by Elina Vale
Eavan turned to face him. “If we can’t stop Shea, there will be no moments left, not for anyone. Boa, it’s happening. Now. Everything I’ve been preparing myself for since I was a child. I feel the tension building, and I can see the events that are pushing us toward one inevitable fate.” She was silent for a moment. “It’s time for the Heart to be found. Without it, all is lost.”
“You still believe in that legend?” Boa asked. “Twenty years we’ve been searching, without success.”
“It is no matter,” Eavan said. “The Heart will be found soon, by one side or the other; of that much, I am sure.”
“That’s why you are pushing Shri,” Boa said. “It’s her time.”
“Yes. But she’s not ready.” Eavan sounded frustrated. “We need more time.”
“King Magnus won’t wait for long,” Boa said, “and Shea certainly will not. That day in Ironflare... I should have made sure that Shea was dead. But I was weak. Sentimental. The wound I inflicted was mortal, but somehow, the magic healed her. You saw her back there, how power-hungry she has become. She’s lost her mind, and now she’s taken control of the city. She may be more dangerous than Aldemar ever was.”
“Aldemar was corrupt,” Eavan said, “and without morals. But he was sane. Shea is unpredictable and reckless. Worse, she isn’t even a senatai. The power she’s taken hold of will work it’s evil through her, and she won’t even know it. But we must be cautious. We need Shri if we’re to have any chance at all, and if she finds out that Shea is holding her father captive, only the Gods know how she’ll react.”
Shri’s heart skipped a beat. She slapped her hand over her mouth too late to stifle her gasp.
“Hush!” Eavan order to Boa. “Did you hear...?”
It was too late now. Shri might have had just enough time to flee the room, but that would mean running from what she had just overheard. Boldly, she stepped into view of the balcony and stood with her fists balled.
“Shri!” Eavan said, pulling away from Boa. “How long have you been there?”
“I just got here,” she lied. “The door was unlocked, Eavan.”
“You didn’t lock the door?” Eavan grumbled at Boa. “Why didn’t you knock, Shri?”
“I did. No one answered.”
“Then what made you think you had leave to enter?”
“I couldn’t wait to talk to you,” she answered.
“About what?”
“I’m not sure that matters,” Shri said, narrowing her eyes at Eavan. “What did you just say about my father?”
“Your f...” Frustrated, Eavan turned her back.
Boa lowered his gaze, then looked into Shri’s eyes. “I’m sorry, Shri. He’s been captured.”
“Boa!” Eavan shouted. “What did I just say?”
“It’s too late,” Boa said. “I suspect Shri has been standing there longer than she admits. Isn’t that right, my dear?”
“All I care about is my father!” Shri returned. “Tell me what you know about him, and tell me the truth, or I’ll leave Senatai Island right now, and you’ll never see me again!”
“Shri...” Boa sighed. “Do you remember Drokashai Shea?”
Shri remember two powerful, stunningly beautiful women who harassed her during the Gate Run: the one who wanted to capture her and the one who wanted to kill her. “Shea,” she said. “The woman who tried to bring me to High Master Aldemar.”
“That’s right,” Boa said. “Well, she calls herself High Mistress Shea, now. All of our contacts confirm that she’s got your father.”
“How?” Shri asked. “Why?”
“The day we escaped Ironflare, there was a revolt at the Pit. Your father helped to lead that revolt, and he was arrested for his part in it.”
Shri recalled the black smoke she had seen rising from the Pit on the day she escaped Ironflare. She squeezed her arms around herself and closed her eyes. “How could you not tell me?”
“How?” Eavan spun around. “Because I knew this would happen. I knew it would distract you. Shri, we can’t know if he’s still alive. And if he is, he’s being held deep under the tower, in the dungeons, and there’s no way to reach him!”
Shri walked out onto the balcony and gazed at the sea glimmering behind the forest. “We have senatai here, don’t we? We have drokashai! We have the power to rescue him. Eavan, we have the power to rescue everyone in the Pit!”
