Heat scorched Lathan’s brow as he jogged alongside the many wagons, palanquins and caravans that trailed in a long winding line over the plains. They had been travelling for a couple of weeks now, stopping for a few days at a time to rest before moving on further.

  Flame Master Dremos had found ways to keep Lathan busy, whether the procession was moving or not. On days that they were moving, Lathan was not allowed to ride in the wagons with the many servants and the few mystics that travelled in Enalla’s retinue. He was instructed to keep pace with the horses and the larger animals, the tamanduas and the elephants. On the days when the procession was stationary to let the animals as much as the people have some rest from travel, Lathan was instructed to run laps of the entire camp, and to lift heavy stones for exercise before his lessons with Nikomedes began.

  Lathan ran beside a brown tamandua. The dust from the road made his eyes itch, but he pushed his complaints down. He would prove himself to Master Dremos. The Channeler was perched atop the tamandua’s shoulders, where a small saddle was affixed to the animal.

  The strange beast loped beside Lathan at a surprising speed considering its size and clumsy appearance. It had thick, bushy hair all over its body, which was lithe and muscular like a cat. The long tails of the tamanduas grazed the floor, probably to help with balance. Unfortunately, this led to the dust on the roads being kicked up into the air in dry choking clouds, as though a small army of brooms had been sweeping it up around them.

  A butterfly fluttered on the warm afternoon wind, and was deftly plucked from the air by the long tongue of the tamandua. It wiggled its short trunk-like nose, making a snuffling sound as it ate.

  “I didn’t know they ate bugs. Eurgh!” Lathan said, wrinkling his nose at it. Dremos chuckled, and patted the animal’s wide neck fondly.

  “You don’t have them up here, do you? Probably never seen one until we came to your little hometown.” Dremos said.

  “They’re weird. Why are their faces like that? All long and… cone-ish.” Lathan asked, and slipped slightly on a stone, before regaining his balance.

  “They dig holes or look inside burrows for insects to eat, and their long noses I guess are perfect for that. Look where you are running, lad.” Dremos reached behind him into one of the packs strapped to the tamandua’s back, and pulled from it a loaf of bread. Ripping it roughly in half, he tossed one half to Lathan, who caught it one handed without turning his head. “Better! You didn’t drop it this time. When you’re in the Academy, they’ll have you catching arrows. I’ll stick to throwing sticks and food at you for now.”

  “That’s reassuring!” Lathan said, tearing into the bread with his teeth. He was ravenous, his appetite having increased with the exertion he was put through daily. He was kept so busy with the training with Master Dremos and his lessons with Nikomedes that he barely had any time to think or daydream. If he was caught daydreaming while running alongside the procession of pack animals and palanquins, Master Dremos worked him harder. He had to learn to focus.

  The steady thumping of the many feet in the procession was joined by the hustle of a city. Up until then, they had passed small settlements, a few houses with a tavern or a shrine. They were now nearing Jeppe, which was further than Lathan had ever been from Crabton Port. In his mind, it was a huge lively city, full of rich merchants who made money off the poor sailors working for a pittance on the river. There had been a few of those come to Crabton Port before, to escape their employers without paying them off. They were usually sent out of the town on their ear. Crabton port didn’t need that mess brought down on them.

  Thinking of home, Lathan’s mind flitted to Mam and Marnie. Were they alright? He felt uneasy about leaving them. It didn’t help that he missed them terribly. He was grateful that he at least had his brother travelling with him. Ethan usually rode in one of the wagons toward the back of the procession, and had told Lathan about all of the friends he had made amongst the servants.

  “-go now. Lathan, were you listening to me just then?” Dremos said.

  “Sorry, Flame Master. My mind was wandering. I think I may be thirsty. The road is very dusty. But I will pay better attention.”

  “See that you do. I was saying that you have been summoned. Her Radiance wants you to visit her palanquin.” Dremos pointed to the centre of the trail of vehicles and pack animals, and lobbed a skin of water at him without warning. Lathan managed to catch it, and so Dremos seemed satisfied. “You should probably wash your face a bit with that before you report to her.”

