Part of the answer was obscured by the tromp of footsteps. Four guards and two other lighter ones. Probably priests. The words Telyn caught, however, were enough to make her blood congeal.
"...the prisoner the Rahian troop found in the forest will do nicely. The ritual demands nothing less than the purest Lurudani blood we can find."
Backing from the door, Telyn nearly tripped over Paduari, who had crept closer while she was listening to the priests. Dragging him back down a few steps, she demanded, "What is Enithracim?"
He blinked, startled. "W-what?"
"What is so significant about Enithracim?"
Paduari shrugged. "It's a phasing night."
"A what night? Explain that."
He shrugged again. "Phasing nights are nights when the stars of Narii don't shine, and there's no light from the heavens."
He was talking about Moon Dark. "Why is Moon Dark so significant to the Lurudani?"
He shook his head. "It's not, other than all the portals are closed. No one can come or go through the five gates on a phasing night."
Her eyes widened. "Why not?"
"Because the TiKani draws its energy from Narii. When Narii doesn't shine, the TiKani is dark. The TiKani is what powers the gates, and when it is dark, the gates are closed."
Telyn's brow furrowed. "But if it's the TiKani... why would they think a sacrifice would help?"
Paduari looked up in dawning horror. "They said that?"
She nodded. "Do you know why?"
Paduari shuddered. "The Slephian Portal -- the Gate of Prophesy -- can be opened even on a phasing night. It is the only one."
Telyn grabbed hold of his tunic. "How?"
"W-with the blood of purity and nobility. Such blood calls out to Farii, if it is shed before the Slephian Portal. She opens the gate of Her charge to admit the fallen Saphiu's soul."
"Fallen Saphiu? Then not just anyone's blood will work?"
"I don't know." Paduari looked at her in worry. "Why all this talk of sacrifices and blood?"
Telyn outlined what she overheard. When she finished, Paduari slumped back against the rail, his face ashen.
"Marakai. They want to kill him."
"If they did, would it work? Would it open the portal?"
Paduari shrugged helplessly. "I... I don't know. It's written in our Rhi the blood of one who is pure and noble can open the realm of Slephia on even the darkest night, but I'm not sure what that means. In all the eniane that gate has stood here, there's never been any blood spilt near it."
Telyn's brow furrowed. "The next question is why Reaphia would want to reopen the portal. Now that she's here..." Paduari snapped rigid then, his gaze the blank stare she'd only ever seen on Oracles and the mentally damaged. Telyn watched him with wary alarm. "Are you all right?"
"Telyn, daughter of Ashes, daughter of Gwneth, to find what you seek, you must pass beyond the place of the Saphiu." The words flowed from Paduari's mouth, but the voice wasn't his.
"Who are you?" Telyn demanded.
"We are the guardians of the Tikesha, Phoenix. We are the soul of this people."
Telyn nodded slowly. Paduari was in contact with the spirits now. She had forgotten that, probably because he still acted empty-headed.
Paduari blinked then, and shook his head with a groan. "I wish they'd quit that." He looked at her then. "Well, what did they say?"
Telyn sighed. "I'm not quite sure. Something about finding what I'm seeking beyond the place of the Saphiu."
Paduari’s eyes scrunched in concentration, and Telyn knew he was mulling over what she said.
"Beyond the place of Saphiu..." he muttered to himself, before his eyes widened. "Of course!"
"What?"
"The place of the Saphiu is in prophesy, right? So to reach what you seek, you have to --"
"Go through the Slephian Portal." Telyn finished in a murmur. "Sweet Kishfa, it can't be!"
Paduari gave her a worried look. "What can't be?"
"Reaphia isn't even here." Disbelief tore through Telyn, and she leapt to her feet. "Of course! It all makes sense now!"
"Care to explain?"
"Reaphia isn't here. She came through the portal all those cycles ago, but stayed just long enough to take over, then deposited several Vedics here, as priests, to deliver her messages and harvest souls for her. Then, she returned to Purat through the same portal, and began hiring mercenaries, sending them here. But they're not here to keep the people in line, because your people are more than happy to play sheep. They're not here as herders either. With a population of followers, rather than leaders, she'd have no need of so many mercenaries to guide them along. She'd have hired as few as possible and saved herself expenses. No, those mercenaries are here to keep Reaphia's priests in line. She deliberately hired enemies as a safety precaution. Where one troop might be swayed by a promise of wealth, their enemies would rather die than see them get it. Clever. I should have recognized the ploy before."
