CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Scorpion wasn't the happiest horse when he woke up. He was disgruntled at the change in scenery, and Jin believed he must've known where they were. He'd been to Marwin before, when he carried Dashar during the contract on Enfri's life. That hadn't been a pleasant trip for him, either. Scorpion seemed to remember the lack of water, but it was the presence of a scale lion that occupied his full attention now.

Ura appeared even less pleased than the horse, and Grimdar had his hands full stopping her from lashing out at the nearest prey animal she could see.

Once the predator was fed from Grimdar's diminishing supply of hares, Jin saddled Scorpion and rode him through some of the less ruined streets of Marwin to stretch his legs. She worried he would've been stiff after a long ride in the cargo nets, but he bore any discomfort well and worked through it.

Throughout the ride, Ura watched the two of them. Whether she was deciding if attacking was worth the risk or not— or just flummoxed about one creature sitting on another— was difficult to say. While she was distracted by the spectacle, Grimdar used the opportunity to sidle next to her and examine her breathing.

It didn't go peacefully, and now Grimdar had an irate scale lion to deal with. In the end, Jin left the Gladiator to deal with the uncooperative lizard and led Scorpion somewhere a little more peaceful.

She hummed a soft melody as she brushed Scorpion down. Both the tune and the brush were more to soothe his frazzled nerves than to prepare him for the night. Jin suspected there may be a need for some riding before the day was over.

Nearby, water cascaded down from the heights of the spire. The roar of several small waterfalls drowned out Ura's distant snarls. The oasis at the spire's base was now home to a large pool surrounded by greenery and flowed onward in a pair of streams into the blackened ruins. Jin wondered if Marwin once had aqueducts to catch and direct the waters. She assumed so, because whatever else might be said of the ancient Aleesh, they were masters of architecture and civic planning.

Plenty of date palms and peach trees stood around the oasis. Marigold and wild barley grew in scattered patches. Once Jin was done with Scorpion, she let him wander off to graze. As he ate his fill, Jin maintained a careful watch on the devastated grounds surrounding the spire. Between getting drawn by Ura's fussing and the prides led here by Deebee's magic a year ago, there could be other scale lions in the area.

Scorpion appeared content in the oasis. He drank from the pool and packed away as much grass and wild barley as he could stomach. Once he was full, he went to the shade beneath a palm and lay down. If he felt secure enough to lounge, Jin didn't think she needed to worry about anything bothering him. She could trust Scorpion to keep an eye out for danger while she saw to her own business.

"Now," Jin murmured under her breath, "to find an elf."

She took a step away from the spire but stopped herself before taking a second. Jin paused, then looked over her shoulder. Behind her, up a gravelly escarpment covered in vines, there was another stream flowing from near the spire's base. There, partially concealed by more vines, lay a wellspring cave.

Jin exhaled and turned away from it with a smile on her face. This was the Eighth of Flame, not the Nineteenth, and Jin's sky woman promised to come with her to visit this place on the appointed day. Jin didn't want to spoil their anniversary just because she got too eager.

Setting out with no particular destination in mind, Jin searched her memory for anything Starra might've said about where this elf might've been. Marwin was large enough to make searching it a daunting task for an entire legion, even with two thirds of it burnt to cinders.

"Starra," Jin muttered. "You could've been a little more specific." She let a measure of mockery enter her tone. "I left a parcel for you in the Spired City. No, that's all the direction I'm giving you. Go get it."

Perhaps Jin could find success by climbing onto the nearest pile of rubble and screaming for any fey in residence to show themselves. Now, if she were a diviner, she might have more to go on. Unfortunately, her skills as a sorcerer had never delved far into divination, and Jin didn't have an imprint connection with this elf.

Or do I? Jin wondered. She came to a stop in the midst of a broken square, but her eyes went to the sky. I didn't specialize in divination, but I did learn one discipline from that school.

Jin used her feet to scrape the greater portion of ash from the ground. Once she had a small space marginally clear, she lowered herself to sit cross-legged with her hands braced on her knees. Jin closed her eyes and wove spellcraft.

Oneiromancy was an old magic, often thought of as archaic and out of place in the modern world. Nonetheless, it often proved useful to the royal assassins— the ability to spy on a target while remaining largely unknown to them— and her family encouraged her to study it. She'd never attained great mastery of dream magic, nowhere near the level of her cousin Tarlus, but Jin believed herself proficient enough to enter another's dreams by her own power.

