Exile's Return (Book 1) (13 page)

But it was not too late. If she found the right moment, she could slip away. If she could find her way back down through the mountains she would be free of them. But she had to do it now, before they went too far.

She looked around. They were travelling along a narrow track which wound along the mountainside. Micah had ridden beside her all morning. It was impossible not to like him. His sunny face and guileless blue eyes held nothing but warmth and concern for her welfare. As though sensing her disquiet, he’d stayed by her side, almost willing her to be comforted. But he was nursing his wounds and although he made light of them, she knew he must be in pain. On the other hand – that could be useful. Micah would be less likely to notice her absence if she just slipped away. The others rode in front, Martha supporting Arlie and Robert leading the trail.

Hardly daring to hope, Jenn let her horse slow down little by little until the others disappeared around a corner of the track. She came to a stop and waited. With a little smile she turned her horse and headed downhill. She had to move slowly and quietly. Just a little further, past this granite tower …

The bridge.

There was no other way down without crossing that canyon – or was there? She stopped again and quickly ran over in her mind every turn they’d taken since leaving the ridge. Yes, there was a way. A path that would lead down into the valley.

When she found it she almost laughed. It was steep, across the slope of a ridge, but they would never catch her – especially if she wasn’t on the same trail as them. The fog swirled around her, but now it had become her friend,
hiding her more and more as she travelled further away from them. She couldn’t see very far ahead, the mists were too thick but here and there, great boulders appeared out of the gloom like sentinels guarding her path.

Then abruptly the trail died out – but it continued a little further up. Turning her horse towards it, she saw the old path had ended in a cliff dropping away so far she couldn’t see the bottom. It was lucky she’d been paying attention. She continued on the new path for a while when suddenly the horse lurched on the shifting rocks. She gasped, grabbing a tight hold. The horse stumbled again, unable to find a solid footing. Stones tumbled down the slope beneath her as the horse began to panic. With a scream, it reared and she fell to the ground.

The horse reared again and she scrambled to catch the dangling reins, but the rocks worked against her. Falling now in a sliding sheet, the rocks beneath the horse rumbled downwards, taking the poor animal with them. With a final scream, the horse went over the drop and disappeared.

Jenn closed her eyes and tried not to listen to it land. A dull thud came seconds later, going right through her heart. How could she have been so stupid? So careless? So full of herself, she’d managed in less than half an hour to kill that pitiful horse – and in such a terrifying manner. And where had her so-called sorcerer’s powers been? Had she managed to save the horse? No!

She lay there for a moment, not even bothering to hate herself. Then with a sigh, she moved. There was nothing for it now but to continue on foot. She got to her feet, steadying herself with her hands. She took one step forward but the rocks slid again. With a groan they shifted and she stumbled, landing on her knees. She would have to turn back before this whole mountainside collapsed beneath her.

Terror gripped her. Heart pounding in her ears, she came to her feet once again. She turned slowly but the moment her foot came down she lost her balance and fell flat on her face. She scrambled for some purchase but the entire slope
was moving, dragging her down. With the drop only feet below her, she screamed—

And something grabbed her arm. She stopped sliding, gasping for breath as the rocks beneath her continued their journey over the cliff.

‘Keep still!’

It was Finnlay. He had hold of her. She tried to look up. She caught a glimpse of him stretched out on his stomach, his strong hand gripping hers – the other hand holding his
ayarn.
Behind him, on the solid path was a shadow – horses, people …

‘I said keep still – this isn’t easy, you know!’

Slowly the rocks around her stopped moving, but he didn’t let go.

‘Now, put your feet down – there, where it’s solid. Be quick, I can’t hold it for long.’

She dug her toes into the rocks again, but this time they stayed firm. Grabbing the nearest handhold, she dragged herself upwards, feeling Finnlay pull on her arm at the same time. Her knees and legs scraped against the sharp rocks but she hardly noticed. Inch by inch she moved upwards, not daring to look.

‘Keep coming. Just a little further.’