“We can’t reveal our hand too soon,” Eavan said. “If we waste our resources too early...”
“You don’t know what it’s like in the Pit!” Shri shouted. “You don’t know... and my father...in the dungeons, because of me...”
Eavan laid her arm around Shri’s shoulders. “I’m sorry. There’s so much more at stake here than the life of a few prisoners.”
Shri twisted around and shoved Eavan’s arm away. Tears obscured her eyes. “It’s not just a prisoner. It’s my Papa!”
Boa took a turn attempting to sooth her. “Shri, we understand. If there was any way to get into those dungeons at present, we would–—"
Shri growled, a fire sparkling in her eyes. “There is a way! But you won’t use it.”
Eavan silenced Shri with her firm gaze. “All right, you want to be a part of this, Shri? Then let’s not mince words: the Crown is preparing Senatai Island for war.”
“War?” A sense of terror crept over her.
Eavan’s face grew cold. “King Magnus the First wants to break the Order of the Senatai, and he wants to end Ironflare's autonomy.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder and placed her hands on her hips, poised like a mighty senatai queen. “It’s very likely that we will have to assault Ironflare if Magnus wants to overthrow the Spike. So yes, there’s a lot more at stake than your father’s life. I’m sorry, but there’s nothing we can do for him right now. Please, Shri, you need to focus on finding your magic.”
“There are senatai are in the tower,” Shri said. “And there are thousands and thousands of people around the tower. The Rings, the Pit. They can't get out! The king would never attack the city until it was evacuated!”
“That’s something that we’re trying to convince him of,” Boa said quietly.
“Those aren’t just slaves in the Pit,” Shri said. “They’re people! They’re my people!”
Boa pulled his hand through his dark brown hair. Wind whisked the longer coils onto his face. “The King wants to end slavery. But if the Spike won’t relent, it’s going to be war. People die in wars.”
Shri looked into his eyes. “Then we must go there and save them before the violence starts!”
Eavan leaned against the railing, gazing out at the ocean. “We are under King Magnus’s authority. We will do exactly what he wants us to do.” She looked at Shri. “He’s on our side. He wants the slaves freed as much as we do.”
“But at what cost?” Shri said. “They’re innocent people!”
Boa stared at his boots, fumbling with his fingers, while Eavan stared lazily over the terrain. They had no real response to her concerns, and they weren’t listening to her ideas. The realization hit her: they weren’t going to help the Pit. Senatai Island was waiting for the order to attack, but they weren’t going to help the people of Ironflare flee the city, nor were they going to help Shri’s father.
She knew what she had to do.
“I’m going to Ironflare,” Shri declared.
Eavan released and expectant sigh. “You see, this is what we can’t have.”
“No!” Shri cried. “What we can’t have is my family and friends getting torn to shreds by two rampaging armies! You want to stay here and play the King’s games? Fine. I’m going without you. I will help the people, and I will save my father.”
Eavan gave Shri a long, steady look. Her voice soft and quiet, she declared, “We don’t know if he is even alive. For all we know, Shea has ripped him.”
Shri’s throat tightened. “I would know if he was dead.”
“Shri, you must understand that he’s
been a prisoner for over two months.”
Joining Eavan at the railing, she muttered, “Two months...”
“Yes,” Eavan said. “Anything could have happened.”
“Two months,” Shri repeated. “You’ve known for that long, and you never told me?”
Eavan pursed her lips and turned away.
“What if Shea finds out he’s my father?” Shri turned her horrified eyes on Boa. “Have there been any messages for me? From the mainland?”
“No.”
“Don’t lie to me, Boa Riverson!” Shri grabbed his forearm. “Has Shea contacted me? She has, hasn’t she?”
“No, she hasn’t. At least...We haven’t received any messages.”
Shri pushed her face close to Boa’s, looking into his grave, blue eyes. They were kind eyes. He was a good man. “You can’t lie to me.”
Boa sighed. “There have been... attacks.”
“What do you mean?” Shri whispered.
