Author's Note:
Unbeta'ed, like always. I think I might be anti-beta…I just refuse for some reason.
I have no excuse for being so delayed at updating. None. A lot of stuff has been going on but not enough to really justify the neglect. I just took a break. I'm sorry to all my readers!
Just a warning about this chapter, it's very dialogue heavy. There was a lot more information that I needed to get out in this one than I anticipated.
Hope you enjoy, and as always thanks for your support and patience!
Sacrifice
Chapter VII
The sky outside the castle windows seemed darker than normal to David. The winter nights were growing longer and becoming almost disorienting. Ironically enough, when time was of the essence, he had no idea the hour. He quickened his pace as he moved swiftly through the halls of the castle.
In the short time that passed since deciding to trade Lenne for Qubine, he and the generals had been forced to immediately make several key decisions. They'd held a meeting which they had intended to be brief, but had run so long that David could not help but feel aggravated. They had decided to send a messenger to the Sykes in Eulam. The message contained questions for John and Marina regarding Lenne's history with the Academy. They knew they would not receive a reply before the meeting over the river, but now that they were aware of her existence as well as what David felt was only a small bit of her knowledge, they needed everything they could gather. And although Emmy was not pleased and David felt a pang of guilty, they neglected to mention that Rush's necklace had been sent to them. Torgal had been able to convince them to do so after pointing out how damaging it could be if the public found out that Rush's necklace had been in the possession of a violent rebel group.
"We can't inform the public of everything, and an uninformed public is sure to draw conclusions of their own. We have to keep the return of that necklace under wraps, even from the Dukes," Torgal had said, raising his voice over the debate that was occurring over the issue. His words quickly put an end to all arguing.
The main discussion, as well as the main reason the meeting had been so lengthy, was choosing a strategy for their last interrogation of Lenne. Torgal and Blocter had immediately begun this discussion between themselves.
"We could use her family," Torgal had suggested almost immediately. It seemed as if this was not the first time the idea had crossed his mind.
"We still know nothin' about 'er family," replied Blocter.
"I know, but she doesn't know that we are still completely in the dark. We could use it to pressure her."
"How so?" David had asked. Although he didn't intend it, the tone of his voice was challenging.
"Threaten to have them detained and brought in, etcetera," replied Torgal coolly, turning from Blocter toward the rest of the group.
"If we're wrong in the assumption she has family, or has family that she cares for, the whole endeavor will be ruined," Pagus objected. David's eyes had lowered to meet his, and Pagus gave him a small nod that was almost undetectable.
"Pagus is right," David said, drawing all eyes to him. "I think we should contemplate a different strategy."
"Do you have an idea?" asked Emmy hesitantly. David breathed a small sigh before continuing. He steeled his voice and willingly let authority seep into it. He didn't want to be argued with.
"I'd like to question her myself, alone, and not in her cell."
"What exactly are you thinking?" Torgal asked, taking a step closer to David.
"Have the cooks bring food and wine up to the private dining room."
Blocter clenched his fists and burst out, "Yer gonna have dinner with her? With that scum?"
"I think our best bet is to attempt to change her alliance. She seems to be the brains of the Rebellion, not the force. They mounted an attack on Celapaleis without her there. She's a researcher - I doubt she even has a day of combat training. That's not her purpose in the Rebellion," David replied, annoyed at having to further defend his position.
"If she's smart she'll realize she could profit better from us," Pagus added.
"We don't even know what she's after," Emmy interjected.
"It doesn't matter. A rebel force being sought for treason by every nation on the continent doesn't stand a chance."
That had been the end of the discussion. David had returned to his quarters while preparations in the dining room had been made and Lenne brought up and secured in the room. He'd gone to the sink and cupped his hands under the faucet. The water was cold, another sign of the approaching splashed it onto his face, which felt unusually warm, and dried his skin. As he lowered the towel, he looked at himself in the mirror. His cheeks looked abnormally pink, and his hair was a bit disheveled.
