3 When Darkness Falls.8 (20 page)

At last they reached the House of Bough and Wind. Kellen was pleased to see that its beauty had brought Cilarnen out of himself. So far as he knew, it was the only building in Ysterialpoerin that looked like a conventional house, and it was as beautiful as all things Elven, though thankfully in a way humans could appreciate.

This time they were making a formal visit, so Kindolhinadetil and Neishandellazel were not waiting for them on the steps of the House. Instead there were six servants waiting — one for every rider — all wearing long gray hooded cloaks precisely the color of the House. The cloaks were stitched all over with tiny colorless crystals that precisely duplicated the pattern of the carving of leaf and vine that covered every inch of the structure, and when they came silently down from the steps and across the snow to take the horses' headstalls, the fabric shimmered in the pale sunlight as though stitched in flame.

They did not speak, so Redhelwar and the others did not speak either. When the riders had dismounted, and their horses had been led away, the door of the House opened, and a woman appeared.

To Kellen's great surprise, he recognized her. It was the Lady Arquelle, the Elven Healer from Ysterialpoerin who had aided the Unicorn Knights after the Battle for the Heart of the Forest.

"In the name of Kindolhinadetil, Voice of Andoreniel in Ysterialpoerin, in the name of Neishandellazel, Lady of Ysterialpoerin, we See you, Redhelwar, General of Andoreniel's armies; Adaerion; Dionan; Kellen Knight-Mage; Isinwen; and Cilarnen High Mage of the City of a Thousand Bells. Be welcome in the House of Bough and Wind, branch of Leaf and Star."

As was traditional among the Elves, she had put the most important name last; Kellen wasn't sure whether to be pleased that Kindolhinadetil knew that Cilarnen was important or just continue to worry about all the ways this meeting could go wrong.

"We thank the Name of Kindolhinadetil for his welcome," Redhelwar responded gravely, "to find sanctuary in the home of a friend is to be doubly blessed."

Arquelle stood aside, holding the door even wider, and the six of them entered.

Kellen was glad he'd warned Cilarnen what to expect, because even having been here before, even knowing what he was going to see and knowing that it was all an illusion, crafted not by magic but by simple skill, it neatly took his breath away.

As soon as he crossed the threshold of the doorway into the House of Bough and Wind, he was standing in a summer forest. The snow might be melting on his boots, but the melt was trickling away into thick green moss. Trees stretched away as far as the eye could see — it didn't
matter
that he knew he'd walked into a perfectly house-seeming house on the outside: In here there was a forest. He could smell flowers and feel the warm summer breeze, and as he looked up into the golden light of the forest canopy, he could see butterflies flitting back and forth among the leaves. He wondered if the forest outside looked anything like this when it was summer, and if so, did they make the House of Bough and Wind look as if it were a
winter
forest then? Interesting thought.

More servants appealed to take their hooded cloaks and fur-lined gloves, and the party followed the Lady Arquelle farther into the House.

* * * * *

HE wasn't sure how or when it happened. He'd been lulled by the beauty of the forest, even if it wasn't, in any true sense, "real" — but when they arrived in what, for lack of a better term, his mind insisted on thinking of as the "clearing" where Kindolhinadetil and Neishandellazel were waiting for them, Adaerion, Isinwen, and Dionan were no longer with them. He, Redhelwar, and Cilarnen were the only ones following Arquelle.

Kellen blinked, running the last few minutes through his mind. Adaerion and Dionan had been ahead of him; Isinwen had been behind. No, at one point Adaerion and Dionan had simply stepped aside, going around a tree in one direction while Redhelwar went around it in another. They'd gone off somewhere else then, and probably Isinwen with them.

Obviously they'd been told to somehow — possibly even by something as obvious (to Elven eyes) as the message-wands Elven scouts used to mark trails and leave messages. But compared to Elves, humans were nearly color-blind, and there were a number of things that Elves saw that Kellen simply couldn't see.

Yes, that was the simplest explanation. After all, it couldn't be magic.

