Laura Jo Phillips (2 page)

Chapter
2

Jasan, Berria, Hidden City

“Lariah, what is troubling you?”

“I’m worried about Ellicia,” she said.  “Her last message said she was fine, and then she spent ten minutes rattling on about remodeling the old apartment.  She didn’t say a word about what happened, or why it took her so long to heal.  Believe me, listening to Ellicia talk on and on about furniture and house wares is just...weird.  I know she’s hiding something, but I don’t know what.  If I could just talk to her real time instead of sending messages back and forth, I know I could get her to tell me what’s really happening.”

“
Sharali,
the Director told us the attack was very bad and that many of their people were killed,” Garen reminded her.  “I am sure that your sister is having a difficult time with that, especially since it happened in her home.”

“Yes, but why did it happen in her home?” Lariah asked.  “Ell has never hosted a party in her life.  Why were there so many people there and why were they attacked?”

“Those are not questions we can ask the Director, little love,” Trey said as he joined them at the window.  “The Directorate is a secret organization.  Asking questions about it would violate operational security.  Besides, even if we asked, he would not be able to tell us.  I think he’s already told us everything he can.”

“I understand all of that,” Lariah said.  “But I already asked Ellicia those questions.  Do you think that’s why she didn’t answer them?  Because the answers are classified?”

“In all likelihood, yes,” Garen replied.  “Did she look well on the vid?”

“Yes, I suppose,” Lariah replied.  “She looked pale and a little too thin, but after a few months in a healing tank that’s to be expected.”

“Don’t forget that even though the attack occurred several months ago, for her, it’s much fresher,” Garen added.  “She’s only been out of the healing tank for a few weeks.  Give her a little more time.”

“Perhaps you should invite her to come and visit you,” Val suggested as he, too, joined them.  “We will provide her with a first class ticket so she can travel as comfortably as possible.  Maybe a few weeks here on Jasan would be good for her.”

Lariah smiled at Val.  “Thank you for that,” she said.  “But I already invited her.  She said she’s not up to traveling right now, but promised to think about coming next year.”

“I think next year would be a good time,” Garen said.  “You don’t need to be worrying about entertaining visitors right now anyway.”

“That’s another thing,” Lariah said suddenly.  “I keep getting this feeling like people are supposed to be arriving here.  It’s like I expect them to show up any moment, but they never do.”

“What people?” Trey asked.

“I don’t know,” Lariah replied with frustration.  “Just...people.  Women.  I’m sure they’re women.”

“Women you know?” Garen asked.

“I don’t think so,” Lariah replied.  “It’s really very irritating.”

“Have you told Saige about this?” Trey asked.

“No, why would I...?”  Lariah paused.  “Oh, I see, you think Riata can help?”

“It can’t hurt to try,” Trey replied. 

“That’s a good idea,” she said, stretching up on her toes to give him a kiss.  “Thank you.”

“You are welcome, little love,” Trey replied. 

“Shall we try to get some sleep now?” Garen asked as he swung Lariah up into his arms and headed for the bed. 

“It’s almost morning already,” Lariah pointed out.

“Yes, but you need more rest,” he said.  “We have a busy day ahead of us, and you are resting for four now.”

Lariah sighed contentedly as she placed her hands over her still flat stomach.  “All right,” she agreed, “though I’m not sure why you say it’s a busy day.  What’s happening besides the meeting this afternoon?”

“We are meeting with a few of the other Consuls to view the remains of the Xanti, and those of the reptilian being the Katres brought back from Li-Hach-Cor,” Garen replied as he slipped her into the bed and climbed in after her. 

Lariah shuddered.  “Just don’t describe that dead Xanti to me after you see it,” she said.  “Summer told us enough.  Did you know that Saige thought of spiders the first time she saw a Xanti, on the
Cosmic Glory
?”

“No, I did not know that,” Garen replied, tucking her in close to his side as Trey and Val got into bed too.  “Now, go to sleep
sharali
,” he urged.

“All right, but I have to say one other thing first,” Lariah replied.

“What is that?” Garen asked.

“I think that I need to talk to Mara Winicke,” she said.

“And why would you think you should do such an outrageous thing?” Garen asked.

“Because I am a Nahoa-Arima,” Lariah replied.  “I think that woman knows things that we must know, but she will not talk to anyone else.”

“And you think she will talk to you?” Trey asked.

“Yes,” Lariah replied.  “Grandfather said that a Nahoa-Arima can heal wounds of the heart and soul, and bring peace to those around her.”

“True, but Saige has said that Mara’s heart is black,” Val reminded her.  “I do not think that is a thing which can be healed.”

“Neither do I,” Lariah said.  “But I have a feeling that if Saige, Summer and I sit down with her, alone, she will tell us her story.  Maybe my presence will calm her enough to make her want to speak.  Maybe it will soothe old wounds enough to make her want to speak.  Or maybe she will want to tell us her story because we are the women she hates the most.”

“Why would she hate you?” Val asked, shocked.  “She’s never even met you.  Or Saige for that matter.”

“Because we are Arimas,” Lariah replied.  “Mara has been the highest ranking female of Clan Katre for five hundred years, and the most powerful female of Jasan since your parents retired a couple of hundred years ago.”

“How so?” Trey asked.  “Her rank was no higher than the wives of any of the other Clan Consuls.”

“True, but from what I’ve learned since her attack on Rayne, she bullied the other women so much that they let her have her way in everything.  She had the most power because she took it, and they allowed it.  Until I came along.  Then Saige.  Then we both had daughters and were invited into the Hidden City.”  Lariah shook her head. 

“Oh yes, she hates us.  Thoroughly.  And everything we represent.  That will never change.  Nor do I care to try to change it.  But I do want to know her story.  I feel that it’s important to us all.”

