Unseen Secrets

by S. B. Sebrick

  "My patrol is due back from that wing any minute," the soldier huffed. "They can tell me if you're lying or-"

  "Your men didn't make it," Calistra snapped back. "Not judging by what we heard when we fled."

  The soldier paused, looking Keevan and Calistra over from head to toe. "I will investigate immediately. Lady De'Sarthan, would you mind waiting here, until we're sure of the situation?"

  Bahjal waved at him, flashing two Danica based rings Keevan recognized as previous special orders from Nariem's shop. "I believe I've enough tools here to challenge Kors if need be. Go see to your men. They'll likely need assistance."

  "As will Calistra," Keevan added, realizing Calistra had kept her wound hidden until now.

  "I will see to it," Bahjal insisted before the soldier could step forward. "Go see to your men. Hurry, this Kors is quite dangerous. Your patrol may already be dead, at the least, they need healing."

  "As you command, Lady De'Sarthan." The soldier saluted, interlocking his fingers and offering her a slight bow. Then he departed.

  "By Suada's mercy," Keevan said in surprise, "I thought you were-"

  Bahjal's hand snapped into his face so fast he bit his tongue. He reeled back a step, tasting blood. Calistra only smirked at the exchange.

  "What were you thinking?!" Bahjal demanded, clenching her fist and shaking it threateningly in his face. "I just told you yesterday to be careful how you presented your powers to the city. You just slipped two dangerous Etrendi into the place, two of Zerik's own followers, a sworn enemy of Malik Morgra. Are you insane?!"

  "There wasn't any other choice." Keevan insisted, tripping over a chair in his hasty retreat. He grunted in pain as the hard stone ground raced up to meet his already bruised body. "It was help him or watch you die. You should be grateful."

  "Grateful?!" Bahjal shrieked, steaming hot water gathered around her like the coils of a serpent. "Anyone who wants to force you into their service now knows that kidnapping and threats work. Malik Morgra could very well brand you a traitor and have your corpse hanging from the Harbor Guild's ceiling by dawn."

  "I wasn't going to let them kill you," Keevan repeated stubbornly, getting back to his feet. His face, arms and legs ached from a dozen minor wounds. They didn't help his mood. "You're my best and only friend."

  Bahjal paused at that, pouting her lips in stubborn relent. "We'll discuss this later, then."

  "I’m fine with discussing this now," Keevan added tentatively. "For example, how are you suddenly a powerful Etrendi?"

  "No time," Bahjal snapped, taking a look at Calistra's hand. She gasped in surprise, realizing the wound's severity. "Oh, that's a nasty one. You really burned out your hand. Can you make it to the Palace grounds? The Suadans are here, one of their delegates can treat you. That must be agonizing. They'll likely arrest you afterwards, though."

  "I made it this far," Calistra added evenly, through gritted teeth. Even as she spoke however, she wobbled unsteadily, forcing Keevan to hold her shoulder in support. Bahjal caught his gesture with an arched eyebrow of suspicion. Calistra continued, "My father will come for me. I won't be imprisoned long. Not in a dungeon anyway, just my father's grounds."

  "Then let's go," Bahjal ordered, something bitter flashing in her eyes as she looked from him to Calistra. "The De'Sarthan family hasn't had enough political pull to trump the Harbor Guild in two decades. The second a Harbor Guild nobleman gets down here, we're at their mercy. Make sure to douse your eyes, Keevan. We have enough problems on our hands without you drawing every Harborman down on us."

  "Wait, you mean-"

  "Run now, talk later," Calistra insisted, scrambling for the door. "I've had enough of this place and your friend is right. She may be Etrendi, but any Harbor Guild noble can order those guards back here."

  Bahjal lead the way. Haldran guards in polished chain mail crowded past them at first, until they reached the living quarters. Mail and blades were then replaced by linen clad Rhetan servants and sea water crusted deck hands fresh from their latest voyage.

  They finally reached a large open courtyard, with the District Walls spanning out before them. The Harbor Guild Temple lay behind them, its walls weeping a thin layer of water after the Suadan custom. A trick of Danica Keevan never got to see up close. The Suadan delegation building on their left was well guarded by harbormen and Suadan guards alike. The Suadan High Priestess and Harbor Guild Master were in session.

