“Probably product names,” Kai answered. “A special name intended to differentiate between similar items created by different people.”
The knot in her stomach began to ease. She didn’t want to consider not being able to read in a world she already didn’t understand, not even for such a short mission. “Hopefully that is it. Thank you.”
Selia headed over to the others where they stood beside a display filled with shelves of more colored packets. Some had pictures of oval or triangle-shaped food. Thin bread? She studied the packages more closely for some clue, and though relief coursed through her to recognize some words, they weren’t exactly helpful. Cheesy. Crunchy. Original.
But cheesy, crunchy, original what?
Meli picked up a yellow bag. “This looks familiar, but I can’t remember why.”
“Try it,” Delbin said. “We should buy something while we wait for our friend to pick us up.”
Inona crossed her arms. “What are you talki—”
“They’ll kick us out if we’re just loitering.” Delbin flicked a meaningful glance to the left, and Selia noticed the human woman scrutinizing them from the end of the aisle as she placed supplies on another shelf. He raised his voice slightly for her benefit. “It’s bad enough that we had to walk all this way to avoid Kai’s dad. It’s just a party.”
Kai’s brows rose, but a small smile pulled at his lips. “Hey, my dad is a hard ass. Barely around except when he wants to tell me what to do.”
“I just wish you weren’t so cheap.” Delbin’s eyes shone with humor. “It would’ve only been another twenty or thirty dollars to get a big enough car to take us all from my house.”
“Why pay when you can get a free ride? Just takes a little extra effort.”
Selia, Meli, and Inona exchanged amused looks. As Inona’s lips twitched, Meli grabbed Selia’s wrist and tugged her down another aisle. “I wonder if they think that was convincing?” Meli whispered, chuckling under her breath.
“Probably.” Selia grinned. “Where are we going?”
Meli paused beside a row of glass doors and pointed at the closest one. “These bottles look like they have water in them. I don’t know about these other drinks, but it sounds like fun to try water from another world.”
Selia frowned at the rows of bottles. “Will it make us sick?”
“I don’t know.” Meli jiggled the bag she still held. “But it can’t be worse than this. Come on.” She lowered her voice. “Who knows if we’ll ever get another chance to try this kind of Earth stuff?”
Meli was right. If she did return with Aris and Kezari, Selia would be able to cast a transport spell back to the spot they needed—or at least, she hoped she could. Aris would be disappointed to miss the adventure, but it would be safer than trying to sneak a dragon past countless humans. Even in elven form, Kezari didn’t exactly fit in, so it wouldn’t be worth the risk. When would she get another opportunity like this?
Resolved, Selia yanked at the handle and ignored the blast of cold air within as she pulled a glass bottle from a shelf. But when it dented beneath her hand, she realized that it wasn’t glass at all. Yet another unusual human contraption. She held the door open for Meli to grab one of her own before turning her attention to the other displays.
An unusual cabinet caught her eye. This one was glass, lit softly from within, and several shelves held rows of round, bread-like objects with various forms of frosting. She wandered closer. One of them was only lightly frosted, and except for a hole in the middle, it looked very much like the cakes her people ate during the summer solstice festival.
“I would like to try one of these,” Selia said to Meli. “But I’m not sure if I can buy just one.”
Delbin stepped up beside her. “You can. Here, I’ll get it.”
Selia watched as he picked up a thin, clear bag and a white piece of paper. After he opened the case, he grabbed a cake with the paper and slipped it into the sack. “It’s called a doughnut,” he said as he handed it over.
The small bag rustled as she wrapped her fingers around it. Selia lifted the bag and the bottle. “And what are these containers made of?” she whispered
“Plastic.” Delbin’s attention shifted to the window behind her. “I’ll tell you about it in the car. Looks like our friend is here.”
Selia glanced over her shoulder. On the other side of the window, a man stepped out of a large, boxy vehicle. He appeared human, and a quick energy scan confirmed it. “You know him?” she asked Delbin.
Delbin winked at her. “I’d say we’re about to become best friends.”
