Chapter 35

Eventually he had wandered away from the inn. Lynna did not need him anymore. He had tried helping with the cleanup, but it had seemed wherever he had gone he had been in the way. There were plenty of empty streets, and he lost himself in them, crying.

He had had a place while Lynna had been busy. She ran around healing people and he followed her. He had helped people stand up who thought they never would. But there were no walking unconscious to protect her from. They were safe; it was over.

Part of him hoped that around each next corner he would find someone he could help--or, more to the point, somewhere he could feel needed. Somewhere to belong.

Finally he found himself at the charred docks. The late afternoon sun caught in the ripples in the water. None of the ships had been saved. One mast poked out of the water at the end of the longer pier. The gutted hull of another sat wedged on the beach. It had burned down to the waterline.

Some fishing boats had been stored on the beach, and they were untouched. He looked at them sadly, and he looked out to the sea. That was where he wanted to be just then. He wanted to put canvas to the wind and put the town behind him for a little while.

The tide had come in and out since he had been here last. His father's boat had been left further up the beach. So much came back to him, and he cried all over again.

As Stott stood there on the blackened grass amongst bits of charred debris that had blown or been washed ashore from the decimated ships and the docks themselves, the clouds seemed to tear themselves apart above him. Angry thunder echoed against the ground and resonated in his feet before the skies opened up and poured rain down upon the town. He turned his face upwards and remained there, letting the raindrops mingle with his tears, and his sorrows wash over his soul.

"I thought I'd find you here." Lynna's voice was quiet, and he almost missed it as water drummed against wood and steel all around them and splattered against the ground in large heavy drops.

"I bet... if I just..." she looked thoughtful for a moment and then brought her hand up and waved it over their heads. Suddenly the sound of the rain diminished as if it were falling onto pillows all around them, and drops stopped falling onto him. He looked up and watched in amazement as drops fell and were stopped midair, shimmering the magical shielding she had erected around them, and then rolling down the sides, leaving long streaks of fading glow.

"Agmar showed me how to make a sound barrier a while back. This one keeps the rain out too!" She looked pleased with the result and a little excited about having been able to do it. She smiled and reached over, wiping his face off with a handkerchief she produced from a pocket. "That's better. Why did you leave?"

"I was just in the way. And I needed to think." He turned his head away, not wanting her to see him if he started crying again.

"You weren't in my way," she replied. "But if you want me to go..."

"No, I don't. Stay." He turned back and took her hand in his and smiled. Her face was suddenly serious and sad. "What is it?"

"Stott, we need to talk about something. Let's sit down." She wasn't meeting his eyes. Instead she sat down on the burnt grass and tugged at his hand for him to join her.

"Did I do something to upset you?" His mind raced, searching through all the possible blunders he could have made during the time they'd been spending together recently.

"No, Stott. No." She sighed and he saw her fidgeting with her skirts. "I just don't know how to say this, exactly."

"Whatever it is, just say it. No sense agonizing over it with what we've been through. Just get it out and then we'll reason it out."

"I'm leaving here Stott. I've already spoken to my father about it. I'm going to leave with Agmar." She looked at him then, her eyes large and filled with tears. "I'm so sorry, but I have to do this. It's time for me to leave Eagle's Harbor."

For a moment, he was stunned. Then he realized that a part of him had known, all along, that she would leave. He'd thought at first that she would have to leave because the people in town might reject her because of her magic. Then he'd somehow known that it wouldn't matter if they accepted her or not. He'd known that she was going. And right then, he knew he would follow her. He had nothing left here in Eagle's Harbor. With Lynna, he could make a difference. He'd always wanted to see the world. Now he had his chance, and he could do it with the one person he had left to love. In the course of a few heartbeats he knew what he would tell her, though he'd made the decision the moment he'd stepped forward on the porch of the Surf and Sleep and stood between her and the crowd when they'd found out about her abilities. He'd chosen her then. His path before him was suddenly very clear.

"So, when do we leave?" he asked her.

"Stott?" her eyes were wary, but filled with hope at the same time.

"Well, somebody's got to look after you when you're all busy healing people. I'd like to be the one to do it. If you want me to, that is."

