Ruein: Fires of Haraden: Action/Adventure Necromancy Series (Books of Ruein Book 2), G.O. Turner [little bear else holmelund minarik txt] 📗

Liv couldn’t help being impressed by his attire. Expensive fabrics, gold embroidery laid about artistically. The nobility of such clothing hallmarked this man as someone not from a neighboring fiefdom. Drawing closer, she noted his head upon his chest, while soft snores issued from his beard. Must’ve traveled quite some distance to be here.

Liv crouched, placing a gentle hand upon his wrist. She gave a gentle shake. “Good morning, sir.”

He snorted. Blinking through, the old man endeavored to find his eyes. “Am I where needed?”

Liv smiled. “You’re at a funeral…or, you were.”

He scanned the tent interior. His beard dragged along with his inspection.

Liv tilted toward his weary eyes. “Have you a need for a guide? Staying in town, perhaps?”

“No. No, dear. Must’ve slipped off a bit in wait.” He leaned forward, his legs shaky and uncertain. As he began to rise, Liv rushed around and slipped a hand under his arm to help him to his feet.

“Ho, ho! You’re a strong one.”

“Runs in the family.”

He looked at her, as if for the first time. “Well then, I believe that means I am here for your father.”

There was something uncanny about him. A depth of…what? Was he an emissary? Someone Kaea once knew? Many questions to which answers could come easily enough.

Liv nodded toward her father.

The old gent finished righting himself. With a smile, he indicated for her to join him. As Liv crossed the tent, he cleared his throat. “Sir Lightbringer. Kaea Khorana, seafarer, truth questor…urm…”

In the midst of stacking benches, Kaea looked up at Liv’s approach. He regarded her with a touch of confusion. She mirrored it back at him, coming alongside.

The regal old gent lost himself. He then tapped his chin and lifted a finger. “…and stalwart of Deepwater. Yes. Throughout your travels, you shared your light with countless others. On this solemn day, if you will allow, I will perform my duty…” The gent looked around, his attentions catching Ruein, Arim, and Nayr. He smiled back to Kaea “…to bring resplendent tidings.”

Lightbringer Kaea’s back straightened. His mouth curled to a smile.

Does he know this man?

As if in answer, Kaea asked, “And you are?”

The gent closed his eyes, rubbed the bridge of his nose, and nodded. “Forgive an absent mind in his service. I am Caleb, Caleb Tote.”

“Well, Caleb, I’m afraid you’ve already missed sharing your tidings while we had an audience. It’s just us now,” said Kaea.

The gent smiled. “The one I represent prefers just so.”

Father and daughter traded inquisitive looks. Kaea turned back to Caleb. “Alright. Let’s have at your tidings.”

Caleb pressed fingers to his chest and bowed. Drawing a breath, he closed his eyes and began moving through arcane gestures. Draconic lilted from his lips. The accent was subtle, yet bore a complexity Liv had never heard before. Knobby fingers rippled through the air.

His head rose and eyes reopened, reflecting a field of stars within.

A pinprick of scintillation appeared behind Caleb.

Stellar light widened, encircling a gap suspended above the ground. Warm gusts poured from the portal. They blew through the tent, pressing on the canvas sides. The air carried the hot freshness of an arid mountaintop.

Emerging from the sunlit portal, a shoe lowered onto the dirt floor. The earth gave, sinking under the strain.

As the figure settled to a stance, the portal collapsed behind him.

Caleb’s previously regal appearance now paled in comparison to this new…presence. The unearthly man before them was resplendent. His layered, inlaid vestments were a filigree of gold and silver. Imperial garments, tailored to perfection, adorned him in both fit and form.

Dark auburn was interspersed with blond locks that flowed from his widow’s peak. Tapering back, his hair sheared tightly toward his nape. The same height as Liv’s father, he presented as human…save for his eyes.

Vertical ellipse pupils stared back, a conflagration of gold and bronze.

4

Manicured fingers drew down the new arrival’s groomed goatee. Slowly, his eyes absorbed the confines of their tent. The canvas walls breathed, flaps fluttering as the winds dissipated.

First, this Caleb’s arcane act and now the presence of this new…guest.

As if a centipede crawled over her spine, alarm reared from the shadows of Ruein’s mind. Devoid of fear, yet somehow this still unnerved. Here stood power, raw but contained.

Her Lightbringer sister checked her father. Kaea remained focused, his discerning eyes roving over the visitor.

The resplendent man gazed at the stacked benches. He touched the wood lectern. “Humble.” His voice resonated through them. Ruein not only heard but felt the depth of his words through her boots. “I would expect no less from my friend.” He stepped toward Kaea.

The old Lightbringer burst forth, his arms spread wide. He collided into the man. As if stone, his hug’s impact held no sway. The man simply accepted and rested a hand upon Kaea’s back.

At the sound of open sobs, Liv leaned for a clearer view. Her father wept upon the man.

Ruein searched the webs of her mind. When had he last shed a tear?

Who is this?

Liv flinched back at Caleb, her face a wordless ask. Already, the elderly man had slumped into his tired self. He raised two fingers to quell her questioning. Wearied, he hobbled over alongside Ruein and the children.

Liv remained by her father.

The resplendent man continued softly, “I would have come sooner had I known your danger. More so than meeting your son, I am certain my intervention would have led to a happier outcome.”

“Nobody knew. That’s the only reason the cowards could take him from me…” Kaea regarded Liv. “From us. You would’ve loved him. Manu had become a better man than I ever could find in myself. He was meant for so much more.”

“Such lights as those tend to burn fast from your kind, beauty arising from fleeting embers.” Their guest turned toward Liv. “Yet, you were blessed with another child, yes?”

Kaea motioned for his daughter. “May I present Lightbringer Liv Khorana. His greater truth worked through her, bringing not only Manu’s just peace but destruction to his murderers.”

Liv shook her head.