Tris got to her feet as the cart lurched to a halt. She looked around and
noticed a cloaked figure standing at the back of the cart, by the gate. By
the look of the muscled body under the cloak, he was male. The girl
scrambled into a corner as the man unlocked the gate and hopped up into the
wagon. He pulled his hood back to reveal a beautiful face framed with long
golden hair. He took a step towards Tris and the young woman tried to push
herself farther into the corner.
"Come on, its okay. Come with me Tris." His voice was strong but kind. She met his eyes and suddenly she could not say no. She walked towards him as he took a few steps closer to her. They embraced like long lost friends, her eyes never leaving his gorgeous blue-green ones. "Let's go," he said.
He hopped down to the hard dirt road they were on and offered his hand to her. Tris hesitated, but grasped his hand and came down when he made a small gesture with his head. Their eyes broke contact for a moment and all of the girl's fears came rushing back to her. She tried to pull away from him, but felt his arm reach around her waist to pull her back to him. He lifted her chin and forced her to look into his eyes. Tris knew immediately that she would do anything for this man.
"Grab your things and we will go," he ordered. She clambered back on to the cart and searched in the hay for her package of belongings. Finding them, she climbed back down to meet him. The man grabbed the things from her and stuffed them into an unknown pocket in the interior of his cloak. He grasped her wrist and pulled her along. He led her through a large field and stopped at an old shack in the middle of the field, and Tris knew she would not have noticed it if he had not pointed it out.
"Who are you?" she asked suddenly. He raised his eyebrow and smirked.
"You shall find out soon enough my dear," he replied. The man made a series of gestures in front of the door and mumbled something under his breath. There was an audible click and he pushed the rusty door open. A dimly lit hallway with many doors down its sides met their eyes. He led her inside and Tris heard the door close behind them with a creak. She followed him all the way down the hall until they had almost reached the far wall. He turned unexpectedly and tugged her along. They went all the way down that corridor and came to a halt at a large door on the right hand side. Once again the man mumbled something under his breath, and waved his hands around. This time he leaned down to touch his lips to the doorknob before he opened it. A blazing violet light and stale air rose to Tris's senses. The man stepped inside and motioned for her to follow. He sat her down in a seat behind an oaken table. Tris now noticed that the source of the bright purple light came from a globe that hovered above the table. The girl gazed into the ball, entranced.
Suddenly the light within began to throb, pulsing with magnificent brightness. Each beat became brighter and brighter until Tris was forced to shut her eyes. She heard a scrambling of feet behind her and opened her eyes. She gasped at the beautiful sight glowing in the ball in front of her, and her world went black.
~***~
Cursing, Briar bent to retrieve his dagger from the floor of his bedroom. C'mon now, I just have to get this right. I am so out of practice. He made himself resume the en garde position, and went on with his practice. Each swipe became more fluent and easy as he worked. Thrust, lunge, drop, roll, parry, and repeat. The motions became better with each moment, though he grew tired. He wiped his weary brow with a dirty sleeve. I just need to get this down. I am such a coward. Its my fault Tris is gone. It's my fault we lost our power and Lark got hurt. I was so out of practice, I should have known what to do. I-
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. He turned to see a petite young woman with brown curls and lovely hazel eyes standing in his doorway.
"Can I come in?" the girl asked quietly.
"Oh sure Sandry, I was just practicing. Just in case, well, you know," he said. He motioned for her to sit on his mattress on the floor. Briar winced as the girl immediately began to straighten the disordered heap of blankets that the boy used. All his housemates had taken to calling it his nest, because of the way he curled up in them.
"Lark is doing better," Sandry told him softly. "She can eat now and is doing good regaining her strength. We still don't know what happened because she doesn't remember anything either." She toyed with the little brown pouch that hung around a string on her neck, a token of her friend's love that they had made. Daja, Tris, and Briar had all helped to trap a ball of light into a small crystal for Sandry after they had found out about her fear of darkness.
The girl looked up at him then back down at the floor. She sighed and started twiddling with one of her braids. After an awkward pause, Briar came to sit next to her. Without warning she burst into tears. Briar stared at her, startled for the moment, then leaned over to wrap a muscular arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him and hid her face in her hands.
"I'm sorry," she said through sniffles.
"No no, it's okay. I'm overwhelmed too. It's just too much to handle so soon. I understand, really," Briar said consolingly.
She lifted her head to give him a brief smile. She pushed away from him and sat up straight.
"Yes, maybe. But I still have no right to be so weak," said Sandry.
