Bound by Blood and Sand
Page 55
“I’ll find one,” Jae said. She looked over at Elan, saw that his hair was now too long and tangled, and that he had the beginnings of a beard on his jaw. His gaze was fixed on the Well in front of them, and his voice was more alert than when he’d rambled to himself. Then she looked over at Tal and said, “I can barely believe it.”
“Me either,” Tal answered, soft and honest, and coherent. It was the first time he’d spoken in a day. They still needed water badly, but the sight of the Well had brought them back from the brink, at least for a moment.
She kept her grip on Tal’s hand as she slid into other-vision. Using magic ached like her sore muscles, but after a moment she was able to look around.
The Well dominated everything, though she could still sense the mountains at the far shore, out of sight. Once she got a feel for the Well’s magic, separating out different kinds of energy was easy enough. She let the Well’s power draw her vision to bright points, important places—
A spot along the top of the cliff, far off to their right, glowed brightly, though distantly. It was tied to the Well, but not the same magic. Built by the same people, drawing slightly from the Well’s power, the magic created…
The image struck her hard, and her mouth watered. It was magic that grew food. The mages who’d crafted the Well had spent weeks out here, maybe months. They’d needed to eat, so they’d made it easy for themselves. Jae fixed her mind on the place—an hour’s march around the top of the cliff. Before they’d spotted the Well, she wouldn’t have thought they could make it another hour. Now, more alert and motivated, they just might.
“Follow me,” she said, tugging Tal with her as she made her body start moving. Elan followed them, looking over at the Well every few seconds as he walked.
Euphoria at the Well’s existence could only last so long, and they had been marching with no supplies for two days. Jae sagged as she moved, staring down at her feet, trudging forward by sheer force of will.
Soon they could see it: an ancient, overgrown forest that had once been an orchard. Enormous trees had been grown by magic and fed by the Well, and every one had ripe fruit hanging from its branches. Gnarled, wild bushes grew thick between them, but Jae recognized those, too, once she saw them up close. The roots were edible—with water and a fire, they’d taste delicious. But the fruit was easier to grab and eat.
Elan, taller than she was, plucked several and handed them to her and Tal. They had thick skins that she needed her jagged, broken nails to tear through, and then scent exploded into the air. Fresh and wet and like nothing she’d ever smelled before, and when she brought the first section to her mouth, she couldn’t help moaning. The fruit soothed her parched throat and grumbling stomach. She ate a second and a third before she felt even a little bit sated, and then felt sick—it was too much too quickly. She was still hungry and thirsty, her stomach unsure what to do with the food she’d eaten, but at least she no longer felt so desperate.
After they finished their frenzied meal, Jae couldn’t bear the thought of getting up again. Instead they rested, sheltered from the sun by the thick canopy of trees, waiting for their stomachs to settle.
That evening, after they woke, Tal said, “We made it. We actually found it. Jae, you found it. And all this!”
“There used to be all kinds of plants, I think,” Jae said. “Enough varieties that the mages didn’t need to send for supplies constantly. If those all survived…They should all have survived. They’re magic. And if they truly did, then we could stay out here for a very long time. As long as we wanted.”
“We’ll have to get water, though,” Elan said. “And the Well is so close.”
“But it’s not going anywhere,” Tal said. “Let’s just relax for a while. I could sleep for a week.”
Jae nodded and settled back down on the ground, in the shade of one of the enormous trees. Even after resting all day, she was still exhausted from the desert, and with food and juice surrounding them, there was no need to push on until they were recovered.
Tal joined her. Elan hesitated, then pulled down a few more of the brightly colored fruits and sat with Jae and Tal. Jae curled up with her head resting on the kind of soft grass she’d never been able to grow at Aredann. For the first time she could remember, she slept—neither unconscious nor afraid, with no duties demanding her attention—until she woke naturally.
When she did finally wake up, feeling refreshed after almost a full day and night of sleep, Elan was still asleep but Tal was up. He was pulling at the roots of the nearest bush as birds sang from deeper in the trees. Jae helped him, and they walked together, picking and shoving their way between the rich variety of trees and bushes. The farther they got, the more different fruit she could spot, and the bushes gave way to lower, weedier plants, with different roots and vegetables. Jae and Tal gathered armfuls, all they could carry, and it didn’t matter what they dropped on their way back to Elan. There was so much more—enough to feed all of Aredann and then some, for a whole season. Maybe two. Maybe ten. They hadn’t found the other side of the orchard yet.
Breakfast was even better than their previous meal, heartier and with more variety. When Elan finally woke up, he thanked them sheepishly, and they shared plenty of what they’d gathered.
After they ate, Jae used her other-vision again while Tal and Elan packed as much as they could. This time, she didn’t need to look far: the mages had wanted their supplies close to where they worked. She suspected they’d camped up here, too, though probably not exactly where her group had collapsed. Either way, the mages had carved a staircase out of the stone. It was close enough that by early afternoon, she, Tal, and Elan made their way down to what had once been the edge of the Well.
It must have been a relatively deep section of the Well, since there wasn’t much dried-out shore between the base of the cliff and the water. The mud felt different under her boots than walking across the sand had. Curious, she reached down to touch it, and though it was warm, it wasn’t blazing hot like the sand. Jae stripped off her boots at last, exposing her scabbed, blistered feet to the air, and walked barefoot like she always had before. The smooth ground and slight breeze soothed her feet, after days of every step making them worse.
The ground grew tackier with each step, the mud thicker and damp, and that felt even better but didn’t compare at all to the feeling as they reached the edge of the water. Jae paused, glancing at the others, then dropped her bags right on the mud and ran, rushing into the gentle waves. She had never in her life felt anything as amazing as this: sun-warm water, pleasant against her skin as it swallowed her. She dropped to her knees and scooped water up to her mouth to drink until she was sated at last, her stomach heavy with it. Then she ducked all the way under, came up for air, and laughed.
