He touched the stream of blood and withdrew his hand bright red. An image flashed in my mind: a dagger covered in bright red blood, slicing across a young Johai’s hand, and blood dripping onto a stone floor. I blinked away the vision, and Johai with black eyes watched me with a bemused expression.
“I appreciate your concern. This is nothing but a scratch, however.” He smiled as if to say ‘man’s weapons cannot harm me’. Indeed, he did seem impervious. “This is an unexpected meeting. I had hoped I would be the one to return you to your companions, but it appears I delayed too long.” His gazed flickered to Elenna, who stood beside me.
A chill ran up my spine. He had known I was separated from the others. Did he have something to do with that? Was it him who called for the river than nearly swallowed me whole?
“Thank you for your concern,” I said, and my voice shook only a little.
He gave me another half-smile. “You are always at the forefront of my thoughts, Maea.” He brushed my face with his clean hand. “I’ll be waiting until you have need of me.”
I shivered involuntarily. Why must my body betray me like this? Since the transformation I felt a stronger connection to him than ever. Why? He was not the man I loved, yet I seemed unable to keep him away or to stay away. Is it the taint as my grandmother said, or is it something more?
“If you would excuse us, we must be on our way,” Elenna said. Her tone was honey laced with poison.
“How could I deny the woman who gave Maea the key to your freedom? Go. My master will want me to talk of war and ruin, I am certain.” He bowed in a mock of court and strode away.
Each step he took, I felt I could breathe a little easier. I stood watching him until he disappeared inside the ambassador’s tent. Then I turned to Elenna and asked, “What is the Stone Clan’s leader doing here?”
“It is as the sorcerer said, to talk of war and ruin.”
“What do you mean? The Stone Clan has aligned themselves with Danhad against Neaux.” It was foolish for me to think that Johai, possessed as he was, could be trusted with any pacts he made. He is the spirit of destruction. He thrives upon chaos and death.
“Aland says he wants to see Danhad bleed for killing the innocent. He claims they slaughtered clans in the north whose only crime was herding sheep on a lord’s land. I have been here among the tribes for the better part of the gathering, and Aland has spoken openly about war. He wants to take back the land of our ancestors.”
He wants to wipe the earth of both Neaux and Danhad, I thought. He thinks Johai will help him. They are going to play both nations against one another, and Aland thinks he shall emerge the victorious leader of all the kingdoms, but it is him who is being deceived. Johai will use him and then destroy him once his use is at an end.
“Many have already pledged themselves to his clan and have promised to fight with him when the time comes,” Elenna continued.
The vision is coming true. Danhad will call in soldiers from Jerauch, and the land will run red with blood. I have to get to the Sea Chamber and back to Danhad. The specter knows, however, and the only way I can return to Danhad is if it is in his interest. I have to make him believe I am under his spell.
“The time is coming. Johai will attack on the day the moon swallows the sun. That is the day he can gain his full power. He will go to the Sea Chamber to summon the power and end the game in one sweep.” I saw the image playing out in my mind, four nations facing each other on a battlefield, Neaux against Danhad, Biski against them both, and Jerauch slashing at any who came within their reach. That was his plan all along, to bring all the nations to war. Everything will converge on Keisan, where the Sea Chamber lies. The vision flickered and faded.
“Then we shall save him before that,” Elenna said, unaware of my own dire vision.
I forced a smile. “We will.” And I will die to do so.
The initiation ceremony for the promised du-toath was on the last night of the gathering. It coincided with the longest night, the winter solstice. Fires burned bright along the rim of Mother Lake, three in all. The daylight was fading; orange and pinks streaked the sky. A line of female initiates had gathered at the oracle’s tent just before sunset. They all wore the white gowns once more, myself included. The oracle wore a long woolen gown of white, with gold thread at the hems. She bared twin tattoos on each wrist, one marking her as a dreau and the other as one of the du-toath. My own tattoo itched. I resisted the urge to scratch it. The sign of a dreau had not been branded on a woman’s skin since my mother’s day, but my grandmother had found the same man who had done my mother’s tattoo. It was made with purple dye and made up of three interlocking rings. They bisected at the center and resembled a flower. I walked behind the oracle, followed by the other initiates in a single file. We carried torches, which signaled our approached. Across the lake, I saw the male initiates walking in a similar procession.
