The Morning After - A Rough Morning - Getting The Message - The Expedition - Betrayed - The Rescuer -
~oOo~
After the excitement and intrigue of Wildday afternoon, the following day begins quietly for Pavel, Kiki and Eren. All three had made it back to their dormitories before curfew - only just and in considerable discomfort, in Pavel's case - and had slept reasonably soundly. It being Godday, each of the young apprentices dutifully attends church in the morning, which gives them ample opportunity to ponder the events of the previous day.
~~
Pavel's thoughts are mostly occupied with the revelation that he'd had in the Library, but when he catches Meredith staring at him, a deep frown on her face, he can't help wondering whether Carrick has spoken to her about the vagrant in the marshes. Then he idly wonders what his sponsor was doing at the glassmakers yesterday morning and goes on to ponder why he should have any interest in the message that Pavel had been delivering. Shaking his head vigorously to clear it of all this unfamiliar musing, he lets the droning of the liturgist wash over him and returns to pondering his new-found interest in studying.
No point hanging around, he thinks. After the service, Pavel follows Carrick to his study and knocks on the door.
The master is plainly surprised to see him, but is even more surprised by what Pavel has to say. "I want to learn to draw. And I'd like to learn about runes and symbols." Pavel says, matter-of-factly.
"Learn to draw?" Carrick echoes, evidently bemused by this request. "Runes and symbols? Hells bells, boy what are you talking about? And why are you bothering me with it? Isn't this something you should be asking your tutor? My last attempt to take an active part in your education didn't exactly turn out too well..."
Pavel can't really decide how to respond to this, so he says nothing.
"Anyway, you can forget about that nonsense for the moment," Carrick continues. "I have another bone to pick with you. Come on, lad - we have an appointment."
The adept rises to his feet and strides out from behind his desk. He is about to grab Pavel by the arm, but stops himself abruptly and steps back looking rather uncomfortable. Chewing his lip, he frowns at the apprentice.
"Listen," he says, at length. "I know I haven't been a very... sympathetic sponsor, but..." He trails off, scowling. "That is," he starts again, "I don't want to be heavy-handed about this, but..." He stops again, starting to go red in the face. "Oh, curse it!"
"Look," he tells Pavel, leaning forward and speaking in a whisper. "The thing that you wouldn't tell me yesterday - well, I talked to Meredith and what she told me gave me serious cause for concern. So we are going to have a conversation on that topic, you and I, whether you like it or not. And since you appear to have a misguided sense of loyalty in this matter, I'm going to make things nice and easy for you. So why don't we go to Glassmakers right now, so that you can tell Bastian and I what we need to know..."
He straightens up and gestures towards the door.
"Well?" he asks. "Are you coming or not? Pavel follows; he can´t bring himself to reply though.
~~
Eren's mind is abuzz with excitement, running over the murals that she and Kiki had found and trying to decide what she should do next. The possible implications of the mural room, with its apparent focus upon historical collaborations between the schools, are almost too exciting to contemplate. One thing was certain: she needed to find out more - and that reminded her of the unique insight that she'd gained into the nature and organisation of the Imperial Library. And that reminded her about her orb and the lines of research that Master Atlan had suggested. But weren't she and Kiki supposed to be reporting back to Salazari this afternoon? And then there was the homework that she was supposed to have completed by tomorrow. So much to think about! So much to do! And so little time...
The discourse on "The Flaw of Embellishment" was something to which Eren knew she should have paid attention, as this was something she knew the Church Scribes had discussed with her Father more than once. But her head had been far too much abuzz to track the subtleties of the argument. Something about using calligraphy to illustrate the difference between adornment and embellishment, and she thought she could garble a couple of pertinent phrases on the topic if she needed to do so.
The discourse had also, of course, dragged on far too long. By the time the rest of the service was finished Eren's stomach was predictably complaining of neglect. When she stood up the rest of her body complained of the aches and pains it had picked up from the hike and the evening's scrambling around.
"I know we aren't supposed to be considering the needs of the body in church" Eren mused as the congregation slowly shuffled out of the musty confines, "but surely nobody could blame me today, considering all that I did yesterday!" She rolled her shoulders, trying to work them loose, and almost knocked over Goody Newmill, the paper seller's wife. After apologies and glares and contrite shuffling, Eren finally reached the daylight and freedom.
"Well, temporary freedom" she admitted to herself. She looked longingly at the baker's carts, but knew she didn't have the coin to spare, nor really the time "If I don't get at least _started_ on the homework I'm done for." she reminded herself "I'd better get onto it first thing, before I go see Master Salazar."
A few steps later she amended her plan "Well, something to eat would help to settle my mind and make me more productive. I'm sure it is not mid-day dinner time yet, but maybe Agatha will let me take mine early, to my room, so that I can eat while I work."
Fortunately for Eren, Agatha is in an indulgent mood today. One of the youngest and most junior members of the College kitchen staff, she can usually be relied upon for the occasional favour - provided that none of the senior servants are on hand to voice their disapproval.
"Bunta's got the day off on account o' her daughter gettin' married," the kitchen maid explains, with a grin. "Which is a blessed relief f'rall of us, I can tell you! Don't you dare tell 'er I said so, mind! Now, let's see what we have left from last night..."
Some time later, having spent rather more time than she'd have liked chatting with Agatha, Eren is heading back to her room with an impressive array of leftovers wrapped up in a teatowel ("I daresn't give you none o' the crockery," Agatha had apologised. "Bunta would 'ave my guts for garters if she found out.") when she feels the hairs on the back of her neck standing up. This is the only warning that she has before something wraps itself tightly round her ankles, threatening to send her sprawling onto the unyielding stone floor...
~~
Kiki is also thinking about the murals and their appointment with Salazari, but she's mostly preoccupied with her recent failures when called upon to apply her artistic talents on behalf of her friends. First there had been Pavel's wave picture, which had defied all of her attempts to reproduce it, and then the shudder-inducing portal inscription that she and Eren had found yesterday evening. And she hadn't even been given the chance to try sketching the murals, thanks to the interruptions from Imogen and Pavel. Thinking about Imogen gives her pause. Why had that girl been following them? And how had she managed to slip away before they even noticed that she was gone?
Kiki racked her brain over the two failed paintings. What was she missing! She seldom had problems with doing fast accurate work. And people often commented on how realistic her work was too. So it was not just her opinion of herself getting in the way.
Only belatedly does Kiki recall that she's supposed be going on an expedition with Master Stockfish later in the week, a 'reward' that she now anticipates with rather mixed feelings, thanks to the rather implausible warnings about the master that Eren had passed on yesterday morning. Precisely why her friend credited the ravings of a vagabond she'd met in the swamp, the young limner couldn't imagine, but her friend had been obviously distressed, which made it hard to just ignore. Still, Stockfish had to get permission from her school's Master of Tutors first, and Kiki was certain that Master Adhuc he wouldn't dream of putting her in danger...
