Page 6 of Compass Points
“That’s far too many questions, well past the amount I need to answer.”
He glared at her for what felt like the hundredth time in the short while they’d known each other.
“Keep moving, and I’ll answer some.” She shrugged as she continued her brisk pace. “First, we followed the rules, didn’t we? Did we touch the water on our way down here?” She heard his footsteps stop behind her, so she checked over her shoulder to assess the holdup.
It was that bewilderment crossing his face that she enjoyed. She loved the fact that she put it there. She’d stop to enjoy it longer if they weren’t in so much trouble.
The plague of mist was here. It was moving toward the villages, toward Tara. It might be at Bury already.
“How?” He pulled her out of her panic as he landed on a question, but at least they started moving again. He must have also remembered that they were on borrowed time.
“I’d rather not get into the details. A magical location was needed for some of my work, and this seemed like a reasonable solution. To answer your other question, I expect the mist to arrive eventually. It will take a little longer to seep across to the island, but I doubt the lake will stop it. And finally, I brought us here to get some weapons before we try and head the mist off at Bury.”
Luc picked up the pace, and they ran the rest of the way to her hill home.
“People would know,” he said. “Someone would know that this magic had been done. No amount of money could stop the fae that set up that portal from telling others about their handiwork. It isn’t a standard power associated with one of the fae courts. It’s too impressive of a feat to hide.”
She could picture his face even though he was behind her. If she turned around, he’d be narrowing his eyes at her as he came to the natural conclusion. The only way no one would know about the portal was if the portal maker and portal user were the same.
“You did this?” he asked.
Rose shrugged and kept jogging.
“You are full of surprises.”
This time she turned around, and his eyes appreciatively surveyed her face.
“Well, here’s a pleasant surprise,” she said, slowing to a walk as they approached the door. “We made it.”
The door was built into the mountain, leading to a smooth carved-out cave structure. The entryway was narrow, with curved walls. The living space was what remained after the stone was removed and hauled away. The short entrance opened into a multi-room setting—a kitchen and dining area on the left, with living space on the right. The entire place was covered in books. Three entire walls covered with shelving, books crammed into every possible nook. It must be chaos to his eyes, but he seemed to appreciate that it was organized chaos to the mysterious owner.
The hallway continued straight to the bedrooms. She didn’t have time to give him a tour. Rose was on a mission, taking him to her workshop. It was accessed through another narrow hallway that led off the living area. The workshop was the largest and most impressive room they’d walked through.
Rose led Luc into the open cavern with more tools and resources than a blacksmith would know what to do with. The walls were lined with weapons. Some were in progress, others fully finished and shining in the firelight. The centerpiece of the workspace was a considerable stone forge. The fire was blazing, ready for its weapons master to return to work.
Rose dashed to one wall and pointed him toward another. “Are you familiar with magical weaponry?”
He nodded slowly, slightly unsure for the first time since she’d known him. “The makers usually don’t belong to any of the fae courts.” He stopped shy of saying that they were usually half-fae.
Not many fae acknowledged the concept. They had too many rules about the fae not procreating outside of their own court to avoid mixing magics. That left no time to deal with fae–human couplings, so most pretended they didn’t exist.
“They can see magic around them and shape it to their needs,” he continued. “That’s why the best magical weapons are made at Compass Lake, the origin of the fae and their magic.”
“Very good. Remember that anything you take today is on loan. Don’t get attached. We’re going to Bury to see if we can head off the mist or slow it down to get the villagers out. That wall”—she pointed to the one in front of him—“has weapons tuned to the wild magic in this place. They should work fine with your earth magic. See what you think.”
Grabbing her sword, she turned around to assess his progress. He held an axe and a sword, indecision apparent in his crinkled brow. She had another minute or two while he finalized his selection.
She felt like an idiot but ran back into the living room and violently whispered, “Arie! Arie! Are you there?”
He was a strange creature. He seemed able to shape-shift into anything. So she never knew when he was around or why he decided to show up when he did. She knew that having him around now would help them move faster.
“Yes, Rose….What’s all the….”He stopped mid-sentence as he appeared in his usual island form, a large brown bear in the middle of her living room, as he got a look at her.“What’s going on? You look….I think deranged is the word I’m looking for?”
“Arie, we don’t have time for this. There is a Suden fae in the workshop, and he’ll walk back here at any second. I assume he won’t be able to hear you, but he will certainly have something to say about a giant bear in the middle of the room.”
“A Suden, you say? Well, this afternoon is taking a turn. Why is he here? Did you finally follow my advice and find a nice partner? A Suden is an interesting choice….”He trailed off.
“Gods, Arie, not the time. He’s here for…reasons. I don’t want to get into it. The more important part is the mist plague is on its way across the lake now. We have to get to Bury. We have to see if we can stop it.”