She felt that trance of the spell fall upon her. It was restful, though her mind continued to work as quickly as when fully awake. She'd never revealed it to anyone, but Jin had taken to oneiromancy because she found it calming as she sought out the dreams of others. Of everyone in her family, she felt that only Tarlus had been able to understand.

Her awareness of the city around her faded, and Jin was pulled into a realm of clouded darkness. It was a familiar place for her. She perceived the very edges of the Ethereum, where mortal minds touched upon the spirit world. It felt... thick... within the boundary between realities. The black mist was ever-present and eternal. It felt as if it pressed in on her, but not stifling. Jin likened this place to a small room filled with steam, only it had no walls and the steam ran cool. Comfortingly cool, like a breath of breeze on a midsummer day.

Within the blackness, there were points of light. Like stars but not frozen in place. They danced and shimmered, moving among themselves and around her. Like fireflies.

These were dreams, and should Jin focus her awareness upon one, she could sense the threads of essence binding her to it. More often than not, those bindings were so remote as to be intangible. She couldn't grasp the essences to draw herself towards the dream, the connection between her and the dreamer too faint. Some, so few in the multitudes as to appear to be none in comparison, carried threads strong enough for Jin to hold on. If a connection was particularly strong, if it belonged to someone she was intimately familiar with, Jin could step into the light and find herself within their dream.

Her consciousness moved from one light to the next. There weren't so many as there would be at night when most of the world was asleep and dreaming. Still, Jin thought the effort worthwhile on the off-chance elves liked to take afternoon naps. As her search went on, she became more and more convinced that there were no dreams originating from the vicinity, much less any with which she might have an imprint connection of shared blood.

If the elf was nearby, Jin wasn't skilled enough to locate him through these means.

Tarlus, however, was a master dreamer. He needed only the barest hint of a connection to find what he looked for, a connection that could come of merely crossing someone on a busy street. That barest imprint connection was enough for him to brush upon that person's dreams. With something only a little stronger, he could enter into it. With his aid, Jin had been able to find and enter into the dreams of a sky woman she'd met only twice.

Perhaps it was thinking of Tarlus that brought Jin to a brilliant white light. It flitted from one dream to another, alighting upon them for a moment before moving on. Jin touched at the essences, and she knew her cousin.

Tarlus' light froze in place, and with a thrum on the thread connecting them, it drifted towards her.

"Jin?"

Though she couldn't see Tarlus, Jin heard his voice as if he stood in front of her. "Yes, Tarlus. I am here."

"I... did not expect to find you. Are you well?"

"Yes," Jin said. "Mostly."

"What are you doing here?"

"Searching for someone," Jin said. "Unfortunately, I have not met with any success. What of you, Tarlus? Is it not early for you to be dreaming?"

"The procession is taking a late lunch before continuing on until evening. I am using the opportunity to meditate."

Jin nodded to herself. That wasn't out of the ordinary for Tarlus. Some in the house thought it was... creepy... how he often sat in trance while exploring dreams. A few even believed it bordered on violation of those he visited. That would only be said by someone who didn't understand oneiromancy. It wasn't like reading someone's mind or piercing into their deepest thoughts and desires. When an oneiromancer brushed upon others in this realm, they received nonsense more often than not. Occasionally, they would get a glimmer of acknowledgement as the dreamer subconsciously recognized another mortal soul.

Touching upon dreams here was little different than exchanging small talk with acquaintances on the road. Things could be learned from those whose dreams they visited, but no more than they would tell to a stranger who asked politely.

Jin pulled against Tarlus' thread, bringing their imprints closer. It was an invitation to remain. "I have missed you, Cousin. I was pleased to hear you are well."

"You mean pleased that I did not join my father in his betrayal of our house."

Jin nodded slowly. "Yes," she whispered. "For what it is worth, I am sorry. I would not wish losing a father on anyone."

"I lost my father long ago," Tarlus said. "His death only meant the end of his madness. He was a thrall to demons, and I will not mourn a monster."

He said it without emotion. Tarlus had never been the most expressive of his feelings, and some would say he could be as unfeeling as a blood mage. Jin knew him well enough to know that he felt those emotions as keenly as anyone. He was only more adept at keeping them hidden.