Her arms were around him before he could take another breath.

"More than anything," she said.

"Ever since I decided to leave, I wanted you to come with," she said, "but I didn't know if you'd want to."

"Of course I want to. I've always wanted out of this town. It's a quiet town, boring in a way. I've always dreamed of going off after adventure. Of course, I thought of adventure a little differently then..."

He wanted to say the other reason to go with her. He thought maybe he had already told her how he felt about her, but he was so tired he couldn't be sure. For some reason it didn't seem right to say it then, so he did not. There would be plenty of time later.

"I'm assuming we'll take a little time to rest first," he said.

"Gods I hope so. I want to sleep for a day straight. And then do you know what I really want?"

Stott was too tired to think very far past a warm bed, and shrugged.

"A hot bath!"

"Oh, that would be good," he agreed.

Then they noticed other people on the beach. Mister Wenton, the town's carpenter, was leading a pack of boys scouring the beach for something. "Perfect," he proclaimed, holding up a long piece of driftwood.

"Hey, Lynna," he called out, walking towards them. "Say, how tall is yer pa?"

She held a hand up for the height. "About this tall or so, why?"

"He's gonna need a crutch fer gettin' around, so I'm makin' 'im a present. Don't tell 'im, a'right?"

"Alright," she said, smiling. She turned back to Stott as the carpenter and his cohorts strode off. "There are some things about this town I'm really going to miss," she said heavily.

"Yeah," Stott agreed.

He realized that at some point the rain had stopped and Lynna had let down the shield around them. There were still heavy clouds in the sky, but they seemed less ominous than they had before. There was a light breeze around them that came in off the water, a hint of salt carried in with it. Lynna laid her head down on his shoulder again and sighed.

"I could fall asleep right here."

"Don't though," he told her. "We don't know if it's safe yet."

"Mmmm." He felt her head nod against his shoulder. Then she suddenly sat up again and looked at him intently. "Stott?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. I don't know if I've said it yet, it's been so chaotic. But thank you."

"You don't have to thank me, Lynna..." he started. She put up a hand to stop him.

"Yes, I do. You risked your life for me, you stood up for me, and you've been there when I really needed you. You didn't have to do that..."

This time he stopped her from talking by kissing her.

"Yes, I did," he said afterwards. "I did have to. My heart wouldn't let me do otherwise."

He saw her smile and knew he didn't need to say more just then.

"C'mon," he said, moving to stand up. "We should get back to the inn, maybe clean up a little before we find out how long until we finally get to sleep. Although maybe I shouldn't try and help you this time." He gave her a grin and was pleased to see her blush as she stood up next to him.

"Agmar says he has a quicker way to reach the next place, so we'll still manage to get there in time to try and help them. I guess it's a temple of Tarek'nen."

"The god of light and heroes? That temple should be neat to see!" Stott found himself excited at the prospect, and blushed when Lynna raised an eyebrow at him. "I've read tales about heroes who followed Tarek'nen, and a little bit about the god himself," he explained.

"Well you might want to share what you know with Agmar then, since he doesn't know much about our gods I guess. I was just mentioning it because we might still have time to burn your father's boat before we leave. You had said you wanted to."

"Oh." He looked over at the boat again. It was leaning over on its side, battered and broken, but not entirely shattered. The images in his mind from when he'd last been on it were already fading, mingled in with the chaos and dangers of the last couple of days. He found himself shaking his head.

"Enough of this town has burned already. They might still be able to salvage the hull, and they're going to need fishing boats that can make the haul out of the harbor before the food supply runs out. I think I'll leave it for the town. That's what Pa would have done, anyway." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment, remembering what his father and brother looked like.

"Goodbye Pa, goodbye Etrick," he said softly towards the boat. "I'll sail with you again one day." He felt Lynna hug him and he let his feelings for her wash away some of his sadness as they stood there for a few moments.

"C'mon then," he said to her finally. "We'll need to pack for traveling too. If we can't sleep yet, then we can get a head start on that after we get cleaned up."

Walking back through the town on the way to the inn it all looked a little different to him. The baker's shop still stood, but it seemed lifeless deserted as it was. On a good day he would normally be able to smell the bread baking a block away. Walking past it there would be pies cooling on the windowsill. But today the awning was down, covering the empty window.

