The Currents of Magic

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"What's going on?" said Cade.

"Lord Eschera is attacking the Outlands," said Meyer, his chest rising heavily with each breath.

"What?" said Ander.

"Lord Eschera is destroying towns in the Outlands," he repeated, his fingers twitching by his side. "She has a stronghold in the Darnac Mountains—in the Outlands—the Darnac Stronghold it's called. That's where the Raiders bring the children they capture—the children who might be the offspring of Odessa."

"Hold on," said Cade. "How have you come up with all this?"

Meyer took a deep breath. He just need to finish explaining, and then they would be able to act. He took the ring out of his pocket, and placed it on his desk. "When we were in Moon's office I saw Eschera again," he said.

"You had another vision?" said Ander.

"Yes," said Meyer. "I heard Eschera mention the Raiders. She's using them to attack the Outland towns―to try to find Odessa's son."

"What about the Darnac Stronghold?" said Cade.

"My Blood Hunters mentioned the Darnac Mountains as we traveled here, but just to be sure I found a map of the Outlands." Meyer pointed to the book on his bed.

Cade stepped across the room and knelt by the atlas, inspecting the open page. He nodded and then walked over to the window. Ander strode slowly to the arm chair and sat down. Damian appeared to have retreated into the corner of the room.

Meyer waited, but still his friends made no movement. "We need to do something," he said, the urgency mounting through his body again.

"There could be Raiders other than those in the Outlands," said Ander.

Meyer shook his head. "But the Darnac Stronghold. It has to be in the Outlands."

Cade turned around from the window. "It probably is, but we can't be sure," he said. "The Darnac Kingdom was an ancient empire. There are many places that carry its name."

Meyer felt a ringing in his head, but he forced himself to ignore it. "How can you be so dismissive?" he said, his eyes flashing between Ander and Cade. "Aren't both of you from the Outlands, don't you have family there?"

"Moon brought them here a while ago," said Ander. "Same with Cade's family. They live west of Terrenport in Northern Ilith."

"And what about your old friends—or do you not care about them anymore?" said Meyer, his temper rising, the blood pulsing in his temples.

"We care about them," said Cade softly. "We just don't want to get caught up chasing shadows.

"Yeah," said Ander. "Who's ever heard of a lord organizing Raiders..."

Meyer clenched his jaw, forcing himself to remain calm. "The Raiders are joining forces, traveling north together," he said. "I saw it when I was traveling through the Outlands with my Blood Hunters."

"You see a lot of things..." said Ander.

And then Meyer could take it no longer. He was about to dive at Ander—to pummel his tiny brain into the earth—but Cade grabbed his arm.

"Ander's just trying to get the facts straight," he said. "We all are."

Meyer twisted out of Cade's grip. "I'LL TELL YOU THE FACTS," he roared. "Lord Eschera is murdering people! She is pillaging towns in the Outlands and nobody knows! Moon hasn't heard of her. Nobody trusts the ring. But I saw the bludgeoned faces. I felt Eschera brutalizing her own soldiers. She's evil."

Cade opened his mouth, but Meyer cut him off. "No—listen to me," he said, his tone a venomous mix between anger and desperation. "Eschera will kill everyone in the Outlands. When she's done there, she'll continue north and south and east and west. She won't stop until she finds Odessa's son. Maybe you've already forgotten about your old home. Maybe you don't care about the Outlands—just like everyone else—but I do. I'm not letting this happen. I won't let my friends and family be butchered by a mad woman!"

Cade and Ander stared silently.

"What?" said Meyer. "You think I'm crazy?" He grabbed the ring from his desk. "You put this on. You see what I did."

Neither Cade nor Ander moved.

"CRAVENS!" he shouted, hurling the ring across the room. He lunged at Cade, grabbing him by the collar. "All you do is read your stupid books! Memory Charms. When is that going to help! And you—" Meyer whirled towards Ander, but already Ander had vaulted across the room, pushing him off Cade.

"As if I'm scared of you," spat Meyer. "You act tough, but you're a nothing but a coward. When the real danger comes, you pretend not to see it. All of you—"

But then Damian had leapt to the center of the room. "ENOUGH!" He turned to Meyer, eyes glinting with fury. "THE MAGICIAN IS ATTACKING AND YOU'RE WORRIED ABOUT A STUPID RING, ACTING LIKE YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE WITH FAMILY IN DANGER, ACTING LIKE THE REAL THREAT IS HALFWAY ACROSS THE WORLD—WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!"

Meyer froze... He didn't know if he wanted to obliterate Damian or fall through the floor... Damian... standing there with his fists balled, his face a mask of rage... what was going on... Ander, Cade and Damian were moving towards the door... Ander veered towards the corner of the room... Cade grabbed his arm, pulling him back towards the door...

"Leave," said Meyer, but they were already gone.