The Crown of Stones: Magic-Scars

by C. L. Schneider

  “Malaq doesn’t usually move that slow.”

  “I thought as much. That’s why I kissed him.”

  My brow went up. “You kissed him?”

  “It seemed appropriate at the time.”

  Not wanting to embarrass her, I bit back my laugh. “Where did Malaq find you? I thought my father emptied most of the camps when the Langorians attacked Kabri.”

  “In the menagerie,” she said, like I should know. “Malaq tried to get others to leave as I did, but that place is all they know.”

  I was curious. Neela once told me about the Rellans keeping a private stock of Shinree. She claimed my father was born there. My mother too, I was guessing. If this was the menagerie Lirih spoke of, I wanted to know more. But the girl had something else on her mind. “You didn’t come here today just because I gave you a scare, did you?”

  Hesitant, Lirih wrapped both hands around her cup. “I’ve found my grandfather.”

  The idea of Jem Reth having that sort of bond with her was unsettling. “Go on.”

  “I was present recently when Malaq and Queen Jillyan were discussing her plan to retrieve the crown’s power. They talked about the difficulties you might encounter, including how long the process might take with your lack of experience in the spell, and the odds that Jillyan’s theory was even correct. As they debated the whereabouts of your father, I realized I could help. I thought if I could see his recent past through an oracle spell I might discern his whereabouts. But to inhabit a mind so twisted and a body so changed…I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

  “It’s all right. I wouldn’t want you that close to him.”

  Lirih tensed. My suggestion of protectiveness disarmed her.

  And not in a good way, I thought.

  She went on as if I hadn’t spoken. “As the meeting continued, my thoughts wandered to the tragic history of our people and the role my ancestors played. I thought of what I knew of Jem Reth so far. And the truth became clear. There was only one place my grandfather could go where no magic could track him.”

  “Okay, then.” Her confidence had my attention. “Where is he?”

  Her little nose scrunched. “It’s not where exactly. It’s when.”

  FORTY THREE

  Malaq leaned back in his chair. His hands were clasped together. His eyes were on the domed ceiling of the large pavilion as he reflected on my news. He’d been deliberating for a while. Yet, Malaq was King now. So I did what everyone else was doing. I held my tongue and gave him time to digest.

  Finally, Malaq sat up. “Let me get this straight.” He eyed me down the length of the long table between us. “You think Jem Reth is in the past, hiding out in the body of one of your ancestors. And we can’t find him because…?”

  “Oracle spells don’t happen purely in the mind,” I explained. “Your soul, or consciousness—whatever you want to call it—journeys into a possible future version of yourself, or backward into the life of someone with common blood. That piece is what the magic of a tracking spell connects to. It’s what connects Reth to Draken. If it’s not here, we can’t track him.”

  Malaq wasn’t persuaded. “Do you have proof?”

  “No. But it makes sense.”

  “It does,” Jillyan agreed. Rising from her chair, dressed in black leggings and a belted green tunic, she crossed to the table of drinks against the wall. “Besides…” She paused, refilling the goblet in her hand. “The rest of you haven’t come up with any brilliant ideas on the matter.”

  I tossed her a grateful glance. “Jem has gone back before. He boasted about inhabiting Emperor Tam to gain information on the crown. He also admitted there were things he didn’t yet know. If Jem wanted something from Tam, he wouldn’t stop until he got it.”

  “That’s true,” Sienn put in. “Jem doesn’t let go of a thing easily.”

  “No one is questioning Jem Reth’s tenacity,” Malaq assured her. “I think the bigger issue is how long a person can stay detached from their body.” He looked over at Jillyan. “Any thoughts?”

  “Well.” Propping her backside against the edge of the table, Jillyan took a thoughtful drink before sitting her cup down. “Most forward visions cast by an oracle last a matter of minutes. The higher the skill, the longer they can hold the spell. Journeying backwards into the life of another is entirely different. The traveler’s body goes into a state of sleep. Like a rodent in winter,” she offered for example. “Still, it would not hold up indefinitely. Jem would have to come back from time to time to nourish his body and let the stones replenish. However,” she said pensively, “being Nef’taali, Jem could last longer by drawing energy from Draken. But only if their connection was open.”