He straightened his hair quickly and exited back into his private chambers. He shed his Athlum coat of arms which was quickly followed by the shirt beneath. As he did so, he heard the familiar jingle of Rush's chain. The sound caused him to pause for the length of a heartbeat, and soothed his nerves a bit. He quickly grabbed a clean black shirt from his closet and grabbed his coat from the floor. He carried it draped over his arm as he left the room.
When he reached the dining room, Torgal was standing in front of the door.
"Lord David," the sovani began upon seeing him approach. David did not speak, and stopped directly in front of Torgal. This placed the general between him and the door. He raised his eyes to meet Torgal's, keeping his face smooth and neutral. When their eyes met, Torgal surprised David and did something exceedingly rare.
He hesitated. His ears flattened against his head and he broke his eye contact with David. "You must know I don't like this idea very much, but after giving it some though I think you are right." David's expression softened at the words. "Just be careful," Torgal added, his eyes meeting David's and openly showing his worry.
"I will," David replied simply, a small smile crossing his face. Torgal returned the smile ever so slightly, yet it seemed to be produced more by nerves than relief.
"I'll come in when it's time for us to leave." With that, Torgal stepped aside and allowed David to let himself in to the dining room.
The room was a small yet warm space. The rich maroon colors on the walls were accompanied by furniture of dark wood. Since this room had been intended for small, private dinners and not formal entertaining, the décor of the room was relatively simple. A dining table surrounded by eight chairs filled the center of the room and took of most of the usable space. The only other furniture in the room was a liquor cabinet in one of the corners. In the center of the table, a gold-plated vase stood holding red roses. On the walls in the spaces between the few windows of the room were similar vases holding more roses. The only light in the room at this time of day were the six small torches that were also perched along the walls. They gave the room a pleasant glow.
Lenne sat in the chair to the right of the head of the table. As he'd entered the room his eyes had caught hers immediately, and he could feel them on him after he had looked away. He closed the door behind him and went to stand opposite her, across the table. His eyes swept over her quickly, noticing changes since the last time he had seen her. Her jaw was swollen and discolored from where Emmy had hit her, a small cut in the middle of the angry purple and black bruising. The wound to her head that she had arrived with looked to be healing slowly. Her hair had been cleaned and brushed, and she had also been given a clean change of clothes. She wore a simple white blouse that looked too big for her body, and a dark skirt made of a material that looked as if it'd be quite itchy to wear.
Their eyes met again and for a moment neither of them spoke. David placed his hands on the chair back in front of him and leaned forward onto it, considering her for a moment. He had not decided on a plan for earning her loyalty, but Pagus' words had given him the confidence that it was possible. He had never particularly tried to be anything other than himself before now to earn peoples' trust, and he told himself to do that here.
Don't think about who she is or what she has, he told himself.
"Please, eat," he told her, motioning to the meal in front of her. "Would you like some wine?" He asked, leaving the table to walk to the liquor cabinet. He opened it and withdrew a bottle without looking at the label. He turned back to the table and reached over to pour her a glass, then one for himself. He set the bottle down on the table between them and took his seat at the head. As he lowered himself into his chair he noticed the hilt of his sword poking out from underneath a dark cloth on the chair adjacent to him. It was laid across the two neighboring chairs and hidden from sight when the chairs were pushed in fully. Torgal… He quickly looked away from it. Looking back at her, he saw that with the exception of her eyes, she had not moved an inch since he entered the room.
Pretend she's normal. Pretend she's Irina, he thought to himself as he took a drink of wine. He replaced his glass on the table and leaned back in his chair, releasing a sigh. His eyes fell on her again and saw she was looking at his wine glass. He watched her eyes flick between his glass and hers before she seemed to finally decide to drink it. She lifted her hands above the table from her lap, and David saw for the first time that her wrists were bound together. With only a few inches of slack between her wrists she was forced to reach for her goblet with both hands.
Well, there goes pretending.
In an attempt to distract himself from staring at her, he quickly looked down at his plate. It was piled high with grilled vegetables, rice and roasted fowl of some kind. He didn't realize until then how hungry he was; he had not eaten since the evening before the Celapaleian messenger had arrived in the middle of the night. He suspected it was now not far from sunrise, although the long nights of winter had him slightly disoriented about the time.