Other buildings he remembered fondly were gone. Rough piles of charred timbers sat where those buildings used to be. They passed other people wandering the streets, some stopping to talk about this building or that one, others standing in front of places where homes used to be.

Stott's home was one of those that had burned. He fell to his knees, feeling sucker-punched. One wall still partly stood, but the burnt roof had fallen in. Some parts were still warm where the rain had not reached.

Lynna sat down next to him. She put her arm around him and for a while they sat, not saying anything. He watched smoke drifting from one place that was still smoldering.

"I guess I'm done packing," he said hollowly. Now there's really nothing left for me here. He stood up and brushed the worst of the mud off his knees. She shook her skirt to clean it off some, and they quietly walked the rest of the way to the inn hand in hand.

It seemed as if half the people remaining in town had converged on the Surf & Sleep. In contrast to the somber quietness they had encountered on most of the streets as people went to see what remained of their homes and businesses, the inn was bursting with life and sound. People spilled out onto the lawn and sat or stood talking to one another, sipping cups of something, and munching on pieces of bread. A few people waved or nodded to them as they walked up, and he noticed Lynna smiling and nodding back at them the way her father tended to do when passing through a crowd.

As they ascended the steps, Emilee Rayton was sitting on the porch nursing her son Jeremy.

"Emmy!" Lynna said, her voice full of obvious relief.

"Hey, Lynn." Emilee smiled at Lynna, although her eyes were full of sadness and had dark circles beneath them.

"I'm so glad you're alright. When I didn't see you come here for healing, I asked Genla and she said you and Jeremy were fine."

"Emilee," Stott said, nodding and suddenly feeling awkward, "good to see you safe."

"Thanks Stott." Emilee gave him a smile.

Emilee pulled the baby out from under the blankets she'd been using to cover herself and gently put him up to her shoulder, patting his tiny back with her hand.

"Stott, lad. A word?"

Stott jumped at Yilmack's low booming voice behind him.

"Um... of course," he told him. "Lynna - "

"I'll be fine right here," she laughed, giving his hand a squeeze before letting go. "You go on, Emmy and I have to catch up anyway."

He smiled at her before turning to follow Yilmack. Something told him that one of the things the two girls would be catching up on had to do with him, by the conspiritorial way they huddled together as he and Yilmack went down the stairs and around the corner of the building. To his surpise, they headed into the small shed. As they entered, he noticed a variety of things jammed into the walls - sharp stones, kitchen knives, and even the fork end of a pitchfork, it's handle broken off and leaving a jagged wooden piece pointing out from the side of the shed where it had been lodged. The walls looked beaten, such that Stott doubted the building should still be standing.

Inside, the runes that had glowed before were strangely dim. He suspected that the magic that they had had before was dying. Yilmack closed the shed door behind them, although he didn't bother to drop the heavy bar into place this time.

"I hear yer to trav'l with us then?" Yilmack began.

"Wha-? I haven't even told -"

"Aye, lad. But Agmar's keeping an eye on most of the town right now an' he's in close touch with Lynna especial'y. I suspect she told him, so's he'd know. Either way, he told me."

"I see." He wasn't sure he did, really, but Stott was too tired to worry about it much.

"I brought ye in here as the runes have still got just enough in 'em that the demon can't hear us in here. That girl o' yers has got it in her head to fight the demon. She's not just out to learn magic or help the wounded, but she's figurin' on followin' this thing to the end. I know, 'cause I can feel it. It's a part of the magic that was done to me durin' my trainin'. Now then, what I need ta know is this - how far are you willin' ta go fer the girl?"

"Um, anywhere she goes..." he tried, confused.

"Tha's not what I mean, lad. What'r ye willing to do fer the lass, to keep 'er safe?"

"Anything," he was able to say without hesitatation. Yilmack just raised an eyebrow.

"Thar are some things I can't be telling ye just yet. Thar are still secrets in this world, lad. But dependin' on what ye choose, ye might be filled in on some o' them at our next stop. Thar's stuff e'en Agmar ain't been told yet, 'though he will be 'fore long."

