The dark shape finally took another step. Spinning out from behind the tree, she threw the webs. Cords of air, strong as dock line, whipped around the form. As the mouth came open, she jammed a solid knot of air into it, gagging it, before it had a chance to cry out.
She slumped a little with relief when no sound came forth, but her heart still raced nearly out of control as she gasped for air. With an effort, she managed to bring calm back to her mind, although she maintained a firm grip on her Han, fearful to let her caution slip; there could be others about. She took a deep breath and stepped closer to the immobilized shape. When she was close enough to feel its breath on her face, she extended her palm up, and in its center released a thread of fire, to light a tiny flame, just enough to see the face.
'Jedidiah!' she whispered. She pressed her hand to the back of his neck, her fingers feeling the smooth, cool metal of the Rada'Han, and leaned her forehead against his as she closed her eyes. Tears ran down her cheeks. 'Oh, Jedidiah. You gave me a such a fright.'
She opened her eyes and looked up at his terrified face, lit by the tiny, flickering flame. 'I will release you,' she whispered softly, 'but you must be very quiet. Promise?'
He nodded, as best he could, considering how tightly she had him bound. She slipped off the webs, pulling out the gag of air. Jedidiah sagged with relief.
'Sister Margaret,' he whispered in a shaky voice, 'you very nearly made me soil myself.'
She laughed soundlessly. 'I'm sorry, Jedidiah, but you very nearly did the same to me.'
She snipped the thin thread of Han fueling the small flame and they both sank to the ground, leaning against one another, recovering from the fright. Jedidiah, several years younger, was bigger than she, a handsome young man. Painfully handsome, she thought.
She had been assigned to him when he had first come to the palace and she had been a novice. He had been eager to learn, and had studied hard. He had been a pleasure from the first day. She knew others had been difficult, but not Jedidiah. He had done everything she had asked of him. She had only to ask, and he threw himself into it.
Others thought he was more eager to please her than to please himself in what he did, but none could deny that he was a better student than any other, and was becoming a better wizard, and that was all that mattered. This was one area where the results were what counted, not the method, and she had quickly earned her full Sisterhood for the way she had brought him along.
Jedidiah had been more proud of her than she had been of herself when she had been named a Sister of the Light. She was proud of him, too; he was probably the most powerful wizard the palace had seen in a thousand years.
'Margaret,' he whispered, 'what are you doing out here?'
'Sister Margaret,' she corrected.
'No one is around.' He kissed her ear.
'Stop that,' she scolded. The tingle from the kiss ran all the way down her spine; he had added a wisp of magic to the kiss. Sometimes she wished she hadn't taught him that. But other times she ached to have him do it. 'Jedidiah, what are you doing here? You have no business following me, following a Sister, out of the palace.'
'You're up to something, I know you are, and don't you try to tell me you're not. Something dangerous. At first, I was only a little concerned, but when I realized you were headed out into the Hagen Woods, I became frightened for you. I'm not going to let you go wandering into a dangerous place like this. Not by yourself anyway. Not without going along to protect you.'
'Protect me!' she whispered harshly. 'Might I remind you of what just happened? You were helpless in a heartbeat. You weren't able to fight off even a single one of my webs. You weren't able to break one of them. You are hardly able to touch your Han, much less use it effectively. You have a lot to learn before you are wizard enough to go around protecting anyone. It's all you can do at this point to keep from stepping on your own feet!'
The rebuke silenced him. She didn't like to reprimand him so harshly, but this was far too dangerous for him to be involved in, if what she suspected was true. She feared for him, and didn't want him hurt.
The things she had said weren't entirely true, either. He was already more powerful than any Sister, when he could bring everything together properly, even though that wasn't often. Already, there were Sisters who were afraid to push him too far. She could feel him look away.
'I'm sorry, Margaret,' he whispered. 'I was afraid for you.'
Her heart ached at the hurt in his voice. She kept her head close to his so they could speak in soft whispers. 'I know you are, Jedidiah, and I appreciate your concern, I really do. But this is Sister business.'
'Margaret, the Hagen Woods are a dangerous place. There are things in here that could kill you. I don't want you in here.'
The Hagen Woods were indeed dangerous. They had been for thousands of years, and had been left that way by decree of the palace. As if they could do anything about it.
It was said the Hagen Woods were a training ground for a very special kind of wizard. That kind of wizard was not sent there, but went in by choice. Because he wanted to. Craved to... needed to.
