Pug said, “Another of Macros’s mysteries. Pray, then, the castle’s still there.”
Ryath cleared another line of hills, putting them in sight of the only visible structure on the island, a lone castle. They banked over the beach where Pug and his companions had first landed upon the island, years before, and the dragon rapidly descended, landing upon a trail above the beach. Bidding her companions goodbye, she launched herself into the air, preparing to hunt. Tomas, watching as Ryath vanished into the azure sky, said, “I had forgotten what it was to ride a dragon.” He appeared thoughtful as he faced Pug. “When you asked me to accompany you, I was again fearful of awakening dormant spirits within.” He tapped his chest. “I thought here Ashen-Shugar waited, only needing an excuse to rise up and overwhelm me again.” Pug studied Tomas’s face. His friend was masking his emotions well, but Pug could still see them there, powerful and deep. “But I know now there is no difference between Ashen-Shugar and Tomas. I am both.” He looked down for a moment, reminding Pug of how the boy had once looked when making excuses for some transgression before his mother. “I feel as if I’ve both gained and lost.”
Pug nodded. “We’ll never again be the boys we once were, Tomas. But we’ve become so much more than we dreamed. Still, few things of worth are ever simple. Or easy.”
Tomas stared out to sea. “I was thinking of my parents. I’ve not visited them since the end of the war. I am not who they once knew.”
Pug understood. “It will be hard for them, but they are good people and will accept the change in you. They will wish to see their grandchild.”
Tomas sighed, then he laughed, part in pleasure, part in bitterness. “Calis is different from what they would have expected, but then so am I. No, I do not fear to see them again.” He turned and looked at Pug. Softly he said, “No, I fear I may never see them again.”
Pug thought of his own wife, Katala, and all the others at Stardock. He could only reach out and grip Tomas’s arm for a long, thoughtful moment. Despite their strengths and abilities, talents unrivalled on this world, they were mortal and, even more than Tomas, Pug knew the dreadful nature of what they faced. And Pug held deeper suspicions and darker fears in private. The silence of the eldar during his training, their presence on Kelewan, and the insights gained from studying with them all pointed at possibilities Pug fervently hoped would prove false. There was a conclusion here he would not speak of until he had no other choice. Pushing aside his disquiet, he said, “Come, we must seek Gathis.”
They stood overlooking the beach, at a point where two trails divided from one. Pug knew that one led to the castle, the other toward the small vale where the strange house and outbuildings the sorcerer had called Villa Beata had stood, the place he had first met Macros. Pug now wished when he and the others had returned to claim the legacy of Macros, the heart of the Academy at Stardock’s library, they had visited the complex. For those buildings to have vanished, to be replaced by trees of ancient aspect . .. it was, as he had said, one more of the many mysteries surrounding Macros the Black. They followed the path toward the castle.
The castle stood upon a table of land, separated from the rest of the island by a deep ravine that fell away to the ocean. The crashing of waves through the passage echoed beneath them as they slowly crossed the lowered drawbridge. The castle was fashioned from unfamiliar dark stone, and around the great arch above the portcullis odd-looking creatures of stone perched, regarding Pug and Tomas with stony gaze as they passed below. The outside of the castle looked much as it had the last time Pug had been here, but once inside the castle, it was evident that everything else had changed.
Upon the last visit, the grounds and castle had appeared well tended, but now the stones at the base of the building exhibited weeds growing from cracks, and the grounds were littered with bird droppings. They hurried to the large doors to the central keep, which hung open. As they pushed them wide, the screeching of hinges testified to their rusty condition. Pug led his friend through the long hall and up the tower steps, until he reached the door into Macros’s study. The last time he had been here, it had taken both a spell and answering a question in Tsurani to open the door, but now a simple push sufficed. The room was empty.
Pug turned and they hurried down the steps until they reached the great hall of the castle. In frustration, Pug cried, “Hello, the castle!” His voice echoed hollowly off the stones.
Tomas said, “It appears everyone is gone.”
“I don’t understand. When we last spoke, Gathis said he would abide here, awaiting Macros’s return and keeping his house in order. I only knew him briefly, but I would warrant he would keep this castle as we saw it last . . .”