The Portal was just to icky to think about for now so Kiki decides to head back to her small studio and look again at her failed attempt of the wave painting. As she walked she did not pay much attention to her surrounding as her mind churned over the problem.
Once in her room she takes out her failed attempt of the wave picture and studies it again intently. Yes, the detail was there. It looked like waves on the sea. But still something was missing... Frustratingly the leap of imagination dose not come to her. She can almost taste the shape of it but remains vague.
Kiki sniffs and unthinkingly wipes her nose on her sleeve where it joins the paint stains. Sighing she takes her broom from its corners and starts to sweep. Her room is already clean so she is soon sweeping the corridor in the meditation of simple labour.
"I say, are you Kiki?"
The voice surprises her, shaking her out of her reverie. She looks up from her sweeping to see a red-faced boy in Imperial robes.
He frowns, gesturing at his nose. "What's that on your... Oh, never mind. I'm s'posed to find some girl called Kik and take her back to Master Stockfish. Is that you?"
~oOo~
When Eren sense something is wrong she tries to prepare herself, but when it is her legs restrained she realizes stopping her substantial momentum is going to be hard. Fortunately staff sparing partners have been trying for years to exploit this same weakness with trips, so she has some clue of how to react. All the same she feels herself teetering... and then a well-judged shove dashes her hopes of staying on her feet.
Crashing heavily to the floor, she can't help crying out in pain as her not-inconsiderable frame impacts the stone flags. Although her hastily-outflung arms help to break her fall somewhat, the force of it is sufficient to fling her head forward, cracking painfully into the floor. Winded and more than a little dazed, she hears the cackling laughter of her assailant, moving past and then away from her down the corridor. By the time she has raised her head to look, there's nothing to see but a flicker of movement in the distance as the malefactor heads off down a side passage.
Gasping with pain, Eren climbs gingerly to her feet. No obviously broken bones, fortunately, but she's badly bruised and her head is pounding...
Stifling sobs and blinking away tears she gathers up the dropped food, hoping nobody sees her right now. If she can just get it together and limp back to her room without being seen then she can cry in private, and eating will help things feel not quite so bad.
She wonders briefly if she should have someone look at her injuries, but no, she couldn't tell anyone what happened, they'd think she was making up stories to cover up how clumsy she is.
As she nears her room, however, Eren hears the sound of voices up ahead and hesitates, unwilling to let any of her peers see her in this state. While trying to decide whether to wait or find somewhere else, she overhears a phrase that makes gives her goosebumps and makes her listen hard, heart beating in her chest. The two - unfamiliar and unmistakably adult male - voices seem to be coming from within her room.
"Are you sure this is the girl's cell?" one voice asks, speaking softly but urgently. "I thought you said she was heading this way?"
"Yeah, this is definitely the right one," says a second, gruffer voice. "I told you: the lad pointed it out for us and said she was bound to be comin' back 'ere after the service. My spotter Dev eyeballed 'er leavin' the church and sent a runner. That's why we're 'ere. So jus' be patient, eh? The lass'll show..."
~~
It takes a few seconds for the meaning of all this to penetrate the existing fog of self-pity. Then Eren feels her blood run cold, and her thoughts scatter to possibilities of why and who and what next?
She realizes that the "who" might help with the other questions, and it happens to be the one thing that maybe she can narrow down the most quickly. She feels a plan to find out more about them forming in the back of her mind, but first things first.
The speech had not sounded refined, but she replays it in her mind to see if she can gather any further information out of it. She knows that it is not so hard to tell a lot about someone in Syran from their clothes, but speech isn't so much harder. And she certainly heard people from many parts of the city at the plays in her younger days, she used to love all the variety in the audience. Now to put it all together if she can....
The speech patterns of both men are familiar and certainly aren't foreign or obviously upper class, but they are quite different. One sounds stereotypically lower class, but the other is more cultured, the vowel sounds more controlled and the consonants more distinct. However, this doesn't really tell her much and certainly doesn't help her to identify who they are or what they intend. She decides that she can live without knowing for the time being...
Eren quickly plots out a route to the infirmary that does not go past her room, and does her best to quietly turn and walk away down the corridor, although not without the occasional backwards glance.
Fortunately no-one seems to be following her. Before she reaches the infirmary, however, she sees another student coming towards her along the corridor: Vey. He immediately recognises her and - not for the first time - Eren feels the warmth of his brilliant smile as an almost physical sensation. When he gets close enough to see that she is hurt, however, the look of sincere concern that replaces the smile immediately makes her burst into tears. With two quick strides, he is beside her, a comforting arm around her shoulder.
"By all the saints Eren!" he exclaims. "Whatever happened to you? No, no: don't try to talk," he adds, as she tries in vain to speak through her sobs. "You just lean on me and I'll take you straight to matron..."
At the infirmary, with matron tut-tutting and fussing over her various injuries, Eren at last manages to stop the sobbing. Vey is hovering nearby, looking anxious...
Eren wipes her eyes one more time, then forces herself to focus on the situation at hand instead of her hurts.
Oh how much she wishes she could get someone else to just take care of all of this! But she can't, she has to take care of herself, and without making this more of a mess than it already is. She has to go and deal with those men. Then she realizes that is not logical, she has two resources right here, Matron and Vey. She doesn't know how much she can rely on them, or how much she can ask of them, but surely its better to work with them than on her own. She just needs to plan this out to ask little of them, but get the most from that.
Finally she says slowly "Someone pushed me down. I felt like something wrapped my ankles, but I'm not sure. But it wasn't just me being clumsy as usual, I was pushed. Then when I approached my room I heard two men talking near my room. I was worried, I mean," she suddenly realizes that her listeners might laugh if she says she was worried about being trapped alone with the men, since what man would want to take advantage of her? "that is, I didn't want to deal with anything else. I don't know what they were there for, but I was hurt and didn't want to talk to anyone, so I decided maybe I should come and get looked at."
There, at least Matron knows what has been going on. If anything else happens, someone at the college knows about it.
By the time Eren has finished, Matron's face has turned bright red, her brows knitted in a deep frown. Eren has never seen her so angry.
"If I catch the... the... the filthy little miscreant that was responsible for this," she fumes. "They'll wish they'd never been born. Pranks and japes are one thing, but it sounds like this was just plain vicious. You're very lucky that you weren't more seriously hurt, my girl. Rest assured, I'll take this to the headmaster. Perhaps he can find who was responsible and make sure that they never, ever do it again."
Fussing over Eren's bandaged head, she adds: "But what was that you were saying about hearing someone in your room? Are you sure you weren't mistaken? You had just taken a nasty bang to the head..."