But that was only what was said. She knew of no wizard going off to spend time in the Hagen Woods, at least not for the last few thousand years. If it was true any ever did. The tales said that in ancient times there were wizards of that kind, with that much power, and that they went into the Hagen Woods. Few ever came out, it was also said. But there were rules, even to this place.
'The sun didn't set while I was here. I came after dark. If you don't let the sun set on you in the Hagen Woods, you can leave, and I don't intend to stay long enough for the next sun to set on me. It's safe enough. For me, anyway. I want you to go home. Right now.'
'What's so important that you would go in here? What are you doing? I expect an answer, Margaret. A truthful answer. I won't be put off. There is danger for you in this and I won't be put off.'
She fingered the finely worked gold flower she kept on a chain around her neck. Jedidiah had made it for her himself, not with magic, but with his own hands. It was a morning glory, meant to represent his awakening awareness of the gift, an awareness she had helped to blossom. That little gold flower meant more to her than anything else she had.
She took up his hand and leaned against him. 'All right, Jedidiah, I will tell you. But I can't tell you all of it. It's too dangerous for you to know everything.'
'What's too dangerous? What can't you tell me?'
'Be quiet and listen, or I will send you back right now. And you know I can do it.'
His other hand went to the collar. 'Margaret, you wouldn't do that. Tell me you wouldn't do that, not since we have been...'
'Hush!' He fell silent. She waited a moment to be certain he was going to stay hushed before she went on. 'I have suspected for a time that some of the ones with the gift who have gone away, or died, have not done so as it has been put to us. I think they have been murdered.'
'What!'
'Keep your voice down!' she whispered angrily. 'Do you want to get us killed, too?' He fell silent once more. 'I think something awful is going on in the Palace of the Prophets. I think some of the Sisters murdered them.'
He stared at her in the darkness. 'Murdered? By Sisters? Margaret, you must be crazy to even suggest such a thing.'
'Well, I'm not. But everyone would think I was if I were to say such a thing aloud inside the palace walls. I have to figure out a way to prove it.'
He thought a moment. 'Well, I know you better than anyone, and if you say it's true, then I believe you. I'll help. Maybe we could dig up the bodies, find something to go against what was said about their deaths, find somebody who saw something. We could carefully question the staff. There are ones I know who...'
'Jedidiah, that's not the worst of it.'
'What could be worse?'
She held the gold flower in the crook of a finger and rubbed her thumb against it. Her voice came even lower than before. There are Sisters of the Dark in the palace.'
Even without being able to see him in the darkness, she knew bumps were running up his arms. The night bugs chirped around them as she watched the dark shape of his face. 'Margaret... Sisters of the... that can't be. There is no such thing. That is only a myth... a fable.'
'It is no myth. There are Sisters of the Dark in the palace.'
'Margaret, please don't keep saying that. You could be put to death for making an accusation like that. If you accuse a Sister of that, and can't prove it, you would be put to death. And you can't prove it because it isn't possible. There is no such thing as a Sister of the...'
He couldn't even say the words. The thought of it frightened him so much, he couldn't even say it out loud. She knew his fear. She had felt it herself until she had happened on things she could no longer ignore. She wished she hadn't gone to see the Prophet that night, or at least not listened to him.
The Prelate had been angry that Margaret wouldn't give the Prophet's message to one of her aides. When she had finally granted an audience, the Prelate had only stared blankly at her and asked what the 'pebble in the pond' was. Margaret didn't know. The Prelate had lectured her sternly for bothering her with Nathan's nonsense. Margaret had been furious at Nathan when he had denied remembering giving any such message for the Prelate.
'I wish it were as you say, but it is not. They're real. They are among us. They are in the palace.' She watched the dark shadow of him a moment. That's why I'm out here. To get the proof.'
'How are you going to do that?'
'They're out here. I followed them. They come out into the Hagen Woods to do something. I'm going to find out what.'
His head turned about, searching the darkness. 'Who? Which Sisters? Do you know which ones?'
'I know. Some of them anyway.'
'Which ones are they?'
'Jedidiah, I can't tell you. If you knew, and you made even the slightest mistake... you would not be able to defend yourself. If I'm right and they really are Sisters of the Dark, they would kill you for knowing. I can't bear the thought of you being hurt. I won't tell you until I go to the Prelate's office with the proof.'
'How do you know they are Sisters of the... And what proof have you? What proof could you get?'
She searched the darkness for any sign of danger. 'One of the Sisters has something. A thing of magic. A thing of dark magic. I saw it in her office. It's a little statue. I noticed it one time because she has a number of things, old things everyone thinks are just ancient curiosities. I had seen it before, and like all the rest of the things, it was covered with dust.