"Weak?! What do you mean? You have been a major help to all of us. Making bandages for the injured. Helping Lark to get well. Soothing everyone so they won't worry themselves into a stupor. Your great!" the young man cried, wrapping his arms around Sandry and hugging her tightly. The girl laughed lightly and pulled away. She smiled brightly at him, her green- brown eyes beaming.
"Thanks Briar, I don't know what I would do without you. You help me as much, if not more, than I help other people!" she replied. She reached over to hug him once more. As they pulled away from each other, their eyes met. They saw understanding within the other.
Briar leaned forward and pressed his lips to Sandry's. They held the kiss for a moment and then pulled away. They looked into each other's eyes, searching for something unknown. It was obviously found, for they embraced each other and kissed breathlessly. They had to disentangle for a moment to breathe, and were about to resume when they heard footsteps outside the doorway.
They pushed away from each other and moments later Daja Kisubo entered. She glanced from one red face to the other, concerned.
"What's wrong?" she asked. Both blushed and shook their heads.
"Oh nothing Daja, it's just hot outside. Briar was practicing his umm dagger-fighting thing and I was just trying to weave new bandages. I got frustrated so I came in here," Sandy said. Daja thought this liable, being as the temperature had risen drastically in the last few days. She went to seat herself between Sandry and Briar. They exchanged a wishful look and sighed together.
"You sure you guys are okay? Sandry? I know Lark has improved, that's good huh? And wait, why are you practicing with your daggers Briar? Did I miss something?" she asked. After a brief moment of silence, they all burst into a fit of laughter.
"You sound like someone I know Daja!" Briar said, glancing at the giggling Sandry. They all started laughing once more. After a few minutes their joy ceased and they sat there quietly.
"I miss Tris," said Sandry softly. They all sighed and nodded their heads. A call from Rosethorn saw them walking out the door of Briar's room glumly.
~***~
"What's this?" Lark asked as they all stomped into the kitchen. "You look like your walking to your doom!" she cried with a small giggle.
"Lark!" they all cried at once, running to greet her.
"Careful there! She's not completely healed yet!" Rosethorn said sharply. A smirk played at the corners of her mouth and she folded her arms, glaring at the three students whom she used to loom over.
A few years had changed that, and now the short and stocky woman was almost a head shorter than all, except Sandry. Her auburn hair was cropped close to her head. She grinned, teeth flashing, as they all took a step back.
"Oh its okay Rosie! The children just missed me is all! And how could they not?" Lark asked with a smile. Briar and the girls ran over to embrace Lark happily.
"But what are you doing out of bed? I saw you this morning and you didn't look as good as you do now! You were much more pale," Sandy said.
"Oh I had some of Rosethorn's tonic. That helped a lot," she replied. Rosethorn beamed and they all grinned. "I suppose I better be getting back to bed though, I'm getting weary. A little help dears?"
With help from Briar and Rosethorn, Lark managed to wobble her way into her bedroom. She was soon fast asleep, with the children all sitting next to her bedside.
~***~
Tris woke to rough hands shaking her. She sat up and blinked to let herself adjust to the darkness. She peered around at her surroundings. She was in a small cell with only a cot and a crate on which a candle and a few other things sat. She was laying on the bed with a tall, bulky man standing over her. His thin black hair was long and greasy and he looked, as though he had not had a bath in gods only knew how long. He glared down at her with his dark icy cold eyes.
"Get up and come with me," he barked.
"I uh –where am I? How long have I been asleep? Who are you?" she babbled.
"What's with the interrogation?" he asked. "You have been unconscious for about a month and my name in Raja Malacar."
She stood up and followed him out as he opened the cell door. Tris gaped openmouthed at him. A month? she thought. How could that be?
"A – a month?" she stammered. She stopped and he hauled her along.
"Yes a month, that spell was mighty powerful. Come on Miss, there's work to be done," he replied. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her along. He led her down a long dirt hallway. Stopping in front of a large steel door, the man pulled a ring full of keys out of his pocket. He searched for one briefly and used it to open the door.
Inside there was a wooden table much like the one the blazing ball of violet flame had been on. The room was made entirely of steel and other metals. Hanging on the rear wall was a number of chains and cuffs. To Tris' left there was a small child chained to the wall by her hands and feet. The girl's clothing was ripped and torn and the bodice she wore seemed to be made of a potato sack. Tris was immediately repulsed by the rancid smell coming from within. She was ordered to sit at the table where another youth was sitting opposite her.