  Lathan took a swig of the water, which was warm and tasted vaguely woody, and poured a few drops into his palm to scrub his face with his sleeve as he caught up to the palanquins. The Channelers who were carrying them stared stoically ahead at the dusty road as he arrived. Lathan cleared his throat nervously. “Lathan, presenting myself at Her Radiance’s request. May I approach?”

  A muffled voice filtered out from behind the curtains of one of the nearby palanquins, “Good, you are here. You will come sit beside me, so that I do not have to shout.”

  The Channelers carrying the Goddess smoothly and in unison went down onto one knee, to allow Lathan to climb into the tent-like structure. The interior was luxurious, with embroidered silk curtains draping elegantly around a carved wooden frame, and a myriad of colourful cushions scattered around the floor. The Channelers below were so skilful that only the merest suggestion of swaying and the sound of their marching feet below could be observed. Lathan sat down on a pillow that had been set aside from the others, and tried not to look directly at Enalla.

  “Dremos tells me that your training is coming along well. He isn’t generous with compliments, so I think he likes you.” Enalla spoke, her smooth voice was soft, and her smile was audible in the tone.

  “I- I… That is… I think I have a lot to learn. I find it hard to concentrate on things. My mind is always wandering off.”

  “Oh, well that is a bit of a problem, is it not? …I will tell you a secret. I have the same problem. Not in the same way, you understand. But Mystics, especially Ascended such as myself often have very strong telepathic ability. Do you know what telepathy is?” Enalla’s large dark eyes held Lathan as she spoke.

  “No, not really… Um.. Your Radiance.”

  “No need for the formalities just right now. Let us speak as friends. I have seen your face in visions for years, I feel as though I already know you.” Enalla extended a jewelled hand to grip Lathans grubby one tightly, “Well, telepathy is the ability to read minds, to communicate to those minds without speech, and to some extent, to control them. I prefer not to do the latter to be honest. It feels uncomfortable.”

  “Is that what you did in my hometown? All those people were just standing staring into the air like they were daydreaming…”

  “That was just a weak mesmerism, but yes, the same principle. But my point is that when growing up with this ability, it can be hard at first to control it. You find yourself hearing the thoughts of everyone for miles and miles around. In the Academies, they train the Channelers how to control their gifts, but they also help the Mystics with theirs.” Enalla opened a small wooden box and offered the contents to Lathan, “Pistachio? They’re my favourite. So, I suppose I am trying to say that I understand. When you have telepathy, you know all too well what it is like to have a mind that wanders about.”

  “Thank you, Your Radiance.” Lathan took a pistachio and settled down into his pillow a little, gradually feeling more at ease. It was baffling to him that he was sitting with a Goddess, and she was making friendly conversation with him as though he were an equal to her.

  “Please, while we are alone, just call me Enalla. Well, I called you here to me so that I can get to know you a little better. Dremos is a talented Channeler, and an excellent personal guard, but there are some things I can only find out about you by getting to know you myself.”

  “Alright, Your- um, I mean Enalla. What do you want to know? I’m not really all that interesting, but I’ll answer any questions you have.”

  Enalla smiled, and opened the shell of a pistachio with a long fingernail. “Your family. Tell me about them.”

  “Oh… Well you know a little already, I guess. My Mam was the daughter of an innkeeper on the road to Jeppe. My Father met her when he was travelling from Jeppe to Crabton Port, before he bought the forge there. They used to write to each other, and eventually Father decided to ask her to be his wife, and she moved to Crabton Port. Then they had us.”

  “It sounds like things weren’t always like I have seen, then?”

  Lathan shifted uncomfortably, “Oh, but my parents have always loved each other… It’s just… I think my Father’s lack of success and… his drinking. I think that’s the problem.”

  “I am sorry, we can change the subject if you like? I do want to know more about you.”