Apparently a malicious student prank is something that fits comfortably into Matron's world-view, but the notion of outsiders daring to invade the apprentices' dormitory is unthinkable.
"Vey, could I ask a favor?," Eren says. "I'd love to have my staff to lean on while I hobble around today, but I don't want to go back to my room alone right now. Would you be willing to go and get it for me? It should be right behind my door. If the men are still there, you can tell them I'm in the infirmary. If they want to come and see me here I think that would be alright, would it Matron? I've got some studying to do, but probably best to deal with this first." One last idea occurs to her, but could she? Before she can talk herself out of it she quickly mumbles: "Oh, and if you have any work to do, you could always join me in the library if you wanted and weren't busy and stuff."
Vey looks rather nervous, but he nods. "No trouble at all. I'll go fetch your staff and then I'll take you to the library."
Matron tells him to be careful and to come straight back if there is someone waiting in Eren's room, but it's clear that she still doesn't really credit the girl's story. The boy nods and strides off immediately, leaving Eren feeling a little awkward as matron favours her with a raised eyebrow and a knowing smile.
"A good lad, that one," she observes, with a nod in Vey's direction. "Not like his daddy, when he was here. A bad lot he was, for all that he impressed his tutors. Odd that he produced such a... charming son. But listen to me gabbling," she chides herself. "Let me make you a nice cup of tea, petal. That'll put a spot of colour back in your cheeks..."
~~
Vey returns promptly with her staff.
"No sign of anyone in your room," he reports. "I... err. I guess they must have given up waiting for you," he adds. "Shall we head over to the library now?"
Eren winces, as she realizes how far her plan has gone off track. Matron is all fussed about the normal thing, someone pulling a trick on Eren, and not even believing about the men, and now it looks like Vey is thinking the same thing.
What can she salvage out of this? Well at least she has her staff now, and an escort, not that a young man would be considered an appropriate escort for a young woman in general, but under the circumstances she isn't going to complain, especially if she can coax some more of those cute smiles out of him.....
Eren makes an effort to sit up straight and look re-energized, then says "Matron, Vey, thank you both so much! I really do appreciate that some people will help out any student on a bad day. Vey, yes, I'd love to go to the library now--there at least it should be peaceful, I hope!"
Matron gives her a rather obvious wink and a smile of encouragement, while admonishing her to try to be more careful and to avoid any further excitement today. Vey, now looking a little uncomfortable, gestures towards the door and follows Eren out.
"Let's go this way," he suggests, leading her off the main corridor and down a narrow side passage. "We can take the shortcut through the garden quad and use the back door."
The garden quadrangle is a horticultural gem, nestling amongst the college buildings at the rear of the Library. Although modest in size, it is home to a wide variety of rare and unusual plant species, including several mature trees and numerous large shrubs, which are arranged in densely-populated raised beds separated by criss-crossing gravel paths. There are only three entrances, leading from the Library, the adepts' common room and a little-used side passage to the student dormitories. The latter is locked at dusk and the garden is officially off-limits to unattended apprentices at all times.
However, many older or bolder students discover that they can get away with the occasional brisk walk through the leafy and sweet-scented quadrangle during th day, provided they aren't tempted to linger. This route to the Library isn't really much of a shortcut, but Eren is happy to go along with Vey's suggestion, since it means they're less likely to bump into other students.
By the time that the downside of this apparent merit dawns on her, it's already too late. Her first inkling that something is wrong comes when she hears a curious two-tone whistle and realises that Vey is no longer walking beside her. Turning to look over her shoulder she sees him a few paces behind her, backing away slowly, his unsmiling face an unreadable - indeed, barely recognisable - mask. He's not even looking at her, she realises, but at something - or someone - up ahead.
Two figures detach themselves from the shadows of the shrubbery and begin moving purposefully towards her...
~oOo~
Carrick leads Pavel out of the Academy, through the streets of Savaran and across the bridge to Glassmakers, walking so quickly that Pavel occasionally finds himself trotting just to keep up. When they arrive at Perronele's workshop, the place seems to be deserted. This shouldn't be that surprising - almost everyone will have been at church this morning and Godday lunch is traditionally spent with one's family - but Carrick frowns when he finds the door open and no-one visible inside.
"Bastian?" he calls out. "Are you there?"
When there is no answer, Carrick enters the workshop and heads for the side-chamber where he had been speaking to Bastian the previous day. Throwing open the door, he gasps and then starts cursing under his breath. Following behind him, Pavel sees that the room is in complete disarray, the glass containers and lenses that had been so carefully arrayed on shelves now lying shattered on the benches and the floor. Carrick takes a couple of steps into the room, the glass crunching under his feet, but then turns at a noise from behind them: the sound of someone moaning.
~~
They find the source of the sound behind one of the large grinding mechamisms, climbing unsteadily to his feet and holding his head. It's the burly owner of the workshop - and from the look of the dried blood that is caked in his hair, he's suffered a serious blow to the head.
"S'Blood, Perronele!" Carrick exclaims. "What in the Hells happened to you? And where's Bastian?"
The glassmaker squints at him. "Bastian?" he asks, sounding groggy. "Bastian? I... I... don't know. Pair o' bastards jumped me and one of them... well," he holds out his hand, which is covered in blood. "You can see for yourself. Bastian was in his room, far as I remember - you sayin' he's not there now?"
"Gone," Carrick confirms, looking grim. "And the room's a wreck. Who were these people, man? Did you get a good look at them?"
Perronele shakes his head, then winces. "Not really," he says, grimacing. "They were wearin' hoods and they'd floored me afore I knew what was happenin'. But I don't reckon they were your average ruffians," he adds. "I might not have seen their faces, but they weren't exactly dressed in rags, if you catch my drift. One had new boots, by the look of 'em - and I had a good look at 'em!" he notes, ruefully. "Leastways, afore they put my lights out..."
He belatedly notices Pavel. "Ho, what's this? Why, it's the lad from yesterday! What's he doin' here? Is he with you, Master Carrick?" The glassmaker's eyes go wide. "That blasted message! That's what this is all about, isn't it?"
Carrick nods. "I fear you're right, but..."
"You and your damned intrigues!" Perronele spits angrily. "I told you to keep me out of it! Nothing good comes of secrets!"
"Damn it, man!" Carrick responds angrily. "I never brought... this down on you! Now are you sure there's nothing else you can remember about these men who attacked you? Think, man! Bastian's life may depend on it"
Turning to Pavel, he snaps. "And you, lad - you can forget about your damned games now! A man's life is at stake! Tell me everything you can remember about this fellow you met in the marshes. Don't spare the details, even if you think they're irrelevant - I need to know who he is so that I can work out who might have taken Bastian!"