“Are you sure about doing this?” Selia asked, keeping her voice low. “It doesn’t seem quite…fair.”
He sobered. “I don’t like it, but there isn’t a lot of choice. We have to get to that cave. But I’ll make sure the human is fairly compensated.”
He left her standing there as he approached the stranger entering the main doors. The human’s steps hitched and his expression went a touch slack, but those were the only signs that Delbin had taken control. Their new friend walked right up to Kai and Delbin with a smile.
“Hey, guys. Ready to go?” the human asked.
“The ladies just need to buy their snacks,” Delbin said. “Then we can get going.”
The man nodded. “Sure.”
It only took a few moments and a swipe of Delbin’s card before the group headed for the door. While the human purchased a drink, Delbin leaned in toward the group. “I’ve implanted memories as much as taken true control. I’ll remove them once we get where we’re going. Still, try not to say much. Less for me to deal with that way.”
Inona eased closer to him, her own voice going low. “You’ve done a lot of work with Ralan in such a short time. It didn’t seem this easy for you before.”
Delbin slung his arm over Inona’s shoulders. “Yep. Guess it was worth working with the arrogant ass after all.”
Heat climbed into Selia’s cheeks at his words, though he’d spoken them with true affection. Ralan and Delbin both needled each other like friendly competitors in a magic contest, but despite the lack of rancor, it made her uncomfortable. One didn’t call the heir to the throne an arrogant ass—whether he was one or not.
The human joined the group outside the glass doors. “You guys are lucky I’m borrowing my dad’s van. Climb on in, and we’ll head out.”
Kai hopped into one of the front seats as Delbin grabbed a handle on the side of the van and tugged. To her surprise, a portion of the vehicle slid back, leaving a large hole for them to enter. “Why don’t you and Meli sit in the back? I’m probably the only one who knows how to close this door,” Delbin said with a laugh.
Biting her lip, Selia hesitated for only a moment before ducking into the van. She crawled between the two inner seats and plopped down on one in the back. She gave a quick bounce as Meli settled beside her. The cushioning was adequate. Otherwise, there wasn’t much to note about the unusual conveyance. Lights in the ceiling illuminated the seats and a few small panels with knobs and buttons, but the interior was overall bland. No carving or embroidery. Why not decorate something so important?
But as soon as the human placed a key into a slot and twisted, such thoughts were forgotten. Selia clutched the water bottle to her chest and leaned back against her seat for balance when the vehicle began to move backward at an angle. A quick pause, and then the human directed the van forward with a jolt. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears as they turned onto the street and accelerated.
Delbin pulled some kind of strap over his shoulder and glanced over the seat. “Grab one of the buckles on the wall and pull the seatbelt over you. There’s a small place by your hip to secure it.”
Selia shifted her possessions onto the seat between her and Meli and reached for the strap beside her that matched Delbin’s. It took a bit of fumbling, but she finally got it latched with a small click. “What is this for?”
Delbin smiled. “It’s a safety measure. These things do
go pretty fast, after all.”
She gave a jerky nod and peered out the window. Her stomach immediately lurched at the sight of the trees rushing by. No wonder she had to wear a belt for safety—if this thing crashed, anyone inside would be flung gods knew where otherwise. It was foolhardy, bold…and amazing. And very, very human.
“Let’s try our food,” Meli said, lifting her bag from between them.
“Now?” Selia grabbed the package holding her cake. “I’m don’t know. My stomach is uneasy enough.”
Meli frowned. “Are you sure you aren’t hungry? When did you last eat?”
“This morning, I suppose.” Selia had missed the midday meal helping Aris and had been too busy after to consider food. With so much magic to perform, that could be a problem. Proper nourishment was vital to energy production. “Let’s do it.”
Selia pulled the round cake from its bag and stared at it. Though flattened in places from being tossed around, the cake made her mouth water. She took a tentative sniff and was rewarded with a sweet yeasty scent that produced a yearning for home. Despite the slight sharp smell of something else, some component uniquely human, she pinched off a bite and popped it in her mouth.
