The Shadow Of What Was Lost (61 page)

Davian stared at Driscin in
bemusement, thinking back to some of his conversations with Wirr. "I don't
know much about politics, but that doesn't sound like something that could
happen anytime soon. Maybe not in my lifetime," he said quietly.

"It was always a long-term
plan," admitted Driscin, unfazed by Davian's pessimism. "But as it
happens, this invasion may have changed that. Thousands have died, and as awful
as that is, it has also reminded people of how important the Gifted are.”

He leaned forward. "The way
the king has been acting towards us over these past few weeks is starting to
make people nervous - it's shining a light on the fact that Andarra's most
powerful weapon, its best defence, could be made impotent by one man's
prejudice. When all this is over, I guarantee that there will be an argument
for changing that - renewed support for the Tols both in the Assembly and
amongst the people. Andarra may not like us, but they are beginning to
recognise our value. And the more that happens, the more sway we will
have."

Davian gave a slow nod.
"That's good for Tol Shen... it doesn't mean anyone will feel differently
towards the Augurs, though," he noted.

"When we tell everyone that
the Augurs are the only ones who can seal the Boundary, I suspect that may
change too," said Driscin. "It should be enough to have the Treaty
amended, to remove the ban. That's more progress than we could have dreamed of
a few months ago."

Davian leaned back, heart rate
increasing a little as he assessed what Driscin was saying. Much still had to
go right, but he couldn't see any flaws in the logic. It
was
possible.
"And if that happens, you want the Augurs to be overseen by Tol Shen. You
want
me
to join Tol Shen," he concluded after a moment, enthusiasm
suddenly waning again.

Driscin nodded. “The Athian and
Shen Councils are too at odds to work together on something like this, and any
association with Athian is political poison at the moment. The Augurs need to
be unified, allied with somebody... reliable, if the Assembly is to ever take
them seriously. Tol Shen is the only realistic option.”

Davian shook his head, unable to
hide his reluctance. It all seemed perfectly reasonable - and yet he knew Tol
Shen's reputation. They were power-hungry, manipulative. The idea of their
exerting any measure of control over a group of Augurs, over him, made him
uncomfortable.

"No," he said after a
moment. He glanced at Ishelle. "Once these invaders have been defeated, I
will work with you to fix the Boundary - but that's all. I don't want to join
Shen."

Ishelle made a face. “Because
we’re all evil, I assume?” she said, sounding more amused than annoyed. “That’s
what they teach you in Athian, isn’t it - that Tol Shen are more interested in
power than what's right, while every single Gifted from Tol Athian is a shining
beacon of the standards of El himself?"

Driscin spoke up before Davian
could respond, making a calming gesture in Ishelle's direction. “You've grown
up in an Athian school, and you're reluctant. I understand.” He rubbed his
forehead. “If you are concerned about the types of people you associate with,
though, perhaps you should take another look at your friend Taeris Sarr before
coming to a decision.”

Davian flushed. “You’re talking
about what he did three years ago? That’s a poor example to choose, Elder
Throll. I was the boy he rescued - he saved my life by killing those men.
Hardly a black mark against him in my book.”

Driscin shook his head. “But you
don’t know the whole story,” he said quietly. “Haven’t you ever wondered where
you came from? Before the school, I mean.”

Davian stared at the Elder,
puzzled. “Of course I have.”

“We think that Taeris knows,”
said Driscin. “What we
do
know is that he is the one who brought you to
Caladel as a child, who dropped you at the school's doorstep. He’s followed
you, followed your progress your entire life. It was no coincidence that he
found you in Desriel, nor that he was there that day three years ago.”

Davian shook his head again. “He
would have told me something like that,” he said, with more confidence than he
felt.

“There’s more,” said Driscin. “He
set up
that encounter in Caladel, Davian. He told those men you were
from the school. He
wanted
them to attack you, so that you would be
forced to defend yourself, to discover you had powers.”

