The Buried Symbol (The Ruins of Issalia Book 1) (33 page)

Benny
’
s eyes lit up.
“
That
’
s the squeak we heard when the others entered the library!
”

Brock nodded again.
“
Yes. They unlocked that door with their key and came into what they thought was an empty building. They didn
’
t know we were there.
”

Benny looked confused again.
“
Why do you say that?
”

Brock smiled.
“
Because, anyone with a brain would
’
ve realized that they have something secret or something valuable hiding there.
”

Benny shook his head.
“
You lost me again.
”

Brock stood and began pacing as he explained,
“
During our first visit to the library, I noticed a trap door under the stairwell behind the desks. The girl working there said it was just a place where they stored old books. While it seemed innocent enough, I thought it was odd that the door also had three heavy-duty locks.
”

He paused to make sure they were digesting what he was saying. When they nodded, he continued.

“
Today, I found out why there are three locks. I saw Vandermark and two other masters, each possessing a key and each key unlocking only one of the locks. Once all locks were unlocked, the three descended and pulled the door closed behind them.
”

A grin broke across Benny
’
s face. Cam, however, looked confused.

“
I don
’
t understand,
”
the big blonde boy muttered.

Brock explained,
“
Think about it. Why have a door with three heavy locks? Why have each lock opened only by a key owned by a different person? That
’
s overkill for anything trivial or even mildly important. Clearly, requiring three individuals to enter the archives either means that they don
’
t trust one person to have access, or they have three keys as a safeguard against on key ends up in the wrong hands. Perhaps it
’
s both reasons. Regardless, there
’
s something they
’
re trying to protect. The archives are more than just a place to store old copies of books.
”

Cameron nodded.
“
That makes sense. But, so what?
”

Brock shrugged.
“
Beyond personal curiosity, that
’
s a good question. Let me think on it. Something tells me that this secret, and whatever
’
s down there, only leads to more secrets being kept by the Ministry.
”

CHAPTER 53

“
Keep physical contact. Close your eyes, picture the rune for
Order
, and find your center.
”
Master Varius instructed the class.
“
Feel the calm pureness of
Order
within. Then, extend your awareness, seeking that same sense of
Order
within your patient.
”

Varius waved Ashland over as she continued.
“
You should sense something that feels wrong or does not belong. Everyone will perceive this differently, so this is where things get difficult. You need to seek out this wrongness and then draw upon the
Order
within your patient, using that energy to correct the wrong that ails them.
”

Brock looked around the room. Confusion was clear on the faces of his classmates.

“
I told you that this is the difficult part,
”
Varius said, smiling.
“
Trying to explain how to heal is like trying to explain a beautiful sunset to someone who has spent their whole life blind.
”

She reached out and held Ashland
’
s hand as she continued.
“
The unfortunate truth is that performing healing is the best way to learn it. That
’
s why it
’
s such a rare and special talent. It can only be learned by doing it, but if you never do it, you aren
’
t aware that it
’
s possible.
”

With her free hand, Varius drew a dagger from behind her back and swiped the blade across Ashland
’
s open hand. The girl tried to withdraw, but Varius had a firm grip on her wrist. Blood quickly filled Ashland
’
s palm, dripping to the floor. To her credit, her only reaction was a clenching of her jaw.

“
Now watch.
”
Varius closed her eyes.

Ashland shivered, as if chilled. A collective gasp came from the class as they watched the gaping wound on her hand close.

Varius opened her eyes and pulled a white cloth from her pocket. She wiped the blood from the girl
’
s palm and held her hand up for the class to see. Other than dried blood in the creases of her palm, there was no trace of the wound.

“
This demonstration is a bit dramatic, but you can imagine how valuable this ability is to the welfare of the Empire.
”
She let the girl
’
s wrist drop.
“
That
’
s why you must try to harness any ability you have with
Order
and focus on learning to heal.
”

Nodding heads from the class confirmed they understood.

“
To heal, you need patients. We happen to have another class that naturally generates patients.
”
Varius walked down the center aisle.
“
You
’
ll be broken up into six groups, each group spending one day a week attending paladin training rather than coming here. A student guide who is skilled in healing will lead each group. Sparring injuries happen on a daily basis. This will give each of you a chance to practice healing. If you
’
re unsuccessful, the student guide will take over.
”
She smiled.
“
We can
’
t leave our paladin students suffering with their wounds for too long.
”

She returned to the front of the room. Opening a drawer, she pulled out a hard roll and held it up for all to see. She tossed the roll to Ashland, who deftly caught it and took a bite.

