James Islington - The Shadow Of What Was Lost

Taeris stared at the boy for so long that Wirr actually reddened. “For a young man with such a healthy scepticism, you know a great deal about the Eternity War.”

Wirr scowled. “I read,” he said defensively. His scowl deepened as he saw Davian’s eyebrow raised in half-questioning amusement. “I do!”

Taeris smiled slightly. “In answer to your question – I don’t have proof of anything like that. I am trying to keep an open mind, though. I’ve seen some astounding things done with Essence; it’s unlikely, but if there is even the slightest chance Devaed could still be alive….” He sighed. “Put it this way – the dar’gaithin I saw, along with everything else going on with the Boundary, has certainly made me look at Alchesh a little more seriously.”

He turned to Davian and Caeden, seeing their blank expressions. “Alchesh was an Augur from the time of the Eternity War. The stories say he was so immensely powerful, he was driven mad by seeing too much of what was to come,” he explained. “After the Boundary was created, he foretold that it would one day fail, that Devaed and his armies would eventually be freed. People took it seriously for a long time. They manned forts, checked the Boundary regularly for any signs of attack.

"After a few centuries without so much as a sighting, though, a lot of people began to think that Alchesh’s foretelling must have been a result of his madness - that not even a powerful Gifted like Devaed could still be alive after so many years. The opinion became popular enough that the Old Religion eventually struck Alchesh’s visions from their canon and declared the Eternity War over. Soldiers were reassigned, and the Tols gradually stopped taking their readings. People forgot about the north as they focused on more immediate threats - the civil war in Narut, then the constant little skirmishes between Desriel and Andarra, Andarra and Nesk. After that, there was the Great War with the Eastern Empire.”

He shrugged, turning his attention back to Wirr. "And maybe Alchesh really was mad - but it doesn’t change the fact that the Boundary failing right now is a problem. I can’t say anything for certain about Devaed, but I saw that dar’gaithin corpse, and we can tell from the stories that those are fearsome, malevolent, intelligent creatures. Should they break through in numbers, they’re going to attack regardless of whether they have any guiding force behind them.”

Wirr thought for a moment, then gave a reluctant nod. “You’re right,” he admitted. “If those creatures really do exist, then it almost doesn’t matter whether Devaed is alive - even by themselves, they’re worse than anything the Gil’shar could hit us with. If the Tols aren’t prepared, we’ll be massacred.” His shoulders slumped. “There’s truly no better option?”

“If you think of one, we will take it,” said Taeris seriously.

“What about your Travel Stones?” Davian shrugged as everyone turned to look at him. “Couldn’t we just send one across the border, then use the other to create a portal?”

Taeris shook his head. “Even if we found someone trustworthy to take one into Andarra, it wouldn’t work. Creating a portal uses a vast amount of Essence, which needs to be stored up in the stones before they will work. I keep them on me so they constantly feed from my Reserve, but any more than a trickle and I’d be setting off Finders… it took me two months to charge them, last time. We won’t be able to hide here for that long.”

“Then it’s Thrindar,” concluded Wirr unhappily. He looked across at Davian. “I can’t say as I like it, but he’s right. If we don’t get back to Tol Athian, find out what’s going on with the Boundary, we could be risking far worse than Desriel’s army.”

They walked in silence for a while. After a few minutes, Taeris dropped back beside Davian, tugging on his sleeve to indicate that he should slow down. Wirr was talking cheerfully to Caeden – about what Davian wasn’t sure, but the two of them were laughing. He smiled. Caeden had looked dazed, lost, ever since he’d woken, but Wirr was always the right person to put someone at ease.

Taeris glanced at the two boys up ahead, frowning. “You and Wirr need to be careful,” he said, keeping his voice low.

Davian followed his gaze. “Of Caeden?” he asked. “You think he’s hiding something?”

“Oh, I believe him well enough,” replied Taeris. “But that doesn’t mean he didn’t murder those people, or that he isn’t complicit in what’s happened to you. For all you know, that box could have been meant to restore his memories, after which he may have been meant to kill you.” He sighed. “I’m not saying that’s what I think. But it is a possibility.”

Davian looked at Caeden again. Could this young man, laughing and joking with his friend, really be a killer?

“What do you think?” he asked.

Taeris didn’t reply for a few moments. “I think there are a handful of people in the world who could have translated what the sha’teth said to me last night,” he said quietly. “What that means… I don’t know. But if he turns out to be an enemy – well, you need to stay on your guard.”

Davian swallowed. “And if we discover he really is dangerous, when we restore his memories at the Tol?”

“Then at least we’ve chosen the battleground,” observed Taeris.

Without anything further he increased his pace again, quickly catching up to the other two. Davian soon joined them, but he kept mostly silent as they talked.

Taeris had given him much to think about.

Asha leaned back in her chair and glanced around the library for what was probably the hundredth time that day, unable to concentrate on the work laid out in front of her.

It had been almost a week since the Sanctuary and there had been no sign of the Northwarden, nor any indication that the Shadraehin had followed through on his plan. She sighed, shuffling the pages in front of her. She still half-expected everything to go horribly wrong when the duke found out about her, but now she just wished it was done either way. The waiting, the uncertainty, was worse by far.

"The book’s that exciting, is it?"

She turned to see Tendric watching her with a mildly amused smile. She forced a smile back, hoping that the sudden twisting of her stomach wasn’t evident on her face. Tendric was Jin’s replacement; she didn’t know whether he was one of the Shadraehin’s people, but she suspected not. He seemed to share the same dolorous outlook on life that Raden and most of the others had, the kind of Shadow she studiously avoided when she could.

"I’m just tired," she lied, hoping the man would leave her alone.

Instead Tendric took a seat opposite her. He looked around, then leaned forward a little, lowering his voice.

"I’ve been wanting to ask. Do you know where Jin went?"

Asha shook her head, unable to look him in the eye. "No idea."

Tendric sighed, looking disappointed but nodding. "Raden said the last time he saw him was with you. I was hoping maybe he’d said something before he disappeared… I can’t say his is a job that I’d really hoped to be doing," he admitted.

"He didn’t say anything," Asha reiterated, just wanting the conversation to be over.

The curly-haired Shadow was apparently oblivious to her discomfort. "But he didn’t seem worried at all that day? Jumpy?" he pressed. "Haliden says he probably just got tired of things here and left, but Raden thinks something else happened to him. Like maybe he got on the wrong side of the crowd he was involved with… if you know what I mean." He shook his head, clearly more interested in spreading gossip than Asha’s opinion. "In which case he brought it on himself, I suppose."