Davian scowled, his head
spinning. “I don’t believe that.” It couldn’t be true - though there was no black
smoke, nor any pain in his temples to indicate Driscin was lying. Davian
snorted, ignoring the sudden sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. “How could
you possibly have information like that?”

Ishelle shifted. “You surely
didn’t think I’d miss the opportunity to Read you and your companions, back at
Thrindar? There wasn't time to get everything from him, but Taeris was far too
preoccupied finding a way out of Desriel to worry about shielding
himself." Her lips curled upward. "I know what you were thinking when
you bumped into me, too, by the way.” She winked at him, and he felt himself
blush furiously.

Davian took a few seconds to
recover, then shook his head. "No. Either you're mistaken, or this is some
sort of trick. Taeris isn't like that." 

Driscin sighed as he saw Davian's
defiant expression. “Perhaps this is something you need to resolve for
yourself.”

“And how can I do that, exactly?”

“Ask him.” Ishelle stepped
forward, placing her hand on his shoulder. “You know how to see whether people
are deceiving you - I’ve watched you do it for the last few minutes. You
know
we’re not lying to you, Davian. You owe it to yourself to at least find out if
we’re right.”

Davian gritted his teeth; he
still wanted to argue the point, but he knew it would just look like he was
being unreasonable. “No matter what I find, it won't change my mind about Tol
Shen,” he said, a little defensively now.

“I don't understand. Where else
would you go?” Ishelle crossed her arms. “You don't know anyone at Tol Athian,
even if they were willing to take you in. The only other survivor from your
school was Torin Andras, and you can be certain he won't be spending his time
around the Gifted.”

“How did you….” Davian trailed
off, grimacing. “Oh. Well, if you know that, then you know we're friends. I can
do more by working with Wirr – Torin -  than I could by joining Tol Shen,
anyway.”

Driscin shook his head. “Don’t
delude yourself on that front, lad,” he said, his tone gentle. “He’s a prince
of the realm, the Northwarden’s son. You might be friends, but whatever passed
between you at the school, don't imagine you're equals. Even if he wants to
welcome you at the palace gates with open arms, he won't be able to."

Davian frowned.
"Meaning?"

"Meaning if you stay in the
city to aid Prince Torin, you'll be forever hiding, living your life in the
shadows. It will be years before he can afford to be publicly associated with
an Augur, regardless of how soon the Treaty is changed. Years before he can
acknowledge your existence.” He looked at Davian with a serious expression.
"Your influence would be limited at best. It would be a waste of your
talents."

Davian gave Driscin an angry
stare. The Elder's argument was sound, but it wasn't what Davian wanted to
hear. He'd assumed that once he made it to Ilin Illan, made contact with Wirr,
things would work out somehow. That he'd find a way to stay, to help the only
friend he had left.

Driscin sighed as he watched
Davian's expression. "You are not convinced - that's fine; perhaps we can
change your mind in time. You at least agree that the Boundary needs to be
sealed?"

Davian nodded slowly.
"Yes."

"Good." Driscin stood.
"Then do what you must, for now - go to Ilin Illan, help where you can.
But think about what I've told you - and once these invaders are defeated, come
and find me at Tol Shen. If you still want only to seal the Boundary and return
to Ilin Illan, then there will be no pressure to join us permanently. You have
my word.”

He nodded to Davian, then gave
Ishelle a tight smile. Without further pleasantries, he left the room.

There was a long silence as
Davian and Ishelle looked at each other awkwardly.

“Am I free to leave?” asked
Davian eventually, his irritation at the way he’d been treated bubbling to the
surface again, making him sound ruder than he meant to be.

Ishelle held up her hands in mock
defence. “You are. But I thought perhaps a full stomach might make you a little
less prickly,” she said, with a smile to show she was only teasing. She
gestured to some buttered bread on a tray next to the bed. “You must be hungry.
You should eat.”

Davian gave the tray a
mistrustful glance.

Ishelle laughed as she saw his
expression. “Nothing unusual in the bread. I swear it.”