  “It’s alright. Uhm. So, Ronan, he is the oldest of my siblings, he is very quiet and some would call him boring. But he’s kind. I remember when I was really little, he taught me a lot of things. Like how to make a slingshot and how to climb a tree.” Lathan looked wistful, “These days he doesn’t have time for childishness like that. He was training to take over the forge, so Father kept him on a tight leash.”

  “And your other brother? The one travelling with us, what is he like?”

  “Well… You could get to know him yourself, as he is here.” Eyes widening, Lathan clapped his hands over his mouth, aghast at himself for being so rude to such an important person, “I’m sorry! I don’t know why I said that!”

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  Enalla chuckled, the laugh musical at first, but the light snickering turned into a wheeze, and she doubled over, holding her bare midriff with a painted hand. She looked up for a moment, seeming to have controlled herself, but on meeting the expression of concern mixed with confusion on Lathan’s face, she exploded with laughter again.

  “Oh, thank you, I needed a laugh! You have no idea how boring it is if nobody ever questions you or points out when you are being foolish. You should be careful though when we reach the capital, the rest of my Ascended family wouldn’t find it nearly as amusing.” Enalla said, “You are right though, of course. I fully intend to get to know your brother personally. But first, I’d like to hear what your thoughts on him are.”

  The line of palanquins, caravans, and beasts of burden trailed across the dusty road as the afternoon sun beat down on the procession. There wasn’t so much as a whisper of wind over the flat landscape. The only sounds were the rhythmic thumping of feet on the road and the whuffling of the animals. On the horizon, a larger settlement was drawing into view, the pointed slate roofs glinting and shimmering in the scorching heat.

  _______________________________________________________________

  The wind rushed over the tall rocky cliffs, and the soft patter of bare feet on stones echoed against the high fortress walls. The night was frigid and the sky was empty of clouds. The Mother moon and her Child watched, unmoving, over the ragged group of prisoners as they hurried to peer over the edge of a large stone well in the centre of the bare courtyard.

  “I feel like easy prey here, can we get a move on?” One of the Channelers said, and climbed up onto the stone wall of the well.

  “Brace your back against the side of the well with your legs, and edge down the well shaft that way. It will be slow, but safer than just jumping in. We don’t know exactly how deep the water is.” Maddox suggested, patting the man on his shoulder. He turned to the weak and thin Goddess beside him, “Your Radiance, forgive me for saying, but you won’t be strong enough to do that. Balen here is probably the strongest among us. You should let him carry you down there. I’ll go down first, and catch you if you fall down.”

  Two of the other Channelers had already climbed down into the well and were about halfway down its deep shaft when Maddox climbed in, followed by Balen. Balen braced himself against the walls of the well, in a less-than-comfortable seated position. He gestured to Sellene to climb onto his lap, and Thaida offered a hand to the Goddess to help her get into position.

  “I… I’m afraid that I might fall if I try to sit on your legs. I haven’t had a vision about this part of our escape, so I don’t know how it happens.” Sellene frowned. “I… don’t like heights…”

  “Oh, for goodness sake. We don’t have time for this.” Thaida lifted the Goddess up unceremoniously and deposited her straddling Balen’s legs. Balen tried desperately to not look directly into the Goddess’s wide eyes, but the erratic movement of his head made the young woman let out a small squeak of fear. He braced himself and slowly began moving down inside the dark well, wrapping an arm around Sellene’s frail body to avoid her slipping off of him and tumbling into the water below.

  “You’re doing great up there, just keep going. Ocalla just took that other fella through to the tunnel, she’ll be back in a minute to help the rest of us. She says it’s not far.” Maddox’s voice echoed from below.

  The cold stone walls of the well were slimy, and the damp air clung to Sellene’s shivering body. Balen’s breath caught in his chest at the goddess’s closeness. He felt his face becoming warmer. The Goddess laid her cool forehead on his shoulder, and the shallow breaths on his neck only put him more on edge. He stared straight ahead at the opposite side of the well and climbed down the last several feet. Sellene gasped as the cold water touched her dangling toes. Her body stiffened against Balen and he held her closely, lest she fell.

