Legacy of the Mind (19 page)

‘Nothing at all?’ said Cleo surprised.

‘No,’ said Anderson in a tone that indicated to Cleo that she should move on.

Cleo knew when to drop a topic, so she nodded in defeat but resolved to investigate the matter further when she got back to Empire.  There must be something in the Archives and it would be very unlike the Descendants not to react at all to a discovery of such magnitude.

Arabella spotted the opportunity to retake control, so turned back to the relic with a flourish, saying, ‘and this is the much discussed relic.  But Anderson is really the one who should tell you about it, he knows the subject backwards and will do it far more justice than I.’ Arabella smiled warmly at Anderson, who looked as though he would rather not, but knew the path of least resistance would be to do it, Arabella would never let him hear the end of it otherwise.

‘As you can see,’ started Anderson, in a surprisingly commanding voice, ‘the relic is a totally irregular shape.  It has no particularly unique markings and looks very much like any other piece of rock you might find in a cave, except that is, for the fact the relic is made of an element we have not been able to find anywhere else on the planet, including in the Wild Lands around where it was found.  Other than what the inscriptions tell us, we know nothing about the relic, which is why it’s been a source of fascination and wonder since it was discovered, well, that and the promise it brought with it of course.  Many academics have devoted their lives to the relic, but no one has managed to make any headway with how to send it back.  Of course the Descendants are generally uncomfortable with the prospect of losing their power, so they have not historically shown much support for our cause.  We try to keep a low profile,’ he said pointedly, ‘attention is not good in our line of work.’  With that, Anderson abruptly, and a little rudely, in Cleo’s opinion, turned away from the group and got back to work.

It was clear that to stay any longer would be to outstay their welcome, so Cleo piped up, ‘well it’s been a fascinating morning.  Thank you so much for the guided tour, we really appreciate it, but I promised my father that I would meet him for lunch, so I’d better get going.  See you back at the house later,’ she said to Alexander and Anita, before turning around and striding away through the Temple of the Mind.

‘And we really should be heading off too.  I promised Anita I would show her around Kingdom today,’ said Alexander.  ‘Anderson, thank you so much for taking the time to show us the relic,’ he said, shaking Anderson’s hand, ‘and Arabella it has been a pleasure as always,’ he said, kissing Arabella briskly on both cheeks.

‘Bas, are you coming?’ asked Anita as Bas sat down next to Anderson, making himself comfortable.

‘Uh, no, I don’t think so.  I’ll catch up with you two later.  Think I’ll stay and help Anderson and Arabella for a bit.’  As Anderson seemed to actually perk up at the prospect, Anita just nodded and threw Bas a smile.

‘See you later then,’ she said, thanking Anderson and Arabella and following Alexander into the Temple of the Body.

‘I’ve never seen him take to anyone like that before,’ said Alexander when they were out of earshot.

‘Well he and Bas have a lot in common, and Bas might even be able to help him.  Anderson has spent a lot of time out in the Wild Lands recently, so he probably isn’t up to date with all the energy developments.  Given that Bas is as up to date as it comes, when it comes to the energy, Anderson is probably as excited to have Bas around as Bas is to learn about the relic.  I know Bas doesn’t always come across as an authority, but after Alistair, nobody knows more about the energy than him.’

Alexander nodded, ‘I suppose that must be it.’

Anita and Alexander walked past Peter’s chambers, emerging in the main section of the Temple, and it was breath-taking, not nearly as open as the Spirit Temple, but equally pleasing.  Where the Spirit Temple was one vast chamber with pillars stretching to the ceiling, the Body Temple was segmented into sections, the lines of the arches tight and pleasing; they invoked images of a ballet dancer bending elegantly backwards, off balance yet supported by a strong, muscular partner.  The sections reminded Anita of secret gardens, the kind of place she would like to have a romantic picnic, secluded but open, welcoming, cosy, stuffed full of wonderful, dusky pink flowers and wrapped in flowing fabric.  She would have liked to spend some time exploring the Temple, but Alexander was already striding towards the entrance, so she reluctantly followed.

They came out of the Temple into the crisp sunlight and meandered towards the centre of Kingdom, the conversation wandering through subject after subject.  They’d been walking for a while when they rounded a corner to find themselves in a relatively secluded area with an enormous pair of bolted gates in front of them.  Alexander stopped sharply, as though he were surprised to find himself there, then noticeably bristled.  ‘Austin’s house,’ he said through slightly gritted teeth, nodding his head in the direction of the gates.

‘Really?’ said Anita, looking in wonder at the pretty, yet imposing house that stood the other side of the gates.  It was hard to work out where the buildings around it ended and it began, despite being surrounded by its own protective wall.  The red brick construction had a secretive look about it, as though it was guarding a large number of highly incriminating secrets.

