Flames (Book 3)

Chapter 27: Aron

We had forgotten about the barbed wire. 

It had been incredibly long since any of us had lived in a traditional Rhenan village. In fact, many of us, including myself and my sister, had been born in the Flame base. No one remembered how confining the villages were, or how heavily guarded. 

Now, as we gazed at the tall fence that surrounded the relatively large village of Kyanah Creek, and watched the Ice Guards who stood at attention around its perimeter- at least one for every ten feet of fence- we realized that walking in and finding a place to stay would not be as easy as we had thought it would be. 

"Would you look at that," Justin shook his head. "A fly couldn't get through without causing a commotion." 

"Why would they put so much effort into guarding Rhenans?" Megan frowned. "Don't they think you guys are inferior, or something?" 

"They're not trying to protect us," I laughed dryly, addressing the two humans. "They're trying to imprison us."

"They could be a little more discreet about it," Vince smirked, staring at the towering fence and menacing Ice Guards. 

"The Queen never tries to hide what she's doing," I shrugged. "She's too bold for that." 

"The Order has come to a decision," Eleanna announced, stepping forward and forcing all of us to back up. When she was certain that we were all safely concealed by the cover of the trees, she continued. 

"It is too risky for us to attempt to enter the village. We have gone to great pains to regroup after the destruction of our base, and we would hate for all of that effort to go to waste due to a single rash decision. Even now, we are numbered at nine hundred, at the most. That is less than a fourth of our original four thousand." 

"I know for certain that at least eighty percent of our members survived the attack, thanks to the time that our brave Princess Viviana bought us. That means that there are approximately two thousand Flames still wandering these woods, either alone or in small groups. If we stay out here, there is a chance that they could find us. However, if we choose to take shelter in the village, they would most definitely be stranded out here, perhaps permanently. If anyone has any objections to our decision, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Of course, nobody objected. Such protestations of the Order's pronouncements were rare, even back in the base. No one would dream of slowing the flow of business out here, in unfamiliar territory. 

I joined the other FAWD members in Aurally felling trees, deeper in the woods. Rory and the Glitches went off to find large leaves that we could use to sleep on and built makeshift roofs for our temporary dwellings. Meanwhile, the members of the Order of the Flame started a large bonfire. 

My sister returned to our campsite after a mere five minutes, lugging both a pile of elephant-ear leaves and a deer behind her. The hundred or so Flames who were now gathered around the fire cheered at the sight of this. It had been many days since any of us had last had fresh meat. 

Seating myself, I put down my Aural axe, satisfied. However, as I looked over at the Order, I began to get the feeling that something was missing. I frowned, not able to put my finger on it. A slight feeling of unease plagued me for a few minutes, before I finally realized what was wrong. 

"Lady Myers, where's Teren?" I asked, turning to Eleanna. 

"He ran off yesterday, with my daughter," she spat. "Who knows what those two are doing? I'm going to send a team after them as soon as we have the manpower to spare." 

"Oh," I nodded, turning my eyes back to the fire. Rory, having successfully cleaned and skinned the deer in record time, was beginning to roast it on a spit. 

"You aren't surprised?" Eleanna asked. 

"Not really, no. Running off is a very Teren thing to do," I laughed. 

"Indeed, it is. We shall have to get him and his Radicals under control, if we want to be able to defeat the Ice Queen without any distractions." 

"Do you really think we can?" I inquired. 

"Do I think we can what?" 

"Defeat Queen Saralee." 

"Oh, Aron," Eleanna chuckled. "I know that we can. It's just a matter of whether or not we will."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. 

"The world isn't dictated by ability," she says simply. "The greatest minds can have horrible lives, and the stupidest people can rise to power. The universe is simply one gigantic chain of cause and effect. One thing happens because another thing did, and will, in turn, cause something else. Because of this chain, one action done by one person can indirectly trigger an entirely unrelated event. For example, the fact that we are using elephant-ear leaves for our tents instead of Rhenan flyswatter bulbs could cause your first child to be a girl instead of a boy." 

"Forgive me, but...what does this have to do with defeating Queen Saralee?" I asked, utterly bewildered. 

"This universe is ruled by a chance. A mouse could defeat the Ice Queen, if it is assisted with the right kind of luck at the right time. Don't ever ask if something is possible- the answer is always going to be yes." 

I paused in thought, evaluating the truth of her words. As much as it confused me, I knew that what she was saying was correct. After all, at over three hundred years old, she had been given more time to analyze the world than anyone else, other than the Ice Queen herself. Surely, she knew what she was talking about. 

"Then, we will still go tomorrow? To Glaisse?" I asked. 

"Yes. And this time, we will not make the mistake of going to a public spaceport. There are several Rhenan-owned, local places where you can get a working spacecraft. We must be ready before the Festival of Lumys- it is when the Lessaenites are most vulnerable, and is also the time of Princess Tara's wedding, which must be stopped, without a doubt." 

"Yes," I nodded, beginning to feel a sense of confidence in my own power that I hadn't felt since long before the base's collapse. "Let's do this."