Chapter 119
Wilderness Neutral Zone parallelling Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat, Year 2035, Planet: Grimoire
The cold, nippy air bothered Grifton intensely, and the scents of fire, ash, and burning things stung his nose. He grimaced in horror. "Disgusting. That must be coming from the firestorm." A sigh escaped him because he was still shaky from what had happened earlier. That was the worst timing, but now he wondered if it was a coincidence.
"I guess I'll find out soon enough." However, the layers of coverings protecting his face and nose made it easier to focus than he'd thought. "Do you think we'll reach the portal soon?"
Indeed, he kept a sharp gaze scanning their surroundings as they pulled out of the last gate. Grifton had yet to learn there were that many gates to the oasis.
"Yes," The driver glanced at him with a faint smile. It was Giles. "We're less than a mile away." He shrugged nonchalantly, and that made Grifton relax. "The sandstorm is over an hour away." His smile vanished as he admitted. "As for the firestorm, I'd rather not hazard a guess." His concern was evident when he glanced at Grifton. "How are you holding up right now?"
Grifton shook his head. "I'm still shaking. I haven't experienced something like that in some time." He'd almost forgotten what it was like to have a precognition dream or vision so vividly. "I'm usually asleep when something like that happens."
Giles shrugged. "Well, I'm grateful you were awake this time. Call it fortuitous," he smiled faintly. "We received a wakeup call to get out while the getting was good."
That was news to Grifton. "Oh really, what happened to others?" He hadn't even considered what else might occur to those who didn't get the information or ignored it.
"Well, the smart ones will stay inside the walls of the outer and middle gates." Giles shrugged. "Those fools who ignored the warnings and left out the other gates won't make it to their next destination unscathed." He clearly didn't feel sorry for them either.
Grifton nodded. "I guess we're one of the smart ones who chose to go out the one gate that would ensure our safe passage when reaching teleportation portals."
Giles nodded. "Yes, that's right." He smiled faintly. "We're just leaving about six hours earlier than planned, that's all. So, we'll probably sweat beneath our layers, but we can't remove them—not if we want to be able to breathe."
Grifton understood what he was saying. "I understand. I'm just glad we're leaving. I don't want to think about who else got that disruptive vision." He glanced at the sparks dancing around him. "They're agitated."
"Who?" Giles blinked at him. "Oh, the little spirits?" A sigh escaped him. "Better take the time to hear them out," he advised Grifton with a frown of unease. "If they're acting like that," Giles shook his head in consternation. "Then something is definitely not natural about these storms."
That was what Grifton's gut was telling him as well. "All right, I'll do that." He withdrew back into the main body of the wagon only to discover the artisans gathered around a corner. His elementals sent him various images. "Ah, man, what is happening now?"
"Grifton looks like we've got a stowaway." Paul beckoned him. "It seems this person knows you or your siblings. She's in pretty bad condition."
Grifton came over to take a look and recoiled. "Mira Corel?" He knew her all right. She'd been a real nasty bitch. Life out of the orphanage hadn't treated her nicely either.
"Oh, thank goodness it was you." Mira didn't try to cling to him. "Cursed mages are roaming the dunes of the desert." Her features were gaunt with pain and exhaustion. "They're the ones conjuring these storms." Her body shook with the strain of remaining conscious to report the news. "They aim to tear apart the caravans and prevent them from reaching the teleportation portal." She passed out cold.
There were muttered curses. "Just great." Paul sighed. "So, can you tell if she's telling the truth?"
Well, at least he knew why he had that damn vision now, and it wasn't entirely a flashback of his past, either. Nope, it was a warning of what was to come. "Yes," Grifton sighed. "So that is why my internal alarms are going off so loudly." He made a sour face. "Cursed mages, hmm? Those are the worst types we could come across."
The others frowned. "Do you think the miss has some kind of tracking stigma attached to her?" It was Giles who'd been listening to it the entire time.
"Nope, I don't think she does." It's still better to be safe than sorry since Grifton knew there were different ways to track someone. "I'll still scan her, though." A sigh escaped him. "Now, what do I do about this problem?"
The others grimaced. "I'll let Diego know about this stowaway so that he can report to the captain," Paul muttered. He exited the wagon's storage compartment and went to the backside, where others were sleeping, to prepare for the next shift. He stuck his head out and waved to Diego. "I got something to report."
Meanwhile, Grifton turned his attention back to the problem at hand. He scrutinized Mira Corel and sighed with relief. "Well, she's not dead," to his discomfort, though, Grifton discovered something unpleasant. "Someone intentionally allowed her to escape." He looked at the others in the room. "There were others besides her. All the wagons should be searched for signs of stowaways," Grifton indicated that someone should tell Paul to add that to the report Diego would need to give to the captain.
