« That works both ways, of course,” Kermadec pointed out. «They do not choose to stand with her, but will not stand with Shadea, either. That gives us a chance.»
« Why do you support her?» Rue asked Bellizen, glancing at Trefen Morys, as well. «Why have you taken her side?»
Bellizen blushed. «It is not easy to explain. I do so in part because she was kind to me when others were not. She brought me to Paranor at the suggestion of another Druid, from a village in the Runne where my talents were considered abnormal and my safety threatened. I do not know how she found out about me, but she told me that I belonged with her. I believed that. She has never given me cause to think badly of her or to want her gone. I think she is the Ard Rhys we need. I think she understands the purposes of magic better than anyone.»
« I came from a village close to Bellizen’s,” Trefen Morys added. «We did not know each other before Paranor, but have become friends since. I came to Paranor on my own, seeking a chance to study with the Druids. My mistress gave me that chance. She gave me responsibilities and taught me herself on more than one occasion.»
« She is a great lady.» Bellizen bit her lip, glancing quickly at her companion. «Those who follow her are mostly younger and never knew her as the Ilse Witch. The others, the older ones, cannot seem to forget. They think of her still as a dark creature, capable of reverting without warning. They do not know her as Trefen and I do. They are less forgiving because their lives are too deeply rooted in the past.»
« They are not alone,” Bek said quietly. «Perhaps that is just the way of things.» He surveyed the faces of the others. «Very well. We know what we have to do. We have to find a way into the Keep and the sleeping chamber of the Ard Rhys. That is where Penderrin and Grianne will reappear when they return from the Forbidding.»
He almost added,if they can find a way back, but he caught himself just in time. Rue didn’t need to hear him saying anything about the odds. She understood them well enough.
« It is more complicated than that,” Trefen Morys interjected quickly. «We have to find a way to be inside the sleeping chamber at just the right time. We have to devise a way of knowing exactly when Pen and my mistress will reappear. If we don’t choose the right moment, Shadea and her allies will find us out.»
The little company went silent, dismayed at the prospect of being stopped after they had come so far and endured so much. But the task the young Druid had just described seemed impossible.
Bek turned to Tagwen. «The King of the Silver River said that the keys to helping Pen were in the hands of his companions— Kermadec, Khyber Elessedil, and yourself. Maybe we should start there. Can you think what he might have been talking about? Is there some special kind of help that you can give us?»
Tagwen considered the question. «Well, there is one possibility,” he said after a moment. «I know a way into Paranor using tunnels that run beneath the bluff to the furnace room and continue all through the walls of the Keep. The Ard Rhys showed them to me once, a maze of passages. She used magic to block those leading to her rooms, but perhaps your own magic can undo hers.»
« So we can reach the sleeping chamber unseen if I can remove my sister’s safeguards?» Bek asked.
The Dwarf nodded rather reluctantly. «Perhaps. If Shadea hasn’t discovered the tunnels as well and set traps of her own.»
« We’ll have to risk it,” Bek declared at once. «We’ve risked worse already to get where we are. Kermadec, what of you?»
The Rock Troll knotted his great hands and looked at Atalan. «Brother, I think the Trolls need to show the Four Lands where we stand in this business. Marching against the Urdas is a waste of time and purpose. We need to march on Paranor and the Druids instead. They attacked Taupo Rough and drove our people out. The attack was unprovoked. Dismissing the Troll guard while it was still in service to the Ard Rhys is insult enough, although we could have endured it. But attacking our home is beyond acceptable. Perhaps we should repay their visit with one of our own.»
Atalan’s response was a slow, wicked grin. «Let’s pull down the walls around their ears!»
« Or at least pull the wool over their eyes—a distraction to give you time to get into place.» Kermadec glanced at the others. «Several thousand Rock Trolls gathered at the gates will be something that not even the Druids can ignore. If we must, we will come through those gates to your aid, but at the very least we will keep those snakes pinned down within their own fortress for the time it takes for our mistress to deal with them as she chooses.»
« And deal with them she will, you may be sure,” Tagwen grunted, looking almost happy.
« That leaves Khyber Elessedil,” Bellizen said. «What of her?»
« Her purpose seems easier to divine,” Bek responded quickly. «She carries the Elf stones given her by Ahren Elessedil. They are seeking–stones, and I think finding the demon that has crossed over from the Forbidding will be our first order of business after my sister returns. The Elfstones will make that task much easier.»
He looked from face to face in the darkness. «We have at least the beginnings of a plan. I think that is the best we can hope for.»
« What I don’t understand,” Rue declared suddenly, «is why the King of the Silver River didn’t make this business of the keys and the companions clearer to you in your dream, Bek. He could have told you what purpose Kermadec and Tagwen and Khyber Elessedil were to serve. Why didn’t he do that?»
« Faerie creatures and shades are secretive and seldom speak the whole truth,” Bellizen ventured.
But Bek shook his head. «1 think it is something else. I think we were given a starting point, but nothing more. The future remains undecided. Things may change as events unfold, and we must be ready to change with them. If the King of the Silver River had told me in my dream exactly what the keys were, we might have become too reliant on his words. As it is, we remain uncertain that we have it right. He wants that. He wants us to find our own way. He wants us to understand that the way is not yet determined.»
There was a long silence as the others contemplated his words. They knew where they must go and what they must do, but they still did not know how they would accomplish it. The future was a mystery. It was the way the world had always worked. It was the way it would work here.
« We must leave at once,” Tagwen declared. «We have no idea how much time remains before the Ard Rhys and young Penderrin cross back.»
But Bek shook his head. «No, Tagwen, we need to rest first. We’ll stay where we are until dawn, sleep while we can, and fly north tomorrow to Kermadec’s people. Once the Trolls are safely delivered and can begin their preparations for a march on Paranor, the rest of us will go ahead to search for Khyber Elessedil.»
« And to discover when my mistress and your son will reappear within the Keep,” Bellizen added quietly.
It was a disturbing reminder of how difficult the days ahead were going to be.
One by one the members of the company rose and went off to sleep. Most had not slept in days and were exhausted. Bek was the exception. Better rested than the others, he went back up into the pilot box to keep watch.
He was surprised when he found that Rue was following him.
« You should go to sleep,” he said, turning back to stop her, reaching out to touch her cheek. «You’ve slept less than anyone.»
She nodded. «I’ll sleep soon enough. But I have to say something to you first. Whatever else happens, Bek, I intend to make certain that once Penderrin gets free of the Forbidding, he is kept safe. I intend to protect him from Shadea a’Ru and the rest of those monsters. I don’t care what it takes. I don’t even care what happens to me.»