It went smoothly enough until she hit the coast. “So, Aran.”
“Yes?” He looked at her with a pleasantly blank smile.
“About this barrier. It rather needs to be placed under the water, along the sea floor.”
“I would imagine so,” Aran agreed easily. “It won’t be a very effective barrier otherwise.”
“Precisely. Now, as I do not possess gills, I’m going to need some assistance in getting them marked and placed. What trick do you have up your sleeve to get me down there?”
Aran beamed at her. “Not a one.”
Blinking, she stared at him, a little slack-jawed. “Seriously?”
“I’m Fae,” he reminded her patiently. “While water is part of us, it is not something we have great control over. I certainly can’t walk through it like it is air.”
“I learn something new every day,” she muttered to herself. “Well, this is a fine pickle. I need to get down there. Not just once, but twice.”
“Then we must contact the Unda.”
That would be the sensible approach, yes, assuming, “They’re willing to help?”
“They assured me they would as long as we’re not asking for unreasonable things.” Aran went directly to where the waves gently lapped up against the rocky beach and knelt on one knee before leaning forward to stick his hand into the water.
To Sevana’s magical senses, it was like he extended a ribbon of air and water forward, letting it flow along the top of the sea. It formed no message that she could discern, but then, it hardly needed to. Seeing that power flow out was like a smoke signal—obviously someone wanted to talk.
Knowing that it might take a while for someone to notice and respond, Sevana found a nice, flat rock and sat as well. “Aran, Master and I vote that after this situation is settled, we not take any jobs for a while. We need to focus on getting my magical core back in balance.”
He glanced over his shoulder at her, eyes unreadable. “I agree. It is handicapping you severely.”
That was an understatement, in her opinion. “Ailana mentioned to me that she would send letters to the other Mothers, try to get their opinions. Do you know of anyone else that might be able to help?”
“Not near us, no. But I know of one or two people that are experts in matters like these, or at least, in power malfunctions. I think we should see them.” He gave her a wry shrug and smile. “I would have taken you to them before, but truly, I’m not sure if even they can help. No one living has seen a case like yours before. And both people are on opposite sides of Mander. It won’t be an easy trip to see either of them.”
Hence why he’d put it off, hoping that time would heal everything. Sevana couldn’t blame him—it wasn’t like she hadn’t done the same thing, and it was her problem. “After this, we’ll go see them. I can’t keep ignoring it.”
“I understand.” Aran opened his mouth, closed it, and then seemingly forced the words out into the open. “Do you regret the choice I made?”
“I’m alive and breathing,” she pointed out sarcastically. “Your choices were me dead, or me with screwed up magic. I prefer the choice you made.”
“I know, but sometimes you get so frustrated….”
“Of course I am. Things that should be easy for me got ridiculously complicated. And I’m having to rebuild so many tools because I carelessly melt them in moments of flare-ups. Who wouldn’t find that frustrating? But I’m alive to feel the frustration, and that’s the important part.”
Her answer relieved him, as his face softened into a smile. “I’m glad. Sometimes your master gives me the stink eye so I wondered.”
“It’s not just that, you know,” she said, looking out sightlessly over the water. “Master realized early on that because of my Fae blood, my lifespan would no longer be that of a human’s.”
Aran gave her a quizzical look. “That follows, yes.”
“No, think about this,” she chided. “The last time we saw an Artifactor that lengthened his life unnaturally, he was a madman. Making humans live more than a hundred years doesn’t always turn out well. In fact, it usually doesn’t. Our minds aren’t equipped for it, I guess. Or maybe our hearts fail us first, to lose everyone we know and love without any hope of having companionship that lasts us through most of our lives. Master worries about what will happen to me fifty years from now, when I no longer have any human relations still living.”
The quizzical look on Aran’s face deepened. “What a nonsensical thing to worry about. Of course once you are at that point, you will no longer be living with humans.”
