As she turned her head back and forth, marvelling at her new surroundings, Tevel pointed down the path in one direction. “Tiethar Tower’s just there.” He looked up at the sky, "Looks like it's nearing noontime here. You'll get used to the time difference in a few days.
"Time difference?" Kairi wondered as they walked down the path.
Tevel nodded, "We just passed through a portal, one of the very few left in existence. We're nearly halfway around Gelarrial from your home. The sun comes later here."
Kairi shook her head, unable to imagine the distances involved. As the path began to turn around on itself, Tevel again stepped off into the bordering foliage. "The trick, you see," Tevel explained knowingly as Kairi followed, "is not to stay on the path, for the path will never lead you to the Tower. Only when you wander off the path will you find your way."
Kairi nodded. It was a good idea, really. She began to see glimmers of bright sunshine through the trees and shaded her eyes, confused. The light was coming from the opposite direction as it had been a few heartbeats ago. After another moment, however, the source of the backwards light was clear, and Kairi gasped as the Tower came into view.
Tiethar Tower was immense. The building itself was made out of a shiny, silvery substance, so that it had the effect of a giant mirror. The effect was both magnificent and ingenious at once; the reflections the sun and sky made on the Tower made it difficult to tell where the structure began or ended, and the many turrets and towers confused the eye.
Tevel turned around once he realised that Kairi had stopped a few steps back to stare at the structure. He looked at her, confused, for a moment, until he finally smiled, "Aha. I see you've gotten the hang of Shielding."
Kairi jumped; in her awe of the Tower she had forgotten he was there. "Oh. I’ve been practicing."
Tevel nodded approvingly, and then beckoned her to continue toward the Tower.
As they grew closer Kairi realised just how massive Tiethar Tower was; the top of the tower was not visible, and Kairi had the distinct impression that it went on a great deal higher than the mist that swirled around the last visible sections of the structure.
When they reached a large set of double doors, Tevel reached out with a hand, palm up, and placed it on the door. She heard him mutter something unintelligible. Kairi waited for the doors to open, and glanced at Tevel when nothing happened. "Just wait," Tevel spoke without turning. After a few heartbeats, the doors shuddered and swung inward.
A man strode toward them, wearing a large smile, his dark blue robes billowing behind him. The man raised a hand across his face in what Kairi guessed must be a gesture of greeting. Tevel returned the gesture and clasped the man's hand in a firm handshake.
"Well met, Tevel. I see you have brought us a new student!" The man appeared middle aged, with hair just beginning to grey. A small, grey cat wound around his feet in a figure eight, rubbing against his legs. Kairi looked down at the floor, suddenly timid.
"Ah, Diander, it is good to see you again. I bring Kairi of the Forest." Kairi glanced at Tevel curiously at the title he had given her. She rather liked the sound of it.
Diander's attention turned to Kairi for the first time, and he studied her for a moment before addressing her warmly, “Welcome, Kairi of the Forest.”
The cat meowed, drawing Diander's attention to his feet. A look of concentration came over his face for a moment, and Kairi could almost believe he and the cat were having a private conversation.
Finally Diander looked up, glancing curiously between her and Tevel, "Hallie informs me that Jaspyrr is expecting you." He then turned back to the cat and spoke, although Kairi suspected it was purely for their benefit that he did so aloud, "Hallie, would you be so kind as to show these two to their rooms while I go tell Jaspyrr they have arrived? Kairi will be in the student’s wing." The cat meowed once, placing a paw on Diander's leg for a moment before running half-way down the hallway. She turned around, tail twitching, waiting for Tevel and Kairi to follow.
Diander smiled at them. "Hallie will take you to your room, Kairi. I will send someone to you in three candlemarks to take you to Jaspyrr. That should give you time to get settled." Kairi's stomach let out a loud gurgle, and Diander checked his timepiece and his mouth twitched with half-concealed amusement. "You two must be hungry. I'll have food brought to your rooms." Kairi nodded gratefully and she and Tevel wearily set off behind Hallie, whom Kairi strongly suspected was no ordinary cat at all.
***
Kairi’s heart quickened as they silently followed the cat through the maze of hallways. She was suddenly apprehensive, and being indoors felt oppressive after so much time spent outside. After two or three turns Kairi gave up trying to remember their path through the Tower; every hallway looked roughly the same as every other. Kairi was rather disappointed; she had expected the Tower to be as spectacular and breathtaking on the inside as it was on the out.
As Kairi passed hallway after hallway, the windows placed every so often caught her attention. Although she wasn't familiar enough with the Tower to know where inside it they were, she knew by pure common sense that they were nowhere near any outer walls. Tevel noticed her bemused expression as she peered out one of the windows, and explained, "They mirror whatever the outermost windows open to. Just makes the atmosphere a bit more—,” he paused as if searching for the word, "comfortable."
Kairi nodded, still examining each window she passed to see if she could determine their secret, guessing that nothing here could be taken for what it appeared to be on first glance.
Hallie eventually stopped and put her paw on the door, causing it to open. A group of older girls at the end of the hallway stopped their hushed conversation to watch them, before hurrying away. Kairi followed Tevel through the open door.
Hallie remained outside the doorframe, meowed and then departed. "You should find a pair of grey robes in the dresser next to the bed.” Tevel told her. “Until you complete the Test, grey robes is what you must wear, then you will gain the black student robes.” He looked around. "Everything else you need should be here."
Kairi looked apprehensively around the stark room. “Test?” She gulped.
“Don’t look so worried, it’s just really to see where to place you in your studies, what Magic you’re strongest at. Most students fail miserably, and it just means they are started at the beginning.” Tevel chuckled.
Kairi looked at him, frowning. “You’re a Mage, aren’t you?”
