Alex scrambled onto the roof and stuck one arm in as far as he could. He heard something scraping along the floor and then felt Jenneva’s hands grab his arm. Steadily, Alex hoisted her up until she could grasp the rim of the hole. Repositioning himself so he was squatting over the hole, he reached down and grabbed her arms again and straightened his legs until she could stand on the roof of the vault. She reached into her pouch and extracted the Crown of Light and smiled at him. Replacing it into her pouch, she slid off the roof and mounted Yorra. Alex quickly followed her and mounted Kaz and the two unicorns leaped into the air and spiraled into the vent.
On the short flight to the top of the mountain, Alex’s ears began to clear and he could hear sounds now, although the level was still low. Upon landing, the unicorns invoked the spells that hid their wings and horns and looked like large horses again. By the time Garth and Kalina returned to the mansion, their hearing was restored and the ringing was gone.
“I shall never belittle the ability to hear properly again,” chuckled Garth. “I wonder how the Children are doing? What are we going to tell them, anyway?”
“I will tell them that we retrieved it magically,” stated Kalina, “and when they ask how, I will tell them that they are not ready for that lesson yet. What does it matter, anyway?”
Garth and Kalina strode into the sitting room and found Arik talking with General Fernandez. “Where is everybody else?” Garth asked.
“We don’t know,” Arik answered. “Somebody noticed that Tedi was missing and everyone is off looking for him. We didn’t realize it, but no one has seen him since we came back from the cave. Tanya thought he might still be there trying to figure a way to get into the vault. Fredrik and Niki left separately. I think Fredrik searched the mansion and then went outside. I am not sure where Niki went. I am supposed to stay here in case Tedi returns.”
“I think that is an excellent idea,” Kalina responded. “Garth and I will ride out to the cave and see if the others are there. If anyone returns here, tell them to stay put.”
Garth and Kalina ran back outside and mounted Kaz and Yorra. Swiftly, they rode to the cave and entered. Tedi was laid out on the floor with Niki kneeling next to him. Tanya was sitting with her left sleeve and left pant leg rolled up and Fredrik was cleaning scrape wounds she had incurred. When Garth and Kalina dismounted, Fredrik rose to meet them.
“Thank goodness, you’ve come,” Fredrik blurted out. “Tedi was stuck in that tunnel when there was an explosion of some type. We think he may be deaf. Niki is trying some spell that she learned from one of those healing books you purchased in Melbin. Tanya had to crawl into the tunnel and drag Tedi out. She got scraped up pretty badly.”
Garth retrieved some ointments and bandages from his saddle pouch and tended to Tanya, while Kalina went to check on Tedi. Kalina bent down and examined Tedi’s ears. Niki moved aside, but did not say anything. After the examination, Kalina sat on the floor of the cave.
“I think it is just a temporary nerve deafening,” Kalina announced. “He should be all right in a day or so.”
“Of course, he will be all right,” announced Niki boastfully. “I have fixed him up with a healing spell. He will be able to hear fine in a day or two.”
“What spell did you use?” Kalina asked as she shot Niki a sideways glance.
“Nerve Crescendo,” Niki answered smugly. “He would have been deaf if I did not. The spell must be used before the nerves go totally dead. By the time you got here it would have been too late.”
Kalina smiled grimly. “Very well, Niki,” she said. “Let’s get him back to the mansion and get him to bed. Are you well enough to ride, Tanya?”
Tanya just nodded and rolled her pants and sleeve back down over the bandages that Garth had applied. Everyone rode back in silence and Kalina dropped back so far that Garth went to see if there was something wrong with Yorra. When he got alongside Kalina, she put her finger to her lips.
“There was no damage to his ears,” Kalina whispered. “That fool girl may well have started him on the road to insanity. His ears were probably affected about the same as ours were. His hearing will improve now, slowly at least, but eventually it will be hard for him to stand the noise. His hearing is going to be so sensitive that his own breathing will be like the roar of the wind in a thunderstorm. If we do not find a way to deaden the nerves, he will go crazy.”
