The Faithful Ones

Part 2- Chapter 22

By nightfall the rain had stopped, and everyone helped to find dry firewood so they could have a hot meal instead of more ohtceks -- which were good but had gotten a bit soggy and everyone was cold. Several of the group had started sniffling and coughing, so Blaze and Mel went to find some things to make tea with so they wouldn't get too sick. Those who weren't sick tended to the fire and prepared a stew, and added their voices to the orchestra of the forest. Frogs croaked, the fire crackled, crickets chirped, raindrops dripped from branches, and a breeze stirred the leaves with little more than a sigh. An owl flew overhead, silently searching for the home of the stars and moon. Blaze and Mel returned and they made some tea as they sang with the others. When it had brewed they poured it out and gave it to Amedël, Taigat-Zhëtzen, Freya, and Rose.

"Water Spirit, you looked like you merged with the rain," said Bouniek.
"It's like how I seemed to merge with the water in the river. I'm made of water and magic, so of course I look like I'm merging," she smiled in reply.
"Remember all those stories you old us before you sent us adventuring ?" Sunny asked, tossing her hair to mover her hair which had fallen over one eye.

"Of course."
"I remember the one about the blood-key you told us right before you left. That one passed around quickly, I think everyone was fascinated by how strange it is." Amedël coughed and drank some more of her tea.
"Oh yeah, that's one of my favourites. Hey, it reminds me of the story about how the Creator sacrificed Himself and conquered death," realised Raine, and the Leopardess-Elf smiled. The stew was ready now, so Matthew served it to everyone, and the clearing fell quiet as the Faithful Ones enjoyed its delicious warmth. After the bowls, given by Gatûkai-Zhëtzen, had been cleaned they sang more before sleeping. Raine dreamt of the battle, a nightmare where the foe was fire and her only weapon was a wooden sword. Then suddenly she was holding her key to her chest, and Mel was falling over the cliff as some nightmare-imagination of the Raging Wolf edged closer with a huge black sword. Raine woke with a gasp, several tears in her eyes sliding down her face as she blinked them away.
"Nightmare?" Amedël asked. It was still dark.

She nodded, and took a deep breath to calm herself. A nightmare is only a dream after all, not something that could physically hurt her.
"Just a dream about the battle."
"Me too," replied the dwarf. "It helps to know that I'm free though. There is truly nothing that can harm us."
"You have a key?"
"Yeah, see, it's got a dragon on one side and knots on the other." Amedël held it up so the starlight shone on the head/handle.
"It's really pretty," Raine mumbled, and fell back to sleep into a dream about a dragon made of stars. When next she woke, it was dawn.

They packed themselves up and began the journey back to the Caverns. They ran less than usual because Amedël, Taigat-Zhëtzen, Freya, and Rose were sick, but they sang as they always did, changing paces with the songs to collectively stamp the beat with their footsteps. How perfect and awesome it was , to be filled with a wild joy that was incomparable to any other feeling. This wild joy was a kind of courage full of hope, giving power to do anything -- how Raine needed the power of courage when they were to fight. But that wasn't yet, so she forced it from her mind and sang with all her strength. At midday they stopped to rest and eat, then they continued but without running at all because the four with colds were tiring. Matthew found a good piece of wood, which might have been firewood that night except he claimed it for carving. Raine remembered with a smile the time in the forest the year before when Blaze and Sunny had gone gathering wood for his birthday. She remembered, too, the little fairy he'd carved for her, buried at the bottom of her pack.

Clouds covered the sky, and the sun cast its yellow light on their undersides so the whole world looked strange. Tea brewed and a meal was cooked, and when the light was gone the clouds remained. The moon wasn't up either, but the campfire was bright. They played a game of storytelling, each saying a word to build the tale and try to pull it in their direction, going around the circle the Faithful Ones sat in around the fire.
"Once," began Freya.
"Upon."
"A."
"Fly."
"Fly? That's not how... oh well. There," grumbled Taigat-Zhëtzen.
"Sat."
"Many." Rose couldn't say her word for all she was laughing and coughing.
"Sorry. Lilypads." So it went on, becoming a strange fairytale about a princess who lived inside one of the lilies and all her efforts to get away. In the days that followed, whenever someone burst out laughing it was usually because of some strange arrangement of words that didn't quite make sense.

The four who'd gotten sick had stopped coughing and sniffling now. The half-moon hung low in the west as the sun sat several hands above the east. To the south was the Spirit-Pool Village -- which hadn't ever really been a home to Raine -- and the Coastal Mountains, and to the north was the shelter of the Northern Range whose Caverns were almost like a home they'd spent so much time there. Further north was Northesa, where Tania and many others would be preparing for battle. Fear churned in Raine's stomach, but she reminded herself they'd be fighting for freedom, and began singing the lullaby.

Rose braided Salma's hair, and Salma and Raine gathered flowers to put in their plaits. How strange to think this was the thirteenth moon of the second year they'd spent travelling. It was in the last week of this moon two years ago that Nimue had told them about their tasks. Raine had been twelve, and had felt too young to lead. Now fourteen, still too young to lead, she travelled endlessly and how beautiful the world was and yet so full of darkness. But oh, how long ago her years in the Village were, how distant it was.
"We were so little when you told us your stories and then of the tasks. We hardly understood any of it, yet here we are truly alive because we retold all of it a thousand times until we almost understood," Raine said to the Spirit.
"You were so much more unsure of yourself, still trying to understand the world and how to live with your aunt. Yet I think we never cease trying to understand. As soon as you think you've figure it out, you enter a storm of doubts and questions and conflict, and it leaves you to start again," she replied, and Raine nodded.

"Do you feel Him in your heartbeat even when you're running?" Mel sang to herself. Raine overheard, and began a different song.
"Yes! I am running, won't be long 'til I am home." Mel Looked at Raine and smiled, and they tried to sing between panting as they took off running ahead, but running took all their breath. They stopped to wait, then sang a different song with the others -- the hymn that guided their adventuring now.

The moon was empty now and the Caverns were nearing. Raine watched the last star of night fade as the sun crept closer to the horizon, but it hadn't risen yet. She was the first awake -- not because of nightmare, for once -- and she'd spent the time watching the sky lighten. Tonight they'd share their meal with the Red Clan (although Bouniek and Zadut would eat with their clans). Until their return, however, they could still pretend the battle would never happen.