The Inner Circle: The Knowing (6 page)

Hoping that keeping her mind occupied might help in
taking it off the chilled air, Seteal moved her horse next to
El-i-miir’s and made an attempt at conversation. ‘So what is it
with you?’

‘
Excuse me?’

‘
You seem so . . . hostile.’
Seteal shrugged. ‘I mean, except for before when you were doing
whatever it was you were doing to make me feel better.’

‘
It’s not you, Seteal. It’s where
you come from and how you came to be here. I was expecting a
monster.’ El-i-miir shrugged her shoulders. ‘You’re the child of an
illegitimate marriage.’

‘
Excuse me?’ Seteal tilted her
head defensively. ‘My parents had as much right to marriage as
anyone else.’

‘
Look, I’m sorry.’ El-i-miir
sighed. ‘It’s just wrong. Elglair should be with Elglair and that’s
all there is to it.’

Seteal frowned. ‘What a stupid thing to say.’

‘
Perhaps you’re right,’ El-i-miir
murmured without conviction. ‘I suppose I’m a little biased against
you. The way Far-a-mael has been obsessing over you lately, he’s
neglected my lessons and I’m falling behind.’

‘
Far-a-mael has been obsessing
over me?’ Seteal asked.

‘
Oh, you have no idea the kind of
favours he had to pull to come out here.’ El-i-miir nodded at
Far-a-mael’s back.

‘
But I’ll die if I’m not trained
properly.’ Seteal pulled back in disgust. ‘Your superiors had no
objection to that?’

El-i-miir inhaled sharply and cast her eyes toward
the earth. ‘Seteal,’ she said after a long pause, ‘you shouldn’t
judge people before you get to know them.’

‘
I’m sorry?’ Seteal sniffed. ‘You
were the one judging me.’

‘
Conserve your energy and stop
that mindless blathering!’ Far-a-mael shouted back from a little
way ahead.

‘
Look, just forget I said
anything,’ El-i-miir mumbled, moving her horse away from
Seteal’s.

At dusk, a road appeared in the distance that Seteal
recognised as the one leading from Gor to Beldin. Deciding that the
roadside was as good a place as any to make camp, Far-a-mael called
for them to stop and Seteal slid gratefully from her saddle. She
was cold and hungry. She was miles from home, fearful for her life,
and not sure who she could trust. Seteal had never felt more alone
and had absolutely no idea of what to do about it.

CHAPTER Three

Seeol

Seteal leaned against a log with her
knees tucked up beneath her chin. It’d become dark very quickly and
she found herself appreciating the large fire burning between
herself and the others. Over the top of the cracking flames,
Far-a-mael’s eyes shifted restlessly as he studied the surface of a
map he’d procured from his bag. The old man’s face displayed its
share of wrinkles. Had Seteal not been any wiser, she’d have
estimated his age at somewhere in his late sixties. She sat in awe
of his true age and couldn’t help but wonder just how long these
people lived.

The stars were invisible, dense clouds
having rolled in to fill the sky. Seteal glanced over her shoulder
at the tent she was expected to share with El-i-miir. She’d always
been one for personal space and wasn’t sure how she felt about the
arrangement, but was almost certain she had no choice in the
matter.

‘
Throw the bones in
when you’re done,’ Far-a-mael’s voice cut through and violated the
soothing sounds of the fire. Seteal looked up to find him staring
at her. ‘The last thing we need to do is attract any of the less
than desirable night creatures you outlanders keep in these
parts.’

Without a word of recognition, Seteal
kicked the rabbit bones at her feet into the fire. It was still a
mystery to her as to how the Elglair gil had managed to find
rabbits to cook in such weather. He’d simply wandered off into the
shrubbery and later returned with two of the animals.

‘
You should go to
sleep early,’ Far-a-mael muttered as he gathered himself together
and headed for his tent. ‘You’ll thank yourselves in the
morning.’

Moments later, El-i-miir made her way
over to Seteal’s side and sat down. She remained quiet for some
time, warming her hands over the flames before removing a dark
bottle from her fur coat and taking a few deep swallows. ‘Want
some?’ She asked with a mischievous grin.

‘
What is it?’ Seteal
replied, eyeing the bottle uneasily.

‘
Whisky.’ The woman
chuckled.