Finally, she managed to get on to her hands and knees and clambered back to the original trail. Finnlay sat beside her, getting his breath back. She dropped her head, gulping in air and fighting back tears. Her hands were shaking, but suddenly there was an arm around her shoulders and Micah’s murmured words of comfort. She turned and buried her head in his chest. Freedom or death. It seemed she had no choice at all now.

*

‘You have to admit, it was a pretty stupid thing to do.’

Jenn turned in the saddle and tried to see the expression on Micah’s face. He wasn’t angry – merely pointed. For hours they’d shared the horse and in all that time he hadn’t spoken, but then, neither had she.

‘You could have got yourself killed along with your horse,’
Micah continued. ‘It also wasn’t very nice of you to get me into trouble like that. I was supposed to be looking after you. I’m sorry I didn’t do a better job.’

‘But it wasn’t your fault!’ Jenn replied before she could stop herself. ‘I didn’t mean …’

Micah reached forward and patted her arm. ‘I know, Jenn, but you should know, these are good people. You have nothing to fear. They will never harm you.’

‘I wasn’t afraid.’

Micah didn’t reply and they sank into silence for a while. But Jenn didn’t want the silence. She wanted to know … so much. ‘How did you find me?’

‘Finnlay found you. He’s a Seeker.’

‘What’s that?’

‘I could tell you, but the question is, should I? Do you really want to know or are you just making conversation?’

‘She really wants to know, Micah,’ Robert murmured behind them.

Jenn glanced over her shoulder at him. He was gazing unconcernedly up at the grey sky, watching the fog slowly clearing.

‘A Seeker,’ Robert continued, ‘has the ability to search for a person he or she knows. It is a rare but very useful talent and one which takes years to perfect. A truly powerful Seeker can even detect the aura of a sorcerer he’s never encountered before – but the conditions have to be right.’

‘What is an aura?’

‘A kind of signature, if you like, part of our powers. Every one of us is different.’

‘So I couldn’t have got away anyway?’

‘No.’ He turned his gaze on her. ‘What I need to know, however, is why you would want to? Are we such terrible company? Or do you still not believe in sorcery?’

Believe? What kind of question was that? How was she supposed to respond? ‘Oh, I believe. I just don’t understand. How can I? What have you told me? Nothing. You didn’t even ask if I wanted to know.’

Robert brought his horse alongside but kept his gaze on
the others ahead. He smiled. ‘An interesting concept – asking you if you want to know something without telling you what it was. I assume, though, what you really want to know about is sorcery.’

‘Wouldn’t you?’ Jenn demanded, annoyed by his tone.

‘No question – I did when I was in your position. But I do apologize, I really should have told you more yesterday.’

‘Then tell me now!’ If Jenn had been standing she would have stamped her foot, but she contented herself with a simple glare. ‘Where are we going? Why me? Why doesn’t anybody know about sorcerers?’

‘About us, you mean?’ Robert smiled again. ‘That’s deliberate. We keep our powers secret because we’d be destroyed otherwise – just as the history books say. And yes, before you ask, we can be destroyed. We nearly were once. A few survived and came here to Lusara to found the Enclave. With the help of an object called the Key, the Enclave has remained a secret and its defences still stand today, five hundred years later. The Enclave is a community of sorcerers. They survived the early years but not without loss. Within a year of its founding, the Enclave suffered a great tragedy, a fire, which almost destroyed the library they’d brought with them. As a result, much of what we once were has been lost. One of the Enclave’s great tasks has been to regain what was lost.’

‘And all the sorcerers joined this Enclave?’

‘Not exactly. Some were killed, others left and drifted into obscurity.’

‘And some,’ Micah added, ‘became Malachi.’

‘Indeed,’ Robert nodded, ‘but I’ll go into that another day. As to why you are a sorcerer? Again, I don’t know. As far as we know, talent is not passed from parent to child. My brother and I have powers, but neither of our parents did – in fact, nothing in my family history even hints at it. That’s why we have Seekers. It seems that sorcerers develop their talents as they come into adulthood. As I said, often the first experience is a shock. Seekers go out into the country looking for these people and hopefully bring them
back into the fold. Only about half of our sorcerers have children with talents.’

