It was a word that Miri had never heard before and she pondered it’s meaning as she was allowed through the tent flap. The much smaller tent only had a handful of people in the audience and all their eyes were locked on the elevated wooden platform. Miri breathed a sigh of relief as she left the crowds behind and found a seat. On the stage a woman was bending and twisting her body into seemingly impossible positions. Miri recognized her from around the campfire during their trip, she had a slender frame of an Elf and moved with the grace of her people, yet her ears were distinctly Human.
The show ended shortly after Miri arrived and the woman on the stage disappeared into the back of the tent to prepare for the next show. Miri moved against the flow of people to join her, perhaps the other Elf was back there as an assistant.
The back of the tent was small and seated at a table with a hand mirror was the woman from the stage. She had long blond hair that she kept in tight braids. She stiffened as she noticed Miri in the mirror’s reflection and turned to address her.
“Oh… Greetings.” She bowed her head respectfully.
Miri blinked, slightly confused. The woman had Human ears, yet her mannerisms and speech reminded her of her people. “Greetings… I am sorry, I was told that Saerena, a fellow Elf, would be here.”
The woman looked down and nodded her head slightly. “She is here.” She looked up again with a sad smile. “I am Saerena Delhavine of Verta. Forgive me, I have been hoping to speak with you. However, I feared that it would be inappropriate for one such as myself to approach one blessed with the Sight. It is an honor to finally speak with you.”
“How do you know that I am blessed with the Sight?” Miri squeaked nervously.
“You are a Cavadash, most descended from the Hero of Legend are blessed as such.”
Miri nodded and her eyes flicked to the Saerena’s ears. Aware of her gaze Saerena brought a hand to her left ear and traced its roundness with her dexterous fingers.
“Forgive me… the years have not been easy. As I am sure you know, our kind are hunted. When I escaped Verta precautions needed to be made.”
“You… you did that?” Miri felt the blood drain from her face as she noticed that the top edges of Saerena’s ears were white with scars.
“It was that or be run down by the Queen’s Demons. Not all Elven were lucky in escaping the city.”
“I am sorry.” Miri swallowed. “I cannot imagine…”
“It is in the past.”
“Why did you not seek out the Wild Elven Clans? They have been helping to protect our people from the Queen.”
“They are not so easily found, and the deed had already been done. You could say that this is my Clan now, the years I have spent with them have been the happiest since that cursed Gate opened.”
“This is a safe place then?” Miri asked, her hand unconsciously moved to her ears, desperate to feel that the points were still there.
“Is that why you sought me out?” She asked with a half-smile. “Yes, you will be safe here. But be warned, the Ringmaster is as greedy as a Human can be. Regardless, I have been keeping an eye out for you. I can only assume that those gifted with the Sight have only become rarer in recent years.”
Miri nodded. “I am the last.”
Saerena seemed shaken by the news and she clasped a hand over her heart and looked away. “The whispers are true then… our people are coming to an end.” She then looked back towards Miri with her eyebrows cocked. “If you are the last, then why have you fled the safety of your Clan?”
“I have had a vision of the ancient Shrines.” Miri answered, she felt that she could trust her kinswoman after all that had been said.
“Truly?” She gasped in reverence. “Then perhaps there is hope. So that means that your travelling companions are… They are not Elven?”
“I am only a guide, and they are whom the visions have chosen.” Miri looked to the dirt at her feet with a guilty expression, as if it had been her choice and not destiny. Then she looked up with a hopeful expression. “We have already collected one of the sacred powers and are on our way towards the second.”
“I will help you in any way that I can Miri Cavadash.” She bowed her head. “It is not only for the good of our people that the Queen be dethroned. Living among such variety has shown me that each race has its value, and that the Elven are not as superior as we believe ourselves to be.”
“I have felt the same since travelling with the Chosen.” Miri confessed.
“I have heard that you are travelling to Esper. Does that mean that one of the sacred Shrines rests there?”
Miri nodded.
