Jay - Ahern's Burden

Crit stood statuesque with his hand open.

“My boy,” Harrow said, shaking his head, “you are expensive.”

Crit held still until a small silver coin fell onto his palm.

Harrow’s bodyguards stood behind him, trying to fit in on the crowded street.

Harrow was in Theaton to deliver a letter he’d received from Flog. He was on his way to Kora’s and scheduled to meet a new client while there. He thought the use of Crit would be less conspicuous. He was a businessman after all, not a delivery service. He looked up and down the road after Crit ran off and waited a moment before heading towards the tavern.

The normal evening crowd filled the lower floor, but their level of intoxication was still manageable.

Harrow spotted Ms. Kora heading to the back hallway, note in hand.

Spree hadn’t anticipated a communication and felt twenty years younger when she was alone. She turned the letter over and broke the seal. She had to lean towards the lantern to read Flog’s handwriting.

Spree,

My apologies for the tardiness of this letter. I fear it may not reach you. Are you well? I regret leaving with every breath. Search for me in your dreams and I will do the same. Until I return.

Flog

She smiled at his words and wiped her eyes before reading it again. She folded the letter when she finished and regained her composure before heading back to work.

Seated at his corner table, Harrow watched Spree return to the bar.

She caught his eye and nodded.

After a hearty meal and a few mild cocktails, Harrow’s appointment arrived.

“You’re late,” Harrow said, raising an eyebrow.

“I am sorry,” the man replied.

“No bother,” Harrow responded. It may have been the liquor or Flog’s letter, but he didn’t mind the delay. He felt calm and saw no need to rush the evening. “Cocktail?”

The man raised his hand to refuse. “Not tonight.” He removed his coat before settling into his chair. “My name is Tobel.”

Harrow watched the nervous man look through his satchel. He took another sip when one of his guards tapped his shoulder.

“From the Lynk.”

Harrow’s peace, and complexion, flushed away and he forgot about his new client. He unfolded the paper and read the few short lines.

Tobel waited for him to finish. “Are you well?”

The question snapped Harrow out of his stare. He looked at the man and then to the letter. Without thinking, he tore the page in half and held it over the lone candle burning on the table.

Surprised at his action, Tobel couldn’t formulate a question.

He stared at the note until the text was consumed, then excused himself and grabbed his hat. He threw a few coins on the table without saying goodbye.

The brief flame caught Spree’s eye and she watched Harrow hurry out the door. She didn’t know why, but she knew it had to do with Flog.

“Excellent shot.”

“Thank you,” Flog said.

Mabi ran out and collected their latest addition.

“I do enjoy this time of year,” Flog admitted.

To their left, another low flying flock of geese came over the horizon.

Flog crouched down and let the others have this shot.

Ponter and Sable hit their mark.

“I count ten,” Flog said. “Will that be enough?”

“Yes,” Ponter said. “Ten is a good haul.”

Flog arrived early in the morning after being away for the summer. He had traveled to Benly but the records were destroyed. In Evertine, to the vault was in good condition, and the quantity of record far surpassed the vault in Nasje, but he was still unsuccessful in obtaining solid information. The vaults were consistent in that they spoke of thriving cities, then an abrupt halt to everything. There were no explanations, no documentation pointing to any single event. The records simply ended. Flog thought it odd that even if war broke out quickly, someone would not have recorded the event, regardless of the swiftness of the advancing army. The lack of information did tell him that someone did not want anyone to know what had happened.

“Solo,” Sable called out, pointing to the northwest.

“Do we need another?” Bane asked.

“No,” Ponter answered. “And geese don’t fly that high.”

The group watched the bird fly directly towards them.

“Odd it’s alone.”

“Maybe he’s lost,” suggested Flog. He removed the arrows from his birds and cleaned them off when the bird called.

“It’s an eagle,” Ponter said, with excitement. “Mabi, come here. Watch the eagle fly.”

From a few hundred meters away, the eagle began to descend directly towards their group.

“Is the bird coming towards us?” Sable asked.

The group began to drift towards each other, unaware and partially frightened by the bird’s behavior. Everyone except Flog.

“It’s not altering course,” Bane pointed out.

Is it Averis? Flog thought. Has Harrow found the boy?

The others were becoming alarmed that a large eagle had made it its intention to join them.

The bird called out again.

Averis! Flog turned and saw their concern. “All is well.”

The others were still concerned until Flog whistled a strong, single note. He walked in front of them and raised his left arm.

The eagle turned towards Flog and went into a glide less than a meter off the ground.

Flog let out another strong note.