"I'm not sure what you're getting at," Stott said, not less confused.

"The runes an' wards in 'ere make this a safe place to talk, to a degree. The demon can still read minds when it's closer, but it cannae get inta mine, 'cause o' some magic that was done.

"But thar be some of us who've sworn to protect the wiz'rds that be fightin' the demon. I be one o' them. I think it be something ye might do, too. Ye need to mull it o'er in that head o' yers 'fore we get to the temple. Thar ye'll need to decide fer good, one way or t'other."

"The temple of Tarek'nen?"

"Aye. But not more abou' that 'til later. Fer now ye needs decide if thar be anythin' ye would not do to protect young Lynna."

"I - "

"Don't answer me now, lad. T'is a serious matt'r you need ta be thinkin' about."

Stott nodded.

"Now then. You should get cleaned up. You'll be able ta sleep soon, but ye might want to do something about that stink afore ye defile someone's clean sheets."

Stott sniffed at himself in astonishment. Do I smell that bad? Maybe...

Yilmack threw his head back and roared with laughter as he opened the door to the shed.

"C'mon then, Stott. Out with ye." He led the way back out of the shed and towards the inn, where they went in through the kitchens. He was surprised to find Agmar in the kitchen, leaning against a counter while people bustled back and forth and large pots steamed over the stove.

"Is it safe for fires then?" he asked.

"Yes," Agmar replied. "Although I am still keeping watch on this a bit more before I spread the word. In about an hour or so it should be safe enough for people to sleep. In the meantime, I believe everyone would benefit from something warm to eat." He yawed, and Stott watched as a couple of other people yawned in reaction to it. Stott found himself having a hard time not doing the same. Yilmack, on the other hand, yawned loudly next to him.

"I'd better go get cleaned up," Stott said. He headed quickly out of the kitchen and upstairs to Agmar's room where he fetched a clean set of clothes to change into. He then went down the hall to the bathroom and stopped short. Just beyond the privacy screen, he could make out the sillouette of someone else already in the room, getting water from the pump. He cleared his throat, to make his presence known, just in case the person wasn't still dressed. He realized he wasn't entirely sure what the rules of propriety in inns actually were, especially when it came to communal bathing areas.

He proceeded to closest of the three unclaimed tubs. It was partly full of cold water. It would be a bit less then knee deep, but he decided he was not about to just sit in it. The fire for heating up a great big kettle had not been relit yet.

Well, the cold'll wake me up, he decided, pulling off his clothes. He looked woefully at the clothes, which were going to need mending in addition to washing. He had only packed a few changes of clothes before relocating to Agmar's room. The realization came back to him that the only possessions he had left were in one large bag. All his books were gone. He slumped down, putting his forehead down on the edge of the tub.

Somebody else came in and claimed a tub. Stott finished undressing and put his first foot in the water slowly. The foot was still too pink. He had forgotten about that. Again he could not figure out how long ago that had been. Then he was glad he did not have a tub of steaming water.

The third bather slipped and fell into the water with a splash, and promptly yelped. "Sweet gods that's cold!" A woman's laugh came from the first tub, and Stott could hear water being poured and running down some part of her. He felt like he was intruding, and tried to focus on getting himself clean.

He was sore all over, and the cold water did nothing to help that as he rubbed at himself and poured water over himself for rinsing. Standing there wet was perhaps not a great improvement over just sitting in it, he considered. He was shivering by the time he finished.

The towel felt rough against his skin as he tried to dry himself off quickly to get warm. The coarse wool of his socks and pants itched against his skin, but at least the soft flannel of his shirt was warm and comforting. He pulled the drain on the tub and put his shoes back on while the water emptied. Afterwards, he refilled the same amount of water into the tub as he had found, with pails of water from the pump. Then rolled up his sleeves and washed out his clothes in one of the large basins off to one side of the room. After he was done getting them as clean as the soap could manage, he wrung them out and took them back to Agmar's room. As he walked down the hall, he hoped Agmar wouldn't mind if he hung his wet clothes over something to dry.

