by Caitlin Seal
She made her way back down the cliffs to the isolated patch of rocky coast where she’d hidden her square of oilcloth. There she stripped down to her shift and wrapped her torn clothes carefully around Lucia’s journals. She’d lost her knife at some point during the escape, but she added her purse of coins to the bundle, then wrapped it in the oilcloth and tied it tight. She briefly considered stealing a rowboat to get back to the Gallant, but what she’d gain in speed would be far offset by the risk of getting caught. Dawn was approaching and already a few sailors and dockhands were arriving to begin the day’s work.
Naya tied the bundle to her chest, then slipped into the water so she floated on her back. She rowed with her arms, careful to avoid submerging the precious bundle and the journals inside. The eastern sky glowed with the first hints of dawn by the time she completed the grueling swim to the Gallant’s side.
Getting back into her cabin proved trickier than getting out. The ship’s side was smooth and slick with moisture. Even with her light body, her fingers ached from trying to grip tiny grooves and bits of ornamental carving. She felt ready to collapse when she finally reached the windows of her father’s cabin.
Someone gasped as she opened the window and tumbled onto the cabin floor. When she looked up, she saw Felicia and, surprisingly, Lucia standing over her. “You’re back!” Felicia said. Then she lowered her voice so it wouldn’t carry through the ship’s thin walls. “Are you all right?”
“You’re fading,” Lucia said before Naya could respond, her tone more accusatory than worried. “You said your bones weren’t cracked.”
Naya sat up, leaning against the cabin wall. “They weren’t.” She drew in a breath of aether and concentrated on keeping her body stable. “How long have you been here?” she asked Lucia. “I thought you were going to rest.”
Lucia pursed her lips. “So did I. I would have preferred to keep Francisco at the palace a while longer, but as the soldiers hadn’t found the second assassin yet, Delence decided to move us early.” Lucia glanced at Felicia. “Once I had Francisco settled, I came here. Felicia said you were…out. I thought it would look odd if the sailors saw me lingering on deck when I’m supposed to be replacing one of your bones, so I waited here.”
“I hope that’s all right,” Felicia said. “I made up the bed when she came in so that if anyone else was outside the door it would look like you were resting.”
Naya looked to where Felicia pointed and saw that she’d stuffed her bag under the bunk’s blankets. She doubted anyone looking closely would mistake the lump for a person, but it would probably do to fool a sailor glancing into the room. Naya felt touched by the gesture. “Thank you. You were perfect.” She hesitated. “Do you think you could give Lucia and me some privacy?”
Naya saw disappointment flash in Felicia’s eyes. Her shoulders slumped even as she smiled. “Of course. If you don’t need me anymore, I’ll just be outside.”
“Wait!” Naya said as Felicia turned to go.
She drew in aether, sensing the bittersweet mix of hope, disappointment, and fear in Felicia’s aether. She wasn’t sure if she was making a terrible mistake. “I promised you a story.”
“It’s all right,” Felicia said. “I can’t really blame you if you want to keep your secrets. After all, I’m just—”
“It’s not all right,” Naya said. “I found the spy I told you about, but she wasn’t the only reason I had to get out there tonight. I’m not sure what stories you’ve heard about what I did back in Belavine. But…through all those stories, there was someone else with me, a boy named Corten.” Naya’s throat went tight around the name and she felt Lucia tense behind her. “Corten is one of the best people I’ve ever known. He is kind and good and strong, and he paid a terrible price for helping me. He died.”
“Naya, are you sure—” Lucia began.
“It’s fine,” Naya said. “She deserves to know.” Felicia had sat with her through the long hours after the assassin’s attack. She’d helped Naya, and whenever Naya had confronted her, she’d been honest. Her father would have told her not to trust Felicia. Valn and Celia would have called her a fool for giving anything away that could be used against her. But they weren’t here, and they weren’t her. If she was ever going to be more than the monster they’d tried to make her, then she had to stop doing things the way they would have wanted. She had to find her own way, even if that meant making mistakes.
