Compis: Five Tribes (2 page)

It was foolish, both of them had been warned against forming an attachment before Initiation. The likelihood that they would end up in the same tribe was small. But May and Luka had known each other since they were babies and no one yet had been able to split them apart. She shook her head and got dressed.

~~~~~

They set out after breakfast, headed for the location of the first ceremony. It wasn't too hard to find, being in the middle of the square, with a crowd of people surrounding it. They made their way to the back of the stage, where there was a meeting room. A tall woman stood by the door, clothed in silver robes, welcoming each Initiate as they came in.

She frowned at the sight of of May and Luka holding hands, but smiled and said, “Please step this way. Welcome.”

When Nikka touched her hand, she was surprised at the warmth that flowed from the woman's fingers. She felt calm and welcomed. She wondered if that was a part of being a Divinaris or if it was just this woman's particular talent. Even after years of interacting with them in her own tribe, the Divinaris were mysterious creatures. The woman invited her in and she walked through the door into a room crowded with other 17 year old Initiates, who were all talking and creating a hum of background noise.

There were different groups congregated, each formed their own separate clique—frightened birds flocking together to avoid a predator. Nikka started to join May over by the window, but she noticed a girl standing off by herself, near the door, as though ready to bolt at any moment.

The girl was tall and luminous, like a grand lady, clothed in by far the prettiest of the robes worn today. It was gold silk, but seemed to have little threads of real gold woven in a pattern of phoenixes dying and swooping through another pattern of flames. Her black hair was as smooth as a crow's wing, and as shiny, running down to her waist in a pair of thick braids.

It was the robe that alluded to her tribe. Gold robes meant she was Ignis, probably the only one of her tribe to be Initiated that year. Nikka had heard many things about the Ignis tribe, but the robe of that girl was rich for such a supposedly poor tribe. She wanted to touch it. She wondered if that was part of the their crafting magic. If so, she could understand why they had once been the foremost tribe in the Five Tribes.

Nikka walked up to the girl, craning her neck to meet her gaze.

“Hello,” Nikka said. “That is the most beautiful embroidery I've ever seen, do you mind if I look more closely at it?”

“No, of course not,” the girl said, smiling down at her. “It's okay, you can touch it.”

Nikka stretched out a hesitant hand and stroked the gold pattern. She jumped, and looking again, noticed that the pattern moved. The phoenix died, before her eyes, in a burst of breathtaking flames and snapping sparks, then faded to a pile of ash. Then, as she watched, a tiny head popped up out of the golden dust of ashes. It stretched out into the beautiful neck of a phoenix which flew, hovered, and opened its mouth in a piercing silent scream.

“Wow, that's an amazing thing,” she breathed. “I'm Nikka.”

“I'm Alea,” said the girl, “It was my mother's.”

“Ah-lay-ah,” Nikka said, “That's exotic.”

“No more so than Neeka,” said Alea.

“Do you to come over and stand by my friends and me?” she asked.

Alea nodded, looked relieved, and followed her over to stand by May and Luka.

“Initiates!” called a commanding voice near the entrance to the stage. A Divinaris stood in her silver robes looking around at them. She was as tall as Alea, with black hair and dark skin, and shining brown eyes. Her wrists, arms and hands flowed like a butterfly's wings as she talked. The room was hushed.

“We of the Five Tribes welcome you today, to the first ceremony ushering you into your new life. In a few minutes, you will file out onto the stage and stand still. When we have finished the spell of erasure, you will raise your arms and we will move behind you, wiping the color from your robes.

“You will be attending two council meetings, where you will begin to learn what leads to a fair system of government. You will also be attending a short series of seminars, where you will learn the basic facts about each tribe and sect, including Divinaris, the Phasmas, Compis, and the tribeless.

“In five days, this gathering will end with your Initiation into each of your new tribes. For some of you, that will mean going home with your family and friends to begin learning the secrets and spells of your tribe. For the rest of you, your life will begin anew: new friends, new family, and new learnings.

“We will meet three months from the end of the gathering, at the start of the next season, for another week of learning and this will continue once a season until your Induction ceremony. Your journey will continue over the next year, at the end of which you will attend Induction. It will be the final ceremony welcoming you into your new tribe.”

After delivering the prerequisite speech, she looked once more around the room.

“Are there any final questions before we proceed?” she asked.

No one answered, and she motioned the first of the Initiates through the doorway and onto the stage.