  “Let’s say Ian’s right.” Malaq rubbed at the frown lines on his forehead. “If we open a door to Jem’s body and kill him, what happens to the part of him that’s not here?”

  Jillyan’s reply was quick. “My guess is he would be trapped. But two souls cannot live indefinitely in one body. Over time they would both deteriorate, resulting in a single, damaged personality. If Jem has indeed been doing as Ian suggests, simply partaking in such a prolonged habitation could be equally harmful to both parties.”

  “Like the man wasn’t insane enough,” Malaq muttered.

  “Tam wasn’t exactly known for being stable either,” I said. “He did murder the entire Ruling House, hang their bodies in his front lawn, and name himself Emperor. But I’m more worried about what events Jem might change if he gets trapped there.”

  Sitting to my left, Krillos said, “Change how?”

  “If a caster is strong enough, he can push the boundaries of the oracle spell past observation and overtake the body he’s in. Erudite can do it. Those trained by one have some skill in controlling their host as well.” I looked at Sienn for confirmation and she gave a half-hearted nod. “Two years ago Jem alleged he could influence the Emperor in small ways. If his ability has improved, he could be interfering on a larger scale. Hell, he could be altering things right now.”

  “Is that possible?” Krillos asked. “To change what’s already happened?”

  “I don’t know. But if my father took Tam’s life on another path and history is different, how would we know?” At that, uncomfortable glances were exchanged all around. “On the other hand, he could simply be researching the crown at its source and I’m just being paranoid.”

  “We all have reason to be paranoid of Jem Reth,” Neela replied crisply. Primped and polished after our trek through the swamps, with her hair piled up on top of her head, she lifted her round chin at me. “How do you suggest we proceed?”

  “Find out where he is. Convince him to come back to his body. Then kill him.”

  For the first time, Kit spoke up, “We don’t know where Jem’s body is. If he can’t be tracked, how do we find it?”

  “He can’t be tracked as he is now,” I corrected her.

  “What are you thinking, Shinree?” Jillyan asked.

  “There’s finally a good reason for sharing blood with that man. If I cast an oracle spell into Jem’s immediate past,” I said, borrowing Lirih’s plan, “I might be able to locate his position. Once I have a good look at the place and can form a deep enough memory for a connection, we can open a door. Guards can be sent through, ready to kill him the second he opens his eyes. I just have to convince him to come back first.”

  Jillyan nodded. “And you think he’s using Emperor Tam again?”

  “I think he’s comfortable there. Tam had a hell of a lot of power and a lot of knowledge of the crown. It’s certainly a good place to start.”

  “Then it’s settled,” Malaq decided. “We’ll try it. But I want you there, Ian. Wherever Reth’s body is, you’ll have to go poking around in the past right beside it. Because if he discovers it’s a trap and comes back ready to fight, you’re the only one able to deal with him.” Malaq turned toward the rear of the tent. “Lirih, you’ll go with him.”

  “No,” I barked. Striving to sou
nd aloof, I lowered my voice. “It’s not necessary. I can make the door back.”

  “Can you?” Malaq challenged. “You can bring everyone here? Not four days from here, or to my stable in Kabri?” Watching my jaw tighten, he sighed. “Sorry, my friend, but your skill with that line of magic is too unpredictable to trust.”

  “And hers is too valuable to risk losing.”

  “Lirih has been on dangerous missions before,” Malaq assured me.

  “By your order,” I shot back.

  “She’s here of her own free will, Ian. That’s something most Shinree know nothing about.”

  “So you’re doing her a favor? That’s how you justify endangering her life?”

  Malaq’s blank expression in no way matched his thoughts as he tried to determine why I suddenly gave a damn what happened to his door-maker.

  Then, quietly, from her darkened corner, Lirih said, “I will go.”

  “You don’t have to,” I told her.

