Unless the other gardener could use both.
Could there be another like her? The idea gave her renewed hope, and she hurried forward. Now that she had some light, she moved with a little more confidence, able to avoid large dips in the ground and step over bigger rocks. Terran kept his hand on her the entire time, a soft, reassuring presence, and his breath was warm in her ear.
The passageway turned, and the slope began to change, moving steadily downward. Eris reached to the wall and ran her hand along it as she made her way down the tunnel. Roots from the svanth were twisted there as well, creating a frame around them and holding the stone back. What must this have been like without the roots?
She marveled at the other keeper’s control. It reminded her in some ways of Imryll and the way the trees followed her commands. Would she ever have time to spend learning to use her abilities, or would she always be stuck trying to simply learn enough to stay alive?
Eventually, the path leveled out again. In the distance, light worked through the tunnel, spilling toward them. It came faintly at first, but gradually intensified. With it, heat surrounded them again, nearly oppressive.
Shadow pressed up behind them. “Careful here, keeper,” he warned.
Eris relaxed the steady trickle of energy she’d been feeding into the teary star flowers to coax them into glowing and used it to twist the distant roots, to obscure the end of the tunnel. The roots twisted, pulling around and filtering some of the sunlight working toward them.
Terran left his hand on her back. She reached back and patted it before moving on.
Eris stepped cautiously now. She didn’t know what she would see but wanted to be prepared for whatever they’d find on the other side of the mountain. Would there be another garden? Would they see the vast expanse of Saffra’s desert? Or something else? Could this have been some sort of trap? Without having any connection beyond the tunnel, she couldn’t know.
The tunnel twisted slightly before ending. Eris stopped.
Roots draped across the end, twisting together. She need not have feared exposing themselves. Rocks—much like on the other side of the tunnel—spread out across the opening, hiding the mouth on this side.
She asked the roots to spread, and they did, parting before her. She ducked under, one last flower brushing the top of her head, and moved into the rubble.
Heat assaulted her immediately.
The air smelled hot and burned at her lungs. The rocks radiated with it, practically baking her, reminding her of the fish she and Terran had shared. She ducked down, keeping herself hidden, and tried to peer around the rock.
What she saw surprised her.
Spread out below them was a massive city. Low, squat buildings made of orange stone crammed close together. Some were painted with other bright colors. Row after row of similar buildings stretched out before being replaced by taller structures of the same stone. People filled narrow streets. Strange creatures like tall, thin horses plodded along the streets, some pulling wagons and others carrying riders. Farther into the city, even taller buildings rose above the city.
Eris stepped out and away from the rock.
Terran reached for her. “Eris!” he hissed.
She glanced back and shook her head. “We won’t be noticed,” she said. “Not here.”
“Where is this?” Terran asked, working his way past the rocks to stand next to her.
She took a deep breath. “This is the heart of Saffra.”
Chapter 80
Eris shivered as she looked down on the city. This was the place Jasi was to have gone. This was to have been her home. Had the Conclave not attacked, she might still be here, possibly injured or betrayed by her Prince Petra. And now, this was where Ferisa hid.
Shadow rippled next to her. There was no other word for what happened. She looked over but struggled to see him. Somehow, he blended into the rock, obscured from her. Had she not felt the connection through the bond, she might not know where he stood.
“Shadow?”
“I am here, keeper. In this land, I will remain hidden.”
She sensed the energy required for him to do this. He drew upon his own stores to slip into the shadows. She knew from when she’d healed him that he had incredible stores of energy, but they were not limitless. At some point, he would have to return.
“How long?”
“As long as needed.”
“No,” she repeated. “How long can you remain like this?”
He growled at her and did not answer.
Eris hesitated. Now that she was here, she wasn’t entirely certain what she needed to do. This was the place of the magi, the place of the Conclave. In spite of the heat and the bright sun, this was the place where the darkness was strongest.
Could she find a way to determine how to stop it?
More than that, could she find her sister?
“What now?” Terran asked. “Where do we start?”
She looked to where Shadow lurked. His presence was there even if she couldn’t see him clearly. “Can we track the darkness?”
“Keeper—”
She felt fear surge through him. “Can we?”
Shadow sighed. Shielded like this, hidden within the shadows, she could almost imagine him as the figure she’d seen in the vision he granted her.
“Chasing the dark is dangerous. Down that path are the Darkbinders.”
Eris frowned. She had come to Saffra with little of a plan of how to find her sister. Now that she was here, she needed to figure out where Ferisa was hidden, what the priestesses planned for her, and if the magi were involved. But doing that meant first finding the priestesses.
She needed to find the life in this place. There had to be some plants, something for her to use. Even a place as hot and terrifying as Saffra must have trees or flowers. If only she could find them.
Eris paused long enough to pull the thin cotton wrap out of her pack that she’d borrowed from Desia. She slipped it on quickly, taking a few of the svanth seeds out of the pockets of her cloak and slipping them into hidden folds of the wrap. She weaved the cuttings of the teary star vine together into a necklace and slipped it over her head. At least she would be prepared if there was a chance to plant.
