Bradley Beaulieu - The Straits of Galahesh

“No matter what becomes of the war,” Nikandr said, “there is still Ghayavand. The rifts will continue to widen.”

“And there is the matter of the Atalayina.” She meant not only the Atalayina, but Nasim as well. He was their best chance at closing the rifts once and for all. “He’s powerful,” Atiana continued. “He might have lived.”

A flutter of wings in the distance drew their attention. A large black bird flapped slowly toward them, more ponderous in its movements than a rook, but more powerful as well. It winged down to the balustrade nearby and came to a rest. The same old gallows crow that Nikandr had seen on that ship against the cliffs of Yrstanla. It walked along with an awkward gait, releasing a long, sad caw. The white swatch across its breast and the underside of its wings shone bright under the sun.

“I’ve found her,” the crow said.

“Found who?”

“Kaleh,” Atiana replied.

Nikandr looked between the two of them.

“She told me of the battle between Kaleh and Nasim,” Atiana said, “and she said she would watch for them.”

“I saw them fall to the water”-the crow cawed and shook its head vigorously-“but I lost them in the maelstrom. I’ve been searching for them since. Of Nasim, I’ve found nothing. I can only assume he is dead. Of Kaleh I felt little, until the faintest of scents came to me. It trailed from here and then far to the west, to the very edge of the Gaji. I traveled there, looking for her, and felt her walking far ahead, but as I neared, her trail disappeared.”

“It couldn’t have just disappeared,” Atiana said.

“It did,” the crow replied, “and I suspect it was the Atalayina that allowed her to do so.”

“Where is she going?” Nikandr asked.

“With Sariya and Muqallad both dead, she will go to find those who can teach her of the Atalayina. If anyone will know, it will be the tribes who still live in the heart of the Gaji. They’ve lived there for centuries beyond count, hiding themselves from the outside world, even from the Aramahn.”

“Then that is where we must go,” Nikandr said.

All three of them remained silent. They knew it would be death to try to invade those lands, but what could they do? They had to find the Atalayina. They had to stop Kaleh from completing what Muqallad and Sariya had begun.

“Go,” the crow said as it hopped along the balustrade. “There is time yet to decide. I will watch for her, and for Nasim, though I have little hope for him. In time, we will know the right course.”

With that the crow flew off, its wings spread wide as it glided down and over the city.

Atiana turned to Nikandr. “There is Leonid to consider. And the welfare of Khalakovo.”

“This is no easy choice I make, Tiana.”

“I know,” she said.

With that, the two of them embraced, neither one of them feeling the comfort that should have come from the gesture.

“I know we must go,” she said again.