“I wish you luck then, Esper is a dangerous place. The Ringmaster, despite his greed, will not bring us within those borders. I have heard rumors that the King-Regent is a madman, driven to insanity by a spurned lover.”
“Can you tell me anything more of Esper? My Clan never travelled near it and what knowledge I have is limited.” Miri asked desperately.
Saerena tapped her finger on her chin as she considered what she knew. “I know that the Humans of Esper live in fear. That the King-Regent is unpredictable. He keeps his people on edge with ever changing laws or forced festivals and events. He is of course loyal to the Queen, yet I have heard whispers that he has his own agenda. What that may be however, I cannot say. Perhaps the chaotic notions of a madman only make it appear there is a plan, where none exist. Be wary Miri Cavadash, our people were hardly welcome in Esper before the Fall, I would dare say that it is inhospitable now.”
“Thank you, since leaving my Clan I have felt… lost.”
She smiled warmly. “Should you ever need anything, it would be an honor for you to turn to me. And as I said, I will do what I can to help you.”
“I need to reflect on this. Thank you again for your kind words.”
Saerena reached out to Miri and grabbed her hand gently. “When I... mutilated myself, I feared that I would be seen as an outcast by my own people. Thank you for not treating me as such. Should order be restored to the world I hope that all of our people are as kind as you.”
She released Miri’s hand and looked away as if ashamed of herself. Miri gave her a soft smile then departed from the tent.
The hour was getting late and yet the crowd seemed no closer to thinning. Miri wondered just how long the festivities would continue and worried that she would be prevented from sleeping that night. She hurried through the throngs of people back towards Katya, when she ran into Ezra who had an alarmed expression on her face.
“Is everything alright?” Miri asked as Ezra pulled her aside from the thick of the crowd. The air around her was warm.
“We need to talk… in private” Ezra had grabbed Miri with her ungloved hand and pulled her towards the shadows at the edge of the festivities.
“What is it?” Miri felt her heart pounding against her chest in worry.
“I was at the camp, where the wagons are parked, and I overheard the Ringmaster and Raigh talking.” Ezra scowled as her left hand flexed anxiously. “They were talking about Ralis.”
Miri’s jaw locked tight and her eyes widened. In her mind she watched again as Ralis was buried in gold coins, trapped in a cage. “What did they say?”
“They want Ralis to stay here, to keep working for the carnival, and it didn’t sound like they cared how that happened. Raigh is going to try and convince him to stay.” Ezra crossed her arms and turned her scowl to the night sky. “I hate saying this, but I think you were right, we should leave.”
Miri’s dread over the news and its correlation to her vision, prevented any sense of satisfaction from Ezra telling her she was right. “We must find the others.” She answered, failing to conceal the panic from her voice.
“Hold on.” Ezra grabbed Miri’s arm again, this time with her left hand, it was hot like a
fire but did not burn her.
Miri looked down at the gloved hand on her arm, and Ezra pulled her hand away with a nervous flinch.
“I think that Raigh is trying to play Ralis against us, we need to be careful. We can’t let her figure out that we’re on to her.”
“How do we do that?” Miri felt the need to look over her shoulder as she whispered, just in case the Ringmaster or Raigh were eavesdropping.
“You need to act normal Miri, pretend that you don’t know. If you act nervous, she’ll suspect something. All we have to do is talk to Ralis in private and tell him what I heard, that shouldn’t be difficult.”
“Alright, I can do that.”
“You’re a terrible liar.” Ezra rolled her eyes.
Miri frowned. “I am not.” She had kept the secret of her death visions to herself without anyone suspecting a thing.
“I’m not an idiot Miri, I know you’ve been hiding something since we left Thia’s treehouse.”
“I have not!” Miri took a step back in surprise, she had thought that she had been more careful.
“See you’re a terrible liar.” Ezra grinned wickedly.
Miri huffed and crossed her arms. “Is that so bad? I strive to be honest and truthful in all things, perhaps you should try it some time.”