Tevel sighed heavily. “Yes. I should have known you’d realise.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s not quite as simple as it sounds. I can only do very basic, simple Magics, though I am quite good at sensing Magic. My strength lies in research.” Tevel pointed at the bowl of fruit and a wedge of cheese on the desk. “Have something to eat and a rest, someone will be along to collect you shortly.”
Kairi nodded, taking note of his swift change of subject. Besides the dresser, desk and a small cot covered in a dull grey blanket and the dresser, the only other thing in the room was a threadbare rug and a small washbasin with a towel and a bar of soap in the corner. Tevel stopped in the doorway and turned to look at Kairi. He spoke quietly, "You'll be alright?" Kairi nodded slightly, and Tevel studied her face for a moment more before disappearing down the corridor.
Kairi dropped her pack to the floor and sighed. it felt odd to be by herself. She picked from the bowl a kind of fruit she had never seen before. It had a tangy smell, and Kairi bit into the soft skin, surprised at how juicy it was. She licked the juice from her fingers and then crossed to the washbasin and splashed some water onto her face. As she looked up into the mirror she was started by the change in her appearance. She looked almost wild — her hair was longer, tangled. Her cheekbones more prominent after nearly a month of travelling and eating nothing but dried strips of meat and the scant nuts and berries they could find. She seemed older, sadder.
Kairi sighed, gave her face a quick wash, and flopped down on the bed. She rolled over and stared at the ceiling, a million thoughts and worries were racing around her head. Ryn's face from her dream, or vision, or whatever it was, kept swimming in front of her eyes. Kairi closed her eyes tightly, but that only made it worse.
Trying not to let the memories overwhelm her, she began quietly humming a tune. She wasn't quite sure where it came from, but she knew somehow that she had heard it before, when she was very young. As she drifted off, she could hear the words in her mind.
She didn't recognise the language, but the tune was the same. The voice of the singer was one she had heard crying out in the dream those few nights ago before her world was turned upside down…
***
A woman smiled down at her. The woman's soft gold curls cascaded down her shoulder, and she reached up a tiny hand to grab a ringlet that bounced playfully with every movement of the woman's head. She let out a little gurgle, and the woman's smile grew brighter. The woman’s gold eyes sparkled as she began to sing softly, in a language she didn’t recognise, a song that seemed to tell a tale of hope and love. She giggled, mesmerised by way the woman's moving lips formed the words, and the tear that cascaded down the woman's face, coming to rest on the curve of her smile.
"Mhinn'ehyl," The woman whispered, "Mhinn'ehyl, Kairi. Remember."
A heavy knock broke the silence, and the woman quickly turned her head to the door with a sharp intake of breath. She frantically looked around the room as the knocking continued…
***
"Kairi?" The knocking persisted as Kairi started awake. Hurriedly she pulled on the grey robes and splashed some more cold water on her face. She ran her fingers through her knotted hair a few times, then gave up and opened the door. Outside was a good-looking boy with brown hair, taller and she guessed slightly older than she, and Kairi noticed his startlingly blue eyes. She nervously smoothed the front of her robes. He smiled, seeming not to notice her nervousness, and stretched out his hand.
"You must be Kairi. I’m Sythrian.”
Kairi, suddenly timid, nodded and shook his hand. They stood there in awkward silence, and Kairi looked down in embarrassment.
"Oh! I almost forgot why I came here. I’m to take you to see Jaspyrr." They began making their way down the hallway, and as he turned, Kairi noticed his ears were pointed.
"You're an Elf," she said without thinking, blushing furiously as he turned to her with one eyebrow raised.
"Yes. So are you by the looks of it."
"Sorry, I just, I—" she paused, fingering her own ears, "I've never seen another before." Sythrian glanced at her questioningly and she continued, "I didn't even know I was one until very recently.”
Sythrian gave her a curious look, and Kairi changed the subject, “Who is Jaspyrr?”
“Jaspyrr is the Head Mage. He is the leader of Tiethar, essentially. You're very lucky to meet him so soon. I didn't meet him until I had done my test. Diander told me he asked to see you. How come?"
Kairi looked at him with surprise. “Did he? I just assumed he met everyone when the arrived."
Sythrian glanced at her curiously, pointing at a door to their right. "Well, here we are. Whatever it is, he must have a reason." When Kairi shrugged he continued, "Anyway, after you're done, I'll be here to take you back to your room. I'm your guide for as long as you need me. Whenever you need anything, just find me."
Kairi looked at him skeptically. "Find you?"
"Oh, right. Here." He dug into a pocket in his robes, his hand emerging with a small, mirror-like emerald. He pressed it into her hand, saying, "It’s keyed to my thoughts. Just hold it, and say my name three times. Through this you'll be able to speak to me, no matter where I am. If you get to be an aniih'hayrr, though, you won't need it. You'll be able to talk to me through your aniih, then."
"Aniih'hayrr?" Kairi liked the feel of the unfamiliar word in her mouth. She placed the stone carefully in her pocket.
"Oh, forgive me, you wouldn’t know. You'll be learning about them in great and devastatingly dull detail soon in lessons." He pulled a wry smile. "An Aniih'hayrr is a Mage bonded to an animal, an aniih. Most people here are gehls'hayrr, that's an elemental Mage, aniih’hayrr are slightly more rare.” He grinned, "My aniih is around here somewhere. Probably up in the rafters again. I'm sure you'll get to meet her later."
Kairi nodded as Tevel came around the corner, wondering what sort of animal Sythrian’s aniih was, but before she could ask, Tevel spoke, "Ah, wonderful. Thank you, Sythrian, for guiding her here. Shall we, Kairi?" Sythrian gave a quick bow and disappeared down the hallway. Kairi watched him leave, and then followed Tevel through the door, wondering what kind of meeting this would be.
No comments:
Post a Comment