A few meters in front of Flog, the eagle swooped up and flapped its powerful wings to stop its forward motion. It hovered above Flog’s arm and gave a loud call.

Mabi watched the bird settle in slow motion.

Flog gently stroked the bird’s neck, calming it from its long flight. “This is Averis,” he said, turning. “He’s a messenger bird.”

“Amazing,” Ponter said.

“Would you like to touch him?”

“No thank you,” Sable said.

Bane shook his head.

“Mabi? Ponter?” Flog asked.

Mabi shook her head.

“It may be too much for us,” Ponter admitted.

“Understood,” Flog said. He lowered the hand he used to stroke the bird’s chest towards it leg and removed a small clip. Once free of the weight, the bird flew into the sky and disappeared into the tree line.

Flog removed the small note and read two words.

Boon Hurry

Flog saw Harrow’s symbol of joined rings in the corner.

They’re in Boon, he thought. His mind thought of how long it would take him to reach the city. He looked at the note again. He needed to act.

“I have to go.”

“You can’t go,” Ponter said. “You just arrived.”

“I know, and I am sorry, but this is an urgent matter.”

He and Ponter made eye contact and the latter knew what he meant.

“The hour is late,” Ponter stressed, still trying to reason with him. “At least stay until morning. You and your horse need to rest.”

Flog thought about his journey back to Nasje. He knew his horse was tired. He was tired. But Harrow’s simple message pulled him away from reason. It propelled him to take a chance. He might not receive a second message. Suni would be upset. She had already made arrangements for him to stay. And the more his mind dwelt upon riding throughout the night he knew he would have to stop eventually before he passed out or killed his horse.

Flog folded the note and put it away. “I should rest.”

Ponter smiled, and the group cleaned their birds and headed to Nasje.

Before the sun rose the next morning, and before anyone else was awake, Flog left to investigate Harrow’s message.

“What’s wrong, mother?”

“I have a cold,” Nuvi answered.

“She needs to rest,” Barclay said. “She spent too many hours caring for me. She won’t be able to see the maples.”

“But we go every year,” Arina protested.

“Not this time,” she said. “I need to rest.”

Walking through the maple grove was a tradition Nuvi passed down to Arina. A time for mother and daughter to share. The fall leaves changed and fell rapidly, and if you were more than a day late, you would miss their colors.

“Arina, why don’t you take Jay?”

Her father’s suggestion went against his most strict rule that they were to stay by the house and not go anywhere without them.

“Don’t delay your return,” he cautioned. “I expect you home shortly.”

Arina looked to her mother and she nodded in affirmation.

“I’ll stay with your mother,” Barclay said. “Go, before I change my mind.”

Jay and Arina smiled at each other and headed straight for the front door.

Nuvi looked up to her husband with a quizzical gaze, questioning his leniency.

“They’re in no danger,” he said, reassuring his wife.

Jay followed Arina to the path towards the bridge and down the hillside. After hurrying along three other trails they arrived at the Maples. Arina stopped at the first tree and waited for Jay to stand next to her.

Ahead of them the light changed into an orange yellow glow. It went on as far as they could see.

Arina loved seeing the changing colors and walked towards them.

Jay thought it looked different, but the colors didn’t have the same effect. He did, however, have his eyes fixed on Arina. The new light bounced off her hair and when she turned around to motion Jay over, he was smitten.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” asked Arina when Jay stood beside her.

He nodded in agreement. “The leaves fall after a few days?”

Arina nodded. “Yes, if you’re not looking for it, you’ll miss it. You’ll have to wait another year.”

“It’s too bad it ends so quickly,” Jay said.

“Then it wouldn’t be special,” Arina said, looking up at him.

Jay looked at her and they smiled. They held each other’s gaze for a moment and Arina looked forward and leaned against him.

Jay tilted his head towards her and their fingers interlocked. They held the position for a good while.

Jay had wanted to say something for several weeks now. He thought she felt the same but couldn’t be certain. As most young boys develop crushes, Jay was no different. Barclay wanted him to spend more time studying and searching out the answer to his mother’s riddle, but he had become more and more distracted. They were rarely alone because of Barclay’s protective nature and were never able to let their feelings come to the surface.

Nuvi had seen the attraction but held her tongue. Barclay didn’t have a clue.

Now, standing side by side, each knew how the other felt. They didn’t think about anything else.

“Mother would love this,” Arina said.

“Should we check on her?” Jay asked.

Arina knew they should, but squeezed his hand.

Jay knew she didn’t want to leave.