‘It’s not what I imagined,’ she said, unable to tear her eyes from the building, ‘not that I’m sure what I imagined really.’

‘Why?’ asked Alexander, doing his best to sound nothing more than conversational.

‘Because it’s so different to the castle in Empire.  Everything about it is different.  The stone, the size, the style, the proximity to the centre of the town.  This seems like a wonderful home right in the thick of things, whereas the castle is a statement of power sitting above Empire.’

‘Yes, I suppose so,’ said Alexander offhandedly.  ‘Anyway, there is something else I’d like to show you,’ he said, purposely moving the conversation away from Austin and also by default away from Marcus.  ‘Over here,’ he said conspiratorially, taking her hand and pulling her lightly around the side of Austin’s house, a jolt pulsing through each of them as their skin made contact.

‘Where are we going?’ asked Anita, confused, as they approached what seemed to be a solid brick wall.

‘Through here,’ he smiled back, leading them around what was in fact an overlap in the wall, concealing a small gap through to the other side.  They appeared in a space that was half room, half tent, with stone walls and a canvas roof, but the space was full of beautiful swathes of fine silk, in a vast array of deep, rich colours.

‘Wow,’ said Anita, stunned as she emerged from what turned out to be a fabric stall into a bustling street, jammed full of stalls similar to the one they had just walked through, ‘I wasn’t expecting that.’

‘Welcome to the market,’ said Alexander excitedly, not letting go of her hand.  ‘This is where the traders come with their goods from their farms, from the sea, or from the Wild Lands.  You can get pretty much anything you can imagine here, silks,’ he said running his hand over one of the swathes at the entrance to the stall they had just walked out of, ‘all manner of foods, clothes, cosmetics, precious metals and stones, brass cylinders, energy mechanisms, herbs and spices,’ he said, as he gently tugged her past a stall with piles of brightly coloured powders on display, Anita’s mouth wide open in wonder.

They passed a shop with early energy mechanisms chugging away in the window, brass cogs whirring around, but as Anita tried to enter, Alexander pulled her back.  ‘It’s best not to linger for too long here.  Most people recognise me and kindly leave me alone, but I don’t really want to cause a scene by browsing for an extended period in an old junk shop.’

‘It doesn’t look like a junk shop to me,’ said an indignant Anita.  ‘There could be all manner of treasures hidden in there, just waiting to be found.’

‘Unlikely given the number of traders around, but now is not the time to find out.  Come on, we haven’t got time to hang around.’  Alexander finally let go of Anita’s hand as they approached the city’s wall, his recklessness abating the more people they walked past.  They ducked through an opening in the wall and followed a perilous, winding stone staircase down to the sandy beach below.

‘This place is like a rabbit warren,’ said Anita, ‘I had no idea we were that close to the beach.’

‘That’s why the Descendants like it so much in Kingdom.  It’s easy to disappear with all the passages and hidden passes; if someone follows us, it’s usually fairly straightforward to lose them.  And Kingdom’s close to the action, if someone finds something interesting in the Wild Lands, the market is the place to find out about it.’

‘It’ll be a wonder if we ever get Cleo back to Empire then,’ she said dryly.  ‘Why are you so comfortable with Anderson’s work with the relic?’ she asked, taking Alexander off guard, once again getting straight to the point.

‘Why do you ask?’ he replied, successfully hiding his surprise.

‘Well the Descendants’ interests run contrary to everything that Anderson is trying to achieve.  If he finds a way to send back the relic, then you all lose your authority and the people decide who they want to rule.’

‘Why do you think I want to rule?’ bit Alexander.

‘Well you are, aren’t you, so you can’t be dead set against the idea,’ she snapped back.

‘I rule because it’s my duty to do so until we can find a way to return the relic, and I swore an oath to try to find a way to do that.’

‘But the other Descendants don’t seem to be trying too hard to free the world, quite the opposite in fact.  They’re doing everything they can to try to stop the world being freed, even if that means destroying it in the process.’

‘And you think I’m like the other Descendants?’ he said, hurt at the thought.

‘Not exactly, but that’s why I asked the question.  So why are you so comfortable with his work, given your high and bloody mighty position in this world?’  Anita knew she was going further than was strictly necessary, but he really was being obtuse.

‘I have no interest in abusing the power and authority bestowed on me because of my bloodline.  I’m no different to anybody else really.  I’m powerful, yes, but so are others and I have no desire to rule in a world where people are not happy.  I told you Sprit Descendants tend to be different to the rest.  We tend to be more philosophical and less power hungry.  Maybe that’s something to do with the kind of skills we respect.  Minds respect grand displays of mental and physical power, as do Bodies, even if the displays manifest differently, but Spirits acknowledge that it only takes one person to change the course of history.  Maybe Anderson is that one person.  Austin can put as many barriers in Anderson’s way as he wants to, but if Anderson continues to fight, maybe he will be the one to free the world.  To a Spirit Descendant, that kind of display of power, motivated by reasons we consider more creditworthy than greed and self-interest, would be far more wonderful than the prospect of ruling for eternity.’

