Edited 1/22/22 - all chapters are getting a overhaul. Things might not match until this process is complete.
I do not the Inheritance Cycle
The Search
In a moment of silent wonderment she found herself standing before a world of frost and glass beneath the cold and lifeless brilliance of the moon. The round, fat orb glowed eerily high above the world setting the layers of sparking snow ablaze with a silvery-gold light. The light daintily reflected everywhere, highlighting the silhouettes of trees boldly lining horizon, each shadowy crown so proud and tall and strong. A veil of clouds besieged the sky hiding the moon once more, and the beauty was lost. The tattered ruins of the barn scattered before her feet, much of its torn wood half buried beneath the snow fell again into the haze of blackness.
It was a bitter bliss that the storm had let up and its wrath vanished from the night skies. Rose had been so eager to see the stars after having traveled so far and so long under the heaven's steel-grey obscurity however she found that much of its beauty was embittered by a piercing cold and ravenous wind. She shivered, her teeth chattering together, as she swept her gaze over the sparkling white-blanketed hills around her.
Rose thought the cold would never leave her; it seemed to have entered the very marrow of her bones, and now clung to a place that unreachable by even an inferno's passion.
An estranged gargling snore broke the amity of the night and she turned away with a tired sigh. She hadn't been able to sleep much, the whistling of the wind and the rumbling displeasure of the heavens kept her well awake. She had spent some the time talking to Ailis but it wasn't long before the woman took to sleep and her snoring began to rupture even the smallest moments of peace. Rose looked over her now as she slept on her side, her mouth opened wide, her body entangled in her blanket and cloak.
Rose picked up an armful of wood and refueled the dying fire, the flame fluttered happily as it ate up the marked wood. There wasn't much she wished to think about, and so she sat fighting off the drags of tiredness, watching the fire as it imprinted its radiance into her mind. Her eyelids were as heavy as stone, and eyeballs felt as they had rolled in hot sand. Tears filled her eyes and a grief grew inside her, a home sickness for a life she hadn't had even before she left the capital.
Rose curled in on herself allowing her body to fall to the side and blew at the tendrils of hair that fell onto her face. Her grief was ephemeral with her impatience and she shot to her feet, picking up a flagon and took a long swig from it. After she had her fill she sat back down, her energy short lived, as her eyelids grew heavy again. She sat absolutely still, in an agony of listening, and as she did sleep kept sweeping through her body like an irresistible wave. She had grown use to this tiredness, as she had often kept watch after long and exhausting days. Yet she was struggling to keep eyes open and at last she roused Tornac, who grumbled at her unhappily, before she lay for down to light slumber.
.
That morning came far too soon, well before the night seemed to have begun, and Rose was shaken awake. She blinked rapidly, the daylight eager to assault her eyes, and sat up very, very slowly. Her hands felt cold and tight and stiff, and she excitedly wrapped them around the earthen mug of watery tea that had been left in front of her. It was too hot to hold for more than a few moments, and after her hands were considerably warmer, she returned the mug to its place on the ground. Beside the mug was a bowl of kasha, left there as the tea had been. She picked up the bowl and set it on her knee, looking at it with disinterest.
"You should eat. We have quite a lot to get done today," said Ailis, setting her own bowl on the ground. It was empty.
Rose wondered how the woman could eat the stuff as if it were the finest of meals. She already felt jaded by the boiled buckwheat, and though Ailis had added nuts and dried fruit to add flavor, she wished to toss the gruel into the snow and never look at it again.
"We are going to look for the dragon egg, yes?" she said, bringing the bowl to her lips.
Tornac set aside his own bowl and scooted far from his reach. "If that is to say that we are about to dig through the snow until our fingers are numb, then yes."
"Oh," Rose said smartly. "That sounds lovely."
"It's better than leaving the egg out there as if it were a load of rubbish," Ailis snapped. "You two do not have to help me but I cannot leave it behind without putting some effort into finding it!"
There was a moment of silence where the crackling of the fire was only thing that was heard, and then Tornac stood. "We shan't allow you to look alone, Ailis," he said. "We wouldn't dare leave one to that task alone. Now, let's clean up after ourselves and begin."
Ailis nodded, though only slightly, and walked out of the barn muttering that she would meet them out there.
As soon as Rose ate the cheerless breakfast, she and Tornac headed out of the broken barn and into the icy plains. The plains were unrecognizably filled with great drifts of shining snow, like various miniature cliffs of soft white stone. The small crags were continuous for miles around, broken only by the barn and a small forest in the distance, that she had seen the night before, in the east. If it were not for the chill and hours of work that lay ahead of her, Rose would dare to call the sight that lay before her stunning.
