Shift

  “Hoygul will likely refuse to give it to us,” Uriel pointed out.

  “Just let him try.”

  Quincy, Clara Kate, Ini-herit and their Waresti escort flew for the better part of the day with only a couple of stops to rest. After communicating with Uriel, they decided to head straight to Kanika’s home.

  The quiet flight gave Quincy a lot of time alone with his thoughts. Was Kanika actually holding Malukali prisoner, as Zachariah reasoned? It did seem to make sense that a threat to his wife would prompt the Wymzesti elder to act so out of character. Adding to this theory was the fact that Uriel was apparently no longer receiving check-ins from lieutenant Donald and his team stationed out at the Mercesti leader’s home.

  Quincy found this fact particularly alarming. Sophia was following Knorbis, Tate and Ariana into a very dangerous situation. If she tried to intervene to save Tate and Ariana, which he was sure she would do, she could end up hurt or—

  No. He wouldn’t go there.

  They stopped traveling again as darkness fell. They were only a matter of hours from Kanika’s and it was hard not to push everyone to continue. But Quincy knew better than anyone how important the restorative rest between flights was in the long-run, so he restrained himself. They ended up in a small, grass-covered valley without much along the lines of cover, which told Quincy they wouldn’t be staying long. That suited him perfectly.

  Before he had even taken his satchel off to stretch, he noticed Ini-herit pause and tilt his head as if listening to someone. His silver eyes flashed. Hoping that Uriel was conveying that he, Zachariah and Tiege had caught up with Tate and Ariana, he hurried over to his elder. Clara Kate moved up beside him to await the news.

  After a moment, Ini-herit blinked and turned his emotionless gaze to them. “Tate and Ariana have been brought to Eirik.”

  Clara Kate stiffened and drew a sharp breath. Quincy felt as though his heart flipped over in his chest. “What about Sophia?” he managed to ask. “Have they found her?”

  Ini-herit glanced at Clara Kate and then focused on Quincy. “They have not, despite Uriel sending his fastest scouts after her. Those scouts have nearly reached Kanika’s, but they have not found any sign of Sophia. It appears that she has vanished.”

  Quincy stared stupidly at his elder, unable to process what he’d just heard.

  “We will have to change course and join the others in convincing Hoygul to turn over the map to the library,” Ini-herit continued.

  “You’re going to abandon the search for Sophia?” Quincy asked. The words felt as though they sliced his throat as he spoke them.

  “We must,” Ini-herit replied. “The only hope for all Estilorians is that we acquire that scroll piece before Eirik does.”

  Part III:

  ALIGN

  Align [v. uh-lahyn]: To fall or come into a line; to bring into cooperation or agreement with a particular group, party, cause, etc.

  Chapter 29

  Sophia wanted to leave immediately for Hoygul’s home, but Derian refused. He intended to lead her to the Scultresti himself and had to make a few arrangements before he did. She had little choice but to wait.

  Despite her fear over the uncertain path ahead of her, she could admit to being awed by the Mercesti encampment. It was deceptively large, housing several hundred Mercesti, and was built entirely among gigantic medeina trees above the waters of the swamp. Sturdy woven vines served as bridges, connecting the dwellings. Stairs curved around the outsides of some of the tree trunks, leading from homes in the upper levels to those closer to the bottom.

  Only medeina trees, specially crafted by the Scultresti, could maintain their structural integrity while having multiple homes carved out of them. Sophia found the design of the encampment both fascinating and beautiful.

  “How long has this been here?” she asked Melanthe. The female Mercesti had taken the lead in giving her a brief tour after serving Sophia breakfast.

  “Oh, for well over a century,” Melanthe replied. “We have kept it very quiet and well-protected, as I am sure you can appreciate.”

  “Sure.”

  It was really no different from her own protected homeland, Sophia mused. They passed what appeared to be a dwelling containing a variety of foods. Several Mercesti walked through the dwelling carrying baskets, which they filled with food and then brought to a wooden counter manned by a female.

