8. Owen

Owen

It was terribly cold outside as Owen and Colt filled their waterskins from the well. The sky was dreary, and as Owen looked up, icy drizzle hit his face. He hoped any snow would hold off, at least until they got out of Vanhelm. When they had their bags ready to go, they walked down to the beach and along the shoreline until they came to the entrance of the emberstone cave. Owen led them into the passage and used his fire when it became too dark to see.

They were both quiet, lost in thought as they walked through the cave. The passage was warm, and if it weren't for the fact they had to find Brom and defeat an evil god threatening to destroy the world, they could live here. Just as Owen's father and the Alliance had decades ago.

But then Owen shook his head. No, he didn't want to dwell in a cave. Not after all the incidents that had happened to them while in underground tunnels. He wanted to stay away from such things as much as possible.

On their way down, Owen slipped on a shallow puddle, and Colt caught his arm. After he had regained his footing, Colt didn't let go of his hand, and they continued on this way as they ventured further. With his other hand, Owen cast his Dark Flame ahead, and the purple light illuminated the tunnel. The rocks in the cave walls glittered around them as they squeezed through the narrow passages.

When they came to the room of crystals that Bridge had shown him over a week ago, Owen stopped and glanced around. Emberstone was imbued in the ground, making the ceiling glow like dim candles. There was a quiet hum, as if they were trying to speak.

Colt raised a small satchel filled with the necessary tools they needed to cut through the element. They had found it stashed in a cabinet at Bridge's cottage.

"How much should we take?" Colt asked.

Owen took one of the tools in his hand. "Enough to make a weapon or two, but not too much to weigh us down."

"Alright." Colt set to work, bending down and using a flat, iron-shaped tool and a hammer to break off a chunk of the crystal in the wall. It took a long while, and when Colt had finally broken off a piece and handed it over, Owen took it and staggered back to sit on a rock.

"Whoa, you alright?" Colt moved over and put a hand on Owen's knee.

"Yes, I just… suddenly feel weak. I think it's the emberstone. It happened before, too."

"But you held the dagger."

"That's true…" Owen shook his head. "I don't know."

Colt looked at him curiously, then brought up the satchel. He took the chunk of emberstone and carefully placed it alongside the tools. He would have to be the one to shape a weapon out of it, but he didn't mind, as he enjoyed shaping wood, and he'd even made arrowheads out of rock many times. Colt went to remove more when a rush of wind suddenly gusted down the shaft of the passage .

The air swirled around them, shifting into a more distinct gray and white form of a spirit. Another appeared, and both spirits began to spin around the cave, causing the air to blow violently and the rocks above them to loosen.

Owen sparked his Dark Flame and fled down the passageway. As Colt followed on his heels, whispers carried along the walls, raising the hairs on Owen's neck.

Just as they saw daylight, a rumble began from deep inside the cave. Owen grabbed Colt's hand and used his other to send a burst of air deep into the cave that helped boost them both forward. They stumbled out of the darkness and onto the beach just as the cave collapsed behind them, closing off the entrance.

Owen panted as he held onto Colt, then he looked up and met his wide eyes.

"Are you okay?"

"Those things tried to kill us," Colt hissed in anger.

"They didn't want us getting hold of the emberstone." Owen's jaw tightened.

"Right…" Colt took a few breaths and tugged on Owen's arm. "Let's get out of here."

They hurried back to the house, but when they neared it, a bark stopped them in their tracks. Owen sucked in a breath as he saw a familiar-looking black wolf staring at them nearby.

"Clove!" Owen eased down to his knees so he could hug her. Her fur was soft around her neck, but there were areas where her coat was matted, and her front left paw looked injured.

"You okay, girl?" He looked up from her blue eyes and around, hoping Rem wouldn't jump out at them.

Colt placed one of his hands on Owen's waist and reached out with his other to pet her. Clove whimpered as she nuzzled his hand .

"We should check her for injuries," Owen said. "She could possibly help us find Brom. She was good at tracking me, so maybe she can try and find him. There has to be something inside that smells like him."

"Alright, we'll go look." Colt helped Owen to his feet, and they made their way to the house.