Picking up his fork and knife he began to cut the bird into smaller pieces, feeling her eyes on him the entire time. After slicing a few pieces he raised one to his mouth and then raised his eyes to meet hers again. She had made no motion to eat the food in front of her.
"You must be hungry," he said, motioning again towards the plate in front of her.
"I switched our plates," she said suddenly. "Before you came in."
His brow furrowed as he looked at her. "Why?" He quickly stabbed another piece of meat and put it into his mouth, not breaking eye contact with her. "Did mine have more on it?" David replied, seizing the opportunity to break the ice. He could easily predict the reaction she expected, so he gave her quite the opposite.
She continued to stare at him as he popped food into his mouth, her eyes wider than usual, before the corners of her mouth finally tugged slightly upward in a smile. "No," she said, shaking her head. She snorted, amused, before finally picking up her fork.
David looked down at his plate and smiled inwardly to himself. He'd lowered her defenses, even if only a little, quicker than he'd thought. He looked back up to see her raise a vegetable to her mouth and her eyes slid closed involuntarily. They ate in silence for another moment before she spoke.
"Why are you doing this?"
David remained silent, his mind working rapidly at how to handle this. He felt that it was indeed possible for him to win her over, but with a quick glance at the window over her shoulder he saw the sky turning the slightest bit purple. His stomach turned as he realized he'd been wrong about how much time he had. He had to tread carefully.
"It's…" he started, taking a deliberate pause. Her weakness seems to be you, Pagus' words echoed in his head. "It's complicated."
"It doesn't seem like something that should be complicated," she said, only half paying attention to her words. She was struggling to maneuver her utensils.
"No it shouldn't be," he said, setting down his fork and knife with a clatter and rising from his chair. Something in his tone caused all her muscles to freeze. It almost seemed as if there was an edge of a threat present in his voice. As he moved to her side and barely within her peripheral vision, she felt her heart begin to race.
She closed her eyes, willing herself to take a deep breath and calm down. She could barely keep her hands from shaking. When she felt his hands on hers, her eyes flew open to see that he was gently removing the fork and knife from her hands. She watched as he dragged her plate sideways towards himself, and began to slice the meat into small pieces.
"What do you want?" She asked. His touch on her hands had had a sobering effect. She knew she could not afford to lower her defenses around him.
"I'd like us to be able to work together," he replied simply.
"You know my aim is to overthrow you."
"I don't really think so," he replied, cocking his head slightly to the side. "The Rebellion, yes, that's their goal, they've made that very clear. But you," he said, turning to face her, their faces less than a foot apart. "That's not why you're here."
"It's not, is it?" she replied, her voice taking on the edge of hostility it had when she had first been detained. There was also a hint of vulnerability though. David pushed further.
"You're old Academy, we know that. You were working on a project that was kept secret from not only the public but the Congress as well. Something that I'm guessing very few others know about. It's not very hard to then assume you're manipulating the Rebellion into attacking the cities whose vaults contain old Academy files to steal something from them. Something you want."
David had watched her face as her lips had pressed together to form a thin line. He knew he had struck a nerve in her. Neither of them moved for a long moment, her eyes burning into his.
"Want to know what I think?" She asked, leaning closer to him. He did not back away. "You aren't doing this for Athlum and we both know it."
It was all he could do to keep his face even and stony. The moment of weakness he had shown down in her cell had not been forgotten. As his mind began to spin around the question of how much she could know about Rush and his time spent in Athlum, she leaned even closer to him, her chin passing his as her lips came within inches of his ear.
"You want him back."
"And what do you want?" David asked breathlessly, his head turning to the side the slightest degree. He felt the hair off his temple being bent forward as it brushed her forehead. His stomach began to summersault as his skin prickled at her proximity.
"What's in those vaults that you want so badly?" He drew back slowly, his eyes locking with hers unblinkingly. He watched the change in her face carefully. Her knowing smirk had slid away as it was replaced by a look of contemplation.