  Bahjal marched right up to the massive wooden gates of the District Walls. "Open the gates," she ordered a rotund guard who appeared to exercise his belly more than his sword arm.

  "My Lady, we're in a state of general alarm," the guard replied, nervously eyeing her from head toe. "Until the intruder is caught, I can't permit anyone to pass."

  "I'm an Etrendi, Haldran," Bahjal replied dangerously. Water gathered around her in ribbons, carried on the linen strands weaved into her clothes. The liquid rose, carrying the folds of her dress with it, until she resembled a spider web of liquid power. With her standing at its center.

  "I apologize, my Lady," the guard muttered, hands tightening on his axe's shaft. "But I have my orders. Councilman Necros is just east of here, first office on the right. I heard he was in session with the Suadan High Priestess herself. I’m sure he'll attend to you when he's done."

  Bahjal paused, glancing down the two-story wall to the first ring of buildings. The water around her settled, sinking into the ground so completely her clothes were perfectly dry. "Very well," she relented. "Until later, officer."

  "My Lady," the guard said, interlacing his fingers and bowing in salute as they departed.

  "That didn't help us much," Keevan muttered, walking up alongside Bahjal. His body ached in places he didn't know could ache and dried blood still stained half his face and the tunic beneath it. "Calistra's hand is infected by now, not to mention partially melted. She needs a healer and we need to get out of here."

  "Working on it, Keevs," Bahjal whispered back. "The Harbor Guild may not like Outlanders, but the Suadan High Priestess, Lanasha Talivar, is another story. We just need to find her or one of her servants, then she can afford us some protection. Then even the Harbor Master himself can't touch us."

  "Just up this way? They must be meeting together now, judging by all the guards. I'm not above interrupting them, if it'll save my hand," Calistra demanded, pushing past them. "I've had enough of this. I can't stand it any longer. I can't feel my hand anymore. I know what that means. I won't live my life as an amputee. I need a Suadan healer, now."

  "First door on the right," Keevan offered, falling into step behind her.

  "You sure this is what you want your first contact with the High Priestess to be like?" Bahjal implored, even as Calistra turned the handles on two wooden double doors. "What you did getting passed the watcher... that's going to change everything. I hope you realize that."

  "It's better than leaving someone hurt on a random door step like a coward," Keevan insisted, not to mention, he needed some attention himself. If not, then at least a place to clean up. "Besides, Kors is still out there. They might need our help tracking him down."

  Bahjal gulped, looked into the open doors and sighed. A chorus of gasps and cries for help echoed from inside. Keevan could feel all the moisture shifting in the air as some of the best commanders of water Issamere possessed went to work on Calistra.

  "I will miss the quiet days, running wild in the streets, with you," Bahjal whispered in his ear.

  "Were we even friends, Bahj?" Keevan asked, not in malice, but in an open honesty only a child can truly tap. "Who are you, really?"

  "Whatever my titles and powers," Bahjal said, clasping his hand in sincerity, "I will always be your friend. But there isn't time for the full story, not yet. Here they come."

  Chapter 18

  The Suadan guards exited first, armed with Danica enhanced whips and covered head-to-toe in blue leathers. Their eyes were forever calm and calculating, the trademark of the Suadans. They su
rrounded Keevan and Bahjal, giving the Sight Seeker a fleeting thought of a quick execution. But as one, they shouted and pivoted, facing away from him.

  Six Harbor Guards poured out of the structure next, watching him with anger Keevan could actually feel warm against his skin. Their war hammers and axes glowed with Danica enhancements of their own. Suddenly, Keevan felt very grateful for the Suadan High Priestess's involvement.

  "Guards," a stern, elderly woman ordered. Bells lined the hem of her Suadan uniform. "Bring the Sight Seeker to me."

  Keevan took a deep breath and accessed his elemental vision. It was the only card he had to play, for whatever it was worth. An elementally impotent Sight Seeker standing alone among the Children of the Sky. The whips, warranted a second glance as well. At least a hundred small jewels of Dancia were weaved into a leather bound chain, leaving a fraction of space for the Tri-Being's command to grow exponentially as the whip hurled its water at a given target.

  They were escorted into a wide, round chamber. It was built like a bowl, with benches carved into the edges in six adjoining rows from the center to the outside edge. Here, a speaker could stand at the center of the room, the bottom of the bowl and be easily seen and heard by all. So many Etrendi stood in one place that their connecting elemental fields left an impossible tangle of glowing colors before Keevan's eyes, forcing him to retreat to his normal vision.

