Soul Gem Collector 6 Chapter 2

“We’re almost to the other side,” I told my girls as our carriage careened towards the far end of the bridge.

The wheels were uneven as they rolled across the stone structure, and it made my teeth rattle in my jaw. I hadn’t been able to divert the last fireball far enough away so it wouldn’t cause damage, but soon we would be free of the guards and could take a breath.

“The guards just joined us,” Janel said as she leaned out of the gaping hole that had once been a window.

“Good,” I responded.

I wanted them to be halfway across by the time I destroyed the aging bridge so that we would finally be free of them, and I could get my girls to safety. I checked on Mr. Limey, his stone was almost empty, but the last few sparks were enough to strengthen the crumbling bridge.

“Just a few more feet,” Aylara said from the bench, her bright red eyes were focused on the magical image of the road, and her tail twitched behind her nervously.

There was a jolt as we crossed onto solid ground, the carriage rocked back and forth so hard that I fell to my knees, but I steadied myself on the side of the damaged cabin.

“Done!” the mouse-girl squeaked.

“Noura,” I said as I turned my attention to the fiery djinn. “Can you stop the carriage?”

“Gladly,” she responded.

She snapped her fingers, and the image of the road that she held in front of us disappeared wisps of smoke. Then she collapsed onto the seat as the carriage rolled to a standstill.

“I do not want to do that again,” she grumbled. “But if we do… I’m going to summon a better carriage. One that I won’t have to hold together.”

“I liked this carriage,” my wife pouted and defended the bright pink present from her parents.

“It’s great,” I soothed her. “But it was made for the city, not a high speed chase, fireballs, or arrows.”

“You’re right,” the elvenborn conceded before she sat next to Noura and grabbed her hand. “You were wonderful. Thank you for getting us this far.”

“Anything for my masters,” the djinn said with a weak smile.

“I need to destroy the bridge,” I said.

The guards took the bridge slower than we had, they didn’t have my ability to strengthen it as they went, and their horses seemed to be fighting them. They led their beasts around some of the broken pieces, but the ancient structure had not been kept well.

“Stay inside,” I told the girls. “I’ll be right back.”

“Be careful,” my vixen girlfriend warned.

I had to shove the door open with my shoulder, but finally it gave way and swung out. I jumped down, the solid ground beneath my feet was welcome after the jolty chase, and I let out a sigh of relief that we had survived so far.

The guards looked up at me like they could sense what I was about to do, and one of them began to summon the fireball attack he favored. He had to release it before it was too big, his horse tripped as the stone shifted underneath him, and the fiery weapon just fizzled a few feet away from him.

I walked closer to the bridge and saw that the battle mages were too far onto it to double-back and they were still far enough away that I was out of range unless they focused all of their attention on me, though that would mean they couldn’t guide their mounts. I still needed to be fast about my own attack, so I reached into my soul gems to summon lightning from the storm snake.

“Alright,” I muttered. “Just one good blast.”

After a quick breath in as I closed my eyes, I cupped my hands in front of me as electric sparks crackled across my fingertips, then started to form the ball of electric energy. I could hear the guards start to shout as they realized what I was about to do, and I opened my eyes to see how large the ball of lightning had become.

It was almost the size of my head, but as I moved my hands apart, it quickly expanded until it was the size of a watermelon. The orb of lightning was hard to contain, the streaks of energy wanted to escape, but I forced it to stay together until the electric blue lines started to hold together.

A fireball landed close to my feet, the heat of the flames washed over my legs, though it wasn’t near enough to actually scorch me so I ignored it, and the small one that came after it.

When I was sure the lightning ball would remain intact, and that it was big enough, I found a weak spot on the bridge. I aimed the orb then released it from my hands, and then watched as it flew forward to slam into the limestone.

A crack spread from the spot where it hit, the horses started to neigh and kick, and their riders began to fight just to stay on their mounts. The damage fissured out, and I watched as the bridge began to crumble, large pieces broke away. With a sound that echoed down into the depths of the chasm, the crack broke the ancient structure in half, and the bridge fell in on itself.

The guards had almost been to the other side, but their horses couldn’t outrun the collapsing stone, and they followed the bridge into the chasm. One tried to use his own lightning like a whip to grab onto a solid surface, but it missed its mark, and the last of the City Watch officers disappeared.

I snuck closer to the edge, I needed to make sure they hadn’t found some way to save themselves, but I saw their horses in the rubble and knew they hadn’t survived.

“Okay… Good…” I let out a relieved sigh as I ran a hand over my hair, I had protected my girls, and we were safe. I still needed to get us to the king, but for the moment we were okay.