While Colt gathered their bags, Owen inspected Clove's body, finding a few cuts on her. He inspected her injured paw and found a thorn lodged in one of her toe pads. He pulled it out gently, then checked to make sure Colt was still out of the room before he held his palm out and generated a small purple flame. Clove whimpered when Owen placed his hand on her paw. After a moment, she put her foot down and, if Owen wasn't mistaken, looked quite relieved. He smiled as he scratched her ears, his heart glowing at the unmistakable fact that his Dark Flame had eased her suffering.

"Here," Colt said, holding out a pillowcase from the bed that Brom had slept on the night before the Winter's Solstice.

Owen took it and said, "Hey, girl, I know Rem made you work for the Hunters. But you're good, I know it. You wouldn't have let us get away so many times if you weren't. We need your help. I need you to find my friend, Brom." He held the pillowcase out, and Clove sniffed it, then she stood and made her way to the door.

"Colt…" Owen's eyes widened as he looked back.

Colt met his eyes and nodded. "Let's follow her."

They followed Clove through the afternoon as she trotted northwest. Owen wasn't thrilled to see the perimeter of the graveyard so close again, but if going this way meant they found Brom, he'd endure it. Going along a weathered path proved easy, but the further they went, the more it rained, and with how cold it was, Owen worried it would eventually snow.

By late afternoon, they stopped to eat the peaches from the jars. Owen wondered if Bridge and Agnes had left them specifically behind. He poured water into one of their small wooden bowls and gave it to Clove, who lapped it up, and then threw her some fruit. Then she lay in the grass for a moment to rest, while Owen and Colt sat together on a fallen tree log.

As they rested, Owen gazed at Colt. This tall, lean, handsome man had stuck with him for hundreds of miles through two countries. They had been chased by Wielders and Hunters through the rain and snow and had endured much sorrow and pain. But still… Colt had stayed with him. He had been there every step of the way, and every time Owen was with him, he felt at home. His warm smile and waiting arms were the only four walls and roof Owen needed.

It dawned on him then.

Home isn't a place. It's a family. Colt is my family.

When Colt looked over, he flashed his devilishly handsome smile and winked. Laughing, Owen leaned over and swiped his thumb across one of the love bites he'd given Colt on his neck. His lover responded by taking Owen's hand and kissing it.

Their tender moment was interrupted when the ground rumbled. They looked away, still clinging to each other, and looked around as the earth shook. Clove got to her feet and barked, then her tail tucked between her legs, and she cowered next to Owen. He gently grabbed her by the neck and pulled her close.

After a few more seconds, the rumbling stopped.

As Owen let out a breath, Clove stood in front of him, growling at whatever was coming from the direction of the graveyard.

"Let's go," Colt said.

They gathered up their things and turned away from the darkness in the distance, Clove leading the way once again. Owen's heart pounded as he kept his eyes ahead. In the distance, a spirit hovered near a tree, watching them as they walked. A spirit that emerged from the Unseen Vale, no doubt.

How many are here now?

Owen tried to open his mind to get a feel for what was looming behind them, but he found only darkness. It didn't take him long to realize the spirit watching them was now following them. He kept an eye on it, and anytime it got too close, Clove growled and snapped at it, and it would back off before coming at them again.

It resembled a solid figure rather than the translucent spirits he'd seen before, and even Colt jumped any time it drew near. Finally, after a while, Owen grew flustered and prepared to attack the shadow figure himself. As the entity came at him from his left, Owen grabbed hold of the creature with his Essence, and the monster wriggled to get away. Each of its legs snapped, and it wailed as it sank to the dirt.

Grimacing, Owen looked down at the remains. It looked like nothing but a pure black mass, a place where there was no light.

The ground shook again, a lighter tremble this time, and they continued moving. Evening was approaching fast, with more threatening rain clouds on the horizon, or perhaps they were brewing from the Gate .

"We need to find shelter," Owen said.

"Let's get to those trees up ahead." Colt nodded toward the dark line of trees in the distance.

When they detoured toward them, Clove barked at them to follow her. Sighing, Owen bent down and petted her head. "We're exhausted, girl, and it's getting dark. We have to rest." She whimpered and continued to trot along her way, and Owen felt defeated. Clove turned to bark at them once more and then broke into a run.

That's when Owen caught it, the distinct scent of pine that he knew belonged to Brom, and he gasped.

"What?" Colt asked, looking over at him.

Owen got to his feet. "Brom is nearby. I can sense him."

They rushed onward, and after ten minutes, Owen's eye caught a glimmer in the distance. A guard post, by the look of it, and something glowing in the window in the waning evening light.

