right beneath their feet, completely undetected,” Elise said.
When they set out again, keeping under cover of the bridge, they had to work in a straight line to remain hidden beneath the narrow walkway. Coming to the next soldier, Elise was surprised to see another guard had joined him. They were discussing the assignment. One of them was complaining about having to be all the way out here, insisting the villagers could not have gotten this far.
Elise cursed their luck. The path was blocked by horizontal support beams that connected the posts in an x formation. There was no way they were getting through without making a lot of noise in the water. Rimball pointed at them then made a circle with his fingers, directing their attention to the edge of the posts. They were going to have to skirt the beams to get by! It seemed like sheer madness with two guards patrolling right above them. All one of the men had to do was glance over the rail, and they would be caught. But there was no other choice.
“Hey, if the magistrate says get it done,” one of the soldiers said, spitting over the edge of the walkway, “then we get it done.”
“Still, seems like a waste of our time to be all the way out here when what we should be doing is combing the woods for them traitors,” the other replied. The deep-voiced man looked like a weasel, but he flared his nostrils and twisted up his face at his partner’s disgusting habit.
Rygor was the first to go, silently swimming around the post. Elise almost groaned when she saw how wide a circuit he made. Fortunately, neither guard seemed to pay any mind. Once on the other side of the support, Rygor looked back to see Erik holding his fist up over the water and biting his lip. He shrugged and motioned for Erik to follow.
“It would take us weeks to search those woods,” the soldier countered. “Besides, I bet this beats having dungeon duty, like your buddy Ralph.”
Erik slithered around the post, keeping his body tightly pressed against it. He did not see the jagged piece of wood beneath the water until it caught his leg. The edge of it tore his pants and cut a gash in the side of his calf. Erik flinched back out of reflex, splashing the water behind him. Elise almost hissed.
“What was that?” the other man said. When the soldier leaned over the rail to check the water, Elise held her breath. There was nothing there but bubbles and rings of water where Erik had been. The gentle waves of the lake quickly wiped away the rings left in his wake.
“Wow, look at you, getting all spooked,” the soldier laughed, clapping the grim-faced man’s back and pointing to the spot over the side of the rail. “It’s probably just a fish, man, get a grip.”
On the other side of the cross beams a frazzled Erik slowly rose above the water.
The man grumbled and shook off his friend’s hand before pacing back to the center of the bridge. “You haven’t seen what I seen. Them rats from Riverbell are some sneaky bastards.”
“Ha, yeah yeah. You’re just bitter ‘cause you let that Logan Walker fella escape.”
“Shut up! What do you know?” the man snapped. “He was like a damned devil when he got the drop on us! Even took out big Remy.”
That seemed to impress the other soldier. “Wow…big Remy? Damn, that guy is one brute I wouldn’t want to get into a tangle with.”
Elise was next. She moved to the post on the opposite side, clinging to it and sneaking by without making any noise. Once they were all past the pair of soldiers, the group fell back into single line formation and worked east toward Milua Isle, safely under the cover of the bridges. The soldiers were all left behind now, but they still wanted to wait until they were far enough away before climbing up to the walkway, where their sudden presence would not raise suspicion.
“What was that guy talking about back there?” Erik asked. “How did he meet Logan?”
Elise shook her head. “I have no idea.”
Rimball suddenly stopped, raising his hand for them to wait. Elise scanned the cracks between the boards above them, trying to see where the soldier was. In a sudden bubbling froth, the water parted, and a ridged back drifted past, cutting between her and Rygor.
“C-croc…” Rygor said with trembling lips. She could see the whites of Rimball’s eyes under the bridge, and he slowly pressed a finger against his lips. The crocs were blind lake monsters, relying on their hearing and sense of smell to hunt the primordial waters of Malbec. Rygor shook his twitching head.
The croc moved like a silent blade cutting through the water. It was the king of predators in this terrain. To the casual observer it might appear as though some wooden flotsam with mushrooms growing on it was floating by. But when you are neck-deep, treading water as one of the large reptiles swam past, there was no doubting that you were in the presence of a croc.
The ridged back disappeared under the surface.
Erik looked as though he might lose his mind. “M-my…m-my c-cut,” he managed to whisper.
The words hit Elise like a pail of ice cold water. Of course. Erik was bleeding in the water from his cut. The croc must have smelled it.
Rimball held a dagger in his palm and jabbed a finger straight up. They needed to get out of the water right away. Elise felt rough scales brush against her thigh. As the creature swam around her, she involuntarily shuddered, stifling a scream. Rimball snapped his fingers at the terrified group, gathering their attention. He pointed two fingers at his eyes then jabbed the dagger up toward the bridge again, more forcefully this time. Elise nodded. She could not help pinching her eyes shut as she forced herself to swim over to the post, fearing that the reptile would clamp down on her body at any moment.
Rimball jammed his dagger into the post. Once it was secure, he pulled another from his belt and used them to scale the slick beam. The old wiry hunter was up and over the rail in a heartbeat, holding his arm out to help Rygor.
Elise did not open her eyes again until her knuckles ran into the post. Her gaze darted back and forth over the surface of the water, looking for the croc. Erik had not moved an inch.
“Erik,” Elise hissed, “you need to get out of there.”
The proud hunter was barely able to manage shaking his head. He was terrified. If he moved, the wound would bleed more, and the croc, which responded to sound and smell, would sense it.
“Look at me,” Elise said. Erik tried but could not manage to move his stiff neck. “Look at me, Erik,” she repeated, emphasizing each word.
He began to turn his neck, flinched back in place, then moved again so that his bloodshot eyes finally found her own.
From her pack, Elise pulled the bundle of fabric she had cut off her skirts a couple days before. She made silent motions to show him what to do, unsure whether the face Erik made meant he did not understand or that he had just peed himself. She chose to believe it was the former. “Wrap this around your wound so it doesn’t bleed into the water,” she said, dangling the fabric. Erik nodded.
Elise tossed the bunched cloth to him, but it fell short by a foot. When the fabric plopped onto the surface, the croc lunged. She could not help screaming upon seeing the long, snapping jaws break the surface. The croc’s entire head was above water, thrashing about violently on the fabric, thinking it had caught its prey.
“Milady, you must stop screaming!” Rimball insisted.
Elise looked up. The hunter was reaching over the rail with an outstretched hand, urging her to grab ahold. She had not even realized she was still screaming and promptly clamped her mouth shut.
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