His Cure For Magic (Book 2) (19 page)

This never should have happened. We came here as men of science, seeking to ease the burden of life, and use our gifts to heal the fractures of the world. Instead we've broken them wide open.

If you've found this journal, if you've read its pages...

I don't know to celebrate you, or to weep for you.
 

Know that I have prayed for you, but He is no longer listening.

- Jeremiah

###

Eryn took a deep breath and closed the journal. She looked at its worn back, and then at the paper she had written the translation on. The words left her shaking and cold.
 

"What does it say?" Wilem asked.
 

She picked up the paper and handed it to him. He read it quickly, his face losing its color while he did.
 

The inside of Davin's cave was livable but hardly luxurious. A simple table assembled with branches and the cut trunk of a tree, a pair of chairs made of the same, a bit of straw and old cloth for bedding in the corner, and a chamber in the rear rigged with the tiniest of flus, allowing a small fire to burn inside without notice and without suffocating them. It had never been intended to be occupied by more than one or two people, so the space was cramped and forced all of them into a level of closeness that would have been uncomfortable under most circumstances. As it was, it had taken some time to calm Saretta enough to Wilem's presence that she would even allow him in.

Wilem had accepted her upset without anger or judgement. He had offered to stay outside if need be, to sleep under the stars with Strider. He surprised Eryn again with his kindness and understanding.
 

Davin had refused. If their intent was to go to the Dark, they would need to be able to work together and trust one another. He had seen General Rast become the Hero of Elling. If he could see the other side, certainly a young Mediator could as well.
 

He had spoken to Saretta, and when Wilem entered she greeted him with nervous warmth. He apologized for her imprisonment in the mines, and promised her he would do what he could to end the suffering of all of the Empire. Being cured of Kelkin's poison had done more than return the strength of his magic.
 

The librarian looked different after a night of freedom - her stained and torn rags replaced with a green blouse and dark pants, her hair washed and falling straight over her narrow face. "May I?" she asked, crowding close to Wilem to read over his shoulder.
 

He gave her the page. "I don't understand it," he said. "Resonances? Subroutes? Ebocite? War?"

 
"Davin, where is Aren's journal?" Eryn asked. She didn't understand everything either, but she knew where to find some clues.

Davin grabbed a canvas sack from its place next to the bedding and untied the top. He located the book and handed it to her.

They were standing around the small table where Eryn had laid out the journal. Light filtered down on them from an oil lamp, a tiny star rocking in a glass enclosure that hung from the ceiling. "Thank you." She put it on the table next to the other and opened it up, flipping through to the middle. "Aren spent some time studying and observing the stones. The ones he had in his cellar were poor quality, but he was able to experiment with them."
 

She held out her hand, showing them the blue stone on the ircidium band.

"According to his journal, using magic on the different types of materials causes them to shake at a speed that can't be seen with your eyes, but that he was able to watch with the device he made." Her finger trailed along the page, through a series of short notes. "Here. He said he found a lot of references to different stones and crystals. The word he wrote: 'resonance'."

"You're saying that the journal is referring to a stone?" Saretta said. "This other word, 'ebocite', it must be one."

"It must be," Eryn said, "though I have not seen or heard of it before." She moved back a few pages. "The red crystal was called 'sphalecite'. The green is 'verdite'. They amplify the power of the magic, but only in very specific ways. Sphalecite can help create fire, for example."

"The ebocite must have done something that they weren't expecting. Or maybe it got out of control somehow?"

"It sounds like there was more than one stone involved," Wilem said, "but we can't feed our power to more than one at a time."

"What if two Mediators use them at the same time?" Davin asked.

"Each works in its own way, they don't interact. If we are being attacked, we can defend ourselves with the ircidium," Wilem said.

"I don't think it's wise to try to make too many conclusions from one entry," Saretta said. "We don't even know if the Cursed existed when this was written, or if they were using the stones the same way they are used today. Somehow, whatever they did caused a war that the owner of the journal, Jeremiah, was not sure could be won. He called it the 'downfall of man'. Whatever they were fighting against, that means they weren't human."

"Or he didn't consider them human," Davin said. "I feel that way about
him
. Conclusions, my love."

"Yes, of course. We know only that there was a war, a massive battle." She scanned the translation again. "Who is Jeremiah? Who is Rossum? What and where is the source? The final page has more questions than answers. Maybe the rest of the book will shed more light."

Eryn closed both journals. Saretta's words continued to echo in her mind. What she and Silas had fought in the Rushes was definitely not human. What Malik had become... would he still be considered human? "Silas believed the answers were in the Dark. He was certain they would give us a lead on where to find
him
."

"I know," Saretta said, "and I'll take you to the Dark, I promise, but we need to wait a few days.
His
soldiers will come through here, and we can't afford to be caught out in the open."

"What about Strider?" Wilem asked.

"Your horse? You'll have to send him on his way. We'll head to the Dark on foot. It's the only way to be sure to avoid being seen."

Wilem didn't look happy, but he nodded. "I'll go get the rest of our things and send him off. Either he'll return to Edgewater or the soldiers will find him, but either way I hope they'll think I'm dead."

"I'll come with you," Eryn said. "Half of what he's carrying is mine."

Eryn followed Wilem out of the hideout, crawling back through the small tunnel on her hands and knees and out past the curtain of roots, which Wilem held aside for her. Strider was waiting where they had left him, grazing on the grass.

Wilem held out his hand and helped Eryn to her feet. She leaned forward as she came up, brushing her lips against his cheek.
 

"I don't know if I said thank you. For saving me, and for being here."

His face turned red, but he didn't look away. "You're welcome." He gave her a sheepish smile. "Thank you for that."