“Attacks from the senatai of the Spike. They’ve been seen near the Island, and they’ve tried to get in past our wards. One did get in.”
Shri ‘s heart sunk. “The one I killed in the woods.”
Boa nodded.
“He was stalking me.” She cursed herself for her stupidity. “What do they want?”
“We can’t be sure, but we think Shea wants you.”
“Why?”
“We don’t know yet,” Eavan said. “But it’s important that she doesn’t get her hands on you until we know why.”
It felt like the air had been sucked away from Shri. She wrapped her hands around her neck, recalling Shea’s hateful face, her dagger pressed against her throat.
It’s me she wants. Maybe if she has me, she’ll let Father go.
“I’m going to the Spike.” Shri declared, and stormed away from the balcony.
Boa followed her inside and grabbed her sleeve, turning her around with anger beaming in his eyes. “Don’t be stupid! You don’t know which way to go. Your magic isn’t working. How do you expect to find your father, no less get him out of the dungeons? You’ll be up against pikes, drokashai, and some of the most ruthless senatai in the kingdom!”
“I’ll meet with the High Mistress,” Shri said. “Turn myself in. That’s what she wants, isn’t it? She wants me to go there and train inside the tower, to be part of her army.”
“No,” Eavan said. “Yes, she wants you, but why she needs you isn’t–”
“I don’t care. I’ll deal with it when I get there.”
Boa stared back at her. “Do you really think that if you give yourself to the Spike, she’s going to let your papa walk away as a free man? Are you that naïve?”
“The point is moot.” Entering the room, Eavan sat down in her chair and crossed her legs. “You aren’t going anywhere, Shri. Tomorrow, Boa and I are leaving for the mainland with a small contingent. You will stay here and continue your studies with Harnan.”
Shri grabbed the desk’s edge. “Take me with you! I need to go back to Ironflare! I’ll be careful. I’ll sneak in and out. Nothing will happen.”
“No,” Eavan lifted her hand. “You will stay here. You will learn. You will be ready to play your part when the moment comes.”
“But you can’t–”
“Yes, I can. There’s too much at stake to allow one of your tantrums to overturn everything I have worked for my entire life. We will leave, you will learn to draw magic, and you will not get yourself killed following your most destructive impulses. Magic is the only thing you need to focus on.”
Eavan, Boa and several other senatai and drokashai left the Island the next day. Shri stood on the stony shore once again, staring at the raging waves as they carried the boat off behind the horizon.
They had left her here like she was a child. She was trapped, unable to help her loved ones.
Soaking in her misery, she stared at the ocean, when her eyes caught something: a small boat rocking on the waves. She watched as it approached the shore, then finally docked. An old man stepped off, tied the boat, and lifted some heavy boxes onto the pier. A fisherman. Shri’s heart beat faster. Of course! Shri, you fool. There are other boats on the island.
When night fell on the next day, Shri grabbed her bag and made her way out of the Octopus. The fisherman, old Sambran, had promised to get her across the bay, but she had to escape at night. By daylight, she would never make it out of the school without drawing attention.
That evening, she stood by the door of her room, hand on the knob, and gazed around. She had been here only a few months, but the small chamber already felt like home. The striped rug, the curtains that kept out the early morning light, the little table where she kept her books. Teron had given her a few volumes, telling her they were worth perusing. He would be angry that she hadn’t read them. Yes, this room had become home, and leaving it wasn’t easy. It would have been wonderful to stay here and pretend everything was fine, but that wasn’t really an option.
Turning her back to the room, she snuck into the dim hallway and closed the door without making a sound. As it was past midnight, everyone was already sleeping. She held her shoes in her hand, tiptoeing past the sturdy brown doors of her fellow apprentices, most of whom she hadn’t even gotten to know. After this, the school would never let her practice magic again, but that was a sacrifice she was willing to make. It’s not like she could ever use it again, anyway.
