52. Faylinn
Chapter 52
Faylinn
T he morning after my arrival in Vespera I awoke abruptly in the sitting room to the sound of feet and hushed voices. Tried as I might, I couldn’t stay awake for Rohak to return, and he either was too busy with Lord d’Refan, or forgot about me entirely. I shook off the creeping feeling of inadequacy and rejection as I pulled myself to a sitting position on the couch.
I groaned involuntarily while stretching my neck.
Note to self, couches are not made to sleep on .
It was deceptive, really. The couch looked plush and ridiculously comfortable, but that proved to be a complete lie this morning.
My muscles spasmed and my bones clicked as I stretched. I was interrupted from my morning stretch when I heard a small scream and the clattering of plates and silverware as they hit the ground.
“Oh, shit!” someone, a woman, exclaimed.
I jumped from the couch, suddenly extremely alert after the cacophony of noise, and looked around for the threat.
My heartbeat eased and my breath slowed as I noticed the cause of the commotion. A woman, a servant judging by her plain grey dress and severe bun, hastily scooped the upended food from the floor back onto the tray she dropped.
“Here, let me help you,” I said as I walked over to where she was crouched. She startled again and hastily scooped up the tray.
“No, no, that’s quite alright, miss, I can do it. It is my job after all.” Her face was downcast, and the tray shook in her hands.
“Sure, but I can help. I’m perfectly capable of cleaning up a mess,” I said. The woman fidgeted before setting the tray on the table and lifting her head slightly, her eyes tracking the scars and tattoos that littered the exposed skin on my arms.
The attention and silence made me jumpy, and I absently scratched at the scars, my fingers lingering over one of the runes tattooed into my skin.
“Is it true?” she whispered suddenly, and I had to bend down to hear her.
“Is what true?”
What could she have possibly heard about me? I arrived less than a day ago.
“That you’re the Bondsmith? You can activate runes that no one’s ever seen before?” There was a note of reverence in her voice, but I couldn’t help a laugh that escaped, my previous anxiety gone, and I dropped my hand from my scars.
“Can I use runes? Yes. Do I use runes that are more advanced than your traditional acolyte? Sure. Am I the Bondsmith?” I chuckled again. “The Bondsmith is a children’s story. So, no. I’m no Bondsmith. Everyone can use runes; magic is innate in our blood. I just happen to know more than others.” I shrugged my shoulders at the end, but the woman didn’t seem deterred in the slightest. In fact, she seemed more revenant than before.
We stared at each other in slightly awkward and uncomfortable silence for a few moments before I broke it.
“Is that, uh, my breakfast?” I asked, gesturing to the selection of baked goods, fresh fruit, and some sort of chilled orange meat I had never seen before, that was now entirely in disarray.
“Oh!” The woman jumped. “Yes! I am so sorry, Bondsmith, I can go fetch fresh food if you’d like?”
I shook my head. “I’m not the Bondsmith. Please, call me Fay. And that won’t be necessary, thank you. This food is perfectly fine. I’ve eaten worse.” I gave her a smile and she blanched.
“Yes, well, great. I should really get going, Bondsmith. Er, Fay. Miss Fay.” She curtsied hurriedly and tried to run from the room .
“Wait!” I called, throwing my hand out to stop her progress. She whirled by the door and regarded me with wide doe-brown eyes.
How old is she?
“Yes, Miss Fay?”
“Where is the General? He was supposed to visit last night, and he never came . . .” I trailed off at the rising blush in her cheeks.
“Not like that!” I practically screamed.
Oh gods. That’s the last thing I needed—the staff calling me the Bondsmith and thinking I was sleeping with Rohak .
The servant’s cheeks were still pink, and she giggled a bit uncomfortably. “Word is he didn’t return home last night, but you’re welcome to look for him in his office in the administration building. He generally has an early start to his day and sometimes even sleeps there.”
“Right. The administrative offices. Got it. Thank you . . .” I trailed off, searching for her name.
“Jen, Miss Fay. Just Jen.” I smiled and thanked her as she curtsied again and flew from the room.
What an odd duck .
As odd as she was, it was clear that word and gossip traveled fast amongst the servants, much like it did back in Isrun. I was certain tales of who I was and what I did would circulate quickly, but I could only hope that the Bondsmith rumor started and stopped here.
And what of the rumor of you and Rohak sharing a bed?
