[Age of the Five 01] - Priestess of the White

by Trudi Canavan

  “So where did you go tonight? Just flying about?”

  Auraya shrugged. “Yes.”

  “Juran seems eager to face the Pentadrians. Have you noticed?”

  “I wouldn’t have said he was ‘eager.’” More like…if he has to do it, he’ll do it well. How do you feel?”

  “I…I’m dreading it,” Mairae admitted with a grimace. “You?”

  “Definitely not looking forward to it,” Auraya smiled wryly. “I have no doubts, though. We’ll win. The gods will make sure of it.”

  Mairae sighed and took another gulp of tintra. “It’s not defeat that I’m worried about. I dread the killing…the bloodshed.”

  Auraya nodded.

  “You don’t seem worried, though,” Mairae commented.

  “Oh, I am. When I find myself thinking about it, I think of something else. It’s going to be horrible. Of that we can be sure. There’s no point tormenting myself now by imagining how horrible. It’ll be bad enough when it happens.”

  Mairae considered Auraya thoughtfully. “Is that why you spent the last few nights flying around? Are you distracting yourself?”

  “I suppose I must be.”

  One of Mairae’s eyebrows lifted suggestively. “Is this distraction a ‘he”?”

  Auraya blinked in surprise, then laughed. “If only!” She topped up Mairae’s goblet, then leaned forward. “Do you think I could persuade Juran to revoke the law against using a Dreamweaver’s services?”

  Mairae’s eyebrows rose. “I’m surprised you haven’t attempted it already.”

  “If I hadn’t been in Si I would have.” Auraya met and held Mairae’s eyes. “Do you think he would revoke it?”

  “Perhaps.” Mairae frowned as she considered. “If he’s reluctant to, suggest lifting the ban for a set time after the battle.”

  “I will. I would rest a little easier if I knew those that survive the battle might survive their injuries.”

  “I don’t think it would make me rest any easier,” Mairae said glumly.

  Auraya smiled. “Sounds like you need to find yourself a distraction, Mairae. Surely, in the greatest army Northern Ithania has ever seen, there’s a man or two who has caught your eye.”

  Mairae’s eyes brightened. “Yes, quite a few actually, but with so many of my former lovers here as well I have to be on my best behavior. It wouldn’t do if I was seen to favor one ally over another.” She paused, and a thoughtful look came over her face. “Though there is one race I haven’t tried…”

  Auraya felt a stab of horror as she realized what Mairae was considering.

  “No!”

  Mairae grinned. “Why not? They might be small, but—”

  “It’s forbidden,” Auraya told her firmly. “By Huan. Matings with landwalkers produce deformed children.”

  “But I won’t conceive.”

  “No, but if you seduce any of them into breaking one of their most serious laws, you’ll mar or even destroy this new friendship between Siyee and landwalker.”

  Mairae sighed. “I wasn’t all that enchanted by the idea, anyway.” She lifted her goblet to her lips, then hesitated. “Do you think anyone will mind if I don’t choose from the nobility? There’s a good-looking war-platten driver in the Genrian army. A real champion, that one.”

  Auraya smothered a sigh. The rest of the night was not going to pass quickly.

  36

  Not long after Danjin had drifted into sleep he was startled awake again by someone poking at his legs. He opened his eyes just as the sensation became a warm weight, and looked down to find Mischief curling up on his lap.

  He sighed and shook his head. No matter how carefully he locked the veez’s cage, the creature always managed to escape. He ought to put Mischief back, but the cage was underneath the opposite seat, behind the legs of Lanren Songmaker. The military adviser was asleep and Danjin did not want to disturb the man.

  The veez was a welcome extra source of warmth, anyway. Wouldn’t my father love to see me now? I was hired for my intelligence and knowledge of the world, but all I have been useful for so far is as a pet’s guardian.

  He looked around the tarn. All of the other occupants were asleep, even the new Dreamweaver adviser, Raeli. Her face had lost much of its rigid wariness. She was not a beautiful woman, but without the constant frown of tension marking her forehead she was not unattractive either.