Ezra seemed unbothered by the attempted sting; her wicked grin only widened. “But I am so very good at lying and scheming.”
“You would be.” Miri replied quietly as she uncrossed her arms with a sigh. “Perhaps you should lead the conversation with Ralis, I will watch.”
Ezra nodded, ignoring the comment, and looked back into the crowd. “Let’s get moving.”
The two of them didn’t have to wander long before they found Amri and Browen walking together, drinking in the sights and sounds of the carnival. As she had with Miri, Ezra pulled them aside and explained what she had overheard.
“That makes sense.” Amri had crossed her arms as Ezra spoke. “I’ve never seen so much money before. If Ralis does that every night, the Ringmaster might even become richer than Browen was.”
“I wouldn’t assume that; with all of the costs he has. With that said, that was a lot of gold for just one show.” Browen added, he shared the same worried stance that Amri bore.
Amri continued. “It was his charms. Everyone in the audience was pouring out their bags of gold onto the stage like it was nothing.”
Miri squeaked at Amri’s description, it reminded her too much of the vision she had seen weeks ago.
“Miri just tell us what you’re hiding.” Ezra sighed at Miri. “If we work together, we have a better chance of preventing whatever future you saw.”
Miri grimaced. Maybe Ezra was right, and she was foolish to keep the dark vision to herself. Then again, she wondered how they would each react to learn how they were destined to die. All eyes were on her and she decided with a sigh that she should at least tell them about Ralis’s destiny.
“The night after you accepted the power of flame, I had a… dark vision. I heard Ralis’s music in a fog, but it was sad... broken. I followed it and I saw Ralis trapped in a cage. Shadowy figures were throwing gold coins at him… he was covered in bruises and cuts. He said that he had made some sort of deal. Then more gold was thrown into the cage until he was buried alive.” Miri whimpered and pulled her arms around her body, the emotions of the vision still fresh. “I watched him die... crushed and unable to breath… I could not do anything to stop it.”
Miri looked between her new friends and shuddered at their haunted expressions. She could not tell them the rest; she couldn’t imagine how horrible it would be to learn how you die.
Amri spoke first in a hushed whisper, as if she spoke of the dead. “That’s why you wanted us to leave.”
“I’m sorry Miri, we should have listened to you.” Browen mirrored.
Ezra shook her head and her ghostly expression disappeared. “Visions aren’t set in stone, they can be changed, especially now that we know what it is. We need to talk to Ralis and leave the Carnival of Dreams behind.”
“Agreed.” Amri’s mouth was set in a firm line.
Chapter Twelve
Ralis
The crowd went wild as Ralis concluded his third and final show of the evening. He gave them a bow and a smile, before bending to help Raigh collect the hundreds of coins that littered the stage. It felt so strange. A euphoric blend of emotions combined with disbelief. He wished that his mother and father could have been in the crowd, to witness him achieve his dream. Even as he felt blissfully happy on the stage, a nagging sensation at the back of his mind seemed keen to remind him that the audience was charmed. That it was not his skill that caused them to cheer and throw their hard-earned coins at him, but something bred into his blood, something that entranced them to do his bidding. He tried to ignore those thoughts. There was nothing that could be done about them anyway, it wasn’t like he was able to turn off his charms.
The coins all hurried into several bags, Ralis and Raigh retreated into the back part of the tent again. Ralis took a needed seat on the one stool in the back, while Raigh grabbed one of the stagehands and gave instructions to take the money to the Ringmaster. The money passed along, she turned to Ralis with a sultry smile and grinned at him. She still wore her revealing dance outfit and Ralis struggled not to stare at her more feminine features.
“You are amazing.” She said moving behind him and rubbing his back. “We could retire on what you made tonight.”
Ralis leaned into her hands as she rubbed neat little circles into his shoulders. “It isn’t about the money Raigh.”
“I know.” She moved around to face him, and he blushed at her almost naked form. “What was your favourite part?”
