Seal of Light (The Endless War Book 5)

by D. K. Holmberg

  “I fear that the Order is not equipped well enough to face this threat,” Wansa offered.

  “The Order has no choice,” Oliver said. “The threat comes whether we are ready or not.”

  “How? What is it that we can do to protect ourselves against shapers able to use spirit, against those who can manipulate the darkness and the shadows? We have trained with shaping, and we have dedicated ourselves to understanding the elements, but we are not strong enough.”

  “We will have to be,” Alena said.

  She stood and turned to the table running along the far wall in her room. Since returning with the commander, she had taken to creating as many spirit sticks as she could. Already she had made six, but she would need to create much more than that if she intended to see all of the warriors in Atenas protected.

  Wansa watched her, shaking her head as she seemed to realize what Alena intended. “Do you really think that your spirit sticks will be enough? There were only a few shadow shapers the last time, and we barely survived. What happens if they send more? What happens if there are a dozen? Two dozen? What then?”

  Alena picked up one of the spirit sticks, this one shaped more like a knife than a sword or the slender rod that Cheneth had first given Oliver. She traced her fingers along the surface of the blade, feeling the way the runes etched into the metal. Creating the spirit stick required her to focus on the element, and to shape deeply into the metal as she used it. This one had been particularly difficult for some reason.

  “I don’t know,” Alena said. “But if we don’t fight, and if we let the Khalan win, Tenebeth will escape.” She looked at Oliver and then Yanda. She had explained to them about Tenebeth, but did they really understand? Could they, without seeing the way that power would consume someone the way that it had with Thenas? “If he escapes, there is nothing that we can do to stop him.”

  As if to answer, thunder rolled distantly in a steady rhythm and a cold wind gusted through the window.

  Alena had felt the same cold before, and knew what it meant. Tenebeth—or one of his servants—moved.

  The time that they thought they would have was gone.

  27

  Jayna

  If we fail in Atenas, we have one place remaining. Even unified, they will not succeed.

  —Ghalen, First of the Khal

  Jayna crouched in the darkness near the trees. She still couldn’t reach her shaping, but the connection between her and Serain granted her a different ability. She had found that she could direct the wind, and had guided it as she made her way across the plains, sneaking toward the others. Since forming the connection to Serain, she had felt revived, strengthened, and snuck as quietly as she could.

  She would find Olina and help free her, and then she would free the draasin.

  Somehow she needed to find Shade and a way to subdue him. If she could, she might be able to get him to release the summoning that he used to separate her from her shaping. She needed to do it when the others—Sevn and the woman—were not around. Then she might be able to find a way to sneak up on him and might be able to reach him long enough to knock him out.

  As she approached, she felt the heat from the draasin long before she saw him. The elemental Olina rode was massive, much larger than most of the draasin that she’d ever encountered. It was amazing that she managed to ride such a creature, and that such an elemental would allow her to ride him.

  Jayna moved away from him, careful not to move too close, or too quickly. She needed to get to Shade first, then the draasin. Really, she needed to reach Olina first, and then the draasin.

  The wind parted near her, blowing with much more force than it had before the bond. That was the only way she could think of to describe what had formed between them. It was a bond of some sort, one that allowed her to know the thoughts of the elemental, and for the elemental to know hers. From what Jasn had shown, the bond granted incredible strength with the elementals.

  Help me find the others.

  They are nearby. There are five.

  She stopped, lying low in the grasses and letting them mask her. Five? There were three of the Khalan and Olina.

  There is another. A man of these lands.

  Could he be a shaper of Atenas? If the Khalan had captured others, she would need to know how many. More than that, she would need to know if any of them were turned. That was the intent of the darkness, she now felt certain. Without the connection to Serain, she didn’t know if she would have been able to withstand it. Even with the connection to Serain, she wondered if she would have managed.

  What she needed was her shaping back. Were she able to use the different elements, including spirit, she wouldn’t have to wonder how many others were out there, just waiting for her.

  Can you bring me to Shade?

  Shade? Even the elemental shared amusement at the name. You have chosen your names poorly in the past, but that is worse than you.

  My names?

  It surprised her that the elemental would taunt her still, even after she had resumed using her given name. For some reason, Serain found it amusing that she would claim other names, those that were not hers, and even more amusing that Jayna didn’t fully understand why that was a problem.

  Perhaps I will choose a name for you.

  What would you choose?

  There are many choices, but you have yet to earn a Name. For now, I will use this one.

  I thought I had to use this name with you.

  You needed to recognize the name was still a part of you. That was the first step in remembering the connection that we could share. There will be others.

  Such as you choosing a name?

  Names have power, Jayna. Have you not recognized that?

  What power am I given now that I’ve claimed my old name?

  You are given the power to form the connection.

  How is it that the connection formed? Why have I not been able to speak to you before?