  Last night, over dinner, Auraya had told him that Raeli’s aloofness stemmed from fear and suspicion. The woman was afraid of ill-treatment and of making mistakes that might harm her people. She hesitated to make friends lest they betray her. Auraya assured him that Raeli noted and appreciated every friendly gesture made toward her. She had pointed out that he would find it easier to befriend the Dreamweaver than she would, as one of the White. He had taken that as a hint that she wanted him to befriend Raeli for her.

  It wouldn’t be easy. Raeli responded to most questions as briefly as possible. This morning, when he had entered the tarn with Mischief, a hint of warmth had entered Raeli’s gaze, and he began to consider whether the veez would provide common ground between himself and the Dreamweaver. She was Somreyan and keeping veez as pets was a Somreyan habit. Though he had no idea when he was supposed to find time to befriend her, when every moment of his day was taken up with war councils, attending to Auraya, or obeying the unspoken rule against chatter in the advisers’ tarn.

  Danjin closed his eyes and sighed. It would be so much easier if Leiard hadn’t resigned. He hadn’t seen Leiard since the day he had visited the Dreamweaver in Jarime. Last night Auraya had mentioned speaking to Leiard the previous night. She told Danjin how, while flying about two nights ago, she had noticed an encampment of Dreamweavers in the distance. She had visited them, and found Leiard there.

  That would have to have been after the war council. Doesn’t she need sleep?

  He yawned. Perhaps not. But I do.

  For a while his thoughts drifted. Weariness overcame the discomfort of sleeping upright and the jolting of the tarn as it trundled along the road. Then something kicked him in a way that made him grateful for the heavy leather vest protecting his groin. He started awake with a curse, and the first thing he saw was the veez slip under the flap covering the opening of the tarn and disappear. Next he realized he was the object of several reproachful stares. Throwing off the last vestiges of sleep, he leapt up and went in pursuit of the creature.

  It was raining outside the tarn. The army was a long line of men, women, animals and vehicles. The column in front was more like a procession. The leaders of each nation had brought or been provided with spacious, decorated tarns and a regiment of elite troops. Ahead of all these was a large, covered tarn painted entirely white.

  He could see no sign of Mischief, but he knew from experience that the best place to look first was wherever Auraya might be. If only I still had her ring, he thought. I could ask her. She’d taken the ring from him to give to the leader of the Siyee scouts. Knowing what the sky people saw was clearly a much more important use for the ring than allowing him to find her wily pet a little faster.

  Ah, but I hadn’t realized how useful it was until it was gone.

  He frowned as he considered what to do. If Auraya had returned from accompanying the Siyee to the next camp she would probably be with the other White. He started jogging toward the white tarn.

  As he drew closer he saw that Juran was riding beside the tarn on one of the famous Bearers. The leader of the White spent most of the day in the saddle. He was always somewhere in the long column, talking to people. Danjin had seen grooms tending to the other four Bearers, but the only other White he had observed riding were Dyara and Rian. Mairae seemed to prefer the comfort of the tarn, or perhaps remained there so that anyone who wanted to speak to the White was always sure of a place to find one.

  Auraya, he knew, had never learned to ride. Danjin was not sure why a Bearer had been brought along for her. Perhaps the White didn’t want her lack of riding ability to
be known, although surely her flying ability more than made up for that.

  Flying was how she preferred to travel now. She had flown with the Siyee yesterday, far ahead of the army. In part this was to provide protection and a voice of authority if herders decided to retaliate against the Siyee hunting their stock. Partly it was to ensure the White could communicate with the sky people, since the Siyee had no priests to relay messages telepathically. Danjin also suspected it was to ensure the camping grounds the Siyee chose were suitable for landwalkers and accessible for vehicles.

  Danjin knew that Juran had been reluctant to allow Auraya to stray far from the other White at first. When she had demonstrated just how quickly she could return to the army, Juran had changed his mind. Her ability allowed her to travel at incredible speeds.

  Danjin, however, was puffing as he neared the white tarn. He was relieved to see Mairae and Auraya inside. Juran glanced back at him.

  “Adviser Spear.”

  “Is Mischief…?” Danjin panted.

  “Yes, he’s here.”

  As Danjin drew level with the tarn he slowed to a walk. Auraya turned to smile at him.

