This was simply too much for Gradge, who quivered and shook for a moment, then fled. Barque returned his attention to his task. He pursed his lips and pushed the thing closer and closer. The crow egg was now at the tree.
"Now!" came a cry, and a small figure rushed onto the scene. It was a small girl and she practically flew off her feet and up to the egg, which she caught with one hand and then smashed it against the trunk of the tree, mere inches above the knothole.
"Ha!" Ember shouted in triumph as she let herself fall to the ground. Edeline came running behind her.
"What have you done?" Barque yelled. "What have you done?"
"Stopped you, for one thing," Ember panted, catching her breath. She had been going as fast as she could, traveling non-stop since the moment the Smackers had stolen the egg. All the way she'd kept Baudry's position in the front of her mind, and right near the end she'd gotten that feeling, that a Striker was just going to strike. As a Savior, Ember couldn't help herself. All of her being was drawn into stopping the score. Her role was too powerful, and kept her from even considering the matter. Now, as she lay on the ground below the remarkable tree, she started to realize the situation.
"That was the goal!" Barque was shouting at her. "I had the remarkable thing. I was putting it into the remarkable place! Just like The Hidden One wanted, and now look at you! You've gone and ruined it all."
"I did?" Ember blinked, looking around at the others. Baudry was shaking his head.
"It sure looks like it," he offered.
"Oh my goodness," Edeline added. She could think of nothing further to say.
"It can't be," said Ember.
"You just couldn't help it, could you?" Baudry wondered. "A Striker's got to strike, and a Savior's got to save."
"We were all doing our part," Barque complained. "Except you."
"But how could I know?" Ember cried, but of course she could know, and she knew that she could. In fact, she said to herself, I should have known. I did know. All along I did know. She chose me for a reason. Was it this? Was this what she wanted? Did she want me to ruin it all? No, it can't be. It doesn't make sense. I'm a Savior, so she had to know what I'd do. What does it mean?
"Enough!" Barque spat on the ground. "I've had enough. If I never see you again it'll be too soon."
Princess stuck out her tongue as the two made their departure. Baudry, Edeline and Ember watched him go. None of them called for him to return. For a long time, none of them said a word. Finally, it was Baudry's turn to leave.
"It feels like it's over," he shrugged. "We did what we could. If it wasn't what The Hidden One wanted, well, she could have just told us, you know. She didn't have to be so obscure."
"It's been interesting, though," he said, smiling, as he bowed to the women, then made his way in a different direction than Barque.
"I suppose you agree with those two," Ember said, getting up to her feet.
"What do I know?" Edeline shrugged. "I'm still pretty much in the dark."
"I think I'll go home," Ember said. "You can come if you want."
"Sure," Edeline said. "Why not?"
And the women walked off in yet another direction.
Twenty Four
Only one direction remained, back to the lake, and it was this way that Soma and Squee went. Both of them were exhausted. Ember had led them on quite a chase, traveling as fast as she did, and they having to keep themselves hidden. Many times they were on the verge of just giving up and dropping down to the path and following them in the open, but they had their professional pride to consider, and kept up pursuit through the trees. There was a lot to report, and Soma reviewed it all in her mind. Bumbarta would want to hear everything. He wasn't amused when he did. On the contrary, he was furious and was barely able to contain his rage.
"What do I care about eggs?" he stamped around the fire. "What's all this about warm rocks and talkative crows and stupid giants and a little girl smashing up things against trees? Where's my way out? Where's what's important?"
Soma and Squee stood nervously, eying the hall to the door. They had done all they could. The other Watchers who'd been on guard filed in, and ranged themselves along the wall. Bumbarta walked up to each one in turn and questioned them closely, hoping to uncover some hidden detail, a clue to what he was seeking. Those who'd accompanied Soma and Squee confirmed everything they ha said, although none were as accurate as Soma. Those who'd gone after Baudry and Barque added the details of squirrels and sap and walking around in circles.
