"Edan Volcano..." Jasmine muttered, checking the map. "Edan Volcano?"
"Why?" Lief asked, matching step with the young woman. They had been riding Ivory, Mask and Terrat for a few hours now – Honey, Bella and Swift had been taken to the stables to be groomed after the Dragon Night celebration.
"Why is it Edan Volcano?" Jasmine asked, furrowing her brow.
"Any connotations?" Barda asked dryly. "Of course, there's Lief's great-grandfather, his childhood tutor, my childhood best friend, the Shadow Lord's first name –"
"The Shadow Lord?" Jasmine and Lief exclaimed at once, pulling their reins in to stare at Barda, horrified.
"Why didn't you tell us beforehand?" Lief demanded, bringing Terrat in closer.
Barda shrugged. "You were busy, so I told myself I would tell you later... I guess I forgot."
Jasmine shook her head. "I can't believe it. The Shadow Lord's name was Edan?"
Lief nodded. "Edan means fire in the old language."
"How did you find out?" Jasmine asked softly, wishing the information would be false.
"There are many clues in the Deltora Annals pointing to the Shadow Lord's identity – I guess no one saw them before."
Lief began, "But how –"
"I suggest we start riding again," Jasmine muttered hurriedly. "I see dust behind us, and I don't think it's from the wind."
"Let's go," Lief urged, nudging his mount into a gallop.
"To the southwest – near the (A/N: Insert relevant landmark here or e-mail me) we'll ride," Barda ordered, and turned his horse to the mentioned landmark.
Behind them, a mirage wavered slightly. I wonder if they're onto it yet... it thought, blending in with the blue sky.
And yes, it was the spirit who had called up the imaginary dust to get them going again. This is fun!
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Something stirred between the bare, dying branches, making Lief snap his head round to stare at it.
Nothing was there.
The further they went, the direr the situation was: drought was here, and it wasn't leaving. It fact, it had settled here – hadn't it been affected by the first Dragon Night?
"Maybe this land was already suffering from drought before the Sisters were brought to Deltora," Jasmine suggested almost incoherently, seeming to read his thoughts.
"Maybe," Barda agreed nervously. This land was hostile – it wasn't going to help them in any way.
"Let's find shelter or something for the night and carry on tomorrow – I think we're almost there," Lief suggested, checking the map again.
"How do you know if –" she stopped herself in time, clapping a hand over her mouth. "How do you know if the crystal's there?"
Lief paused. "The Belt calls it," he said with a confused glance. "But how?"
"You do not know all that the Belt can do – besides all the other things it does. But the things we know for now are these: the Belt can't cast spells, it can't make mirages, only clear them, the amethyst and emerald can heal, and a whole lot of things otherwise." Barda grinned. "A lot, I guess." They rode on, through the dying mass of trees and foliage.
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They passed a village about an hour later, starved and dusty. Pale, haggard faces stared out at them from the shadows of the doorways, and the stink of death was everywhere. Jasmine looked around disbelievingly. This land was hers, in a way, and yet... and yet she hadn't known. She glanced at Lief, seeing the same hurt expression on his face... only worse. This land was his.
"We can fix this," Barda muttered to the two beside him, more to himself than to them. "We can fix this, you two – this is the reason why we're here, remember?"
Jasmine nodded with a tiny smile. "It is," she agreed.
They made camp on the edge of the village, trying to ignore the pleading eyes staring at them.
Soon, the fire beads were scattered over the scant pieces of wood, and the trio sat down to have dinner.
Soon, the frail, haggard people crept around the fire, thin, spindly fingers prodding at the three. "You... food?" an old man asked, voice cracking as it threatened to spill contained emotions.
Lief turned, glancing at their supplies. He turned to Barda. "It's the only thing we can do for now to help them," he muttered, grabbing the bags.
"Thank you," the man croaked, evenly dividing the food between the ten other people that were there.
"Aren't there any others in the village? It looked like it could hold about thirty," Jasmine asked, looking down at her food.
"Dead," a young girl whispered. "All dead. My family. Mum, dad, sister, brother..." she trailed off; face devoid of any emotion.
The young woman felt tears sting her eyes. "I'm – I'm sorry." Her voice wobbled as she remembered her lonely days of living in the woods. "I know what it feels like."
"Sad days now – not four years ago. Four year ago we happy, full. Now... now we die," the old man proclaimed, nibbling at his food. "Land dry up – wells bye bye. Rivers and streams dry up – fish die too. Everything die." He turned away, voice cracking.
"But what about Dragon Night –" Lief stopped, suddenly realizing.
"The Sisters blocked it for the time, like Jasmine mentioned before," Barda muttered, voicing his thoughts exactly.
Jasmine stood up, saddling her horse. "I don't want to do this anymore – I want to stay and help them." She stared at something unseen, turning her head as if in a trance, then turned Ivory towards the invisible... thing. She hopped onto the grey mare, going off in a high-speed gallop.
Lief and Barda looked at each other in a panic. "There's something afoot," Barda muttered, standing up and running after them.
They watched her disappear into a grayish haze at the edge of the trees... then, as they tried to follow, the haze disappeared altogether.
Lief panicked.
(A/N: I know that was really short, but I was... lost. A bit. Sorry, I'll try do more tomorrow!)