“You think that the three of you, by your presence, can induce Mara to speak?” Trey asked doubtfully.

“Yes, I do.”

“I don’t understand the connection among the three of you,” Garen said.  “Between you and Saige, yes, you have known each other and been close friends for years.  But neither of you ever knew Summer before.”

“I know, but I feel as though I have known Summer as long as I’ve known Saige,” Lariah said.  “It’s because of the magic.  It connects us.”

“Do you mean like linking?  The way we are connected to one another?” Garen asked with a frown.

“No, nothing like that,” Lariah assured him.  “I’m not sure how to explain it.”  She fell silent for a long moment and Garen, Trey and Val waited patiently.  They hoped she would find a way to tell them as they were all very curious about this.

“Do you remember when I asked you why it was that women did not wield magic?” Lariah asked.  “Long ago, after we first met.”

“Yes, of course,” Garen replied.  “But as I told you then, we have only theories.  No one really knows the answer to that.”

“Well, I know the answer to that,” Lariah said, surprising them greatly. 

“You do?” Trey asked.  “How do you know?”  

“Well, let me tell you the answer first, then I can explain it.  I think.”  Lariah bit her lip as she tried to think of the best way to word this.  Garen reached down and rescued her lip from her teeth with a gentle finger.

Lariah leaned forward and kissed his finger, then let her head fall back onto the pillow.  “Okay, the best way I can think of to say this is that you guys wield the magic, but I am the conduit for the magic.”

“I don’t understand,” Garen said.  “Isn’t the magic itself everywhere, all the time?”

“In a sense, and to a certain degree, yes.  The world around us is filled with magic.  The majority of it is within the Earth, Air, Fire and Water itself, but some of it sort of seeps out on its own.  Think of it as extra magic that just floats around waiting to be used.  That’s the magic that you, and other male-sets, use when you do not have an Arima. 

“When you become Soul-Linked, you are able to tap into the magic directly through your Arima because an Arima is a conduit for the true magic directly from its sources.  It flows through me all of the time.  Because we are all linked, you guys are able to access it whenever you want it.”

“So that is what the Nine meant when they said that, through the three of you, we are now
truly joined with the Earth, Air, Fire and Water of this new world,”
Trey said.

“Yes,” Lariah replied.  “As conduits, our magic flowed through each other when we were connected to the Nine.”

“Are you saying that connecting with these other women in this way means you know what they know?” Val asked.

“No,” Lariah replied.  “It’s more like we are more aware of each other, and we seem to understand each other on a really basic level.  Although, I do think that, somehow, the Nine used the connection to impart some knowledge to us.”

“You have given us much to think on,” Garen said as he pulled Lariah a little closer against him.  “For now though, it is time for you to try to get some more sleep.”

“Okay,” Lariah agreed.  “But remember, while you’re thinking, think about the three of us talking to Mara.”

“Very well,
sharali
, but only if you rest,” Garen said, pushing gently with a fine thread of water magic to nudge her toward sleep.  Within moments Lariah was sound asleep.  Garen waited a few minutes to be sure she was going to stay asleep before allowing himself to doze off as well.

Chapter
3

Jasan, Badia, Bride House

Hope Strigida took one last look around her room in Bride House to be sure she hadn’t forgotten anything, then pulled the door closed behind her and headed for the stairs.  It felt strange to be going home.  She had been so certain that this was where she was supposed to be, so positive that this was the right path for her.  She felt a little lost and at odds with herself, a feeling that was completely new to her. 

She also felt torn.  On the one hand, she missed Earth.  Earth was home, and she loved its blue skies, green grass and large, bustling, brightly lit cities.  On the other hand, Jasan was beautiful too.  There were fewer people, no large cities, and the overall pace of life was calmer and more peaceful.  But she had not come to Jasan for a change of pace or new scenery.

Hope crossed the foyer and entered the dining room with its long formal dining table and big picture windows overlooking what was by far the most extensive garden Hope had ever seen in her life.  It had been a bit of a shock to her at first, being surrounded by so much nature. 

She went to the sideboard and filled a plate with fruit, toast, eggs and what she thought might be ham.  It smelled like ham, and it looked like ham.  Sort of.  She shrugged, deciding to be adventurous for once.  When it came to food, she liked what she liked and usually had no interest in experimenting.  But this was her last day, so what the heck.  She picked up a mug, filled it with hot coffee, and headed through the open doors onto the patio.  She was late for breakfast this morning because she’d been packing, so she now had the patio to herself.  She selected a table in the corner beneath the shade of several flowering trees and sat down. 

She sipped her coffee, grimacing a little at the taste, but feeling that she needed the caffeine this morning.  Of the eight to ten women who stayed at Bride House at any one time, Hope was the only one who didn’t get excited about the coffee.  Evidently it was far less expensive on Jasan than on Earth, and according to her fellow boarders, it tasted better too.  She preferred tea herself, but as she was the only one with that preference, it was never on the menu.  She usually brought her own down from her room, but she had already packed it, so coffee was just going to have to suffice.

“Here,” Talinka said, sliding a steaming mug onto the table in front of Hope with a smile. 

Hope breathed in the rich, herbal scented steam and smiled gratefully at the small woman with the short, bright green feathers on her head and the large, matching green eyes.

“
Efharistos
, Talinka,” Hope said as she pushed the coffee away and picked up the tea.  “That was very thoughtful of you.”

“You are most welcome,” Talinka replied.  “I know you prefer tea and, as this is your last morning, I wished to offer you a going away gift.  May I join you?  I would speak with you for a few moments before you leave us.”

“Of course,” Hope said before taking a sip of her tea.  It was perfect.