The Inner Circle: Holy Spirit (3 page)

‘
Don’t speak, demon,’
Arl-an-dor spat.

Unlike the majority of modern Elglair,
El-i-miir’s parents were deeply religious and actually believed in
the old writings.

‘
You were forsaken to
Vish’el’Tei.’ Arl-an-dor waved his hands about furiously, his gaze
settling on his daughter. ‘I know it was uncalled for, but it’s
done now. Have you no pride? You should’ve taken your punishment
and regained the honour you’ve lost this entire family.’

‘
How can you speak of
honour?’ El-i-miir cringed. ‘What kind of parents stand by and
watch their children die?’

‘
What is this worldly
philosophy?’ Arl-an-dor’s face became red. ‘I warned Far-a-mael
that you were too impressionable to leave the Frozen
Lands.’

‘
Impressionable?’
El-i-miir raised her eyebrows. ‘I’m not going live my life in
accordance with your book of fairy-tales just because you think
it’s the right thing to do.’

‘
That’s enough.’
Seteal spoke softly, but everyone fell silent immediately. The air
in the room seemed to thicken as she stepped forward, somehow
having managed to draw the attention of everyone with two simple
words. ‘You must be Arl-an-dor,’ Seteal continued, as the elf owl
flitted off her arm to inspect the ice-boards underfoot. ‘My name
is Seteal Eltari.’

‘
Yes, I . . .’ The
man trailed off, his expression bewildered by the soft, captivating
tone of Seteal’s voice. Unlike regular Elglair, she could not
manipulate the Ways of others, nor could she see their vibrant
auras. Rather, Seteal’s own Way seemed to permeate the world around
her, changing it to fit her mood.

‘
I am Gil Arl-an-dor
of the Sixth Cleff,’ the man attempted to say with more confidence,
shaking off the peculiar feeling that confused him so. He was a
slender man and Seteal immediately recognised the resemblance he
shared with his daughter. ‘I demand you explain yourselves,’
Arl-an-dor said firmly.

A door across the room creaked open and
a small girl, no more than five years old, raced into the room with
a big smile on her face. Her expression froze and fell suddenly as
her eyes locked upon the demon standing behind Seteal. The girl’s
mouth fell open and she screamed without restraint.

‘
An-ii.’ El-i-miir
raced over to the child and wrapped her arms around her to help
stifle the scream. ‘It’s okay. He won’t hurt you.’ She stroked her
little sister’s long black hair, undoubtedly affecting her aura as
she did.

Moments later, a youthful-looking woman
entered the room, followed by a girl of about twelve. Both of them
bore expressions of concern that quickly became ones resembling
those seen on the faces of Arl-an-dor and his daughter.

‘
Mil-i-que,’
Arl-an-dor addressed his wife, ‘take the girls to their
room.’

‘
No.’ Seteal shook
her head and watched as all eyes turned to her. ‘We will all remain
in this room until I’m certain you can be trusted.

‘
Seteal,’ El-i-miir
murmured warningly, ‘they’re my family.’

‘
Your family were
willing to stand by as you were sent to your death,’ Seteal said
darkly.

‘
That’s not true.’
Mil-i-que scowled. ‘We did everything we could to prevent
it.’

‘
No, you didn’t.’
Seteal took a step forward, her face clearly bearing disgust. ‘You
should have ignored the elders, packed your things, and moved
south.’

‘
To live among
outlanders?' Mil-i-que’s face twisted in contempt.

Seteal raised her eyebrows and shook
her head. ‘I’m not here to judge you.’ She sighed, although it was
against her nature to ignore such things.

‘
What darkness have
you brought upon us?’ Arl-an-dor glared at El-i-miir, who lowered
her eyes dejectedly.

‘
We have important
matters to discuss.’ Seteal decided to move the conversation along
a more productive course.

‘
What could you
possibly have to discuss with us?’ Arl-an-dor frowned, his eyes
once again returning to Ilgrin. ‘You don’t belong to these lands.
None of you.’

‘
Actually, I do,’
Seteal challenged. Whilst it was true that she did not have the
white pupils of the Elglair, it was equally as true that her mother
had come from the Frozen Lands. ‘My mother was Jil-e-an of the
Eighth Cleff. Perhaps you’ve heard of her.’

‘
A woman famed for
her stupidity,’ Mil-i-que snarled, ‘and if you’re truly her
half-caste child, all the more shame on you.’

