CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
I hurry through the city, to the tower claimed by the resistance. The moon shines above, and magical orbs glow in the street. The latter make me wonder what Selene’s version of Aetheria would be like.
I have no doubt the city would be filled with more magic than ever. The scholarly towers around me would become the homes of the key figures within the city, their magical power making them figures of authority as well. It would be a city filled with wonders.
But I suspect there would also be terrors, especially for those without magic.
Selene wants a city ruled by the most powerful magic users, but where would that leave the nulls?
Would they be little better than the slaves the old empire claimed?
Would those with magic be able to simply command them in any way they saw fit?
I don’t know. Maybe Selene will seek justice for everyone there. Maybe she’s serious about me having a place beside her, where I can prevent the worst excesses of what she has planned.
Wait, am I tempted by her offer? That thought catches me by surprise.
I must admit that there are some tempting elements to what she’s proposing.
The idea of an Aetheria where status isn’t down to birth or wealth, where there is at least an element of merit, is tempting.
And I know that I would have a powerful position within it.
In a society focused on magical power, I would have more than almost anyone. Perhaps only Selene would be stronger.
But I’m not tempted for long. Whatever position I gained in Selene’s new society, it wouldn’t be enough to make up for the damage she does as she takes power, or the cruelty she inflicts on those without magic.
I need to focus on stopping her, which means I must try to find some way to stop her during her gathering.
There’s only one night left before it now. Alaric, Marcus and I have spent the past two days making preparations. I hope they’ll be enough.
The tower is just ahead. Thalia is waiting by the door, letting me inside.
"Elanar is near the top," she says. "We're going to get him out of the city tonight, but he wants to say goodbye. Alaric is waiting on the upper floor, and Senator Marcus is there too."
I can hear the bitterness as Thalia says Marcus’ name.
“You don’t like having him here?” I ask.
Thalia shakes her head. “He represents the kind of old, ordered city that makes the Republic a kind of vague shadow of the empire, complete with all the corruption. He’s behind the death matches. You know that, Lyra, but you’re still working with him?”
I can’t explain that Marcus is running the games to uncover corruption, because I’m still not sure whether I fully believe it. I’ve felt what he wants for the future. He wants some pure, perfect version of the Republic. The question is whether Marcus can ever get there with the methods he’s chosen.
“We all need to work together if we’re going to stop Selene,” I say.
Thalia nods. “The question is what happens then. Do we defeat her, only for the city to fall into civil war?”
“I hope not,” I say. I sigh and head up through the tower. No one is pretending to be an artist tonight. Instead, people are sharpening weapons, or practicing with whatever magical abilities they possess. They’re getting ready for a fight tomorrow.
Elanar is waiting for me on one of the upper floors. He’s sitting on the edge of a bed, with a small sack beside him which I suspect holds his belongings. He’s clearly ready to leave, and I can see the tension in him. He stands as I enter the room.
“Lyra, you’re finally here. I thought I might have to go without seeing you.”
“You’re ready to leave?” I say. “Does that mean I’m ready?”
Elanar nods. “I’ve shown you the things I know. Can you sense the emotions within this tower?”
I stretch out my attention, and now it’s simple for me to feel the tension there, the excitement, the fear, in some cases. I nod.
“I can.”
“And can you influence them?” Elanar asks.
I reach out again, sending out soothing waves of emotion. I calm some of the anxiety, easing some of the tension.
Elanar smiles. “Of course you would influence things to make people a little happier and less ferocious.”
“You don’t think I should?” I say.
Elanar puts his hand on my arm. “Ultimately, each of us must choose what we do with the powers we possess. I’m sure Lady Elara would have wanted you to drive people to greater heights of ferocity. But one aspect of these skills is judging what’s right in the situation.”
“So you think there are times when I should make people behave like animals?” I say.
Elanar laughs. “You know better than to think beasts only behave one way. I’m sure you’ve felt them at peace and on the verge of violence, the gentle protectiveness of a large herbivore with its young and the focused deadliness of a predator on the prowl.