~~~~~

Nikka ended up next to May, with Luka close behind, his hand clutching hers so hard the veins stood out. Alea was further ahead in the line, but she glanced back at Nikka with a smile. She looked forward to getting to know the Ignis girl better.

She stood on the stage, palms sweating, waiting for her cue, as the Divinaris chanted solemnly behind her. Her breath came fast as the spell neared its end, and she raised her arms along with the other Initiates. As each person down the line was changed, she found herself searching the crowd for her father's face. He was down in front. He had probably gotten there early for a good spot, unlike the young man who was muscling his way to the front over on right. He was an Ignis, based on his clothing, and as tall as Alea, with the same aristocratic bearing. She wondered if he was related to Alea.

She started at the applause, and realized she'd been staring and missed the end of the ceremony. Nikka turned and followed the others backstage and fell into the large gabbling group of them. She talked with the others for a few minutes and then noticed the tall man picking his way through the crowd toward Alea. They hugged and he said something to her. Alea laughed and grabbed his sleeve, then both of them glanced her way.

Caught, she blushed and moved her gaze back to May.

“What?” May asked.

“Nothing,” she said.

“Is it that man looking at you?” she said, peering around Nikka's shoulder. “He's quite handsome.”

“Stop looking,” Nikka said. “He's Ignis, in case you haven't noticed.”

“Hmmm... well, you could be the first person in of years to be Ignis after Initiation.”

“Not likely,” she said. “Come on, let's see if we can go find our fathers.”

He was caught up in the smell of her, holding her close, face nuzzled into her neck. Her hair brushed his cheek and he blew a short breath to get it out of his face.

“Mmmm...” she sighed, sliding her arms up his back. “Do we have to leave?”

“May,” Luka chided, pulling away to plant a soft kiss on her lips. “You know your father will start to look for us soon, if we don't.”

“I don't care,” she said, leaning into him, kissing his neck.

He groaned, and pulled her into his arms again, leaning down to kiss her. Their mouths moved against each other, and passion carried them away. She reached her arms up around his neck and pulled him closer, his hands skimmed down her back and locked around her waist.

The crackle of a branch broke them apart, startled. They both glanced around, guilty, but there was no one there. Luka laughed.

“I guess that's a sign. We need to get back, May.”

He walked back toward the inn, grabbing her hand, entwining her fingers in his.

“Luka, I'm scared,” she said. “What if...”

“Don't even say it. We'll be in the same tribe. Everyone knows if you love each other enough, you get chosen for the same tribe. I love you, do you love me?” He was teasing her.

“Don't even say that,” she mimicked, “You know I love you. More than anything.” She stepped close, leaning her head on his shoulder as they walked.

They walked in the door to the inn, and he let her step in front of him, kissing her on the cheek, then he stepped back and moved around to the courtyard behind the inn. He sat on a bench, brooding.

Despite what he'd told May, he was not hopeful about the outcome of the Initiation in five days. He would do anything to stay with her, but the ceremony didn't allow a lot of options. Once you were chosen for a tribe, you were stuck. There was no going back from the fate that Iam put in front of you. There was no appeal or council member to go to for a different outcome.