'But this one time, after one of the boys died, I went to her office to talk to her about it, about her report. That little statue was tucked back in a corner, with a book leaning against it, hiding it, and it wasn't covered with dust. It was clean.'
That's it! This Sister dusted a statue, and you think...'
'No. No one knows what that statue is. After I saw she had dusted it, I had reason to question what it was. I had to be careful, not let anyone know what I was up to, but I finally found out what it is.'
'How? How did you find out?'
She remembered her visit to Nathan, and her vow never to reveal how she had learned what that statue was. 'Never you mind. That is not for you to know.'
'Margaret, how could you...'
She cut him off. 'I said I'm not telling you. And it isn't important anyway. What is important is what the statue is, not how I found out about it. It's a man holding up a crystal. The crystal is quillion.'
'What's quillion?'
'It's an exceedingly rare magic crystal. It has the power to bleed the magic from a wizard.'
The surprise of that left him speechless for a moment. 'How do you know it's quillion, if it's so rare? How would you be able to recognize it? Maybe it is just some other crystal that looks similar.'
That might be true if it hadn't been used. When quillion is used to bleed the magic from a wizard, it glows orange with the power of his gift, his Han. For just a brief second as I left her office, I saw that statue, all clean, hiding behind that book. The quillion was glowing orange. But that was before I knew what it was. After I found out, I went back, to take it to the Prelate, as proof, but it no longer was glowing.'
'What could that mean?' he whispered in a fearful voice.
'It means that the wizard's power had passed out of the crystal, into somebody. A host. Quillion is just a vessel for the gift until it can be placed into someone else. Jedidiah, I think the Sisters are killing those with the gift, and stealing it for themselves. I think they are absorbing the power into themselves.'
His voice trembled. 'On top of what they already are? They now have the power of a wizard's gift?'
She nodded. 'Yes. That makes them more dangerous than we could even believe, more powerful than we can imagine. That's what scares me the most, not being put to death for making the accusation, but being found out by these Sisters. If they really are taking the power into themselves, I don't know how we can stop them. None of us can match them.
'I need proof, so the Prelate will believe me. Maybe she will know what to do. I certainly don't.
'What I can't understand is how the Sisters are absorbing the gift from the quillion. The gift of a wizard, his Han, is male. The sisters are female. A female can't just absorb the male Han. It's not that simple; otherwise they would simply have bled the Han into themselves when they killed him. If they are really taking the Han from the males into themselves, I don't know how they're doing it.'
'So what are you doing out here?'
She folded her arms against an inner chill, even though the air was warm. 'Do you remember the other day, when Sam Weber and Neville Ranson had completed all the tests and were to have their collars off and leave the palace?'
He nodded in the dark. 'Yes. I was really disappointed because Sam had promised to come say good-bye, and show me he had his Rada'Han off. I wanted to wish him well after he was a true wizard. He never came. They told me he left in the night, because he didn't want any tearful good-byes; but Sam was my friend, he was a gentle person, a healer, and it just wasn't like him to leave in that fashion, without telling me good-bye. It just wasn't. I was hurt he didn't come by. I really wanted to wish him well.'
'They killed him.'
'What?' He sagged down a little. 'Oh, dear Creator, no.' His voice broke with tears. 'Are you sure? How do you know?'
She put a comforting hand on his shoulder. The day after he supposedly left in such a strange manner, I suspected something terrible had happened. I went to see if the quillion was glowing again, but the door was shielded.'
'That doesn't prove anything. Sisters shield their rooms or offices sometimes. You do it yourself when you don't want to be disturbed, like when we are together.'
'I know. But I wanted to see the quillion, so I waited around a corner, until the Sister came to her office. I came out from where I waited, timing it so that as I walked past, she would be entering. As I went by, and just before she closed the door behind herself, I saw into her dark office. I saw the statue on the shelf behind the book. It was glowing orange. I'm sorry, Jedidiah.'
His voice lowered with anger. 'Who was it? Which Sister?'
'I'm not going to tell you, Jedidiah. Not until I can take proof to the Prelate. It's too dangerous.'
He thought a moment. 'If this crystal really is quillion, and it would prove what she is, why wouldn't she hide it better?'
'Maybe because she didn't think there was a chance of anyone knowing what it was. Maybe because she isn't afraid and doesn't take the time to be any more careful than she thinks necessary.'
'Then let's go back, break the shield, get the cursed thing and take it to the Prelate. I can break the shield, I know I can.'