‘
Where’d you get
it?’

‘
Does it
matter?’

‘
I guess not.’ Seteal
shrugged, reaching out to take the bottle. ‘I’ve never had this
before.’

‘
Then take it
slowly.’ El-i-miir winked.

Seteal took a sip of the liquid and
wrinkled her nose in disgust. ‘It’s gross.’ She handed the bottle
back.

El-i-miir nodded. ‘I know.’

‘
Then why do you
drink it?’ Seteal asked.

‘
It feels good.’
El-i-miir shrugged. ‘Makes you happy.’

‘
Aren’t you
happy?’

El-i-miir spurted some of the liquid
out of her mouth and engaged in a coughing fit. ‘I’m stuck with
him.’ She nodded toward Far-a-mael’s tent. ‘How could I possibly be
happy?’

‘
Then
why
are
you here?’ Seteal probed.

‘
To take you to the
Frozen Lands,’ El-i-miir said as though it should have been
obvious.

‘
No,’ Seteal replied.
‘That’s why Far-a-mael is here. I’m asking why you’re
here.’

‘
I’m his rei.’
El-i-miir’s tone was one of astonishment. ‘You know
that.’

‘
For Maker’s sake!’
Seteal found herself losing patience. ‘Why are you his rei? Why
choose to do something you don’t want to do?’

‘
Choose?’ El-i-miir
narrowed her eyes, her silky black hair tumbling over her shoulder.
‘Who said anything about choice?’

‘
But you must be my
age at least,’ Seteal stated, refusing to make herself obnoxious
enough to ask.

‘
Older, actually.’
El-i-miir frowned. ‘I’m twenty-one.’

‘
Well?’ Seteal
pushed. ‘You’re a grown woman. Why not do as you
please?’

El-i-miir let out a sharp laugh before
cutting herself short and shushing Seteal, even though it’d been
she who made the noise. ‘We have to be quiet, remember?’ She
pointed at Far-a-mael’s tent. ‘What were we talking about again?’
She hiccupped.

‘
Why can’t you do as
you please?’

‘
Oh, that’s right,’
El-i-miir slapped her knee none-too-gracefully. ‘I don’t know.
That’s just the way it is. Elglair are not considered mature enough
to make any major decisions until we’re at least
thirty.’

‘
Thirty?’ Seteal
recoiled.

‘
Certainly.’
El-i-miir’s expression became dire. ‘That’s why your mother could
never return to the Frozen Lands.’

‘
She didn’t want to
become a gil?’

‘
No,’ El-i-miir
replied. ‘She disobeyed her parents. She could have been sent to
Vish’el’Tei. That’s why she ran away.’

‘
Vish’el’Tei?’

‘
North.’ El-i-miir’s
eyes filled with fear. ‘North of the Frozen Lands, where the cold
is such that nothing survives.’

‘
But if nothing
survives . . .’ Seteal trailed off at the realisation that the
Elglair, under certain conditions, might be willing to sentence
their own children to death. ‘You mean they’d have killed
her?’

‘
Well . . . no.’
El-i-miir sighed. ‘I mean . . . maybe. I doubt it. But she couldn’t
have stayed. Not if she wanted to marry your father. The only
choice she had was either to run away, dishonouring herself and her
family, or to marry him before willingly travelling to Vish’el’Tei
to face an honourable death.’

‘
In Maker’s name,’
Seteal whispered, realising for the first time just how much her
mother had sacrificed to be with Gifn and later fall pregnant. ‘It
all sounds rather horrible.’

‘
Not to
us.
’ El-i-miir raised her bottle
defensively. ‘That’s the Elglair way.’

‘
And what about you?’
Seteal asked, no longer wishing to dwell on her mother or the fate
that eventually befell her. ‘Would your parents send you away to
die?’

‘
It’s not as simple
as you make it out to be,’ El-i-miir grumbled irritably. ‘My
parents probably wouldn’t cause me trouble like that, but I could
never hurt them by showing such disrespect as to go against their
wishes.’

‘
Well . . .’
Seteal shrugged. ‘What
did
you want to
do?’

‘
I wanted to study as
a jilt’lesit,’ El-i-miir sighed longingly, before realising that
Seteal had no idea what that was. ‘It’s what you’d probably call a
doctor, but different. Jil’lesits utilise a combination of medicine
and the Ways to help in healing people.’

