Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
Ibreathed underwater and kicked my legs with ease, feeling as if I had a snorkeling mask and fins on.
Even though I was wearing clothes, the water slid right over me, and I sliced effortlessly through it.
Swimming with an aquatic affinity was always a life-changing experience, yet my few swims in rivers and lakes couldn’t compare. We were in the ocean.
Nevah led us through a tunnel made of the woody prop roots of the mangrove trees that sank into the soil beneath us. I gracefully moved my arms through the salty water to keep up with her.
After a few moments, she paused and pointed to her right. When I followed her finger, I saw a school of gray-and-yellow fish flitting around a tree’s widespread roots.
Nevah continued to point out plant and animal life as we swam for about half a mile in the dark, shallow water, Nalin occasionally darting off to swim with the fish, then she turned and touched my arm. She pointed ahead, and I saw the mangrove root tunnel was narrowing and angling down.
I took it as a sign to stay with her then followed her into the tighter space. We swam for only thirty seconds before Nevah veered upward, me right on her heels.
A tightening sensation came over me, and I could feel access to my powers cut off, instantly dissolving the connection to the aquatic plants I had been experiencing.
Just like at Evergreen Academy and the tree and moss conservatories, I wouldn’t be able to use my magic there thanks to the founders’ curse.
I refocused on Nevah, and moments later, we popped our heads out of a shallow pool.
I gasped at the sudden influx of air then pushed my hair out of my face, taking in the sight around me. “By the ferns,” I murmured.
“No fern affinity expressions here, B. Welcome to the aquatics conservatory.”
She helped me out of the pool of water, and Nalin emerged a few moments later, a grin splashed across his face. We were in a large glass dome, the ocean on the other side of it.
“We’re underwater?” I was so surprised that my eyes must have been nearly as large as the dome. We had been swimming, but I imagined we would emerge on a barrier island. Instead, we were on the ocean floor, the sea a pool of life above us.
“Yep. The whole conservatory is down here, except for a few research outposts.”
“And this is where you live?”
Nevah smiled. “Pretty swell, right?”
“How come all the water isn’t rushing in through the entrance pool we just came in?”
“There’s a special valve, made by magically enhanced plants and the mangrove roots, back there where it narrows. I tried to point it out but obviously couldn’t explain it. Once you pass through there, the water is secured, and the quantity doesn’t shift through the passage.”
“How does our luggage get in?” I asked, remembering where we had dropped off our items into the strange chute.
“An air tunnel runs near the path we swam in. Anything that needs to stay dry is sent in through there on a conveyor system along the sea shelf. Let’s go see if they’re here yet.”
We collected our bags from a window identical to the one in the building where we’d dropped them off, then Nevah led us down a narrow hallway.
It felt like being in a large submarine but with an aquarium viewing window above.
She tapped on a door to the left, which had a water lily painted in the center.
“That’s my room. You’ll be a few down in a guest pod. ”
We continued along the hallway until Nevah stopped and opened a different door, which had a seashell painted on the front.
I inhaled sharply as I stepped inside. The entire opposite wall was made of glass and had a view of a splendid coral reef. It was like a rare underwater hotel from a travel magazine. “I get to sleep here?” I asked, disbelieving.
I continued to stare through the wall, where seagrass lined the floor against the glass, and fish darted in every direction.
“When I first got here, I don’t think I slept for a week. There are special lights you can turn on that don’t affect the sea life but allow you to see outside at night. I couldn’t stop staring.”
“I wish I had my paint supplies,” I said, suddenly itching for a brush or at least my sketchpad.
“I think there are some art supplies around here.” Nevah dropped my bag onto a chair. “Look around and get settled. I’ll take Nalin to his room. It’s just three down from yours.”
After sliding my backpack off my shoulders, I stood there for a few moments, marveling at the ocean.
Before long, a soft knock at the door interrupted my awe. Nevah pushed it open. “Are you hungry?”
As if on cue, my stomach growled. Even though it was well after dark in Florida, back home, it was dinnertime. I followed her and Nalin through the hallway again, bringing my backpack—and the quill—with me.
Our route returned us to the central room we had swum into then to a large commercial kitchen area. Nevah pulled a few glass containers from a fridge and got them heating in the microwave.
“Please tell me there’s saltwater taffy in here,” Nalin said, peeking into the cupboards.
“Plenty. And there are some seaweed crisps on that shelf there.” Nevah pointed.
Once she had given us each a warmed snack pack of fish, rice, and cooked seaweed, we settled onto beanbag chairs in a private corner of the lounge area.
Each of the plush seats was shaped like an open shell.
The ocean overhead was slightly lit so that we could see the marine life flitting above us.
Those must be the special lights Nevah had mentioned.
A kettle whistled from the kitchen, and Nevah fetched it then returned with a tray of glass jars filled to the top with loose-leaf teas and honeys. “Even underwater, magical botanists must have their tea,” she said as she set the tray on the table in front of us.
A man about our age came over and kissed Nevah on the cheek. He was of Pacific Islander descent, and he squished himself into the clamshell chair Nevah was occupying.
