Chapter 12 #2
“For those of you from the Families, this may come as a surprise, but you’re not loved out there in the world beyond your Houses, beyond Lambay.
There are many people—the ungifted, the poor, your own servants and bondsmen—who chafe under the Channellers’ yoke.
They depend upon us to grow their crops, raise their buildings, protect them from the dragon menace, yet they hate us for it.
For our power and for the price it exacts.
So know this. It’s natural for you to see each other as rivals, just like these two young women.
But never for a moment lose sight of the fact you’re all on the same side facing a common enemy.
You’re the elite, you’re not loved, and all you have is each other to maintain the Channellers’ rule. ”
He paused, then smiled. “Now. I’ve some power left over from that healing.
Who’d like to see how this game can be played?
” Sending the ball against the end of the alley above, he raced to the side wall, running vertically up it.
With a flick he pushed off to reach the ball in midair as it came flying back before somersaulting to land lightly on the ground.
Taking off again, he whipped the ball improbably high into the sky, then went shooting up into the air to meet it as it descended, volleying it with his foot against the end wall in midair.
He dived headfirst toward the ground, rolling at the last second to come up and catch the ball calmly in one hand as it flew back once more.
When at last he floated to the ground, calm and unruffled, excited apprentices clustered about him, teeming with questions.
éadha could see reflected in them the hunger she’d had in those few days in Ailm’s Keep when she’d drawn on the silver threads.
The hunger she still had churning inside her.
The beguiling, seductive appeal of being able to pass beyond normal human boundaries and become something more, effortlessly soaring above the rest. But Irial was well used to managing new apprentices, and soon they were on their way back to First House in their separate groups.
As they walked, Gry caught up with éadha again, his gray-green eyes amused as he looked down at her.
“Unintentional, my foot. Ailbhe De Paor was the junior Erisen handball champion when we were younger. She knew exactly what she was doing when she smashed that ball at your face. I thought I was the only person she detested that much. So, Ailm, what did you do to annoy her?”
“Smiled at the wrong person, I think,” said éadha ruefully.
“Well, try not to make a habit of it. With those Family girls, it’s a hazardous undertaking.”
“Why?” demanded éadha, suddenly exasperated.
There were too many games in this place, and she was getting tired of not understanding the rules.
She turned to look at Gry, her hands on her hips.
She was still deeply wary of him, but he was the only person on Lambay who seemed willing to talk, and right now she’d take that.
“One word,” he replied with a wry grin. “Power.” His grin widened as he took in her look of incomprehension.
“You really have wandered into the dragon’s den without a staff, haven’t you?
” He gestured toward the high walls of First House ahead of them.
“This place, it’s all about power. Having it, keeping it. ”
Stung, éadha replied, “I know that.”
“But not just in the way you think. How do you become powerful?”
“By being gifted.”
“True. But how do you stay powerful? By marrying someone gifted. This place, it’s not just a school.
It’s a Family mating zoo where all of us offspring try to pair up with each other so we can be sure our children will be gifted and our Families can stay powerful.
We’re all terrified of ending up like Ionáin’s Family—having the gift die out and trying to survive on scraps while you spend years praying the next generation will be born gifted. ”
He shrugged. “Ailbhe’s from one of the most powerful Families, and only the top Channeller apprentice will do for her. She thought I was a good bet because of my bloodline, before I went and let everyone down by only being a Keeper. I’ll just have to cope with the devastation.”
éadha glanced at him. It was hard to imagine anyone less devastated looking. His grin faded a little, though, as he went on.
“I do feel bad it’s turned out like this for her—suddenly under pressure to find a Channeller to pair up with because of me.
She’s the kind of person who should really be running a small city, or at the very least she should be head of a Family.
Instead, she’s stuck as a Keeper novice, where the only measure of success is finding a powerful husband.
With the added bonus if you marry early, you’ll probably duck out of a Westport posting because there’s always more Keeper apprentices than Channeller apprentices every year.
Us Keepers are a bit more likely to get fried by a dragon than a Channeller. ”
“But no one’s even used their power yet. Why focus on Ionáin now?”
Gry shrugged again, his voice matter-of-fact.
“My guess is she thinks he’s her best bet.
He’s from two ancient families, and everyone’s heard about the huge power flare at his Reckoning.
All the gossip is Master Dathin said he couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt one that strong.
And it’s a match both Families would support—they’ve been allies forever.
At the very least, she’ll be making sure she’s assigned his Keeper when training starts. ”
They’d reached the Keepers’ quad, where she followed Gry up the stairs toward their dorms, and she was glad he couldn’t see her face while she took in not just what he’d said but the casual way he’d said it.
As if Ionáin being traded away to some Family girl was just what was to be expected, when to her it felt as though her heart had just been pulled out through her chest. At the top of the stairs, he glanced back at her, all traces of humor gone as he said, “Good. Now you get it. This isn’t some game to these girls.
This is their lives, and they’ll do whatever it takes.
Clear any threat out of the way. I know Ionáin’s your friend, but he’s away in the Channellers’ quad, and he can’t protect you here.
So you need to watch yourself, do you understand? ”
éadha could only nod mutely. Gry’s stark expression softened a little, and he said more kindly, “Go on, you’d better get changed. We have history of channeling in a few minutes. Want to bet we’ll get the Three Brothers for our first lesson?”
As he walked down the whitewashed hallway toward his room, he began reciting the opening words of the Annals in a singsong voice.
“There was once a primitive land whose people dwelled in ignorance, huddled in hovels, their fields barren and their buildings ramshackle, scourged by the dragon menace.
Unto this land three brothers were born, the first of their kind, Channellers born, and their gift was to be the salvation and the glory of the land…”