  “What is this place?”

  “Our food larder,” Melanthe explained. “There are only a handful of us with the ability to generate food, but many mouths to feed. We stockpile what food we can to ensure everyone has something to eat when they are hungry. We supplement by hunting and gardening.”

  “I see,” Sophia said. She remembered learning that because Mercesti lost some or all of their previous class’s abilities upon converting, there weren’t many who could create food, clothing and shelter. And since converted Mercesti lost their pairings with Lekwuesti, they couldn’t get their hospitality needs met that way. “Well, it sounds like you’ve developed a great community here.”

  “Thank you, Sophia.” Melanthe nodded a greeting to a passing female as she continued, “We have had our struggles. Derian is not comfortable wearing the mantle of responsibility that comes of seeing to everyone’s welfare, but he has little choice.” It appeared she intended to say more, but reconsidered. Smiling, she said, “I know you are anxious to continue on your journey. I believe that Derian has finished making all of the arrangements, so we might as well get started.”

  “We? You’re coming along?”

  “Of course. I cannot let Derian go off without me to rein him in. Believe me when I say that would not be in the best interests of anyone.”

  Normally, Sophia would have minded her own business, especially with a virtual stranger. But Melanthe was so kind and open that she found herself asking, “Are you and Derian, um, together?”

  “We are mates,” Melanthe confirmed as they turned onto a bridge leading to the largest dwelling within the encampment. “And now you are probably wondering why I would love such a cantankerous male.”

  Sophia thought of her cousin and Zachariah. “No, not at all. Although…”

  “Yes?”

  “Well, I have been wondering how it is you experience emotions.”

  “Ah.” Melanthe nodded. “I understand. Well, some of us experience more emotion than others, as is true for all Estilorians. Not all of us have been within the encampment for a very long time. There are some who only just found us. Many of those who have entered our circle over the past eighteen years were exposed to the daughters of Saraqael and came to us with an understanding of human emotions.”

  That made sense. Sophia knew that one of the primary focuses of her mother and aunts after the defeat of Grolkinei had been to spend as much time as they could among the Estilorians. Although the homeland was their primary base, they all traveled frequently to Central and to various places on the mainland, visiting with all of the classes and trying to help impart human emotions to as many as possible. Once their children came along, they rotated who traveled so that the children were always cared for, but they still continued their efforts.

  They reached their destination before Sophia could consider this further. Melanthe opened the door and held it so Sophia could enter first.

  It was some kind of gathering space, she realized as she entered and saw the large number of beings inside. There were several separate seating areas around the room comprised of an eclectic mix of couches, chairs and tables. A fire pit in the center of the space housed flickering red flames, telling Sophia that they were generated by energy and not true fire. As they were in the middle of a tree, she imagined a real fire would have been disastrous.

  Only when Melanthe joined her did Sophia catch on to the fact that the room had gotten very quiet. Everyone stared at her.

  Bringing a hand to her head, she checked her hair to make sure it wasn’t somehow standing on end. Melanthe and Oria had pulled her hair
back at the temples and created a series of small braids woven with blue-green and gold threads, pinning them at the crown of her head and leaving the rest of her hair down. It felt like it was still in place.

  “Do not mind them,” Melanthe said. “They are just unused to seeing non-Mercesti here.”

  Sophia knew none of them had ever met a Kynzesti. Not sure what to do or say, she just followed Melanthe’s lead and walked through the room toward the back without meeting anyone’s gaze.

  They headed for a closed door. When they reached it, Melanthe placed her hand on it and waited. A moment later, there was a distinct “snick” and the door opened.

  “Follow me,” she said.

  Curious despite her itch to speed things up and get out of there, Sophia walked through the door to find herself at the top of a spiraling staircase. Even as she stepped onto the first stair, the door closed on its own behind her. She followed Melanthe down, gaping at the elaborate carvings decorating the inside of the tree trunk as they descended. She hadn’t ever seen anything so beautiful. Her younger sister, Leigh, the artist in the family, would be beside herself.