After learning of what her uncle Vintus really was, Jin had begun to suspect why Tarlus came to value inscrutability. Much like his sister, Tarlus learned to survive beneath a cruel father with high expectations. While Josy behaved as if her only emotion was rage and feigned a dull wit, Tarlus drew into himself and pretended not to care about anything or anyone. They were both remarkable liars and had proven themselves good people despite their father.

"I have spoken with Maya and Lady Starra," Jin said. "They told me of how you spied on your father for Lady Claryss and the Cabal."

His reply sounded embarrassed. "I didn't do much."

Jin felt a smile tug at her lips. "You put Heron into contact with the Merovech's apprentices without the demons knowing. That is no small feat, Cousin. Maya also told me that without your aid to Claryss, she would not have been able to entrap and defeat Tion. You were the Cabal's 'eye in the palace', I believe is how they put it."

"Is that a crack about my eye?" Tarlus asked, the barest hint of pique coming through in his tone.

"On that subject," Jin continued, "I assume you are accompanying the king to Shan Alee?"

"Yes," he said with suspicion. "Why?"

"I must warn you to be wary. I'm told the creature responsible for taking your eye enjoys the status of a folk hero in Shan Alee."

"Now you're just having me on."

"It is the truth," Jin replied. "I even heard a bard sing a song about him last night in New Sandharbor, The Goose Knight Bellamy, but you needn't worry for your reputation. It did not name names."

"Well, that's something," Tarlus grumbled. His voice perked up somewhat. "Wait, what did you say? Are you telling me you're... there?"

"Near enough. I am not in Shan Alee at the moment, but I aim to return before your arrival."

Tarlus all but sputtered. "But I thought... Jin, I have to tell the king this!"

"I am surprised Maya hasn't already."

"Maya told us she heard from you before she teleported off the other day. Her dragon then gave Uncle Cathis a sending and said she spoke with you again, but that's all we knew. Maya didn't pass on anything else."

Jin could think of a few reasons Maya wouldn't tell their father everything. She decided it was most likely that Maya was keeping Jin's confidence so she could reconnect with the house at her own pace. That seemed like what Maya would do. "If you would, Cousin, please inform my father that I intend to see him upon his arrival in New Sandharbor. I wish to be there."

"Of course," Tarlus promised. "Jin, I don't think you realize. You just made this the best day he's had in months. He's been beside himself with worry since... since we lost track of you."

Jin very much wanted to believe that was true. "With luck, I will not come empty-handed. I am following a lead from Lady Starra. If all goes well, I hope to return with answers."

"Answers to what questions?" Tarlus asked.

"I've no idea," Jin sighed. "Unfortunately, I expect I will also find more questions. That seems to be the way of things now."

"I understand," Tarlus said. "If that is all you're willing to give for the moment, I suppose all I can do to help is wish you luck. So... good luck, Cousin. I will look forward to seeing you again."

"And I, you. If you do not mind, Tarlus, could you tell me who else is coming to Shan Alee? I wish to be prepared."

"Certainly. Your father and mother are both coming to accept the Dragon Empress' fealty and acknowledge her title. Uncle Gain is with us, as are Josenthorne and Dashar."

Jin put a stop the the tremor that appeared without warning in her throat. "With Maya there, it will be as if our old coterie has reunited."

There was a faint smile in Tarlus' voice. "As you say. In addition, Aunt Maebh has brought along her current students."

"Kiir and Manon," Jin whispered. "Anyone else?"

"Devara, on Heron's order. Heron and Cassian are the only assassins remaining in the Spired City. Uncle Cathis left Arkus the Vantalan and Fasimar Ulbrecht to lead the kingdom in his absence."

Lord Fasimar was King Cathis' minister of coin and a proponent of his more progressive policies. Lord Arkus... well, he enjoyed a wealth of political clout. Neither Jin or Maya were much fond of his boorish flirtations, but he was a competent statesman.

"Beyond our house," Tarlus continued, "The Dothraun is accompanying the king as his minister of culture. He brings his retinue. Every great house of Althandor has sent representatives, and more than a few of the minor houses. Althandor hasn't sent a diplomatic procession this large anywhere since the end of the Nadian Rebellion."

Jin knit her brow together in concern. "Father must be invested in the talks being a success."

"I won't hedge my words, Cousin. The future of Althandor could rest on the outcome. Things at home are... going poorly."

"Explain."

"The first signs of famine are showing, Teulites are swarming the east, and this Lord's Alliance arising within what's left of Altier Nashal has started rattling their sabers. Now, we're told the Jade Empire is on the move. Althandor requires help if we're to survive to year's end. We need your sky woman's Arcane Knights."