This was turning out way more complicated than anyone expected, especially Grifton. "She had a tracking device that was removed." He winced as he pointed to her left leg, right where the kneecap was shattered.
In her current condition, she could not run, much less walk. "Either she did that or someone else did," Grifton hesitantly placed his hand on her leg. He caught a glimpse of what had happened during the injury and winced.
Grifton felt sorry for the person who'd tried helping her. What a horrible ending. He promptly raised shields so no one else would see what he caught. "Someone who might've become an inadvertent victim to those mages to let her escape without being tracked further." His mouth compressed.
"Nobody stops me right now." Grifton made an executive decision because he didn't want Mira Corel clinging to him later. "I'm doing this because she's in horrible pain." Grifton placed his hands on her knee, and through patient persistence, he healed the shattered bones and ensured they wouldn't break again.
"This is necessary so she can run again if it becomes prudent." He caught the others frowning at his action. "Right now, she's too exhausted to move." It was a good thing, too, because she had a nasty tendency to stab first and ask questions later.
Grifton was of no mind to get stabbed. He wrapped her in a canvas cloth but bound her hands so that she wouldn't be able to scram easily. "I don't trust her not to squirm out of here. Someone watches over her. Be careful not to get stabbed." He advised. "She's probably got knives hidden all over her body."
They shook their heads in disbelief at this latest snag. When they reached the portal, they all made it to their destination safely.
The new republic on the west coast. Grifton gazed at the waves crashing against one of the coasts. He longed to wade in the waters below but knew time was of essence, especially with the latest threat to their lives. "Damn those cursed mages," Grifton muttered. "I'd hoped to visit my sisters and brothers." He wasn't able to do that either. "Maybe in the subsequent runs, I'll be able to see them again." He shrugged after one more wistful glance at the ocean's waters.
It was high tide right now, and the waves were dark green and blue, with white froth crashing against the various boulders gleaming in the westering sun dropping below the horizon. "What a grand sight." Grifton turned away regretfully and headed back to where the others gathered. Now, they had to check in at the headquarters before making plans to return to Shantu.
"Oh, there you are, Tinroy," Giles hailed him from the guest quarters where they'd stay before returning. "You've got visitors who were rather irate when hearing that they'd nearly missed seeing us before we left."
"Oh, really, now? That's interesting." Puzzled and then hopeful, Grifton hurried to the living room. Just as he'd hoped, his sisters and brother were there. It was too late for the kids to be awake, but just seeing Marlayne, Calico, and Amberlyn chatting cheerfully with the artisans and others made him sigh with relief. "Hi there," Grifton greeted them with a smile.
"Brother!" They rose to their feet and pounced on him. "We're so glad to see you after we heard what happened," Amberlyn murmured.
They were clinging onto him so hard that he could barely breathe. "Uhm, too tight," Grifton gasped, and they immediately loosened their hold on him. Then they all sat down, and Grifton was able to chat with them thoroughly, much to his delight. They looked so much healthier and happier out here. He couldn't believe the change in them. "I'm glad to see that you're doing so well." Grifton was pleased.
Amberlyn was surveying him with a sigh. "You, on the other hand, look like hell."
Marlayne demanded. "Just what did you do to yourself?"
That meant no one had gotten around to telling them quite everything, eh? Grifton was relieved. "We had a few tense situations come up. I had to do some unexpected flying." He rubbed his jaw. "A few hours ago, I healed someone's shattered kneecap."
Calico scowled. "Yeah, we heard about that. Mira Corel, that little minx." He wasn't complimentary at all. "You shouldn't have wasted your talent on her." He growled. "She was one of the ones who helped that Alpha grab us."
Anger seethed from all three of them.
Oops, that had been a tactical mistake, Grifton realized unhappily. How was he supposed to know that information?
"C'mon, give him a break," Giles admonished them. "Did you even tell him that information?"
The three looked sheepish. "No, we thought Grifton was told something."
Giles shook his head. "I know for a fact that Grifton was not told a damn thing." He frowned at them. "As for Miss Corel, I think she's been taken to a clinic that is attached to a prison. She has been arrested for several charges." He shrugged. "She'll remain out of our hair for the time being."
That satisfies the three. It did the same for Grifton.
As for what he'd done earlier, he shrugged. "I did what I thought was right at the time." Grifton exhaled. "If I had but known." He shrugged. "Hindsight should've reminded me about her duplicitous nature." He scowled in dismay. "Anyway, what else do I need to know before returning?"
They shook their heads. "Not much. Just use as many portals as possible." Calico recommended. "If you can't, just stick to the mountain range pass tunnels." He made a sour face when he warned. "Otherwise, more bandits will target you all."
The captain commented, "Our method of transportation will rely on the portals and passes whenever possible, then." He smiled at the trio. "I'm glad you're doing so well. Unfortunately, we have to start our journey back at dawn."
That meant they had to get an early night's sleep.