  When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they walked through another doorway. This one led to a windowless room only about half the size of the one above it. Sophia detected a moist feel to the air, as well as the noticeable scent of damp wood. The room contained one large, round table in the middle with stools all around it. Each piece of furniture emerged from the ground in a way that made Sophia believe the room had been carved around them.

  Around the table sat Derian, Verrell, Cleve, Oria, Alys and at least twenty other Mercesti. Sophia realized they were all garbed for battle. Their armor ranged from pieces made of thick leather to the highly complicated, lightweight armor that only very skilled Lekwuesti could generate. She tried not to gape as they all turned to look at her. She had somehow managed to inherit her own personal army.

  “Have ye changed yer mind about fillin’ us in on yer little adventure, Kynzesti?” Derian asked. “It would be helpful not to go into this blind.”

  What should she tell them? It would be plain stupid to mention the Elder Scroll. The artifact was far too much temptation for most Estilorians. But she didn’t want them to be unprepared.

  “Please take a seat, Sophia,” Melanthe said when she hesitated, taking her by her elbow to gently guide her to a stool.

  Comforted by the fact that Melanthe sat beside her, Sophia began, “The elders are attempting to recover an artifact. That same artifact is being pursued by a Mercesti named Eirik.”

  Looks and murmurs circulated around the table. Sophia realized that they knew who Eirik was. She had a moment of sheer panic as she wondered if they might be his allies. After all, she knew next to nothing about these Mercesti outside of the fact that they were treating her well.

  Verrell quickly put her fears to rest. “A right bastard,” he spat, making a gesture with this hand to punctuate the remark. “Greedy and power-hungry.”

  Derian nodded. “Whatever Eirik seeks is surely nothin’ he should have.”

  Relieved, Sophia said, “You couldn’t be more right about that. He’s been looking for it for quite some time. He’s already got part of it, and he’s figured out he needs more for it to be complete. It would be detrimental to all of us if he acquires it.”

  “And Hoygul has the key to this artifact?” Alys asked.

  “In part,” Sophia replied. “Let’s just say that Hoygul can get me to part of the artifact, and if I can procure to it and get it safely to the elders, Eirik will be unable to fulfill his plans.”

  “Reason enough for me to play armed escort for a Kynzesti,” Verrell said.

  There were nods and words of agreement from the others. Sophia looked at Derian. He stared back at her. She couldn’t read his expression at all and she once again found herself comparing him to Zachariah. If Tate had never paired with Zachariah, would Sophia have ever believed that this kind of commitment by the Mercesti was possible? She doubted it. She would probably have done the cheetah thing and fled.

  What a loss that would have been.

  “We leave once Mel armors up,” Derian said at last. He held up a hand when Melanthe opened her mouth. “Ye’ll wear it or stay here.”

  Melanthe sighed. “Fine. Sophia, we should provide some armor for you, as well.”

  Sophia shook her head. “When I shift, I’ll lose it.”

  “Then ye’ll not be shiftin’ while with us,” Derian argued. “Ye need an escort and we will provide it. But ye go armored and armed.”

  His words caused Sophia to recall the conversation she’d had with her mother about her needing to focus more on her training and learning to defend herself in any type of situation. Had that really been only a few days ago? The memory brought a pang of homesickness and had her mentally shaking her head. Why was her mother always right?

  Not seeing any reason to argue with Derian’s dictate, she nodded. She marveled over the fact that this group had converted Mercesti among them with enough skills to generate so much equipment. That had another thought occurring to her.

  “Are any of you converted Orculesti or Wymzesti?” she asked.

  When silence again fell and everyone stared at her with stony expressions, she realized she had just committed some kind of social blunder.

  “I’m sorry,” she hurried to say. “I just thought, well, maybe someone could help me let my family know I’m okay.”

  “We have such Mercesti among us,” Derian replied, his tone neutral. “But the only possible way to communicate a thought to yer family would be to send it directly to archigos Malukali, and she has been inaccessible for days.”