It was… Selia wrinkled her nose as she tried to determine if the treat tasted pleasant. It was missing the fuller, more savory taste of the grains on Moranaia, and the sweet hit her tongue with greater intensity. As she chewed, she noticed an aftertaste, too. Brow furrowing, Selia tore off another bite. Then another. Unusual, but not unpleasant.
Meli tore her bag open, almost spilling the contents. She steadied it in her hands and lifted a piece from inside. A golden, curved oval caught the light from a passing streetlamp. Probably not bread, but what did they know? Meli studied the bit of food for a moment before taking a tentative bite.
Selia lowered her own treat at the unusual look on the other woman’s face. Eyes wide, Meli worked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Without a word, Delbin reached over the seat and grabbed the water container from between them. He did something to the top handed it over. Meli drank deep before lowering the bottle with a grimace.
“I don’t know if I can eat the rest,” she admitted.
Selia eyed the bag. “That bad?”
“Feel free to try one,” Meli said.
Although the other woman’s tone wasn’t promising, Selia accepted a golden disk from the bag. Before she could second guess herself, she took a quick bite. The food crunched loudly, but that wasn’t too bothersome. The intense, sharp taste that permeated her mouth? That was altogether different.
When Delbin handed her the other water bottle, Selia took a grateful sip, barely noticing the tinny flavor. “What was that?”
Delbin lifted the bag and then laughed. “Salt and vinegar potato chips. Plenty of humans aren’t even fond of that combo, and they invented it. I wish I’d looked more closely. I would have warned you.”
“Oh, certainly.” With a small smile, Selia tore off a large piece of her cake and passed it to Meli. “Good thing I don’t mind sharing.”
The sweet dulled the remaining bitterness lingering on her tongue. But despite the unpleasantness of the snack, Selia didn’t regret trying it. Eating Earth food was a small enough thing, but she couldn’t help but feel brave. Exhilarated.
Perhaps she had adventure in her after all.
Chapter 18
Aris stirred to awareness beneath the weighty feel of someone’s regard. Although he tensed, he was able to scan with his senses before panic set in.
Iren.
Aris cracked his eyes open to see his son sitting in a chair beside the bed. Where in all the worlds had Iren found a chair? The bed had been the only furniture here when Aris had fallen asleep. He had a feeling he didn’t want to know where the new addition had come from, but as a father, he also didn’t have a choice.
“Did you teleport that from some hapless person’s room?” he asked, then cleared his throat to try to ease some of the roughness. “I’d rather know before they come looking for it.”
Far from worried, Iren grinned. “No. Well, I did teleport it, but I asked Lyr’s permission first.”
“You’re too young to be using your power so casually.”
“Yeah, probably.” Iren shrugged. “But Onaiala makes me go too slow.”
Aris sat up, shoving his hair out of his face as he studied his son. There wasn’t anger in his expression, precisely, but he exuded a certain frustrated mulishness that Aris had seen in the mirror more than once. “Constraints are necessary in magic.”
“Sure, but sometimes I just want to…” Iren’s shoulders slumped. “I don’t know how to describe it. Onaiala is a great teacher, but I still want to…”
“Do things your own way,” Aris filled in for him. He’d felt the same often in his life. “You don’t fit the steady, formal mold of your grandfather. Selia doesn’t, either, but she’s never had a good reason to realize it.”
“Is that why you left?” Iren blurted.
“What?” Aris’s head jerked back. “No. Not because of your grandfather. He never approved of me, but we reached an accord. And I didn’t leave you. It was supposed to be a quick, low-risk expedition. I had no intention of being away from you for long.”
Though Iren nodded, he nibbled on his lower lip for a moment before speaking again. “I thought maybe we weren’t, you know, enough.”
Aris’s spine stiffened. “That is far from the truth. My last trip was also the first I’d taken since a couple of years before you were born, and it was only supposed to take a month, two at most. I would not have gone otherwise. Your mother knew I’d always dreamed of sailing the ocean and encouraged me.”