“Briar, Nalin, this is Kai. Kai, meet my friends.”
“Hey, Nalin. Always nice to meet a fellow aquatic.” He turned to me. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Briar. Sorry our time at Evergreen Academy never overlapped.”
“Same. Nice to meet you,” I said, noticing he had the muscled arms of a strong swimmer.
“So, Nalin, you didn’t go into much detail about why you wanted to be placed in a study here for the week or why you”—Nevah nodded toward me—“were tagging along.”
I sat up straighter and rested my chopsticks against the side of the bowl then did a quick scan of the area. Aquatics didn’t have access to scouting vine magic, but looking for them before sharing anything private was ingrained in me.
Nevah noticed the movement. “Don’t worry. There is no one to overhear us.”
I nodded but leaned in closer and lowered my voice. “Are you familiar with the Vanished Compendium?”
Nevah’s eyes widened, and she nodded. “The fabled missing book of Floracantus.”
“We think it’s here. Or near here,” I said. Then I filled them in on everything the Root and Vine Society had been up to the past few months, including our trip to the tree conservatory to acquire the quill.
“When we checked the quill at the airstrip, it said we were less than twenty miles from it,” Nalin finished.
Nevah sat forward, her eyes shining. “Have you tried it since we got in here?”
I shook my head and tapped the small backpack by my feet. When they all nodded, I opened it and pulled out the quill, keeping it low and out of sight on the small table between us, even though the area was free of people for the night.
The quill spun ever so slightly, pointing north. The magical distance key on the quill changed to indicate that we were within two miles of the book.
Nevah frowned. “Two miles. That wouldn’t be down here, then. Some of our barrier island research centers are within that range, but none of them are north of here.” She glanced at Kai.
“So, it’s not in the aquatics conservatory,” Nalin mused. “But it’s close to it. That’s strange. Do you think someone buried it nearby and thought that would be safer than hiding it within the conservatory, where it might be found?”
Buried. I hadn’t considered that possibility.
Kai gazed at the quill and the direction it was pointing. “I go out that way sometimes for research. There’s not much out there, but we can look. We’ll go first thing in the morning.”
Nevah leaned forward. “With everything you told me about what’s going on at the academy, it’s time I filled you in on what’s been going on here.”
Nalin straightened, and we both fixed our focus on Nevah.
“Most members of the Magical Botanical Board of Regents also have appointments on the seats overseeing the conservatories. Here at the aquatics conservatory, we’ve been having more frequent visits from Primrose Marsh, the aquatics representative on the board. ”
“What kind of visits?” Nalin asked.
“Checking in on who we are sharing our research findings with. Wanting to know what patents we have pending. Ensuring that ‘top talent’”—she made air quotes—“is recruited to work here. Kai has been under a lot of pressure.” She glanced at him, her expression gentle.
“He’s not from a prominent family, but he has a rare gift.
He’s constantly being tasked with missions when he would rather focus on research. ”
“Rare gift?” Nalin asked then let out a soft gasp. “Can you waterbend? We heard rumors that there was someone at the academy who could do it a few years ago.”
Kai nodded, Nalin looked giddy, and Nevah hurried to add, “Don’t say anything back at the academy, though, okay? Very few people know the extent of his skill.”
“Does waterbend mean what it sounds like?” I asked.
Nevah made a loop with her finger, and a trail of water jumped from her glass to Kai’s hand, where he caught it with ease.
“Most aquatics have some basic adhesion with water. But people who can waterbend can move much larger quantities of water at a time. I don’t know anyone else alive who can do what Kai can do. ”
Nalin looked perplexed, and he stared at Kai. “Can I interview you?”
I stifled a laugh, but Kai just shrugged. “Happy to share what I can.”
“Callan can sense powers, and Kai can waterbend. What other rare abilities are out there?” I asked.
“There are a few more, all incredibly infrequent in the population. They all seem to have something to do with the natural elements, which is why Callan’s power sensing is an outlier,” Nevah said.
Kai’s eyebrows pulled together. “Is it an outlier, though? Do you know how his ability works?”
“What do you mean?” Nevah asked.
“Callan has a strong wind manipulating power, doesn’t he? Stronger than most of the tree affinities? What if his power sensing ability is an extension of that?”
“How would that work?” I asked. “The wind is carrying the trace of power to him?”
Kai shrugged. “Seems possible. Has he ever explained the sensation?”
“Not really,” I said, wishing Callan were with us so we could discuss it together.
“It’s not like you haven’t had enough mysteries to solve,” Nevah said with a smile.
“All right, I know you two are on West Coast time, but I’m tired.
We rise early in here because the ocean rises early.
Let’s meet up for breakfast, and we’ll get you started with wherever the quill leads, B.
Nalin, I’ll introduce you to your temporary research group. ”
He nodded eagerly, obviously looking forward to it, and stuffed a few pieces of taffy into his pocket.
“In that case, I’ll see you both in the morning. Enjoy your first night under the ocean, B.”