Chapter 15 #2
“It’s important to remember that Anciela was a Phel,” Cillian replied with conviction.
Though this Phel ancestor wasn’t of his own line, he felt he knew and understood her in many ways.
She had also been a scholar, devoted to discovering critical information and preserving it.
“Anciela was a water magic wizard and she knew the Meresin climate. Any key she created would have been impervious to rot, mold, and water damage. She would’ve been a fool not to consider the potential damage there.
No, wherever she recorded that information, she made sure it would survive water and damp. ”
“And it might not be a book,” Han pointed out. It was his turn to flush as everyone turned stares on him. “You’re all bookish people, so you assume this is a text of some sort, but it might not be.”
“No,” Alise said in a hushed tone. “You’re right, Han, it probably isn’t a book. And she didn’t hide it in the library. There is one place that a wizard would hide something most precious to her. I know where it is.”
Cillian stared at her with dawning understanding. “The House Phel arcanium.”
“Yes.” Alise’s wizard-black eyes glinted with excitement.
“Now that I’ve been admitted to the House Elal arcanium, I understand better.
Every object of power, everything most secret, my father and our wizard ancestors before him stored in the arcanium—behind every layer of security generations of Elals could think up and put in place. ”
“And the House Phel arcanium is underwater,” Iliana said. “So anything inside it was already protected. You must be right, Alise.”
“How do you know where the Phel arcanium is?” Alise asked, seeming surprised. “These things are kept secret.
“When your father—” Han stopped and cleared his throat uncomfortably, “Lord Elal, that is, went to House Phel with the Sammaels, to take advantage of Nic’s abduction and Gabriel being in a coma, he invaded the arcanium.”
“Oh right,” Cillian realized. “That’s when Gabriel took Elal’s eye instead of killing him.”
“So, we know generally where it is,” Han said.
“Under the lake that’s in front of the manse,” Iliana put in helpfully.
“Of course it is,” Alise breathed with dawning understanding. “Underwater. Makes sense.”
“But we don’t know exactly, of course,” Han continued, “nor how they access it or any of the tricks.”
“Tricks?” Cillian asked, mostly of Alise.
“Does House Harahel not have an arcanium?” she asked him in return.
“No.” He shook his head, thought. Shook his head again. “Not unless it’s so closely guarded a secret that I don’t even know about its existence, which I suppose is possible, but… In general, you know, library magic doesn’t require the kind of power arcaniums are used to store and amplify.”
Alise nodded thoughtfully. “Well, I don’t know about the House Phel arcanium—the houses go to great pains to keep information about their arcaniums unknown to anyone but the heads and their heirs—but I think it’s fair to assume they have certain commonalities.
Access to the arcanium is disguised, but then there are various enchantments along the way that only someone highly skilled in the house’s magic can dispel or solve. ”
“So, access to the House Phel arcanium will require water and moon magic, along with specialized knowledge.”
“That would be my assumption.”
“We need to send a message to Nic and Gabriel,” Cillian said. “I hate to disturb them while they’re still closeted with newborn Bria, but this shouldn’t be asking too much. We have to get them to look in—”
“Eep,” Iliana said, tentatively holding up a hand, like a student in class with what she’s afraid will be a silly question.
Han wrapped his hand around hers and lowered it. “We probably forgot to mention that part. Nic and Gabriel are at Convocation Academy.”
“They’re where?” Alise gasped.
Cillian’s head throbbed. “Of course they are. Why would they be at home where it would be convenient?”
“They came to House Harahel, looking for you, Cillian,” Han explained. “They were trying to find a way to rescue Alise without risking going to Elal.”
“Just like Jadren and Seliah were,” Alise said on a sigh. “I feel really bad that everyone was worried about me.”
“Don’t,” Cillian said, more sharply than he meant to, then sighed and took her hand, interlacing his fingers with hers. He caught and held her black gaze. “It’s all right that people love you and want to help you.”
She softened. “I know. I’m just not used to it.”
“I know.” He felt he wanted to say so much more, but they had an audience.
“I love you, too,” she said quietly, with a smile that said she had followed his thought and didn’t care.
Iliana squealed and clapped her hands together. “You finally admitted it!” Han raised his eyes to the sky and shook his head in exasperation.
Alise transferred her smile to Iliana. Though she was blushing faintly, Alise seemed otherwise unembarrassed. “Some of us take longer than others to recognize the obvious.”
Cillian squeezed Alise’s hand, overwhelmed with love for her. “So, what do we do—go to House Phel?”
“It’s not going to do much good for us to go there,” Alise pointed out. “Even if we could find the Phel arcanium, we can’t open it—and I wouldn’t want to violate their trust that way, regardless.”
“Besides,” Han said, “we are under strict orders to bring you two to Convocation Academy.”
“Yes.” Iliana pretended to shudder, though it might not have been entirely a pretense. “Provost Uriel is not someone I want to cross. Again.”
“You weren’t frightened of her last year when you decided we should escape,” Han teased her.
“I was motivated by true love,” she replied with dignity.
“And now?” he asked, raising his pale brows.
“Now I’m motivated by the desire to keep my true love and have a good life with him.”
He kissed her nose. “Admirable.”
“We need to stop the carriages and consult with Jadren and Seliah,” Cillian told them all.
Alise looked the question at him. “Are you thinking…?”
“Yes. Seliah is House Phel, so she’ll be able to provide the water and moon magic, and she’ll be attuned to the place, able to find her way through.”
Alise shook her head a little, though she was smiling. “And Jadren is clever and amoral enough not to worry about violating trust.”
“Plus they had to find their way through to the House El-Adrel arcanium on their own, following Katica’s death,” Cillian agreed. “So they’re accustomed to the puzzle of it.”
Alise gave him a curious look. “How do you know that?”
“Jadren mentioned it, one time when we were chatting after the siege. He didn’t share a lot of details, of course, just that it was quite the puzzle, even with the house helping them.”
She rolled her eyes dramatically. “I had no idea you spent so much time hanging out with Lord El-Adrel, being buddies.”
“You were busy a great deal,” he pointed out equably.
And, to the surprise of both of them, Cillian and Jadren had discovered they got along quite well.
Especially for two people with very disparate upbringings.
But they were also both guys who didn’t have many friends—Jadren because he’d never had the opportunity to make them and Cillian because of his natural aversion to socializing.
“All right then,” Alise agreed. “Let’s see what they think of this plan.”