Ralis considered for a moment, then smiled. “You’ll think its dumb.”
“Try me.” She giggled with a wink.
“Making other people happy.” He blushed and turned to look towards the stage. “Knowing that something I created made them forget their worries, even for just a moment.”
“That could be every night you know.” She rested her hand on his cheek and directed his gaze back to her. “Madaria is a sad country right now, the people could use someone to lift their spirits. Even for just a moment.”
He smiled as she parroted his words. “I would like that.”
“Then stay here, stay with me. You could see your dream come true every night and help make the world a more beautiful place.”
He wanted nothing more than to say yes, to pull her close and kiss her, knowing that it would be the beginning of a perfect future. But without finishing what he and the others had started, the world would never see peaceful times again, no matter how many performances he did. His thoughts showed on his face and Raigh’s expression fell into disappointment.
“I don’t understand. Why do you want to give up on your dream?” She asked, her voice hurt.
Ralis opened his mouth to answer but was interrupted as Ezra, Miri, Amri and Browen arrived in the back of the tent. His lips twitched into a smile at his friends, but he faltered upon noticing their grim expressions. Raigh pulled herself closer to Ralis with a frown as their moment was interrupted.
“You missed the show.” Raigh said coldly, looking between Miri and Ezra.
“There’s always tomorrow.” Ralis smiled in an attempt to lighten the suddenly heavy mood. “Elsie did a good job on your hair Miri, you look beautiful.”
Miri’s face flushed at the comment and she reached a hand to her pointed ears hidden beneath delicate braids. “Thank you.”
“We came to celebrate your first performance.” Ezra said with a smile.
He smiled back at the idea, but the grim faces of his other friends made him falter.
“That’s actually a great idea.” Raigh beamed at the suggesti
on and squeezed Ralis’s arm.
“We need something to drink so we can properly toast this.” Ezra turned her smile towards Raigh. “Why don’t you go grab us some drinks? I’m sure Ralis made more than enough to cover it.”
“He certainly did.” Raigh winked. “If you go find Kim, she’ll set you up. Together you can bring much more than I can on my own.”
Miri, Browen and Amri all tensed at the reversal of the suggestion, but Ezra remained unphased. “I think it would be better if you asked, we’re still strangers here.”
Raigh waved a hand dismissively. “You’ve been travelling with us for a few days now, Kim knows who you are. We can meet you at the campfire.”
Ralis didn’t understand the tension in the air as Raigh pulled him up from his seat and proceeded to direct him towards the tents exit. Miri made an audible squeak and looked pleadingly towards Ezra who sighed as she rolled her eyes.
“Ralis we need to talk to you in private.” Ezra said, using her cold and imperious tone that reminded everyone of her royal blood.
“Is something wrong?” He asked and resisted Raigh’s insistent attempt to leave.
“It is something that we must speak of alone.” Miri offered; her voice wavered with anxiety.
“So, you didn’t come to celebrate.” Ralis could not help but feel downtrodden.
“We can celebrate later.” Ezra commented dismissively. “This is urgent Ralis.”
Ralis’s shoulders slumped slightly and he felt Raigh’s hands move comfortingly across them as she spoke. “Whatever it is can wait. Ralis has just had the best night of his life, don’t ruin it with your personal drama.”
“It is not drama!” Miri stomped her foot with frustration. “This is important.”
“Then say it in front of me.” Raigh challenged. Ralis’s friends hesitated and Raigh continued, while pulling Ralis by the arm again. “If you can’t say it in front of me then it can wait until tomorrow.”
Before anyone could counter the statement Raigh and Ralis were outside of the tent. The summer night air was warm, and the crowds of people were finally starting to thin as the many acts began to wrap up. Wordlessly Raigh pulled Ralis from the crowds and into the forest that surrounded the impromptu camp. She kept going until they had put a significant distance between them and the rest of the caravan. When they were sure that they were thoroughly alone Raigh finally stopped with a sigh.
Sunken Wind Page 12