For once, Pavel goes along with his master's request. "Well, he knew my father," he begins immediately. In fact, as he begins to tell the story, Carrick can't help but notice that boy seems to be, at least momentarily, someone entirely different. Strangest of all is how he finishes his tale. "I think she was quite upset."
"Yes, I rather think she was," Carrick murmurs distractedly. He is silent for some time, his brow furrowed. "The tattoo on this fellows arm - you say it was a sword?"
The apprentice nods. Abruptly, Carrick turns and stalks back to Bastian's room. Pavel can hear him rummaging around for a few minutes, then he returns clutching a piece of paper, a bottle of ink and a stylus.
"You said earlier that you wanted to learn how to draw," the adept comments. "Why don't you start by drawing this sword tattoo for me?"
~~
Pavel seems to be quite content having a go at drawing. In fact, he seems immediately enthralled in the task. He's not having much success at first, so he asks if he might excuse himself for a few moments. In the latrine, he casts one of his school spells on himself, one to help him aid his master, of all things. Returning, he seems more concentrated but is still having difficulty. Eventually, he half-stands, his knee on the stool, and bends right over his work, bizarrely using both hands to draw.
By now, Carrick has realised that Pavel isn't about to be anything like quick so is helping clear up some of the mess. When he does check on Pavel, he finds he has only produced a number of points and lines which oddly seem to pass the points by. He is about to scold the boy but for once holds back: he seems so concentrated, who knows? Eventually, the boy stands back and reveals a quite passable drawing. The lines now seem to make sense as they have defined the shape of the object, something one might expect to see in an apprentice iconographer.
And the iconography is very clear to Carrick.
"You're absolutely sure that this was the symbol?" the adept asks quietly. Pavel nods. His drawing shows a sword surrounded by three eyes: one above the pommel and two one either side of the crossguard.
"Do you know what this is?" Carrick asks.
Pavel nods. Drawing the symbol seems to have had an unexpectedly profound effect, bringing all of his memories of the encounter in the swamp into sharper focus. When the fugitive showed them his tattoo, he now recalls, Eren had identified it as the emblem of the St Order of Arkat the Liberator. The fugitive had confirmed this and told them he'd been expelled from the order as a traitor. He relays this information to Carrick.
"Well, if he's managed to turn his own brethren against him," the adept comments. "And made an enemy of a secret cabal of black sorcerers, then I can hardly blame him for fleeing the city. Is there anything else that you forgot to tell me?" he adds, rather sharply.
"Actually, yes," Pavel admits. "He had another tattoo." He picks up the pen again. "It looked like this," he says, quickly sketching the triple-looped ropework pattern that the vagabond had shown him. "My father has this too," he adds. "That's why I believed him when he told me they were old comrades."
Carrick laughs out loud, which wasn't the reaction Pavel had been expecting.
"Is that what he said?" the adept asks. "Old comrades? Oh, that's rich! That's really rich! The devious bastard!"
Pavel looks confused. "What do you mean?"
"Well, clearly he wanted you to infer that he had some kind of relationship with your father. But the only kind of comradeship that this mark actually implies," Carrick tells him, pointing at the sketch. "Is the desperate comradeship of condemned men. It's a bondmark," he explains. "And the only variety of bondmark that you're ever likely to see in Syran."
Carrick tells him that bonded labour is a legal sanction, common thoughout Safelster, which is used as punishment for certain crimes - or even, in some cases, for defaulting on a debt. Its use has become increasingly rare in Syran, where it is seen as morally reprehensible, tantamount to slavery. In fact, only one agency in the city has made regular use of bonded labourers in the recent past - and this tattoo is the bondmark that they use.
"So our fugitive - and by the sound of it, your father - was, at some stage, a bonded oarsman for the Syran Navy. Generally called a galley-slave, in the vernacular," Carrick says.
He explains that this punishment was widely used in Syran during the great naval conflicts two decades ago - murderers and the like were condemed to serve in the war galleys instead of being executed or imprisoned. Many of those that survived were freed and pardoned when peace was restored.
"Of course, this doesn't mean that he and your father weren't genuine comrades," Carrick adds a little hurriedly, noticing the look on the apprentice's face.
Before Pavel has a chance to absorb the implications of this information, however, Carrick's attention returns to the apprentice's first drawing.
"You know, this isn't a bad effort," he comments. "But you have made a couple of mistakes." He indicates the eyes on either side of the crossguard. "These two should be closed. Only the one at the top is open."
Pavel shakes his head. "No, that's definitely how it was on the tattoo. All of the eyes were open," he insists.
Carrick stares at him. "You're certain of that? Yes, I can see that you are. Very interesting. It's not something I've seen before, but it may be significant." He sighs and his expression grows dark. "But I'm not sure how any of this helps us to find out who has taken Bastian." He scowls and scratches at the stubble on his jaw. "I need to know more about this... affliction. You said that the man's aura was 'all wrong', but can you be more precise? I won't ask you to draw it, but can you tell me anything more about what you saw?"
Pavel is glad that he doesn't have to try drawing the damaged aura. It would have been difficult enough with a full palette of paints - he wouldn't know where to begin with pen and ink. However, the memory of what he'd seen is vivid in his mind's eye. He describes what he can see to Carrick, who nods and takes notes.
"Anything else?" he asks when the apprentice's description trails off.
"Just one thing," Pavel says. "It might sound a bit strange, but... well, he didn't have a shadow. I mean, he should have had one - the sun was shining, and we all had shadows - but it just wasn't there."
His sponsor has turned pale. "By the Regents!" he curses, now speaking in an intense whisper. "I never... I mean, I'd heard of... but I never thought anyone would be cruel enough to use it on a fellow man! If I find out that she is mixed up in this..." he mutters, clenching his jaw.
The adept turns his attention back to Pavel. "I already feared for Bastian's safety," he says. "Now I find myself fearing for yours - and for the other students who spoke to this vagabond. My guess is that whoever's taken Bastian have done so because they think he can lead them to the vagabond. If they know of your involvement then the odds are good that they'll come looking for you too. And the others."
"Now, I need to make some enquiries - if I can work out who our fugitive is then that might just lead me to his enemies, and hopefully to Bastian. Time is of the essence, though, so I need you to pursue another line of enquiry for me."
"Someone must have talked about your encounter in the marshes," he continues. "How else would they have known that a message had been delivered to Bastian? Given your reluctance to tell me about it, I'm fairly sure that it wasn't you - and I reckon Merry was too terrified for it to have been her. So I want you to find the other two, as soon as you possibly can, and find out who they've told. I doubt they meant to cause mischief, but clearly they spoke to someone who is part of this cabal, or to someone who saw a chance to profit from the information. We need to know who."
"Now listen carefully. The fact that this fugitive identified Stockfish as one of the sorcerers already lent his story some credence to my mind, but if the cause of his affliction is what I think it is, then this 'nest of vipers' is more extensive than I'd feared. If nothing else, it convinces me that the rot isn't confined to Imperial. So be very, very careful who you speak to and what you say. Trust no-one. Now... wait here a moment."