The boy's face was pale and drawn. He looked sickly and undernourished. His light brown hair was short and greasy. He wore no shirt, and only loose fitting dirt caked breeches. His hands were laid across the table, palms up. A man standing next to him was tying his feet to his chair. The man then proceeded by chaining the young man's wrist to small holes in the table.
As Tris sat, she noticed small slits on the boy's upturned palms. She leaned forward over the table to take a closer peek at them. They weren't cuts, for they didn't appear to be bleeding, but rather small zigzagging marks from his middle finger to his wrist. The pattern was identical on either hand.
Tris watched numbly as the man came and restrained her in the same manner as the young man, then went out the door her and Raja had come in by.
"Okay lets get started shall we dears?" Raja asked, grinning evilly. He walked over to a shelf on the right wall, across from the manacled girl. Pulling a large book from it, he leafed through its yellowed pages. Stopping at one that obviously suited him, he set it in front of Tris.
On the page were a series of complex symbols in elaborate patterns.
The man pointed to a symbol and mumbled something. The pictured flared to life, blazing with bright fury. All in the room shut their eyes together tightly except Raja. His eyes were fixed on the glowing orb that had now risen off the page. The inside was a silvery light, streaked with spurs of gold. Suddenly a bolt of light jumped from the fiery sphere and jumped into the palms of Tris and the boy opposite her. To Tris, the fire felt only mildly warm, but the boy was now shaking violently as furious bolts of lightning fed into his palms. He didn't have very much room to move due to his restraints, but his head was bobbing back and forth as though he were a blade of grass and the wind slammed it first one way then another.
Tris was soon struggling for air as power flowed through her. As strong as it made her feel, it was constricting her airways and she could not hold it any longer. She imagined herself as a gale force wind and pushed out. Light exploded and she was knocked unconscious.
Trisana woke up in the cell she had been in earlier. On the floor beside her pallet was a tray filled with fruit, cheese and a pitcher of water. She suddenly realized her great thirst and rolled over to reach for the pitcher of water. She gasped and almost dropped it when she saw the mark on her palm. It looked very much like the one she had seen on the boy's palm in the metal room. Quickly checking her other hand, she found the same zigzagging pattern that stretched from middle finger to wrist line. What happened? she wondered. She thought about the adventure she had taken since the raid at Winding Circle.
In the last raid there, her cousin had been killed. He was the only person that had been nice to her when she had lived with her family. Now this happens and she is kidnapped. Who are these people and what do they want? Where is that man that came to me in the wagon before? Where do those beautiful lights come from? Questions came and went and Tris, too overwhelmed to think anymore, cried herself to sleep.
"Come on, its okay. Come with me Tris." His voice was strong but kind. She met his eyes and suddenly she could not say no. She walked towards him as he took a few steps closer to her. They embraced like long lost friends, her eyes never leaving his gorgeous blue-green ones. "Let's go," he said.
He hopped down to the hard dirt road they were on and offered his hand to her. Tris hesitated, but grasped his hand and came down when he made a small gesture with his head. Their eyes broke contact for a moment and all of the girl's fears came rushing back to her. She tried to pull away from him, but felt his arm reach around her waist to pull her back to him. He lifted her chin and forced her to look into his eyes. Tris knew immediately that she would do anything for this man.
"Grab your things and we will go," he ordered. She clambered back on to the cart and searched in the hay for her package of belongings. Finding them, she climbed back down to meet him. The man grabbed the things from her and stuffed them into an unknown pocket in the interior of his cloak. He grasped her wrist and pulled her along. He led her through a large field and stopped at an old shack in the middle of the field, and Tris knew she would not have noticed it if he had not pointed it out.
"Who are you?" she asked suddenly. He raised his eyebrow and smirked.
"You shall find out soon enough my dear," he replied. The man made a series of gestures in front of the door and mumbled something under his breath. There was an audible click and he pushed the rusty door open. A dimly lit hallway with many doors down its sides met their eyes. He led her inside and Tris heard the door close behind them with a creak. She followed him all the way down the hall until they had almost reached the far wall. He turned unexpectedly and tugged her along. They went all the way down that corridor and came to a halt at a large door on the right hand side. Once again the man mumbled something under his breath, and waved his hands around. This time he leaned down to touch his lips to the doorknob before he opened it. A blazing violet light and stale air rose to Tris's senses. The man stepped inside and motioned for her to follow. He sat her down in a seat behind an oaken table. Tris now noticed that the source of the bright purple light came from a globe that hovered above the table. The girl gazed into the ball, entranced.
Suddenly the light within began to throb, pulsing with magnificent brightness. Each beat became brighter and brighter until Tris was forced to shut her eyes. She heard a scrambling of feet behind her and opened her eyes. She gasped at the beautiful sight glowing in the ball in front of her, and her world went black.