‘But what about stability?  What if sending the relic back causes chaos?’

‘I think that’s a bit farfetched.  People are pretty good at accepting change when they have to, especially when it’s change they’ve been asking for for centuries.  And besides, as you pointed out, the world is heading for chaos as it stands anyway.’

Helena bowed before the Great Spirit Leader, perched precariously on a small, round stone ledge above a heart stopping drop down the mountain to the ground below.  It had been designed to put visitors on edge and let the Spirit Leader see how they reacted in uncomfortable situations.  Helena had been here a number of times before, however, not once had she quite managed to keep her energy stable.  This she found extremely annoying, which meant she had to try and hide her annoyance from the Spirit Leader, who could of course read her energy as though she were an open book.  All in all, it was an especially stressful experience and she didn’t relish her visits to the mountain.

‘So nice to see you again Helena,’ came the Spirit Leader’s calm, even, almost bored tones, from the centre of a mat in the middle of a small pillared room, open on all sides to the elements, the wind gently toying with the fabric draped from the ceiling.  He was a shortish man, of medium build with thick, wavy, sandy coloured hair and a voice that had a way of penetrating to the core of a person, so they couldn’t help but sit up and listen.  He had wise features and an aura around him of gravitas and severity, the kind of person you would always want on your side, for some irrational reason that you could never quite articulate.

‘The pleasure is all mine,’ replied Helena, in a voice slightly louder than she had meant it to be.  ‘How can I be of assistance?’

The Spirit Leader chuckled, ‘typical Body,’ he said, ‘no preamble, just straight to the point.’

‘My sincere apologies,’ jousted Helena, ‘how’s the family?’

He snickered again, pleased to be having an effect on her.  Helena had never liked being so out of control.  ‘Very well, have it your way.  I summoned you here to see how you’re getting on with Anita.’  He hadn’t moved a muscle since she’d got there and he stayed very still as the words hit Helena’s ears like bullets, watching for any slight reaction she might show.

Helena froze.  How the bloody hell did he know about Anita?  Who had let slip?  Did they have a mole?  She knew he would’ve already read her surprise, so there was no point in trying to hide it.  ‘How do you know about Anita?’

‘There isn’t much I can’t find out if I put my mind to it Helena, you should know that by now,’ he sent a meaningful look her way as he stood up in one swift, seamless movement and made his way to a small stone table towards the edge of the room.  ‘Please,’ he said indicating at the chair next to his, ‘come and join me.’

Helena made her way to the seat, making a point of doing so at a dignified speed, a shock of cold hitting her from the freezing stone chair as she sat down.  She always marvelled that the Spirit Leader could meditate out here all day in such unpleasant temperatures, dressed only in light robes.  He somehow seemed to radiate warmth, so she’d often wondered if he cheated and snuck a hot water bottle under his clothes.  She’d questioned him on it once before and he had spouted something about harnessing the power of the Mind, her least favourite discipline, so she’d left it there. 

‘So, how are you getting on with Anita?’ he repeated patiently, more patiently than you would expect from a man so young.

‘I would be getting on a lot better if I hadn’t had to take a significant amount of time out to come here and pay you a visit.  I told her I would be expecting an answer several days ago, however I haven’t exactly been in a position to follow it up, given that I’ve been travelling here.’

‘Then I wasn’t too late with my invitation.  Good.’

‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ she barked.

He fixed her with his eyes in a way that made Helena feel like an impatient school girl, before replying in a slow, even voice.  ‘Anita needs time.  I know your natural reaction is to bully her into it, but she won’t respond well to that, she’s a lot like you, you see.’

‘So that’s why you summoned me here?  To bully me into doing things your way?’

‘Touché.  Hopefully by the time you get back she’ll have had enough time.  Until next time Helena.’

‘I’ll look forward to it, I’m sure,’ she replied through gritted teeth, making no attempt at all to hide her angry energy.

The Spirit Leader smiled a tolerant smile as he got up and made his way back to his mat.  He sat down and started to meditate, ignoring that Helena was still in his presence.  As she made her way out, making sure she walked close enough to him to disturb his energy field, Helena marvelled as she always did that he was so young.  That he was no older than her and yet held such a position of authority was baffling.  She had reached what most would consider dizzying heights at an early age, but he had reached the pinnacle and she’d always been more than a little jealous.  One day I’ll find out how you did it, she said to herself as she made her way down the stone steps to the main chambers below.