"Clever?" Paduari gaped at her. "What's so clever about it?"
"The mercenaries. She's been checking all her own moves, to leave no track uncovered. No track but one."
"The gate." Paduari brightened, his eyes lighting with excitement. "She's trapped!"
Telyn shook her head. "Not trapped. Simply unable to feed while the TiKani is in phase. Obviously, whatever upheaval is going on in the Endlands involves the Vedics, and Reaphia needs all the power she can muster, meaning she has to feed every night. But if the portal is closed, she can't."
Paduari nodded slowly, his eyes shining with trust. "So now what do we do?"
Grim certainty settled over Telyn. "We have to get through the portal before the TiKani goes dark. When is Enithracim?"
Paduari frowned. "Three days from now."
"That doesn't leave us much time," Telyn muttered darkly. "Sala!"
The little flame appeared, dancing in the air before Telyn. Aye?
"I'll need your aid, my friend, but it's dangerous work."
Sala flickered a deep crimson. I will do it.
"I need you to stay here and keep watch on the TiKani. If it starts to go dark, you must come and tell me before it goes completely dark."
Sala flared in understanding. I will do this thing. Jelait says the Dark Star is not in the city, Phoenix.
"I know. I have to cross a portal to reach her. If the TiKani goes dark, the portal will close. Should that happen, I will be in the mountains of Purat."
Aye, Phoenix. Be careful, Daughter of Ashes. Even the power of Fire cannot restore a soul which has left its body.
"I know, my friend. I know," Telyn said quietly. "May Kishfa be with us all."
Telyn rose and started back up the stairs.
"Where are you going?" Paduari asked. "The Slephian Portal is in the city itself."
"We're going to free your friend, first," she said shortly. If he’s still alive.
She couldn't voice her doubts about his friend's life in Paduari's presence. Rahians didn't, as a rule, take prisoners unless ordered to. And Telyn knew all too well what Vedics wanted with captives. Marakai’s only chance of survival depended on him being of use to Reaphia.
Chapter Six
As she crept through the corridors of the Monastery of Farii, Telyn kept watch for guards, heavily-bolted rooms, or anything else out of place. Her battle senses were on full alert, and she tried her best not to worry whether her companion might give them both away.
She'd been in many palaces and holy places in her life, and this place looked nothing like the ascetic monastery it was purported to be. No surprise, there. Reaphia desecrated Farii's monastery merely with her arrival there. Her defilement was compounded by what her priests did to the place. Telyn had seen enough ascetic monasteries to know they all tended to have one thing in common -- barrenness. All but the Vedics seemed to regard a lack of luxury as a sign of piety. The Lurudani, with their already-simple lifestyle, no doubt possessed a highly-ascetic religious caste. The monastery should be
barren, with cold stone walls and floors, a lack of any adornment, and little source of unnatural light.
Instead, rich carpets -- woven in Endland style -- covered the floors, elegant tapestries hung on the walls, and the glow of torches illuminated the corridor at regular intervals. That Farii hadn’t struck the Vedics dead for their profaning of Her sacred place spoke of great patience and restraint on the part of the Lurudani goddess. Finally, Telyn understood why Reaphia forbade her priests access to the Tikesha. To defile the sacred charge of a Goddess like Farii would call down the wrath of a death goddess already enraged.
However, even in a radically-altered monastery, an overabundance of guards in any one place would prove worthy of investigation – and Telyn spotted just such a door. Guarded by three men in the black-and-gold of Mad Brahmad, no less.
With a humorless smile, Telyn tapped Paduari's shoulder and pointed. He nodded silent acknowledgement. Slowly, Telyn slid her boot dagger free and gestured for Paduari to stay back as she started toward the guards. Paduari shook his head, however, gesturing her aside. Then, closing his eyes, he held out his hands in a beckoning gesture and silently mouthed a command. Telyn blinked in surprise as the guards abruptly crumpled to the floor. She'd seen a lot of Majik in her life, but she never witnessed anyone grasp what had to be difficult Majik as easily as Paduari. For the first time, she was almost jealous. She struggled for every ounce of her own Majik, while he took to his like a fish to water. Turning, she gazed at Paduari in question.