“
You must also know that healing requires energy. That energy comes from the person who is being healed, which makes them hungry. Food helps to replenish the energy that was used. The greater the wound, the more energy required.
”

Varius stepped closer to the class.
“
A common false belief about healing is that it comes from the healer. That
’
s not really what
’
s happening. You are a facilitator, guiding resources that exist within the patient to reestablish the
Order
that was present prior to the injury or illness.
”

Varius stopped to scan the room, ensuring that she had everyone
’
s attention.

“
However, there are limits to what healing can do. First and foremost, you cannot heal the dead. Healing requires energy. It requires life to feed it. The dead have nothing left to work with, thus it
’
s impossible.
”

“
Second, severed appendages cannot be healed. There
’
s not enough energy in a person
’
s body to regrow a missing limb or even a finger. The best you can do is heal the wound closed, but the appendage will remain incomplete. In fact, injuries involving large broken bones must be properly set prior to healing. If you heal bones that are broken at an odd angle, they will heal at that angle, leaving the person crippled.
”

“
Third, you cannot heal yourself. Try as you might, you will find it a fruitless pursuit.
”

“
Lastly, a broken mind cannot be healed.
”

Confused, Brock raised his hand.
“
What do you mean when you say
a broken mind
?
”

Varius spoke directly to him.
“
It means you cannot heal someone who has become depressed, mentally unstable, or completely insane. Nobody knows why. We only know that it cannot be done.
”

The bell rang, and Varius held her hands up, indicating for the class to wait.

“
When you come to class tomorrow, the healing schedule will be posted. On the days you are in this classroom, you will be learning about the human body. In order to heal, you must understand what you
’
re healing. Class dismissed.
”

As the others filtered through the door, Brock approached Varius at her desk.

“
Master Varius?
”
Brock began,
“
It
’
s now been two weeks since Amber
’
s death. Can you share anything from your investigation?
”

“
Well, Brock. The only thing of interest we have found is that a male student was seen in the hall earlier that evening. However, we
’
ve no evidence of who he was or if he was in her room.
”

He couldn
’
t hold back any longer.

“
I need to tell you something.
”
He glanced around the room, verifying that they were alone.
“
On the eve of the first day of school, Corbin Ringholdt assaulted Amber in the woods near the lawn. He tried to rape her, but I showed up in time to stop him,
”
Brock said.
“
She approached me the next day, asking for support. She planned to press charges. Before she could do so, she was dead.
”

Varius sat back with fingers tented, held to her lips. After a moment, she responded,
“
Brock, what you
’
re insinuating is quite serious. I
’
m sure you
’
re aware of who Corbin is? Who his father is?
”

He nodded.
“
Yes. I cautioned Amber for that very reason. She knew it would be difficult, but I don
’
t think she considered her life might be in danger.
”

Varius sat upright, placing her hands on the desk.
“
Do you have proof for any of this?
”

Feeling his bubble of hope deflating, he shook his head.

“
Without proof, this can go nowhere. It would just be your word against Corbin
’
s. Even if you were able to convict him with the attempted rape, it doesn
’
t prove he had anything to do with Amber
’
s death. It would only prove that he had motive. You cannot convict someone purely on motive, even if he wasn
’
t the son of the most powerful man in the Empire.
”

Brock was crestfallen. He realized where this was going but had no other path to take.

Varius stood, placing a hand on his shoulder.
“
I
’
m going to have to stick with the findings of our investigation. We will officially rule Amber
’
s death as an accidental overdose. I
’
m sorry.
”

She lowered her hand. Brock nodded and turned to leave as the bell rang. His stomach twisted in a knot as he realized he was late for his Hierarchist class. Again.

CHAPTER 54

With a swipe of his forearm, Brock wiped the sweat from his forehead. He grabbed the next dirty pot and gave the pump three good strokes, filling it with hot spring water. After rubbing soap onto the scrub brush, he scrubbed away the baked-on food. He dumped the soapy water into the floor drain, rinsed the pot, and held it to the glowlamp for examination. Deciding it was clean, he placed it on the dumbwaiter. That was the last one.

After a quick rinse of the scrub brush, he set it and the soap on a shelf and ran up the stairs. Once back in the kitchen, he grabbed the rope and began pulling, hand-over-hand. The pulley at the top squeaked with each pull, protesting at the weight loaded on the dumbwaiter. When the platform cleared the opening, he tied off the rope. He grabbed a dry towel and began unloading the platform, drying each piece as he placed it on the shelf where it belonged.