Sevana blinked at him. He couldn’t possibly mean…? “I’ll be living with the Fae?”
“Of course. You realize, I trust, that Aranhil is not entirely happy that you’re living apart from us. He finds it dangerous in many senses. That’s why one of us is constantly sent out with you, or to check up on you. It’s unnatural, to have you live outside.”
Her jaw dropped soundlessly, eyes growing huge. Aranhil had referred to her as both ‘sister’ and ‘daughter’ of the Fae several times, but Sevana had always thought of it as more of an adopted friend than anything else. An honorary term for the help she’d given them, the friendship they had, and her new status as quasi-Fae. Had she jumped to conclusions she should not have? The expression on Aran’s face made her think so.
“Aran. Correct me if I’m misunderstanding something here. But does Aranhil want me to become true Fae?”
“Of course,” he repeated, exasperated. “We all do. But we respect your human ties. You have a great deal invested in the human world, and you do us many services because of it. We will not push you to come home sooner than necessary. We will wait until you are ready.”
Sevana’s head reeled. She propped it in her hand and tried to stop her whirling thoughts. Become Fae? “Ailana suggested I could do that, but wouldn’t becoming full Fae be too problematic for me? I’m a full grown adult, a magician, after all.”
“The way that your body adapted to my Fae blood tells us that this is not so. Aranhil observed your progress for several days, and conferred with the Mothers, before coming to the conclusion that you would not be in any way harmed if you chose to complete the change.” Eyes sparkling, Aran added softly, “We all hope that you will choose to do this in the near future.”
“Stop, stop,” Sevana pleaded with both hands in the air. “You’ve thrown too much at me. I need to mentally digest this.”
“As you will.” He turned to look back over the sea. “Just know that we agree with your master. Your time with humanity is limited. In time, you will likely become Fae, or at least live with us.”
Sevana had a hunch that he might be right, but he truly had given her too much to think about. It was not the right time to tell her any of this, either, as she had enough on her plate as it was.
“The Unda have noticed me and someone is coming,” Aran announced before standing. “All things considered, let me introduce you before speaking. It is the polite thing to do.”
Considering the reputation of the Unda, Sevana was all for politeness. They were not exactly known to be nicer or more tolerant than the Fae. Triggering a war between Fae and Unda over a breach of manners was the very last thing she ever wanted to do.
From the water came out a large seal, who flapped onto land without a care. He paused there, dark eyes looking them over, nose busy taking in their scents. A selkie, eh? This lasted for a moment, until he was satisfied, and then his skin melted and sloughed away, slowly revealing a human form, like that of a Fae. As with all of their people, he was fair of skin, but instead of blond, his hair was dark as midnight, eyes a penetrating blue. He wore a loose robe of seafoam green that looked more like water mist than actual clothing. His eyes took Sevana in with great curiosity but he inclined his torso in an elegant bow to Aran first.
“I am Risdon of First Moon. I greet you.”
“I am Arandur of South Woods. I greet you, Risdon, and thank you for coming so promptl
y.” Aran turned and gestured toward her. Obeying that silent summons, Sevana came to stand at his elbow. “This is Sellion, daughter of the Fae and my sister.”
Being a polite Unda, Risdon didn’t ask why she looked so peculiar, or why someone with human and Fae blood was referred to as both ‘daughter’ and ‘sister.’ Instead he gave her a bow as well. “We meet, Sellion.”
“Well met, Risdon,” she responded and hoped that was appropriate. “I am sorry to call you out like this so suddenly. You are aware of the volcano that is threatening to explode?”
“I am, thanks to Arandur’s visit in our lands. We were grateful for his warning.”
Oh? That sounded quite positive. “I am in charge of trying to contain the volcano so that it does as little damage as possible, but I was called to this task with no time to prepare. I am sadly lacking some of the tools that I need. I hoped to borrow your help? Also, I will likely need your guidance, as you of course know this place much better than I do.”