She inhaled deeply and picked her head up. “Maybe we should. I feel odd without her.”

Jay smiled and let go of her hand.

She smiled back and hugged him.

Jay didn’t want to leave either but felt an urge to get back to the house.

They crossed the gorge holding hands. When Jay stepped off the white stone he felt a pressure against his body. He stopped walking and let go of her hand.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know,” he said, feeling his chest. “I feel short of breath.”

Concerned, Arina moved beside him and put her arm around his waist.

He took in a deep breath and relaxed.

“It’s gone,” he said standing up straight.

“What was it?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I’m becoming ill?” he suggested. “I feel well enough, though.”

The pause brought about their senses, and they looked back across the bridge. The more they listened, the more they heard, and then they saw soldier after soldier march out of the trees. They looked down the hill and saw more of the same.

Jay grabbed Arina’s hand and sprinted forward. The lunge caught Arina off guard, but she managed to stay on her feet. Jay assumed the soldiers were after him and his only thought was to run home. His pace was too much for Arina, and during their mountainous run she fell hard before she could let go of Jay’s hand.

“What’s wrong?” Barclay asked when they came inside.

Nuvi was in the bedroom.

“We were running from soldiers,” Jay explained, “and I pulled Arina too fast.”

Barclay tried to stay calm but failed. “What soldiers? Where were they?”

Jay helped Arina hop to the couch.

Nuvi came out of the room to see Arina crying.

“Everywhere,” Jay said, answering Barclay’s question. “We crossed the bridge and saw them coming from the other side and from the south. We started running and that’s when I pulled her too fast. I’m sorry, Arina.”

Nuvi squatted down and lifted her dress. “Where are you hurt?”

Jay and Barclay stepped away.

“My left leg,” Arina said.

Nuvi picked up her dress and saw dozens of crisscrossing scratches varying in length and depth from her knee to her ankle. Most were bleeding down her leg.

“Are you hurt anywhere else?” Nuvi asked.

Arina shook her head. “It stings, mother.”

“I’m sorry, dear,” Nuvi said, trying to comfort her.

“Barclay bring me some water and a rag.”

“What were they doing?” Barclay asked Jay, while he poured water into a bowl.

“Marching towards us,” Jay answered, looking at Arina.

“Did they follow you here?”

“I don’t know,” he said, more concerned for Arina than the small army combing the hillside.

Barclay delivered the water and the cloth. He quickly examined his daughter’s injury.

Jay followed but stayed back.

Arina soaked the rag and squeezed the excess water out before dabbing it on her leg.

She winced.

Jay felt horrible. He took the brunt cause of her injury upon himself. He sat next to her and took her hand. “I’m sorry,” he repeated.

Arina continued to cry and buried her head between his shoulder and the couch pillow.

Barclay and Nuvi shared a look.

Jay had never felt so helpless, and deep down he thought to himself, I want to take away your pain. I want your leg to heal.

Nuvi rung out the rag again and looked up to see Jay’s hands develop a blue glow. She looked up to Jay and Arina. Both had their eyes closed. She looked back to the leg and continued to clean off the blood. After a few strokes, she noticed the scratches had stopped bleeding and slowly closed and healed.

Arina began to calm down. She opened her eyes and saw her mother’s surprised expression.

Nuvi wiped down her leg, and after a few strokes cleaned off the remaining blood.

“Barclay?” Nuvi asked. “Will you come here?”

Barclay pulled away from the window and joined her. “What do you need?” he asked, still looking towards the window.

“Nothing.”

Her response surprised him, and he looked down.

When his expression matched Nuvi’s, Arina leaned forward to have a look. She wiped her eyes in disbelief. She looked at Jay, then down to their hands, encompassed in a blue glow.

“Jay,” Barclay said softly.

Jay opened his eyes and saw the last of the blue glow fade. He looked up to Barclay. “What did I do?”

“Look,” Nuvi said, pointing at Arina’s leg.

Arina stretched her leg out straight.

Jay looked at the leg and then to Arina. She no longer looked in pain. She smiled, and Jay looked at her leg again.

“How?” Nuvi asked.

“I don’t know,” Jay answered.

“Does your leg hurt?” Barclay asked.

“No,” Arina answered. She set it on the floor and stood up, then hopped on the leg twice. She sniffed the last of her emotions away when an arrow crashed through the window, puffed her hair up and stuck into the far wall.

“Stay down,” Barclay told everyone. He stood next to the front window and peeked outside.

Jay moved beside him to see for himself.

“Nuvi, Arina, grab your bags.”

The two disappeared into the bedroom.