‘
Well, I think you
should follow your heart.’ Seteal shrugged. ‘Life is too short for
so many rules.’

‘
Maybe for your
people,’ El-i-miir replied curtly. ‘We Elglair must live a long
time with the consequences of our actions. Anyway, I’m going to
bed. Far-a-mael is right--tomorrow will be as long and exhausting
as today. And if he meant what he said about starting your lessons,
I’d advise you to do the same.’

Seteal watched as the Elglair woman
stumbled over to their shared tent where she fumbled with the flap
before entering. It didn’t take long before the oppressive darkness
and the deep silence of night drove Seteal to follow. Fearing
El-i-miir was already asleep and not wishing to disturb her, Seteal
slipped silently into the tent and carefully arranged the blanket
over herself.

Closing her eyes, she allowed her mind
to wander, drifting about pleasant memories of home. She saw her
father’s face, but it became creased with fear and concern. She
tried to remember her bedroom, but could only recall the strangers
forcing their way into her home. Seteal pushed the thoughts aside.
She’d never sleep if she continued to dwell on such things. She
rolled onto her side, but a scratching sound caught her attention.
After a moment, Seteal dismissed it as having been the blanket
sliding up against the canvas.

Silence prevailed and Seteal’s mind was
able to rest. It took until she was dancing on the edge of sleep
before the sound was repeated. Heart racing and eyes wide open,
Seteal sat upright clinging to her blanket. She held her breath,
listening intently to the once more piercing silence. When the
sound was yet again repeated, Seteal recognised it as that of
canvas tearing.

‘
Wake up,’ she
whispered, urgently turning to shake El-i-miir.

‘
What?’ El-i-miir
grumbled. ‘I’m sleeping.’

‘
Light the
lantern!’

‘
Why?’

‘
Just do it,’ Seteal
urged. ‘I think the tent has been torn.’

‘
Just a minute,’
El-i-miir replied, without masking the irritation in her voice. A
moment later the tent was flooded with light as the woman lifted a
lantern before her. ‘Torrid,’ she murmured.

‘
See.’ Seteal fixed
her gaze on a small tear near their feet. ‘I was right.’

‘
What might’ve caused
that?’ El-i-miir wondered aloud.

In answer to her question, a small
feathery head with two bright golden eyes popped through the
gap.

‘
Seeol,’ the women
gasped simultaneously as they retreated to the back of the
tent.

‘
Shee,’ the elf owl
replied in its gravelly voice. ‘See . . . Seeol.’

Seteal’s jaw dropped, but she refused
to believe her ears. Surely it’d been her mind playing tricks. ‘How
should we get it out?’ she asked El-i-miir, but the woman remained
transfixed on the bird, her skin covered in goose bumps.

‘
I’ve truly never
seen anything like it.’ Her voice wavered. ‘No aura. Nothing!
There’s nothing but a void in the Ways. Everything just falls away
from this bird. It cannot exist, but it does. It truly is seeol.’
El-i-miir continued to stare at the owl and not for the first time
Seteal wondered just what those white pupils could see.

‘
Seeol,’ the owl
repeated, cocking its head sideways.

‘
Okay,’ Seteal
murmured. ‘This time I know I heard it.’

‘
You did,’ El-i-miir
confirmed flatly. ‘Can you say any other words?’ she addressed the
elf owl after a moment’s hesitation.

‘
Don’t talk to it,’
Seteal gasped. ‘It can’t understand you. I’ve heard of this before.
Some birds can be trained to mimic speech.’

‘
Does that include
owls?’ El-i-miir raised a sceptical eyebrow.

‘
I suppose so,’
Seteal insisted. ‘But, El-i-miir, who could have trained
it?’

‘
El-ish,’ the
s
eeol stumbled over the foreign name.
‘El-i-mish,’ it croaked, taking a step forward to stare
penetratingly.

‘
Was that mimicry,
too?’ El-i-miir asked dubiously. ‘I don’t think birds are able to
learn quite that fast.’ The woman turned back to address the
animal. ‘I’m El-i-miir.’ She held a hand to her chest. ‘Seteal.’
She gestured to her right.