“Zayre?” Janel asked as she poked her head out from the ruined carriage.

“Yeah,” I replied. “I’m here. The bridge is gone now, and those battle mages won’t be a problem anymore.”

“Good,” she nodded, and then disappeared back inside.

I shook my head as I looked at what was left of the present from the Leronds, Janel’s parents had given her the carriage a little over a month ago, but there was no way to restore it after all of the damage.

The carriage’s pink paint was chipped everywhere, and there were arrows stuck deep into the wood panels. Where the arrows had fallen out, there were large holes, and scorch marks covered the side where the window had been blown up. All of the wheels had missing spokes, a few places had broken off entirely, and I was sure that a strong gust of wind would break it apart.

“We’re going to need another ride,” I sighed, then ran my hand over my short hair, before I walked over to the door that was still open. I grabbed onto the bar that still clung to the side panel, and then hoisted myself up so that I could check in on my girls.

Taslyn seemed to have regained her strength and sat to one side with one muscular leg over the others, the slit of her dress fell open to reveal the freckles on her thighs, and her auburn hair had been rebraided. She had pulled her hood back up, her ears twitched at the sound of my return, and her amber eyes were bright and alert as she turned them towards me.

“All of the guards are taken care of?” she asked.

“Yes,” I responded. “But this carriage isn’t going anywhere else. And we need to put some more distance between us and this chasm.”

“I believe there is a town nearby,” she mused. “It was a mining town but it should still be occupied. Though we’ll still need to keep a low profile just in case the local officers are notified about us.”

“We can check it out,” I said. “But we may end up moving on. I would feel safer if we could find a place far, far away from any more people.”

“I second that idea,” Aylara piped up. “The further from society we are, the less likely the Korlems are to find us.”

“How do you know about the town?” Janel asked.

“I read about it when we were searching for elementals,” Tas replied. “I remembered it as a backup just in case the hunt didn’t work out.”

“That was a great idea.” My wife grinned. “And it turned out to be helpful.”

“Research is what I do,” the vixen winked.

“Noura,” I said as I squatted down in front of the exhausted djinn. “Are you okay?” I reached up to stroke her cheek, and tucked some of her flaming curls behind her ear.

“Yeah,” she grinned as her coal dark eyes fluttered open. “I just needed to rest for a few minutes.” She sat up, then rolled her shoulders, before she leaned down to press a kiss to my lips.

“You’re sure?” I asked.

“Of course,” she nodded her head. “I may sleep very hard tonight, though.”

“I thought djinn didn’t really need sleep,” Aylara said.

“We don’t need much,” the djinn shrugged. “But I’ve used a lot of energy today. And we still need a new carriage. I’m sorry this one didn’t make it, Janel.” Noura turned a sad smile to my wife. “I did try to keep it together.”

“You did an amazing job,” the elvenborn reassured her as she leaned against what once was the frame of a window. “If it wasn’t for you we wouldn’t have made it this far.”

“Anything for my masters,” Noura grinned. “I’m rested enough now to summon us another carriage.” She stood, her eyes swept over the cabin, and she shook her head with a small laugh. “I can’t believe this one hasn’t fallen apart.”

“That’s because you worked wonders,” I told her.

“While you and Janel took care of the guards,” she said.

“And I slept,” Tas teased.

“So we’re all ready to keep going?” I asked.

“Yes,” Aylara said. “The bridge being gone will only delay the Korlems for a little while. And there will be people from the capital that they can send after us too.”

“What should we do with this carriage?” Janel asked as we all climbed out of the ruined ride.

“I’ll burn it,” I said. “I don’t want to leave anything for trackers to use against us.”

“That’s a good idea,” the elvenborn nodded.

“Alright,” I sighed. “Noura, while you retrieve our new ride… I’ll burn the old one.”

“Anything for my master,” the djinn replied.

I waited as the girls walked a few more feet away from the ruined pink mess, and then reached into my soul gems for the power of my fire salamander. It wasn’t a particularly strong elemental so I usually used Valerys, but the lizard would take care of the damaged wood.

Flames licked my fingers and then flowed out towards the carriage, the wood caught, and soon the whole thing was a raging inferno. The orange and red fire claimed the silk curtains, then moved on to the cushions, while black smoke rose high into the early evening sky.

When I turned around, I saw that Noura had already summoned another carriage for us. I admit that I liked it much more than the pink one, the new one was a sleek black like the ones the Korlems used, and it shone like a beetle in the light.