Barclay met Jay’s eyes. “You need to take them to Taq.”

“Now?”

“They wouldn’t bring a legion to have a discussion,” Barclay explained.

Jay tried to think of another reason, but knew Barclay was right.

“Get your bag ready,” Barclay told him. “Don’t forget the journals or your mother’s book.”

Jay walked away and stopped. “What about you?”

“I’m coming,” Barclay said, pulling away from the window when a dozen arrows broke through the curtains. The fire at the tips lit the fabric as they passed through and continued to burn the wood panels when they stuck into the walls.

“Go!” Barclay shouted. “We don’t have much time.”

Jay ran into the bedroom, and Barclay yanked the burning arrows from the wall. He stomped the arrows out, but the curtain was in flames. The fire spread up the wall beyond containment. They needed to get out of the house soon or they would die.

Jay packed his books and a few articles of clothing when he heard another volley come through the window and lodge into the wall. He ran into Arina’s bedroom and found it empty. He moved into the other room and saw her with a pack around her shoulder.

Barclay saw Jay first. “Nuvi, are you ready?” He finished his question with a few coughs. The smoke was beginning to fill the house.

“Arina, are you ready?” Nuvi asked.

Arina nodded.

“If you’re ready,” Barclay said, between coughs. “Go into Jay’s room. Jay, come here, I need your help.”

A moment later Nuvi and Arina exited the bedroom. They peeked into the main room and saw it engulfed in flames. They had to leave if they wanted to use the door, in a few moments they wouldn’t have an exit.

“Jay,” Barclay said waving him over. “Take them to Taq.”

Jay opened his mouth, but Barclay kept going.

“Don’t come back to the house. It might not be here.”

“I’m not going to leave you,” Jay protested.

“You have to,” he stressed, “go.”

Barclay overturned the bed against the wall.

Jay backed into the doorway.

“I’ll find my way,” Barclay told him. “Get them out of here.”

Jay stepped into the hallway and looked to the front door consumed by fire. He moved into his room and hurried to Nuvi and Arina.

“Where’s Barclay?” Nuvi asked.

“I need to get you out,” Jay said, and he grabbed their hands before they could protest. In a flash they were across the world and in the darkness of their underground home.

“Ignire,” Jay said, illuminating the cavern. He let go of their hands and took off his pack.

“Where are we, mother?” Arina asked.

“Taq,” she answered, meeting Jay’s eyes. “I don’t care what he told you. You bring him here.”

Jay nodded. He was planning on going back for him already. “I’ll be right back.” And he was gone.

He did take Barclay’s advice, though. He knew the house would be risky, so he teleported into the garden, behind a large mound of compost.

The front of the house was engulfed, and he couldn’t decide if he should go into his room or to Barclay’s. Before he could decide, the front of the house caved in. The flames began to move to the rear, towards the bedrooms. Jay feared the worst but saw a dark figure roll out from under the house. The person stumbled to his feet and coughed heavily while trying to make it to the trees behind the property. Jay knew it was Barclay and teleported in front of him.

“Barclay, we need to go.”

They reached for each other, when Liga decked Barclay before they could connect, knocking him to the ground.

Jay stood rooted to the spot.

“This boy must be special,” Liga stated. “I’ve never seen so much effort to bring in a child. No matter, a reward is a reward.” He produced a short rope. “Thanks for keeping him safe all these years.”

“Do not touch him,” Barclay said, pushing himself onto one knee.

Liga stopped and rolled his eyes. “Why? Is he going to curse me?”

“No,” Barclay said, “I will kill you.”

“I don’t see how,” he said almost chuckling. “You’ve lost your form. I’m not here to hurt you, Barclay. Leave me to my business.”

“You have no idea what you’re dealing with, Liga.”

“I’m dealing with a young criminal. The Idols don’t approve of anyone doing magic. I like flowers too boy, but a law is a law. You should be more concerned for your wife and daughter,” he counseled Barclay, nodding back to the burning house.

“They’re safe,” Jay said, reassuring Barclay.

Liga turned around and looked at Jay and then back at the destroyed house. “I didn’t see them leave.”

“My family is not in the house,” Barclay said, standing tall.

“They were a few moments ago,” Liga retorted.

“I took them out,” Jay said.

Liga stepped back when he looked at Jay, then to Barclay and back to Jay. It didn’t make sense. He had watched everyone enter the house and saw Barclay leave out the back. While his mind twisted to make sense of everything, he couldn’t explain how the boy was outside. He also should be in the house.

“This doesn’t make sense,” Liga said to himself.