“Corten died,” Naya said with more conviction. “But I believe there’s still a way to bring him back. That’s why Lucia and I really came here. We thought someone in Talmir was hiding secrets we could use.” She let herself smile. “And we were right.”
Felicia stared at her, eyes wide. Then slowly her lips spread into an answering smile. “That is a very good story.”
“Thank you,” Naya said. “Will you help me figure out how to give it a happy ending?”
Felicia’s smile spread into a grin. “Oh, yes.”
A few minutes later, she left Naya and Lucia alone. She carried Hal Garth’s logbook and a note from Naya containing everything she’d learned regarding Valn’s allies. Felicia would keep watch over the door while Lucia was working and dissuade anyone from interrupting them. And if something went horribly wrong, she would take all the information they had to Delence.
“Based on all that, I take it you found my journals?” Lucia said as soon as Felicia was gone. The aether around her practically glowed with eagerness. “Where were they? Do you have them now?”
“I have them,” Naya said. “But I was seen getting them. I’m pretty sure Queen Lial will send someone looking for me soon. Do you have everything you need for the shadow walk?”
Lucia’s smile fell. Naya could feel her questions like a subtle pressure in the aether. “If you have the runes for the circle, then yes. I checked the supplies they sent over from the Lady and everything is there. There’s still one more bone I need to carve. It’s simple work, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea to attempt it now. You seem to have cracked one of your bones since we last spoke.”
“It happened while I was at the academy. Hest had a weapon I’ve never seen before.” Naya saw the questions forming on Lucia’s lips and cut her off. “But that doesn’t matter. If Queen Lial locks me up, then you’ll have no one who can go into death and find Corten. We have to do this now.”
Lucia hesitated, then set her jaw. “You do realize that if you get yourself killed crossing over, Corten will still be just as dead. That doesn’t serve anyone.”
“I know what I’m risking,” Naya said, forcing herself to stand straight. “Please, Lucia, this is why we came here. Even if the queen doesn’t send anyone after me, who knows how long I’ll be stuck here?”
“We’ve waited weeks already. A few more might not make a difference.”
“Or it might make all the difference. Do you really want to risk Corten’s soul on that?”
Lucia looked away. Naya could see her caution warring with eagerness. Despite her words, Naya knew Lucia was eager to try the ritual. Part of that was her desire to bring Corten back, but the rest had to be pure curiosity. Naya had seen that curiosity growing in the weeks before they’d left Belavine. Corten had once told her that it was the mysteries that drew him to necromancy. But while he had felt wonder at those mysteries, Lucia was hungry for them. Even persecution at the hands of the Talmiran Army and years spent hiding under a false name hadn’t been enough to kill that hunger. “Will you at least look at the journals?” Naya asked. “Let’s make sure the runes for the ritual are really there. After that we can decide.”
Lucia nodded. “Very well.”
Naya unwrapped the oilcloth bundle. Her clothes were damp, but the journals were thankfully unharmed. Lucia’s hands shook as she took them. She scanned the contents of the first, then opened the second, flipping about halfway through. She stopped on a page that showed a complicated ru
ne circle. A soft sigh escaped her lips as her fingers traced one of the runes. “This is it.”
“Will you try it?” Naya asked.
Lucia stared at the page. Naya could feel the seconds ticking by. How long would it take for word of her presence at the academy to reach the palace? Impatient as she was, she forced herself to wait in silence. Finally, Lucia nodded. “Very well. But first I want to see your bond. Depending on how bad those cracks are, I may need to carve you an extra bone to help reinforce the damaged sections.”
Naya took a step back. “I’m fine. Anyway, we don’t have time for that.”
Lucia glared at her. “This is not a negotiation.”
Naya glared back, but she could sense the determination in Lucia’s aether. “Fine.”