The girls had already climbed inside, though they had left the door open for me, so I climbed the few stairs to get inside. Janel and Taslyn sat on one side of the cabin, both lounged against each other with their heads on the light pink cushioned seat, and their fingers intertwined. Noura and Aylara sat on the other side, the djinn had her legs stretched out in front of her, and the mouse-girl had her back to the cabin wall while her slender legs were draped over Noura’s lap.

“Are we ready to go?” I asked as I looked at them.

“Yes,” Noura replied.

“Great,” I plopped down next to Tas just as the carriage started forward.

I reached over to open the windows, the fresh air was welcome, and the wind was much more gentle since we were not in a rush. I glanced at the magical projection on the wall, it was smaller than the one Noura had used during the chase, but still detailed enough to show the road ahead of us.

“It looks like that town isn’t too far,” I noted.

“That’s a town?” Aylara asked as she squinted to make out the buildings.

The old mining town was smaller than my hometown, there were only a few businesses along the main road, and a few houses that were scattered on side streets. There were a few people on the streets, they looked lean, and all of them narrowed their eyes at our carriage.

“I don’t think we should stop,” my elvenborn wife whispered. “They don’t look very nice.”

“No,” I said. “It looks like this town hasn’t seen money in a long time. They’d turn us in in the blink of an eye… or rob us.”

“There’s not even an inn,” Aylara gasped.

“I think we should hurry,” Tas warned. “We’re starting to gather a crowd.”

“I’ll speed up,” Noura said and then snapped her fingers.

The carriage lurched forward, though the bumpiness smoothed in just a few seconds, and we rushed through the small town before we could draw more attention than we already had. At least our ride looked like something the Korlems would drive and not the pink carriage that the kingdom’s constables would be on the lookout for.

I breathed easier once we were past the town, though I still scooted over to the window to watch for anyone that might follow us. When I didn’t see anyone, I sat back in my seat, and it occurred to me that the town was probably too poor to have horse-mounted officers, and if they didn’t realize who we were, they were less likely to give chase.

“There’s a forest coming up,” I said as I studied the image of our surroundings.

“I’ll try to find a road for us to travel,” Noura said.

“Is that one big enough?” Aylara asked as she pointed towards a spot on the image.

The road she pointed to looked like it might have been used for logging at some point, it was wide enough for the carriage, though there was overgrowth stretched across the packed dirt. It would be easy enough for us to drive over, as long as there wasn’t a downed tree somewhere, and it was clear that no one used it.

“It looks like a good choice,” I responded.

“I’ll change our course,” my djinn girlfriend said.

Cool darkness washed over us as we passed under the first few trees, the golden light from the quickly setting sun peered at us from the opening, but the further we got into the woods, the harder it was for the rays of sunshine to pierce through the leaves.

“It’s beautiful,” Janel whispered as she scooted over to stare at the forest.

There were vines and twigs still in the road, and the carriage bumped over some of the larger rocks. The trees that had fallen in the path had been cut up and thrown to the side so I suspected that someone had kept the roads.

“We need to find a field or some place where we can make camp,” I said. “Noura, do you think you could hide us? It looks like someone has been cutting the trees that fall in the path… and I’d rather not have to fight again today if we can avoid it.”

“Yes,” Noura replied. “I can even hide our carriage. Even if someone stood right next to us, they wouldn’t be able to see us.”

“Good,” I said with a yawn. “It’s been a long day. Let’s just find a place to camp and recoup.”

“We’ll need to talk about our plan,” Tas said.

“Of course,” I sighed. “Alright, let’s find a place, eat, and then we can go over our next steps.”

“There’s a break in the trees up ahead,” Janel said.

“Great,” I stretched as the carriage came to a stop next to a clearing.

It was a small meadow, just big enough for our carriage, and for us to make camp for the night. Trees lined the soft green grass, wildflowers dotted the area, and the last of the light from the setting sun peered over the tops of the trees.

“It’s breathtaking,” Janel whispered, she pushed open the carriage door, and then climbed out into the calm scenery.

The smell of water rushed over me when the door opened, and I realized there was a river nearby that I would be able to bathe in once we had eaten.

“We don’t get places like this in the city,” Aylara squeaked. “It looks like something out of a story for kids.”

“It’s very peaceful,” I said as I got out of the carriage.

“Why don’t you sound excited about that hon?” the mouse-girl teased.

“The last time we found a place like this there was a meeting that didn’t end well,” I told her.

“You got Hawthorne out of that encounter,” Tas replied as she joined us in the meadow.

“True,” I conceded. “And he’s proven very helpful.”

“And there’s no tree people here,” my wife reminded us. “I don’t think there’s any creatures anywhere near us. I could go hunt some dinner though.”

“I promised my masters a buffet,” Noura reminded Janel.