  Blinking in confusion, Sophia repeated, “Days?”

  “Aye.”

  “That can’t be. She and archigos Knorbis went out to Kanika’s home to help her—”

  “Kanika is dead,” Derian interrupted.

  “No, she’s not,” Sophia argued. “Everyone thought she was, but—”

  “Aye, she is.”

  Irritated that the Mercesti kept interrupting her, Sophia clenched her hands into fists and frowned at him. “She survived the attack by Deimos. Lieutenant Donald found her more than a week ago. Archigos Malukali and archigos Knorbis went to counsel her afterward because she was in shock. Archigos Malukali is still there.” She spoke of the incident as though the group should know about it. They certainly seemed more knowledgeable about happenings on the plane than most Estilorians.

  “She did not survive it,” Verrell said. “She was killed by a being who can assume the forms of others.”

  Sophia’s eyes widened. If the two elders went to Kanika’s home believing this supposed imposter was Kanika, they might have been taken off-guard. And if this being killed Kanika, she would have no qualms about attempting to overpower a couple of trusting elders. Sophia considered the fact that Knorbis had returned to the homeland without his wife. It was the first time in her entire existence that she had seen one of them without the other.

  Filled with mounting horror, she looked around the table and said, “This is even worse than I thought. We have to go. We have to go now.”

  Chapter 30

  Ariana had gone into the venture of finding the remaining scroll pieces with the understanding that something could conceivably go wrong. But she knew she’d be surrounded by her new friends, a couple of elders and a team of Waresti. They could certainly handle anything that arose.

  Never—not once—did she think she would end up right back where she started nine weeks ago.

  She wanted to curl up into a ball and will it all away. Just kill her and be done with it, she thought. But now she didn’t only have herself to think about. Tate was with her, too.

  Although she and Tate were both exhausted from whatever it was the Wymzesti elder had given them, Eirik told them that they had to fly. Knorbis tried to argue with the Mercesti, explaining their conditions, but it didn’t do any good.

  Besides, it was to
o little too late, in her estimation.

  He had betrayed them.

  “Did any of them send out thoughts before you imposed your abilities?” Eirik asked a dark-haired male dressed in a black toga before they took flight.

  “The Kynzesti sent out a partial thought that indicated she and the Lekwuesti are with you and the elder, my lord. She revealed nothing else.”

  Eirik stared down at Tate. “Who was on the other end of your thought?”

  She hesitated for a moment, but must have decided it wasn’t worth resisting. “My brother.”

  Ariana’s eyes burned upon hearing that. She knew how close Tiege was to his twin. The partial thought must have hit him like a strike to the heart.

  “I shall take measures to deal with him, then,” he said ominously.

  What does he mean by that? Ariana wondered, exchanging a panicked glance with Tate.

  Then Eirik turned his attention back to Ariana. She couldn’t avoid flinching under his gaze as he said, “We have wasted enough time here. Use your power to find the missing scroll piece and lead us to it.”

  “Or is it pieces?” the female Mercesti beside him asked.

  They didn’t know.

  Despite her fear and the fog of exhaustion coating her brain, Ariana found herself stuttering, “Th-there’s only one more.”

  “Then what are you waiting for?” Eirik snapped. “Fly.”

  They all extended their wings. Ariana opened her second power to its full extent. Her mind racing, she reasoned that Tiege and the others would try to get to the ancient library as quickly as possible, since it contained the only scroll piece they knew where to find. If she and Tate were going to have any chance of surviving this, they would need the help of their friends and family. Thus, Ariana had to be sure she led them to the library.

  Because there were two more lavender trails leading to scroll pieces—well, three, counting the one leading directly to Eirik and the piece he obviously kept on his person—she had to focus on getting to the correct one. Using the information conveyed to her by Quincy, she pictured a library with shelves overflowing with books and scrolls, visualizing everything from how it looked to how it smelled. She soon identified the correct trail.