"I think we could work together." He repeated again as he rose finally from her side, and turned towards the window behind her.
"How?" She asked after what felt like an eternity of silence.
"That depends," he replied, keeping his back to her.
"On?"
"Is he alive?"
Silence. He turned back to her. He was caught off guard by her expression – it was one of sadness. He felt his chest tighten painfully at the sight.
"I don't know," she finally said quietly. "It's been almost two years since I saw him."
He sighed, placing his hands on his hips. "It's alright. I think he is. Listen," he lowered himself back to her eye level.
"You make it so I can see him again, and I'll give you whatever you want."
Her eyes widen and locked with his. "It's not possible."
"What? Finding him or giving you what you want?"
"They're one and the same."
"Rush is your goal then?" David asked, trying his best to not sound territorial.
"No, the means are the same."
David let loose an exasperated sigh. "This will never work if you don't trust me."
"This would never work anyway. Even if I agreed, are you going to help me raid Elysion? And your own vaults? No. And why should I trust you? I could tell you what's going on and you could throw me back in that hole. Or let the sovani have a go at torturing me, or-"
"Stop being ridiculous."
His words silenced her. She recoiled slightly away from him and pressed her lips back into a thin line. He could feel that she was becoming torn on what to do. The thought crossed his mind that she must have never been very loyal to the Rebellion in the first place.
"You know you can trust me because I do want him back, very much so. So why not work with me and not have to fear for your life?"
The question seemed suspended in the air.
"What if someone else were to beat you to what you're after?"
He knew as soon as the words left his mouth that he had won. Her shoulders slumped and he saw her begin to bite her lower lip. He moved back to his chair and lowered himself into it. He placed his elbows on the armrests and brought his hands together, fingertips lightly touching as he watched her and waited.
He could guess at what her mind was doing. As soon as the idea of cooperating with him had formed, she had involuntarily begun to consider the steps that would occur after that. She imagined not being back in that cell. Not being held prisoner. Succeeding in her quest, whatever it may be. Being able to return to a normal life someday. Imagining these things made continuing down her fugitive path seem bleak and uninviting.
Once these thoughts penetrate the mind, they are almost impossible to cast off.
"Fine."
His eyes lifted to look at her. Her gaze was downcast and unfocused. His eyes stayed on her a long moment, the finality of the word sinking in. Looking beyond her, David noticed the sun had just peeked above the horizon. He wondered if it was coincidence.
"Good."
She took a deep breath and let out a long, drawn out sigh. "Now what?"
"Now, we talk. I'm of the impression that this endeavor is going to take a great deal of planning."
She chuckled half heartedly at him, shaking her head. "You have no idea. What about the generals? They will not trust me, especially the Yama."
"Leave that to me. Now, let's start again from the beginning. Is Lenne really your name?"
She looked perplexed by the question. "Of course."
"Really? I think the generals might have had some bets rolling as to if you were lying or not," he said, smirking at her.
"It doesn't really matter since the Congress decided to destroy all the files concerning my identity."
"It was to protect you. And your co-workers."
"And it's been biting you in the ass the last few days, hasn't it?" David decided to ignore the subject and move on. He began with simple questions.
"So you are indeed old Academy?"
"Yes."
"How high up were you?"
"Very."
"What was the nature of the project that was so highly confidential?"
At this she leaned back in her chair, her hands grasping her wine glass. She stared down into it for a moment before replying. "You sure you're ready for this?"
"Ready for what exactly?"
"To have what you thought you knew turned upside down."
"About the Academy?" David asked quickly. He could feel his pulse start to quicken at the thought that he was finally about to learn what was behind the Rebellion and Lenne.
"About the remnants."
He did not immediately grasp the meaning of her response. "What about them? They were destroyed."
"You so sure about that? You were quick to believe Rush is alive."
"Rush is an exception. He's human as well as a descendant of Marion Marshall."
"No, you don't understand."
"So you're saying he's dead?" David asked, raising his voice.
As he watched, he saw her slowly begin to shake her head from side to side. "They're all alive."
