Chương 40: Fallout [Book 2]

A haze hangs over me even though I'm fully recovered. It's been a week since the Sorrishen incident, and we're only just preparing to head home. Despite several heated scrying messages sent by Aarron. I have other things occupying my mind right now. A third element. Air feels entirely different to the other two elements. It's more slippery than water, sometimes denser than earth. There's an insidious nature to it, where I can feel every single molecule that enters my body, spreading into me, exerting its power.

I can tell when I am about to overdo something with nature and the earth. It's a tugging sensation, like I've pulled a hangnail a little too much and need to ease back on it or risk unraveling the whole finger. With water I feel drained and like I'm about to collapse from dehydration. Only worse. But air? Shortness of breath comes with all three. Skirting the edge around air almost feels like my head is about to spin while my body crashes. That's close to what it's like.

It's more and yet less difficult to practice than the others. The simple methods are restricting oxygen, making things float, creating gusts of air. Except it's all about control. Of which I have relatively little right now. It's frustrating me how difficult it is to learn finesse with air. I push down an irritated sigh and turn my attention to the preparations. I need this distraction. Mithris is not only an Adept of Nightshade, but apparently also at handling Aarron smoothly.

It's only due to him that we've been able to delay this long, and in doing so have given Cedric some much needed aid.

"Still having trouble remembering?" Lareny speaks quietly as she comes to rest next to me. That's just it. It seems that in discovering that third element and utilizing it through pure adrenaline, there were some repercussions. While I barely remember what I did, the words I spoke, I remember the feeling of the power coursing through me. How it tingled and then zinged across my veins like I was on fire. How it felt when I pulled on that energy to bring Dendrak to his knees. Powerful.

Even with the Recovery Acclimation unconsciously active, I remember the way the energy stripped my channels raw, burning me from the inside. Slower than the last time when I buried those Blood Sect attackers. But still there. Sure, my channels have become more durable. But if it'd gone on for too much longer, I don't think I would have survived. Even now there's a dull ache. A poignant reminder. I have to get stronger.

"Yeah. I can remember parts of it, but that's all I've got. Like, flashes of memory." I realize it's taken me a while to answer Lareny's question. But she's waiting, more patiently than I'd have expected before this whole assignment.

"I don't think I was completely in control." That admission takes more out of me than I'd like. Lareny simply reaches forward, squeezes my arm, and speaks gently.

"We're going to work on that." Right. Got it.

"Lennick is getting worried, so we're heading back today. We've helped Cedrik as much as we can." She flashes me a smile, but it doesn't do what I think she hopes. I'm still hesitant about the whole ordeal. Blood Sect being overtly present in this Enclave means they're gaining confidence. I don't know enough about them to feel like I can rely on myself and my powers. Maybe that's just a wariness of my abilities and how close they can potentially bring me to my own demise.

Or that it sometimes feels like my power has its own agenda.

"We can't let her keep hiding here. We have to take her back to see Aarron at some stage." Mithris is there as we walk, leaning against the wall down in the large hall of the Sorrishen Enclave as we enter it. I have to admit to liking the location of this Enclave. It feels hidden here, beneath part of the city. Shrouded in secrecy. In the catacombs, where assassins should hide. I personally prefer the mountains and fresh air.

"Yes. I'm aware," I answer, even though the question wasn't directed at me.

"Then act like it. You're a full-blown Journeyman. Third-Blade at that." I glance at him.

"I only just got moved up. How did that happen?" This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Mithris shrugs.

"I used my discretion." The way he says that irritates me. There's no way I should be getting special treatment just because I have magic. I open my mouth to say as much, but he shushes me before I can speak.

"Stop it. You realize, regardless of the threat you still pose to yourself, your ability could wipe half of us out before we even blink." His movements are just as fluid as they've always been. He's not nervous around me, thankfully.

"Get that power under control for all our sakes. Especially now we know the enemy is closer than anyone thinks." I hear what he says, and I get it. To a certain extent. The hum of the power all around me no longer just comes from beneath. It's in the air around me, the ground underneath me, and a certain part of it lives inside me. If I really listen closely, I can hear it inside every single one of us. He cuts through my distraction again.

"Listen. Get it under control. We are taking Dendrak with us under guard. Make sure you're capable of acting and reacting as necessary." I open my mouth to say something, but he stops me.

"No ifs. No buts. You're better than that. Getting it under control is vital right now." He locks gazes with me. It's the first time he's ever done that, and I notice his eyes are black, or as black as eyes can be. Maybe I'm shocked, but I pull my gaze away for a moment, sorting my thoughts before answering.

"I'm working with what I've got," I say, confident in my answer. It's not like I have a master mage hanging around to make it easier on me. There are no Adept mages, no Prefects for this division. As far as we know, I'm it. And I wouldn't trust someone in the Blood Sect to show me what to do if my or other's lives depended on it. Still. I flex my hand, fully aware of all of the elements coming together within me. Oxygen making my blood move around, allowing me to breathe.

Water, an integral part of myself and my blood. The earth and sun, parts of the nutrients that keep us all alive. It's there, solid power, like a core. Waiting for me to harness it.