~***~
Cursing, Briar bent to retrieve his dagger from the floor of his bedroom. C'mon now, I just have to get this right. I am so out of practice. He made himself resume the en garde position, and went on with his practice. Each swipe became more fluent and easy as he worked. Thrust, lunge, drop, roll, parry, and repeat. The motions became better with each moment, though he grew tired. He wiped his weary brow with a dirty sleeve. I just need to get this down. I am such a coward. Its my fault Tris is gone. It's my fault we lost our power and Lark got hurt. I was so out of practice, I should have known what to do. I-
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. He turned to see a petite young woman with brown curls and lovely hazel eyes standing in his doorway.
"Can I come in?" the girl asked quietly.
"Oh sure Sandry, I was just practicing. Just in case, well, you know," he said. He motioned for her to sit on his mattress on the floor. Briar winced as the girl immediately began to straighten the disordered heap of blankets that the boy used. All his housemates had taken to calling it his nest, because of the way he curled up in them.
"Lark is doing better," Sandry told him softly. "She can eat now and is doing good regaining her strength. We still don't know what happened because she doesn't remember anything either." She toyed with the little brown pouch that hung around a string on her neck, a token of her friend's love that they had made. Daja, Tris, and Briar had all helped to trap a ball of light into a small crystal for Sandry after they had found out about her fear of darkness.
The girl looked up at him then back down at the floor. She sighed and started twiddling with one of her braids. After an awkward pause, Briar came to sit next to her. Without warning she burst into tears. Briar stared at her, startled for the moment, then leaned over to wrap a muscular arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him and hid her face in her hands.
"I'm sorry," she said through sniffles.
"No no, it's okay. I'm overwhelmed too. It's just too much to handle so soon. I understand, really," Briar said consolingly.
She lifted her head to give him a brief smile. She pushed away from him and sat up straight.
"Yes, maybe. But I still have no right to be so weak," said Sandry.
"Weak?! What do you mean? You have been a major help to all of us. Making bandages for the injured. Helping Lark to get well. Soothing everyone so they won't worry themselves into a stupor. Your great!" the young man cried, wrapping his arms around Sandry and hugging her tightly. The girl laughed lightly and pulled away. She smiled brightly at him, her green- brown eyes beaming.
"Thanks Briar, I don't know what I would do without you. You help me as much, if not more, than I help other people!" she replied. She reached over to hug him once more. As they pulled away from each other, their eyes met. They saw understanding within the other.
Briar leaned forward and pressed his lips to Sandry's. They held the kiss for a moment and then pulled away. They looked into each other's eyes, searching for something unknown. It was obviously found, for they embraced each other and kissed breathlessly. They had to disentangle for a moment to breathe, and were about to resume when they heard footsteps outside the doorway.
They pushed away from each other and moments later Daja Kisubo entered. She glanced from one red face to the other, concerned.
"What's wrong?" she asked. Both blushed and shook their heads.
"Oh nothing Daja, it's just hot outside. Briar was practicing his umm dagger-fighting thing and I was just trying to weave new bandages. I got frustrated so I came in here," Sandy said. Daja thought this liable, being as the temperature had risen drastically in the last few days. She went to seat herself between Sandry and Briar. They exchanged a wishful look and sighed together.
"You sure you guys are okay? Sandry? I know Lark has improved, that's good huh? And wait, why are you practicing with your daggers Briar? Did I miss something?" she asked. After a brief moment of silence, they all burst into a fit of laughter.
"You sound like someone I know Daja!" Briar said, glancing at the giggling Sandry. They all started laughing once more. After a few minutes their joy ceased and they sat there quietly.
"I miss Tris," said Sandry softly. They all sighed and nodded their heads. A call from Rosethorn saw them walking out the door of Briar's room glumly.
~***~
"What's this?" Lark asked as they all stomped into the kitchen. "You look like your walking to your doom!" she cried with a small giggle.
"Lark!" they all cried at once, running to greet her.
"Careful there! She's not completely healed yet!" Rosethorn said sharply. A smirk played at the corners of her mouth and she folded her arms, glaring at the three students whom she used to loom over.
A few years had changed that, and now the short and stocky woman was almost a head shorter than all, except Sandry. Her auburn hair was cropped close to her head. She grinned, teeth flashing, as they all took a step back.
"Oh its okay Rosie! The children just missed me is all! And how could they not?" Lark asked with a smile. Briar and the girls ran over to embrace Lark happily.