We met as one at the water’s edge beside the bonfires. The mass of Biski had gathered there, silent and watching. I saw their faces in shadows cast by the bonfires. At the foot of the bonfires were the du-toath. They wore different colors: blue like the sky, red as flame, brown of the earth, and the gray-green of Mother Lake. Men and women both were intermingled. They watched us as the two lines stopped before the fires and kneeled down. The oracle stood in front of us. She was joined by her male counterpart, a withered old man with white hair that was wispy tufts across his scalp.
A du-toath in a brown robe came forward with a ram. The animal looked at us with large eyes. He was pure white, with large curving horns. He was well muscled and alert. The male leader held aloft a carved bone-handled dagger. The du-toath with the lead held the animal’s head while my grandmother came forward with a bowl. The du-toath slashed the dagger across the ram’s throat. The animal bleated before falling to its knees. The oracle gathered the blood in the bowl.
The oracle held the bowl up to the heavens above. She spoke something in the Biski tongue. I did not understand the words, but I could gather the meaning. “Mother above, accept this sacrifice, and bless your children who give themselves unto your service. Bring life at the end of this longest night that we are not forever trapped in darkness.” There was more that I was not certain about. The faces watching us were conflicted, and a few glances were shared between neighbors and families.
She turned to us, and one by one she wiped blood upon the brows of the initiates. It was a symbol she painted, the one that was on the wrist of each initiate. She spoke words with each one as she passed; then came my turn. She paused before putting the blood upon my brow.
“The prophecy lives, daughter of my blood. Prepare yourself, for I will not always be with you.”
The very idea filled me with fear. There is still so much I must learn. I had told my grandmother of Johai’s plot, and she agreed the time to leave was coming. She said not when but that I would know when the time had come. She brushed the blood upon my brow with the tips of her fingers. I felt the circles, three interlocking, each overlapping the other. I am a dreau and the last of the Diranel diviners. I will stop this war before it comes.
She continued down the line, and I left my eyes downcast. I felt Johai’s eyes upon me. Even among a crowd, I could find him without trouble. He was watching me from behind the lines of du-toath. His eyes were a glimmer in the light of the bonfire. He smiled at me and inclined his head. I wanted to turn away but could not. I will come to you but on my own terms. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again, he had disappeared among the crowd. Despite that, I could feel him out there waiting for me.
When the last initiate had the symbol writ in blood upon their brow, my grandmother addressed us as one, “Welcome, children of the Mother, to her service.”
The crowd shouted, stomped, and roared their approval. Music picked up, and the crowd broke apart to dance or to return to their own campfires to spend the longest night. The du-toath greeted the newest to their order, embracing them and sharing words of wisdom. Many swarmed me. They touch
ed my cheeks and brushed thumbs against my tattoo. I heard the word ‘dreau’ from many lips. Elenna came to my rescue, speaking to the people on my behalf, and we were able to break away at last.
“What were they saying?” I asked her.
“Some want your blessing, others thank you for returning.”
“What blessing can I give them? I will leave this place soon.” And never return. I cannot be their dreau. When I die, the line dies with me. There may never be another diviner. It was a sobering thought.
“Perhaps you will. Life has many twists and turns that even a dreau cannot see.” I opened my mouth to protest. I had yet to tell Elenna of my plans. I was not sure how to explain my intentions. Before I could say anything, Elenna tugged me towards the dancing. “Come. It is traditional to dance on the longest night.”
I dug in my heels. “No, I will not take a man into the woods.”
Elenna stopped and laughed. “You do not have to dance the longest dance tonight. That has passed. Those who wish to couple in the dark may, but it is not expected of you.”
