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It was the morning following the proclamation of Shaine's punishment. Nayala flew through the air, the power of her music keeping her aloft. Her own music was so soft and subtle it could barely be heard, though in the skies like this there was no one else to hear it anyway.
The air was very still this day. A breeze would have been welcome to help alleviate the heat from the already pounding sun. The weather seemed to fit, though. Nayala thought there would be important decisions made this day, some of those having to do with Shaine's adventure the previous day.
Nayala knew that Shaine would have begun his work detail earlier, and she almost laughed out loud thinking of the sour look he must have on his face. She hoped that he would learn something from this. He needs to grow up soon, she thought.
This morning was a meeting of the Council of Masters, those seven Soryans in charge of each aspect of Soryan life. And Vaenin. Vaenin, their leader.
She always felt a little bit of awe when she was in Vaenin's presence. Even though she had fought along side him for almost two hundred years now, he was still that legendary figure to her. Still the man who had saved her and taught her.
He was also the only Soryan still alive who had truly known the founder, Joshan Soryal, the very first Soryan.
True, there were those older than her who had been born in the founder's time, but they had all been babies. They had not known the man. Vaenin fought alongside Joshan almost from the start. He had been the second Soryan in existence.
It didn't take much flight to reach the lone building toward the back of the Soryan compound where Vaenin lived. It was something of a mini tower, and Vaenin had chosen it because it faced the ocean. The compound was sparsely populated this far back, as most Soryans and their families wanted to allow Vaenin as much privacy as possibly.
After all his deeds and sacrifices, he deserves a quiet existence, Nayala thought as she descended toward the jutting top-level terrace off the east side of the tower.
She landed softly and immediately moved to enter the main room through the open terrace doors. Her eyes adjusted to the change in light and she saw that she was the last to arrive. The semi-circular room had a tan color-scheme applied to it, and there was not much decoration on the walls or floors.
Columns were positioned around the room that were entirely too ornate for Vaenin's liking, she thought. The Builders were probably trying to impress Vaenin when they created this. She turned her attention to the people in the room, rather than the decor.
There was Boffan, the War Master. The man was so big and bulky she often wondered how he could move. If she wouldn't have seen his fearsome speed on the battlefield she would never believe he could fight as he did.
Boffan was laughing, tossing his big bald head backwards. He was usually smiling, telling some joke or another. Boffan seemed to have the exact wrong easygoing disposition for a warrior. The tattoos on his arms were almost lost on his dark skin.
Standing with him was his eternal companion, Sherra. Again, the woman's physical appearance did not seem to match up with her chosen interests. Sherra was tall and lithe. A true athlete's body. Nayala could remember her spinning and whirling on the battlefield, braids flying all around her, engaging a hundred foes and never being struck once.
Though formidable, Sherra did not care for battle. She was the Master of The Art. She studied their power and found new ways to advance it, new ways to apply it. These days she even worked with the Kelland to a degree, to learn their science. Nayala doubted much would ever come of that. She couldn't see many Il'Dorani stuffing themselves into Kelland flying boxes any time soon.
The two nodded at her and Nayala inclined her head in return. The rest of the grouping was gathered on the other side of the room. Nayala could see that they were standing around Vaenin, who himself was sitting in a large, pillowed chair.
She knew he often sat when possible now. He was over five hundred years old, and time was catching up to him.
Vaenin's hair was all white now, and the long braids he wore made it even more striking. His face was lined, appearing hawkish and hard, though she knew Vaenin was kind and gentle by nature. His body was similarly hard. He was thin, thinner than Nayala liked, and his brown skin seemed not so healthy, more pale than usual. It hurt her to see him like this, but what was there to be done?
Even the Soryan Order were not immortal.
Vaenin wore simple green robes that day. They had little ornament, only one symbol of their order on the breast. Vaenin looked up then and saw her.
"Nayala. You complete the gathering. Everyone, let us talk.", Vaenin's voice was still strong, and immediately the Soryans present looked to Vaenin for his next words.
"The dragons, Nayala. What of the dragons?"
Nayala had been prepared to present first, as this business with dragons was possibly the most urgent matter they faced.
