Disclaimer: This is based on the amazing work of Tamora Pierce, who I could only wish to be. Sadly, I'm not.
Chapter 22 – Going Home
Battle had erupted again. The small group had been quiet too long while Daine rested from healing Kit and while the others ate. The spidrens had decided that the Tortallans were too enticing to ignore. Isaac was caught unaware by a blast of webbing that pinned him effectively to the stone wall of the cavern. Buri, Timothy, Daine and Kit faced an advancing number of immortals that would scare the life out of almost any fighter. And then they heard a crackle and Sarge appeared and fell from mid air. The large man rolled smoothly to keep from being injured while somehow maintaining his grip on an armload of spears.
Daine had barely a moment to admire the way Sarge came up effortlessly and threw a spear like a javelin, skewering two spidrens that were tormenting Isaac, before another crackle warned of something coming in. But she never saw what it was. Unnerved by the lack of a visible item or being dropping through, she trained her bow where she thought whatever might have fallen and saw Buri do the same. Kit moved forward curiously, then whistled shrilly, the way she always did when someone or something was invisible. Daine moved forward cautiously and saw Kit run at the someone eagerly as they flickered into view. She realized in time to keep her arrow from flying. But Buri loosed. Daine heard her own voice cry, "No!" but the arrow changed direction and flew at the nearest immortal.
"It would be a shame to kill me now, don't you think?" Numair remarked.
Buri gasped, "I'm so sorry," while Kit chirped at Numair and held her stubby forearms up. He picked her up and patted her head affectionately.
Daine grinned at him, wanting so much to put her arms around him. But a bellow from a hurrok drew her back to the fight, so she settled for a sardonic, "Good of you to drop in. Later I want to know how." She shot another couple of hurroks, still keeping one eye on Numair. She saw him set Kit carefully behind him and then pull a brightly colored gem from his pack. The gem hummed softly and the sound made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. He said something quietly and she saw a greenish gold light travel from the stone into his mouth and nostrils as if he had inhaled it. She looked at him in alarm. He seemed to grow taller if that were possible and he shimmered with power that was not black like she was used to.
"Get back," he said to his friends in a voice that sounded more like two voices. Daine was not the only one who was frightened by the sound of it. Automatically all the Tortallans (except Isaac who was still webbed to the wall) moved behind him. A spiraling light left his mouth and threw the immortals violently against the back wall of the cavern. Daine could hear the sound of crushed flesh, metal, and bone as the beasts in the back of the group weredemolished by the impact.
Numair stared as if it had amazed even him. Another soft word from his lips and a spiraling light melted the spidrens into nothing. The webbing that had pinned Isaac to the wall also dissolved and he rejoined the others. Daine suddenly realized that Sarge, Buri, Timothy and Isaac were standing about 15 feet from Numair now with their mouths agape. Only she and Kit had remained nearby. He spoke again and the remaining hurroks melted, then another word destroyed the unicorns. Before long no immortals remained in the cavern.
He turned to look at Daine. The beautiful brown eyes she had grown so used now had green rings. There were threads of green in his raven hair. "I could get used to this," he said with a smile that barely resembled his own. She felt herself shrinking away.
"What is it Numair? Are you Numair?" she asked fearfully.
He looked crushed. "Yes, I'm me. I'm also elemental temporarily." He reached for her but she shrunk back further. His eyes were terrifying and he seemed to be enjoying destroying things too much. Numair always thought of the consequences. The man before her was not worrying about consequences and she was afraid.
Sarge walked cautiously forward. "You don't look like yourself, Numair," he said quietly.
"You're fair frightening," Daine agreed.
"I'm sorry," Numair apologized in the creepy double voice. "It was necessary. I need to have this to open the window to get you out. I'll take in more to move this back and then I'll put what's left away if anything remains." He looked into Daine's eyes. She felt herself shrink again. Something crossed his face that seemed almost like sorrow. He closed his eyes for a moment. "Get everyone together. It's time to go home."
Daine looked at Sarge, who smiled at her kindly. "Onua is waiting eagerly to see us both," the large man said. She couldn't help but smile.
She ushered the others together. She heard Numair and Sarge talking and she changed her ears to listen. "How's the chest?" Sarge asked him.
"Alright so far," Numair answered in nearly a whisper.
"Didn't you tell Jon you needed her for this part?"
"You're much smarter than people give you credit for, you know that? Yes I said that. But that connection is very personal and she's afraid. I won't force it on her. I think I'll be alright. I have more power than I ever imagined and it will increase when I absorb the other two stones."
"And if the window rips you in half?"
"Ssshhh," Numair hissed. "She could hear. This magic is what made this distortion. It will hold me together. Get with the others."
Daine walked quietly forward and looked up into his brown and green eyes, it wasn't her imagination, he was definitely taller. "You need me?" she asked.
"No, I can do this," he responded. Something flickered in his eyes.
