Sume regarded him with a cool expression. “He wouldn’t come unless this is all finished. We have to make this trip.”
“I know.”
She glanced at her feet for a moment. “Enosh and I came to an agreement. I told Sapphire about Rosha. About the creature trying to find her after it attacked Shirrokaru. How she is currently staying with trusted friends in Jin-Sayeng.” She fixed him with a glare.
“I know,” Kefier growled. “I’m not an idiot.”
“I wonder about that, sometimes,” she said, before walking away.
Kefier knocked once before turning the knob. Sapphire was bent over a stack of books and papers.
“I was going to ask for Enosh’s help,” she said. “But he seemed distracted. Here. Shi-uin language is close to Gorenten—maybe you can help me translate.”
He glanced at the texts. The sight of the words made him ill. “What are you trying to accomplish, Sapphire?”
“Farg of the Shi-uin had a hidden a piece of Naijwa’s beast with him. We know that Yn Garr had been seeking this for years, and we used to think that the best way to stop him was to stop him from finding it. But he’s managed to thwart us all these years. I’m thinking if we somehow find Farg’s piece before he does, we could destroy it before Yn Garr gets his hands on it.
“If what Sume tells me is correct, then it helps that he lost the beast. That buys us time.” She glanced at him. “I shouldn’t have to remind you that helping us would be in your best interest. It makes sense that it’s interested in your niece. Jaeth’s Eye was afraid of Enosh. Someone like him, but stronger in the agan, would be a formidable threat. If we are somehow able to destroy these things, she will be much safer.”
“How many of these things are lying around there?”
“I suspect a few, but we know only of Farg’s for sure. Maybe finding his records will help reveal the others.”
“And you’re certain that you can destroy them? Remember, even Raggnar rog-Bannal couldn’t.”
“He daren’t. He could’ve. He was afraid of what would happen if he did.”
She leaned back against the chair and crossed her arms. “But all of these had led me to believe that taking that risk is better than the alternative. Jaeth’s Eye has destroyed Shirrokaru, you say? For it to have gotten so big as to accomplish that…”
She closed her eyes, and for a moment, Kefier was almost sure she had fallen asleep. When she opened them again, it was to look through the port-hole and up at the sky.
“Moon would know what to do,” Sapphire murmured. “Even when we didn’t—and she wasn’t always the smartest—but she was always sure. I think I needed that from her.”
“I still wish I could’ve done something that day.”
“Yes. Well, what would you know?” She sighed. “Maybe I just needed to talk. Go away, now.”
“I thought you needed my help.”
“You’ll just spit all over the papers. Go. Talk to your brother. Catch up. Or drown yourself in a bucket of piss, I don’t care.” She returned to her work, one hand on her forehead.
Kefier left her alone.
The journey from the coast of Bardes to Shi-uin Island took about six hours. Clearance was another three at the port of Kazfian.
Enosh knew these things because he had to; because it was his job to know them. Yn Garr’s upbringing had instilled in him a knack for details, so that even when he was at his most distracted, he tracked down everything in case they proved to be useful at a later date.
But Sume’s news had thrown a dagger straight into the middle of his plans. It had been over a day since she had told him and he still wasn’t sure what the appropriate reaction ought to be. How did this child fit into his world? Marriage was sacred in Gorent and bastards were reviled. His own father’s reputation had been tarnished when Ke-if was born; it was why he had avoided getting himself too entangled in his women’s company. He already knew that the fact that he had been so enamoured by Sume at the time was a mistake; he just hadn’t realized how much.
“Deep thoughts those must be, Enosh,” Daro said, coming up to join him by the railing.
Enosh tightened the collar-strings on his coat and shivered. “Weather like this encourages thinking. My lips hurt when I talk.”
“It does that, doesn’t it?” Daro grinned, looking up at the harsh, white wind. “Ah, Kazfian,” he said, gazing at the silent city in the distance. “What the Dageians must have done to you. People should not have that kind of power over other people, you know?”