Terran slipped off his jacket. The white tunic he wore would blend in well enough. He rolled his jacket and left it tucked along the opening of the tunnel. “You should leave yours here, too.”
Eris sighed. She hated the idea of leaving the cloak. Even though it came from Imryll, she had worn it constantly since learning how to better access the energy of the svanth trees. Taking it off felt like taking off her abilities.
But Terran was right. They needed to look as inconspicuous as possible before moving into the city. The wrap left her feeling strangely exposed. Arms and legs were left open to the hot sun, but the fabric had a cooling effect, leaving her more comfortable than she would have expected.
Terran eyed her appreciatively, and a flush came over him.
Eris frowned. “What is it? Am I wearing it wrong?”
He snorted. “I was thinking you always keep so covered up in the forest. Something like this could work there, couldn’t it?”
She punched at him playfully. Shadow growled softly, and Eris turned to him, still unable to see him clearly. She sighed. Now was the time to take the next step in her plan, only doing so meant risking herself in a way she felt uncertain about, especially without having access to anything she could use for healing.
“You delay, keeper.”
“I’m scared.”
Terran touched her. His hand felt warm and comforting on her exposed skin. Still, she shivered.
“You don’t have to do this. We can return to the Svanth. You can continue to grow your garden and use that to oppose the Darkbinders…”
She shook her head. “I could continue to hide,” she agreed. “But that does nothing but prove the Darkbinders will succeed. Hiding is what Imryll does. And hiding does nothing to return my si
ster to our family.”
“What if she won’t come?” Terran asked.
Eris looked to Shadow, searching him for answers. In his current form, he was difficult to read, nothing but shades of darkness. “She will come,” she said
Terran held her arm, the intensity of his grip increasing. “And if she won’t? What then?”
She closed her eyes, thinking back to the Ferisa she knew as a girl. Always sweet and caring, never angry, so early embracing the role as priestess of the Sacred Mother. And the last time Eris saw her, the hesitation she had as she attacked…Eris could not—she would not—believe that Ferisa was gone.
“I can’t lose another to the darkness,” she whispered.
Terran pulled her close. “Jacen wasn’t your fault. He chose his path.”
She nodded. Desia had helped her come to terms with that. Eris no longer doubted that the changes were the fault of the priestesses. Had she known—had she been strong enough—she might have been able to save him. But she hadn’t, not then. She was stronger now.
Which was why she would attempt this.
Turning back to her cloak, she slipped a small pouch out of the pocket. Tucked inside a slip of cloth was the Saffra veratrum, sealed in flows of power. She unrolled it carefully, hesitant to touch it.
Shadow tensed. She felt it as the shades of darkness falling still around her. She didn’t look over at him. If what she thought about their bond was true, he had as much to lose from this as she.
Eris looked at the message again. The trail of grasses in the background—grasses she hadn’t recognized at first as cut needlegrass but did now—and the roses, one yellow and one faint purple, set into a background of camogines. Lying among the other flowers, almost as an accent, was the blood red, spiked flower—the Saffra veratrum.
Understanding that the flower came from Saffra helped her fully read the message. Now she understood the reason behind the needlegrass and the yellow and purple roses. The camogines had been the distraction, not the point of the message. And to think she had missed it completely. Her ignorance had nearly cost Shadow his life.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
Shadow growled. “You cannot know everything, keeper.”
“I’m sorry,” she said again.
He snorted.
“You should create a barrier between us. If this doesn’t work—”
“No barrier will hold if this does not work,” Shadow said.
Eris sighed. Now she not only risked herself to find Ferisa but also Shadow. Yet he had come willingly, and through their bond, she sensed his agreement with what she did.
Eris closed her eyes and reached toward the svanth roots, delving through them, drawing power through them. She used this and pushed out, sending that energy away from her, creating a glove of power around her hand. With this in place, she picked up the spiky Saffra veratrum.
A soft buzzing worked through it like a steady vibration, threatening to shake it out of her hand. She held onto it firmly, unwilling to let go. After all the time wrapped in the cloth, the color of its thorny petals still remained vibrant.
With a focused effort, she pressed the power she drew from the svanth tree through the Saffra veratrum. It resisted, struggling against her, but a cutting of a flower had none of the same strength as one still planted. And a cutting could not resist the power she drew from the svanth tree, not connected to the other garden as it was.
Still, this one flower resisted more than she would have thought possible.
Eris had one goal for this. She needed only to learn where it came from. Once she knew that, she thought she could find the priestesses, learn who had left it in her room, and find her sister.
Energy streaked out of the flower, rising from the ends of each of the petals before twisting back together. In her mind, she could see the energy and follow its trail until it ended.
She set the flower back down among the others of the message, leaving it intact. Then she rolled it back into the strip of cloth, careful not to damage any of the flowers within. It would be her message this time.