"They're only asleep," Paduari murmured on his way past her. "It would have looked suspicious if they'd been found dead."
"What if they remember?"
"They won't," Paduari replied with certainty. "Now, let's go before they wake up."
Quietly, the two companions passed by the sleeping guards and made their way to the door. Telyn studied the bolting bar, and the attached lock. Her lips tugged upward. She could pick a lock like this in her sleep. Using her dagger's point, she jiggled the lock until it opened and dropped into her open palm, then slid back the bar bolting the door. As it swung open, Telyn gasped in dismay at what she found on the other side.
Huddled in the small chamber with their wary gazes fixed on her, were over fifty men, ranging in age from barely more than boys to so stooped with age Telyn wondered how they still lived. Their robes were a dull grey color and looked threadbare with time and wearing. Five of them were clustered around a figure lying on the room's only cot. Steeling herself under their scrutiny, Telyn strode to the cot's side and looked down at the man there.
Shock plunged like a dagger straight through her heart, and the world spun with a dizzying blend of disbelief, hope, and soul-wrenching pain. It wasn't true. It couldn't be true. She blinked rapidly, refusing to acknowledge the grief and twisting tenderness squeezing her chest. Instead, she looked up at one of the older men beside the cot. "You are the monks of Farii, aren't you? How long have you been here?"
The old man's gaze flashed confusion. He said something to Paduari, which Telyn only caught one word of. Anieni. The Dark Star.
Paduari shook his head, and said something in return. Telyn shot him a questioning look. "What's going on?"
"He wanted to know if you were one of Sehidhe's. I told him you were a Majin from a distant land, come to help us."
Telyn stifled a sharp bark of laughter. The day she became one of Reaphia's deranged sycophants, she hoped someone had the sense to put her out of her misery. But, ever respectful of the truly pious, she held in her derisive laugh and gestured for Paduari to translate as she addressed the old man.
"We're here for this man," she pointed at the unconscious man on the cot, unable to look at his face again. She had no idea what she believed, anymore. "He's a friend."
Paduari again spoke in the melodic language, and the old man nodded slowly. As he began speaking, again, Paduari translated. "He says they're the monks of Farii. He was preparing himself to meet Her when Sehidhe's priests came and imprisoned them in this room. He says," he looked at the old man with a frown, and said something in the melodic language. He was scowling as the old man answered him, before he finally continued, "It's been many eniane -- he won't say how many, exactly. I'm not sure he knows. -- and though Sehidhe has kept him from joining with Her, he believes Farii has not yet forsaken him."
Telyn's throat closed as she listened to Paduari. Here was the reason Farii hadn’t yet struck Reaphia and her minions dead. As long as Reaphia lived, as long as her plans remained unhindered, these men remained captives of some perverse plan of hers -- alive and kept from their function in service of Farii. Telyn would bet a prize mare Reaphia placed death wards on these men, and if anything happened to her, their souls would be lost along with her, far from Farii's reach. They were unable to die until the wards were released, either.
Paduari turned away then, and knelt by Marakai's side. Reaching out, he clasped his friend's wrist and Marakai's eyelids fluttered and opened, his grey-green eyes full of pain and suffering, to which was added confusion when they focused on Paduari.
"Marakai, are you all right?" Paduari asked in Tagalic, his brow furrowed in worry.
"Paduari?" Marakai's voice was weak and puzzled as he stared at his friend. Telyn's throat closed to hear it. Sweet Kishfa, he even had the same deep, lightly-accented voice. "You've... changed... somehow..."
Paduari smiled indulgently. "I've found my place, my friend. Now, come. We're going to get you out of here. Your life is in danger if you stay."
"I... can't..." Marakai managed. His hand stretched out to grasp Paduari's shoulder hard. "Paduari.... I... don't... want... to die... like this. There's something... something you have to know..."
