Part 40 (1/2)
Aleron shrugged hopelessly. ”I was trying to find my mother. She had gone down to the streets to help one of our neighbors, and she was lost in a mob. As I was searching for her, I was. .h.i.t on the head and knocked unconscious. When I woke up, it was morning and the High City was in ruins. Some people believe that the magic-users summoned the shadows to revenge themselves upon us.”
Adesina felt sick to her stomach. She clenched her jaw, fighting the anger and horror she felt. ”Are those in the camp all who survived?”
Aleron nodded with hesitation. ”I believe so.”
E'nes looked at his sister fearfully. ”Adesina, you do not know-”
She cut him off. ”I do know. I know exactly who did this. What I cannot understand is why.”
Ravi gazed at her sadly. ”Can you not?”
Adesina shook her head. ”No! The High City bore no strategic importance, it had no enemies, bore no threat. There is nothing to be gained by destroying it so thoroughly.”
”Adesina,” L'iam said quietly, ”it was attacked because they knew the L'avan would be blamed.”
The wrath Adesina felt was amplified as she felt the truth of the statement. Aleron looked around the group uncertainly, trying to understand what they were saying.
”Who are these L'avan you have mentioned?”
Adesina was too upset to answer, leaving it to E'nes.
”We are the L'avan. It is the name of our race.”
The young man still didn't understand. ”If your people did not attack the High City, then who did?”
Her voice was cold and biting. ”The s.h.i.+mat.”
Aleron frowned in confusion. ”Why? Why would they want you blamed?”
”The s.h.i.+mat are our mortal enemies,” L'iam explained. ”They have been for hundreds of years. They would go to great lengths to fuel hatred directed towards our people. If that includes destroying a city and murdering thousands of people, so much the better. It is a perfect show of their power and skill in staying undetected.”
Although Adesina was afraid of the answer, she had to ask, ”What of Ha.s.s and his family? Did they survive? What about Gainor and Deasa and Rina?”
Aleron looked at her sadly. ”They are not in our camp.” He hurried to continue, ”But there may have been other survivors in other camps.”
She shook her head blindly and got to her feet, walking away from the fire. It was too much to be borne. The people of the High City may have had their faults, but there was no way that they had deserved such a fate. The heat of fury burned in her chest, contrasting strangely with the tears smarting in her eyes.
Her vyala flared up in response to these emotions, strengthening them and being strengthened by them. She struggled to subdue the power swirling around her body, reprimanding herself for losing control.
Adesina stood with her back to her companions, staring at the refugee camps in the distance. As she fought her internal battle with her emotions and her vyala, something on the outskirts of her enhanced awareness caught her attention.
Something was wrong.
She instantly became more alert, scanning the scene in front of her. She let her vyala go free, tinting her vision dark green.
Hidden in the darkness were several men on horseback, quietly advancing on the refugee camps. Adesina switched her vyala to a light green and immediately felt their murderous intent. She tried to look deeper, discover who they were, but she could tell that time was short and she had to hurry.
She whipped around and sprinted back to the L'avan camp. ”We have to get out of here now!” she said in a low, urgent voice.
Everyone stared at her without comprehension. L'iam was the first to respond.
”Why?”
Adesina was throwing saddles on horses and stamping out the fire. ”The refugee camp is about to be attacked, and we will be as well if we do not leave as quickly as possible.”
The others began helping Adesina in her rushed packing of the camp, asking questions as they worked.
”By whom?”
She shook her head. ”I am not sure.”
”Why would anyone attack a camp of refugees?”
”I do not know,” she replied impatiently. ”They could be marauders looking for an easy target, s.h.i.+mat returned to finish a job, someone who has a grudge against the citizens of the High Citya”
Aleron grabbed her arm. ”We have to help them!”
At first she was startled by this declaration. ”What?”
He repeated himself. ”We have to help them.”
Adesina gave him a scathing look. This was no time for naive heroics. ”How could we possibly help them?”
He struggled to find the words fast enough. ”Protect them! Fight for them! Anything!”
She looked him directly in the eye as she spoke with finality. ”We cannot.”
Stunned disbelief filled his eyes. ”What! Why?”
Adesina gestured towards the camp and spoke in a voice as if it were obvious. ”We are completely outnumbered, Aleron. There is no way our help would be enough. All we would do is alert the s.h.i.+mat to our presence, and then our entire mission would be for naught.”
He set his jaw stubbornly. ”You said you did not know if they were s.h.i.+mat or not.”
She let out an annoyed breath. ”It does not matter who they are! If we get involved, the s.h.i.+mat will hear about it!”
L'iam put a sympathetic hand on Aleron's shoulder. ”She is right. We do not stand a chance against them.”
Aleron sputtered. ”So, we are just to leave them to die?”
”It is that, or die ourselves.” Adesina said harshly.
In the distance they heard the shouts of chaos begin. Shadows could be seen darting past the campfires, the sounds of horses being charged were coupled with angry yells. Every eye in the L'avan camp turned towards the refugees, searching desperately for some way to a.s.sist the helpless people.
Adesina wanted to urge their immediate departure, but was surprised to find that she could not turn away. In the s.h.i.+mat mind, self-preservation was only outweighed by the protection of the order; yet, she could not leave these people to fight for themselves.
She had a mission to fulfill. One of the utmost importancea”one that could not afford to be jeopardized by any sort of deviant action. Still, the sounds of screams rang in her ears, and she knew she could not walk away.