Guilt gnawed at Jin. She hid herself away in the Miracle while her family was embattled on all sides. "I see," she said quietly. "I've no doubt Empress Enfri is willing to render any assistance she can give."

"Let us hope so." The light that was Tarlus flickered. "I must go, Cousin. Your father is adamant we reach New Sandharbor before sundown tomorrow. I expect he will push the delegation even harder once he learns you will be there waiting for him."

"Yes," Jin murmured, "I believe you're right. Tell him..." She swallowed. "Tell him I will see him soon."

"I will," Tarlus said. "Farewell, Cousin."

"Farewell, Tarlus." She waited until his presence faded from the realm, and Jin wove her sorcery to come out of her trance.

Something happened.

It was unusual how the realm faded away. It didn't give way to an awareness of the physical world around her, but instead, changed. The black mists surrounding her coalesced into forms. By degrees, Jin came to realize they became trees, a great forest of trees.

Jin's breathing grew labored. She felt as if she stood in a forest more vast than any that existed in the modern world. Silver mist flowed around her, itself resolving into ghostly figures that swept through the trees before swirling around a distant figure of a woman.

Her eyes, more intense than any assassin's eyes. Brown eyes that had seen more death and carnage than Jin could imagine. Her toned body was scarred, as much by spellfire as by blades. Her barbaric attire was terrifying, but also familiar. Underneath her hooded shawl of raven feathers, Jin saw the woman's mouth move to form a word, and Jin knew what she would say before it was spoken.

"Rise," Jin whispered in unison with her.

"You must stand, my daughter," the woman said. "It comes to destroy you."

Jin felt the fiend at her back. Its hot, musky breath was thick on the nape of her neck. She could feel its jaws open wide and draw closer to her flesh. Jin wanted to turn and face it, but she couldn't.

She was too afraid.

"Rise," the woman shouted. "Destroy it and fight!"

It all vanished into blackness.

The physical realm returned, and she was once again sitting cross-legged in a broken square within Marwin. Once her eyes opened, Jin needed to squint against the harsh sun overhead, so all she saw was a darkened figure sitting before her in silhouette against the light.

"Ah, she is dreamer. The clouds part."

Her heart was still racing from her dream-like vision. Every instinct she held howled for her to act. Jin rose sharply to one knee, and her sword came out of its holding spell to fall into her waiting grasp. Her slit pupils constricted to dampen the light, and she looked upon the man sitting before her.

He sat cross-legged, a mirror to Jin's pose a moment before. Less than a pace separated them. The man hadn't moved a muscle since she awoke.

There was little different between him and any other man save for a few distinct details. He had dark skin and long, fine hair so black as to appear almost violet. His features were narrow, angular, and sharply defined. It was just enough of a difference to make it plain that he wasn't human. What made it more clear were his long, pointed ears, much like an orc's. Each was perhaps two hands in length and swept back from his head.

It was his manner of dress that Jin found most odd about him. It was a simple garment, a sort of robe made from dark linen that hung from one shoulder and was cinched about his waist by a blue silk cord. Underneath the clothing, his body was thin and lean. His musculature was toned if not bulky, lending him a whip-like quality. In addition, his hands each had only four slender fingers.

Jin needed to calm herself. Her heart pounded, both from the haunting vision and from being startled, and she was disturbed further by this man managing to startle her at all. Even while in a trance, her hearing was as sharp as ever. He'd simply made no noise at all as he approached.

Her mouth worked to speak. "You are..."

"Cor," he interrupted. "Are old words to speak my true name, but your kind speaks Cor with more ease."

Jin forcibly calmed herself. Seeing as her sword was already out of the holding spell, she returned it to the scabbard on her hip. She remained on one knee, prepared to move at a moment's notice. "Very well, then. Cor. I am Jin Algara."

He raised a meticulously groomed eyebrow. Jin expected wry amusement out of him. Instead, he seemed to be impressed with her, but Jin couldn't imagine why.

"Jin Algara. Wind-scented blue, god-sighted, black slayer and blooded. I sight this. Her kith, blood-scented blue, Starra, she speaks white words of her for past... five years? Since day she makes Jin Algara her kith."

Jin frowned. For whatever reason, she hadn't expected to hear fey dialect out of the elf. A mistake, in hindsight. Jin eyed him up and down. She saw no signs of a weapon, but if he was an arcanist, he may not have needed one. "Four years. I met Starra four years ago."