Paduari panicked gaze screamed do something when he turned to look over his shoulder at Telyn. Stepping forward, she leveled a hard glare at the man in the cot, "You're not going to die. We're going to get you out of here, and I'm going to see to it you're fixed up. Now, we're running out of time."
Marakai's gaze snapped to her, and the mix of relief and shame there nearly weakened her knees. As if he knew who she was, and how he'd hurt her. How could it be? She couldn't allow herself to believe it. The pain would be too great, when the mistake she was certain this all was came to light.
She couldn't bear to look at him any longer. She turned her attention to Paduari, and getting his friend out of this room. "We're going to have to carry him. We need to make something to carry him on..."
She glanced around the room, then crossed it to grab up two long banner poles in the corner near the door. They stood about a hand taller than her, and she nodded in satisfaction. Taking them back to the bed, she laid them on the floor at about a body's width apart, and pulled the blankets from the cot. Using two of them, she fashioned a hasty stretcher, melting the fibers of the blankets to the poles with a small spark of fire. She heard a gasp from the monks, but ignored it and looked at Paduari. "We need to move him. Carefully."
Paduari nodded and together, they shifted Marakai gingerly from the cot to the stretcher, where Telyn covered him with the last blanket. As they bent to lift it, one of the younger monks stepped up and placed a hand on Paduari's shoulder, causing him to look up.
They spoke for a moment, and Telyn had no idea what about, but it wasn't long until, with a nod, the old man from before joined their conversation. Telyn glanced toward the open doorway as she heard sounds of cloth and armor, and a moan. Whatever their conversation was all about, it needed to be over.
"Uh, I hate to interrupt," Telyn broke in with a pointed look at Paduari, "but the guards are stirring. We have to get out of here."
Paduari nodded, spoke once more to the older man, tilted his head in respect to the younger, and turned to Telyn. "Let Nevorai carry your end. We'll need your skills as a warrior to get out. You can't protect us and carry a stretcher at the same time."
Telyn glanced at the young monk who bowed low and said something in his native tongue to her. She really didn't have a choice and, if truth
be told, she was relieved. If she didn't have to be close to this man who reminded her so much of the one she lost...
Telyn stepped away and allowed Paduari and Nevorai to lift the stretcher, turning her attention to the corridor outside. So far, she heard no more noise, which she took to be a good thing.
With Telyn in the lead, the small party left the chamber, retracing their steps to the spiral staircase.
Cautiously guiding the stretcher, the three people made their way down the spiral of steps and back into the Hall. There, Telyn instructed Paduari and the priest to lower the stretcher to the floor, watching Marakai's face for signs of pain as they did. Then, working swiftly, she laid aside her anaqueri, used her water flask to wash her hands, and tore away Marakai's pant leg and tunic, lifting the material away from his wounds. Examining the wounds on his left leg and across his right shoulder, she shook her head and sighed, looking up at Paduari.
"I'm going to need firewood. I can't treat these wounds without a proper fire."
Paduari's face set. "I'll get it."
Telyn paced as she waited for Paduari to return with the firewood. She sensed the young monk's attention on her, but she couldn't find it in herself to care if he found her odd or frightening. Her entire attention was absorbed by the man who lulled in unconsciousness on the makeshift stretcher. Her heart ripped open and bled from the betrayal she faced. How could this be? It had to be some kind of mistake, some sick joke of Nature. Nacaris was dead -- the Rahian said so, and he'd been too afraid at the time to lie. So, who was this man who bore the face of her beloved Nacaris?
She moved to stand over him, her gaze intent as she looked for some clue this wasn't the same man. She wanted to believe she hadn't been betrayed.
Aye, his face was identical to Nacaris', even haggard and pale from blood loss and infection and covered in a week’s growth of beard. He even bore the same scars -- scars she knew intimately -- and her mind shied away from the only thing it could mean. His hair was much shorter, cut in the Lurudani fashion of trimming close to the head. She couldn't imagine Nacaris throwing away the blood oaths his longer, cloth-woven hair represented. The Nacaris she knew saw himself as nothing without his pride and dedication. Surely their lack meant this was not the same man. Unable to face the confusion running rampant through her, she turned her attention to his wounds.
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