“Isn’t there a counter-spell or something that will put him back to normal?” asked Garth.
“If there is,” Kalina sighed, “I do not know of it. I certainly wouldn’t expect to find such a spell in a healing book. We must bear in mind that he will know what everyone in camp is saying. We will have no secrets from him unless we mindspeak. It may be time to reveal our true identities before they find out on their own. If they do not hear it from us, they will have reason to doubt whatever else we say. I know it will be hard on you, but you are going to have to learn to deal with it.”
“General Fernandez has already given me reason to let Garth and Kalina disappear,” Garth stated. “We are being hunted as Garth and Kalina as much as we are as Alex and Jenneva. We could probably adopt some new disguises, but they know about the Children, too. So, even though we might hide ourselves from Sarac and his minions, we cannot also hide the Children. The time for disguises and hiding is over. It will actually be a relief to become Alex and Jenneva again.”
“Not to mention getting this hair dye off our heads,” laughed Jenneva. “Did I tell you that I love you as a blond?”
“Does that mean I have not been lovable since I’ve had my hair black?” Alex teased.
The other riders were glancing back now that Alex and Jenneva allowed their voices to pick up so they quit their bantering and rode to join the rest of the group. When they arrived back at the mansion everyone assembled in the sitting room. Jenneva, in one of her last appearances as Kalina, announced that they would be leaving in the morning. She announced that they had what they had come for and suggested that everyone save their questions for the morning and get to sleep as quickly as possible. Without further words, Garth and Kalina retired to their room and began the arduous task of removing their hair dye.
In the morning Alex asked one of General Fernandez’s men to summon the General and have breakfast sent up for Jenneva and himself. The General smiled as he walked in and saw the old Alex and Jenneva couple. Alex told the General about the new hole in the vault and suggested that the tunnel, which Tedi had been stuck in, went through to the dragon’s lair. With a little work the tunnel could be widened and the General would have access to the riches of the vault. The General knew enough about Alex and Jenneva to not bother asking how they had accomplished their goal. Alex’s accomplishments had always impressed the General and Jenneva was known as perhaps the most powerful magician in the world. Neither of them would divulge how the task had been completed.
The General thanked them for coming and promised his support in any way that it would help. Alex knew the General was quite sincere and thanked him. The Rangers were already assembled outside when Alex and Jenneva came out and the reaction to their new look was astonishment. Alex and Jenneva both had beautiful, blond hair done up in braids that hung to their waists.
“It is time for you to know the truth,” Alex declared. “We have been traveling in disguise because the Dark One seeks to kill us and we could not accomplish our goal of finding the Children with Dark Riders following us. You have been found, and the Dark Riders are after you as much as they are after us. When they come we will meet them with steel. The Alcea Rangers ride with Alexander and Jenneva Tork. Let’s ride!”
Alex and Jenneva took off for the street and the rest of the Rangers followed with their mouths hanging open. Niki looked like she wanted to bolt and run away, but the rest of the Rangers just appeared dumbfounded. General Fernandez personally escorted them to the city gates and bid them farewell. No one spoke until they were well clear of the city. Tanya was the first to approach Alex and she had a hard time trying to determine what to say.
“Alex,… ” began Tanya, “I am… so sorry for giving you such a bad time as Garth. I thought for some reason that Garth hated you and so I pushed all the more. Was your hatred of Alex part of your disguise?”
“It was not hatred that you were sensing, Tanya,” Alex sighed. “It was a dislike for people making things out to be more than they are. I am no more a hero than you or any of the other Rangers. We all face the same perils and we face them together. People like to make stories out of surviving these perils to live another day, but people just do what they must to survive. Am I a hero because I have survived, or are the men who gave their lives trying, the real heroes? I do not perform my tasks to gain fame or riches. I only do what must be done and
