Chapter Thirteen
When Wil Ohmsford awoke once more, it was dawn. He lay in a grassy vale beneath the sheltering limbs of twin maples, the morning sun filtering down through masses of broad green leaves in long streamers of brightness that made him blink. Close by, there was the faint sound of water lapping against a shore. For an instant, he believed himself still within the wondrous gardens of his dream. So real had they seemed to him that, almost without thinking about it he pushed himself up on one elbow and looked about hurriedly for them. But the gardens were gone.
Amberle lay next to him, still sleeping. He hesitated, then reached over and shook her shoulder gently. She stirred restlessly and her eyes opened. She looked at him in surprise.
«How are you?» he asked.
«I’m fine.» She brushed the sleep from her eyes. «Where are we?»
Wil shook his head. «I don’t know.»
The Elven girl sat up slowly and looked about the small vale.
«Where is Allanon?»
«I don’t know that either.» Wil stretched his legs tentatively, surprised to find them loose and uncramped. «He’s gone. They’re all gone — Allanon, those creatures…» He paused, hearing movement in the brush at the far end of the hollow. A familiar black face poked through the leaves, nickering softly Wil smiled. «Well, at least we still have Artaq with us.»
The black cropped lazily at the grass, shook himself clear of the brush, and trotted over to nuzzle Wil. Wil stroked the sleek head for a moment, rubbing at the horse’s ears. Amberle watched quietly.
«Did you see the old man?» Wil asked her.
She nodded solemnly. «That old man was the King of the Silver River.»
Wil looked at her. «I thought as much. My grandfather saw him once, years ago. I don’t think I was ever really sure whether he was real or not until now, though. Funny.» Artaq moved off several paces and began feeding. Wil shook his head. «He saved our lives back there. The Demon–wolves almost had us…» He caught the look that crept into the Elven girl’s eyes and stopped. «Anyway, I guess we’re safe now.»
«It was like a dream, wasn’t it?» she said softly. «We were floating in the light, riding Artaq with nothing beneath us but the light. Then he came up to us, walking, came out of nowhere and said something…» She trailed off, as if the memory of it confused her. «Did you see it?»
The Valeman nodded.
«And then he disappeared,” she continued, speaking more to herself than to him, as if trying to recall all — that had happened. «He disappeared and the light disappeared and… and then…» She looked at him curiously.
«The gardens?» he suggested. «Did you see the gardens?»
«No.» She hesitated. «No, there were no gardens, just a darkness and a… a sensation I can’t describe. I… a sort of reaching, I think.» She looked at him for help, but he just stared back at her in confusion. «You were standing there with me,” she went on. «You were standing there, but you couldn’t see me. I called to you, but you didn’t seem to hear me. It was so strange.»
Wil hunched forward. «I remember the old man and the light, just as you’ve described them. I remember that. When they disappeared, I remember falling asleep… or at least, I think I fell asleep. Anyway, you were there with me on Artaq. I could feel your arms about my waist. The next thing I knew, I was standing in these gardens — I’d never seen anything like them; they were so peaceful and beautiful and quiet. But when I looked around for you, you weren’t there. You were gone.»
They looked at each other wordlessly for a moment.
«I suppose we had better worry about where we are now,” Wil said finally.
He climbed to his feet and looked about again. Belatedly, he thought about helping Amberle up, but by then she was already standing next to him, brushing leaves and grass from her hair. He hesitated a moment, then led the way through the brush surrounding them toward the sound of the water.
Moments later, they stood at the edge of a lake so vast that its shoreline circled in either direction to the horizon and disappeared. Waves crested in sudden flashes of silver foam, the waters deep and clear blue in the morning sun. Groves of trees bordered its grass–covered banks, willow and elm and ash, leaves rippling softly in a light southerly wind that carried with it the scent of honeysuckle and azaleas. In the cloudless blue sky that canopied above the lake arced a brilliant, shimmering band of colors that seemed to rise from one end of the horizon and disappear into the other.
Wil glanced upward to fix the sun’s location, then turned to Amberle, shaking his head in disbelief.
«Do you know where we are?. We’re somewhere on the north shore of the Rainbow Lake. The old man carried us all the way down the Silver River and across the lake to wherever it is we are now. We’re miles from where we started.»
The Elven girl nodded almost absently. «I think you’re right.»
«I know I’m right.» Wil paced away excitedly and stopped at the water’s edge. ‘I just don’t know how he managed it.“
Amberle sat down on the grass, gazing out over the lake.
«The legend says he helps those who need it when they travel in his land — that he keeps them safe from harm.» She paused, her mind clearly elsewhere. «He said something to me… I wish I could remember…»
Wil was not listening. «We should get moving. Arborlon’s a long way off. But if we travel in a northwest direction, we should be able to find the Mermidon, then follow it all the way to the Westland. That’s a lot of open country, but we won’t be so easy to find now. There’s no trail to follow this time.»
He missed entirely the look of annoyance that crossed Amberle’s face, his mind preoccupied with. the journey ahead.
«It should only take us about four days — maybe five, since we only have one horse between us. If we get lucky, we might find another one somewhere along the way, but I suppose that’s asking a bit much. It would help if we had some weapons, too; we don’t even have a hunting bow. That means eating fruit and wild vegetables, I guess. Of course we might…»
He trailed off, suddenly aware that Amberle was shaking her head in disapproval. The Elven girl crossed her legs before her and sat back.
«What’s the matter?» he asked, dropping down next to her.
«You are, for one thing.»
«What do you mean; I am?»
«You seem to have fixed in your mind everything that happens from here on. Don’t you think you ought to hear my thoughts on the matter?»
Wil stared at her, somewhat taken aback. «Well, sure.»
«I haven’t noticed you asking for them,” she continued, ignoring him. «Do you not think it necessary to ask?»
The Valeman reddened. «I’m sorry. I was just…»
«You were just making decisions that you have no right to make.» She paused and regarded him coolly. «I don’t even know what you’re doing here. The only reason I’ve come this far with you is that I really didn’t have any choice in the matter. It’s time to find out a few things. Why did Allanon bring you along in the first place, Wil Ohmsford? Who are you?»
Wil told her, starting with the story of Shea Ohmsford and the quest for the Sword of Shannara and ending with Allanon’s visit to Storlock to seek his aid in tracking the Bloodfire. He told her everything, deciding that it was pointless to hold anything back, sensing that if he were not completely honest with this girl, she would have nothing further to do with him.
When he finished, Amberle stared at him wordlessly for a moment, then shook her head slowly.
«I don’t know whether to believe you or not. I should, I suppose. I really don’t have any reason not to. It’s just that so much has happened that I’m not really very certain of anything right now.» She hesitated. «I’ve heard