Davian thought about refusing the
offer, but at that moment his stomach growled. He hadn’t eaten since the small
amount of drugged food he'd managed to ingest. And it would look petty. And, he
may not get another opportunity to eat properly until he reached Ilin Illan.

Scowling, he took a cautious bite
of the bread. When he was still able to move his arms and legs satisfactorily,
he wolfed down the rest, all the while watching Ishelle with a wary expression.
Despite her apparently having intended him no harm, he couldn't bring himself
to trust her again so soon.

He finished, wiping his mouth
with his sleeve. “I’ll be on my way,” he said, standing. “I’ve wasted too much
time as it is.”

Ishelle frowned. “To Ilin Illan?
Tonight? Surely you need some rest.” She gestured to the bed. “You can have
this room free of charge, if you like.” She grinned, a dimple appearing in each
cheek. “As compensation for being drugged.”

“Thanks,” said Davian in a wry
tone, " but I don't need it."

Ishelle kept smiling, unfazed.
“How about we make a deal. To show there are no hard feelings, at least take a
free meal. A
proper
meal. No drugs. And my company for the evening.”

Davian snorted. “You almost had
me until the last part.” Ishelle continued to smile at him cheerfully, and he
wilted, sighing. A proper meal was too good to pass up. “Very well,” he said reluctantly,
making a weary gesture in the direction of the door. “Lead the way.”

They made their way downstairs
into the common room. The innkeeper, a short, rotund woman of middle age, was
soon bringing them their meals. When Ishelle offered to pay, the innkeeper
refused, insisting that Ishelle's coin was no good to her.

Ishelle shrugged at Davian's
questioning glance. "I've been here a month. She likes me."

"Your knowing exactly what
she's thinking has helped, I'm sure," observed Davian. He'd seen the thin
lines of kan, stretching from Ishelle to the innkeep. Minute, almost
unnoticeable, but definitely there. His new companion had been Reading her.

"Nothing wrong with
that."

Davian snorted, shaking his head.
Malshash had been clear about this, but it was barely more than common sense.
Common decency.

Ishelle looked at him with
genuine surprise. "You disagree?"

Davian gave an emphatic nod.
"Yes. These people...
regular
people, they have no way of defending
themselves against us. What right do we have to go prying inside their most
personal thoughts?"

Ishelle shook her head. "You
haven't Read many people, have you? Most of them deserve everything that's
coming to them." She sighed, waving away his scowl. "Don't pout. I'm
not asking you to do it."

Their meals arrived, and the two
began eating. They were silent for a while, then Davian paused as he saw
Ishelle looking at him with a curious expression. She smiled, leaning back and
dabbing at her mouth with her napkin. “So tell me about Caladel,” she said. She
waved her hand impatiently as Davian gave her a wary look. “Not the attack; I
know all about that. What was it like, growing up in an Athian school?” She
shook her head. “I always thought it would be so… boring.”

Davian sucked in his breath; it
stung to hear the destruction of the school mentioned so flippantly. “I’d
prefer not to talk about it,” he said, trying unsuccessfully to keep the
stiffness from his voice.

Ishelle grimaced when she saw his
expression. Her shoulders slumped a little.

“I’m sorry,” she said after a few
awkward moments. “I know I can be… blunt. Driscin says I rely on my abilities
so much, I don’t really know how to talk to people any more. Maybe he’s right.”

Davian hesitated. She sounded…
uncomfortable. Genuinely embarrassed.

He paused for a few more seconds,
then sighed, leaning forward.

“It wasn’t boring.” He took a
mouthful of food, chewing as he thought. He swallowed. “There was always a lot
to do. Studying, practicing.” He scratched his head. “Sometimes, we got sent
outside of the school to run errands.”

Ishelle raised an eyebrow. “I
think you and I have different definitions of boring,” she said with a gently
mocking smile. Despite that, Davian thought he could detect a hint of gratitude
in her tone.