by Lucy Hounsom
Shika’s eyes glittered. ‘I’m thinking it.’
‘What?’ Irilin said. Gareth gave her a withering look and the girl inhaled sharply.
The big novice turned to Kyndra. ‘This might just be your lucky day. You still got that book?’
Later that night, when Kyndra heard voices outside her room, she cracked open the door and smiled at the two startled novices. Shika, she saw, was brandishing a lock-pick. ‘Janus hasn’t been locking me in these past two nights,’ Kyndra told them and Shika looked faintly disappointed. ‘He said it was a reward for working hard and behaving myself in the archives.’
Gareth grinned. ‘If only he could see you now.’
‘Where’s Irilin?’ Kyndra said quickly, finding the thought of disappointing Janus unexpectedly painful. His smile had seemed a little brittle tonight when he’d brought her dinner, but she hadn’t found the nerve to ask him what was wrong.
‘She used her power to hide in the archives after old Hebrin shut up shop,’ Shika said. ‘If Janus locks the antechamber door behind him, she’ll be able to open it for us from the inside.’ He glanced at Gareth. ‘I hope she’s all right.’
‘Don’t worry,’ the big novice said. ‘When Iri doesn’t want to be found, she won’t be.’ He checked that the coast was clear and then beckoned them down the corridor. Kyndra eased her door shut, hoping the late hour would discourage anyone from looking in on her.
They set off at a fast walk. ‘Hurry it up,’ Gareth hissed. ‘Janus is about five minutes in front of us. If we’re not careful, we’ll lose the chance to follow him into the lower galleries.’ But their pace was slowed by the fact that they had to hide from passing masters and by the time they reached the archives, Gareth’s hands were curling and uncurling in impatience.
Irilin met them at the antechamber door. ‘He didn’t lock it,’ she said, ‘and he’s already gone down to the galleries.’
Gareth swore roundly. ‘We have to catch him before the fifth gate!’
Abandoning secrecy for speed, they threw themselves into the tunnels. Kyndra gritted her teeth. It was hard to run and keep her boots quiet on a stone floor. Sweating with the effort, she glanced sideways at Gareth. ‘Why are you doing this for me? Won’t you be in big trouble if you’re caught?’
‘Not doing it for you,’ Gareth rasped, now red in the face. ‘We might never get another chance to see inside a forbidden spiral.’ He gave a shark-like grin. ‘And anyway, it’s the most fun I’ve had in ages.’
Irilin scurried along beside Kyndra, faintly green and looking like she regretted ever agreeing to this. Kyndra didn’t blame her – the whole idea was crazy – but it might also be her only chance.
They rounded another bend and there was Janus, pressing his palm to the fifth gate. Kyndra and the novices fell back out of sight. ‘The gate stays open less than a minute,’ Shika reminded them quietly and they peered around the curve of the tunnel and watched until Janus was safely through it. He wore a cloak over his robes, Kyndra saw, and he frequently turned his head from side to side, as if he knew he was being followed. Uneasily, she stole through the gate after the others, all of them now careful to keep to the shadows.
There was no shortage of shadows in the archives. With each downward spiral, the pools of darkness grew larger. The galleries became tighter, collapsing in on themselves like the conical end of a seashell.
Gareth’s eyes sharpened once they passed the sixth gate. He gazed at the shelves with their silent occupants and Kyndra noticed his fingers twitching. What kinds of books did Hebrin keep down here? she wondered. What were the worst kinds of writing?
As they neared the seventh spiral, a pressure grew unpleasantly in their ears. Janus must have felt it too, for he slowed and put a hand to his head. Irilin groaned softly and Shika grimaced. ‘My skull feels like it’s going to explode,’ he whispered. Gareth remained silent, but tiny beads of sweat stood out on his face. Kyndra agreed with Shika. Her head felt like a swollen fruit.
Janus opened the seventh gate, his hand tight around what must be Hebrin’s token. They waited until he was out of sight before sneaking through after him. When the gate’s invisible timer was up and it clanged shut behind them, Kyndra felt a sudden squeeze of claustrophobia. The tunnel they stood in was considerably smaller than the one directly above it. A low ceiling brushed the tops of their heads and black walls pressed in from either side. But at least the strange pressure had eased.
