“No one wears robes here?” Lee asked once the girl had left.
“Only during certain ceremonies,” Dina replied. “Our order is very informal when it comes to things like that. Only the guards wear robes at all times.”
“The High Priestess,” Kaylia said pensively. “She is a skilled healer?”
“She is most skilled among us,” Dina replied. “However, you should refer to her as High Lady. We have no priests or priestesses. The order does not center on rank as much as others do. After you advance past novice, you become either a cleric or a knight, but there’s nothing above that, save the High Lady.
“A knight trains as a guardian of the order; they are among the finest warriors in the world. If you achieve the rank of cleric, you choose a focus of study that you spend the rest of your days trying to perfect. For example, I intend to become a temple historian.”
“What does a historian do here?” Lee inquired.
“They travel to different cities, towns, or temples to observe and record events as they unfold,”
“Sounds like an enjoyable life,” Lee said with approval.
“Yes,” she agreed, a touch of sadness entering her voice. “But with the way things have turned out, I doubt it will ever be.”
“Why would you say that?” Kaylia asked, trying to keep her mind off Gewey. “You are part of one of the greatest stories in known history. Who better to record and tell about it?”
“When Gewey and I met Felsafell and stayed in his house, he woke me in the middle of the night and told me a different story,” Dina said. “He said that as a child of two worlds, I would have to sacrifice myself to make the world whole again. Of course, he said it in his odd little way-but there was no mistaking the intent.”
“Mind his words,” Kaylia advised. “They do not always mean what they seem to. As I told Gewey-” she paused, wincing slightly upon saying his name, “he is dangerous, and you risk great peril if you take his words at face value. You may yet have the life you want.”
Dina smiled. “Thank you, Kaylia. I hope we all get the life that we want.”
When Ertik returned, he escorted them down the hall and showed them each their rooms. The rooms were plainly furnished with a bed, a small table, and a chair. A washbasin with hot water sat in one corner of the room, and their belongings had been placed in another.
“Once you’ve rested and washed, you may wander freely-with the exception of the healing chamber,” Ertik told them. “If you need me, I’ll be in the den, awaiting word of Gewey.”
“I think we’ll all be joining you shortly,” Lee informed him. Dina and Kaylia nodded in agreement.
Lee was the first to return to the den. Ertik was sitting in a chair by the fire, thumbing through a leather bound book, humming to himself. When he saw Lee, he sat the book on the arm of the chair and gestured for Lee to sit across from him.
“You look…cleaner,” Ertik noted. “Though I’d wager you must be exhausted.”
“My kind doesn’t tire very easily,” Lee replied.
“Yes, I forgot,” Ertik said thoughtfully. “It must be quite a burden.”
“Why would you think that?”
“Such strength and power breeds jealousy. Hiding who one is all the time can’t be easy.”
“It can be tiresome,” Lee admitted. “But I have Millet. He’s been with me a long time, and he shares my secret. It makes it easier to have someone like him with me.”
“He sounds like a good friend. Where is he now?”
“On his way to Hazrah to take my wife and child out of the city,” Lee answered. “With the Dark Knight on the move, I couldn’t risk leaving them so close to his borders.”
“Hazrah?” Ertik repeated, suddenly looking troubled. “How long ago did he leave?”
“More than a week now. He should be there in about two more weeks. Why? Do you know something?”
“I got word that Angraal now has dominion in Hazrah. Whether the city was sacked or they surrendered, I don’t know-but your friend is walking straight into the heart of the Dark Knight’s power.”
Lee closed his eyes tight, trying to still his mind. “Can you send word to Hazrah?” asked Lee. His voice was unsteady. “Do you have a messenger flock that travels there?”
“I’m sorry,” Ertik replied regretfully, “your friend will arrive well ahead of any message I could send. Still, I will try.”
“Thank you. I need to have Lady Nal’Thain and her son evacuated from Hazrah, and taken to the city of Dantory. It’s a small oasis in the eastern desert. Tell them to mention Millet if she questions the truth of the message. I will pay anything it costs, ten times over, if they are brought safely there.”
“Payment is not necessary,” Ertik assured him. “I will send the message now. There are no messenger flocks between here and there, so the message will have to be carried much of the way by members of the order. Still, I shall see to it at once.” Ertik got up and hurried away.
Lee sat there, holding his head in his hands, as Kaylia and Dina entered.
“What’s wrong?” Kaylia asked as she took a seat next to Lee. Dina followed close behind.
Lee told them what Ertik had said.
“Millet will get them out,” Dina said, confident. “I know he will.”
“I hope you’re right,” he replied.
“Millet is wise and capable,” Kaylia added. “Much more than any other human I’ve met thus far. If there is an army guarding their door, he will find a way to get past them.”
“You’re right, of course,” he agreed. “It’s just the feeling of helplessness I can’t stand.”
“Believe me, I understand,” said Kaylia. Lee looked at her and nodded knowingly.
After an hour, Ertik returned. “I sent your message. I also sent word to Dantory to be on the lookout for them.”
“I’m in your debt,” Lee said graciously.
“Not at all,” Ertik replied. “You have done us quite a service.”
”There’s something else you should know,” Lee said. “I believe I have the Book of Souls in my possession.”
Ertik froze. “Where is it?”
“In my room. I was hoping someone here would know what to do with it.”
“Are you sure that’s what it is?” he asked.
“Not completely,” Lee answered. “But from what we’ve learned, we’re as certain as we can be.”
Ertik clapped his hands. “That is news. We must tell the High Lady when she is finished with your friend. She will be overjoyed.”
“If she can heal Gewey, she can have it,” said Lee.
"It will be some time before we know if he will heal," said a voice from the doorway. It was Wileminia. They all stood up.
“What’s happening?” Kaylia asked anxiously. “Will he live?”
Wileminia sighed heavily. “He has been struck by the power of the Sword of Truth. If it had been the Sword itself, it would have destroyed him; thankfully, it was not. We have removed the energy that prevented his body from healing, but it has left him near death. He may not recover.”
“He’s a God,” Kaylia cried. “He will not die.”
Wileminia stared at Kaylia for a moment. “God or no, he is in mortal form. But he is strong-stronger than any I’ve seen. Now that the bite of the Sword’s power has been removed, his body may heal on its own. But I’m more concerned with his spirit.”
“What do you mean?” Lee asked.
“His spirit wanders,” she answered. “And it has not found its way back.”
“Can’t you help him?” Kaylia asked desperately.
“We are trying,” Wileminia assured her. “But if he’s a God as you say, it explains our inability to reach him. His spirit would be different from our own, and we have no way to call out to him. Even if we did, we wouldn’t know how to guide him back. The places he goes, we have never been.”
“I can find him,” Kaylia said firmly.
“I know you think that,” she said softly. “And I know as an elf you have tremendous strength of spirit; it’s a wonderful trait of your kind. But he is not an elf. It seems his spirit travels in realms where mortals cannot go.”
“My spirit is bound to his,” she contended. “Even now I feel him. If he needs a guide, then I am the only one.”