It did not take long for her change her mind. After a few short hours, she felt like cursing the snow and the cold. The freezing air had not depart with the blizzard the day before, no, if anything the cold had become more potent. Even the sun was cold- high above it cruelly glared down bringing forth no warmth. The harsh light glared off countless reflexive mounds of snow causing Rose's eyes burn.
Their task was hopeless. They had traveled past a countless leagues the day before and they could not dwell long enough to dig through miles of snow. The cold was getting worse as the day went on, and it would not be long until it forced them to seek shelter. It seemed, to Rose, as if Alagaƫsia itself were laughing at their predicament and took pleasure from making them feel worse. It was a tedious chore, digging through the snow, and Rose was quite sure she preferred an agonizing day's travel in the icy plains. She hoped that she would not be the one to find the egg, if she were she did quite know what she would do with it- likely toss it.
"I cannot take this," said Tornac, echoing her thoughts, "my hands feel as if they have been turned to stone and my back aches me. A hot midday meal would be most welcome and, I say, we merit at least that luxury."
Ailis looked up, her face dripping with sweat despite the cold, looking rather irate. She had been curved over and staring intently at the snow covered ground as if she were making a fatal choice. She straightened herself, her bones cracking, and stretched her hands to the sky. "If it would please you so," said Ailis tiredly. "I cannot see why you're not making us such a meal as I speak."
Tornac sighed and took off his gloves. "I will go then," he said briskly and turned away to leave.
There was no invitation to join him, Rose realized with dread. Rose took off her snow-caked gloves and rubbed her hands together, her fingers were tinted a sickly white, and tingled painfully. Every part of her felt like it was freezing over. She cursed quietly and pulled back on her damp gloves, any warmth she had gained was lost to cold and dampened wool inside. Taking a pained breathe, after giving the snow a withering look she began to dig once more.
"I had thought that you would take that as you chance to warm your hands," said Ailis after a moment. "Go now ahead, Rose. I'll follow after a time. All of us deserve a break, I think."
Rose nodded and pulled her hands from the snow. She hurried inside the tattered barn, dodging between the crests of blinding now and massive scraps of wood. The snow crunched beneath her with each step. She pulled off her gloves as she walked, and once inside, her boots followed. Both were discarded next to the roasting fire.
After she sat down, she studied Tornac. He was bent over the iron cooking potting, stirring the broth, his nose and cheeks were rosy and chapped, and his face was flushed. His scar sunken deep into him, from the interminable chill, giving him a rather grisly look. After a moment he looked at her, but did not smile. He had not for a time, not since the bitter cold set in days ago when his joints began to ache him.
"That smells rather nice," commented Rose.
Tornac grunted and leaned forward onto the heels of his feet. "Glad you think so," he said sourly. "Though you wouldn't be saying that if you knew what was in it."
Rose frowned at him and looked into the pot. Inside was muddy brown water with floating dried green and lumps of what appeared to be meat, though Rose was hesitant to call the tough substance such.
Her nose scrunched up. "I beg of you, then, do not tell me. I'm famished." Tornac chuckled dourly and continued stirring the runny stew, and for a time Rose simply sat watching his movements. As the moments stretched on her mind became thick and tired and leaned forward on her knees. "Mind if ask a question?" she said.
Tornac waved his hand in the air briefly, and then said, "Ask away."
"What is your reasoning for being here?" she asked. "Forgive my bluntness but I cannot seem to conclude a reason for your following Ailis into this wildness. I had thought that you preferred mulled wine and a warm hearth."
"I do," he said, not looking up at her. "I prefer a meal I do not need to hunt either, but there are times we have put aside the things we prefer and do what must be done." Now he looked up at her, his artic blue eyes piercing. "What are your reasons for coming?"
Rose simply stared at him, resisting the urge to flinch under his gaze. He only ever looked at that way when she was in trouble. Suddenly, she felt as if she were a child. "You know perfectly well why I am out here," she said, turning away. "You come of your freewill and not because you work for the Varden, but why?"
"For many reasons, my girl," Tornac said. "Many of which I cannot yet tell you."
"And those reason are involved with your long length of absence, yes?"
Tornac's silence was answer enough. "Leave it well enough alone, Rose," he said after a time.
"And your family," she continued, disregarding his request. Her hands clenched into fists. "Have you not put thought into what they might suffer because of you desertion? You could have stayed and pretended to know nothing, for their sake, if nothing else.
