Ascension (46 page)

Wilson, however,
must have seen through the facade, because his next comment
was,
“
If I were you, I would be nervous.
You are a very brave young women.
”

“
Thank you,”
I
said, looking at him as I tied rope around my blanket.
“
That really means a lot to
me.
”

He put his hand on my shoulder and
smiled, then left to join the rest of his group. I remained
kneeling for a few moments, watching as they interacted, noticing
the new confidence they showed out on the surface, the sureness
with which they walked replacing the uneasiness that caused them to
stumble in their first few days on the surface. I hoped that this
was a sign for the future, one in which the Nethers from Cethin,
Grundale, and all the other colonies, could adapt to live
comfortably together.

I stood and took
my blanket to the back of the group, where Misten and Elana were
being loaded with the supplies. I gave them some herbs I found
growing in the forest, rubbing both of them absentmindedly. When
all of this is over, I thought to myself, I just want to ride
Misten all over Ahrenia. Maybe even further. I
’
d love to see the world. As I
trailed behind the group, I daydreamed about the places that
Croxley told me about, like beaches and deserts, snow and ocean. I
couldn
’
t
imagine what half of it looked like, but that was half the fun.
Right now, my future was limitless, the possibilities endless. That
is, if everything goes according to plan.

Chapter
36

“
Everyone quiet
down!
”
A large man stood in the middle of
the cavern, the walls of which were practically vibrating from the
echoes of his voice. Croxley and Jean had made their way through
the tunnels and into Cethin, but as they came through the last of
them, they were shocked by the chaos gripping the cavern, made even
more apparent in the juxtaposition between the silent tunnels and
the raucous room.

Crowds were
gathered in various corners of the room, and people were hustling
among them, coming from different openings to the cavern, some with
their arms overflowing with supplies, others empty-handedly
storming towards their destination. Amidst this was a constant
underlying chatter that maintained at a dull roar. All of this came
to a sudden stop at the command made by the large man in the
center. Croxley assumed that this man was Anso,
Cethin
’
s
leader.

“
Now then. I know
that everyone is anxious and eager to get a move on. I assure you,
I feel the same. This cavern is by no means large enough to suit
all of us, and while Cethin doesn
’
t mind providing refuge for
their Nether brothers and sisters for the time being, we simply do
not have the resources to supply for everyone.
”

“
Are you kicking
us out?
”
An accusing voice rang out
amongst the crowd. The suspended silence fell and the clamor
resumed, anxiety and anger now underlying the
chatter.

“
Quiet down,
quiet down,
”
Anso boomed again.
“
There is no need for this disorder, nor is
there need to worry. I only say this because it needs to be
addressed. My daughter and the Prince should be returning soon with
the remaining Nethers, but until then we have to wait for them. If
they don
’
t
return soon, however, we may need to set off on our plan without
them. So you see, my brothers and sisters, I am not kicking you
out. Rather, I am warning you that we may need to band together
earlier than expected and take charge of this rebellion. I will
give my daughter till next morning and, if they
haven
’
t
returned by then, we will have to leave without
them.
”

Right into a trap, thought Croxley.
He knew that Jean was thinking the same thing when she looked at
him with wide eyes.

“
Croxley, you
have to do something,
”
whisper
Jean.

“
What do I do?
I
’
m not the
Prince. Who am I to take charge of this?
”

“
Who says this is
the Prince
’
s
job? You came up with the plan alongside him,
didn
’
t you? Not
to mention, you
’
ve been to more colonies than he has. You know most of
these people, you know their customs, you know how
they
’
ve been
mistreated and abused. You know best of all how to appeal to
them.
”
Croxley remained unmoved, his gaze
concentrated on the man standing in the middle of the room.
“
Croxley, I know you can do
this.
”

He kept his gaze
focused, his mind running through all the possible scenarios and
outcomes. . Eventually, he knew that he couldn
’
t wait any longer and decided he
had to listen to Jean and take charge.

He clenched his
fists as he approached Anso to hide their shaking, and focused on
planting each foot in front of the other. He
couldn
’
t
understand why he was so afraid. He
’
s spoken to plenty of the Nether
leaders before, and he has had audiences with the King and other
nobles back at he castle. So why am I so damn scared, he cursed.
Before long, his feet had taken him to the middle of the room, and
he cleared his throat to announce his presence to Anso, who was
facing the other side of the cavern and had his back turned to
Croxley.

He spun around
and a looked surprised, having to look down to make eye contact
with Croxley.
“
Who are you?
”
he asked.

Croxley opened
and closed his now sweaty palms and announced,
“
I am Croxley, the messenger of the King
’
s court and the intermediary
between the colonies and the castle.
”

“
Croxley, eh? And
what are you doing here?
”

“
I
’
ve come to warn you of the
King
’
s trap.”