She thought about how it felt to have him in her mind and how quickly it had taken hold the second time. She wondered if she focused on that if she could make the connection herself. She reached for her magic, searching for the black threads of his, but the effort stung painfully. "Daine, Magelet," she heard him calling her and she realized she was lying at his feet. She stood, swaying. "You should have warned me. I have to let you in," he explained. He steadied her.
"I'm afraid," she told him. She realized it probably wasn't necessary. She was trembling violently.
"I know that," he responded. "You should never have to be afraid of me. I hate that I've scared you. I'll be myself again soon. Until then I should be safe. But we're wasting time and I can't spare it, unless you're determined to drop me off a glacier. Go join the others."
He spoke a word and the air in front of him developed the familiar sparkling blotch that grew from full-mirror size to an opening that could easily admit Sarge. They could see Alanna and Harailt standing close on the other side. Onua was in the background with Thayet, looking nervous. They smiled when they saw the window. A second powerful word made the air hiss and crackle louder than Daine remembered from the last passage. The magic spiraled in colors of black and green-gold and a strange wind compelled them through. Daine lifted Kit into the sling that Numair had brought for her and she walked through behind Sarge, the last of the travelers. She didn't look back. She wanted to see Numair the way he was supposed to be, not like whatever he was now. The window closed behind her with a sound like a whirlwind. Daine found herself swept into a group hug between Sarge, Onua, Buri and Thayet.
When she looked up, she saw bright crystals like what Numair had absorbed in Alanna's hand and Harailt's hand. Lindhall tossed the ends of two ropes into the pit. The other ends were tied in heavy knots to a harness on Darkmoon. Cloud was standing there too, waiting for Daine to look around. –Daine, I'm glad you're back. He did it. I'll have to remember to bite Storkman less.-
Daine glared at the mare. –How 'bout if you don't bite him at all? What are the ropes for?-
-Storkman is going to get buried alive. We have to pull him out. I was going to do it but the Lioness decided Darkmoon was better. Shows what she knows.- Daine's heart began to pound with fear. "Buried alive," she croaked aloud. "Goddess no!"
She felt an arm wrap around her shoulder and she shook it off before she realized it was Thayet. She turned to Alanna to discover that she now had the weird features of elemental. Her purple eyes had green halos and she was taller with green strands in her short red hair. "What has he done?" Daine demanded.
It was Lindhall that came to answer her. "Calm down, youngling," he soothed.
"Calm down!" she screamed incredulously. "You're going to bury Numair alive and pull him out with rope!"
"He's using the spell that lets him walk through walls so that he can come through without being crushed."
"If walls don't stop him, how do you know the ropes won't pull right through him?" she demanded skeptically.
"They're spelled. Numair thought this through completely."
"Except for the part where he needs air!" she screamed and tried to push through to Alanna.
Lindhall who had always been kind and sometimes a little scattered fixed a stern look at her and gripped her firmly so that she couldn't go any farther. "Get in the middle of this and you'll kill him. Is that what you want?"
It took all the wind right out of her. Daine's mind spiraled. She hadn't looked back at Numair. She hadn't even told him how grateful she was that he had not abandoned her. She had responded with fear like a thousand others in his life and it might be the last time she would ever see him. --Cloud, was he afraid? Did he smell afraid?- She asked it in mindspeak.
It was Tahoi who answered. –A little. But he smelled more afraid when he thought the king wouldn't let him.-
Cloud added –I'm not a hunter, Daine. I only know he promised he'd get you back--.
Daine heard a sound like nature crying as if a thorn were being peeled from a tender foot. And then the air howled as if it bled until swirls of Alanna's and Harailt's magic twisted with green-gold elemental power healed the wound. She didn't have to be told the pit no longer was there. She could feel the power telling her so, the same as it had when the air had been rife with power on the morning the barrier fell. From somewhere that felt impossibly far away, she could feel Numair's breath and it was ragged. She saw the last of the green-gold drift from Harailt and Alanna, dropping them back to their normal stature and Alanna said, "Hurry!"
With fear, Daine told Darkmoon to pull him out and the horse complied, struggling against the compacted soil. A sharp rumbling sound beneath her feet rattled the air, and a split in the ground appeared where two ropes descended into the deep brown loam. Darkmoon's burden became easy and soon Numair was above ground, though he was covered in dirt. He lay very still and Duke Baird rushed to him. Daine wanted to as well, but found herself being held by Onua and Sarge.
She saw magic crackle around Duke Baird's hand and it flew like a lightning bolt right into Numair's chest. He waited, shaking his head at Alanna. Daine felt tears slide down her cheeks. Numair's hand fell open and Duke Baird stared at something there in shock. He picked up whatever it was and lightning balled around his fist again. This time when he pressed it to Numair's chest it seemed to work. Numair gasped and coughed.
She heard Duke Baird say, "Salmalin, you're going to be the death of me." Alanna, Harailt and Duke Baird all chuckled in relief.
Daine stood absolutely still for a moment. Then she walked back to Cloud and climbed on her back. Kit trilled curiously from her sling. –Get me away from here, Cloud, please— She said in mindspeak. They rode into the forest without saying any more to one another.
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Don't worry. There's more to come.