And, if that was how it had to be, there was no point in complaining. But it only underscored the fact that Kellen had no idea of how the Ysterialpoerin Elves' minds worked. And he'd been counting on Isinwen to smooth things over, if need be.

* * * * *

THE last time they had come this way, the "clearing" had been filled with what Kellen had assumed then was the Viceregal Court — or at least Kindolhinadetil's Council. This time it was empty except for the Viceroy of Ysterialpoerin and his Lady. They were seated upon the same ornately-carved chairs in the center of the clearing, but to Kellen's faint surprise, three more chairs stood empty facing the others, obviously meant for him, Cilarnen, and Redhelwar. The inevitable tea-service was also there, set beside Nishandellazel's chair.

I will never understand the Elves,
Kellen thought ruefully. This was all a great deal more… informal… than what he'd been led to expect from his last visit to the House of Bough and Wind.

Arquelle led them to their chairs and then knelt beside the tea-service, beginning the protracted preparation of tea. Apparently this was to be conducted entirely in silence. Maybe Kindolhinadetil and Nishanellazel wanted to see how long the two humans could go without saying anything.

But as Kellen sat there in the warm silence, listening to distant drone of insects and the sleepy calling of birds — all illusion, but how did they manage it? — he felt himself begin to relax in a way he had not in a very long time. Even his toes started to warm up. If they wanted to sit here for the next three hours and not say a word, fine. He'd just watch the butterflies. He wondered if they were real butterflies. Idalia would probably know if there were any way to keep butterflies alive in winter Maybe the Elves kept them as pets, the way some people kept birds. And the forest truly seemed to go on for miles, though it couldn't possibly, even if this were the only room in the entire House of Bough and Wind. He'd seen the outside of the House. It was big, of course, but not
that
big…

Arquelle handed him a cup of tea and Kellen took it, lost in thoughts that, for the moment, had nothing to do with the war or his problems.

* * * * *

"NOW, perhaps, if it were to find answering agreement in your hearts, would be a good time to begin," Kindolhinadetil said a while later, setting aside his cup. "In repose is found the best of all beginnings."

"Your words are indeed wise," Redhelwar said. "And so it is with a glad heart that I turn to the Voice of Andoreniel for wise counsel."

It all sounded to Kellen — who'd heard hours of similar exchanges in his time with the Elves — like meaningless interchanges of empty flattering phrases, made doubly ridiculous by the fact that he strongly suspected that Kindolhinadetil already knew every single detail of why they were here and what they'd come to ask, and, further, had known them a sennight ago.

But you did not rush Elves. Not unless somebody was actually about to die.

He slanted his glance sideways to see how Cilarnen was taking all this. To his relief, Cilarnen looked calm, even faintly detached. Well, Kellen supposed that
good
High-Mages-in-training got used to being bored. And good at concealing their boredom.

"… then perhaps it would be well did the High Mage speak upon his own behalf," Kindolhinadetil said eventually.

Cilarnen rose to his feet and bowed deeply, first to Nishandellazel, then to Kindolhinadetil.

"Lady Nishandellazel; Kindolhinadetil, Voice of Andoreniel, it is my honor to speak before you. Hear my words, though I am but a poor speaker, unused to your ways. I am Cilarnen, son of Setarion, of the House of Volpiril, of Armethalieh, called among many names the City of Mages. The secrets of the High Mages are many, but here is one: that the power that we use to fuel our spells is present in every person, though it can only be turned to magick by those with the Magegift. For centuries the High Mages of Armethalieh have harvested and stored that power without their citizen-subjects' knowledge, and thus have become powerful and feared. Without access to such a store they — we — are nearly powerless, yet there is another way to fuel the Magegift. In ancient days, at the dawn of the City and perhaps even before, the High Magick was given strength by Elemental energy, just as your Elven land-wards are now. It would be dangerous, I believe, to an Elemental Creature were I to attempt to use its power, nor do I know how to speak with one to make such an arrangement. Yet I believe I could draw on the power of the land-wards without harm to the creatures that power them, did I have permission of those in whose keeping such wards are. And so I come before you in petition. With the power to cast the Greater Spells of my Art, I could learn more, and faster, of the ways of the High Magick than I could ever learn without. And I could be of aid to Redhelwar as well. The High Magick holds spells for speaking over distance, for augury, and for war that are… different in inclination from those of the Wild Magic. It has other powers as well. Some I know now, some I can only learn once I have the full powers of a High Mage.