It was her turn to be embarrassed. She made her way over to Strider, putting a hand to his neck and stroking it. Anything to keep him from seeing her blush.

He joined her a moment later, and together they undid the straps and buckles that held their equipment.
 

"You should leave the wand," Eryn said. "It will look less suspicious."

"Good idea." He returned it to its place. "I'll miss it. I've always had an affinity for manipulating plants. One time at the Academy, I created a vine that was large and heavy enough that it allowed a few of us to climb over the walls and get out into Edgewater for the night. The others wanted to go to a brothel, but..."

"Go on, but what?"

"You know we aren't permitted to be with anyone, because it may spread the Curse. That wasn't why I didn't though, I mean... I just..."

Eryn laughed.

"What's funny?"

"You."
 

"I'm not trying to be funny."

"I don't mean it that way. Before I came to Varrow all I'd seen of the Empire, of the soldiers and the Mediators, they were all so rigid, so cold, so evil... like monsters, and the monsters outnumber the people. I met a soldier in Varrow, he saved me from a beating by another soldier. He was kind, and he believed in Amman. I didn't believe there were any soldiers like that. Then I met you. I know you were playing a part, and I understand why, but the person that you were at Waverly's is still here." She paused and looked at him until their eyes met. "Only better."

He smiled at her. "Better?"

"Why didn't you go to the brothel with your friends?"

He didn't hesitate this time. "This will probably sound stupid, but I always had it in my head that I would marry first. Being a Mediator didn't mean going against that. It meant going without."

They kept their eyes locked, until Eryn finally turned her head back to Strider. "I think we have everything." She patted the horse's head again. "When we kill
him
, I'll come back and free you, too."

Wilem took the stallion's reins and guided him back through the twists of stone. Once they were near the river he put his hand on the horses rump and sent a small charge of power through it. The horse whinnied and took off at a run, vanishing from sight within moments.

"If you'll excuse me, Wilem," Eryn said, "I'd like to take a bath. If you can keep yourself facing that way, I wouldn't mind your company."

Wilem turned around, putting his back to her while she stripped off her clothes and jumped into the water.
 

I don't really care if he looks, but I'm sure he won't.
 

He didn't.

###

06 Maro, 2901

Genesia. I still cannot believe that I'm here. All of these years of study, all of these years of hard work and dedication, and my dream has come true. They call this place the 'Jewel of the Empire', and I can see why. The tower is already under construction, an amazing work of craftsmanship unlike any the world has ever seen before. And surrounding it... a beautiful forest, so green and full of life, nestled in a valley with a crystal clear lake nearby. I can't wait to get away to see it once I'm settled.
 

Assuming I ever get away from the work. The research we are undertaking is more exciting than any water could ever be. Scholars have been theorizing about the existence of ebocite for years, but to have actually located some? Based on the samples we've taken of the bacteria that are drawn to the crystal, we may yet discover a sizable deposit.

My room is small but comfortable. All of us will be staying below ground in order to stay as close to the work as we can, but Mapheus has worked hard to make it feel like home. He had a copy of my favorite book waiting for me in my chambers, and he filled my belly with the finest meat I've ever had the pleasure of chewing.

I know this is going to be the greatest experience of my life. I know one day I'll look back on this journal in wonder at the things we've accomplished here. The discovery of ebocite will be one for the histories.

To know I'll be part of it... there are no words.

- Jeremiah

###

Eryn closed the journal and rubbed her eyes. It was a painstaking process to translate the text, both because of her unfamiliarity with the contents, and the sweeping hand of its creator. While the others had gone to sleep hours ago, she had been determined to at least finish reading the first passage, in order to arrive at some kind of understanding of the beginning and the end.
 

He'd been excited to go to Genesia. He said it was beautiful there.

"Eryn? You should get some sleep." Saretta slid up next to her on her knees. Wilem and Davin slept soundly on the blankets behind her.

"I know, but when I lay down..." She didn't finish the thought.
 

"Silas?"

Eryn nodded. "I miss him."

"Davin was telling me about him while you were outside with Wilem. It sounds like he was a great man in the end."

She fought back against her tears, unsure why she was speaking of it. Would talking about it help anything? "He was more than that to me. You can't tell anyone, but he was also my grandfather."

She didn't look that surprised. "I thought I saw a resemblance between you. Now I understand why."

"You were the head librarian in Varrow City?"

"Yes."

"Did you know Aren Rast?"

"I take it from what you've said that he was your father. No, I never knew him, not directly. We did exchange letters on occasion, in relation to our duties. I became a librarian because I had a love for knowledge. It took me a long time to discover how
he
was keeping knowledge from us."

"They burned down all the libraries."
 

Saretta looked sad, her eyes tracking to the floor. "It was only a matter of time. Elling was just a good excuse. Knowledge is power, isn't it? Power in the hands of the oppressed can only lead to rebellion. I regret the hundreds of books I burned in the furnace below the library."

"You should celebrate the ones you saved," Eryn said. "Davin brought us to the house where you kept them."

She looked back at him and smiled. "I never would have been able to do it without him."

"I never did understand, where do all the books come from?"

"The history of the Empire, the real history, is buried under our feet. When a farmer digs new ground, or a landslide washes part of the land away, that is when things are revealed. Most of the books are damaged by the elements or by time, but some are found in containers, or in dry areas where they are preserved.
He
has the Mediators to track down the Cursed.
He
has the Historians to gather the books. They take them from the finder, and bring them to the nearest library to be destroyed. It is still a mystery how they know they've been unearthed so quickly, but as you've seen the alphabet is completely different. You may be the only person in the world who can read it."

"And not very quickly at that." She shook her head. "Historians? I've never heard of them before. Are they soldiers?"