It didn't occur to him to knock on the door of the room before entering, as he didn't expect anyone to be in there. He was startled to find Agmar in the room, rummaging through the large duffel bag the wizard had brought with him. Agmar had a clean pair of pants on but was otherwise undressed, his feet bare against the wooden floorboards. Stott found himself drawn to the large scar that ran across the man's back, stretching from his right shoulderblade down to his left hip. It looked as if it had healed long ago, but had been a deep cut that had spread apart some before being stitched back together again. There were smaller scars running across it, likely from the stitches themselves.

Agmar didn't turn around, although Stott did see him straighten up some at his entry into the room.

"Stott," Agmar said.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude - " Stott began, feeling foolish as he stood there. His bundle of wet clothes were dripping on his shoes and the floor.

"Not at all, it is your room as well right now. I have put a line up by the fireplace so that our clothes will dry quicker once the fire has been lit. You could hang yours on the right and I shall put mine on the left once I have washed them?" Agmar gestured and Stott saw a thin line of rope hanging across the room, secured to a candle sconce on one wall and a nail where a picture had been hanging on another.

"Yes, sir." He headed over and started carefully arranging his clothes over the line. How does a man who can heal himself end up with a scar like that? Stott had a feeling that the more he learned about Agmar, the more questions he might end up with. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Agmar buttoning up a fresh shirt and putting fresh socks on. He saw the man sigh as he sat down to put his shoes back on.

"You do not have to call me 'sir', Stott," he said quietly. "You are not my student, although I may teach you things along the way if you are so inclined, and Yilmack will likely have much to teach you. I may be your elder, but let us start out on equal footing as friends instead if we are to journey together. You may not realize it, but it is just as likely I will learn things from you along the way as well. I have acquired a few titles in my travels, as well as the enemies to match them. But I will never wield a title over someone I would call my friend. There are some who would defer to me regardless, but in the end someone can only hold authority over you if you allow them to."

"I..." Stott tried to wrap his tired mind around what Agmar had just said. "Okay," he finally answered. On impulse, he stuck out his hand.

"Friends, then," he told Agmar. He saw Agmar smile as the wizard took Stott's hand and squeezed it firmly. For just a moment he saw Agmar in a different light. He's just as human as the rest of us, but with more responsibility on his shoulders, he thought to himself as he turned back to hanging his clothes. Agmar gathered up the pile of dirty clothes he had on the floor and headed off down the hallway with them. And he's alone. He thought about that as he finished and tidied up the rest of his belongings. Even amongst friends, he's still alone.

Then he did not know what to do. He went downstairs and did not see Lynna around anywhere. People were milling about. Tables had been brought back to the dining room, and the room was positively stuffed with people. He did not see Avern anywhere, or Mary, or even Margaret and Elsa.

There was hot soup being served, although it looked like it was pretty sparse servings so far. People were understanding and sharing around. He saw folk dipping stale bread in the soup to make it easier to eat. People were too hungry and obviously exhausted, yet he was impressed at how they were still treating each other civilly. People weren't yelling if there weren't enough bowls for their table yet.

He supposed it must be a tremendous task to prepare so much food all at once. He did not think he'd ever seen the room so stuffed, and he knew the kitchens had been through a lot, as well.

"Can I help?" he asked when he finally made his way there. At first glance the kitchen appeared almost normal. The charring on the ceiling was still apparent, and there were gouges in the walls in many places. Some of the pots were battered, but they were still useable.

The great cauldron kettle hung in the fire, and there were pots on the stove as well. There was an army of helpers cutting and chopping. Someone handed him a tray of bowls.

"Hand these out?" the Rachel Gannen asked him. He had seen her husband in a pile of bodies at some point. He supposed the inn was probably hers now. He nodded and took the tray.

It was quite a few trips before he felt like he'd finally earned the single bowl that Rachel handed him eventually. "Eat," she ordered with a sad smile. He ate leaning against the wall in the dining room, watching people comforting and supporting each other. It frightened him that he was going to see some of these same events played out in other towns as they ran along the evil's predestined path. It also convinced him further that he needed to contribute to defeating it. Conviction made weak soup taste better.

He happened to glance outside the nearest window and saw Agmar standing on the porch, a mug in one hand and his eyes watching the sky. Stott finished his bowl of soup quickly and then made his way out. He found Lynna standing nearby, sitting on the porch against the wall of the inn with her eyes closed. He sat down as quietly as he could to not disturb them, wondering what they were doing.