He stalks back to Bastian's office and returns with a candle, some paper and an envelope. He quickly writes something down on the paper, then folds it twice and slips it into the envelope. Finally he lights the candle and drips a blob of wax onto the envelope, impressing it with his signet ring. He hands the envelope to Pavel.
"Come to my office - without fail! - at the start of the second quarter this evening," he says. "If I'm not there and haven't contacted you by noon tomorrow, then you are to assume the worst. In that event - and only in that event - I want you to open this and go to the person that I have named. Show them this," he concludes, handing Pavel a small object. "And tell them everything."
It is a metal disk, very much like a coin, but with an unfamilar insignia engraved on both sides: a circle enclosing a geometric design that is something like a clover leaf.
"Keep it safe," he adds, nodding at the disk. "And don't show it to anyone else unless you have to. Now be off with you! And be careful!"
After all this, Pavel feels quite drained. He doesn't particularly wish sto stay here, though, so he wordlessly leaves. Eren or Vey, he thinks to himself. Well, he hardly knows the boy at all, and he knows the girl only marginally better. So, the girl...
Soon, he is stood before the gates of Imperial College, asking the porter to be let in.
"'Ullo there, young feller-me-lad," says Gully the day-porter companionably, giving Pavel a cross-eyed grin. "You're spendin' a lot more time in that Library of late. Or is it summat other than studyin' what keeps bringin' you 'ere?" he adds, with a wink.
"Well, I've come to see Erentona, if that's what you mean," say Pavel, smiling. He always smiles when he talks to people, though; the insinuations don't find any purchase in Pavel's mind.
The porter smiles back and waves him though the gate. "Go on in, then, lad. She come back from church a little while afore lunch and I ain't seen 'er leave, so she'll be somewhere 'ereabouts. Try in the refectory or the West dorms if she ain't in the Library."
Pavel heads straight for the library, flashing smiles at some of the students as he asks for Erentona's whereabouts.
It's lunchtime on Godsday, so students are bit thin on the ground, but fortunately Pavel finds a couple who have seen Eren today.
"I saw her heading for the dorms with a load of food," one boy tells him. "Can't have been more than an hour ago. She's probably still in her room."
"You reckon?" another boy chips in. "I just saw 'er in the garden on my way in 'ere, with that Vey."
When Pavel quizzes him, it transpires that he'd glimpsed Eren a few minutes ago, while looking through a partially-glazed door that leads into to the garden from the Library's entrance lobby. He'd actually seen someone else through the window as was passing, which piqued his interest because the fellow didn't look like a master or a scholar. Stopping for a closer look, he'd seen another man accompanying the first, who looked "more like an master", and had concluded that he must be a visiting adept. He'd caught sight of Eren and Vey entering the garden at the opposite end, just as he lost interest and turned away from the window.
"Haven't seen 'em come in, mind," the boy adds. "So p'raps they got collared for bein' in the garden..."
But Pavel isn't even there any more. He has taken off for the garden at a quick pace. After a few steps, he remembers what Master Carrick said and breaks into a run.
~oOo~
Kiki suppresses her irritation at been interrupted and her name being mangled and try's to keep the rhythm she has got going. [Sweep] "Well" [Sweep] "I am" [Sweep] "Kiki," she tells the messenger boy. "Close enough?" [Sweep] "So you are in the delivery business" [Sweep] "As well?" [Sweep] "Don't worry" [Sweep] "I will be finished here shortly"
Kiki likes finishing what she has started.
The boy glares at her. "Alright," he says, "But you'd better get a move on! Master Stockfish quite specifically told me to be quick! You're supposed to be setting off within the hour..."
"Interesting! That was short notice, wonder what the rush is? Still I need Master Adhuc's permission for this trip regardless."
Kiki stops sweeping and returns her broom back to her cell. "Come on - I suppose we better check with Master Adhuc to see if I have permission or Master Stockfish will be disappointed."
With that Kiki heads off to see her master.
"Wait a minute!" the boy calls after her. "Master Stockfish said to tell you that he'd already cleared it with your Master of Tutors! Can't we just go? He was very insistent that I bring you back quickly..."
This cuts no ice as she is still a bit irritated by the rather rude interruption.
"Don't worry it won't take long" she adds clearly heading down the corridor in a surprising clip of speed for one so short. "Do try to keep up. Not far now" Kiki calls back over her shoulder.
Fortunately, she finds Master Adhuc in his office. The Master of Tutors seems surprised and rather irritated to see her.
"Stockfish?" he responds, when she asks him about the expedition. "Oh, that fellow from the Imperial College. Yes, yes, yes - he asked about some field trip last week. Of course you have permission to go! Saints alive, Kiki! Didn't I already tell you that this joint teaching thing is your chance to shine? To put your somwehat dubious past behind you? I want you to show this Stockfish character that our students are every bit as good as as the damned Impies."
He belatedly notices the Imperial apprentice accompanying Kiki. "No offense, lad. Now is that everything, Kiki? I have an... ahmmmm... urgent appointment to attend to, don't you know."
(Kiki suspects that this 'urgent appointment' is his lunch, but it probably wouldn't be prudent to mention that).
The boy from Imperial chips in at this point. "Yes, can we go now? Master Stockfish told me to hurry," he explains to Adhuc, somewhat disingenuously. "He wants to set off within the hour."
"S'blood!" the corpulent Master of Tutors exclaims. "He is keen, isn't he? Yes, by all means, go, go go! Don't dilly dally here a moment longer, young lady. And remember: the honour of the school is in your hands! Do us proud!"
"Yes sir I will do my best." With the Kiki turns and heads back to her cell at double time. Once there she bags the few things she thinks she will need (not that she has much to begin with) and then heads off without looking to see if the boy is following, still going double time. Kiki is used to doing urgent delveryies, but this is the first time that it is herself that she is delivering. She marches straight up Master Stockfish then stops and waits for him to notice her.
The master welcomes her with a warm smile.
"Ah, there you are, my dear!" he says. "Sorry to rush you, but there has been a very interesting development and we have no time to waste!"
He turns to the boy who accompanies her. "That will be all, lad. Off you go," he tells him, sternly.
When they are alone, Stockfish continues. "I've just had word from an associate of a confirmed sighting of our objective," he tells the apprentice. "So I'd like to set off for Arkat's Wood without delay. We should reach there before nightfall, and can begin our search first thing in the morning." He frowns. "I say, have you by any chance ridden on horseback before?"