  You have chosen not to. By taking on names that were not you, you chose another path.

  When Jasn healed me?

  That was a start.

  He had told her that there was something when he healed her. He hadn’t expected to find anything, yet there had been a resistance, something that he couldn’t fully explain. Maybe that was it. Maybe the resistance came from the fact that she had changed herself so often that she no longer knew who she was. She still might not know, but she could begin to search for that understanding. She had been a wind shaper once and could be that person again, only now with the knowledge gained from her time in Hyaln.

  She moved again through the grasses, making a careful effort to creep forward. Reach Shade. Olina. Then the draasin. The names marched through her head like a chant.

  As she reached a camp, a fire burned softly against the night. With the draasin so near, they likely didn’t need the warmth, and if they used the darkness as it seemed clear that they did, she doubted that they wanted the light. Why the fire, then?

  She found the answer huddled near the fire, alone.

  An older man, still muscular and vibrant in spite of his age. Jayna recognized him immediately. “Calan?” she asked in a whisper.

  He rolled toward her and squinted against the darkness. Thankfully, he must have been staring at the fire and couldn’t make her out. They had come searching for Calan only to find him here. How was that possible?

  The others are near.

  Serain sent the warning, and Jayna crouched low in the grasses, hoping that the wind would somehow manage to cover her, but not sure if the wind would even be able to do that.

  You continue to ask the wrong questions.

  What are the right ones?

  The wind swirled around her, wrapping her arms and legs and squeezing. She couldn’t tell what the wind did, but it seemed to blur her.

  You obscure me?

  It is imperfect but will provide some protection.

  Jayna crept forward, nearer to the fire. When she reac
hed Calan, she noted that no real bindings held him in place. Did they hold a summons on him as well?

  Or had he come to the Khalan willingly?

  Calan was different than many of the hunters in the barracks. He was skilled, but there always seemed a darkness about him. She had never understood why Cheneth had called him to the barracks, and if he hadn’t, why he allowed him to remain.

  She couldn’t risk bringing him with her yet. Not until she could shape again. Once she could, she would be better able to defend herself from the Khalan and might be able to overcome them if they attempted to separate her from her ability to shape again.

  Jayna moved on.

  Show me where they are.

  Serain pulled her through the grasses, leading her to the north and away from the fire. She found them near a ring of trees, three Khalan standing around something on the ground. Not something, she realized. Someone.

  Olina?

  Whoever they stood over didn’t move.

  Had they harmed her? They hadn’t done anything to Jayna in the last few days, other than the Khalan woman attempting to convince her to accept what they intended to do with her.

  She continued to move toward them, hoping that the shielding that Serain offered would keep her safe, but still not certain what she could do. These were fully trained summoners, more skilled than any that remained within Hyaln these days, and with the talent to separate her from her ability to shape. She had connected to the wind, but that wouldn’t be enough—not when they could summon the other elementals as well.

  Still, she had to try. Olina and the draasin needed her to try.

  “You’ve kept her out for too long, Shade.”

  This was the woman. Jayna had noticed that she didn’t speak to Shade with quite the same deference as Sevn did, but then, she’d noticed that Sevn carried a certain suppressed anger with him as well, one that simmered beneath the surface.

  Were all of the Khalan like that, or was this unique to these three?

  “Turning takes a subtle touch. If you ever attempted anything with any skill, you would understand.”

  “I have more skill than you can imagine,” she said to him.

  “This entire trip has been a mistake,” Sevn said. “We have not found the one that we search for.”

  “We will find her. We have found others that are nearly as helpful.”

  “They would be helpful if you could ever do as you promised, but we have yet to see that.”

  Shade stiffened. “Quiet!”

  The others looked over at him.

  “There is something different here.”

  He knows I am here.

  It is possible.

  If Shade knew, she needed to do something. But what could she do?

  Can you carry me?

  Serain swirled around her and lifted her into the air.

  Jayna smiled, thinking about the first time she’d taken to the air, carried then by her wind shaping, letting it drag her into the sky. This felt just as effortless.

  Release the shielding.

  They will know that you’re here.

  I need them to know.

  The wind elemental released the soft pressure around her arms and legs, and the shielding faded.

  The Khalan noticed her quickly.

  North. Carry me north.

  Serain swept her toward the north, and Jayna tried to hang on, letting the elemental guide her. The others followed, quickly giving chase.

  It was strange that, even without her ability to shape, she could feel the way that they called on the wind. Can you separate them from it?

  They use a powerful call. I am not sure if I can.

  Can you try?

  Jayna looked behind her and saw the Khalan falling back.

  Now shield me again.

  You are a confusing one.

  Trust me.

  Are we at the point where I should trust you? You barely know who you are.

  I know the wind. I have always known the wind. Help me with this. We can save the others.

  The wind wrapped around her arms and her legs once more, and the shrouding took hold.