For centuries, people have assumed that beast whisperers are all furious, deadly, halfway to being animals.
Remember that we can be all kinds of things. ”
It's a larger conception of those with our skills than most people in Aetheria imagine, or even than Lady Elara imagined.
“Do you think this skill will let me undo Selene’s psychomancy?” I ask him.
Elanar nods. “Remember, you can tap into something deeper than people’s conscious thoughts.
That might well be enough to overwhelm her influence.
And it might be useful in other situations.
In a battle, you could make your foes feel fear, while your side unlock their aggression and power.
In other situations, you could calm someone or make them feel excited, stir up lust or deflect their attention. ”
I have one last question for him. “Is this right, though, Elanar? Should I really manipulate people’s emotions like this?”
The elderly beast whisperer spreads his hands. “Like all your skills, this is a tool. One you can use for good or ill. Would you use your other talents to tear good people to shreds?”
“No, of course not,” I say.
“But you would use them to protect someone from harm?”
I see his point. The rights and wrongs of influencing emotions will come down to each situation.
“I hope I do the right thing with this,” I say.
Elanar smiles. “I have every confidence you will. There are those who say great power corrupts us. We can act as we wish, and so we think that it’s right to do so. I think great power just unveils more of who we truly are. And from what I hear, you have always tried to use your powers for good.”
“Not always,” I say. “I’ve done cruel things. Things I’ll have to live with.”
Elanar nods. “And do you think Selene Ravenscroft is haunted by any of her mistakes?”
I suspect she isn’t. She seems so filled with certainty about what she has planned. She’s decided how the world must be, and she will reshape it, no matter how many people get hurt.
“Thank you, Elanar,” I say.
“No, thank you,” Elanar replies. “I’ve gotten the chance to see at first hand a beast whisperer more powerful than I dreamed could exist. You need to trust in that power, Lyra, and in yourself. Now, I should go. Thalia will be waiting for me.”
He hurries off, ready to be smuggled from the city.
I head up to the top floor of the tower, where Alaric and Marcus are poring over a map of Ironhold, the tension palpable between them.
Almost without thinking about it, I soothe those emotions, stilling their rivalry for the moment.
In this case, it feels like the right thing to do.
“Is everything arranged for tomorrow?” I ask them.
“Almost,” Alaric says. “My people will follow you as you approach, and try to enter Ironhold without being seen. Marcus tells me he can find us a way inside.”
“I’ve been moving guards I believe to be loyal into the fortress,” he says. “There won’t be many of them, but they’ll be able to open a side door.”
“I’ve also arranged to bring a couple of creatures close to the fortress,” Alaric says. “Someone dug the crocodile out of the depths, and we have cages of bats and birds. It should give you at least some chance to use your powers, Lyra.”
At least now Elanar had shown me how to reach for the gifts of animals at a distance.
“I’ve slipped another few in as bodyguards to nobles attending the gathering,” Marcus says. “If it comes to a fight, they’ll be there.”
I hope tomorrow won’t turn into a fight. Even with Alaric’s followers and Marcus’ supporters, I’m not sure we would have the strength to take on a whole fortress’s worth of guards.
“Remember, we’re going to gather information,” I say.
Alaric nods. “But if the opportunity comes to stop what Selene is planning, we must take it.”
“For once, I agree with Alaric,” Marcus says. “There may come a point tomorrow where you have a chance to stop Selene, once and for all.”
“You’re talking about killing her?” I say.
Marcus nods.
“There must be a better way,” I insist.
“If she’s planning to take the city, and she has the power to turn anyone to her cause, she’s too dangerous to leave alive,” Marcus insists.
“Is that what you think?” I ask Alaric.
“I think it’s your choice,” Alaric says. “But if you can end this threat, Aetheria will be safer for it.”
They’re talking as though I’m going in there to assassinate Selene. I don’t know if that’s something I can do, even for the sake of the city. There must be a better way. I just hope that, whatever that way is, I can find it before Selene puts her plans into action.