  Lanasha Talivar sat on Keevan's right side, surrounded by a dozen attendants and her blue-clad guards. Their clothes mirrored Bahjal's, though the High Priestess' ribbons trailed a good six feet behind her. Keevan tingled at bit at that thought, what a sight it would be to see her powers fully demonstrated, particularly to his elemental vision. Her eyes were alert and contemplative, taking in his appearance from head to toe. Suddenly, Keevan felt dirty, battered and very out of place. There was no malice in her countenance, just patient observation, for now.

  The Harbor Master, Derone Radahn, sat on the left side of the bowl. His leather armor, face and arms were worn by wind and rain. His frame, though elderly, was thickly muscled and hinted at plenty of remaining vitality. His uniform's black and brown shades drew attention to his green, irritated eyes. Links sown into the cuffs of his sleeves glittered with Danica enhancements, probably fire.

  "This is a most unorthodox use of our time," the Harbor Master rumbled, glaring at Keevan and Bahjal. "I assume this is of greater importance than a lone fugitive lurking our halls?"

  "Indeed it is, Harbor Master," Bahjal offered, sweeping her arms wide with an elaborate bow. Keevan pursed his lips and tried to match her posture, only to wobble unsteadily. Fatigue wore away at him like a tide digging into the sea shore. "I offer our most humble apologies, but considering that the intruder in question managed to circumvent the Watcher's defenses without a scratch, I judged it a worthy topic to bring up."

  Derone bristled visibly at the allegation. "We have stopped three assassination attempts from rival nations in this year alone, thanks to the Watcher's intervention. These were not ignorant Rhetans. I'm talking about some of our enemies most deadly elemental warriors, slain before setting foot on our palace grounds. What tools did this intruder use to get passed the Watcher?"

  "Keevan, Harbor Master," Bahjal said, gulping nervously. "Just Keevan."

  Derone glanced at the High Priestess, as if for confirmation. Lanasha Talivar said nothing, merely watching Keevan and Bahjal with those narrow, attentive eyes. Like a predator deciding if some strange creature were edible or not.

  "I've long tolerated the presence of a lone Sight Seeker on our shores," Derone said slowly, pursing his lips in restrained anger. "First, explain how this boy got passed our greatest weapon. Have his powers emerged?"

  "I'm still elementally impotent," Keevan started. "I-"

  "I'll not address the boy directly," Derone insisted, his hands flicking towards the cuffs on his sleeves. "I've tolerated this creatures’ presence in Issamere, nothing more. His kind breed like rats if kept unchecked. Should he somehow find a female, they'd number in the hundreds by this century's end. Allowing him in our presence without the usual countermeasures is ... difficult to endure."

  Keevan shuddered. Those 'measures' likely involved imprisonment or death. A deeper part of him bristled at the indignity, and considered mentioning the Rain Cutter's fate then and there. Thankfully, despite his fatigue, the non-suicidal portion of his brain still held the reins. He kept quiet.

  "We thank you for your restraint, Harbor Master," the High Priestess said with a gracious nod. "You've done a marvelous job protecting our shores from all threats. We've not endured a naval siege since my grandmother's time. I will address the Sight Seeker directly, however. I'd like to hear the account in his own words."

  "As you wish, Lanasha," Derone relented, leaning back against the bench behind him. Though trying to appear relaxed, Keevan couldn't help but notice the Tri-Being stiffly rolling his Danica cufflinks between the fingers of either hand.

  "Proceed, Son of Masha," Lanasha insisted, gesturing towards the center of the bowl-shaped chamber. Keevan followed her lead and stood before her, with his back to the Harbor Master. Despite being unable to see him, Keevan could envision the Tri-Being's searing anger boiling towards him.

  "High Priestess, It started with the business of the freed Pagoda, sparking through the Haldran District only days ago. Bahjal and I devised a plan to capture the beast, that night and we stumbled upon the thieves' path out of the Etrendi District, where we met Persuader Madol."

  "Madol apprised me of the Pagoda situation, and your involvement at the manor," the High Priestess said with a dismissive flick of the hand. "How did you end up working with Zerik, Malik Morgra's oldest enemy?"