'I was going to do that myself. I went back to do it tonight, but the room wasn't shielded anymore. I snuck in to take the statue, but it was gone. That was when I saw her leaving the palace, and I saw others leaving too. I followed them out here.
'If I can steal the quillion while it's glowing, I can prove they are Sisters of the Dark. I have to stop them before they can suck the life out of anyone else. Jedidiah, they're murdering people, but worse, I fear the reason they are doing it.'
He let out a soft sigh. 'All right. But I'm going with you.'
She gritted her teeth. 'No, you are going back.'
'Margaret, I love you, and if you send me back to worry all alone, I will never forgive you. I'll go to the Prelate myself and make the accusation, to bring you help. Though I may be put to death for making the accusation, I know it would raise suspicions, and maybe an alarm. That's the only other way I'll be able to protect you. Either I go with you, or I go to the Prelate; I promise you I will.'
She knew he was telling the truth. Jedidiah always kept his promises. Powerful wizards always did. Rising to her knees, she leaned over and put her arms around his neck. 'I love you too, Jedidiah.'
She kissed him deeply as he rose up on his knees to meet her. His hands went under the back of her dress and he gripped her bottom, pulling her against him. The feeling of his hands on her flesh made her moan softly. His hot lips kissed her neck and then her ear, sending shimmers of magic tingling through her. His knee forced her legs apart, giving his hands access to her. She gasped at the contact.
'Come away with me now,' he whispered in her ear. 'Let's go back, and you can shield your room and I'll give you more until you scream. You can scream all you want and no one will hear you.'
She pushed away from him and pulled his hands out from under her dress. He was breaking down her resistance. She found she had to force herself to stop him. He was using his magic to seduce her away from the danger, trying to save her by drawing her away. She knew that if she let it go on for another second, it would work.
'Jedidiah,' she panted in a hoarse whisper, 'please don't make me have to use the collar to stop you. This is too important. Lives are at stake.' He tried to reach out to her once more, but she sent a cord of power through her hands on his wrists to stop him. She firmly held his hands away.
'I know, Margaret. Your life is one of them. I don't want anything to harm you. I love you more than anything in the world.'
'Jedidiah, this is more important than my life. This is about the lives of everyone. I think this is about the Nameless One.'
He froze stiff. 'You can't be serious.'
'Why do you think these Sisters want this power? What do they need with it? Why would they be willing to kill for it? To what end? Who do you think Sisters of the Dark serve?'
'Dear Creator,' he whispered slowly, 'don't let her be right.' His hands came up and held her by her shoulders. 'Margaret, who else knows these things? Who have you told?'
'Only you, Jedidiah. I know who four, maybe five, of the Sisters of the Dark are. But there are others, and I don't know who they are. I don't know who I can trust. There were eleven I followed out here tonight, but there could easily be more.'
'What about the Prelate? Maybe you shouldn't go to her, she could be with them.'
She shook her head with a sigh. 'You may be right, but it's the only chance we have. There is no one else I can think of who can help me. I have to go to her.' She touched her fingertips to his face. 'Jedidiah, please go back. If anything were to happen to me, then you would be able to do something. There would be someone who knew.'
'No. I won't leave you. If you make me go back, I will tell the Prelate. I love you. I would rather die than live without you.'
'But there are others to think of. Other lives at stake.'
'I don't care about anyone else. Please, Margaret, don't ask me to leave you to this danger.'
'Sometimes you can be infuriating, my love.' She took his hands up in hers. 'Jedidiah, if we are caught...'
'If we are together, then I accept the risk.'
She twined her fingers through his. 'Then be my husband? As we have talked about? If I die tonight, I want it to be as your wife.'
He put a hand behind her head and drew her against him. Pulling her hair away from her ear he whispered softly into it. 'That would make me the happiest man in the world. I love you so much, Margaret. But how can we be married here, now?'
'We can say the words. Our love is all that counts, not some other person saying words for us. Words coming from our hearts will bond us better than anyone else could do.'
He squeezed her tight. 'This is the happiest moment in my life.' He pulled back, taking up her hands again. In the darkness they looked at each other. 'I, Jedidiah, pledge to be your husband, in life and in death. I offer you my life, my love, and my eternal devotion. May we be bonded in the Creator's eyes and heart, and in our own.'
She whispered the words back to him as tears streamed down her cheeks. She had never been so afraid and so happy in all her life. She shook with the need of him. When they finished the words, they kissed. It was the most tender, loving kiss he had ever given her. Tears continued to run down her face as she pressed against him, against his lips. Her hands clutched the back of his broad shoulders, holding him to her. His arms around her made her feel safer and more loved than she had ever felt. At last, they parted.