  “Everything alright down there?” Thaida called down from a few feet above, her thighs straining to keep her aloft. She had a leather satchel laid across her lap, one of the few they had pilfered from the kitchen.

  “Just getting to the water. It’s cold, just to warn you.” Balen called up to her, and let himself fall into the water with a splash. The cold water was a welcome distraction from the heat that had been steadily rising in him as he climbed down the well. Leaning backwards, he held onto Sellene, kicking his legs gently to keep them both afloat. Maddox had already been taken to the tunnel by Ocalla, and after few frozen moments in the cold of the water, the Water Channeler returned, smiling blankly.

  “It is the Goddess’s turn now, yes? This servant will be happy to convey her.” Ocalla wrapped Sellene’s arms around her shoulders, and gave a thick leather belt to Balen. “You must buckle this around us both. We are both thin, so it should be big enough. I do not want her to fall off my back.”

  Buckling the leather belt, which Balen recognised as Maddox’s, around two people, while swimming, was easier said than done. After a minute’s struggling, it was done, and Ocalla was ducking under the water, to swim at impossible speeds through a winding underground stream.

  Thaida and Orphus had joined Balen in the pool of water, and the rest of the group hung above them in the well shaft, waiting for their turn to drop down into the freezing water. The children were being carried down much in the same way that Sellene had been, as their legs were not long enough to span the distance between the inner walls of the well.

  “We should wait for my sister to return. I do not wish to bump into her head if she is on her way back. It will be very dark.” The Water Channeler smiled, pleased to be in his element. Ocalla appeared moments later, the dim light shining on her wet face. Thaida, clearly not wanting to spend any longer than necessary in the frigid water, grabbed a hold of the Water Channeler and clung on tightly. Balen heard her make a deep breath, and the two women vanished under the murky waters. Orphus tapped his own shoulders cheerfully, and Balen took that as a cue to wrap his arms around the man’s neck. He filled his lungs as far as he could manage in the biting waters.

  They sank. The well seemed to go on and on, and Balen wondered at how the Goddess had fared holding her breath so long. A bubble of air escaped his lips, and he focused himself, pulling at the power through his wood. As he feared, it was getting wet. Not good. If too much water managed to seep between his skin and the wood, it would make it difficult to pull power through it.

  Orphus pulled them down deeper, and then sharply turned to the side. An opening. He picked up his speed, muscles straining to propel them forward at a breakneck speed. Balen tucked his head down instinctively. His lungs began to burn with the strain of holding the air in, and more bubbles slipped out.

  The tunnel twisted left and right, and plummeted down deeper into the core of Ainah. Balen’s hold on his breath threatened to fail. It was at this moment Orphus swam abruptly upwards, and the two of them emerged - Orphus smiling, Balen gasping - into a dark, cramped, but gloriously air-filled space. Thaida crouched somewhere nearby, coughing up water.

  “Your Radiance? Are you alright?” Balen croaked.

  “I’m fine... For w-weeks, I have been p-practising holding my breath. Though I wasn’t expecting it to be quite so hard in the c-cold.” said Sellene, shivering. “We should t-try and get some light g-going. The t-tunnels and c-caves are very dark, and w-we have far t-to w-walk.”

  “You’re freezing, Your Radiance. Please allow one of us to share their body heat with you. Perhaps Thaida? She was an acolyte before… well. She is more qualified to help with personal matters than the rest of us.” Maddox said.

  “S-She doesn’t want t-to. It’s fine. S-sorry for hearing your thoughts Thaida. I d-didn’t mean t-to intrude. I w-would be grateful for any warmth you or the others c-could offer.” The Goddess stuttered, her whole body shaking with every breath. Balen reached out in the dark, and pulled her bedraggled form close to him. A splash behind them followed by a choking gasp signalled another arrival in the dark tunnel. Balen hadn’t even heard the Water Channelers leave for the return trip to the well.