"How can that be?" David burst out, unable to help himself. "They should be dead."
"They're alive for the same reason Rush is alive. They have pieces of human souls within them. The souls they leeched from when they were bound in this world. Those souls sustained them through what happened two years ago. They are now all together, weakened, but alive."
"How do you know this?"
"From my work. And from what I saw the last time I saw Rush. It took me months after that time to piece together what everything meant. But I think I understand it all now." Her eyes were cast towards a space on the table, but they were unfocused again. He could almost see her mind racing.
Without thinking, he reached over the table to place his hand on her shoulder. She jumped slightly, brought out of her thoughts by his touch.
"Tell me," he told her, his voice softening. She nodded slowly, and he removed his hand from her shoulder.
"I was a research team leader at the Academy. Our work was classified, with even other members of the Academy outside the team unaware of what we were working on. Our research focused not on the discovery of remnants, but the creation of new ones. There seemed to be a finite number of them in the world, and it was feared that most had already been found. That made it very desirable to find a way to manufacture them."
David settled back into his chair. He indeed had never been aware of such a program at the Academy. He remained silent while she spoke, trying to absorb everything she said.
"This raised the inevitable question of where the remnants came from. We looked at everything; we tried to find patterns in their locations around the world and tried unsuccessfully to perform tests on their composition, before eventually turning to documents in the archives. Everything else had failed us until then. The tests attempted on the remnants always proved inconclusive or would randomly be riddled with errors. They were useless no matter what we tried.
We all knew the folktales we were told when we were younger; that the remnants descended from the sky. If that were indeed the case, then manufacturing a remnant was thought to be impossible. So the team as a whole worked with the assumption that they had to be organic of the planet, and that they could be made. And so we began experimenting."
"And what did you discover?"
"A place that we believed to be a remnant graveyard of sorts."
"How did you find it?"
"Completely by accident. In an attempt to create an artifact to manufacture a remnant, we managed to create one that took us there."
"And you went there?"
"Multiple times. "
"And why did you think it was a graveyard?"
She rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed. "I was getting there, if you'd stop with the questions," she replied. David straightened his back and cleared his throat, and although he felt in a normal conversation an apology would be appropriate, he denied it to this one.
"This idea was supported by the remnants we saw there," she continued. "We had seen them before, not on the planet, but in drawings and sketches in the archives. They were dated hundreds of years ago."
She paused then, leaning back in her chair and absentmindedly rotating her wine glass on its rim.
"What did it look like?"
"It's a desert of grey sand. The sky is just as grey and it is always lightning and thundering. It's a storm that never clears."
David felt as if the wind had been knocked out of him. He remembered the dream he'd had in his office – of waking up in a strange, desolate land and searching frantically for Rush.
"What is it?" her voice broke into his reverie. She had noticed his face go pale.
"Nothing," he said, shaking his head. "Is this where you saw Rush? Where he gave you the necklace?"
"Yes."
"Did he say anything to you?"
She shook her head. "Only a little. I was in a hurry, we knew that the Congressional team that was dissolving the Academy was on its way to the lab, and I did not want to explain to them what we had been up to."
"You travelled there knowing that they were en route? They only had to walk across the city."
"Time flows differently there. Days there is only a few moments here." David's heart ached at the thought. What had been two years for him had been years…possibly decades for Rush.
"Why didn't you bring him back with you?"
"The artifact that I used to travel there wasn't powerful enough to transport two. I had tried to bring my assistant with me before to conduct research, but it always failed. We then spent time researching on two fronts – one was the graveyard, and one on increasing the power of the artifact. I prohibited the other researchers from using the artifact, both as a precaution for the security of the research and to help motivate them to find a way to improve its power."
The sun had now completely risen above the horizon. It bathed the room in a soft light and began to warm away the chill of the night that had been in the room. David had failed to noticed, too drawn in by Lenne's story.
"I went there once," she began again quietly, "to study a specific dormant remnant when I noticed some glyphs on the surface of it. Against my better judgment, I reached out and touched them. They began to glow and became blisteringly hot to touch," she extended her left hand, and David could see burn scars across her fingertips.