"I don't care about any of that!" Bumbarta came close to shouting. All of the Watchers were alarmed to see their boss this angry. He was usually so calm, and smiling, but now those same white teeth which used to gleam in pleasure at their reports seemed wicked and scary instead, and those eyes were making them squirm. Bumbarta waved them away, and then, recovering himself somewhat, yelled a sort of apology after them.
"It's just a slight headache," he called. “Don't worry about anything.” He felt overcome with emotion. For some reason he'd been so certain, so sure that this time he'd stumbled on something especially unusual, and the hope of it burned in his heart like a fire.
“Better not to get your hopes up,” he reminded himself. “Better to plan, to take steps, to do for oneself, rather than rely on any external sources.” So saying, he busied himself with his cages, plotting to capture new birds, to train them better next time, to have them take messages, even. Yes, that was an idea. All he would need was something to write on, and something to write with. It shouldn't be hard. He could scratch on some especially thin bark. How did paper get made anyhow?
“Ah well,” he sighed and sat down on his chair. The idea of writing again made him weary. He'd tired of that kind of thing. He stared into the fire and tried to forget, tried to empty hid mind.
Outside of the hut, the Watchers had gathered around Soma, who did her best to reassure them.
"Our uncle just doesn't feel well," she told them. "I'm sure he'll be better tomorrow. In the meantime, I think he needs rest."
The Watchers drifted away, leaving Soma and Squee alone on the banks of the lake.
"What do you really think?" Squee asked.
"He's mad about something," Soma replied. "But he's not mad at us."
"That's good," Squee answered. "I just wish we could make him feel better."
Epilogue
"It's getting better already," The Hidden One whispered to no one. She was deep in her hole underground. She had waited until the team had disbanded before sending the squirrel back down the tree trunk. It paused, sniffing around the knothole. The egg shell had mostly peeled off and fallen onto the ground. The yolk was now dripping, making its way slowly into the hole, where it was mixing itself with the syrup. The squirrel took another step closer, lifting its paw when it felt the sticky mixture getting into its claws. It brought the paw up to its mouth, and licked it. The taste was delicious. The squirrel dipped its paw in for more.
"Mmmm," The Hidden One said, experiencing the flavor through the mind of the squirrel.
"It’s delicious," The Hidden One said. Already she felt herself weakening. Her bones, long sore and accustomed to pain, were finally giving in to their ultimate fate, to return to the dust, where they truly belonged, where they ought to have rested decades before.
"This is it," The Hidden One smiled in her mind. "Finally, the cure. Just one thing remains," she murmured. She searched in the walls of her brain, reaching out to all the wide forest, locating her granddaughter, Ember, who was at that moment sitting on a tree stump, holding her head in her hands, trying her best to forget what she'd done. It had been a long day. She still could hardly believe she'd let her instinctive reactions get the better of her. What had she even been thinking, as she'd run down from the hill, keeping Baudry's location foremost in her mind. She knew she had to get to him. She knew he was going to discover a goal, and she knew that Barque would soon strike. Did she just want to be there to witness it? Is that what she thought she was doing
? Did she think that the four of them must be together for the final event to occur as it should? Or had she even been thinking at all? She couldn't really remember. All she could think of was urgency. She hadn't even bothered to see whether Edeline was able to keep up. She'd only paid to heed to the map in her mind. Go, go, go, was the constant refrain in her brain, and so she had gone, as fast as she could, dashing through the trees, leaping over rocks and roots and creek crossings, flying past the lake, rushing into the woods once again, only to fail. That was it. Just to fail.
It was a crushing defeat, especially for one so sure of herself, one so experienced, so wise in the ways of this little world. Why did The Hidden One have to pick her? Was it just as Barque said, because she was family? Did The Hidden One feel sorry for her, want to give her a chance, to be a part of something inportant? And now she had ruined it. She'd smashed the egg, destroyed the ball, kept it from being scored as it should have been scored. Now the process, whatever it was, would never begin. Now they'd never know what might have been. Edeline was no help at this moment. She was sitting nearby, keeping vigil, waiting for Ember to snap out of her funk, to start giving her orders and be cranky again. She missed the old Ember, who was better than her, who knew all the ways of the wild. Edeline wasn't concerned about failing the quest. It never meant anything to her. As far as she