Kiki thinks that this probably isn't the time to mention that she has - albeit briefly - ridden on the back of one variety of equine. Riding horses was largely the province of the wealthy, so she'd never had the opportunity back at the village. She'd often pestered her mother to let her ride their old cart horse, but had been told, quite firmly, that he wouldn't tolerate a experienced rider, let alone a curious little girl. She shakes her head.
"No matter," the master breezes. "You'll be riding with me anyway, so it'll mostly be a matter of hanging on tight. Aha, we'd better be on our way," he adds, as the sound of a clock striking floats in through the open window of his room. He pats his pack. "I've plenty of provisions here, but I always find riding is better on an empty stomach, at least to begin with. The horse will need a rest stop in a couple of hours, so we can have a bite to eat then. Follow me."
The adept leads Kiki along a series of corridors and out into a quiet quadrangle, with stables on one side. Asking her to wait, he enters the latter and chats amiably with a stablehand, returning after a few minutes with a saddled horse, a young and lively-looking bay roan stallion. Murmuring to the horse to calm it, he motions to Kiki to follow him and takes her out through a side gate in the College walls, which he carefully locks behind him. Mounting with the confidence of an regular horseman, Stockfish holds out a hand towards the young apprentice, who is rather wary of the large and powerful animal.
"Don't worry - he's not as fierce as he looks," the adept says with a grin. "Here, take hold of my hand and see if you can get a toe in the stirrup," he tells her.
The horse whinnies in protest as, after several attempts, Kiki finally clambers onto its back and wriggles into position behind Stockfish. Patting it affectionately and muttering some soothing words, the adept calms his steed again, then nudges it into a gentle walk. Trotting through the streets of Syran, Kiki stares around with interest at the different perspective afforded by this novel vantage point, while clinging to the adept's robes and trying not to slip off.
~~
They leave by Eastgate and almost immediately depart from the Marost road to follow a track northwards, setting a pace that Kiki finds alarming and exhilarating in equal measure. True to his word, Stockfish breaks off from this seemingly headlong gallop after a couple of hours and tethers the horse in a lush meadow by a stream, while he and Kiki eat a picnic lunch.
Kiki finds the meadow relaxing after the rush of the morning and their hasty departure. Thinking back, even though bareback in every sense, riding the Unicorn had been far more comfortable. At least that is what she remembers anyway. Perhaps she had been too exhilarated to notice at the time. She had found the animal's rhythm after a while but not before going numb down below.
It would be very easy for Kiki to be swallowed by the peace of the meadow but still some things are bothering her.
"Master Stockfish now that we are out of the city perhaps you would not mind telling me what exactly our objective is? I assume it is an animal of some sort?"
"Yes indeed," Stockfish acknowledges. "And that's why I asked you to come with me, my dear. As you demonstrated on the field trip, you have a rare gift when it comes to animals. I'm hoping that this affinity of yours will enable us both to get closer to our subject than I have ever managed myself. I've been trying to study it for many years, you see, but apart from the occasional fleeting glimpse my efforts have all been in vain. Now, with your help, I hope that we will both be able to study that noblest of all the beasts: the unicorn."
He leans forward, a gleam of excitement in his eyes. "I can't begin to tell you what this would mean to me," he says, a smile playing over his lips. "As I'm sure you know, the unicorn is much more than just an animal, and for a student of the wizardly arts in particular its study offers great rewards. Great rewards," he repeats, his eyes taking on a faraway look.
Another chance to study Unicorns! Weeeee! Brilliant! Kiki thinks to herself.
Then a bit more calmly she replies "Oh yes! A more noble essence you will not find. And so strong and handsome that a glimpse can take your breath away," she enthuses, with a sigh. "So, yes - studying them is very rewarding. My paintings could just not do him justice. But back then I suppose I could only consider what my eyes could see." Kiki looks over to Stockfish "Did you hear my Disputation on Unicorns by any chance?"
"Indeed I did," the adept smiles. "It's one of the reasons that I asked you along on this expedition. I know that many of my fellow masters were doubtful about your claim to have actually encountered one of these noble beasts - and I must confess that I had my share of doubts too, at first - but the talents that you demonstrated on our Field Trip gave your story the ring of truth and persuaded me to offer you this opportunity by way of reward. Tell me," he continues, looking at her with sudden intensity. "Where did your encounter occur? You hail from one of the villages upriver, I think... Nortark, is it? Was your encounter in the woods near there, or further afield?"
Kiki casts her mind back to that wonderful day.
"Oh I was nearly half a day out from the village looking for herbs for my mum when I first found the droppings. Nearly walked past them but they looked odd and they certainly did not smell anything like horse or deer. See." Kiki fishes in her pouch and brings out of tiny pinch of a dry brown material and offers it to Stockfish. "Looks a bit like acorns and smells of lilacs. Load of medical properties."
Stockfish takes the material and rubs it between his fingers before smelling it. Then he touches it with his tongue and quickly grimaces.
"Oh!" Kiki blushes "Sorry, forgot to say it still tastes like horse shit."
Doing her best to ignore his glower Kiki continues.
"It was still warm when I found it and could not quite believe what I had found. Luckily I managed to pick up the trail and followed it. I guess he knew I was there anyway cos he was just standing there looking at me when I stumbled into the clearing. Didn't bat an eye lid."
"Me I was gob smacked as you can imagine. Just stood and stared at this lovely creature that looked like it had just stepped out of a story book. Funny thing I wasn't the least bit scared. He had a horn this size," says Kiki putting her hand a generous three feet apart.
"Then he just trots over and sniffs me all over. Nearly knocked me over when he rubbed himself against me. So what could I do. I had read the stories of how you are meant to ride a unicorn. Anyway just then it felt so right so I dumped everything on a bush. He seemed to approve as he was back sniffing, and things..." Kiki blushes even more at this point. "Anyway after that I got to ride on his back. Was the best day of my life" she end dreamily.
"I imagine it was," says Stockfish. He has been listening intently to Kiki's story and now his eyes are glistening with excitement."Let us hope that the obvious affinity you have for these magnificent creatures gives us the opportunity to repeat - or even to better - that wonderful experience."
~~
Having finished their meal, the apprentice and the adept resume their exhilarating journey towards Arkat's Wood. Kiki enjoys the second half of the ride more, having grown accustomed to the alarming pace and now feeling very excited about the object of their expedition. They follow the perimeter of a wooded area for most of this part of the journey, its familiar sights and smells making the diminutive apprentice feel very much at home.
By the time they've reached the southern edge of Arkat's Wood it is already growing dark. The difference between this dense, ancient forest and the tamer, civilised woodland that Kiki knows and loves is pronounced. A palpable sense of danger seems to hang in the air here. Not a threat, exactly, but rather the unmistakable impression that something - perhaps the very forest itself - is watching.
When a shadowy figure emerges from the gloomy interior and strides boldly towards them, Kiki hastily smothers her urge to scream with alarm. This, she realises, as Stockfish calls out a greeting, must be the associate that he mentioned.