Lucia retrieved her reader, a metal rod scribed with various runes, from a sturdy-looking chest by the door. Naya clenched her teeth and held out her hand. “Hmm, only one crack,” Lucia said after a moment. “It’s thin at least. Given sufficient aether and rest you could probably heal it in a few days.”
“We don’t have a few days.”
Lucia twirled the reader in her hands, her brow furrowing. “You’re sure they’ll come for you?”
“Not completely,” Naya admitted. She wasn’t sure how many people knew Hest had kept those journals. And she was almost certain now that Queen Lial hadn’t been involved with Valn’s plot. Hest might want to avoid any royal investigations that could reveal her role in the treason. But to keep the secret, she’d have to silence the guard, and anyone else who’d heard the commotion. It could be simpler for her to just insist she had no idea why Naya had broken in. “We can’t risk it. If the queen hears that a wraith broke into the academy, I doubt she’ll wait for me to come back to the palace on my own for questioning.” The thought left her insides feeling like ice. Even worse was the prospect of facing that and knowing that the risks hadn’t been enough to save Corten.
“If that’s true, then shouldn’t you be focusing on escape? Could we convince the captain to sail now?”
Naya hesitated. “I…I don’t know.” She thought a moment, then shook her head. “No. Even if we got out of the harbor, they’d send ships after us. The Gallant is fast, but she can’t outrun the entire fleet. And if I’m caught fleeing on the ship, Queen Lial will accuse Delence of hiding me from justice.” She pressed her lips together. “I don’t want to be the excuse she uses for another war.”
“If she finds us performing illegal necromancy here, we might give her just that,” Lucia said.
“She won’t find out. This ship will be sailing in just a day or two. I’ll tell the captain to give you my cabin. Corten can hide here and you can get him safely back to Ceramor.”
Naya felt the eagerness spreading in Lucia’s aether. “I suppose your bond with Corten will give you the best chance of finding him,” she said. “The only other wraith who comes close is Matius, and he…well, he has a family.” Lucia’s expression pinched, as though she realized how the words must sound after they’d already come out. “Sorry.”
Naya’s throat tightened, but she ignored the feeling. “It’s okay. Are you saying you’ll do the ritual?”
Lucia pushed her glasses up her nose, her expression growing distant. “Creator forgive me if this doesn’t work, but yes, I’ll do it.”
Lucia examined the diagram for several minutes, then directed Naya to clear the floor between the table and the desk. Once that was done, she pulled a jar of black paint from her supply chest and began to paint the runes across the cabin floor. She used a thin brush, laying down the runes with slow, precise strokes. Naya sat on the bed and watched. She tried to relax, turning her attention to the aether. She drew on the energy of the sailors and on the deep, rich pool of life lurking in the ocean below. Drawing in so much aether hurt, but she thought she could almost feel it flowing into the damaged bone, knitting the crack back together.
An hour passed, then two, before Lucia stepped back to examine her work.
“Is it ready?” Naya asked.
“This part is. As I said, I’ll still need to carve another bone.”
Lucia’s eyes shone behind her glasses. Her aether felt sharp with apprehension, excitement, and guilt. She looked down at her hands, as though considering her words carefully. “As I mentioned before, there are three components to the ritual. The first is the portal. This version will allow you to step physically into death. I should be able to hold it for at least six hours. I’ve lasted longer in the past, but any more than that and others may wonder why it’s taking so long to make a simple repair to your binding. If I’m interrupted and the portal closes, I’m not sure I’ll be able to guide you back, shadow walk or no.”
Naya nodded. She didn’t know if they’d have even that long. “Before, you talked about a compass and an anchor.”
“Yes. The compass I have ready. For that I’ll be incorporating one of Corten’s bones into your bond. Back during the war, one of the research groups experimented with linking wraiths’ minds by adding bones from one to the other’s bond. The hope was to allow them to communicate over long distances and make wraith squads more effective when operating behind enemy lines.”
“Did it work?” Naya asked.