“
Trap? What trap?
How would the King know to set up a trap?
”

“
Well,
er
…
I had to tell him the plan.
”
Croxley squirmed under his glare, and knew what
was coming. He tried to hold his ground but was still startled when
Anso boomed,
“
You mean you told him the
plan? You traitor! And now you have the nerve to com down here and
tell us what we ought to be doing?
”

“
No, sir, you
don
’
t
understand,
“
Anso cut him of before
Croxley could finish.

“
Don
’
t tell me I
can
’
t
understand. I know about you. You did all the
King
’
s dirty
work, bringing the commands back and forth between the King and his
guards, sometimes taking our men and women back with you to become
slaves for the King. You were the one to take my daughter. And now
you have the nerve to come and ask me to listen to
you?
”

“
Sir, I,“
Croxley
tried again to get in a word, but this time Anso looked like he was
going to take a swing at Croxley. However, Croxley
wasn
’
t about to
back down, and after taking two solid hits to the stomach, right
before a strong blow was heading towards his face, a voice cried
out.

“
Stop!”
Jean
stepped out of the group and stood in between Anso and
Croxley.
“
Stop! You have to believe him!
He is only here to help!
”

Anso
didn
’
t seem
convinced, but Jean
’
s outburst gave him just enough pause for Croxley to squirm
out of his grip and stand a few steps away, his chest rising and
falling with his panting. Before Anso could reach out for him,
another hand gripped his shoulder. He turned around, red in the
face, but all the color drained when he saw who it
was.

“
Father,
stop.
”
Anso turned around to find Fara
standing behind him. She smiled, but only for a moment before she
saw Croxley grimacing in pain.
“
Father,
really? I
’
m not
going to bring any more friends home if you don
’
t stop trying to beat them all
up.
”
Anso shrugged apologetically, and
Fara continued her gaze from Croxley to Jean, her eyes widening and
a small cry escaping her mouth as the realization crept in. It only
took a few seconds for her to cross the distance and pull Jean into
an embrace.

Croxley was watching this unfold
when he received a solid punch to the arm.

“
What
the,
”
he turned around, only to find the
Prince standing next to him.

“
Hey, Croxley,”
was all Erik said. He stood at Croxley
’
s side and watched as Fara and
Jean talked non-stop about what each of them had been up to. At one
point, Fara leaned back with surprise and looked at Croxley with
wide eyes, back at Jean, then back to Croxley. He reddened
slightly, only imagining what Jean must have told
her.

Suddenly, Fara disappeared and ran
out of the cavern. Croxley looked questioningly at Jean, who just
shrugged. The Prince, likewise, gave no hints. Just as swiftly as
Fara left, she reappeared, this time with two people in tow. Behind
them, a crowd of individuals came through, filling in the rest of
the tight Cavern, but Croxley kept his eyes on the couple following
Fara. When they got close enough, he was able to make out on their
faces expressions of nervousness riddled with sorrow, but also
small glimpses of hope. When they saw Jean, they both stopped. The
woman was holding a doll in her hand, and Croxley saw it fall to
the ground, forgotten in the dust.

Croxley looked back to Jean and saw
a look of disbelief on her face which mirrored that of the couple
standing in front of her.

Slowly, Jean took
a step forward, then another step. Closing the distance, the couple
came forward until they were at an arms reach. The man held out his
hand and placed it on Jean
’
s cheek, and Croxley watched as
a tear rolled over his hand from Jean
’
s eyes. All was frozen for the
next two breaths, when abruptly the still frame was broken and Jean
was pulled into an embrace. More tears came spilling forth, and
Croxley felt his own face dampen. Jean and her mother were speaking
in quiet, disjointed sentences, broken up by both sobs and
laughter, while her father stood with his arms around both of them,
like a sentry, making sure nothing would happen to his small family
again. After a while, Jean
’
s mother left the group and
walked towards Croxley.

“
Are you Croxley?”
She asked.

“
Yes, ma
’
am.”

“
Thank you for
keeping my daughter safe,
”
she said
simply, her words filled with emotion and
gratitude.

“
Of
course,
”
he replied, and she returned
back to Jean.

Croxley made his way back to Anso,
Fara, and Erik, who were deep in discussion.

Standing right
next to each other, he amusedly noticed that Anso and Fara looked
extremely similar. He decided that now wasn
’
t the best time to mention
this.

“
This is
everyone?
”
Fara asked, scoping the
room.

“
Yes. Your
friends Heath and Mr. Harris are down in the supply room, helping
everything get organized. Your mother, likewise, is having the
children and the elderly help repair any shoes, cloaks, and other
equipment so that we may be best prepared for the
journey.
”

“
What about
weapons?
”
Croxley added. Everyone looked
at him incredulously. Fara was the first to pipe
in.

“
Why do we need
weapons? We aren
’
t going to fight. We are going to convince the King to give
us an audience.
”

Croxley shook his
head.
“
Fara, listen to yourself. You know
the King. You know what he is capable of. Do you really think he
will listen to you and your people? I can tell you the answer. No.
In fact, he is setting up a trap with which he intends to kill all
the Nethers you bring to him. Right now, as we speak, he has an
army positioned around Stonewall, told to fire on-sight at any
Nethers they meet.
”