  Take me back to Olina.

  As Serain did, she passed the three Khalan.

  “Where did she go?” Sevn asked. “Your summons was supposed to hold her.”

  “My summons did hold her.”

  “Apparently not,” the woman said.

  “She’s out there. We will find her.”

  “What if she returned to Hyaln?” the woman asked.

  “She claimed that she was a shaper of Atenas,” Sevn said.

  “She might make that claim, but that doesn’t mean that is what she is.”

  She moved past them and was quickly back in the trees where she’d seen Olina.

  The old woman lay unmoving. With a soft request to Serain, Jayna let the wind drop her to the ground. She reached Olina and touched her cheek. The old woman looked up at her and smiled.

  “You.”

  “Can you move?” Jayna asked. “I don’t know how long they will be gone. We need to get you free before they return.”

  “Not only me.”

  “Yes. The draasin as well. I know where he is.”

  “There is another. We cannot leave him.”

  “You know that they have Calan?”

  “I saw when they brought him to their camp. The dark one tries to turn him, but Cheneth taught him well. He has remained protected, but I don’t know how much longer that will be the case.” Olina sat up and looked to the north. “How is it that you managed to escape from them?”

  Jayna hesitated. Did she trust Olina enough to share with her that she had managed to reach the elemental? She had nothing from Serain that told her one way or another whether she should.

  As she considered, the shielding preventing her from shaping faded.

  She pressed against it, using the connection to wind to push as hard as she could. The shielding held for a moment, then flexed, and finally disappeared.

  Jayna sucked in a quick breath and held onto her shaping power. She’d been separated from it for too long. “I shaped my way free,” she said.

  Olina watched her a moment, and from the clouded expression on her eyes, it seemed that she didn’t believe what Jayna said. “It is good that you found your ability,” she said.

  Katya forced a smile. She didn’t want to lie to Olina.

  They hurried through the camp and reached Calan. Olina made a small movement, tapping at her leg, and he blinked.

  “Who are you?” he asked Olina. When his gaze turned to Jayna, he frowned. “I know you, don’t I?”

  “It is possible,” she answered. “But the person you might have known is no more.”

  Calan sat up. “You. You’re Alena’s student. Issa. You died.”

  Olina touched his arm. “She seems plenty alive to me. Can you stand?”

  “I can stand.”

  “We need to move,” Olina said.

  “What happened to the others?”

  “They’re gone for now. I don’t know when they might return,” Jayna said.

  Calan took a deep breath. “I… I can shape again.”

  “Good,” Olina answered. “Because we will need you when they return.”

  Jayna looked over to her. “What do you mean return?”

  “Can you not feel the change? Darkness returns. His servants return. We must be ready.”

  28

  Alena

  We have observed the world for generations, but have not intervened, yet there is evidence that some within the college have. I must look deeper, and try to understand for much depends on that understanding.

  —Lren Atunal, Cardinal of the College of Scholars

  Alena stacked the last of the spirit sticks into a bucket and carried it to the base of the tower. Oliver wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and looked at Yanda. Without saying a word, Alena could tell that something passed between them.

  “Where is Wansa?”
Oliver asked.

  Alena searched down the street, using a combination of earth and water, but found no sign of the woman. Drawing spirit through her sword, she shifted the focus, adding that to her search. Still, there was nothing. Where had the blasted woman gone? After all of her fear about facing another attack, now that one seemed to come, they needed to be ready.

  “I don’t know.”

  “The others come,” Yanda said.

  Steady surges of shaped power followed as warriors appeared. First a few at a time, and then more. They looked at Alena with a confused expression, but she wore the pin of office so that they would know her as a member of the Seat.

  Would they listen to her?

  She had never been much of a leader. It was a position that she had never wanted, authority that she had never sought. Even when she’d been in the barracks, all Alena wanted was to be left alone, unfettered with responsibilities to teach, especially when she realized the reason that she was there. She had needed all her focus to prevent Calan from harming too many of the draasin, and it had taken all the coaxing that she could manage for her to convince the draasin to allow him to take his trophy. She still didn’t understand why he felt the need to sever one of the draasin’s claws and keep it, but if she could keep the draasin alive by allowing it, she would do so.

  “You need to speak,” Yanda suggested as the warriors continued to accumulate.

  Alena looked along the line of warriors. What would she say? What could she say that would convince them that they needed to heed her and that they needed to listen to her? She was no Lachen. Hell, she was no Cheneth, and that man had a hard enough time getting others to follow him.

  A soft murmuring came from among the warriors. The cold southerly wind continued to gust, growing stronger. Thunder rumbled, steady and no longer quite as distant. She needed to do something now before the Khalan came.

  She cleared her throat. The murmuring eased.

  “Atenas is in danger of another attack,” she began.

  The warriors glanced at one another and started speaking at once.