"As I stood there the sand beneath me dispersed to the sides, as if someone had blown it across a tabletop. The very ground below me disappeared but I didn't fall. I just stood there, suspended on nothing, looking down at this world. Just as suddenly the remnant began to shake violently and then plummeted toward the planet, like an arrow from a bow. I watched it rocket toward the planet and saw it land near the northern coast."
"No…" David breathed, realization dawning on him. She nodded.
"Duke Ghor had no problem accepting the Academy's request to begin a search for a new remnant in the world. Whatever democratic bullshit he came up with worked, didn't it?"
"You spawned the Fornstrand remnant?" David asked, his voice filled with disbelief.
She only nodded. David fell into silence then, trying to take in everything that had been said. In the back of his mind, he also began to formulate a plan.
"Was your research into strengthening the artifact successful?"
"We completed something that we thought might augment its power, but-" Her words were cut off by the door to the dining room opening.
"My Lord," Torgal said, bowing his head slightly as he entered the room. "We can't wait any longer. We have to make preparation to depart."
David immediately stood. Lenne's gaze began to dart between his and Torgal's faces.
"Come," David said, moving to her side and hooking an arm under her elbow. "We have to go."
"Go where?" she asked, her voice quivering slightly. "David?"
He did not look at her as they walked through the castle, Lenne having to almost jog to keep up with Torgal's brisk pace. As they reached the doors to the stables, David stopped short with her as Torgal continued out the doors.
"Listen to me," he whispered, leaning close to her. "The Rebellion has captured Lord Qubine. We've agreed to trade you for him. Do they know what you know?" His eyes locked with hers. When she didn't answer, he pushed her forcedly up against the wall, out of sight of their awaiting entourage. "Are they after the artifact like you are?"
"They're after it," she replied, fear in her eyes. "But they don't know that it's for transportation nor how to use it. They just think it will bring back the remnants so they can use them against you."
"Alright. Now, I need you to understand three things. If you ever want what is in Athlum's vaults, then you will remain loyal to me. I will give him up and kill you if you betray us."
She nodded frantically. This time when he made the threat on her life, she believed him.
"The second is I need you to keep up appearances that we're not cooperating. There may be spies within this castle and if they know you're helping me, it makes you a target. And you're no use to me dead. We'll retrieve you as soon as we can. You never told us anything, got it?"
"Okay," she replied. "And the third thing?"
David grabbed her arm again and pulled her away from the wall and into the entryway. "I need to keep up appearances too."
He pulled her into the stable yard and threw her to the ground. She landed hard on her shoulder and cried out in pain at the impact.
"Tie her up. Let's go."
"My Lord," Torgal said, walking over to him. David turned to meet him, walking away from Lenne without looking at her. Blocter moved towards her and hoisted her up by her bound hands. David heard her give out another cry of pain at her shoulder being jostled, but he did his best to not acknowledge it.
"There's been a collapse," Torgal began. Everything else immediately disappeared from David's mind.
"Where?" he asked.
"Melphina."
David sighed, rubbing his face with his hands. "Send Blocter."
"Sir, Blocter is leading anti-Rebellion operations-"
"Then send Emmy with five hundred soldiers."
"Yes sir," Torgal replied. He turned away from David and walked to Emmy as David mounted his horse. He saw Emmy nod to Torgal and then turn to him, saluting before heading back towards the castle.
"Pagus will remain in Athlum," Torgal told him as he mounted his own horse next to David.
"That's fine," David replied. As they turned to exit the castle grounds, David cast a look over his shoulder. Lenne's hands were being bound to her horse, which would be escorted the trip by Blocter.
"Did you manage to get any information from her?" Torgal asked as the party began to move forward.
"Very little, and I believe it all a lie. We'll discuss it later."
The caravan did not stop until dusk was settling over the land. The bridge was less than an hour from the clearing in which they stopped. Torgal and Blocter had decided to set up a secure, temporary camp here while scouts ventured ahead to survey the situation. They sent soldiers in a wide circle out to the river's edge, checking for signs of an ambush or trap.