Attempting to keep a handle on her
rather impatient temper, Seteal took a deep breath and ignored the
ignorance shown by El-i-miir’s mother. ‘We do not have time to
escape the cleff today. Already, it is too light. We need clothes,
food, and rest. We’ll leave this evening as soon as it’s dark
enough for us to escape unnoticed.’

‘
You expect me to
allow a demon to remain here in my home?’ Arl-an-dor barked
incredulously. ‘A demon, a half-caste, a forsaken child, and . . .
and whatever that thing is?’ He frowned at Seeol as he began
scratching at the ice with his beak.

‘
Please, Papa,’
El-i-miir begged, indicating toward Ilgrin. ‘He’s not what you
think.’

‘
I’ve heard enough.’
Ilgrin narrowed his eyes and flared his wings menacingly. His pale
white flesh was riddled with ghastly wounds from the time he’d
spent in the Dome of the Sixth, which served only to increase his
menace. ‘Perhaps you’re right. Perhaps I am a demon. And when I
leave this house, I’m going to shout and scream and bring more
attention to this place then you could ever begin to imagine. How
do you think the Elglair will respond when they see you’ve been
harbouring a demon?’

‘
Scary, isn’t he?’
Seeol whispered through the heavy silence that followed.

Arl-an-dor ignored the bird, instead
choosing to stare at Ilgrin with utter hatred until finally his
expression shifted. ‘I see you’ve backed me into a corner. You can
stay, but I want you gone at dusk. All of you.’

‘
Arl-an-dor,’
Mil-i-que squealed in wide-eyed horror.

Seteal turned to El-i-miir in
confusion. ‘Did you . . . ?’

‘
Affiliate him?’
El-i-miir finished for her. ‘No,’ she replied, equally as confused
by Arl-an-dor’s change of heart as everybody else.

‘
This is not
happening,’ Mil-i-que clamped a hand over her stomach.

‘
You need to trust
me,’ Arl-an-dor addressed his wife firmly. ‘If they leave now,
they’ll most definitely get caught. And you know what’ll happen to
El-i-miir and the rest of us if they do.’

‘
I can’t believe what
you’re saying.’ Mil-i-que looked like she was about to cry as she
turned and stormed out of the room.

Arl-an-dor raised his finger to the
silt. ‘You have one day and I’ll be watching you every minute.’

‘
Thank you,’
El-i-miir muttered as Ilgrin sank back into the shadows. ‘I know
you’re not comfortable with this. I only hope that one day it will
all make sense to you.

‘
Oh, it makes perfect
sense,’ the man said darkly. What he meant by that, Seteal couldn’t
begin to imagine. ‘What have you gotten yourself into?’ He looked
at El-i-miir regretfully. ‘In league with the Devil.’

‘
Far-a-mael has gone
mad,’ El-i-miir replied sadly. ‘He plans on going to war with Old
World.’

‘
That’s a good
thing.’ Arl-an-dor looked at his daughter disbelievingly, his eyes
filled with sorrow. ‘Where did I go wrong with you?’

‘
It’s not good at
all.’ Seeol pounced several handswidths forward before stopping to
stand on one leg and point a toe at El-i-miir’s father. ‘You are a
naughty man.’ He waved his toe back and forth. ‘Silts are cuddly
and it’s mean to hurt people and you are mean to
El-i-miish.’

‘
How cute,’
El-i-miir’s youngest sister squealed with delight, hurrying across
the room to gather up Seeol in her hands. ‘Can we keep
it?’

‘
No.’ Arl-an-dor
stared at the owl suspiciously. ‘Put it back down. Now!’

‘
Not fair.’ An-ii
pouted, dropped Seeol, and stormed out of the room.

‘
Take your sister to
her room,’ Arl-an-dor ordered El-i-miir’s remaining sibling. ‘Both
of you are to remain there until your mother comes for
you.’

‘
Yes, Papa.’ The girl
looked at El-i-miir regretfully before leaving the room.

‘
If Far-a-mael starts
this war, he will not win,’ Seteal said solemnly. ‘He’ll start
something you’ll all regret for a very long time.’

‘
He is our War
Elder.’ Arl-an-dor shrugged. ‘I will follow wherever he leads
us.’

‘
You think that makes
you a great and loyal subject don’t you?’ Seteal shook her head.
‘You think it makes you a good man to fight for your
people?’