“If it means protecting our lands, we are of course willing to aid you. What do you require?”
Sevana smiled. She had a cooperative Unda at her beck and call. How lovely.
In deference to Sevana and Aran’s inability to breathe underwater, Risdon created air bubbles that conformed to their bodies like a full-on cloak would. It was a very unique experience, being able to walk around like this on the ocean floor without anything obstructing her view. It was amazingly beautiful and serene. This far below the sunlight, it grew increasingly darker and more cold as she walked, sending a shiver dancing along her skin. What she could see of her surroundings were made up of coral, schools of fish swimming lazily by, and some larger predators such as sharks and whales that eyed them sideways. Perhaps because of her escort, no one dared venture too close.
Sevana was very afraid that she would lose her bearings down here, having no line of sight with the mainland to help guide her, so she kept a strict eye on her compass to make sure she didn’t veer off course. She set the first marker in place, and was glad when Risdon helped modify her markers so that they would shoot a beam of light straight up, to where they were visible even from the shoreline.
“How many need to be placed?” their guide inquired.
“I think a dozen along the sea floor,” she answered, “perhaps less, depending on how the floor is laid out. Each booster has to have line of sight with its neighbor, you see, in order to function.”
“Ah, is that so?” Risdon turned a half step in each direction, judging the situation. “How far from the isle do you wish to go?”
“We need to stay as close as possible,” Sevana answered. “The farther out we go from the volcano, the more area we have to protect, and the more it strains us. That said, we’re trying to give some space so that the lava has a place to flow to. We hope to extend the isle’s landmass with the lava.”
Risdon’s eyebrows rose an nth degree. “We were not informed of this.”
“I’m not sure if that was decided when I spoke with you,” Aran offered slowly. “I think it was only mentioned as a possibility.”
“Yes, I think it was,” Sevana concurred. “Regardless, we’ve set on this course now, if it’s feasible, which I think it is. And it’s only logical. The lava has to go somewhere, after all.”
“This is true,” Risdon allowed. “I will still need to report this properly.”
He likely would as it would affect their territory. If they were in Nopper’s Woods, and Sevana was altering the landscape, she would certainly report to Aranhil first before doing anything. “I will of course report fully to your ruler if you need me to. I understand that this is something that will impact your people as well as those on land. We made a snap decision just because we didn’t know what else to do with the lava and we’re not sure if we have the time to figure out another solution.”
Risdon unbent enough to assure her, “Our queen will likely agree. I will inform her and call upon you, if needed.”
Well enough. “Then let’s get back to it.”
They did so and Risdon quickly proved to be invaluable as a guide. Sevana, despite all of her best efforts, did lose her bearings a few times. It was hard not to do so down here. The sea floor was like an alien landscape in many ways, and the nature of it fought against her equilibrium in spite of her air bubble. The ground pitched and rolled down here like a drunk monkey, so much so that keeping the pedestal boosters in line with each other was more of an art form than a science.
It took far longer than she expected to setup the ocean floor, and by the time they had worked their way around the isle and back onto the shore again, it was nearly pitch dark. Sevana rolled her head around on her shoulders, trying to ease the strain of the past several hours, and took in a deep breath. Air bubbles became stagnant after a while and this fresh sea air was very welcome.
Sevana knew almost instantly that it was a mistake to do that, as it set off a coughing fit, although milder than her previous one, thankfully.
Aran immediately put a hand to her back, soothing a circle over it, his magic coming into play to ease her lungs. As he did so, she reached into a pocket and retrieved the vial that Master had given her, unstopping it and inhaling a lungful of the Fine Mists Salts. Ahh, much better.
There was a tightness on Aran’s face that she noted but ignored, trying not to show any more weakness in front of their Unda guide. Instead, she turned back to the job at hand.