Enosh smirked. “A strange thought, coming from a soldier.”
“I treated you all right, didn’t I? Never hurt more than your feelings.” Daro gripped the railings with his gloves. “Still, she cuts a pretty sight, doesn’t she? There was a time when summer still touched her shores. In fact, it was summer when the Dageians came; the last summer Shi-uin has ever seen.”
Enosh followed his look. “That spell on the island...it was cast by your king?”
“My king?” Daro asked.
“You’re clearly of Shi-uin descent,” Enosh said. “And judging by your age, you would’ve already been a child when Dageis invaded.”
Daro smirked. “Maybe I should have hurt more than your feelings. Bashed that sharp brain of yours around. Oh, well. I’ve always been too soft.” He scratched the back of his head.
“My king,” he murmured, a thoughtful look drifting over his face. He retreated inside the ship, leaving Enosh to mull over his words.
Sapphire appeared from the shore not long after, informing him they had been given quarters in one of the old palace’s wings. She wanted him to gain access to the libraries before they could unload the rest of the ship; she was his employer now, and he didn’t argue.
If he had been expecting anything remotely resembling Shi-uin culture when he arrived, he was disappointed. Inside, the palace was decorated like a typical Dageian office, with straight-framed paintings of various points of interest in Dageis (he recognized the Plateau and the Seven Waterfalls of Ashok), as well as paintings of a Cerknar (he wasn’t sure which one). The bare floor was polished to a shine in the latest Dageian fashion. A thrall came, in predictable fashion, to snap another bracelet on him before leading him to the library.
If it wasn’t for the cold, and if he squinted really hard, he would have been convinced he was back in Eheldeth.
He chose a random shelf and went through the books. There was more Dageian text than Shi-uin. He found a few journals naming a Farg that had discovered the secret to an enchantment spell that made dirty water drinkable, and tucked those away for future reference. Sapphire joined him about an hour later. She was carrying two cups of coffee.
“Just like old times,” Enosh said, looking up. Then he narrowed his eyes. “That’s not arsenic I smell, is it?”
“I wouldn’t bother,” she said, dropping a cup on the table beside him. “I’m sure you’re already immune, what with it being the only thing your soul is made of and all.”
“Oh, how you scathe me,” he said. “What have I done to incur your ire lately?”
“I don’t know,” Sapphire admitted. “The stupid look on your face, maybe?”
She flipped through one book and was silent for a few moments. “You really didn’t know that girl was carrying your child?”
“Ah.” Enosh closed his own book to look up at her. “Believe it or not, I didn’t. Did you?”
“I suspected as much.”
“And you never told me?”
“You were too entrenched in your own problems to have given it much thought. I’m sure if I had brought it up then, you’d have laughed at my face.”
Enosh grunted. There was an interesting passage about a memorable funeral, dedicated to an F. El’astor. What was Farg’s full name? The unusual thing about the funeral was that the man’s body was taken to the top of a mountain a day’s journey from the city.
He took this to Sapphire. “Don’t the Shi-uin burn their dead at sea?” he
asked.
“You’re thinking of another people. But you’re partly right—the Shi-uin burn their dead, on pyres. To take such a treacherous journey, and for what?” She rubbed her jaw. “This is worth looking into.”
“I also found the secret to worm-free water, if you’re interested.”
“Go take a rest,” she said. “It’s late.”
He glanced through the window. “Is it, already? I’m finding it hard to tell the time in this weather.” He got up. “How about you?”
“I’ll do more reading.”
“Don’t you do too much of that already? Your legs will fall off if you don’t use them.”
“Speak for yourself,” Sapphire murmured. But she pulled the spectacles from her face and rubbed her eyes. “Go,” she snapped, when she realized he was still standing there.
Enosh gave a short bow and went out into the hall. A mage-thrall met him before he could took two steps out and led him to his room, where he fell into the narrow bed and into his first dreamless sleep in a long time.