“Did it work?” Terran asked.
Eris looked out toward the city. The energy that had pulsed through the flower worked over the city like a visible trail she could follow. She stared, searching for where it ended, but couldn’t tell, not from their vantage on the side of the mountain. But she had no doubt she could follow it.
“I think so.”
Shadow growled softly. “I see it. Darkness twisting with light.”
Eris turned to him. “What do you mean?”
“I cannot explain it.” For a moment, he rippled again, becoming clearer so that she could make out his massive head. “What did you do, keeper?”
“I sent the energy of the svanth tree through the flower.”
Shadow snorted but said nothing. It didn’t hide the troubled sense she had from him through the bond.
* * *
They made their way through the streets. Dressed as they were, they attracted little notice. As Desia had claimed, the Baylan wrap was similar enough to the style worn in Saffra for her to blend in. Terran looked only slightly out of place. His dark green pants were bolder in color than most they passed, but his white tunic seemed appropriate. At first, Eris had wondered about his sword. He had refused to leave it behind. But others carried swords, though most had a different shape than the simple straight blade he carried.
Shadow moved along the edges of the streets, lurking in the shadows. Had Eris not felt him, she wouldn’t have known he was there, so well did he blend in.
A quiet sense of unease came from everyone in the streets. Some laughed and others shouted, but there was none of the vibrant chaos she knew from Eliara.
They followed the trail left by the Saffra veratrum. It twisted through the city, forcing them to wind through the narrow streets, following no specific path. They made their way past rows of houses with children playing in the streets and past shops with quiet storefronts and shopowners standing at doors or counters within. Eris jostled past the strange horse-like creatures as they plodded along the streets, though they became more infrequent the farther they went into the city.
Other than the people, there was no life in the city.
Unlike in Eliara, she saw no trees or flowers or grasses. Nothing grew here. The farther she went, the more disconnected she felt from the garden. It drew on her, as if calling her back. The braided rope of teary star vines she wore around her neck gave her some connection as well, almost as if she could call through it to the power locked in the garden. There would be no planting of trees here. Even were they to survive, they would not go unnoticed.
“Are we close?” Terran whispered as they rounded another corner.
Eris tried focusing on the energy trail, but it became harder the farther they went. “I don’t know.”
“We are close,” Shadow said. His voice came quietly and without a growl.
She glanced toward the shadows of the nearest building but couldn’t see him. She felt him, though, and decided that would have to be enough.
The street climbed slightly, buildings packed closely together. And then it opened up.
Eris paused, looking down the street. It led slightly down, dipping toward a wide square. Iron posts ringed the square, rising out of the ground and curling in a tight pattern that formed a wall. Behind that was a tall building of pale yellow stone climbing jaggedly toward the hot sun. The trail of energy led there.
The strange building wasn’t the only thing that caught her attention. Rising in the distance was a slender tower made of a deep red stone. Heat haze rose in the air around it, creating soft edges, but Eris knew what it was. The Conclave.
Terran took her hand. “Tell me we don’t have to go there,” he said.
She shook her head. “We don’t have to go there. We go there.” She pointed to the building in the middle of the square. “But what is it?”
Shadow growled. “I will be unable to help you
there, keeper.”
She looked over and frowned. “Why?”
Even as she asked, she knew. The iron. It kept Shadow back. And it would separate her from her ability.
“You don’t have to go there,” Terran said.
But she did. She had no choice if she wanted to find her sister. This was where the trail led, where the Saffra flower that created the taint that nearly killed Shadow, had come from.
“This is exactly where I have to go,” she said.
Terran held her hand and squeezed.
They walked carefully down the street. Others made their way toward the building as well. Some passed through the narrow gate at the corner of the square to disappear into the building. After a few moments watching, Eris realized only women passed through the gates.
Could this be a place of the priestesses?
Though she had suspected there to be a connection to the magi, she hadn’t known they were in Saffra, not in any formal way. When Jasi had been scheduled to wed Prince Petra, the requirements for the Sacred Mother had been different than those required by Saffra tradition. But if the priestesses were here, wouldn’t there have been some similarities?
Unless they didn’t worship the Sacred Mother here. Could there be priestesses without the Sacred Mother?
She turned to Shadow, sudden fear coursing through her. The idea had never really occurred before now, but she realized it should have. How could she have neglected asking?
“You’ve called me a keeper of light.” She pitched her words quietly so they didn’t carry.
“Yes,” Shadow answered. Tension twisted him like a coiled spring. He knew what was coming and didn’t want to answer.
“Are there keepers of the dark?”
Shadow growled softly. “They are the Darkbinders.”
If there were keepers of dark, did that mean the priestesses—and the sect that had taken Ferisa—were part of it?
She turned back to the building and stared. Had she made a mistake coming here? There was only one of her, and from what she could tell, dozens of people moved through the gate. Could the dark outnumber the light?
The Lost Garden: The Complete Series Page 63