I flushed, feeling foolish for assuming. The music was fast paced, and knowing it may be my last chance to dance, I let Elenna pull me into the throng of dancers. The music was more spirited than that of the longest dance. I spun and twirled and laughed. I found I had many different partners that night, and I was given wine to drink, and I felt myself lost in a haze of pleasure and happiness. My thoughts were abuzz when I spotted Johai once more. He was weaving through the crowd towards me. My impulse was to run, but I had to let him trust me. Better he think I was under his spell. If he believed me in love with him, he would not know I still intended to send the specter beyond the veil. I let my most recent partner go with a smile as Johai approached me. He stopped a fair distance from me, and I felt every inch between us.
“Are you waiting for me?” he asked.
“Yes,” I breathed.
He slipped a hand around my waist and pulled me close to him. I could smell the musk that belonged to Johai along with the undertones of wood smoke and something more earthy that I could not place. “Your grandmother makes grand promises. She did not realize she cannot part us. The prophecy was only foretelling my rise, the dawning of a new age.”
Then my grandmother is telling the people about the prophecy. She’s trying to warn the Biski not to go to war, I suspect.
“Perhaps she does not know how powerful you are.” I brushed my hand across Johai’s shoulder. His muscle tensed beneath my touch.
He laughed. “You have no idea.” He stroked my face, and I shivered. He leaned forward and kissed me, and the taste of his lips seared against me, and I had to fight a moan that bubbled up at the back of my throat. This is pretend. I do not desire him. I only need him to trust me. Then why did my body respond this way. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let our kiss deepen.
When we broke apart, I was panting for breath.
“We head north with the end of the gathering. I would have you come with me.”
Yes. I knew the song I had to sing. I knew what sweet lies he would want to hear, but I feared losing myself in him. Johai was no fool. He would know if I lied to him, if I tried to play him false. What other options do I have? Our destinies were commingled. He felt the pull just as surely as I did. We must walk this path together.
“I will come with you,” I said.
He rubbed his thumb against my swollen lip where he had kissed me. “Good. I knew you would come in the end.” He let me go and turned to walk away. I hated myself for regretting the loss of his touch. He had gone a few strides when he turned back, and his appearance was altered somehow. I could not place it until I noticed his eyes had changed colors, from black to blue. For a brief moment I saw the man I loved, who was trapped inside this monster. “I am sorry about your grandmother,” he said before making his way back through the crowd. They parted for him as he passed, many watching him go.
I was so dazzled by seeing a glimpse of the real Johai I nearly missed what he said. My grandmother! What has he done? I ran from the gathering, searching the bonfires for any sign of my grandmother. She was nowhere to be seen. Fear gripped me and replaced the haze I felt around Johai. I pushed my way through the crowd. When was the last time I had seen her? Where was she during the dancing? I had not seen her since the ceremony. People tried to stop me to talk, grabbing at my clothes and my hands. I felt like I was fighting against a current. I wished I had Beau with me to break the crowd, but he and the others from the Neaux camp were forbidden to attend the ceremony.
Finally I broke free of the crowds and ran down the path that led back to my grandmother’s tent. The moon was full and ripe overhead. Pale light illuminated the ground. Up ahead, the grass had been bent over, and I saw a dark shape on the ground. My heart stopped, and I kneeled down beside the motionless figure of my grandmother. I touched her skin; it was warm. Her chest did not move, and try as I might, I could not find a pulse. Her violet eyes stared blankly at the night sky. My grandmother was dead.
Chapter Ten
I SCREAMED. MY HEART was being ripped out of my chest. I took a step backwards and tripped, falling onto my rear. People swarmed me and my grandmother’s body. Concerned faces were peering at me as I babbled incoherent nonsense. I gestured towards my grandmother. I stared at her body. My stomach sank, and I thought I might vomit. Why her? Judging from the way her body was sprawled on the ground, this was no natural death. Who could have done this, and why? She was loved and revered. I may not have been able to explain in words what had happened, the scene lent its own explanation.