I shook my head to clear the thought before diving into the breakfast. I hungrily tore into the food and moaned obscenely at the taste of everything.
When was the last time I ate something that wasn’t vegetable stew or travel rations?
Weeks—before even the initial Mage occupation—since I’d eaten something this good. The bread practically melted in my mouth, the fruit was tart and burst on my tongue. I shoved it all in like a woman starved, and I poked at the orange meat with a fork I’d found on the ground.
I cut a small piece of it, it flaked off nicely, as I chewed the food already stuffed in my mouth. Completely oblivious to my surroundings, I nearly choked when I heard a deep voice from behind me.
“I’m fairly certain there’s enough in your mouth already, Faylinn.”
I screamed, but it sounded a bit more like “Mmgahm” with all of the food in my mouth and I promptly dropped the fork with the weird orange meat on it. It clattered to the floor, and I heard Cotton pad over and snack on it with a soft “meow.”
If the cat likes that, I decidedly won’t be eating it .
I whirled around and faced General d’Alvey, my cheeks still puffed full of food, and smacked his chest.
“Dondodat,” I garbled, and he raised an eyebrow at me, his gaze flicking to where my hand hit his chest.
“Swallow. It’s not polite to speak with your mouth full, Faylinn.”
I gulped.
Why did that sound so sexual coming out of his mouth?
I swallowed a second time as I stared at him. His green eyes were trained on my face, and I saw them flick to my throat as it contracted around my breakfast.
Interesting . Perhaps the rock wasn’t as unaffected as I thought .
“You need to get dressed. I’ve brought some clothes for you to wear.” He thrust a linen bag into my arms. “You’ll be accompanying me to the administrative offices for the foreseeable future. You need to meet Lord d’Refan and I need to train you before you can officially start. I’m not entirely certain what your days will look like, but I’m sure a lot of reading will be involved.”
He gave me a small smile at my obvious look of excitement.
Books!
“Okay!” I practically vibrated with excitement as I ran to the bedroom, shucking my shirt as I went.
“Faylinn,” I heard Rohak practically growl.
“What?” I called as I finished stripping and pulled on the clothes from the bag. A breast band and underwear went on first, then the softest black pants and tunic I’d ever felt quickly followed. I exited the bedroom just as quickly as I entered and saw a flushed Rohak holding a pair of black leather boots.
I wrinkled my nose at him as I gathered my mess of curls into a haphazard knot at the back of my head.
“You can’t just strip in front of people.”
I rolled my eyes as I tucked in the tunic. “If you recall, General, after I saved Sol’s life, you were the one who carried me into the inn and stripped my bloody clothes before laying me in bed. I don’t see how this is any different. It’s just skin, after all.”
He grunted before shoving the boots at me. “It is different. You need to wear these today.” I shook my head at him. “Faylinn, I know you hate shoes. But you can’t just walk around the city and the administrative offices in nothing but your bare feet. We need you to make a solid impression on the people here, and bare feet isn’t necessarily the way to do it. Plus, there’s all manner of germs and disgusting things that line the walkways. Please, just wear them.” He shook them at me, and I uncrossed my arms to grab them from him.
“ Fine . But I want an uninterrupted hour in the gardens today, with bare feet and a book,” I said as I pulled the boots onto my feet.
Argh. At least they’re comfortable . I hated my feet contained.
“Done. Now, let’s go.” He opened the door impatiently.
“Oh! One more thing!” I quickly put the plate of orange meat on the floor and stroked Cotton’s head. “Be good, Cotton. I’ll read you a bedtime story tonight if you behave.”
Cotton meowed contentedly as he attacked the food, and I wrinkled my nose in disgust.
Rohak looked at me like I was certifiably nuts.
“You do realize that is imported salmon from the upper-most part of Elyria, right?” I shrugged my shoulders as we exited the room.
“Okay? That’s great, but if Cotton likes it, then there’s no reason I should be eating it.”
He looked at me as we walked together through the manor. “You are incredibly strange, Faylinn.”
Something warmed in me, and I laughed. I’d been called strange my entire life, but something in the way he said it made it sound like a compliment.
The walk to the administrative offices was short and I tried not to grumble the whole way about the boots. Sure, they were a beautiful, supple, black leather, the price of which would probably feed the entire Henshaw family for months, but they were still shoes and I hated anything on my feet .
