“What have you done?” Azariah shouted.
“What you should have done long ago,” he answered. He grunted as he rose to his feet, the fire building strength behind him, buffeting his backside in heat. Crackles and snaps filled the air as Roland’s corpse was swallowed in flames.
“You had no right…”
“Of course I did!” snapped Patrick. He stormed toward Azariah and stopped a few feet short of the Warden, pointing an accusatory finger in his face.
“You have lost someone, but so have many,” he said, his voice a menacing growl. “I feel for you both, I do, but don’t you dare linger in sadness. There is no time for that. Not now, not when Karak is nearly at our door.”
“And what would you have us do?” Azariah asked stubbornly.
“I would have you fight!” he exclaimed. “I would have everyone in this godsforsaken place wake up and do something! And if I am the one who must force them to do so, then so be it.”
He spun around and began storming away.
“Where are you going?” Azariah called out after him.
“I am going to pay a visit to our god,” he shouted over his shoulder. “It’s about time he woke up as well.”
CHAPTER 38
The giant looked greatly discouraged, even angry. He sat on the rocks beneath the cliff, his fist firmly planted on his chin, his gaze locked on the hole in the earth and the dark treasure hiding within it.
Aully looked at Kindren, her nerves bubbling over. When he squeezed her hand, she gave him a small smile, then turned her gaze toward her mother. Audrianna Meln was a picture of beauty, her long golden hair blown by the intense breeze off the ocean. Her sadness over Brienna had lessened with the prospect of returning home, and no more did the name Carskel pass her lips. It was good to see her this way-stately, strong, dignified, as she was intended to be. Those who stood alongside her, the thirty-one other elves who had made their home in this village by the sea for many long months, bowed to her in reverence. The Lady of Stonewood’s station seemed to have returned along with her strength, which made her daughter proud.
“How long have you known of this?” Bardiya asked in his deep voice.
“A few weeks,” Audrianna replied, motioning to Aully and Kindren. “My daughter and future son-in-law informed me of the existence of this cache the very morning they discovered it.”
“Why did you wait so long to tell me?”
“We had our reasons. We are not captives here, nor are we beholden to you, as you have been adamant in saying.”
“I offered you shelter,” grumbled Bardiya, his tone disapproving. “I provided you with food and water when you were lost and hungry. I saved the boy’s life when he was near death. I deserve to know of all that is discovered within our borders, especially in times like these. You owe me that.”
“Bardiya, calm yourself,” said the tall, slender, dark-skinned man beside him. “There is no need for anger.”
“Speak for yourself, Ki-Nan,” he shot back, swatting his friend’s hand away. Aully took a step backward. It was unsettling to see Bardiya so upset.
Lady Audrianna approached the giant, dropping to one knee before him. He did not respond, not even when she grabbed his massive right hand.
“Bardiya, we are eternally grateful for what you have done for us. We are. The only reason we did not tell you about the discovery was because we were unsure what it meant.”
“How so?”
She returned to standing and gestured toward the sea. “Anyone could have placed the crates here, be it our people, Karak’s, or even your own-”
“That isn’t possible.”
“Be that as it may, we could not move forward until we knew more about the situation.” Audrianna pointed to the handsome elf beside her. “My daughter led Aaromar here the very next day to take inventory. He counted two hundred and ninety-four swords of various lengths, ninety-nine daggers, twenty battle-axes, and fifteen mauls, and that is only what was inside the crate that split when my daughter attempted to open it. One sword in particular caught his eye, which was our reason for not coming to you sooner. Aaromar, bring it out.”
The elf dropped down into the hollow where the large wooden crates had been stacked, and when he reemerged, he dragged behind him a length of sharpened steel nearly as long as himself. Aully gaped at the sight of the sword, which could only be wielded by a giant. She watched as Ki-Nan’s jaw fell open as well.
Aaromar dropped the blade in front of Bardiya, the clang as it struck the rocks echoing around them like a bell. Bardiya narrowed his eyes, staring first at the sword, then at Audrianna.
“This gave you pause? Why?”
“Because it seems to have been made for you, Bardiya. Of all the beings in Dezrel, there are only three for whom such a blade would make sense. And I do not think Ashhur and Karak, being gods, would have need of a man-made sword.”
The giant leaned forward, ran his finger over the cutting edge, then abruptly drew his hand back and shivered. He drummed his shaved scalp, which glistened with sweat and mist.
“Of course, I did not believe you were lying to us,” said Lady Audrianna, “but you must understand my hesitancy.”
Amazingly, Bardiya seemed to be in agreement.
“What changed your mind?” he asked.
“For a week I had the crates watched from the top of the cliff. Not once did anyone pass by this place. The tide came in, concealing the hollow, and then rolled out, exposing it once more. The only thing that seemed to care for the hidden treasure was the seaweed.” She smiled. “But your reaction not a minute ago is what truly proved it to me. The revulsion you displayed on touching the sword could not be feigned.”
Bardiya nodded to her, then glanced again at the giant sword.
“If you would please remove this…thing…from my sight, it would be greatly appreciated.”
“Of course.”
Aully watched Aaromar retrieve the massive blade, straining as he lugged it behind him before dumping it into the hollow. With the sword gone from sight, Bardiya seemed to relax. He leaned back on the slippery rock, grimacing each time his joints audibly popped. His friend Ki-Nan wandered over to the hole, dropped down on his hands and knees, peered inside, and whistled.
Bardiya shook his head, turning his attention to Lady Audrianna.
“I apologize for my outburst,” he said. “As I have told you many times, my people have decried violence, just as Ashhur has taught. The sight of such things as these within our borders is worrisome. Do you have any idea how they came to arrive here?”
“I think the Prince of Dezerea has theory on that,” she said.
Kindren winced, squeezed Aully’s hand once more, and stepped forward.
“I think they were a gift,” he said.
“A gift?” asked Bardiya. “From whom?”
“From Celestia,” Aully said, refusing to shrink away when all eyes turned to her.
Bardiya chuckled. “Why would the goddess give me that which I do not want?” he asked.
“Because Celestia is the goddess of balance,” Audrianna said before her daughter could answer. “There has always been equality between our people and the Quellan, an equality that no longer exists. The same can be said for Paradise and Neldar. So the goddess sent these gifts to allow us to fight for ourselves, to retake what we have lost, to even the scales.”
“Why would the goddess not do so openly?” asked Ki-Nan, lifting his head from within the hollow.
“Because that is not Celestia’s way,” said another voice. From the rear of the group of elves, an ancient female approached. She hobbled on unsteady legs, her cane shaking as the tip sought gaps in the wet stone. “You know this, son of Gorgoros, for you have studied her as well as Ashhur.”