Because of the darkness, the lit markers were an open beacon against the ocean. She could see them easily. From her vantage point, Sevana could see almost all of the way around, only the first two markers not visible. Studying them with narrowed eyes, she tried to envision what it would look like if this whole section become part of the isle. “What do you think, gentlemen? Will this work?”
Risdon came to stand at her side and stared out in silence for a long moment. “I cannot confirm that for you, Sellion. But I will speak with my queen and notify you if this meets her approval.”
A wise answer and one that Sevana had no problem with. “Please do so quickly, Risdon. We literally have no control over the volcano at this point. I will be putting in the barrier the day after tomorrow, at the latest, and we have to have a firm answer at that point. This is to protect your people as well as the humans on the isle.”
“I quite understand,” Risdon assured her, “and I will inform my queen immediately. She has been most anxious about this situation and is not one to dawdle when matters are urgent.”
Good to hear. “Then I will wait for your word.”
Risdon gave her a slight inclination of the head, a more friendly gesture this time instead of the formal one he’d initially greeted her with, and then returned to his seal form before splashing into the ocean.
Sevana turned to Aran and said frankly, “I’m worn out. And I can’t see well enough in the dark to place markers, even with my new enhanced vision. Let’s call it a night and get up early in the morning to finish them off.”
“I won’t complain.” Aran put an arm around her waist, not so subtly supporting her as he led off to the village, taking the shorter route that skirted around the volcano’s base.
Before her near death experience, Sevana would have taken umbrage at this handsy touchy-feeliness of his. But now was a different story from back then. Now, she felt aches all along her body that seemed to go straight down to the bone. She was so tired that, left to her own devices, she would be tripping over her own feet. Giving up on making it to the village under her own power and sleeping right here on the trail would have happened.
“I’m ready for my human blood to adapt to your Fae blood. Any day now would be just fine by me.”
Aran smiled at her sarcasm, taking her grumpiness in stride. “We’ll figure out how to do so, Sevana. Don’t worry.”
“Humans are supposed to be the most adaptable species. That’s all I’m saying. I should have adapted by now instead of feeling like I have a constant cold or something. And don�
�t remind me that it could be worse. I know that it could be worse, but it could also be better, and I want better.”
“Of course you do,” he soothed, bodily maneuvering her around a copse of trees. “I’m rather surprised at how much help Risdon was. Usually the Unda are much more touchy about someone else being in their territory. Perhaps the situation has worried them that much?”
Changing the subject, huh? Well, she’d let him. Sevana hadn’t found the Unda’s cooperation that surprising. She gave Aran a puzzled frown. The man might be missing some information. “Aran. Do you know what happens when lava touches water?”
“Ah, of course, it would become acidic. I had forgotten that for a moment.”
Ha, that’s what she thought. She drawled, “I’m not sure how effective Unda magic will be against massive amounts of acidic, boiling water. Still surprised at their willing attitude?”
Aran shook his head. “Not at all.”
“Master and I have both been determined to protect them for a reason. It’s not just for the Unda’s sake, either, but also for Nanashi’s inhabitants as a whole. Really, it’s just as high of a priority as the people’s immediate safety. If we physically save them now, but fail to protect their environment, we’ll fail them in the end. They’ll starve in a matter of weeks if they aren’t able to fish.”
“Yes, that’s very clear to me now.”
They walked in silence for several minutes. Sevana felt her exhaustion settle in a little more with every step, and it took serious willpower to stay in motion. Truthfully, she was so tired that even staying awake long enough to eat wasn’t that tempting.
“I assume that you want to get up at daybreak?”
Just the thought of doing so made her want to groan. But Sevana nodded affirmation. “We’ll need to. The barrier has to be in place as quickly as we can manage it, as a safeguard. The way the barrier will be formed, it will shoot up like a straight wall, as we don’t have the power to make it into a dome. But still, it will protect the isle and the sea from the lava and somewhat shield it from the explosion if it goes.”
The Canard Case (The Artifactor Series Book 4) Page 13