"My Lord, it appears that we were correct. The Dragon aura does indeed contain their names, and Shaine was able to pronounce it close enough to at least gain the attention of the dragon."
She continued, "The young Holy Brother with him was unable to see the aura."
Vaenin said nothing for a moment. No one spoke. Vaenin often took time to consider. Then he spoke. "This does not mean that the Holy Masters are not aware of the dragon aura, correct?"
"Not by itself", Nayala replied. "But I was late this morning because I received a missive from the Holy Order. They wish us to teach young Anton to view the aura. I can only reason from this that they do not know how to view the aura."
Another Soryan spoke then. "I hope you didn't promise them anything. It may not be possible to teach one of them using our methods." This was Arryl who spoke. Arryl was the Master of the Archives. He was responsible for teaching the histories and coordinating the introduction of new knowledge into the archives.
Arryl was extremely thin and kept his head bald as well. He wore some spectacles that he had fashioned for himself. It was always a strange sight to see. The robes he wore were lined up and down with the Soryan Symbols of Power. It was difficult to get Arryl interested in much besides acquiring more knowledge.
"Do not fear, I merely told them we will do our best.", Nayala smiled as she spoke.
Vaenin spoke again. "Make sure that we do. Whatever our differences with the Holy Order, we must discover what the dragons are up to. We'll need their help to defend ourselves if it comes to that.
The Soryans in the room looked uncomfortable then, and not just at the thought of working with the Holy Order. Nayala lost her smile. What Vaenin was speaking of was knowledge to only select few outside of this grouping.
For the past year, dragon attacks had been picking up frequency in other parts of the world. the attacks were becoming more vicious, and much more coordinated. Sometimes with different dragon types working together. It was unheard of.
"If there is some force guiding these dragons now, Shaine did not see it.", Nayala said. "He was told what to look for."
Now another man's voice was heard. "That is IF he was looking correctly. You must admit, Nayala, that Shaine is not known for his attention to detail. That is why I somewhat resent him being assigned to me as a punishment."
Nayala turned to face Rendel, the Master Builder. "Rendel, I can assure you that Shaine knew how important this was. He took this seriously. I can also say I hold your craft in high regard. I think Shaine can benefit from what you can teach him."
Rendel was smiling, but still a bit ruffled obviously. "Well, I certainly hope so, since I'll have to deal with his antics for three months, I hear. These post-wars sometimes take their duty a bit lightly. I think that one too young to be in your service, Nayala."
Nayala frowned than. She did not like that term. Every Soryan in this room had fought in the war against the Holy Order. They knew what it was to be hunted down and killed simply for existing. Back then, mistakes would mean your life, so they just could not afford to make them.
Now that the war was over though, the next generation of Soryans still faced adversity, but most had never fought in a true battle, had never been on the run and had their very lives on the line from day to day. This young generation were referred to as "Post-War Soryans".
It cut both ways, though. Nayala knew that the younger generation sometimes referred to her and her peers as the "War-Soryans". She disliked that there was an apparent division in their own ranks. For now it meant nothing, but if given a chance, could it fester into a true rift? She wanted to avoid that if possible.
So did Vaenin. "Rendel, I dislike that word. Teach him what you can. We will need the strength of all the Soryan Order soon."
"It will be so, Vaenin." Rendel bowed his head a bit when he spoke. Everyone knew Vaenin did not require, or even want, anyone to bow to him, but some of them just couldn't help it.
Vaenin saw the movement, and Nayala saw his face frown for just a moment before he recovered. "Nayala, work quickly. Now that the dragons may know our ability to see their names, they could be driven to action. We'll need to be ready."
Now Nayala bowed her head. She couldn't stop herself! "The plan continues. I have other Wanderers heading to the north even now.
"I hope these are a bit more cautious than young Shaine Sharra, Nayala.", Arryl's words cut her a little. As Master of the Wanderers, Nayala was responsible for the actions of those under her command. The Wanderers were sent out all over the world to help in trouble spots or simply to bring back information. It took a certain type of Soryan and the truth was many of them were aggressive and eager for adventure. This sometimes caused problems...