“Can I take these off when we get to your office?” I groused as we entered the building. The interior was just as nondescript as the exterior and was really quite depressing.
No wonder Rohak doesn’t want to work here all the time .
As much as even the sight of the Academy gave me unwarranted chills, I’m certain the training barracks and yard in the back were much more preferable to this sad beige heap.
“After you meet with Lord d’Refan, yes,” he said as we walked down the empty hallway toward the stairs.
I humphed my disagreement but followed him up the stairs and to a nondescript wood door with a small clear orb inlaid in the wall. This one looked similar to the orb that was nestled in the wall on the outside of my room, and it appeared that it had the same function as well. Rohak placed his hand on it, and the orb glowed white for a moment before dulling again as the door clicked open. Rohak pushed through fully, revealing a dark space, his incredibly cluttered desk the only thing visible in the weak light filtering in from the open door.
With the push of a button inlaid on the wall, the strange orbs pressed into the ceiling illuminated, instantly casting light throughout the entire space.
I gasped as I took in the sight.
How did that happen? I was positively mesmerized by the strange light orbs, frozen by the display of magic.
“How do they work? What are they?” The questions rushed out of me as my brain tried to draw conclusions from nothing.
“Art and Gene, our Magical Experiments Department, call them light orbs. To my best understanding, they harness previously trapped Fire Magic and when I touch the button, it funnels that magic into these glass orbs.” He gestured to the ceiling. “Once we’re done using them, we click the button again and it shuts off the flow of magic.”
My mouth hung open as I took in the creative and amazing use of magic.
“Wow,” I breathed.
Rohak chuckled. “I’m certain Gene and Art will stop by at some point today—or multiple times today—and you are free to pick their brains if you want. ”
I nodded my head vigorously, excited over the possibility of learning something completely new.
“I’m going to need a new journal, I think,” I mumbled to myself as I stepped farther into the room. It was long—excessively so, and the walls were dominated by a mixture of maps, drawings, and bookcases. The only places to sit were behind Rohak’s immeasurably cluttered desk, or in a wingback chair all the way on the opposite side of the room. “We’ll need another chair or something, too,” I remarked.
“Very well, I’ll have one sent up. And if you look on that shelf”—he pointed to the bookcases that lined the back of the wall, most of them empty—“there should be a few blank journals you can fill.”
I smiled gratefully at him before making my way to the back of the room and selecting a few notebooks to keep track of all the new information I would inevitably gather while in Vespera.
“Faylinn, before Lord d’Refan arrives, which should be relatively soon, I want to explain the nature of your position.” I hugged the journals to me before I nodded once.
“You will serve both me and Lord d’Refan while you are here. Most likely your day will be filled completely from sunrise to sunset, or later. You are not required to work the hours that I do, but there may be days where it is necessary.” I nodded my head, unsurprised.
“I was used to working weird and long hours as the Healer in Isrun. Work is not a foreign concept to me, General.”
He grunted, “Good. You will start by organizing the missives on my desk.” He gestured to the hundreds of papers that were stacked haphazardly about. “Sort into three piles: ones that I need to see, ones that we need to answer, and ones that we need to burn.”
“How will I know the difference between the three?”
Rohak gave me one of his rare smiles. “You’ll figure it out quite quick, I’m sure. If you find anything from the NUT organization, or similar, those are instant burn. Things from foreign dignitaries or about troop movements are for me, and requests from lesser nobles or merchants in the city can be put in the mid category.”
“NUT?” He grimaced at my question.
“Just . . . you’ll see as you read. Once the missives are sorted, you are free to work on whatever else. I’m sure Lord d’Refan will have books and tomes he’ll want you to decode, but you’re free to explore the city or the offices here. I want you to feel . . . comfortable.” He added the last part almost as an afterthought, like it wasn’t exactly what he wanted to say.
“Are you giving away State secrets already, Rohak? I expected you to last a little longer than that, but I can see why you’d open up so quickly, old friend. She really is quite something,” a new voice sounded from the doorway, and I turned to see a man that vaguely reminded me of Rohak.
He was shorter, with a slightly rounded belly, and fathomless black eyes that seemed to shake a bit as he stared at me. But they both had the same black hair and tanned skin.
I glanced at Rohak and noticed that while his body was tense, his face relaxed a modicum. “Lord d’Refan, this is . . .”