He studied Lynna's face for a while, noticing that her expression was calm and relaxed. She'd had a chance to get cleaned up and was wearing a clean blouse and skirt instead of a dress this time. Her hands were laying loose in her lap. Her face still reflected her tiredness, mostly in the dark circles beneath her eyes, but she looked serene and peaceful somehow. The light that fell upon her face was golden red and he turned to see that the sun was setting. The hues of red and purple danced across a thin strip of blue stretching across the horizon. They seemed to push against the dark clouds, trying to send them further inland, beyond Eagle's Harbor.

"It's moved on," Lynna said suddenly, opening her eyes. She looked up at Agmar who turned around and gave her a strange look.

"Am I wrong?" she asked him, suddenly looking uncertain.

"No. But you felt it before I did," Agmar answered. The wizard's brow was furrowed.

"Is that bad?"

"I do not know. It may mean that you have a higher resistance to it now. Or, it may mean that it can reach you easier now. I expect it to be the former, however. It is more likely that you have attuned yourself to it. And, if you can feel it coming, you can better defend against it. Nonetheless, you shall want to be careful. I will need to teach you more about defense and control."

Lynna nodded, as if she was mulling over what he had said.

"I will go to Mary's and let them know. You tell them here," Agmar said, smiling. "It will be nice to deliver some good news for once." He moved to the steps and down onto the road.

"And then get some sleep," he turned to say. "You are going to need it. Both of you." Agmar turned and headed down the road towards Mary's inn.

"We can sleep now," Lynna told him excitedly. "It's finally safe again! Let's go tell the others." She jumped to her feet and Stott stood up next to her, although not quite as energetically as she managed to muster. He smiled and gestured for her to lead the way before watching her practically skip back into the inn.

She stepped into the dining hall and moved over to the slightly raised area where entertainers normally might play. People were sitting on the edge of it, still eating soup or talking and she stepped gingerly between them.

"Everyone, if I can have your attention?" she called out, sounding very much like her father. Once she had everyone's attention, she paused for a moment and surveyed the crowd as if about to give a speech.

"Nevermind the formalities right now," she finally said. "It's over! We can sleep now!" Her voice expressed her obvious joy at that, and was quickly picked up by the crowd. Suddenly the room was full of noise and movement as everyone seemed to stand up at once. There was cheering and hugging, and Stott found himself hugged by several people as they filtered out of the room to find places where they could lie down and get some sleep.

It all ended very quickly, bowls left sitting where people had been at their tables, and a couple of chairs knocked over in people's haste to get some rest. Stott found himself standing there, alone in the room with Lynna. Lynna grinned and grabbed Stott by the hand and they ran around the rest of the inn, letting the rest of the people who were there know the news. In the end, they found themselves standing outside of Lynna's room.

They stood there awkwardly for a moment. Lynna fidgeted with her skirt. Stott found himself scuffing his shoes on the floor. There weren't other people in the hall just yet, as most people were still trying to figure out where they should be. Those with undamaged homes were going there. Stott wasn't sure where the rest would end up. Here and at Mary's, he supposed.

"Do you think we'll have nightmares?" she asked.

"Not tonight, I think. In a few nights, maybe, but I'm pretty sure I'm just gonna collapse."

"Yeah," she said with a giggle, "you're right." Her head started drooping as she stood there.

"Alright, get in there. I'll see you...later," he said, supposing he might end up sleeping through an entire day.

Lynna kissed him one more time before going into her room. People were staggering into the hallway then, looking not too unlike walking corpses again. he could see the expressions on their faces as a pack of them pressed past him, though. They were relieved and excited, and were rushing to their respective rooms.

He almost expected hooping and hollering, and while part of him knew that would be rude, he was also pretty sure that by this point half the people would sleep through the inn burning down around them.

The room was empty when he got there. Agmar was still busy, he supposed. He sat at the side of the bed and tried to take his shoes off. The laces were blurry in his vision, and his clumsy fingers couldn't manipulate the laces. He fell over onto the bed and blackness covered him before he could get a blanket in place.