"I'm going to grab Jax," I say and realize Mithris has moved on and is talking to Cedrik over in the corner. Their tones are hushed. We're taking Dendrak, disguised as cargo in a cart. Not to mention four members of the Sorrishen Enclave as a guard unit. That's probably what they're talking about. Without a second thought, I simply reach out, tapping into the stone around us, magnifying their words for my ears only.

"…not the only one then. Any luck finding the others?" Mithris is mid-sentence when I tap in. Cedrik shakes his head.

"No luck yet. Dendrak won't talk. We've used Graven, and we've tried Dream. He'll die before he tells us anything." Mithris tsks under his breath.

"Guess that's why Aarron is demanding we bring him back with us. We lost Ellir and Parra. Aarron is on a war path. We have to get something."

"Can't we ask her to see if she can, I don't know, read his mind?" Cedrik is obviously talking about me.

"I don't think that's how it works."

"But isn't it worth a try?" Cedrik pushes the point. I like that man. He's straightforward and willing to do what it takes. It makes me realize I'm the same. I'll do what it takes to get my answers, to get the results I need to take me farther. Reading minds might be possible, but it'll take more balance and finesse of the elements than I currently have at my disposal. Right now, that means we have to make it back to Korrien. Where I can read through my books and journals again. Where I can experiment.

It's not long before we're all mounted up, prisoner in tow, on high alert as we move. Dendrak is drugged to the hilt and should be comatose most of the trip home. The journey passes like a blur for me. Instead of concentrating on riding, I focus on the world around me. Every breath. Every blade of grass. Every glimpse of water. I never knew the world was so vibrant, so vivid. So very, very loud. Now it's like a full orchestra playing for a court gathering.

But they've all got different sheet music and brought the wrong instruments. The discord is only growing louder. Darker power still resides in the very soil we're riding over. How long did they have unrestricted access to tarnish the world? Despite holding people's lives in my hands when I'm sent on a contract, despite molding poisons that kill without a moment's notice, the power in me now makes what I had before seem like a trickle. It's a flood, so much. All the time. And right now… something is wrong.

It's still wrong. And I don't like it.

"Ria?" Xan is riding next to me. Our disguise as a trade caravan leaves us out of our habitual black. Sorrishen is sending a cart to one of the smaller towns just over the Korrien border. Once there, we'll regroup and divide up to make the last leg of the journey. As Xan speaks, I notice a flare in their aura. Maybe it's my new element, or me finally getting my act together, but I don't believe this is the first time. I can discern small patterns in their habits now.

The way they speak, they breathe, and they even smell. It's a musky scent of sandalwood origins. But something about the way they behave around me now smacks of nerves. Perhaps even fear. Or maybe it's fear that I'll figure something out. Something they're hiding. There's definitely a different shimmer around them. I squint.

"What aren't you telling me?" Xan pales slightly, but just for a moment.

"You don't have to know everyone's past."

"No. I don't." That sounds reasonable.

"But maybe I want to know yours?"

"Maybe I don't want to tell you." Their voice falls just short of their usual banter levels. I grin.

"That'll be the first time you've willingly shut up since I've known you." Xan finally cracks a smile. Good. I was actually starting to feel concern. Whatever it is, they'll tell me in good time. It's not until the following day as we cross the border to Korrien that I begin to feel it. There's a rumbling in the ground, not the usual symphony that accompanies me everywhere, nor the simple discord we encountered while in Sorrishen—this is something darker. It's like a warning, a severe feeling of discontent.

The next breeze that brushes my hair over my face lets me see what that sensation tastes like. Around us the terrain has begun to get rockier, getting ready to transition into the mountainous region of our home-state. Trees are more frequent, outcroppings here and there. So many new places to hide. Better places to hide. I close my eyes and reach out with my mind, trying to see if I'm imagining it or being paranoid. Is this ability trying to warn me again?

Sometimes I feel like it's just gleeful it has someone to listen. But the water tells me there are life signs around us that are not our group. Earth echoes by showing imprints, sensing the movement of brush and bush. I've grown used to the way the power lingers around me, how the magic moves everywhere all at once. Seeking out abnormalities with a ferocious hunger. Right now, it's seeking to engulf others—others that aren't with me. There are people up ahead, lying in wait for us.

Pain emanates to me through the ground. They're at it again.

"Mithris," I say as quietly as I can while still allowing him to hear me.

"About three miles ahead." He drops back, what appears to be nonchalantly to ride three abreast with Xan and I.

"Count?"

"Twelve. Fourteen with scouts in one and two." Mithris nods and drops back to the Caravan. Lareny, still up ahead is even more alert than usual now. She heard what I said to Mithris, initially at least. I don't think most passersbys would notice that we've tensed up, that we're on alert. But I notice it. As well as the movement ahead in the copse of trees we're approaching. They think they're being subtle, and I doubt anyone else would notice them. But we do. Sevrin, Lareny, Xalin, Mithris, and myself.

Add to that the four guards we've taken with us from Sorrishen, and it'll be nine versus twelve. If all else fails, I can just bury them all. Right?