If he and May got picked for different tribes, they would be separated forever.

~~~~~

He'd known this was coming for many years. Growing up in the Five Tribes didn't leave a lot of room for questions. You learned your reading and sums in school; everything else came from the Divinaris. The Divinaris were excellent religious teachers in all things, but they had a set curriculum and it didn't include anything about what happened during Initiation or afterward.

Luka had been a curious boy, and pestered his parents with endless questions.

“Why can't I learn to write as you do?” he'd asked, when he saw his mother writing a bill for a customer in the script of the Aeris.

“You will write in the words of the tribe you are Inducted into,” she said, taking up another sheet of paper.

“Why can't I learn Aeris script and then the other later on?”

“Because that is not the way of the Five Tribes,” said his father, entering the room.

His mother glanced at his father, then back at Luka. She leaned in to take his hand.

“Luka,” she said, “I know it seems confusing now, but there is a reason for the secrecy and separation. Keeping the script and our tribe's magic in the hands of those who will stay in the tribe, only serve to make it stronger. If we teach you Aeris magic and you become Aquis, you will go to them knowing our methods and will perhaps doubt their rites and traditions because they aren't what your parents taught you.”

“I understand,” he said, and left the room.

As he walked down the hall to his room, he heard his father say, “You handled that well, I thought.”

“Well, I don't believe it,” his mother said, “I think it's ridiculous to raise children in such secrecy. Why can't he know what we believe, how we work our magic? What would it hurt for him to go out into the world with that knowledge?”

“It would destroy the fiber of the tribes,” said his father. “You know how strained the treaty is, even now. Something as small as teaching our son to read Aeris script could set off a wave of paranoia that would make it impossible for our council to keep the tribes together.”

“You sound like the rest of them,” said his mother and he could hear her start to leave the room, so he scrambled to his own chamber in time to hear her walk down the hall in the opposite direction. He peeked around the doorway and saw her leave the house with her papers, presumably to go to her workshop.

Zyander avoided looking at their booth. Though it was well-crafted, it was also worn in spots, and those in the tribe had to conserve every bit of their power to create items to sell for food. They spent the better part of the year working delicate marvels of jewelry and clothing, but their power remained weakened, so they had few things to sell during the year that were newly constructed.

He wondered which priceless antique they were auctioning off this year.
The Rings of the Three Brothers
?
Aurelia's crown
? Maybe they should open up a show and charge people to see the most valuable artifacts in the Five Tribes. That would at least allow for money flow into the depleted coffers.

He headed toward the Aeris booth, and ridiculed himself for being such a fool. He wondered at the self-destructive attraction he felt for Nikka. Maybe it was her gold hair, cut short and lightly curling around her shoulders and swooping over one of her eyes. Her eyes, gray as the early morning sky, were captivating all on their own, but paired with those slanted wings of eyebrows, she looked naturally inquisitive as though curious about every aspect of life. The part of her he found himself most interested in was her mouth. Perfectly placed between her delicate and high cheekbones, it was an adorable pursing shape, waiting to be kissed.

The Aeris tent stood before him, tall and stately, light blue and brilliant, with white wings embroidered on it. The flags flying from the top of the tent were the same white with a pair of sky blue wings flying across the center. The accent color was the same silver as the the Divinaris's robes from that morning's ceremony. It was one of the most beautiful things he'd seen during this year's Gathering, but it wasn't as interesting as the girl walking away from the tent in the direction of the marketplace.

He watched her go, and as though his feet moved independently from his body, he followed, watching those soft yellow curls bob in front of him.

She stopped at a Terris merchant booth, filled with the exotic fruits and vegetables that only they could manage to grow. The manaka, in particular, was one of his favorites, but it was a luxury seldom tasted these days. She fingered some kinglings, long tuber vegetables with a peppery cinnamon taste, but moved on to the lungon berries, which when stewed and added to sweet rolls, made an excellent breakfast treat.

“I'll have a pound of those,” Nikka said, pointing to them.

He gathered up his courage and stood next to her, looking over the different fruits in the section she was standing in. He smelled the sweet fragrance of the manaka and his mouth watered. He reached out to touch one, and the woman behind the counter growled.

“Don't touch the food unless you have the coin to buy it, Ignis,” she said.