‘
It does.’ Arl-an-dor
stood proudly.

‘
No, it doesn’t,’
Seteal snapped. ‘It makes you a fool.’

‘
I’m going to take my
family to my sister’s place,’ Arl-an-dor said, ignoring Seteal’s
comment. ‘They’re not safe with that thing here.’ He pointed at
Ilgrin. ‘We will return at dusk. By then, you’d best not be
here.’

‘
How do we know you
won’t report us to the first an’hadoan you come across?’ Seteal
enquired suspiciously.

‘
You really have no
idea what it’s like to be Elglair, do you?’ Arl-an-dor scoffed. ‘Do
you really think I want a bunch of drunken louts tearing up my
house, looking for secret hiding places and evidence of betrayal?
Of course not. I want you gone and my life to proceed as
normal.’

‘
He’s telling the
truth,’ El-i-miir murmured.

It didn’t take long for Arl-an-dor to
gather his possessions and herd his family out of the house and
into the street. Shortly thereafter, the sound or a horse and
carriage pulling away told Seteal that they were once again
alone.

‘
I have no idea of
what to do.’ She slumped, the fight having left her. ‘I need
sleep,’ she murmured, only to stop suddenly at the expression on
El-i-miir’s face. ‘What is it?’

‘
There’s something .
. .’ The Elglair woman trailed off to dig around in her pocket. She
retrieved a letter and unfolded it. ‘High Elder Gez-reil followed
me to the border of Vish’el’Tei.’ El-i-miir turned sharply. ‘He
gave me this jacket, but I couldn’t understand why.’

‘
And he’s written you
a letter?’ Seteal replied with curiosity.

‘
It seems that way,’
El-i-miir replied, her eyes tracing the neatly written lines. ‘He
wants us to come to the Dark Water Inn at Setbrana in Garrishnell.
He says he has urgent information.’

‘
Is that all?’ Ilgrin
leaned over El-i-miir’s shoulder to read the letter. ‘Setbrana is a
little bit out of our way.’

‘
What do you think?’
El-i-miir turned to Seteal.

‘
We should go.’
Seteal shrugged. ‘It’s not as though we have any other options, and
to be honest, we need all the help we can get.’

‘
What that say?’
Seeol chirped from Ilgrin’s shoulder. ‘I want to read.’

‘
I’m afraid that
might be a little beyond you.’ Ilgrin chuckled.

‘
We’ll head for
Garrishnell tonight,’ Seteal confirmed, ‘but for now, I’d suggest
we all get some rest.’

‘
Yes!’ Seeol cried
victoriously. ‘You will see now. Sleeping in the day time is much
betterer. That’s the advices that I stand by.’

*

Beneath King Braihon Harundor’s mighty
palace existed a dark, dank chamber, the majority of which was
underground. The only exception to this was the tiny grate at the
very top of the wall that occasionally allowed for sunlight to
enter. Most of the time, however, such a light source was absent,
as the princes made it their routine duty to cover it with mud.

The dungeon smelt of old decay
and the walls oozed with an unrecognisable brown substance. Many of
them were stained with blood, especially in the places were chains
had bound people to the masonry throughout the ages. It’d been
rumoured that the chamber had once been used for torture, but had
since been redesignated as a holding cell for those who were
destined for execution.

This day was better than those that’d
preceded it for one very good reason. It had rained during the
night. Although that resulted in ankle-deep water throughout the
chamber, it also meant that the mud had fallen away from the bared
window, allowing sunlight to enter along with a crisp spring
breeze. It was the light, however, that brought a smile to Briel
Keaco’s chapped lips, because in the light he was able to make out
his wife’s beautiful face.

Briel was a wild man of the open planes
and scented fields. He was a creature of the earth, living each day
bathed in the glory of being alive. He did not much care for
religion or politics, preferring to live a simple, unencumbered
life, allowing himself to become bound to none but his darling Fes.
It was for that reason he suffered so greatly in the confines of
prison.

In like manner, Fes was shackled by her
ankle to a large stone pillar. Like a caged animal, Briel had at
first fought to tear the pillars down, but, of course, such actions
had proven useless. He was a passionate man, but had never been
foolish enough to think himself terribly bright. There were many
greater minds than his, but even he should’ve seen the fault in his
actions. Because he hadn’t, he and his wife and been sentenced to
hanging. It was a lenient sentence, considering their crime: that
of harbouring a demon.