"I've sent Willam and Audra. There is not much those two can't deal with." She saw the other Soryans nod in approval. Willam had not fought in the war like them, but his skills and leadership abilities were well respected. Audra was a celebrated war hero who had proven time and again she could likely handle anything. Nayala felt a little pride that two such as them were in her service. They were what Shaine could be if he would grow up.
"This is good", said Vaenin. "We need to know immediately what they find. Now we must move on, I am growing weary." The assembled Soryans nodded their assent.
"Arryl. What of the Scryers?"
Nayala looked to Arryl, as did the rest of the Soryans. This was another extremely important issue, but perhaps not as immediate as dragons.
"My Lord, it pains me to say that we are not much further in our studies than before. The best we can determine is that someone, somewhere is watching us. All of us. Our entire world."
"Or some-thing.", Vaenin said. That was what no one had wanted to acknowledge before. Only the people in this room knew of this, and each one of them had been hoping to find that it was the Holy Order trying to spy on them, or perhaps some device of the Kelland that was unfamiliar to them.
Arryl swallowed before he spoke next. "Indeed. We know the feel of the magic of the Holy Order too well. This cannot be them. Whatever it is, it cannot be blocked. It or they apparently see all."
"How can this be?", this time Cyrilla, Master of Trade, was speaking. "Who else could make such a spell? King Bhyrain?"
"Gah!", Arryl scoffed. "Never. This magic is extremely powerful and precise. Bhyrain is still using blood magic over there."
"Even the entire Order together could not scry the entire world at once. Even if we could, we could never maintain it indefinitely as this one seems to be."
"No", he continued, "This is too powerful. I will try to explain. It's as if this scrying spell has no specific will behind it, it simply is scrying and seeing. When I tried to block the sight of the spell, I succeeded for a moment..." Arryl trailed off.
"And then..?", Vaenin asked.
"And then, it appeared that the momentary interruption gained the attention, of something." Now Arryl appeared a bit shaken.
"Whatever that something was, it effortlessly, and with a bit of condescension I might add, pushed aside my blocking spell as you might wipe a spider's web out of your path."
"Then the awareness was gone from the spell, and it was back to scrying as usual. No more signs of any will directing it."
Boffan was now angry. "We should combine the power of the entire Order, all of us together might block it!"
"No." Vaenin voice was soft, but the authority in that voice was strong.
"No, whatever it is, it is content to merely watch for now. If we interfere with it too much we may invite an attack. I don't want to risk that. Arryl, continue studying and find out as much as you can without provoking...it."
Arryl nodded. "It will be done."
Vaenin raised his hand to his forehead. "Enough for now. Let us meet in one week's time. I am tired now."
With that they all voiced their goodbyes and began moving out of the room. "Nayala, please stay." Vaenin called out.
The others continued moving and Nayala heard their songs begin. Most teleported away with a brief burst of music, while a few lifted themselves into the air and flew off into the sun.
The others knew what they would discuss in their abscence. All of the Masters knew, but Nayala had been the first to know, and she still had a closer bond with Vaenin than the rest.
Now Nayala was alone in the room with Vaenin.
She knew what he wanted, and it was going to be painful.
"Your Wanderers, Nayala. Is there any word..? Any word on Derek?"
Hearing the pain in his voice truly hurt Nayala. It hurt worse to have nothing to offer him.
"I'm sorry, Vaenin. There has been no sign of him in any land in this world. Somehow he has managed to stay quiet and not cause any disruption." Nayala was looking at the floor as she told him this.
She wished she had more news about Vaenin's son.
Vaenin's eyes were closed as he digested the lack of information.
He opened them again slowly and looked at her. "Shaine. Make sure you train him well. He is like me, I am certain of it. He is like me."
Vaenin had said that before, and each time Nayala thought she might cry when he said it. There has to be something that could be done?
"Sister. There are trials unlike anything we have ever faced coming soon, and I...I do not think I will be here to face them with you."
Nayala surged forward and knelt down in front of the old man. "No, Vaenin, you are not done yet..", but Vaenin cut her off.
"No, it will be soon. I can feel it. Nayala, He calls to me." Nayala was shaking her head as if that would stop Vaenin's next words.
"Aeremon. Aeremon calls to me."
Now Nayala really did cry.
END OF PART 1
Click to read Chapter 10 - A Meeting In Kelland |