Cor nodded.

He hadn't blinked once since Jin opened her eyes, and now that her eyesight was better adjusted to the sunlight, she could see his.

They were blue. Their glow was obscured in the daylight, and his pupils were narrow slits. He had eyes of a beast.

Hearing it from Starra hadn't been enough. Having it confirmed by Maya hadn't, either. Only now, looking into this stranger's eyes— eyes she'd only ever seen on her family— she could truly believe she was a feyling. Jin's heart beat a little faster.

"You are the one Starra sent me here to meet," Jin stated. "I would like to know why."

Cor shook his head. "Not I. She must walk path to empty one."

"I've walked far enough," Jin said. A spike of irritation on top of her crankiness drove her to be more curt. "I am not at your disposal. I've only come this far because Starra asked it of me. I am under no obligation to go further."

Cor tilted his chin to look down his nose at her. He grinned. "Path is not long. I will bring her to empty one. He will sight his kin."

"Kin?" Jin's frown deepened. "Starra mentioned I should call this elf Grandfather. Are you claiming I am related to him?"

"The clouds descend," Cor said with a sad shake of his head. "She must sight empty one unclouded. Is not only blood she shares with empty one. Her blood begins with empty one. He is mate to blue of bones, to black slayer blue who scents of more blood than a thousand hearts can hold."

"Algara," Jin said. "You speak of the Algara, the Queen Founder. You are telling me your empty one was the mate of my ancestor?"

"The clouds part," Cor said.

"He would be six hundred years old."

"This is so. I am same age. This not so hard to sight. We both answer call of white-scented empty one to bloody fire-scented. Began as spirit. Became kith when pact was made. Empty one then answered different call. Call of blue of bones."

Jin narrowed her eyes. "You knew Algara as well?"

"Aye. This is so."

"What... was she like?"

Cor looked amused and surprised, both surprised by his amusement and amused by his surprise. He came off as excessively puckish to Jin, like a goblin really in top giggly form. If Jin truly was part elf, she would've hoped to learn that elves were a little less flighty than this odd person.

"Gara is her name," Cor said. "Is name she scents of, not Highest Gara, Algara. This not name to fit her, but is name she takes. She is blooded. Tiger-blessed blooded slayer. Scents of old magic when old magic is new. Spirit-blessed, blue who speaks to great spirit. She speaks to great black spirit no more. She sighted what Lord of Bones was, and she hates him."

Jin wished for Ban. She'd never been quite to his level of understanding fey, but there was something to Cor's way of speaking that was different than Moon's or Light Hoof's. It almost felt as if he were forcing himself to speak this way. His preferred dialect must've been truly incomprehensible, in that case. It was probably the way fey spoke before their tongues received six hundred years of Althandi influence.

Another thing that bothered her was how Cor referred to the Queen Founder in the present tense. It put a sickly feeling into her stomach that she might be about to receive one doozy of a revelation.

Despite the difficulties, Jin believed she did understand one thing in what Cor said of Algara. The Queen Founder spoke to the Lord of Bones.

"She was a blessed saint?"

Cor nodded. "These are words you have for this, aye. Blessed saint. Spirit-blessed."

"Algara was Hasanvor's blessed saint?" Her lip curled in disgust. "Does that mean my elder magic comes from a demon?"

"Is not thing that is," Cor sighed. "Is... complex. I not speak this. This for empty one to speak to her." He rose to his feet and gestured for Jin to do the same. "Path is not long. Path will not leave dead city of fire-blessed. Is near."

"If it will not be far, very well." Jin rose to stand, and once she did, she looked up at the foot of height separating her from Cor. He was very near to seven feet and towered over her.

"Will ask she leaves metal," Cor said. "Metal burns bright kith. Burns worse than it does dark kith she knows. Not just iron that burns us."

Jin looked herself over. If she was going to leave every bit of metal she had on her behind, she wouldn't be left with much. It wasn't only in her sword, but in the iron studs and buckles of her armor, and even her gambeson. Cor was as good as asking she went to the empty one half naked.

"I will put away my sword," Jin said, "but the armor stays."

Cor pursed his lips and looked disappointed. "If it must be," he said before turning from her and walking away.

Jin narrowed her eyes at his back and placed her weapon into a holding spell. She didn't think she liked elves.