"Well met, Tom," the adept calls. "Is that our dinner?" He's obviously referring to the pair of rabbits that are dangling from the newcomer's pack.
"Aye," the man responds, his voice gruff. "Reckon it is. Mind, if I'd known we'd 'ave company, I might've brung more'n a brace o' conies. Who's the lassie?"
"This is Kiki," Stockfish tells him. "She's going to help us with our quest, aren't you my dear?
Kiki bobs to Tom "Yes sir I will do my best"
"She has a real gift when it comes to animals," Stockfish continues. "And she's had a previous encounter with our one of our elusive friends. Kiki, this is my good friend Tom. He's a tracker by trade and he's undertaken to find the noble beast for us. I'd wager there's not a man alive who knows these woods better."
Tom builds a fire and erects a crude shelter, then quickly skins the rabbits and uses them to prepare a simple but hearty meal for the three of them. He's no great conversationalist, but Stockfish more than compensates for his associate's taciturnity. As the tracker sits by the fire, smoking a clay pipe and listening to the adept chattering away cheerfully, Kiki has a chance to study him. His face is weatherbeaten and wrinkled and his unruly hair is shot through with grey, but it's hard to judge his age. A long, drooping moustache conceals a thin, unsmiling mouth and a pair of bristly eyebrows jut out over his heavily-lidded eyes.
Kiki eventually directly addresses the tracker
"Tom - is it OK I call you that? Its just we haven't been introduced..."
The man nods and grunts affirmatively.
"So, what brings you to look for unicorns? Have you seen one before?"
"Oh aye. Not up close, like," he admits. "But I seen un." After a pause he adds: "'I been trailin' un for three day now."
"That's why we're here, Kiki," Stockfish puts in. "And why we came with such haste. Tom sent me word that he was on the creature's trail and I knew there was not a moment to lose. And hopefully, in the morning, we'll see it for ourselves! But perhaps we should all retire now - we'll need to make an early start on the morrow."
Kiki finds it hard to sleep, partly because of the unfamiliar surroundings and the discomforts of her rough bed, but mostly because she is too nervous and excited. After what feels like an hour or more, she hears the two men talking in a low murmur, but can't quite make out their words.
"Oh why do city folk always have to talk in stage whisper? Don't they realise how well sound travels out here?" Kiki thinks to herself. "Well I'm awake now - wonder what they are planning for tomorrow? Bet it will be good, well I hope it is anyway".
With that Kiki decides to edge closer to hear what is being said.
Creeping as close as she dares - she knows only too well how hard it is to move silently outside, and how far the sound of a snapped twig can carry - she overhears a few snatches of the conversation.
"... Fer me to get close," the tracker, Tom is saying. "Reckon 'im can smell me, or summat, an' 'e don't 'ang about when 'e do."
Stockfish's reply is very hard to hear at first, but Kiki makes out the phrase "Less wary with the girl around" and his concluding words: "After that, it won't matter."
"Aye, but what about the..." she hears Tom ask, but the rest of his question is drowned out by the sound of Stockfish coughing. "'If she were to..." he continues, before another prolonged bout of coughing intervenes. "...be missed?" Kiki hears him finish.
"Oh, don't worry about Kiki," Stockfish replies, his voice clear now. "She'll be going home with very happy memories of this expedition. Of that much I am certain," he concludes.
This seems to bring the conversation to an end. A short while later, Kiki hears one of the men snoring and decides to return to her rough bed.
~oOo~
It had been bothering Eren, the question of what these men could want. She had no wealth, no contacts, no secrets worth taking. But suddenly she knows what it must be that they are after: the orb. And she knows that she is not going to let them get it.
She spins and charges back the way that she'd come. She doesn't look back to see what the men are doing, she just gathers her best speed and charges straight down the path, woe to Vey or anyone else who gets in her way. To make sure of that she prepares her staff to ward off any attempt to grab her, and as she approaches the suddenly mysterious student she yells in her loudest voice "Move Vey! Intruders!"
This tactic initially seems to take Vey by surprise, but as Eren bears down on him he drops into a half-crouch, which reminds her of a fencer's fighting stance, and a cruel smile breaks over his face. Immediately guessing that he intends to use her momentum against her, Eren starts to slow her headlong charge, then changes her mind. When the boy moves to intercept her and sticks out a foot with a look of triumph on his face, she is ready. Neatly side-stepping, she swipes downwards with her staff, simultaneously counter-balancing her swerve and catching Vey's ankle with a satisfying crack.
She hears him cursing colourfully behind her as she heads for the door, but she can also hear the sound of running footsteps and the two men calling to each other.
"She's heading for the door!" she hears. "Don't let her get away!"
Staggering the last few strides to the door, Eren recalls that it opens out into the garden, worse luck! At least the handle is not complicated. Thoughts flash through her mind--being grabbed from behind as she tries to get through the door, rough necks gawking in amazement as special effects in plays, plays where someone exit is masked by a drum behind stage and a commotion on the other side, the door and her staff could be seen as a drum and beater....in a flash she has her plan! She plunges one hand into a pocket to grab the prepared ashes, while the other swings her staff back.
She slams her staff into the door, and tosses the powder and a word of power just before she slams into the door herself. She barely has time to grin at the thought of the rough-necks reactions when smoke erupts right in front of them from Vey, before she smashes into the door and bounces back from the impact.
Unfortunately for Eren, things don't go quite according to plan. The packet of powder flies open almost as soon as it leaves her hand, but not soon enough for her to stop the spell activating. She slams into the door and abruptly finds herself engulfed in her own cloud of smoke. Dazed, coughing, her eyes streaming, she scrabbles desperately at the handle, while glancing back at pursuers. As the smoke clears, she sees Vey walking calmly towards her, a nasty grin on his face. He quickly loses his smile, however, when the two men push roughly past him.
"Get out from under our feet, boy!" one of them snarls. "You can leave this one to me," he adds, directing his remark at the second man.
The speaker is shorter and considerably broader than his companion; he wears a dark, beautifully-tailored, hooded cloak, which conceals his face in unusually deep shadow. Eren recognises his voice as the more cultured of the two that she'd heard earlier. The other man is sleight of build, attired in less opulent and fairly non-descript clothing; his face is uncovered, but instantly forgettable.
Advancing towards Eren, the hooded man lifts his arms, revealing hands that are adorned with numerous bejewelled rings. Momentarily frozen with fear, Eren watches in horror as he utters an incantation and holds out a sheet of paper in one hand, which seems to be covered in handwriting. Extending a stubby finger, the adept completes his invocation and points at the apprentice. Her eyes widen as the script seems to leap off the page, whirling and spiraling together to form a stream of black liquid that jets towards her.