A fire.

"He's there," Owen said, panting.

A low hiss stopped them from moving forward, and Owen narrowed his eyes as he looked around for the source of the noise. In the twilight, a few creatures that looked almost human crawled toward them on their hands and feet. When one came close, Owen ignited his Dark Flame and got a glimpse of dark-green, leather-like skin. They had no eyes, and when the creature smiled, flashing human teeth, Owen's skin prickled in fear. One monster had multiple arms, and bones protruded from its spine and hips.

"It's right fucking there!" Colt shouted. "These things couldn't have waited at least five minutes?"

"We've got this, Colt. Help me. "

Owen trembled against the frigid air as he tried to calculate what these beings would do. Despite his fatigue, he summoned his fire, though not as powerfully as he would have liked. One of the strange creatures ran at them, and Owen blasted at it with his fire. Despite burning, the monster gave a deep cackle as the flames engulfed it.

More came at them, and Owen used his fire again. And again. And once more.

One of Colt's arrows shot out and pierced a creature in the head, and while Owen took a moment to rest, Colt took down another. "I only have two arrows left, Owen," he said.

"Okay…" Owen breathed, his mind wavering. But when he tried to summon his flame again, it went out completely, and he sank to his knees, weak.

Colt turned and caught him before he fell completely over. That's when another monster crept in, its outline slinking toward him, but Clove dove in and took down the leathery-looking fiend. She helped keep the creatures at bay as Colt helped Owen to his feet.

"They're just going to keep coming," Colt said. "You make a run for the house over there."

"You're an idiot if you think I'm leaving you."

Rather than run away, as Colt suggested, Owen tried again to summon his fire. This time, he raised both hands, palms out and thumbs touching. The purple flames swirled out from his hands and consumed the grass in a circle around them.

The devils didn't seem to like the fire, but it didn't stop them from trying to surpass it. They were easy for Colt to pick off at a distance with his arrows, but now he'd used them all, and he was left with only his knife to stab any that came near .

Owen dropped to one knee to focus on maintaining the fire circle. Colt kicked down one of the creatures as it tried to cross their protective ring, and then stabbed another.

More shapes crawled around them, moving slowly within the deep twilight. These creatures were relentless, reminding him of the Geesh in the caves they escaped from in Milarc. Owen closed his eyes and gathered his energy with a deep breath. He pulsed his Essence out, sending several beings flying to the ground, while Colt took out one after the other. Panting, Colt drew his arm back to release his knife and then staggered back.

He was growing weary, Owen knew, just as he was himself. If only they could get away long enough to run to the post in the distance…

Then Owen saw something dark in the corner of his eye. He looked over just as one of those creatures jumped through the ring of fire. It slammed into him, and they both tumbled to the ground.

Owen landed back with a thump, the wind knocked out of him. Cold fingers grabbed his neck and cut off his air.

"I will get into your mind," the creature whispered, its voice like a hiss and full of hatred. "Your body will be mine."

Just as the creature bent its mouth toward Owen, Colt stabbed it in the neck, and blood sprayed over Owen. Gagging, he rolled over and spit the blood from his mouth, then he coughed into the dirt, his hands trembling as he tried to grasp for something, anything. That's when he realized his fire had gone out and the circle was no longer protecting them.

Owen pushed himself to his feet, ready to restart the fire. Then an echo of cries sounded from all around, and the leather bodies convulsed with blue sparks of electricity before they collapsed to the ground. Owen let out several breaths as he surveyed the dead bodies on the ground. Beside him, Colt grabbed his arm and pulled him close, then shook him.

"Owen—" Colt started.

"What…" Owen looked up, then he froze.

Someone stood beside them. Someone familiar. He caught the sudden energy of sugary cinnamon, so strong that he knew without looking who was before him. Swallowing hard, Owen turned his head to find the Core Wielder standing before them, a glowing blue Core in his hand.

He was tall and thin, just as Owen remembered, his brown hair shaggy and his beard slightly longer than it had been. His dark blue eyes seemed to hold secrets.

Owen glared at him. After all he had been through—crossing two countries and falling victim to Rem's sadistic plot to open the Gate—now he was faced with the man who had tracked him down to kill him. All Elian had to do now was use his Core, and his mission would be complete.

But something in Elian's eyes softened as he looked at him, and the Wielder's words surprised him.

"Welcome back."