Kyndra’s skin prickled as she followed Janus down the slope and into the green light of the seventh gallery. The vision must have led her through here, but she had no memory of it. Instead of shelves and books, lumps of rock jutted from the black floor, some tapering to spikes as thin as her arm. The larger monoliths menaced each other like opposing pieces on a game board. ‘Perfect,’ Gareth breathed when he saw them. ‘He’ll never spot us.’
Janus reached the bottom of the slope and disappeared behind a column. ‘Now,’ said Shika. He led them in a crouch, moving quickly until they came to the floor of the gallery. There was no sign of Janus.
‘Are you really going to try and find this thing?’ Irilin whispered to Kyndra. ‘What’s it called, anyway?’
Kyndra reached back and retrieved Tools of Power from where it sat secured in the waistband of her trousers. She flipped it open. ‘The one that can produce a shield is called an akan. It looks like a statue of a sleeping child with wings.’ In the strange green glow that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere, she suddenly saw that the next page was missing. A sentence ended abruptly with the lines: While any akan will shield its bearer from harm, one type – the white akan – was designed to do more. Its power— And that was it. Kyndra shrugged and closed the book. ‘It says any will do.’
‘Spread out,’ Gareth said. ‘And don’t be seen.’
Kyndra tucked the book away and darted between two stone monoliths. They were much bigger when viewed from ground level, and recesses carved into them held all sorts of objects. She saw polished stones, gems, gilded cups and – in one – something that looked grotesquely like a fossilized tongue. Another held a helmet and a black gauntlet; both glowed invitingly. Kyndra had a sudden urge to slip her hand into the gauntlet. When that ebony metal enveloped her wrist, she would be able to do anything. She swallowed the temptation with difficulty and moved on.
Janus materialized a few rows in front of her and Kyndra hastily ducked behind another recessed rock. In the unnatural silence, she could hear her own breathing and tried to calm it. As Janus swept past her hiding place, still darting glances to left and right, Kyndra caught a glimpse of his face. It was such a whirl of worry that she almost reached out to him.
A hand clamped down on her shoulder and Kyndra barely stifled a cry. ‘I’ve got one,’ Irilin whispered. She clutched a silk-wrapped bundle. When the novice unfolded it, Kyndra instinctively recoiled. A winged child glimmered corpse-pale in the gloom. Despite its beatific face, it made her flesh crawl. She nodded at Irilin, who smiled briefly and handed over the statue. The moment it touched her hand, Kyndra wanted to throw it away. Holding it was like feeling a spider’s legs skitter unceasingly over her skin. She dropped it into her pocket and the sensation faded. Let’s go, she mouthed.
Shika and Gareth were crouching by another rock. Irilin hissed through her teeth and they jumped up immediately. ‘Where’s Janus?’ she whispered.
And then came the distant creak of hinges. Shika’s eyes widened. ‘The gate!’
As one, they dodged through the rocky maze and up the slope before sprinting into the tunnel. There was the gate swinging shut. ‘Quick!’ Shika gasped. He skidded through and Irilin and Gareth hurled themselves after him. The gate closed.
‘No,’ Irilin groaned when she’d picked herself up. ‘Kyndra.’
Trapped on the other side, Kyndra slumped against the wall. She could see the novices’ faces through the elaborate metalwork. They gazed back at her, horrified. Then Gareth folded his arms. ‘Why’d you have to get yourself stuck like that?’
‘I didn’t mean to,’ Kyndra growled. ‘What were you two doing anyway? Weren’t you supposed to be watching for Janus?’
‘When did that become our job?’ Shika asked.
‘This was your idea,’ Kyndra said. ‘You wanted to see the seventh level.’
‘And you wanted to cheat on your test,’ Shika retorted. ‘You should have been watching him.’
‘Children, children,’ said a voice and the four of them froze. ‘Argument is pointless and you’ll miss your chance to get through the other gates.’
Kyndra spun around. ‘Who’s there?’
Kait melted out of the shadows beside her, long hair framing her face. A silver knife gleamed behind her belt. ‘Hello, Kyndra.’ She smiled. ‘Didn’t I say I wasn’t finished with you?’
Despite having the gate between them, the novices took a step back. ‘That’s one of the Nerian,’ Irilin gasped. ‘Kyn, be careful.’