  “I want to,” she replied. “However, it would be wise if I am allowed to fully recover before any attempt is made on Jem’s life. That way, I will be able to make the return door in haste if the strike doesn’t go as planned. While I am not a child to be coddled,” she pointed out, clearly for my benefit, “every precaution should be taken to ensure the success of the mission. I’m sure you would agree with that, Your Grace?”

  “Certainly.” Malaq shared a glance with Krillos. I got the feeling Lirih wasn’t in the habit of speaking out at meetings, or anywhere.

  “If I may?” Sienn interrupted. “This idea, Ian, how did it come to you?”

  “Did it have anything to do with what we found in that cave?” Neela said.

  Sienn’s eyes narrowed in interest. “What did you find?”

  “Some old ruins.” It wasn’t a lie. My recent discoveries regarding the crown had nothing to do with locating Jem. And I wasn’t keen on explaining the altars or my vision when I didn’t even know what they meant. I certainly wasn’t eager to tell Sienn. She’d looked dejected enough when I put off our training session to call this meeting. Telling her our ancestors used the Crown of Stones to create the eldring, and that I witnessed the brutal sacrifices that transformed our people into monsters—that there was a vote and the ones who chose wrong were callously condemned—wouldn’t do much for her mood.

  Maybe I got it wrong. Maybe I’m missing pieces of the puzzle.

  Of course I am, I thought. Coming in smack in the middle of the ritual, there were dozens of factors I knew nothing about. Any one of them could offer a reasonable explanation for what I saw. But none of them could justify ritual sacrifice. And reason had nothing to do with what was happening in that pit.

  “What about the eldring?” Krillos said then.

  I tried to steer him away. “That’s not why we’re here.”

  “It should be,” he said. “As we speak, hundreds, if not thousands of the beasts, are about to be packed onto Draken’s ships bound for Doratae and the lands beyond. He plans to starve them on the voyage. By the time they arrive, the beasts will rip apart anyone in sight. The rest he’s using like dogs to root out the Shinree. Like the one on my ship.” His voice turned grave. “The laws have changed, Troy. Draken issued a decree. Healers and Oracles are no longer free. All Shinree are to be owned or confined to the settlement Reth built. Any who resist are put to death.”

  “I didn’t know.” I gave Malaq a hard look. “Why didn’t I know?”

  “If you’d come back with Krillos you would have been here when I made the announcement. Instead, you took it upon yourself to go after the Crown of Stones, while we sat for days debating whether or not to declare you dead.” He offered me a thin smile. “Now, I believe Captain Krillos has the floor.”

  Krillos pushed back his chair and stood. “Reth is a threat,” he said, looking around the table. “He needs to be dealt with. None of us argues that. But he hasn’t reared his head in a while. If the eldring go to Doratae and win Draken more realms, he will have more men, more weapons, and more money at his disposal.” Krillos glanced uneasily at Kit. “And being a healer doesn’t keep you safe anymore. So maybe,” his gaze hit mine, “before you go off hunting for your father, you should try to communicate with the beasts like you did in Langor. Convince them to stand down, fight back—whatever. Otherwise, Draken’s reign will spread and the Shinree population will dwindle.”

  “Excuse me, Captain,” Neela interjected. “Did you say communicate?” Reading the answer on his face, she turned on Malaq. “I understand why you kept your resistance secret, cousin, even from me. But if you have a way of communicating with the eldring, I should have been informed.”

  “And I as well.” Malaq’s routinely impassive eyes were frosty as he glared at Krillos. “I believe, Captain, you left this out of your report?”

  “It wasn’t intentional, Sire.” In a blatant display of deference, Krillos lowered his gaze to his boots. “With all that happened in Langor, it must have slipped my mind.”

  “Slipped your mind?” Malaq’s voice was like thunder. “We can’t afford to have things slip your mind. Not now. Not ever. There is far too much at stake.”

  “Back off, Malaq,” I stepped in.

  “Troy.” Malaq’s jaw clenched. “How I discipline my men doesn’t concern you.”

  “This time it does. What happened is my story to tell, not his.”

