Seth hurried to Riyan’s side. The rise and fall of his chest showed that he still lived. “Riyan!” he shouted as he raised Riyan’s head from the floor. Gently slapping his face, Seth tried to revive him to no avail.
Chyfe and Soth rushed to Bart and Kevik respectfully, neither having any luck in bringing them around. At least they still lived.
“Lay them on the bed,” Seth said, as he lifted Riyan from the floor. Carrying him over to the bed, he laid him gently down. Reaching for the hand that had been in contact with the key, he held it up and saw where two of his fingers had been horribly burned. Layers of skin were missing, and the beginnings of fluid filled blisters sprouted around the outer edges of the wound.
First Bart, then Chad and Kevik were placed next to him on the bed. Their fingers showed the same level of damage as did Riyan’s. “Get the ruby,” suggested Seth.
Soth nodded and began searching Kevik’s pouches. When he found it, he began with Kevik. Holding the magic user’s hand in his, he placed the ruby near the burned areas and concentrated on healing. When the light from the ruby appeared, they saw the edges of the burned areas begin to heal.
“What happened to them?” asked Chyfe.
Soth shrugged. “I don’t know,” he replied. Glancing over to the table, he saw a wisp of smoke rising from where the circular key sat. “Seth,” he said, directing his brother toward the key.
Seeing the wisp of smoke, Seth went to take a look. “It burnt the table,” he said. Holding his hand above the key, he could still feel heat radiating out from it. Drawing his knife, he moved the point to where the key met the wood. He was going to try and pry it out of the tabletop.
“Don’t,” cautioned Chyfe.
Seth paused with his knife’s point a mere half an inch from the key as he looked over to him.
“Let’s wait for Kevik to come around,” Chyfe said. “He’ll know better what to do.”
Seth glanced to his brother and saw him nod. Replacing his knife back in its scabbard, he said, “Very well.”
One by one they healed the burned areas on their friend’s fingers. When the last had been healed and the gem grew quiet, Soth retuned it to Kevik’s pouch. Getting up from the bed, he went over to the table to look at the key for himself.
“Damn,” he said in awe. The wood around both the inner and outer edges was blackened.
Standing next to him, his brother nodded. “I could use a drink,” he said. “I’ll go down and bring up a pitcher.”
“And some food too,” suggested Chyfe.
“Alright,” agreed Seth. “Be right back.
While Seth was downstairs procuring sustenance and drink, Soth and Chyfe kept watch on the four lying upon the bed. Other than the rise and fall of their chests, it didn’t look as if they were alive.
Chad was the first to awaken. Groaning, he lifted his head and looked around. Lying next to him on the bed was Riyan. Lifting his head still further revealed Kevik and Bart lying on the other side of Riyan. A single candle burned on the table, around which Chyfe and the twins were asleep in chairs.
Getting up, he sat on the edge of the bed. A dull ache throbbed behind his eyes and the room was spinning. He felt as if he was going to pass out. Closing his eyes and taking a few deep, steady breaths, he brought himself back from the brink of unconsciousness.
The creak of a floorboard broke the stillness of the room. Opening his eyes once again, he turned to see Chyfe moving from the table toward him. The room hadn’t settled down yet, but it was better.
“How are you doing?” Chyfe asked quietly so as not to awaken the others.
Moving his hand to press against his forehead in an attempt to alleviate the pain, he stopped when his fingers came into view. A remembered pain came to him, though the flesh of his fingers was pink and whole.
“They were burnt pretty badly,” Chyfe told him. “We used Kevik’s gem to heal them.”
He remembered moving his segment toward the others. After that his memory grew a bit blurry. “What happened?” he asked.
“Not exactly sure to tell you the truth,” replied Chyfe.
The sound of a chair sliding across the floor announced Seth standing up and coming to join them.
“Why don’t we help you to the table,” suggested Chyfe. “You could probably use some food.”
Chad nodded. Coming to his feet, he staggered a bit as the room once again began swimming in earnest. Chyfe reached out and caught him before he could fall back onto the bed. “You better give me a hand,” Chad suggested. Seth came next to him to help as well, and together, he and Chyfe supported Chad over to the table.
Soth awoke by the time he had made it to the table and sat down. “Good to see you awake,” he said to Chad.
Ignoring the greeting, Chad’s eyes were riveted to the circular key sitting on the tabletop. The sight of the charred area around it prompted him to once again look at his fingers.
“As far as we can tell,” Seth told him as he poured Chad a mug of ale, “it’s been reforged.” He then handed the cup to Chad who took it with a shaky hand.
Downing the ale, Chad noticed that the sigil inscribed side of the key was facing up. Where the segments had forged together was seamless. As he reached his hand out to touch the key, Seth grabbed his forearm and stopped him.
“We thought it might be wise to wait for Kevik,” Seth explained.
From the bed, Kevik said, “Probably a wise precaution.”
The four at the table turned to see him propped up on one elbow looking in their direction. Beside him, Bart and Riyan had also begun to stir.
“About time you layabouts awoke,” Seth said with a grin. Coming over to the bed, he and his brother helped them over to the table. Each were as weak and unstable as Chad had been.
As Kevik took his seat at the table, he reached out his hand toward the key, but stopped before actually coming into contact. “Amazing,” he said.
Riyan was the last to the table. “Is it whole?” he asked.
“It would appear so,” replied Kevik.
“You guys had us worried,” Soth explained. “You’ve been out for hours.”
Kevik nodded. “Not surprising,” he said. “Especially considering the amount of magical energies we were exposed to.” Hesitantly, he brought his forefinger into contact with the metal of the key. Emboldened when nothing happened, he began tracing various sigils inscribed upon its surface. “It’s cool.” Glancing to the others, he said, “It should be safe to handle now.”
“Are you sure?” asked Chyfe. Turning to Kevik, he wore a dubious expression.
“Not completely, no,” he replied. “But I can’t imagine it would be dangerous. Now that the four segments are together again.” He tried getting his thumbnail under the edge to lift it up, but found it to be sunk into the table.
Seth saw his dilemma and produced his knife. At which point, he worked the knife’s point under the edge and pried it up. When the key came free, they discovered the area beneath it was charred beyond recognition. In fact, the key itself had sunk a quarter inch into the surface of the table. Taking hold of the key, he flipped it over and they could see the map on the other side.
“Look,” Riyan said, pointing to the section of the map on the back of the key they took from the River Man. A small star was set on the eastern side of a range of mountains. “It shows where we found the King.” From this, anyone with a working knowledge of the area around Quillim would recognize it as being in the area.
“If there were any doubts about what we found was in truth the King’s Horde, I think this cinches it,” Chad said.
Riyan nodded. Reaching out, he picked up the key and held it before him. “With this, we can open the Horde,” he announced. Silently he added, And change the mind of Freya’s father!
The following morning as the companions began their trek to Quillim for fame and fortune, a group of riders made their way along a narrow trail high above a deep canyon in the Tinderlock Mountains.
Burdy, a trapper and hunter who knew these mountains better than the face of the woman he once loved, rode at the fore. Behind him came Erz, an amusing if at times irritating man, and another rider whose name he had never been told. Though it didn’t take a fool to recognize the man as being a Tribesman. Add that to the fact he wore Orack colors and was addressed as ‘milord’, he had to be someone of great importance.