Lucia licked her lips. “Their successes were mixed. Necromancy is more complicated than the arts other rune scribes practice. The will of the bound soul affects how the runes in a binding interact. Our researchers found that wraiths with strong emotional bonds could use each other’s bones, but the connection was never as powerful as we’d hoped, and the mental side effects proved to be too detrimental to justify the slight advantage.”
Naya didn’t like the hesitance in Lucia’s tone. “When we left Belavine, you said you’d figured out how to make the compass and anchor work. You said the only thing left was to find the runes for the circle.”
“I do have it figured out,” Lucia snapped. “Your ties to Corten should be enough to let you accept one of his bones, and your connection should be stronger on the other side.”
“And the side effects?”
“Shouldn’t matter. I don’t intend to permanently link you. After you come back through the portal, I’ll remove the extra bones.”
“Okay, then what about the anchor?”
“That’s the one I still have to carve. But before that we’ll need to extract it.”
“Extract?” Naya asked. Then her eyes widened. “You don’t mean…”
“The anchor bone must come from a living body. That connection is what will allow you to navigate back to the portal, just like the connection with Corten’s bones should lead you to his soul. I believe one of the bones from my pinkie will be sufficient, but I may need your help with the process.”
Naya shuddered. “Won’t that…Are you sure?”
Lucia smiled. “I knew this would be necessary when I proposed the idea. Really, it’s a small price to pay.”
Lucia’s casual air couldn’t hide the fact that there was nothing simple or clean about what they had to do. Naya had fought before, had seen blood flow from cuts or broken noses. But still her mind recoiled as she held the knife over Lucia’s outstretched finger. A small price to pay. Naya’s grip tightened on the knife. She met Lucia’s eyes and the necromancer gave her a tiny nod. Naya returned the nod. She’d made a promise to get Corten back. She cut.
Lucia’s breath hissed as the knife bit into her flesh. She squeezed her eyes shut, and though the muscles in her arm twitched, her hand remained steady. Thankfully the knife was sharp. As soon as Naya felt it bite through to the wood of the desk, she grabbed the ointment-smeared bandages Lucia had set aside and wrapped the wound tightly.
Lucia drew in a deep, shuddering breath. “Let’s finish this.”
Despite the grayish tint in her skin and the pain pulsing through her aether, Lucia worked quickly. Naya helped wherever she could, retrieving
tools and cleaning whatever Lucia no longer needed. In between the work, Naya sat on her father’s bunk, drawing in aether and trying to will her injured bone to heal.
All too soon, the anchor bone was ready.
Naya sat in the center of the runic circle with Lucia in front of her. Two bones lay between them, Corten’s rib and the small bone from Lucia’s finger. “Remember,” Lucia said, “you’ll want to touch both bones at the same time. There’s going to be dissonance. The runes I’ve carved should serve as a bridge, allowing you to form a connection with the bones. But it’s your will that stabilizes that connection.”
“I’m ready,” Naya said. It felt like a lie, so before she could lose her courage, she reached out and touched the two bones. Lightning flashed up her arms and the world turned white with pain. She could feel her energy rushing into the bones, but it was nothing like when Jalance had tried to repair her bond. That had been like a wound reopened, old pains renewed as she tried to fit the pieces of herself back together. But these bones weren’t hers. They resonated like sour notes from an off-tune violin, the shrieking vibrations threatening to rip her apart. Naya tried to force the bones to settle, but the dissonance only got louder, the pain magnifying. She gritted her teeth, or tried to. The resonance was swallowing her whole body. Lucia had said her will would stabilize the connection, but it seemed the harder she tried the worse things got.
Force wasn’t working. She felt like she was being torn in three. There was no way to force the bones to become a part of her, because they simply weren’t. Her soul had no way to shape itself around them. But even as she had the thought, she realized it wasn’t quite true. In a way her life was already twined with Lucia and Corten. Lucia had brought her back from death. She’d shared a cell with Naya and given her the strength to fight when Naya’s will had faltered. And Corten. Corten had changed everything. She wouldn’t be here if not for him.