She struggled to catch her breath. 'I love you, my husband.'
'I love you, my wife, always and forever.'
She smiled. Even though she couldn't see it in the dark, she knew he was smiling, too. 'Let's go see if we can get some proof. Let's see if we can put a stop to the Sisters of the Dark. Let's make the Creator proud of the Sisters of the Light, and a wizard-to-be.'
He squeezed her hand. 'Promise me you won't do anything foolish. Promise me you won't try to do anything that might get you killed. I want to spend some time with you in bed, not the woods.'
'I need to see what they are up to. See if I can find a way to prove all this to the Prelate. But they are more powerful than I am, to say nothing of the fact that there are at least eleven of them. On top of that, if they truly are Sisters of the Dark, they have the use of Subtractive Magic. We have no defense against that.
'I don't know how we are to get the quillion away from them. Maybe we will see something else that will help us. If we just keep our eyes open, and let the Creator guide us, maybe He will reveal what it is we can do. But I don't want either of us taking any more of a chance than we have to. We must not be discovered.'
He nodded. 'Good. That's the way I want it too.'
'But Jedidiah, I'm a Sister of the Light. That means I have responsibilities, responsibilities to the Creator, and all his children. Though we are now husband and wife, it's still my job to guide you. In this, we are not equals. I'm in charge, and I will only allow you to go with me if you promise to abide by that. You are not yet a full wizard. If I tell you something, you must obey. I'm still better with my Han than you are with yours.'
'I know, Margaret. One reason I wanted to be your husband is because I respect you. I wouldn't want a weak wife. You have always guided me, and that will not change now. You've given me everything I have. I will follow you always.'
With a smile, she shook her head. 'You are a marvel, my husband. A marvel of the best kind. You will make a remarkable wizard. Truly remarkable. I've never told you, because I always feared you would let the knowledge swell your head, but some of the Sisters say that they think you may prove to be the most powerful wizard in a thousand years.'
He didn't speak, and she couldn't see his face, but she was sure he was blushing. 'Margaret, your eyes are the only ones I need to see filled with pride.'
She kissed his cheek, and then took his hand. 'Let's go see how we can put a stop to this.'
'How do you know where they went? How can we follow them? It's dark as pitch in these woods. The trees hide the moon.'
She pinched his cheek. 'A trick my mother taught me. I've never shown it to anyone. When I saw them leaving the palace, I cast a pool of my Han at their feet. They stepped through it. It leaves tracks of my own Han. Only I can see them. Their footprints are as bright as the sun on a pond to me, but to no other.'
'You must teach me this trick.'
'Someday, I promise. Come on.'
She led him by the hand as she followed the glow of the Sisters' footprints through the dense woods. Distant night birds called in haunting voices, owls hooted, and other creatures made low screams and clicks. The ground was uneven, tangled with roots and brush, but the glowing footprints helped her to see the way.
The damp heat made her sweat, causing her dress to cling to her wet skin. When she got home, she would shield her room and she would have a bath. A long bath. With Jedidiah. Then she would let him use his magic on her, and she would use hers on him.
They went deeper into the Hagen Woods, deeper than she had ever gone before. Vapor drifting from boggy areas carried the pervasive stench of rotting vegetation. They passed through dark gullies veiled with hanging roots and moss that brushed against her face and arms, making her flinch at the unexpected contact. The footprints led up and over sparsely wooded, rocky ridges.
At the top of one, standing in the still, damp air, she looked back, out across the somber landscape. In the far distance, she could see the flickering lights of Tanimura, and set among the lights, rising up in the silvery moonlight, the Palace of the Prophets, its dark shape blocking out the lights of the city beyond.
She longed to be back there, to be home, but this was something that had to be done. There was no one else to do it. The lives of everyone depended on her. The Creator was depending on her. Still, she longed to be home, and safe.
But home was no longer safe. It was as dangerous as the Hagen Woods, if there really were Sisters of the Dark. Even with as much as she knew, it was difficult for her to accept the idea. The Prelate had to believe her, she just had to. There was no one else she could turn to for help. She wished there were even just one Sister she could trust, confide in, but she didn't dare trust anyone. Nathan had warned her not to trust anyone.
Even though she wished Jedidiah were home, and safe, she was glad to have him with her. She knew there was nothing he could do to help, but it still felt good to have him to confide in. Her husband. She smiled at the thought. She would never forgive herself if anything happened to him. She would protect him with her life, if she had to.
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