Chapter 30
Blue Day Under a Green Sky
Connie kept to herself for the remainder of the day. She sat on an outcropping of rock that overlooked the village and the valley, gazing at all she saw below. She brooded over her brief, painful experience back on Earth and what Alyndia had done to her life. Not only had Alyndia stained her credibility by getting her thrown into a mental institution, she had ruined Connie’s career with the CIA. Then, to make matters worse, Alyndia made contact with her sisters. And who knew what MacGregor now thought of her? But what did she really expect?
The air grew chilly once twilight arrived. She remained on the rock, now shivering, somehow hoping the cold would make her a better person by freezing away the anger she felt. She pondered the possibility that her mother was truly dying. She’d always known this day would someday come, and only circumstance allowed her to even know of its occurrence. Still, Connie could not find it in her heart or mind to see her mother, even if it were possible. If Alyndia wanted to do it, that was fine. All the power to her. Connie was content to just let sleeping dogs lie. That was all, and she refused to let her feelings traverse similar tangents. There was little she could do about it anyway.
Connie sighed as she stared across the darkening valley and the frozen lake below. For all she knew, she could never return to Earth anyway. Thanks to Alyndia’s meddling, all she had was now broken. She bit her lip. For all the murderous Chaos and bloodshed she had witnessed so far on Cerinya, this was her world now. And if it was hell, then she would declare it her heaven. And these people were her companions. “So be it, Cerinya,” she said aloud.
Twilight came, and now a cold blanket of stars became visible. A lone, fur-clad figure broke away from the camp and started heading her way up the mountain. The figure carried a lantern, no doubt lit with a Light spell cast on its wick, as she knew the lamp oil had run out a week ago. The figure was almost at the rock when she saw it was none other than Rahl. He brought for her a remnant of dinner, a rib of the jule he and Yalden chanced upon shortly after breakfast.
Connie said nothing to Rahl as he placed the rib, partially wrapped in a leaf, down on the rock next to her. The meat was still warm having been freshly cooked, and its aroma beckoned her. Nonetheless, she continued staring into the starlit valley and the nocturnal silhouette of the jagged peaks beyond. Though she sat with her knees brought up to her chest, cradled by her arms, she shivered from the cold that invaded her robe. Rahl stood above her. She felt his eyes scrutinizing her.
“You’ve been sitting out here all day. Everyone is worried about you.”
“I’m all right. I just need some time alone.”
“Would you like me to bring you anything?” Rahl asked her in a deep, subdued voice.
Connie shook her head.
“You are trembling. I can bring you some of your fire nodes so you can warm yourself up.”
“I’m fine, Rahl. Thank you,” she said as icily as the cold air around her.
He stood next to her for a moment longer, his eyes lingering on her. Connie frowned as she wondered what he was thinking. She looked away from him, not quite ready to meet his gaze, keeping her eyes fixed on the horizon. Then there came the rustle of clothing behind her. She did not know what he was doing, but she resisted the temptation to look at him just the same. Moments later, she felt warmth on her back as he draped his fur coat over her shoulders. She closed her eyes when he did this, touched by his simple display of kindness. She felt the wetness of tears in her eyes. The frigid air heightened the sensation of tears at the corners of her eyes.
Without further ado, Rahl slipped off the edge of the rock and began walking back to the camp. An acute, dark feeling rose up in her on seeing him walk away. At that moment, she very badly wanted to be near him.
“Swordbearer,” she called to him, wiping the tears from her eyes before she spoke.
He stopped and looked back at her with an expression of concern.
“Stay with me for a while,” she said softly. “Protect my spirit.”
Rahl moved back to her on the rock. Connie moved aside the rib of jule as a cue she wanted him to sit next to her. Now he sat, as she did, with his knees to his chest, his legs framed by his arms. She did not speak for a moment, and neither did he, so both of them sat in still repose as they regarded the shimmering stars overhead.
“Things did not go well today,” she said finally. She pondered this disclosure for a few seconds, then corrected it to the pejorative. “No, things went terribly.”
“We made that assumption,” he said. “A few in our group are fearful of disturbing you, including Snow. We drew lots on who would be the one to bring you dinner. I lost.”