“Fire!” called a soldier from the house.

Immediately, dozens of arrows whistled towards them. The soldiers had circled the house and were less than a hundred feet away.

Jay went to a knee and caught them all. One would have struck Liga’s back, and several would have struck Barclay.

Liga turned towards the house to see the arrows floating. A crisp white light surrounded each one. He followed their tether to see Jay’s hands glowing a strong white. Dumbfounded, he stumbled away but kept his footing.

Barclay stepped toward Liga.

Jay could have sent the arrows back towards the soldiers but instead he moved his hands down in a swift motion. The arrows obeyed and were buried deep into the soil.

The white light stopped when Barclay grabbed Liga’s shirt and picked him up off the ground. “I’m not going to kill you,” he said, raising him higher. “You have bigger problems than me to deal with tonight. I want you to remember who saved your life.”

“Don’t move!” yelled a soldier from the house.

More scared than ever, Liga nodded at Barclay’s instructions.

Barclay lowered him to his feet and shoved him to the ground. He stepped back to Jay and grabbed his hand and the two disappeared.

Liga covered his head when he heard another call and felt a volley of arrows fly over.

The sun had all but set on Taq but Jay and Barclay were able to see well enough to find the stairs. When they entered the home, Nuvi wrapped her arms around Barclay and Arina did the same to Jay.

“Are you injured?” she asked Barclay.

He shook his head. “No. I made it out before the fire reached me.”

“Your face?” she questioned, pointing to the fresh bruising around his eye.

“Liga,” he answered.

“Liga?”

Barclay nodded. “You were right. He was watching us.”

Nuvi hugged him again and coughed.

The action reminded Barclay that Nuvi’s health was still not well.

“Let’s find you a place to lie down,” he said. “We can talk more about this when you’re healthy.”

In short order, Nuvi was resting in Barclay’s bed and they prepared another next to her mother for Arina.

Barclay placed another blanket on his wife and let her rest.

Jay was waiting in the doorway and backed out when Barclay exited.

Exhausted and relieved and full of many other emotions, the two stood in the main hall and said nothing.

Barclay patted Jay on his shoulder and moved towards the back wall. He grabbed a chair on his way and set it down before the opening. He sat with a heavy thud and stared out over the water.

Jay watched for a moment and thought about joining him, but instead went to the study. He ignited a few candles and saw his bag on the floor. He removed the books and laid them on top of the desk. Then, he moved to the shelf and brought the box over. He looked at what he had in the order he received them. To his left, he had his father’s journals. In the middle, an old decorative box he could still not open. And on the right, a text book, written by his mother, with instructions on how to write and decipher secret messages. He grabbed the latter and removed the riddle from between its pages. He unfolded the paper and read it through before placing it on the table in front of the box.

Jay thought about how one led to the other and how they seemed to point to the box. He recalled Barclay’s words and what Ahern had done for his parents, what he had done for him. There was still so much he did not understand. He felt an overwhelming guilt for not searching more diligently over the summer. He recalled the time he wasted and how he should have devoted his efforts to solving his mother’s riddle. If he had, he might have been able to do more in Boon. Maybe they would still be there. He felt helpless again. Much like when Arina was injured. He caused her to fall but he was able to fix that, even if he still didn’t know how. But because of his laziness, he felt he was the cause of their forced evacuation. He closed his eyes. What did I need to do next? How do I make this right?

Jay opened his eyes and looked at the items on the table. He felt like he had exhausted his father’s journals. He removed them and placed them on a shelf. He had deciphered his mother’s hidden message and placed her book on another shelf above the journals. He had the box and his mother’s riddle. He recited the riddle again in his mind.

Dear son, Ahern will guide you with a bond eternal. You hold the only key.

Jay knew the box was from Ahern. He knew it held instructions for him. His mother’s riddle told him that an eternal bond was required and that he held the only key. What key do I hold?

“Something only I have will open this box,” he said under his breath, picking it up.

He turned the box over, viewing every side, squinting at small cracks hoping to find an opening. He tried to twist and bend and remove some of the decorative features, hoping it would release a hidden lock. And then he thought of his mother’s riddle again and put the box down. A bond eternal is not something anyone else can produce, he thought. He rubbed his eyes. What key do I hold that no one else does? I need to find out what it is.

Jay walked around the table and sat in the chair. What key do I hold? He repeated in his head. His mind rested on the thought and he laid his head on his forearm. It surprised him how quickly the exhaustion hit him once he sat down. Before he fell asleep, he found some comfort in his renewed efforts to solve his mother’s riddle and open Ahern’s box.