"I know such a request should properly be put before the King, but… I do not think we have time to wait."

Cilarnen bowed again and stood silently, waiting.

Despite himself, Kellen was impressed. Cilarnen's speech had taken careful planning.

He knew, of course, that Cilarnen's speech would certainly be considered almost offensively concise just about anywhere in the Elven Lands, doubly so in Ysterialpoerin. But he also knew that Andoreniel did not choose fools to reign over the rest of the Nine — now Eight — Cities. Kindolhinadetil might never have seen a human in all his long life before he'd seen Kellen, but before he'd come to today's meeting, he had undoubtedly studied their ways as thoroughly as Cilarnen had been studying those books. The wise did not take offense casually; Cilarnen had made a great effort to be polite, and that was what Kindolhinadetil would see.

The silence lengthened, and both humans waited, betraying no sign of apprehension. Kellen had been trained in the House of Sword and Shield not to waste his energy in anticipating an encounter, but simply to respond to it when it came; Cilarnen, he was coming to realize, had skills honed equally sharp, though for a different battlefield.

At last Kindolhinadetil spoke.

"You speak of what will be gained, not what may be lost. Speak now of these things, of the harm that might come to the land-wards… and to yourself."

Kellen saw Cilarnen hesitate, then take a deep breath.

"Viceroy, I do not know. The Elementals' first duty is to the land-wards, and all that I have read tells me that such creatures have a sort of consciousness. I believe they would know if what I intend would harm the land-wards, and either stop it before it began, or break the link afterward. I am told they are a sort of living creature, with the power to act in their own interests, or in the interests of those they serve, which implies to me that they would choose to preserve the land-wards at their traditional strength rather than aid me, if they had to choose between the two. Further, once I have the power to do so, if I do indeed gain such power, I shall do a divination to be quite certain that the link is harmless to the land-wards, so that even if the Elemental Creatures are incapable of making such an assessment, the High Magick will make the determination, and if it is wrong to continue, I shall stop immediately.

"As for harm to me… " Cilarnen hesitated again. "Attempting this may kill me outright. Using my Magegift in this fashion will certainly cause it to be Burned from me over time, and perhaps I will die then. Beyond that, I do not know."

Again there was silence, save for the sound of the wind through the trees. It made Kellen think, with regret and something oddly like homesickness, of the only true summer he'd ever known, the one he'd spent with Idalia in the Wild-wood, and wonder if he, if anyone, would live to see another one.

"A fair answer, human child," Kindolhinadetil said at last. "If you had lied to me about any part of it, even the danger to yourself, I would have forbidden it outright. But as you have trusted me, may Leaf and Stat guide us all to true wisdom."

He and Nishandellazel rose to their feet. Apparently the audience was over.

* * * * *

ARQUELLE conducted the three of them back through the "forest" to the front door of the House of Bough and Wind. Though Kellen could have managed to find the way himself — no Knight-Mage could truly be "lost," since the Wild Magic gave him the innate ability to exactly retrace his steps — it would have taken quite a bit of effort on his part.

He wasn't at all surprised to see their horses waiting for them, with Adaerion, Dionan, and Isinwen already mounted. The other three looked very much as if they had just awakened from a dream — even Isinwen, who must be used to things like this.

Pleasant as it had been (in an odd way), Kellen didn't really think he wanted to come back to the House of Bough and Wind any time soon. If ever. What he thought of as "normal" Elves were hard enough to deal with for a simple round-ear. The Elves of Ysterialpoerin were downright spooky.