He woke up in the middle of the night to an angry pounding at the door.
Enosh swore for a moment before he rolled out of bed to unlock the door.
“I should have you know,” he said, yawning, “that this isn’t how I entertain midnight trysts. You’d have to buy me dinner first.”
“I don’t have time for your jokes,” Daro snarled. “Mahe’s gone. That bastard Bannal took her.”
Chapter Six
Dawn came, but did not break. Light tried to make its way past the grey fog, which gave the sky a dirty, barely perceptible orange glow. The only good thing was that the snow had stopped. The thralls say it brought with it a slew of other problems, but in the meantime, it allowed Enosh the opportunity to think above the howling of the wind.
It was interesting to note the people Sapphire had chosen to convene with that morning. Ceres was there, as was Daro and a mage who called himself Tachya, but also Kefier and Sume, which he didn’t understand. Kefier, perhaps, but Sume?
But Enosh said nothing. He caught Kefier deliberately not looking at him and smirked. He picked a seat close to the window and placed his feet on the nearest desk.
“Please, don’t stop for me,” he said, when Sapphire glanced at him.
“I wasn’t,” Sapphire said. “I was just wondering what took you so long.”
“After all the months we spent together, you would think Officer Daro would know my morning habits by now.”
“Probably consists of rolling over and putting pants on,” Kefier murmured.
Enosh laughed.
Daro’s face remained sombre. “This is not the time.”
“I didn’t say it was. Enlighten me, now, Officer Daro. Why are you so convinced Bannal forcibly made off with your superior officer? For one thing, she is a grown woman, and absolutely terrifying with a blade, as I recall.”
“She wasn’t in her room,” Daro said. “I came in last night and the door was open.”
“Why were you going into her room at such an hour?”
“Do the details matter?” Daro snapped.
“Let’s stick to the real issue here,” Sapphire broke in. “Officer As’ondaro, you’re saying that Prefect Mahe was not in her quarters when she should have been. You also said the room was in disarray?”
“There was a hint of agan there.” He straightened his chest. “I know you’ve made it impossible for me to tap into it but I know a spell-mark when I see it. Mahe would not have been able to cast such a spell. And then a thrall told me he saw them leaving about an hour ago, heading into the blizzard.”
“Find this thrall,” Ceres said, turning to Tachya. He unfolded his hands, nodded, and stepped out of the room.
“She would have told me,” Daro said. “If she was going anywhere, she would’ve informed me. Told me to stay put, at worst.”
“Let’s say Bannal didn’t do this because he’s a creepy bastard,” Kefier spoke up. “Which I happen to think he is, but...why would he take the soldier? He’s got a dozen mages in his circle.”
“The answer to that question also interests me, Officer Daro,” Enosh said, turning to him.
Daro glanced at them all in turn and swallowed.
“Might as well tell us,” Sapphire murmured. “I’ve more or less figured it out, anyway. Obviously, it has something to do with why we all came here in the first place: the creature—part of the creature—that Farg hid in Shi-uin all those years ago.”
“Mahe wouldn’t know anything about that,” Daro said.
“But Bannal does. Are you not both of Shi-uin? Possible descendants of Farg?”
“I don’t know that, either,” Daro said.
“Bannal probably has a good reason to think Mahe is one. She would allow him to unlock whatever spells encase the creature.”
“But why go off alone?” Daro asked.
“Because he doesn’t trust any of us,” Sapphire said. “I knew that from the beginning, though I didn’t expect him to act on it other than maybe just accidentally setting Enosh on fire.”
“I’m sure if he could,” Enosh said, “he would’ve done it by now.”
Daro shook his head. “Why wouldn’t he trust you? You all have the same agenda.”
“Maybe he doesn’t,” Enosh said. “Why destroy the beast if you can control it? Kingdoms would fall to their knees to its power. Only thing is—even if the spells responded to Mahe...she is not trained in the agan, is she? No, I’m sorry—she wouldn’t have been. The damn thing will overwhelm her. It’ll kill her before the seal is broken.”