A man with a black beard and crimson feathers tied in his hair grabbed me by the shoulders and hauled me to my feet. He shook me as he questioned me in a sharp tone. He spoke in the Biski language, and I could only stare back at him in response. Tears were slipping down my cheeks. I had promised myself I would not cry, but I could not stop the tears from falling now. I felt numb. He killed her. Johai killed her.
I shook my head in response. I couldn’t force my tongue to work.
The man said something more in the Biski tongue. A second man joined him, and they had a quick discussion, which I ignored. I wanted to curl up in a ball. I wanted to scream, to punch something, anything to make the pain go away. We had known each other for such a short amount of time, but the pain of losing one of the last few members of my family hit me deeper than I thought it would. I brought this upon her. Johai knew I was learning from her, and he killed her for it.
Someone pulled me to my feet once more. They dragged me from the chaos and the crowd. I was too numb to care. Everything I touch dies. How many more must die before this ends. Take me now, Goddess, if that will end this bloodshed. Whoever had a hold of me steered me towards the camp. People were rushing past us, going to see what the commotion was about. Perhaps they will blame me for her death. How do the Biski handle murder? Will they kill me for it? Will death ease this pain? I leaned against the strong hands that embraced me. Taking strength from someone else was easier than facing the pain. As I moved away from the scene, the reality began to hit me. I am the last diviner in truth. No one else can stop the specter but me. There was no choice left, not that there had ever been. How can I stop him without the training I need? That is why he killed her, to prevent me from learning the key to stopping him.
Whoever had a hold of me led me to an encampment on the edge of Mother Lake. It was larger than any other camp and more ordered as well. I know this place, I thought dimly. It was a passing thought as I was shown inside a tent.
“Sit down,” a voice said in my mother tongue. My head was in a fog, but hearing his voice brought me back to the present. Johai stood a few feet from me. His brow was furrowed, and his eyebrow slightly cocked. The expression reminded me of the old Johai, my Johai. He used to look at me like that when he did not know what to say. For a moment I could pretend things were back to the way they had been before. But despite what I thought I had seen before, I knew this Johai was not mi
ne. This man had black eyes and a blacker heart. “What happened?” he asked.
You killed my grandmother. “I was looking for my grandmother, and she—” I choked on the words. “She was lying there in the tall grasses.” I looked away. I could not face her attacker.
“The oracle was fragile. It is a tragedy that she has left us before your training was complete.” His lips curled up at the corners.
I saw his lips moving, but everything came out muffled. He’s feeding me lies, expecting me to gobble them whole. My thoughts focused to a razor’s edge. I have to make him trust me, but how can I trust him when he killed an old woman? Johai stopped talking and gave me a puzzled look. I considered striking him and fleeing. There has to be another way. I cannot stand being beside him like this, being reminded of the life that he stole to give himself a body.
“What is it, Maea?” His tone was hushed, a warning not to do what I was considering.
This isn’t the real Johai. He wouldn’t kill. I lowered my hand. I will give him his life back. I have to be patient.
“Nothing, I am fine now, just a bit tired. I think I should head back.” I stood up to leave. He caught me by the wrist.
I glared at him in challenge. Kill me and be done with it. Spare everyone of my curse and end my life, I shouted in my mind. I am powerless against you. Even then, in that moment, with his hand on my pulse I could feel it race. I was drawn to him, dangerously so. He had killed my grandmother to stop me from learning, and even now I couldn’t hate him, and I loathed myself for that.
He touched the top of my head, and I glanced up at him through my lashes. “I think you should stay here tonight, just until everything settles down. Tomorrow I’ll take you to her tent to gather your things.” His tone was soothing, and for a second I thought I saw a glimpse of blue in his gaze, but that may have been wishful thinking on my part.
I did not want to return to my grandmother’s tent alone. I had thought to go to the ambassador’s camp and sleep in Elenna’s tent as I had done before.
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