Chapter 43
Gaeren ducked between a flirting couple and a woman reprimanding her children, hoping that Gellen wouldn’t notice his absence.
Aeliana’s suggestion had been good, even if it was risky.
At any point, Gellen could read Gaeren’s mind and discover what he was doing.
And that could easily put them back in the hut, even further from their goals.
He’d already tried seeing if Nori knew where the starbridges were held.
But her only memory was of her father acknowledging that he had hidden them.
Which meant it was time to find Nori’s father.
He scanned the crowd, attempting to smile at those who recognized him as the stranger in their midst. For once, his friendly nature almost seemed to turn people away instead of draw them in.
He half-heartedly searched a few for any memories surrounding Lady Merinnia.
But most centered around gossip they’d heard about others who’d gone to see her—names of people he didn’t know, people who might no longer exist. All of their rumors made Lady Merinnia out to be a witch who cursed those who came.
With each perspective, he gained a new understanding of Aeliana’s hesitance to come to Sayhla Island.
If they had sought out Pacran’s dusty tomes, would they have answers by now?
The same guard who’d escorted him to the Coral Coves the day before now followed him.
He wasn’t surprised, but he hoped the man didn’t have the same skills as Gellen.
There was no starlock around his neck, but Velden’s fishhook earring was proof that empty necks didn’t always mean someone didn’t have magic.
When Gaeren finally caught sight of Nori’s father, he weaved his way through the crowd, taking a few detours to disguise his final destination. The guard still tailed him.
Aeliana would berate him for not having a plan, but by the time Gaeren drew close enough to see the green hue of the elder’s eyes, his only idea was to get the old man to tell him a long boring story that might make Gaeren’s eyes glaze over even if he wasn’t doing magic.
Before he could get close enough to ask about the infrastructure of the Coral Coves or the history of the sprites, Nori’s mother caught his arm, holding him back in the crowd. “Where do you think you’re going? Did you lose Aeliana?”
He laughed nervously. “I guess so. We got separated when talking to other people by one of the fires, and I haven’t been able to find her since.” He also hadn’t been looking, but he didn’t tell her that.
He was surprised when she grinned mischievously. “I’ve seen the way you two look at each other.” She turned his palm over to find his bond. “I thought so.”
His face heated, and this time his nervousness wasn’t for show. “Oh, we’re bonded to other people. We’ve known each other since we were children, that’s all. We’re just friends.”
She raised her eyebrows, and he glanced down at the cord around her neck, wondering if she could sense lies, then wondering if he had just told a lie.
“Well, you can stay with me while we watch the official induction ceremony,” she said, patting his back.
The familiarity made him stiffen. Maybe she was using his exact same strategy to tune in to his mind in some way.
Except, the defensive blocking strategies his mentors had ingrained in him over the years came up with nothing.
Maybe she just wasn’t as concerned about the Vendarans as her husband was.
Which might also mean her guard would be down for him to access her memories.
“Thank you…” He hesitated over her name. Were there titles for the elders’ wives?
“Call me Aquana.”
He nodded, then turned to the dais. “What’s an induction ceremony?”
“It’s a celebration for an Awakening. Ailah will tell us about her experience, and as her community, we accept her appointment and authority as a progeny. Next week, she’ll head to the Seer’s Sanctuary for school.”
“The Seer’s Sanctuary?” His eyebrows rose. “How far away is that?”
Aquana smiled. “It’s on the other island.”
“The other island?” He felt like a parrot, but this was all news to him. “How many islands are there?”
“There’s only one that’s very inhabitable. The Seer’s Sanctuary is more like a lump of rock that’s risen from the sea. The Seer prefers to remain there away from the people so she’s not burdened by their futures.”
“Sometimes I wouldn’t mind a place like that,” Gaeren said wryly, and Aquana laughed.
“Her magic is so strong that she can get overwhelmed by receiving so many people’s futures at once.
I actually think she likes people. They did manage to build a small school for the progenies close enough to Lady Merinnia to benefit from her assistance with education and clarification.