Kait laughed. ‘It’s far too late for that.’ She looked across at the novices. ‘The young man you followed is almost at the sixth gate. If you don’t hurry, you’ll never get out of here unseen.’
‘What about Kyndra?’ Irilin said.
‘You leave her with me. Only I can get her back to her room before Janus finds it empty.’
‘Why would you help me?’ Kyndra asked slowly.
‘Did I not before?’
Shika frowned through the bars. ‘What does that mean?’
‘It’s none of your business,’ Kait snapped. ‘So.’ She returned her gaze to Kyndra. ‘What’s it to be?’
‘Kyn, don’t.’ Irilin was shaking her head, pale eyes large in the gloom.
‘Do you know what Hebrin will do to you if you’re discovered here?’ Kait asked her.
Irilin was silent.
‘He will have you flogged. Nothing has changed in Naris,’ Kait said and the shadow of memory darkened her face. ‘The skin on your back will hang in tatters. No healer will be permitted to touch you. Are you still willing to stay here?’
Gareth cursed and grabbed Irilin’s shoulder. ‘Let’s go.’
‘But Gareth—’
‘I said, let’s go.’ The novice bodily hauled Irilin away from the gate. Shika hesitated for a moment longer, looking at Kyndra.
‘Go,’ Kyndra said. ‘If what she says is true, I don’t want it on my conscience.’
Shika almost smiled. Then he nodded once and sprinted up the tunnel after the other two.
‘That’s better,’ Kait said, stretching like a cat. ‘Just you and me.’
‘What do you want?’ Kyndra asked her warily.
Kait turned and started back down the tunnel. When Kyndra didn’t follow, she looked over her shoulder. ‘Are you stupid? Do you want Janus to catch you?’
After a moment’s pause, Kyndra followed her.
Just before they reached the top of the gallery, Kait put a hand on the wall and whispered under her breath. The solid rock melted, revealing a narrow hole leading into the mountain. Kyndra gazed at it, half astonished, half apprehensive. She vividly remembered her last crawl in the dark. ‘No lamp this time.’ Kait grinned. ‘Better not lose me.’
The first hundred metres were the worst, as the black crevice seemed to double endlessly back on itself. Hysteria bubbled in Kyndra’s chest, threatening to take her each time her body became stuck or she lost sight of Kait’s feet. By the time she pushed herself out into a wider passage, she was trembling and covered in sweat.
‘You did well,’ Kait said, looking pleased. ‘You’ve got more guts than I thought.’
Unable to speak, Kyndra simply stood there, drawing deep, calming breaths. She never wanted to go through that again.
‘Think what it’s like for us,’ Kait said, as if she read her thoughts. ‘You may vow never to enter the earth again, but if you live as I do, tunnels like the one we just passed are your only means of liberty.’
‘Does the Council know that you can move around inside the citadel?’
‘I told you before. These passages are known only to the Nerian. And only the Nerian can access them. We know the mountain better than anyone. It is our skin, our body. And the Deep is our heart.’
For a moment, Kait’s words kindled the same desire as Nediah’s had done on that first day in the archives. Kyndra wanted to see the deep places. She wanted to walk the valleys and the clefts in a world where the sky was solid rock, to lay hands on things no human hand had touched.
She shook herself. No. The mountain was crushing, suffocating. Wherever she went, she felt its immutability and drew its sulphurous age into her nostrils. How did the Nerian live without sunlight? Wouldn’t the darkness send you mad? Kyndra looked at Kait, at the desperate whites of her eyes, and knew the answer.
‘We’ve gained some time,’ the woman said. ‘Do you need to rest?’
Kyndra looked away. ‘I’d rather not.’
Kait sighed. ‘Nediah’s been talking to you,’ she said and slid dispiritedly down the tunnel wall to sit at its base.
Kyndra remained standing. ‘What if he has? At least he tells me the truth.’
‘He tells you less than you think,’ Kait said. She paused, toying with a boot buckle. ‘What did he say about me?’
‘That you follow a madman,’ Kyndra said without preamble. ‘That you are dangerous and—’
‘And … ?’
‘I should keep away from you,’ she finished uncomfortably.
Kait’s smile returned like sunlight through whimsical clouds. ‘Dangerous,’ she murmured. ‘That’s quite a compliment.’
‘It wasn’t meant as one.’