“She wanted you to leave?” Iren said, anger lacing his voice.
“Do not take it that way.” Aris captured his son’s gaze. “I mean it. Your onaiala loved me for myself, not what she wanted me to be. She loved me enough to make sure I was able to fulfill a dream. I hope you find a partner like that someday, too.”
After a few heartbeats, Iren nodded. “I wish we’d known Ralan and Eri then. They would have known you’d have trouble.”
“Doesn’t mean they would have stopped it.” Aris sighed. “I’m glad I don’t have to be the one to decide what information to withhold.”
“Surely they would have prevented all the horrible things that woman did. You were tortured and…”
Aris froze as his son’s mouth snapped closed. “You saw.”
“It was an accident,” Iren said in a rush. “There was so much energy coming from the training room, so I hooked in. But only for a few drips of time. I’m sorry.”
His throat closed up. He might not have liked knowing that Selia and the healers had seen so much of what had happened, but his own son? Once again, Aris had failed his child. No eleven-year-old should know about torture. More than torture, if the flush on Iren’s skin was any indication.
“Perhaps you should speak with Tynan,” Aris whispered. “You should not have seen that.”
Iren rolled his eyes. “You think I don’t realize bad things happen? This kind of stuff is in my history books, you know. And I’ve heard some of the whispers about Kien and Allafon, whose servant I fought.”
Aris’s lips pinched. It was true, but… “It’s altogether different when it’s your father.”
“I’m glad I know,” Iren said. This time, the stubborn set of his son’s shoulders reminded Aris of Selia. “You told me it was bad, but I didn’t really get it. Now I do.”
A rustling sounded from the top of the stairs, and Aris glanced up to see Tynan stride into the tower room. Perfect. The mind-healer could examine Iren for any sign of trauma. Gods, Selia would never forgive him if this mess had caused harm to their son.
Or maybe she would, but he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself.
The healer smiled as he neared. “Good, you’re awake.”
“Where’s Lial?” Aris asked.
“He will be here in a moment.” Tynan paused
at the foot of the bed. “I wanted to apologize for my lapse in judgement earlier.”
Aris shrugged. “It worked out.”
But those words didn’t ease the frown on the healer’s face. “Yes. However, the more I consider it, the more I am inclined to agree with Lady Selia. We should wait for her return to proceed with the secondary healing. I do not want to risk more trouble.”
Iren perked up. “Trouble?”
“Oh, I’d say you’ve had enough of that,” Aris said. Then he took a deep breath and plunged ahead. “Tynan. My son connected to the training room’s shields and caught a few of my memories. Could this have caused harm?”
“Let me see.”
Tynan rounded the bed and stopped at Iren’s side. As he reached out a hand, Iren glared. “Do not erase anything. I am old enough to deny you permission for that.”
In that moment, Iren looked far older than eleven, the resolve hardening his face that of a man. Tynan obviously agreed, for he gave a sharp nod. “I will not. But no one of any age need suffer trauma when help is available.”
Aris smiled as Iren grudgingly allowed the healer to use his power on him. He’d once felt the same about having someone meddle in his mind, but he’d learned the folly of that pride. Tynan was correct. There was no reason to leave the mind unhealed. Unhappiness, stress, sadness—these were necessary parts of life, if unpleasant. But there came a point when the damage was beyond normal, a muscle torn instead of strained. Then healing was required.
Tynan’s hand lowered. “He is handling it well. I believe he disconnected quickly enough to avoid the worst of it.”
“See?” Iren said, crossing his arms. “I’m fine.”
Relief slackened the muscles in Aris’s shoulders. “I had to know.”
“So are you going to tell me about the extra healing thing?” Iren asked.
Aris sighed. Clearly, his son was not one to give up. “Lial intends to reset and properly heal a couple of my bones. I’ll be unconscious with the pain blocked and Tynan monitoring my mind, but they are concerned my magic will react again. Your mother had to filter the last leakage into energy crystals. But I wasn’t able to be unconscious then.”
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