Connie could not help but smile to herself on hearing Rahl say this. This meant that at least the party respected her to a degree. Knowing they respected her gave her a modicum of satisfaction, for it was not altogether a bad thing.
“What happened on Earth if you don’t mind that I ask?”
“Everything has changed. Alyndia has made a mess of my life. I’ve lost everything, and everyone thinks I’m a kook.” Connie turned to Rahl. “My partner didn’t believe me when I told him about this place. Though he didn’t tell me so, I knew he thought it was crazy.”
“You said you did not believe Professor Layton when he first told you about Cerinya.”
She sighed. “Yes, Rahl, you’re right. But the circumstances were different back then. I guess I shouldn’t have brought it up with him. I was only caught up in the thrall of being back. I wasn’t thinking.”
The two of them sat in silence for a minute. Small puffs of mist appeared with each time they exhaled. Rahl spoke first, “It is fortunate that you taught us CPR. We thought we had lost you.”
“My heart stopped?”
“Yes. You nearly died.”
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“Snow assured me she knew how to cast those spells. What went wrong?”
“She told us it had to do with Alyndia being firmly bound to your body on Earth and us being unable to sever it from here. She said that some additional spells needed to be cast to release her hold on your body, but these could not be cast from here. I do not understand the magical arts, so I cannot tell you exactly what this entails. But do not worry—she and Calicus will find out how to do everything properly, and you will soon be back on Earth.”
“No, Rahl,” Connie responded tersely. “This is now my home.”
“Perhaps you do not have a choice. Snow says Calicus ordered her to cast the spells on you. It has something to do with a spiritual law being broken. And, of course, we need Alyndia’s celestial spell abilities.”
“That’s too bad for all of you,” Connie retorted. “By screwing up my life, Alyndia has forfeited her right to return here. You can tell that to Snow. I will not allow her to cast another spell on me. No way, no how—not if I can help it. And I don’t care what Calicus says. He has no right to intervene. I am Snow’s apprentice, not his. So, you had all better get used to me.”
Connie turned to Rahl to check his reaction. To her surprise, he was smiling. Connie immediately became suspicious.
“Why are you smiling? Are you underestimating me again? Do you not think I can resist Snow and Calicus?”
“No, that’s not it at all.”
“Then why are you smiling?”
“I’m just glad you decided to stay with us.”
Rahl’s reply caught Connie off guard. “You are?”
He turned to her. His dark eyes glinted in the starlight. “Yes. And so do the others. Don’t tell Snow I told you so, but she mentioned that she seriously regrets casting the spells on you. Although she doesn’t say it, I think she’s worried you are angry with her because it ended badly.”
Connie laughed. Instantly, the level of tension in her body dropped a few notches. “I’m not angry with her all. I just don’t want her to send me back.”
“As leader of this quest, you have my word that she won’t.”
“What if Calicus insists?”
“Snow is on my quest. As long as she remains on my quest, she must follow my orders, not those of Calicus. But, as I said, Snow regretted sending you back, so I don’t think she will insist on it again.”
Rahl’s assurance put Connie at ease. “That’s very kind of you to share, Rahl.”
She looked back at the stars. They twinkled cheerfully in the sky for her, raising her mood in the chilly air. Her ribcage ached from the CPR they’d done on her earlier. She noticed Rahl shivering from the cold, though he seemed to be making a macho attempt at hiding it. She scooted herself closer to him and wrapped his coat around the both of them. Now the warmth of their bodies mingled beneath the furry coat.”
“I have a question for you, Rahl.”
“Yes?”
“Calicus told me that he gave Elenglea the name ‘Snow’ while she was his apprentice. Why did he name her that?”
“I do not know.”
“You have no idea at all?”
Rahl shook his head. “Why would I?”
“I just assumed you would know, being that you two have a history.”
“Of what history do you refer?”
“Weren’t you two lovers once?”
He looked away. “It is not something I wish to discuss.”
“Of course not. But we women have a way of sensing such connections, and I do sense that there was something between you and her.”
“It is not worth discussing.”
“I understand that. Maybe it’s because you were married, but not to each other, while you were together. Why did you tell me you were married earlier?”
He turned to her, seeming quite surprised by her question. He did not immediately answer but ruminated over his response.
“The question did not come up. I suppose you know about Jenada.”