Kait stretched her legs out in front of her. ‘Naris is not your ally, Kyndra. Nor is it mine. Does that not give us something in common?’ Her smile turned sad. ‘Don’t let a past lover’s sour words turn your judgement.’
Kyndra gaped at her. Lover? Nediah’s discomfort the last time they’d seen Kait took on a whole new meaning and she realized she didn’t know him at all.
‘You’re shocked,’ Kait said, sounding delighted. ‘But it’s the truth. If you doubt me, ask Nediah. He won’t deny it.’
Kyndra forced down her curiosity. ‘Why are you telling me this?’
‘Because I want you to trust me,’ Kait said simply.
‘And why should I?’
‘The Nerian can help you.’
Kyndra stared. ‘How? With the test?’
The woman shook her head. ‘Nediah won’t be able to protect you from the Council,’ she said. ‘And when you’re ready to accept the truth, he won’t have the answers you’ll seek. But the Nerian will. And we’ll give them to you.’
‘Riddles,’ Kyndra said disgustedly. ‘You sound like Brégenne.’
‘I am not Brégenne.’ Kait’s voice was like the crack of a whip and Kyndra flinched. The other woman must have noticed, for she relaxed her snarl and said more calmly, ‘I have no desire to withhold the truth, but you’re not ready to hear it.’
‘Fine,’ Kyndra shrugged, ‘then we have nothing else to say to each other.’ Kait was more like Brégenne than she wanted to admit. Perhaps it was a Wielder thing, Kyndra thought angrily, remembering how Brégenne had refused to tell her anything that night she’d eavesdropped on Nediah and Argat.
Seemingly unfazed, Kait climbed to her feet. ‘Let’s go.’
And Kyndra was forced to follow her up the passage, hating the fact that she had no choice.
‘I’ve been searching for a moment to speak with you for the past week.’ Kait shot a look over her shoulder. ‘But the Council aren’t taking any chances. Meals are brought to your room, you’re escorted to the archives and watched by Hebrin. And always that Janus hangs over you like a curse.’
‘Janus?’ Despite her anger, a blush settled stubbornly on Kyndra’s cheeks. She was suddenly glad that Kait had no lamp. ‘He’s all right.’
‘Why were you following him tonight?’
‘That’s my business.’
Kait huffed. ‘I kn
ew you were going to say that.’
The tunnel narrowed like a crevasse. Its walls were buckled here and stained yellow from an upwelling of minerals. ‘Is it much further?’ Kyndra asked.
‘No.’ Kait let her hand fall from the stone. Between one step and the next, she halted and turned. ‘Before I let you out, I’ll give you a warning.’
‘Which is?’ Kyndra asked diffidently.
Kait seized her forearm and Kyndra stiffened. ‘Don’t trust Janus. If you have acted tonight upon anything he has said or done, your life may be in danger. The Nerian do not wish to see you dead. Promise me.’
Kyndra jerked her arm back. ‘It’s none of your business whom I choose to trust.’
Kait’s eyes flashed and Kyndra thought she would lash out, but instead she opened another piece of wall and pushed her hard. Kyndra tumbled through the gap and landed in a tangle of limbs. She scrambled furiously to her feet, but the wall was solid again.
Uttering some choice words, Kyndra took stock of her surroundings. Cautiously, she peered around the jut of stone that obscured the corridor. It was empty, but not silent. The mountain told her the story of its past in a rumble like coffined thunder, and she wondered how the Wielders endured it. Stopping her ears, she darted across the open space and ran down to her room. Slipping through the door, she closed it, threw off her cloak and boots and got into bed. The akan felt hot against her thigh, as if it were burning a hole in her pocket. She had done the right thing, hadn’t she?
It wasn’t until she heard footsteps outside that Kyndra realized her mistake. The lamp was still alight, throwing her guilty shadow on the wall. She’d forgotten to blow it out. Kyndra sat up, but it was too late. The door opened and Janus stood there. The tousled emotions he’d worn so plainly earlier in the day were gone, washed clean by something she couldn’t fathom. Instead of seeming suspicious, he looked pleased to see her. The light dipped his hair in gold leaf. He was as unreal as a painting, Kyndra thought, feeling drab and unlovely by comparison, half covered by the blanket.
‘Kyndra,’Janus said softly, ‘could you not sleep?’
‘Erm, no,’ she managed.