The Fire and The Storm - The Nexus of Kellaran #2 novel Chapter 152

PART 23

Mark emerged with his wives in windswept night, about two hundred meters in the air above a mountain valley. He augmented his vision a bit to see better in the darkness, making it seem twilight, so Talia and Alilia did too.

“I really want to spend the night in the master suite of The Living Palace in First Valley.” he quietly told them. “I want to make love with both of you there, as Talia and I made love there on our wedding night. I made sure it was unoccupied and warned the manager that we were coming.

“But I wanted to do something else first. I hope it’s okay.

“Right now I’m stronger than I’ve ever been, and filled with the confidence and contentment and love that I get from you. So I wanted to take a few minutes to do something I haven’t had the courage to do.

“This is Shinosa Valley, where I grew up. Or rather it used to be. The new residents from Whiskers Delta have renamed it Whiskers Valley in honor of their lost home, and I don’t blame them for wanting to put what happened here in the past, and out of their minds.

“I haven’t been here since all of my family died here.” he continued as he slowly flew with them above the valley to the west. “I’m surprised that it looks so much the same, at least from up here. There’s a couple of new houses over there, and some new fencing, but hardly anything’s changed. For some reason I thought it would have.”

They continued slowly moving west, and he spoke occasionally.

“I’m glad it’s the middle of the night here now, I got lucky with that. It’s about three hours after midnight, and I don’t think anyone’s about. We’ll have to be careful not to wake up the dogs though.

“That’s Jorman’s mill right down there.

“And that house right there, that’s where I grew up.”

They quietly alighted on the path in front of the house, perhaps sixty meters away. He looked at the house for a minute, remembering, then led them up the path, west and climbing out of the valley.

“I used to know every one of these trees and every animal in this forest as well as a shepherd knows his sheep.” he mused, enjoying the familiar scents of the vibrant woodland as they walked.

After fourteen minutes of unhurried walking they came to a plateau on the side of the mountain’s lower slope, to the left of the path. It was a meadow with deep grass, a nice view of the valley, and perhaps a hundred gravestones, each with the grass for two and a half meters around them neatly trimmed to ankle height.

He cast a quick Knowing spell to find those he sought.

Talia and Alilia walked silently with him among the graves, letting his mood run its course.

He walked a meandering path through the cemetery, stopping here and there to gaze at the stone of someone he knew, silently paying his respects, and remembering.

His composure held until he arrived at the grave of Marja Dobbim, aged thirteen years. He fell to his knees and broke into tears, and Talia and Alilia held him tight as he wept.

Finally he rose, tears still streaming from his eyes, and moved to the graves of Markhan Reginus Longstrider the Fourth, his loving wife Helem, their children Steb and Shelvy.

Mark slowly lay down with his face in the grass and wept with great wracking sobs, and his wives lay with him to comfort him.

Finally he rose to his knees, his grief spent, and gazed at the markers for minutes.

“I’m sorry to do this on our wedding night.” he quietly rumbled. “I should have done it another time, but I couldn’t bring myself to come here before tonight, and I wanted to before we… Before the me that’ll be in the time-bubble goes back in for another sixteen years.

“That’s okay.” Talia assured him as she caressed his face. “You needed to do this before you could truly move past it.”