  The darkness was disorientating, and Balen stood holding onto Sellene as though she was the anchor tethering him to reality in the void that surrounded them. He knew at that moment that he must protect her. She had been through so much. They all had. They had lost everything, but they still had their lives, and now they had each other.

  Once the remaining Channelers climbed up into the tunnel soaked to the bone and shivering, those among them who had found candles or other light sources during their escape lit them, revealing a cramped stone tunnel. The light from the weak flames cast strange flickering shadows around the group, and they still could not see far beyond the dim light they now held.

  “Well, we don’t have much choice, it only goes one way for now. It seems to be sloping upwards at least, so let’s hope we emerge on the surface eventually.” Said Thaida.

  “I’m scared…” one of the children said weakly, “are we stuck down here?”

  Maddox knelt beside the child, and the gruff man took on a kindly expression, placing her small hand in his large one. “What’s your name?”

  “Myrim, Sir. I’m an Apprentice of Flame Mistress Yeva. At least I was… She’s dead now and I’m all alone.” The young girl sniffled.

  “Well, Apprentice Myrim. You’re not alone. We are all here with you and we will work together to keep each other safe, alright? You’ve been very brave. We can find a way out, I promise. Let’s just keep walking, and if you are scared you can hold my hand.”

  A drop of water dripped from the ceiling to trickle down Balen’s back, and he struggled to shrug off the shiver that overcame him. Sellene walked a step ahead of him, her arms wrapped tightly around her ribcage. The going was slow as the tunnel was not wide enough for two people to stand beside each other, and it seemed to go straight for around an hour of walking before they finally came to a split in the tunnel system. They stopped, and every face turned to Sellene for an answer.

  “Hmmm. It’s hard to tell. I was hoping there would be some small creatures down here, so I could get the information from their minds, but it seems like there is nothing alive here that I can read besides us. I think we are nearing the surface, though. There should be a slight breeze if there is an opening to the outside in that direction. Can anyone feel a breeze?” she said.

  Balen put out his hand to the tunnel on the left, but felt nothing. He shook his head. Thaida tested the other tunnel but had a similar result. “What if we are stuck? Will we have to go back up the well to try and escape a different way?”

  “There is no other way. It is either this way, or nothing. Personally, I’d rather die trapped in this cave but free of them than trapped in that place.” said Sellene, “We will just have to try one, then the other if it is a dead end.”

  “I think we should go this way,” Orphus said, and Ocalla pointed to the left path. Balen shuddered, unnerved by their connection. Water Channellers were often twins, and something about sharing the water of the womb gave them a shared mind. It was lucky that neither of them had died in the pits. When Water Channeller twins lose a sibling, it is as though half of who they are disappears. Most times the surviving sibling does not survive it.

  “Water? Could be a flooded tunnel, which would explain the lack of a breeze. Worth a try, if there’s water, one of you should check if it leads somewhere.” said Maddox.

  “Let’s go then. I am worried about the quality of the air down here. There’s no telling how much...Uh oh. I feel it coming. I’m seeing something.” Sellene slumped, overcome with dizziness. A vision? Balen was instantly beside her, supporting her by the arm in case she fell.

  “Are you alright?”

  There was no answer, Sellene was staring blankly into space, her eyes had a glazed quality to them. With her being so thin and wan, her eyes appeared to be unnaturally large, and them staring unblinkingly at the air only emphasised this further. She shook her head and the blank face turned to one of pure heartbreak. The spiral mark on her emaciated cheek twisted and stretched as she let out a wail of anguish.

  “They’ve killed them! No…” Her knees buckled, but Balen caught her and prevented her from falling to the ground. He drew a little more power through the wood, and then lifted Sellene, cradling her to his chest.

  “Forgive my manhandling you, but you are struggling to stand. Allow me to carry you. Can I ask what you saw? It’s obviously causing you distress.”

  “My family. They said they would kill them if I tried to leave, or didn’t obey them. Eventually I became too weak to even try to escape by myself. I guess now that I finally did it, they had no use for them.” Said Sellene, “It’s all my fault. But I couldn’t ignore my chance at escape, not after what I know now...”