He climbed swiftly until he came to the next small ledge. He hurriedly chose another crevice and darted into it without taking the time to look down at the foreigners. Soon the crevices grew very dark. Kenda looked up and could no longer see the sun.
Kenda froze when he heard a distant scream. He knew without looking that one of his pursuers had fallen off the wall. He listened intently to the length of the scream as if it would give him an idea of how far up the cliffs the soldiers had gotten, but it was a futile exercise. The scream just faded into the sounds of the wind.
Kenda continued up the Wall of Mermidion in a mindless exercise of endurance and stamina. As each crevice ended, the boy immediately sought the safety of the next dark crevice and continued upward. He minimized the amount of time that he was exposed to those below him. Eventually, he reached a point where there were no more crevices. He gritted his teeth and sighed heavily as he looked out over the ocean and saw the bright pink clouds heralding the sunset. Soon it would be completely dark, and the real climbing had just begun. Kenda gazed upward and studied the face of the cliff. It looked like a sheer vertical stone face. He shook his head and cried.
Suddenly, another scream came from below, but not as far away as the first one. Kenda did not need to count the length of the scream to realize that the soldiers were climbing faster than he was. He looked again at the face of the cliff and gritted his teeth in determination. The climb to the top of the Wall of Mermidion might well kill him, but Kenda knew that death surely awaited him if he did not move swiftly. He took the rope out of his pack and coiled it. He put one arm through the coil and draped the rope over his chest. With the sigh of a decision made, Kenda reached up and grabbed the first handhold that he could see. He pulled himself upward, moving his free hand over the surface of the dark rock in search of the next handhold.
Chapter 2
Pain Killers
Aakuta tripped and fell to the ground near the rear of the temple on the Island of Darkness. He cursed under his breath as he heard a bone crack as his body hit the ground. The added pain of a new cracked rib was not even noticed by the dark mage. His body was continually wracked with pain every moment of the day, a result of the curse put upon him by Dobuk, the Fallen One.
Aakuta closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on peaceful and serene thoughts. He had found that if he concentrated hard enough, the pain dulled somewhat, although it was never bearable. He had almost succeeded in transporting his mind elsewhere when someone brutally kicked him in the head. Aakuta’s hands instinctively rose to protect his face as he rolled over to gaze upon his torturer. Aakuta snarled when he recognized Xavo, a young mage in the service of Vand.
Xavo was an egotistical fool. Although he was handsome and had mastered a great deal of magic, the young mage lacked common sense and consistently overrated his own power. Aakuta hated him.
Xavo never passed up a chance to humiliate Aakuta, especially if there were others around to enjoy the demonstration. On this particular day, a dozen red-clad soldiers stood behind the young mage, laughing hard as the old mage’s plight.
“The great Aakuta,” sneered Xavo as his foot swung to deliver another blow to Aakuta’s head. “You aren’t so great any more, are you? Nobody goes against Vand and survives.”
Aakuta’s arm moved swiftly, blocking the kick aimed at his head. Xavo snarled and immediately tried once more to kick Aakuta’s face.
“Stop it!” shouted a woman near a building on the other side of the street. “Stop it immediately,” she added as she strode across the street.
“This is of no concern to you,” snapped Xavo. “You no longer have any standing in the court of Vand.”
“I may not have standing in the court,” glared Lady Mystic as she halted between Xavo and the old mage sprawled on the ground, “but I am telling you to stop it right now.”
“Or what?” sneered Xavo. “You can’t even enter the temple to complain, besides, abusing one who has been stricken by Vand’s curse is not prohibited. In fact, it is encouraged. Be gone.”
“You are a fool, Xavo,” scowled Lady Mystic. “I have no need to complain about your actions. I will just match my power against yours, right here, right now. Are you prepared to die?”
“My power is a match for yours,” Xavo quickly shot back, but the nervous reactions of his body told a different story.
Lady Mystic smiled menacingly as she watched the younger mage’s body tick spasmodically. She stepped close to the young mage and stared into his face.
“I have nothing to lose by continuing this confrontation,” she declared softly. “Is your stubborn pride truly worth your life this day?”
Xavo was acutely aware of the soldiers behind him and knew that they were waiting anxiously for a confrontation. He would look foolish walking away from the fight, but he had no desire to match skills against the Emperor’s daughter.
“You were thrown out of the temple for catering to this old fool,” Xavo said loudly. “Perhaps the best punishment for your actions is to let you continue to associate with such refuse.”
Xavo swiftly spun around and strode off, brusquely pushing his way through the gathered soldiers. Lady Mystic shook her head and then glared at the soldiers. The group fidgeted only briefly before turning away and dispersing. Lady Mystic watched the soldiers leave before turning and squatting next to Aakuta.
“You should not endanger yourself on my account,” Aakuta groaned weakly.
Tears welled up in Lady Mystic’s eyes as she cast a healing spell on the dark mage.
“You still care about me after what I did to you?” sniffed the Emperor’s daughter. “Why?”
“You did what you had to do,” replied Aakuta. “Should I stop loving you because of that?”
Lady Mystic smiled tightly, but tears continued to cascade down her cheeks. Suddenly, her eyes grew large and she stared incomprehensibly at Aakuta.
“You are lucid,” Lady Mystic remarked. “How is that possible? No one has ever emerged from that chamber without being insane.”
”Dobuk has never met the likes of me,” Aakuta grinned before grunting in pain. “At times I can concentrate on other things, but not for long. The pain distracts me.”
“And the pain will be worse for you than the others because you can think,” frowned Lady Mystic. “You will be more aware of it. I must do something. Can you walk?”
“My arms and legs still function,” Aakuta nodded as he rolled over and got to his knees.
The pain in his newly cracked rib shot through the mage, but he tried to ignore it. Lady Mystic stood and helped Aakuta to his feet. She draped one of his arms over her neck and wrapped one of her arms around him. Slowly she guided him across the street and into the alley that led to her home. When she got him through the door, Lady Mystic guided the dark mage to a chair at the table.
“Sit quietly while I mix you a potion,” instructed the Emperor’s daughter.
“A potion?” questioned the dark mage.
“It will relieve your pain,” nodded Lady Mystic as she began mixing ingredients in a large flask. “It won’t last long, but it will give you a small amount of relief for a time.”
“Mix a lot of it,” Aakuta smiled meekly. “I don’t expect that Vand will allow me to die anytime in the near future.”
“It is highly addictive,” Lady Mystic shook her head. “Too much of it and you will lose your ability to reason. Just be thankful for an hour of peace.”
Aakuta fell silent as he watched Lady Mystic mix the ingredients for the potion. The silence was disturbing, and Lady Mystic felt the need to talk.
“I have been watching you every day,” she said softly. “I had no idea that you could reason. You hide it well.”