For a long moment he studied her critically before turning away. He stirred the thin stew for a short time before rocking back onto his heels and groaning as his back revolted with a painful cracking. "I have not deserted anything," he said lowly. "My job as always been to protect you, and here I am. I have known you far too long to leave you unshielded. My sister can, and will, get by without me. She's as capable as any man, if not more, and her children are grown. Besides them I have no one expect for you, and they are not in need of me. Now, enough of this. Stop worrying yourself about my choices, I'm old enough of a man to know what may very well ensue. So now leave it, Rose, I refuse to talk of this with you."
She turned away, choosing that it was best to say nothing, and closed her eyes. Her sudden anger faded and a heavy exhaustion quickly took its place. She stood up and went to bedroll where she curled into the thick wool blanket and quickly fell asleep.
.
She was not asleep for long, the sounds of voices and the smell of tart stew awoke her. The heat under her wooly blankets was bliss and she was not ready to open her eyes and join their company in the cold world they were currently living in. She shifted and pulled her legs closer to her body taking pleasure in her nap. Her contentment did not last as she soon felt icy fingers comb through her tangled hair. A cold shiver dripped down her spine.
"Wake up, sleepy head," murmured a soft voice. "If you sleep the day away, you'll find it impossible to rest tonight."
Rose shivered and rubbed her face. She moaned, wanting to smack the woman for ruining her moment of peace, and sat up. Tornac silently offered her a bowl of the stew, his own held in his other hand. After a short delay, she took it and sipped it cautiously. The thin stew succulent as it appeared- the venison was tough and hard to swallow.
"There's a house less than three miles from here," Ailis announced as they ate. She had her legs stretched out towards the fire. Her feet were bare, and her toes wiggled freely. "The walls are whole and the roofing has no holes. It looks abandoned. It would make a better camp than this barn that's for certain."
Tornac looked up from his bowl and swallowed roughly. "Aye, it most certainly would. Though I must say that bear's den would be better shelter than this barn."
Ailis gave Tornac a long, rather measured, look. "It's good to know how high your standards are, old man," she said, and then glanced between him and Rose. "I think that it would be best for us to go there after we eat. I don't plan on staying, however, the two of you may but I believe that it is best if I took a side trip to retrace our steps. I'll be gone but a few days."
"It may very well storm again." Tornac sighed from across the fire and rubbed his face.
"I have managed to survive through worse," Ailis said. "Do not worry for me."
Rose frowned. "It is reckless for us to separate," she said.
"At this time we have little choice," Ailis said turning to stare at her. "I do not like it but a little recklessness is but a small price to pay if it means finding that egg."
They said nothing further until they finished their meal, and after they ate and cleaned the bowls and pot, the three of them packed away their belongings and burdened their steeds once more. They walked quickly, leading their horses, as the snow was deep and they wished to find the shelter while it was still light. They moved along the swallows of the snowy cliffs down a slight downhill with the sun at their backs. The sun was at its decline and the shadows where beginning to lengthen. In the distance Rose could see a stray silvery fox digging into the snow, and she hoped the fox had more fortune discovering what it was searching for then they have.
They walked for little over two mile before a small cabin and even smaller barn came into view. The land around the dwelling was piled high with snow and a small half frozen creek ran alongside it. Past the stream, a dark tangle of woodland of fir and oak rose into sky.
Tornac and Rose followed Ailis' footsteps to the small barn where they unburdened the horses. It was shallowly built with sturdy oak and grey stones and the roofing was lightly patched but whole and, in much better shape than they could home. The ground was trampled so it had a slight dip in the middle where stagnant water had collected over time. The doors were missing leaving the lodging open to predators, but it was apt enough shelter for the horses for a few nights.
When they finished brushing the horses they left the barn and made their way to the house which was made of the same wood and stone as the barn. It was bare of any life it had once held, the flooring was made of trampled earth and an inglenook lingered beside a small hearth.
"I already checked the hearth, it is clear of soot." Ailis said.
"That is a blessing," Tornac said. "Perhaps we'll build a small fire for the night, eh, Rose?"
Rose said nothing, looking around silently before her eyes settled on Ailis. The woman turned back to her bags shuffling through them, finally she pulled out a long curved bow and her quiver of arrows. She swung these onto her back and picked up a single small bag. Ailis turned to Tornac. "I will be back in three days' time," she said abruptly. "If I am not back take the remaining egg to Kausta and ask for Gien. Tell him that I have sent you in my place but do not show him the egg. He will lead you to The Varden. Beyond that I have spoken to you before about what you should do in my absence, and I ask that you proceed in that manner." Ailis leaned back on her heels in a way that allowed no dispute.
Rose stood silently looking rather perplexed, not far behind Ailis, fiddling with the hilt of her sword. Ailis whirled around to Rose and embraced her tightly before letting her go hastily and without a word she strode out of the cabin. The door slamming shut behind her.