  "I was taken from the Arnadi Mansion against my will, Great Priestess," Keevan admitted. Calistra stood off to the side, staring at her feet while one of the priestesses drew an orb of water around her injured hand. "The intruder's name is Kors. He's an Etrendi twice my size and quite capable with water."

  Derone snorted in disbelief, still directing his words at Lanasha, as if Keevan were not present at all. "I'm familiar with the Exile. You expect me to believe that this boy, who's too weak to fend off an apprentice of any trade, somehow proved strong enough in the elements to beat the Watcher?"

  "The boy has not finished," Lanasha added calmly, glancing over Keevan's shoulder at the source of the interruption. "When he does, I will decide what dangers he poses to your society. You may take your leave, if you feel you've already learned enough about the intruder to effectively search for him."

  The Harbor Master hesitated a moment, then relented. "Proceed."

  "I refused to do their bidding until they threatened to kill Bahjal," Keevan reported, nodding towards his friend. She saluted the High Priestess in a deep courtesy, the kind reserved for the Suadan followers alone. Suddenly, Keevan felt a sudden impression he didn't know Bahjal at all.

  "What did they ask you to do?" Lanasha asked.

  "Counter the elements the Watcher uses to sense intruders in the tunnels," Keevan said nervously, staring at his feet. He could feel all their eyes on him, soaking in every bruise, speck of grime and tangled hair. He felt out of place, in every possible way. Perhaps Bahjal was right about keeping his involvement a secret, but it was too late for that now.

  The Harbor Guild's stewards behind him laughed openly. Their Master huffed in outrage. The Suadan attendants even chuckled, more at their rival’s excessive reactions than at Keevan's words. He felt his face growing hotter. He considered fainting, or at least pretending to, just to get out of the situation.

  "This is a farce!" Derone bellowed. "I've more important concerns to attend to. Get them out of my sight."

  "Let him prove it!" Bahjal cried, gathering water around her so fast he heard the rush of element like a wave. Every strand of loose linen floated above her, like a great coiling serpent. A few of the Suadan attendants pointed at her display with pride and respect.

  "How?" Derone said, rolling
his eyes. "Do you expect us to go back to the catacombs and test out your story?"

  "Test him here," Bahjal said, with a sly grin. "Many here are the strongest Tri-Beings in the city. If you can sense us, by your elements alone, they we're lying. If Keevs and I can sneak up on you, we're being truthful."

  The Harbor Master sputtered wordlessly for a moment. Then he glanced at his attendants, sizing them up. Each one stood up in turn, stroking their weapons and drawing on their anger.

  "There is merit to her idea, Derone," Lanasha added, intrigued. "I myself will volunteer for the test, if it pleases you."

  "You?" Derone said, chuckling. "No, you've sided with the Sight Seeker from the start. Masha sits too high in your council. If the trustworthiness of this animal is what's at stake, then I won't leave this to any of my attendants to foul up. I will step forwards myself to prove him a liar. Agreed?"

  "Agreed," the High Priestess nodded, gesturing to her attendants. "Make the arrangements."

  Bahjal relaxed, water seeping from her clothes and leaving her as dry as a summer afternoon. She sighed contently, meeting Keevan's gaze with a confident smile as she dragged him from the center of the room. Keevan did not share her sentiments. Anxiety and fear coiled around his chest like two rival Pagodas.

  "What did you just do?!" Keevan whispered, standing alongside her as the Suadan attendants passed them by.

  "We're proving them wrong," Bahjal replied simply, as if it were as simple as ordering fried fish from a local market. Her lack of concern only made Keevan even more frustrated.

  Chapter 19

  "I don't know the Harbor Master well enough to predict his emotions," Keevan muttered, clenching his fists as he tried to contain his emotions. Inside of an hour Bahjal had gone from a wounded victim to an influential Etrendi to Suada-only-knew what and now he stood in a trial against a powerful Tri-Being Master.

  "But you know me, Keevs," she said quietly. "That will be enough."

  "Do I?" Keevan said, indignation sharp on his tongue. He switched to his elemental vision. Her field extended over a dozen feet in every direction, its line thick and powerful as they anchored her soul to nearby sources of water, lightning and fire. "I watched you through my elemental vision for years. You were a Rhet, through and through. How did you hide Etrendi powers like these for so long?"