She came to the end of the hallway. The magical orbs of light had been dimmed for the night, and they gave only a glimpse of light. She turned left and walked quickly past the dining room’s entrance. The main doors were always open; senatai had a habit of coming and going at peculiar times.
Shri leaned against the wall for a while, put on her shoes, and listened. Not a sound anywhere.
Gathering her courage, she cracked the door, just enough for her to squeeze through, and left the building. Once outside, she jumped like a rabbit into the puffy bushes. Her heart fluttered like a bird bathing in a pond. She almost burst into laughter. She was more afraid of the senatai catching than she had been during her encounter with a dragon.
After calming herself, she peeked out of her hiding spot. Only moths flew in circles around the orbs by the main door. Shri stood halfway up and ran to the nearby woods, where the trail to the other side of the island started. She faltered a couple of times on the roots and rocks, but she dared not to light her lantern.
After she had walked for a while, she slowed her pace, wrapping her cloak tightly around her. The wind blew harshly from the meadow, wavering her hair on her face. It would be winter soon, and this place was so far north and east that the chill winds had already reached the Island. As the trail continued deeper into the woods, the only thing Shri could hear was the wind creaking the tall trees, and her own brisk breathing in the quiet night. Once in a while, the activities of nocturnal animals crackled the bushes.
The clouds disappeared, and the moon came out. Darkness changed into pale, dim light. Staring at the moon and stars around it, Shri remembered Javid’s words.
Do you ever think about the stars, Shri Moongale?
She had not forgotten Javid. She remembered how kind-hearted he had been in the Gates, how brave, and how he felt the need to protect her even at his own expense. She hoped Javid was well, and secretly, she wished she could find him and bring him to the Island to stay with her. Javid would like it here, she was sure of that. She imagined how they would do everything together, from training to exploring the island.
She reached the fallen pine, one of the main landmarks on her journey. Kneeling, she crawled under the thick trunk, caking wet dirt onto her knees and hands. She could only imagine how tall it once had been; the trunk was wider than a horse. Still, she had no problems getting to the other side of it, and soon she straightened up again.
The trail continued on ahead, but her direction wasn’t that way. On one of her expeditions, she had discovered an old stone temple deep inside the forest. It’s once-m
ighty tower was shattered on the ground, and fallen stones were scattered around the ruins like tombstones. The moss, the plants, and the trees had taken over the area. Leaving the path by the fallen tree, she felt her way through the dark until she reached the fallen temple.
In the light of the moon, mist had begun to gather around the ruins. Shri jumped over the old moss-covered rocks. Though the tower was down, the main building was still intact. The building had been here for a long time, the atmosphere echoing with ancient sounds and filled with musty smells. Shri could taste the history in the air. Studying the area, Shri found the doorway she sought.
It was dark inside. As Shri reached for her lantern, a light flashed on behind her.
She leapt back in alarm, but let out a sigh when her eyes met with a familiar character by the door.
“Well.” Teron leaned against the gray wall behind him, the orb’s blue light dancing across his face. “You would leave without me, would you?”
The old building was well-hidden, and Shri had been extra-cautious. How had he been able to follow her without noticing?
“Teron, please just turn around and go back to the Octopus,” Shri said. “I don’t want to get you in trouble.” She couldn’t have anyone else’s fate on her conscience.
“What risks I choose to take are not yours to decide.”
With a sigh, Shri undid the buckles on her pack. As long as she was safe within the old temple, she might as well bed down for the rest of the night. First light wasn’t many hours away, and she had to be ready to meet the fisherman early in the morning. She lifted her arms as a sign of surrender. “How did you find me then?”
“I’m an air-talent senatai, remember?” Teron smirked. “I have marked you, so I can scout you. I saw you sneaking around the whole day, so it wasn’t much of a task to figure out what you were up to. I know you have friends and family in Ironflare, and I know Senatai Island is preparing to attack.”
Shri had forgotten that Teron was, indeed, an exceptional air-talent. Like Eavan, Teron could read minds, move the winds, and locate people. Someday, when he was a full senatai, he would be a grandmaster of such skills.