‘And we’re going to the Enclave?’ Jenn asked quietly.

‘Yes.’

‘And will I be allowed to leave?’

‘Of course! It’s not a prison. You’re just as free today as you were yesterday.’

‘Then why are we going? Because I broke your stone?’

‘You’ve made Finnlay quite happy. He despaired of ever getting me to this Gathering. But I suppose it could be worse. It could be snowing!’ He laughed and shook his head. ‘It’s funny how things work out. I help you out of a spot of trouble with the Guilde and in return – you give my brother something he’s wanted all his life. Still, I’d better go and slow him down, otherwise we’ll lose him in the fog. As things are, I would not be as efficient as he at finding him on this mountain.’ With that, he kicked his horse and cantered along the track.

Jenn frowned. ‘Is he always like that?’

‘Yes,’ Micah nodded. ‘As long as I’ve known him. He seems to have the most extraordinary inability to take himself seriously. Sometimes I almost despair.’

Despite herself, she smiled. ‘And what did he mean about things being as they are? Is he not a Seeker?’

‘Most certainly. My master is the most powerful sorcerer within the Enclave, stronger than any in its past. Finnlay, however, is a more powerful Seeker. It’s the only thing at which he excels, since Finnlay is relatively weak in his other powers. Aside from that, my master has lost the use of his
ayarn
and therefore cannot use his powers.’

‘Why not?’

‘The
ayarn
is a tool for focusing power, as he told you. But it also shields the user from over-exertion. To use your power without one could kill you. However, you moved the bridge without one and suffered no ill effects. I believe that’s why he wants you to go to the Enclave.’

‘But I …’ Jenn shook her head. She was used to surviving
difficult situations, but this was all too much. ‘Oh, I give up!’

Micah chuckled but Jenn couldn’t take offence. ‘All right, tell me. Where is this Enclave?’

He reached forward and pointed out across the deep valley they were approaching. ‘See that peak yonder? The sharp jagged one? That’s the Goleth itself – and that’s where we’re going.’

The valley rose almost vertically on either side, topped by seemingly impassible needle ridges. Between them, dusted with a fine layer of cloud, was a single peak, grey and forbidding. No plant lived there, no trees or animals. A bleak grey rock, towering above its neighbours. The Goleth.

The Enclave.

Ayn returned to her seat at the end of the council chamber and faced the children. They sat on both sides of the long table, wide-eyed, curious and not a little in awe of this room where their history was painted on the stone walls surrounding them. Some of the most famous Enclave debates had seared the air of this room – not to mention some of its most infamous decisions. This was the heart of the Enclave Council of Elders, and Ayn had brought them here to explain some very particular lessons.

She folded her hands together and looked at each of the children in turn. Their waiting faces were illuminated by candlelight shining from the tall stands in each corner of the room and the silver star-shaped holder lying in the centre of the table. Ayn let her eyes drop to the star and the eleven lit candles standing on its points. There was one more candle, but it was unlit and would remain so until another elder had been chosen to take Marcus’s place.

Ayn drew in a breath and began speaking. ‘Upon these walls you see our history; these are the years after our people came to this mountain. The story you are now beginning to learn. Before that lies a greater history, that of the centuries before we came to this place, of the time before we had to hide our talents for fear of death. Despite our best efforts, to this day sorcery is still believed to be the greatest power of evil by those outside these walls. You, children, are the new generation. By the next moon, you will all move up into your next class and begin the training which will define your adult lives, but before you do, it is my duty as an elder to make you aware of some of the most important aspects of your life here.

‘We live on the precipice of mortal danger. This Enclave
– these caves we live in – was created out of bare rock to house and protect us. It does so with the aid of the skilled members who live here – but that does not mean it will always remain so. It would take so little for our home to be discovered and once done, we would be destroyed. Yes …’ She paused, taking in the doubtful glances of the children. None of them were much above twelve years of age, still fresh in their enthusiasm and new to their powers. For such as these, dire warnings held little weight. ‘There are still those within the world who desire nothing but our blood. And then there are the Malachi.’