In addition to studying all the prophecies of the previous Seers, they train in the Wheel of Magic.
Most of them return, and many become elders.
But a few stay and continue on as teachers and servants of Lady Merinnia. ”
He warily filed all that information away, worried her remote and protected location might be both hard to find and difficult to infiltrate.
“Oh, look!” Aquana pointed toward the center of the square where a raised dais revealed a young woman standing with Nori’s father and beaming. Disappointment flooded Gaeren at the lost opportunity of searching the elder’s memories. He’d have to make do with whatever Aquana might remember.
Before he could tune in to her memories, Elder Algaen’s voice boomed across the square.
“We’re gathered here tonight to honor Ailah, who has been chosen by the sprites and gifted by the Stars.
May her magic always be used for the sprites’ glory, and may she prove the sprites’ choice to be a wise one.
Before we send her off, we long to hear of her Awakening. ”
Gaeren cringed, both at the worship of the sprites and the openness of the Awakening.
Only the sailors who’d been on his boat during the time he’d earned his starlock knew what had happened—minus most of the details.
He couldn’t imagine standing before a crowd this size and letting them all in on such a vulnerable moment.
Even Enla hadn’t shared her Awakening with him.
But Velden had said it was different here.
And Gaeren couldn’t help being curious to hear about someone else’s experience.
As the girl told her tale, Gaeren warred between listening in and using the chance to tune in to Aquana’s memories.
Eventually practicality won out, and he tuned in to the memories of the woman beside him, pulling up his sleeve and leaning in until their arms touched so he could find things a little quicker and easier.
Most of her memories held a sense of concern for Nori, as if her motherly fears clouded all of her experiences. And that led him to several memories centering around their parental efforts to bond Nori and Gellen. He tucked that information away in case it became useful later.
Because they’d recently discussed Lady Merinnia, some of the memories surrounding her were closer to the surface, allowing him to note that the Seer’s Sanctuary was not only on a different island, but an island on the other side of this island—a few days’ journey and a boat ride away.
He winced at that revelation, knowing it was far too long for them to sneak away and find her on their own.
They would only be going to Lady Merinnia if their visit was sanctioned.
Laughter rose around him, drawing him out from his perusal of the Sayhleen’s memories, reminding him that he was in a crowd of strangers listening to a woman describe her Awakening.
It sounded as if her story was coming to a close, so he needed to be quick.
As he tuned in to Aquana’s memories surrounding their arrival and worked his way forward, he caught sight of the starbridges being taken to Aquana’s bedroom, where she and her husband looked them over, studying the inscriptions on their sides.
“Place them in the box,” Elder Algaen said before standing to watch over his wife.
She pried a loose board from the floor and reached down, dragging out a box the size of her hand. When she lifted the lid, she hesitated, and her husband tensed.
“Why do you keep that?” he asked.
“So I can remember.” Her words came out defensive.
He grunted his disapproval and left the room, but Aquana pulled out a pink shell, which brought up a memory within her memory. These were the worst for Gaeren, because they came through fragmented or distorted, like they were stuck behind a veil that threatened their veracity.
Two paths were given to Aquana by a woman covered in blue scales and red seaweed.
Her eyes were a milky white, her haunted expression leaving Gaeren as terrified as Aquana was in both that moment and the memory recalling it.
The first path flashed before Gaeren, showing Nori happily snuggled against Gellen, a baby in her arms. The other path held a bright light, followed by Nori’s glassy eyes staring up at him from her still face.
Aquana’s gasp pulled her from the second memory, bringing Gaeren back into the first. She shoved the shell and starbridges in the box before tucking them under the floorboard. Then Gaeren’s own gasp pulled him out from the first memory.
“Are you all right?” Aquana peered up into his face. Applause rang out around him as Ailah continued beaming from the dais.
“I’m fine,” he mumbled, but he couldn’t unsee the sight of Nori dead. “I’m just not used to Awakenings being a public affair.”