“Oh right,” Janel muttered, and the elvenborn’s wine red lips turned down in a pout, but she nodded her head in concession. “I’m going hunting tomorrow, though.”

“I look forward to it,” I said, and then leaned over to wrap an arm around her waist before I pressed a kiss to her lips. “Almost as much as I will enjoy finding that river and washing off.”

I sniffed the air, but even with my connection to Taslyn’s senses, all I could tell was that there was a large body of water nearby. I would need to learn how to distinguish directions with Tas’s extra abilities, but that would have to wait for another time.

“Oh,” my wife grinned. “A bath sounds wonderful.”

“Maybe after dinner we can find it,” I winked. “Would anyone else like to join us?” I turned my attention to the others.

“I’ll bathe in the morning,” Tas said with a shake of her head. “I’m sure we’ll get ash from the fire and at least a little dirt on us from camping.”

“I might take another bath tomorrow before we leave,” I said. “But I won’t be able to sleep with all of this sweat and debris on me.”

“Would you like me to wait for dinner?” Noura asked.

“No,” I said. “I’m ravenous.”

“Anything to make my masters happy,” the djinn smiled so bright that I could feel the warmth of it from where I stood a few feet away.

“I wish I had grabbed my trunk,” Janel said. “It has all of my hunting and camping gear.”

“I need to retrieve all of our gems, too,” I muttered. “Mama skelk should be recharged in the morning but I should have enough energy to get the gems tonight, hopefully before the lab is overrun by the City Watch.”

“I can recreate anything we need to camp,” Noura said.

The gorgeous djinn snapped her fingers and a ring of stone appeared in the middle of the meadow, as soon as it was solid, a small fire lit in the center. She waved her hand again, and a large bed with dark red, satin bedding appeared. She had made it large enough that all five of us would be able to sleep comfortably, and as she glanced to the other side of the fire, two couches appeared around a large table laden with delicious food. By the time she had finished, the meadow had turned into a cozy home outside, and a domed shield shimmered above us to encompass even the carriage.

“Done,” Noura said with satisfaction as she reviewed her work.

“That all smells amazing,” I said, and then stepped forward to pick up a perfectly browned chicken drumstick that dripped with butter and rosemary.

“Of course,” the djinn smirked. “I replicated it from the king’s table.”

“A feast fit for a king,” Tas laughed as she sat on one of the couches, and then grabbed a golden plate to fill with food.

“And his queens,” Aylara added.

We all relaxed on the couches as we ate, none of us talked more than a few words, and those were only suggestions about what to try next. By the time we had all eaten our fill, night had surrounded us, and the only light came from the crackling flames.

“So what’s our plan?” Aylara asked after she had eaten her last bite. She leaned back on the couch with her legs crossed in front of her, and her petite hands over her stomach.

“We need to get to the capital and see the king,” I said. “Janel, do you think your friend still has that contact in the castle?”

“Yes,” my elvenborn wife replied after she ate the last grape on her plate. “I can call her on my mirror tomorrow. I’m sure she’ll help us no matter what lies the Korlems spread. She’s never liked them anyways. And she never trusted the City Watch.”

“Good,” I nodded my head. “Noura can get us to the capital and help us avoid the villages.”

“You should take Noura and I to the school library tomorrow so we can create copies of the maps in the library,” Tas said.

“Good idea,” I said. “It’ll help us plan a little better.” I sighed and rolled my shoulders. “We’ll need to find a safe place to hide in the city.”

“My sister lives in the capital,” Aylara said. “She’s a pain in the ass, and we’ll have to pay for her silence, but she’ll know where we can lay low.”

“Your sister would turn us in?” Noura gasped.

“Yeah,” the mouse-girl shrugged. “Probably not to the Korlems… at least not me… but she wouldn’t be very loyal to you guys.”

“I believe that,” Tas said with a wink. “I’ve always thought you’d sell us out.”

“Of course not!” Aylara defended herself. “My money is tied into Zayre’s success.” She stuck out her little pink tongue at the vixen.

“Well now it is,” the fox-girl teased.

“So we have a plan,” I clapped my hands together. “Tas, Noura, and I will pop into the library to make copies of the maps tomorrow. Janel will call her friend from the bardic institute. And Aylara, you’ll call your sister in the capital.”

“I think I will take that bath tonight,” Tas declared as she stood and stretched. “Who’s joining me?”

“I will,” I said.

“I need to wash my hair,” Janel said.

“I’m not leaving this fire,” Aylara said. “There could be predators out there. Or big cats.”

“I’ll stay with Aylara,” Noura replied. “But if you three run into any trouble you can call for me and I will be there in an instance.”