“Me either,” Tal answered, soft and honest, and coherent. It was the first time he’d spoken in a day. They still needed water badly, but the sight of the Well had brought them back from the brink, at least for a moment.
She kept her grip on Tal’s hand as she slid into other-vision. Using magic ached like her sore muscles, but after a moment she was able to look around.
The Well dominated everything, though she could still sense the mountains at the far shore, out of sight. Once she got a feel for the Well’s magic, separating out different kinds of energy was easy enough. She let the Well’s power draw her vision to bright points, important places—
A spot along the top of the cliff, far off to their right, glowed brightly, though distantly. It was tied to the Well, but not the same magic. Built by the same people, drawing slightly from the Well’s power, the magic created…
The image struck her hard, and her mouth watered. It was magic that grew food. The mages who’d crafted the Well had spent weeks out here, maybe months. They’d needed to eat, so they’d made it easy for themselves. Jae fixed her mind on the place—an hour’s march around the top of the cliff. Before they’d spotted the Well, she wouldn’t have thought they could make it another hour. Now, more alert and motivated, they just might.
“Follow me,” she said, tugging Tal with her as she made her body start moving. Elan followed them, looking over at the Well every few seconds as he walked.
Euphoria at the Well’s existence could only last so long, and they had been marching with no supplies for two days. Jae sagged as she moved, staring down at her feet, trudging forward by sheer force of will.
Soon they could see it: an ancient, overgrown forest that had once been an orchard. Enormous trees had been grown by magic and fed by the Well, and every one had ripe fruit hanging from its branches. Gnarled, wild bushes grew thick between them, but Jae recognized those, too, once she saw them up close. The roots were edible—with water and a fire, they’d taste delicious. But the fruit was easier to grab and eat.
Elan, taller than she was, plucked several and handed them to her and Tal. They had thick skins that she needed her jagged, broken nails to tear through, and then scent exploded into the air. Fresh and wet and like nothing she’d ever smelled before, and when she brought the first section to her mouth, she couldn’t help moaning. The fruit soothed her parched throat and grumbling stomach. She ate a second and a third before she felt even a little bit sated, and then felt sick—it was too much too quickly. She was still hungry and thirsty, her stomach unsure what to do with the food she’d eaten, but at least she no longer felt so desperate.
After they finished their frenzied meal, Jae couldn’t bear the thought of getting up again. Instead they rested, sheltered from the sun by the thick canopy of trees, waiting for their stomachs to settle.
That evening, after they woke, Tal said, “We made it. We actually found it. Jae, you found it. And all this!”
“There used to be all kinds of plants, I think,” Jae said. “Enough varieties that the mages didn’t need to send for supplies constantly. If those all survived…They should all have survived. They’re magic. And if they truly did, then we could stay out here for a very long time. As long as we wanted.”
“We’ll have to get water, though,” Elan said. “And the Well is so close.”
“But it’s not going anywhere,” Tal said. “Let’s just relax for a while. I could sleep for a week.”
Jae nodded and settled back down on the ground, in the shade of one of the enormous trees. Even after resting all day, she was still exhausted from the desert, and with food and juice surrounding them, there was no need to push on until they were recovered.
Tal joined her. Elan hesitated, then pulled down a few more of the brightly colored fruits and sat with Jae and Tal. Jae curled up with her head resting on the kind of soft grass she’d never been able to grow at Aredann. For the first time she could remember, she slept—neither unconscious nor afraid, with no duties demanding her attention—until she woke naturally.
When she did finally wake up, feeling refreshed after almost a full day and night of sleep, Elan was still asleep but Tal was up. He was pulling at the roots of the nearest bush as birds sang from deeper in the trees. Jae helped him, and they walked together, picking and shoving their way between the rich variety of trees and bushes. The farther they got, the more different fruit she could spot, and the bushes gave way to lower, weedier plants, with different roots and vegetables. Jae and Tal gathered armfuls, all they could carry, and it didn’t matter what they dropped on their way back to Elan. There was so much more—enough to feed all of Aredann and then some, for a whole season. Maybe two. Maybe ten. They hadn’t found the other side of the orchard yet.
Breakfast was even better than their previous meal, heartier and with more variety. When Elan finally woke up, he thanked them sheepishly, and they shared plenty of what they’d gathered.
After they ate, Jae used her other-vision again while Tal and Elan packed as much as they could. This time, she didn’t need to look far: the mages had wanted their supplies close to where they worked. She suspected they’d camped up here, too, though probably not exactly where her group had collapsed. Either way, the mages had carved a staircase out of the stone. It was close enough that by early afternoon, she, Tal, and Elan made their way down to what had once been the edge of the Well.
It must have been a relatively deep section of the Well, since there wasn’t much dried-out shore between the base of the cliff and the water. The mud felt different under her boots than walking across the sand had. Curious, she reached down to touch it, and though it was warm, it wasn’t blazing hot like the sand. Jae stripped off her boots at last, exposing her scabbed, blistered feet to the air, and walked barefoot like she always had before. The smooth ground and slight breeze soothed her feet, after days of every step making them worse.
The ground grew tackier with each step, the mud thicker and damp, and that felt even better but didn’t compare at all to the feeling as they reached the edge of the water. Jae paused, glancing at the others, then dropped her bags right on the mud and ran, rushing into the gentle waves. She had never in her life felt anything as amazing as this: sun-warm water, pleasant against her skin as it swallowed her. She dropped to her knees and scooped water up to her mouth to drink until she was sated at last, her stomach heavy with it. Then she ducked all the way under, came up for air, and laughed.