"But what are you doing out of bed? I saw you this morning and you didn't look as good as you do now! You were much more pale," Sandy said.
"Oh I had some of Rosethorn's tonic. That helped a lot," she replied. Rosethorn beamed and they all grinned. "I suppose I better be getting back to bed though, I'm getting weary. A little help dears?"
With help from Briar and Rosethorn, Lark managed to wobble her way into her bedroom. She was soon fast asleep, with the children all sitting next to her bedside.
~***~
Tris woke to rough hands shaking her. She sat up and blinked to let herself adjust to the darkness. She peered around at her surroundings. She was in a small cell with only a cot and a crate on which a candle and a few other things sat. She was laying on the bed with a tall, bulky man standing over her. His thin black hair was long and greasy and he looked, as though he had not had a bath in gods only knew how long. He glared down at her with his dark icy cold eyes.
"Get up and come with me," he barked.
"I uh –where am I? How long have I been asleep? Who are you?" she babbled.
"What's with the interrogation?" he asked. "You have been unconscious for about a month and my name in Raja Malacar."
She stood up and followed him out as he opened the cell door. Tris gaped openmouthed at him. A month? she thought. How could that be?
"A – a month?" she stammered. She stopped and he hauled her along.
"Yes a month, that spell was mighty powerful. Come on Miss, there's work to be done," he replied. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her along. He led her down a long dirt hallway. Stopping in front of a large steel door, the man pulled a ring full of keys out of his pocket. He searched for one briefly and used it to open the door.
Inside there was a wooden table much like the one the blazing ball of violet flame had been on. The room was made entirely of steel and other metals. Hanging on the rear wall was a number of chains and cuffs. To Tris' left there was a small child chained to the wall by her hands and feet. The girl's clothing was ripped and torn and the bodice she wore seemed to be made of a potato sack. Tris was immediately repulsed by the rancid smell coming from within. She was ordered to sit at the table where another youth was sitting opposite her.
The boy's face was pale and drawn. He looked sickly and undernourished. His light brown hair was short and greasy. He wore no shirt, and only loose fitting dirt caked breeches. His hands were laid across the table, palms up. A man standing next to him was tying his feet to his chair. The man then proceeded by chaining the young man's wrist to small holes in the table.
As Tris sat, she noticed small slits on the boy's upturned palms. She leaned forward over the table to take a closer peek at them. They weren't cuts, for they didn't appear to be bleeding, but rather small zigzagging marks from his middle finger to his wrist. The pattern was identical on either hand.
Tris watched numbly as the man came and restrained her in the same manner as the young man, then went out the door her and Raja had come in by.
"Okay lets get started shall we dears?" Raja asked, grinning evilly. He walked over to a shelf on the right wall, across from the manacled girl. Pulling a large book from it, he leafed through its yellowed pages. Stopping at one that obviously suited him, he set it in front of Tris.
On the page were a series of complex symbols in elaborate patterns.
The man pointed to a symbol and mumbled something. The pictured flared to life, blazing with bright fury. All in the room shut their eyes together tightly except Raja. His eyes were fixed on the glowing orb that had now risen off the page. The inside was a silvery light, streaked with spurs of gold. Suddenly a bolt of light jumped from the fiery sphere and jumped into the palms of Tris and the boy opposite her. To Tris, the fire felt only mildly warm, but the boy was now shaking violently as furious bolts of lightning fed into his palms. He didn't have very much room to move due to his restraints, but his head was bobbing back and forth as though he were a blade of grass and the wind slammed it first one way then another.
Tris was soon struggling for air as power flowed through her. As strong as it made her feel, it was constricting her airways and she could not hold it any longer. She imagined herself as a gale force wind and pushed out. Light exploded and she was knocked unconscious.
Trisana woke up in the cell she had been in earlier. On the floor beside her pallet was a tray filled with fruit, cheese and a pitcher of water. She suddenly realized her great thirst and rolled over to reach for the pitcher of water. She gasped and almost dropped it when she saw the mark on her palm. It looked very much like the one she had seen on the boy's palm in the metal room. Quickly checking her other hand, she found the same zigzagging pattern that stretched from middle finger to wrist line. What happened? she wondered. She thought about the adventure she had taken since the raid at Winding Circle.
In the last raid there, her cousin had been killed. He was the only person that had been nice to her when she had lived with her family. Now this happens and she is kidnapped. Who are these people and what do they want? Where is that man that came to me in the wagon before? Where do those beautiful lights come from? Questions came and went and Tris, too overwhelmed to think anymore, cried herself to sleep.