“Let’s go then,” I said as I stood, and then held out my hands for Taslyn and Janel.

I couldn’t help but think about the last time the three of us had gone to bathe in the forest, and my blood pulsed with heat at the idea of having both of them again. I would never turn down the opportunity to taste them, or to hear them moan with pleasure as I brought them to their climax.

“I wonder if there will be any creatures in the river,” Janel brought me back to the moment as she swung my hand excitedly.

“The gems,” I said as I remembered that I still needed to go back to my lab. “Alright, I’ll be right back.” I kissed each of them on the cheek. “Do either of you need anything while I’m there?”

“Soap,” Tas smiled at me.

“Be careful of the City Watch,” my wife warned.

“The shields should keep them out for now,” I said. “But I’ll watch for them.”

“See you soon,” my vixen girlfriend winked and then released my hand as she took a step away from me.

I took out the diamond ring that held Mama Skelk’s soul. There were more shimmers of power within the stone than there had been earlier, and I smiled as I realized that I could get to the lab and back with no problem. I pictured my old lab, its worn and burnt tables, the furnace that was clean but empty, and the bed that Noura had given me when she first arrived.

The ground shifted under my feet, and then solidified again underneath me as I reappeared in my lab. Everything was dark, the windows were locked, and I didn’t see anyone hidden in the shadows or corners of the massive room.

I walked over to the giant stone I used as a bedside table, found the candle I had left there, and then used fire from my salamander to light it. The meager flame showed a circle around me, but wouldn’t be enough to bring attention from outside of the lab if someone happened to be walking by.

“Soap and gems,” I muttered to myself as I walked towards the shower.

I grabbed my leather satchel on the way, then stuffed it with my own soap as well as all of the shampoos and creams that the girls had left behind. When I was done, I snuck over to the back of the lab to peek through the shutters to the area I had used to practice my powers, and looked for any sign of the City Watch.

I didn’t see any movement, I was sure that they would come to the lab eventually, but I hadn’t lived there in enough time that hopefully it would take longer for the City Watch to come check it out. I suspected that the Korlems had someone nearby, or a trap that would bind me the second I stepped out into the night air.

With a sigh, I set the candle down on one of the dusty work tables, and then focused on the limestone capsule that I had hidden the empty gems in. I knew that the spells wouldn’t go below the surface, so all I had to do was pull the stone box to me, and then I could lift it through the floor of the lab.

I heard a rumble as the limestone did as I bid it, and I thought I saw movement at the edge of the forest, but no one rushed towards the doors so I had at least a little more time. I yanked hard at the box, the packed earth floor resisted, and then gave way as the crude capsule surfaced. I pulled off the lid, gathered the containers of stones, and then looked around for something to put them in.

There was another satchel on one of the shelves, so I grabbed it, and then dumped the contents out onto my old bed. The sound of metal clattered against each other as tools fell onto the satin mattress, it was so loud that I immediately looked up, and expected someone to burst through the door.

When no one came, I opened all of the containers, and then dumped them into the newly emptied bag. I didn’t want to waste anymore time in the lab, since I couldn’t be sure that the Korlems didn’t have someone on their way, so I summoned the power from Mama Skelk as I pictured the camp that I had just left.

“Zayre!” Aylara gasped as I reappeared. “I thought you were bathing.”

“I needed to stop by the lab,” I said as I motioned towards the bags. “I have everyone’s soap and all of the gems.”

“I could have created more cleansers,” Noura said with a small smile.

“I know,” I grinned. “But I was already there.” I set the bag of gemstones down, then pulled it open to pull out a few to take with me, though all of them were amethyst. “I’m going to go catch up to Janel and Tas.”

“See you soon,” Aylara waved.

I stuffed the amethysts into a pocket of my jacket, and then grabbed the bag of soaps. I trotted down the path Tas had taken us down, and spotted them before they saw me, the two sexy women strolled towards me with their arms linked, their hair wet, and their smiles bright.

Just as I got close, I caught sight of flickering flames through the trees, and paused to get a better look. I held up my hand to my two girls when they saw me, then put a finger to my lips as I glanced in the direction of the other camp. I tiptoed through the trees until I got closer, Janel and Taslyn followed, but I wasn’t ready for what I saw.

A warband of Iron Dwarves were gathered around a fire, their massive battle axes leaned next to them as they sat on the logs they had arranged around the flames, and they laughed loudly while they drank. The enemy that I had come to warn the king about sat a few feet away from me, and though there were only six of them, I was sure that they would be more than enough to kill hundreds.

The dwarves hadn’t realized we were there, but I couldn’t give them the chance to find us while we slept or to attack any of the villagers we had passed, so I would have to strike first.