“Yes, I know about her. I think you loved her, but she married your brother instead. Am I right? That’s why you wanted to return to Zeranon—to see her again. It’s also why you were so affected by her death, even more than Yalden, her own husband.”
He turned away from her and said nothing. Connie instantly sensed she should not have said what she did. She feared Rahl was now upset at her.
“I’m sorry, Rahl. Don’t be angry with me.”
“I’m not angry with you,” he said, still looking away from her.
A long, lingering silence passed between them. To Connie, the silence was too long. She could not resist maintaining the feeling that she was angry with her, or at least hurt by her statement.
“I’m sorry I said that,” she said finally. “That’s your business. It was wrong of me to bring it up.”
“Don’t be sorry.” He turned to her and gazed into her eyes. “What you said is true. She was the only woman I ever loved.”
Connie saw that tears had welled up in his eyes. Now a single tear streamed down his face to his beard. She brought a finger to his face and touched the tear. Its wetness chilled the tip of her finger. All at once, this sensitive man before her touched her heart. For all his strength and unwavering courage, he was also a kind man, a good man. He was a man torn between love for his brother and the woman most precious to him, and in loving both of them, he could be close to neither. At that moment, Connie wanted to melt into his arms. Without thinking, she embraced him. The Rahl the Swordbearer sobbed wholeheartedly. Connie felt he’d obviously bottled up his feelings far too long, and though she’d long suspected, she never understood the depth of his love for both of them. Now she did.
“It’s all right,” she cooed to him as she stroked his hair amidst his sobs.
Connie kissed his forehead once tenderly, then rested her lips there. Peeling back the pages of her memory, she recalled that no man in her world had ever been sensitive enough to cry in her presence, not since Byron came to her at the bookstore after he learned she’d had the abortion. She’d broken his heart as his mother had broken his spirit.
She took a deep breath and gazed up at the stars. She wanted this fragile moment to last. Her eyes caught sight of a shooting star. At that moment, she direly wished the fable of wishing on a star was a reality. Then she wondered if the magic of this world extended to earthly fables.
Rahl raised his head to her. Now he gazed into her eyes, and she returned it. At once, they brought their lips together. Their lips suckled together in a gentle, soulful kiss. Remembering Jalban’s words, she lightly drew his breath into herself. She held it there within her lungs, allowing its warmth to sink outward to her ribs. Now she slowly exhaled, tasting an oddly sweet scent on her tongue. The overall experience was exquisitely pleasant. She drew back to where she could see his face fully.
“What is it?” he asked her softly.
“I feel like I’d never been kissed before now,” she said, her voice nearly a whisper. “It feels like the very first time.”
Connie brought her lips to his again. At that moment, Snow called out to them from somewhere between the camp and the outcropping of rocks.
“Rahl? Connie? Is everything all right?”
The enamored mood between the two dissolved in an instant. Connie and Rahl unwrapped their arms from around each other. Rahl got to his feet.
“It is cold here,” Connie said. “I want to sit by the fire.”
At that, he held out his hand to her. She took it, and he raised her to her feet. Snow appeared at the base of the rock a few seconds later. For the light from the lantern and her proximity, Connie assumed Snow had most likely seen everything. Realizing this made Connie feel momentarily awkward for reasons she could not quite pinpoint.
“I was worried about you two,” Snow said as she scrutinized the two of them.
“You walked all the way up here in the dark?” Connie asked.
“I cast a Darksight on myself.”
“Oh,” Connie said.
“We need back to the camp,” Snow said to the swordbearer. “There is some contention over who will not be taking watch tonight. Despite what your brother says, I’m certainly not. I need my rest after casting those spells today.”
“I’m coming.”
Rahl helped Connie off the rock where Snow waited below, even though all three of them knew without question that she was able to get off the giant rock herself. He then picked up the lamp and she the rib of jule he’d brought for her.
The three of them walked back to the camp in silence. Connie wondered what Snow was thinking. It occurred to her that perhaps Snow had still designs of her own on Rahl, and Connie had just committed a major faux pas by kissing him. The possibility of a confrontation with the sorceress over Rahl disturbed Connie, but she tried not to let this trouble her. She decided to wait to see what happened before jumping to conclusions. In any case, there were bigger problems at hand, such as how they were going to get across the vast chasm without the use of magic if they could not go around it.