When she realized that he was going to use magic against an Imperial student, on Imperial grounds, Eren was appalled, but immediately determined to thwart such a travesty. Then her attention leaped to the page the man carelessly showed to her. The characters on it were in the formal mode, which she had so laboriously learned at the First Church of the Scripture, and of course facing him. Reading it upside down was not the problem however, the problem was that he was waving the sheet about. No! Her eyes widened as she realized it was not the page that was moving, but the very letters themselves!
All she'd made out was something about `the person before me' but she knew that `person' implied the man rune. If that defined the target of the spell, then if she could somehow shift that single runic association…..
Eren grunts "plant!" as she throws her will at modifying the essence of the spell, to change it from seeking a `man' to a `plant.' Time seems to slow as her mind locks with the spell and she tried to twist it by sheer force of determination. A far corner of her mind noted an surge of heat from the orb lying against her chest.
Eren can feel her manipulation of the spell working! Then it gets yanked back towards proper runic alignment by a more skillful mind at the last second. It still feels a little disorganized to her as it hits, but then she stops analyzing it so dispassionately as it takes effect.
The stream of black liquid seems to burst as it strikes her, unravelling into a host of spiralling tendrils, which promptly wrap themselves around her and then contract, binding her arms to her sides and her legs together around the knees. Her audacious attempt to subvert the spell has clearly had some effect, though, because the tension of these inky bonds almost immediately slackens off, leaving her limbs with a little more freedom of movement.
"A spirited defence - for an apprentice," he opponent comments. "But don't be too pleased with yourself, girl, or I shall be forced to teach you a lesson. Which would be regrettable. And, of course, very painful."
"That's right, lass," the other man says. "Don't do nothing stupid, now. We ain't plannin' to hurt you, but that don't mean we won't, if that's what it takes."
He moves cautiously towards her, eyes narrowed and never leaving her face, but his next remark is directed at Vey. "What's the quickest way out of here, boy?"
"Back gate," the other apprentice responds immediately. "I can show you the..." he begins.
"Just tell me," the man snaps.
After a moment of panic when the binding first wraps her up, Eren calms down when she realizes that they aren't going to strangle her or crush her or anything gruesome like that. She really doesn't like being bound, but she's certainly felt trapped in many situations in the past, and she's always found her way out of them eventually. When they start talking about how to get out of the garden she realizes that they are not after the orb, or at least not just after it. Then she realizes that the spell will make it hard for her to walk, she almost giggles with relief; would they actually try carrying her out of here?
With that, she realizes that while things are not going well, this is far from over. In fact, so far from over that she needs to start working on a longer term plan. At the moment they outnumber her, and have the upper hand, but taking her anywhere without being noticed is surely not that easy? She realizes that haste is probably her enemy here, as that may panic them and lead them to take stronger measures on her than she'd enjoy. Patience had seen her out of more than one place in the past, that was what was probably most called for here and now.
That she wanted to get away she had little doubt, but when would be the correct time? Might it be best to go along for now, if that would let her learn more—and what was out the back gate again? Or try to stay here for as long as possible, in hopes that someone would see them? She really needed to learn more to figure out the right way to go about this. What was that Master Atlan always drilled in about researching a spell? Right: "You have to consider both the emanation--what you see and hear and smell and feel--and the essential nature. Focusing on the one while ignoring the other could result, for example, in a candle's flame instead of a flaming sword, or a flaming sword which does not burn." That seemed to apply here as well.
The essential nature was obvious enough, and she tried to focus enough to get her symbolic sight working properly, to see if it would tell her anything about her attackers, or even about this dratted spell. Even if the first image wasn't informative perhaps over time clues would add up.
For the mundane side, well, she'd already looked at them, she didn't want to be touched by them, she doubted smell would tell her much, but sound, or more in particular words, those might be useful. Lacking anything brilliant, she blurts out the most obvious question: "What do you want with me anyway? What could want that you wouldn't just ask me about? Vey, do you know what is so shocking that they have to risk dragging me off rather than talking to me about it?"
"Who said anything about dragging you off?" the hooded man sneers, before Vey has a chance to reply. "We're merely inviting you to accompany us. Granted, if you were to turn down that invitation, we'd be very hurt... and then so would you," he adds menacingly. "As to what we want... well, I think you know that already. But enough chatter. Lead the way to this back gate, boy."
Vey nods and goes over to the door that Eren had been trying to open. Kneeling beside it, he makes a quick gesture and mutters under his breath, eliciting a brief glimmer from the lock. He turns to Eren and gives her a brief, self-satisfied grin, then opens the door and signal the others to follow. The taller man takes Eren by the arm and ushers her through, while the hooded man brings up the rear. Eren is forced to shuffle along at first, her legs still restricted by the inky bonds of the hooded man's spell, but these soon loosen and eventually seem to melt away.
Eren knows that the 'back gate' where Vey is taking them is at the rear of the college, leading off a small quadrangle beside the masters' stables and out into a narrow lane. Her best hope, she thinks, is that they'll run into one of the Imperial College masters on their way there, but as it's Godsday she knows that the College will be deserted - most people will be having lunch with their families, or, failing that, in the Refectory. As she and her captors follow Vey through a series of disappointingly empty corridors her mind starts racing again, trying to work out who these people are and what they might want.
She is puzzled by the involvement of Vey and his apparent connection with these two men. The hooded man is obviously an adept, but Eren isn't sure that he belongs to one of Syran's schools. Surely none of them would dare to trespass on Imperial grounds, let alone try to abduct an Imperial apprentice! The other man seems very intense and his curiously anonymous appearance makes her suspect that magic is involved, but he doesn't strike her as the adept type.
What can she deduce from the spell that the hooded man used? Well, it seemed to be associated with the writing on that piece of paper. Perhaps he came from a school that specialised in writing-related magic? She'd never heard of such a speciality, but since wizardry schools were notoriously secretive that didn't count for much.
But what about Vey? Hadn't he just used a spell on the lock of the door? Was that just petty magic, or something more sinister? Wait a minute! He'd been an apprentice at another school, hadn't he? Perhaps this hooded man was an adept from that school. But what did that mean? Was Vey a spy, sent to Imperial to try to steal its magic? Or was this adept here for some other reason? Think, Eren, think!
The Orb! It has to be! That's why they didn't just take what they want and leave her alone - Master Atlan told her that it had 'imprinted' on her, which made it dangerous for anyone else to try to touch it. And he said that Lord Savaran was angry that Alph... the Headmaster had given it to her. Could Savaran be behind this? It seemed unthinkable that they would bring in an adept from outside the city. And what did this imply about the Orb? And...
Eren's frantic line of reasoning is interrupted when she sees - thanks be to all the Saints! - a master coming out of a door up ahead. Her heart sinks, however, when he turns without noticing them and begins walking away...
~oOo~
[Pavel]