  “Ah, Danjin.” She chuckled. “You could have sent one of the servants for him. Come aboard. He’ll settle down after a bit, and you’ll be able to take him back.”

  Danjin climbed up into the vehicle. Mairae was lounging in one of the seats with her legs curled up beside her. Auraya’s feet were planted firmly on the tarn floor, her boots and the hem of her circ stained with mud. Mischief was perched on one of her knees, and had left small pawprints on her circ.

  “Fly!” the veez said insistently. As Danjin sat down beside Auraya the creature looked at him suspiciously. “No cage.”

  “No fly,” Auraya replied. “Fly later.”

  The veez sagged in dejection. It gave a sigh and looked away.

  “Hello, Danjin.” Mairae smiled sympathetically. “He’s a handful, but don’t worry. He won’t see you as an adversary so long as you feed him.”

  Danjin opened his mouth to reply, but hesitated as he noted a Bearer approaching swiftly, ridden by Dyara. Mairae looked over her shoulder at the woman, then back at Auraya.

  “I can’t see the point in this,” she murmured. “What could you possibly learn in the next few days?”

  Auraya shrugged. “Perhaps something useful. At least I’ll get some battle practice in.”

  Mairae turned to Juran. “You said yourself, so long as Auraya follows your lead—so long as we all do—she’ll be fine. She’s not going to pick a fight with one of these black sorcerers on her own. Not after what happened before.”

  Juran shook his head. “Should Auraya be separated from us—which is possible since she so often joins the Siyee—she may be cornered by one of these sorcerers. It may be her skills rather than her strength that save her.” He turned to watch as Dyara’s Bearer drew up on the other side of the tarn. “Hello, Dyara. Did Guire agree?”

  The woman smiled thinly. “Yes. He’s always reasonable, but how long he’ll remain so will depend on Berro. Things are going to get interesting once the Torens arrive.” She looked at Danjin and nodded politely, then turned her attention to Auraya. “I thought we might head north and put some distance between ourselves and the army.”

  Auraya smiled. “That would be wise. We don’t want to frighten anyone, or break anything.” She looked at Juran. “You will consider what I suggested before?”

  Juran nodded. “Yes. As you said, the fighters will resent us if we don’t allow them the choice.”

  Auraya rose and placed Mischief in Danjin’s lap. He looked from her to Juran, wondering what they were referring to.

  “Fly?” Mischief said hopefully.

  “No fly,” Auraya replied firmly. “Stay with Danjin. Behave and we’ll fly later.” The veez’s head swivelled in impossible angles to follow her as she climbed out of the tarn.

  Dyara dismounted. A groom hurried forward to take the halter. As she and Auraya walked away from the road, Danjin felt Mischief sigh heavily.

  Juran looked over his shoulder abruptly, then smiled. “My presence is needed yet again.”

  “Go on, then.” Mairae chuckled. “Don’t enjoy yourself too much.” As Juran rode away, she turned to Danjin. “It wouldn’t be fair to ask you to stay and keep me company. You look like you need a good night’s sleep. You and Auraya both.”

  He smiled wryly. “I was beginning to think the White did not need to sleep.”

  Her expression became rueful. “We do as much as any mortals, though our Gifts enable us to overcome the effects for a while. It is not easy to find time to sleep right now. Or when any of us find the time, we can’t.”

  Danjin regarded her in surprise. None of the White were showing any signs of anxiety, but perhaps they were merely good at hiding it. There had been something both disturbing and reassuring in the way Juran and Mairae had calmly analyzed Auraya’s chances of surviving a confrontation with one of the enemy sorcerers.

  Mairae shrugged. “We all have our ways of dealing with our fears. Juran stays up all night planning and plotting. Rian prays. Auraya flies around.” Mairae suddenly smiled coyly. “Or so she says.” Her eyes slid sideways to regard Danjin. “I did wonder if she had found another distraction. Perhaps she is spending time with someone close to her heart.”

  Danjin frowned. Then he realized what she was inferring and felt a mix of embarrassment and shock. Auraya take a lover? It was possible, of course. She would have told him, surely. She trusted him enough to…but then again, if she wanted to hide it from the other White she couldn’t tell him…

  He shook his head. “How am I supposed to sleep now? I’ll be wondering the same thing all day.”