“Fay,” Lord d’Refan purred as he stalked toward me, stopping just short of my feet. While short, he was still considerably taller than me and I strained to look up at him. Everything in me screamed to take a step back, that the man was dangerous, an apex predator, but I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind and held firm, even if I shook slightly.
“Pleased to meet you, Lord d’Refan.” I stuck out my trembling hand for him to shake. “Thank you for allowing me to stay in the guest quarters of your palace. I appreciate it more than you can understand. My village was destroyed recently, as I’m sure the General told you, and I really have nowhere else to go at this point.”
He shook my hand, his larger calloused palm engulfing my own. “The pleasure is all mine,” he intoned as he kissed the back of my hand. I suddenly had the feeling of ants crawling in my skin and Rohak tensed at Lord d’Refan’s actions. “Rohak tells me you’re a Rune Master.”
Straight to business then .
“Yes, well, I don’t know if ‘master’ is the correct term, but I do know a few things about runes.” I gently pulled my hand from his grasp and Lord d’Refan let it drop, shooting me a smile that I’m sure he thought was reassuring. It only made me feel like stuck prey.
“Hmm. Yes. Well, rumors from the staff say that you’re the Bondsmith.” His tone was mocking, and I felt my cheeks pink at his words. “Rumor also has it that you were waiting for Rohak to come to your room last night.”
My cheeks turned an impossible shade of red and I fumbled for my words. Lord d’Refan’s smile only grew at my obvious discomfort .
“Good thing I don’t put stock in rumors then, hmm?”
I nodded vigorously, clutching the journals tighter to my chest.
“So, Fay, you can read and use runes?”
“Yes,” I finally squeaked out. “Yes, I can. The more common runes, obviously, but also some others that I’ve not seen used readily. I learned from a woman in our village named Sharol. She owned the inn and was fairly proficient at runes and wards.”
Lord d’Refan studied me for a minute, those odd eyes shaking as he regarded me.
“You were right, Rohak. I should have never doubted you.” His tone was thoughtful, pensive. Rohak bowed his head at the compliment.
“I don’t blame you for your skepticism.”
“Hmm. Yes, well. I have a task for you, Fay,” he said as he produced two small books from behind his back. “I want you to read these and translate them into the common tongue. They are well beyond what I and my scholars can decipher, but I’m hoping you can crack what is inside here, and quickly. Do that, and we’ll discuss what else I need from you.” Lord d’Refan handed me the books, which I took quickly, tucking them next to my journals.
“This goes without being said, Fay, but what you read stays between the three of us. No one outside of this room can learn what is written in anything I give you unless I give you the go-ahead. If I find out that these types of . . . secrets are said beyond this room, there will be dire consequences. Am I clear?” His voice is low and brokered no room for argument.
“Crystal, sir.”
“Very good,” he said as he nodded, the easy smile from earlier back on his face. “Rohak, I’ll let you and the lady get situated.”
“Wait! Lord d’Refan,” I called, and he paused in the doorway, looking at me over his shoulder. “I would like to see Ben, if possible? He was the Earth Mage from my village that came to warn you of the rebel attack. He was . . . is someone important to me.”
“His lover, yes?” Lord d’Refan asked and my cheeks pinked again at the question while I saw Rohak’s jaw tick.
Interesting .
I nodded my head and Rohak studied the missive in his hand with unwavering intent .
“Yes, I think that can be arranged. Finish translating those two books and you can see him.” My heart simultaneously soared and plummeted with that news. But Lord d’Refan left the room before I could request anything further.
I stood there for a moment before looking at the books in my hands, and my eyes widened at the titles.
“Does Lord d’Refan know what these two books are?” I asked, my breath a whisper.
Rohak looked up from the paper, his eyes searching before dismissing me. “I would imagine he has some idea. Why?”
“Because I’m holding potentially the only copy of When Gods Walked Among Us and The Bondsmith .” I was unsure why Lord d’Refan gave me a copy of a children’s book, but I’m sure he had his reasons.
Rohak scoffed, “Children’s tales, Faylinn.”
I hummed but didn’t express my disagreement. I absently paged through the first book when Rohak cleared his throat. “Sort the missives, Faylinn. Then you can read.”
I groaned but set my journals and books down on the wingback chair before grabbing a stack of papers and making a home for myself on the floor, resolving to sort these as fast as possible.