David dismounted his horse gratefully and began to pace around the camp, stretching his legs. The winter's cold was seeping through his skin, and they had decided against making a fire to try to draw as little attention as possible. Lenne was bound to a tree and blindfolded. Although David knew the precautions unnecessary, he could not stop Blocter from treating her so. He worried that he Rebellion had members hidden amongst his ranks, and did not want to give the slightest inclination that she was now, he hoped, his ally instead of theirs.
A few hours after darkness settled, the scouts returned and reported no abnormalities in the woods.
"Send a few archers to go far north of here, cross the river, then poise themselves overlooking the bridge. Tell them to fire first if they see signs of snipers on the other side of the river." Torgal ordered some of the troops. David was thankful that he was taking command of the situation. David had now not slept in over a day and it was becoming hard to focus his mind.
After another short wait, the party began to move towards the bridge, leaving their horses tied at their temporary camp with only a few guards. Everyone else moved through the trees on foot. David began to feel his pulse quicken when he realized he could hear the rushing sound of the river out in the darkness.
The bridge came into view quicker than he had expected. The bridge had been built three generations ago and arched gracefully over the river below. For many years it had been a major route for merchants travelling between cities. It had fallen into disuse though, after a wider, more stable bridge had been built a few miles downriver.
Coming closer to it, David could finally see across to the other side. There he saw a group of approximately thirty people, all wearing masks to hide their faces. Near the front, a large man held the elbow of who David assumed to be Qubine. He wore Celapaleis' royal colors, but a bag of black cloth obscured his face. Although David could not tell for sure, there were dark stains that seemed to be blood covering his shoulder.
Blocter grabbed Lenne forcibly by the elbow and dragged her forward. David heard her give a whimper of pain from behind the gag in her mouth, which he assumed was caused by her shoulder. As they reached the edge of the bridge Blocter stepped out onto it first, and it gave a loud creak under the yama's weight. Lenne tried to dig her heels into the ground in protest of following him onto the wooden planks, but he had little trouble in forcing her forward. David closed his eyes, trying to suppress the guilt welling inside him.
Across the bridge, the large man holding Qubine stepped forward. David's eyes flew open at the sound of their footsteps on the bridge. When both parties had crossed a third of the way, the Rebellion man held up his hand.
"Stop there," he called, and Blocter and Lenne came to a halt. "Send her across."
"After we see his face," Blocter growled back at the man. The man reached over without hesitation and ripped the hood off the man's head. Qubine's eyes blinked furiously, trying to adjust from being in the dark for so long, and then finally met David's across the river. David could almost feel the relief that he saw sweep through the teenager's eyes.
The man pushed Qubine forward harshly, and Blocter at the same time released Lenne. Both of them moved forward hesitantly, tensing as they neared each other. Qubine stared intently at her face as she passed him, while her eyes did not leave the ground. When Qubine was close enough Blocter reached out an enormous hand and placed it on his back, guiding him hastily across the rest of the bridge.
David's eyes turned to the far side of the river. Lenne was being lifted onto the back of a horse by another man in a mask. As she slid in behind him he turned backwards to face her and raised a hand to her face. David felt a fire flare angrily in his stomach as he watched the man tenderly caress her face where Emmy had hit her.
"David…" Qubine's voice drew his attention back to his side of the river. Qubine was at his side and reaching out to David. David reached out to grasp his hand, but Qubine pulled David to him and squeezed his shoulders tightly.
"Thank you David," Qubine said into his shoulder.
"Of course," David said, pulling away from the embrace. "You'd do the same for me." He inspected Qubine's face, seeing bruises that looked like they were a day or so old.
"Did you fight back against the bastards?" David asked, patting the teen on the shoulder.
"As best I could," Qubine replied, a small smile crossing his face.
"Come, let us leave quickly," Torgal interjected, and everyone turned to walk back through the forest. David moved slower than the rest and fell slightly behind, affording himself one last glance across the river. No one lingered there; it was if they had vanished into the night.