  Mairae laughed. “I’m sorry, Danjin Spear. I did not mean to add another source of disturbance to your rest. Go. You had better return to your tarn before I give you more unsettling ideas.”

  He rose and made the sign of the circle, then climbed out of the tarn. Mischief rode on his shoulders as he walked past the procession. The veez appeared to have forgotten Auraya now. Danjin rubbed the creature under its chin, as he’d seen Leiard do.

  Leiard!

  Danjin stumbled to a halt. Auraya had found the Dreamweaver encampment two nights ago while “flying around.” Was this where she had been last night? Was there more to her visits than catching up with an old friend?

  Surely not. He knew she considered Leiard as much a friend as an adviser, but what if the feelings she had were stronger than friendship?

  That would explain the secrecy, he thought.

  What secrecy? Danjin shook his head and continued walking. All I know is that Auraya visited Leiard once and that she flies about at night. That is far from proof that she has a lover, let alone that the lover is Leiard.

  As he neared his destination, he stopped and looked back at the white tarn.

  Besides, he thought. Auraya’s no fool. She’d never risk all she’s achieved by taking a Dreamweaver as a lover.

  The sun was low in the sky when Dyara and Auraya began to walk back to the road.

  “So how am I doing?” Auraya asked.

  Dyara glanced at her and smiled grimly. “Well enough. You have a natural talent for magic, but that’s no surprise. The gods would not have chosen you otherwise.”

  “I thought it was my charming personality.”

  To Auraya’s surprise, Dyara chuckled. “I’m sure they chose you for that as well. You won’t survive this war on charm alone, Auraya—and I know you understand that.”

  Auraya nodded. “We covered almost everything I’ve learned since being chosen. What will we do tomorrow?”

  Dyara frowned. “I have been thinking of ways that your flying ability might be used to your advantage. You know that when you draw a great deal of magic to yourself, you lessen what exists in the world immediately around you. Magic flows in to replace what is used, but too slowly if what you are doing uses a great deal of power quickly. To compensate, you need to dr
aw magic from farther away from yourself, which takes more effort, or move yourself physically to where magic isn’t as depleted.”

  “And avoid moving to where my enemy has been standing.”

  “Yes. You are not restricted to moving across the surface of the land as we are. You have the entire sky to move through. Your source of magic will always be fresh so long as you remain airborne and in motion.”

  Auraya felt a small thrill. “I see. I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “The trouble is, Juran will want you with us as it will be easier to—”

  :Auraya? Are you watching?

  Auraya stopped. The mental call was weak and hesitant, but clear enough that she recognized the sender. Tireel, the Siyee ambassador who had come to Jarime, had volunteered to lead the scouts over the mountains. She had given him her link ring so he could contact her when they arrived.

  :Tireel. Where are you?

  :The other side of the mountains. We’ve found the Pentadrians. They’re a lot closer than you said they’d be.

  She could feel his excitement and fear. Reaching out to Dyara, Juran, Mairae and Rian, she told them what was happening and channelled Tireel’s communication to them.

  :How close are you? Show me what you’re seeing.

  It took him a few tries before he was able to convey a clear image of his surroundings. When he did, he sent an impression of a narrow valley seen from high above. Two rivers wound down the center, one blue, one black. Then she realized that the black river was a flow of people, not water.

  The Pentadrian army.

  The sight of it was no surprise, yet it was a shock. Until now she had only heard of the enemy through reports and only encountered it in the form of lone black sorcerers. Seeing this endless column marching steadily toward the pass and her own country made the threat of invasion real and chilling.

  :Can you get closer? Juran asked.

  :I’ll circle around and drop down with the sun at my back.

  Tireel directed some of the other Siyee to inspect the neighboring valleys, then instructed others to wait out of sight of the army. Any Pentadrians who happened to look up would dismiss the flying shape as that of a large predatory bird. Predatory birds were solitary, however. Several large birds would attract attention, and it would not take much speculation before someone realized they might not be birds, but humans.