  Malaq threw a hostile hand in my direction. “Then by all means…”

  There was no getting out of it now. All I could do was gloss over the scary parts and hope no one made a big deal of it. “An eldring child was dying. They weren’t going to let us go unless I healed him. So I formed a temporary connection to give his body enough strength to repair the wound.”

  Kit shot to her feet. “A bonding spell? Ian, you didn’t?”

  Sienn was right behind her. “What were you thinking?”

  “That I didn’t want to die,” I said simply. “That Jarryd was too damn close to let anything stop me. Mostly, I was thinking I couldn’t sit there and watch them eat Krillos alive.”

  No one spoke. Kit picked up her mug and took a long drink. Sienn looked worried. Neela looked pissed. Krillos was pale. I didn’t even want to look at Malaq. Aside from Lirih, whose face I couldn’t see, the only one not visibly stunned by my candor was Jillyan.

  Finishing her drink, she sauntered over behind my chair and placed her hands on my shoulders. “Binding with an eldring, hmmm?” Bending over me, Jillyan’s hands slid down my chest. “Gods, like you weren’t animal enough to begin with.” Planting an energetic kiss on the scars covering my cheek, she laughed. It was a delicious, seductive sound that conjured all sorts of tawdry images. Then she ruffled my stained hair and went back to her drink, leaving me with mixed feelings. I was grateful Jillyan had my back. She was an intelligent woman. Her opinions carried weight. Her public approval of my sexual prowess, however, was a little much. I didn’t give a damn what Malaq and Krillos thought. But Sienn was a whole other story. And Lirih, I thought.

  Gods, I have a daughter.

  Extra loud, hoping to refocus everyone, I said, “The eldring aren’t what we think. Their understanding of our language is limited, but sound. They infer what we’re saying not from our words, so much, but by our emotional state or movements. They can sense the slightest fluctuations in our heart rate and body temperature. They can’t verbalize as we do, but they get their responses across if you pay close enough attention. What’s most incredible, though, is their mental connection. They have a common mind that gives them the ability to impart memories into their young at birth. There’s no such thing as isolation or loneliness among the eldring. Their communal existence keeps them together, no matter how far apart they are. And each one is as important as the next. They form immediate attachments to each other through their inherited memories.”

  Neela’s brows knitted. “Inherited memories? Please explain.”

  “All the eldring that live now have access to the mem
ories of every eldring that ever lived. They pass it on to their children at birth. For a time, it was passed on to me.”

  “That must have been terrible,” Neela said.

  “Honestly, I don’t remember a lot of it. Mostly flashes and this endless sensory rush. Everything the eldring smell, hear, taste, and touch, is strongly imprinted on their memories. I think the influx was more than I could process. Only afterward was I able to sort some of it out.”

  “Were there any lingering effects?” Sienn asked.

  “Some,” I confessed. “But they’re gone now.”

  “Perhaps,” Jillyan said, “there is value in what Krillos proposed.”

  “I might be able to influence them,” I offered. “Mostly, they were influencing me. But I’d be willing to do the spell again and try. At least now I know what I’m in for.”

  Sienn shot me down fast. “Absolutely not. You have no idea what repeated exposure to their minds might do to yours. There could already be damage.”

  I laughed at her. “How much more damaged can I get?”

  “No, Ian, she’s right,” Kit cut in. “I don’t think it’s safe.”

  “We need to know more,” Jillyan said. “I’ll check the scrolls for references to animals being healed in such a way. If it appears safe, then Ian can make the attempt.”

  “Agreed,” Malaq nodded. “Remember Jem Reth pulls the strings on the eldring. If we take him out of play, they may no longer be an issue.” His gray eyes found their way back to mine. “Exactly how will you inhabit Emperor Tam if Jem is already there? Please don’t tell me more than one of you can fit inside the poor man’s mind at the same time.”

  “I’ll use one of Tam’s sons. It might be hit or miss. There’s no way to know which of them will give me the best opportunity. But once I get close to Tam, it won’t take long to know if my father is in there or not.”

  “You realize,” Malaq said soberly, “you’ll have to divide your efforts between finding Reth and finding the crown’s power. We need that magic at our disposal.”