Daro’s face darkened. “I’ll kill him first. I’ll wring his sorry little neck.”
Tachya entered the room again. “It’s true,” he said. “They were heading north. They took two ponies and some supplies.”
“But where north?” Sapphire asked.
Enosh got off his seat and approached the desk he had been working at the night before. He pulled out the journal he was last reading and turned to a dog-eared page. He threw this at Sapphire’s direction. “I’m guessing that,” he said.
She picked up the journal and read through it before turning to him. “I tried following this last night. Ended nowhere. How can you be sure about this?”
Enosh grabbed a few books and a jar of ink before he walked to the middle of the room. “I was thinking about something before I fell asleep. The reason Yn Garr attacked Enji five years ago was two-fold. You know the main one.”
“Naijwa’s diaries,” Sapphire murmured.
“Right. But also…” He dipped his fingers in the ink and scrawled out a rune on the floor. “Before Raggnar rog-Bannal’s mages left Hilal with pieces of the creature, he linked them to a spell, which he embedded into the foundation of one tower at Enji. It wasn’t a complicated spell, by any means. In fact, it was so simple I almost applauded the man when I learned of it.”
He stopped writing and drew back.
Ceres’ eyebrows shot up. “A don’t-look spell.”
“A bloody don’t-look spell.” Enosh snorted. “A spell any trained child could do, if he so desired. Easily erased, unless you did it right; the one Raggnar made had to be renewed every few years. But it did the trick. Yn Garr spent two years in Gorent before he realized the thing was in the temple in Sagun—a temple that was just sitting there right under his nose.
“It took us even longer to discover the source of the spell. And then all Yn Garr had to do was destroy Enji, find it, and erase the damn rune. I saw it done myself.”
“I’m going to pretend it doesn’t bother me that you never told me this,” Sapphire said. “What does this have to do with our dilemma now?”
“There is one other thing. One other thing that even Yn Garr doesn’t know.” He smiled and approached the ends of the rune. “I have been studying Raggnar rog-Bannal’s personal journals for years. The man has a way of embellishing his writing. I suppose it amused him, I don’t know. He always marked his runes like so—the upper edges
curling up, the lower edges curling down. I noticed his personal touch when Yn Garr destroyed the spell.”
He picked up the books and deposited them around the rune. “It was fascinating the way he had linked the spell to the agan, and to where each piece was hidden. The spell had been written on top of a map; I’m not sure how the map was attached to the actual geography of each place, but that was how he did it. Anyway; I had noticed that Sagun Isle was located right under where the upper left of the rune curled.” He pointed at a book to the right. “Pretend that’s Shi-uin. What part of it does the rune touch?”
Sapphire looked at floor, then at the journal, then back at the floor again.
“Be damned,” she murmured. “I think you’re right. That’s incredible.”
“Please repeat that again,” Enosh said.
“Be silent, worm.” She flipped through the journal.
“I’m convinced,” Ceres said, getting up. “It may be a guess, but it’s the best guess we have. And they were seen heading that way.”
“We can be ready to leave within the hour,” Daro said. He glanced at the people in the room. “We’re all going? Just us?”
“Yes,” Sapphire said. “No offense, Ceres, but Bannal hand-picked the people from his circle. I don’t know if we can trust them.”
“You can trust me and Tachya, whom I recommended to him,” Ceres smiled. “You will need all the help you can get for this one, cousin.”
Enosh dropped his head and stepped towards the door. He caught Kefier’s eye. For a long moment, they looked at each other, and he realized there were things he wanted to say. But he broke the gaze before Kefier could react and began the long walk back to his quarters.
They came across the first tracks an hour from the road, or what had used to be a road—Sume couldn’t see much beyond the white expanse. The soldier, As’ondaro, became livid, forcing his horse into a gallop ahead of them. Sapphire and Enosh rushed in after him; they caught up with him in the distance and an argument ensued.
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