Page 115 of Salt in the Seas
“Call me Aquana.”
He nodded, then turned to the dais. “What’s an induction ceremony?”
“It’s a celebration for an Awakening. Ailah will tell us about her experience, and as her community, we accept her appointment and authority as a progeny. Next week, she’ll head to the Seer’s Sanctuary for school.”
“The Seer’s Sanctuary?” His eyebrows rose. “How far away is that?”
Aquana smiled. “It’s on the other island.”
“The other island?” He felt like a parrot, but this was all news to him. “How many islands are there?”
“There’s only one that’s very inhabitable. The Seer’s Sanctuary is more like a lump of rock that’s risen from the sea. The Seer prefers to remain there away from the people so she’s not burdened by their futures.”
“Sometimes I wouldn’t mind a place like that,” Gaeren said wryly, and Aquana laughed.
“Her magic is so strong that she can get overwhelmed by receiving so many people’s futures at once. I actually think she likes people. They did manage to build a small school for the progenies close enough to Lady Merinnia to benefit from her assistance with education and clarification. In addition to studying all the prophecies of the previous Seers, they train in the Wheel of Magic. Most of them return, and many become elders. But a few stay and continue on as teachers and servants of Lady Merinnia.”
He warily filed all that information away, worried her remote and protected location might be both hard to find and difficult to infiltrate.
“Oh, look!” Aquana pointed toward the center of the square where a raised dais revealed a young woman standing with Nori’s father and beaming. Disappointment flooded Gaeren at the lost opportunity of searching the elder’s memories. He’d have to make do with whatever Aquana might remember.
Before he could tune in to her memories, Elder Algaen’s voiceboomed across the square. “We’re gathered here tonight to honor Ailah, who has been chosen by the sprites and gifted by the Stars. May her magic always be used for the sprites’ glory, and may she prove the sprites’ choice to be a wise one. Before we send her off, we long to hear of her Awakening.”
Gaeren cringed, both at the worship of the sprites and the openness of the Awakening. Only the sailors who’d been on his boat during the time he’d earned his starlock knew what had happened—minus most of the details. He couldn’t imagine standing before a crowd this size and letting them all in on such a vulnerable moment. Even Enla hadn’t shared her Awakening with him.
But Velden had said it was different here. And Gaeren couldn’t help being curious to hear about someone else’s experience. As the girl told her tale, Gaeren warred between listening in and using the chance to tune in to Aquana’s memories. Eventually practicality won out, and he tuned in to the memories of the woman beside him, pulling up his sleeve and leaning in until their arms touched so he could find things a little quicker and easier.
Most of her memories held a sense of concern for Nori, as if her motherly fears clouded all of her experiences. And that led him to several memories centering around their parental efforts to bond Nori and Gellen. He tucked that information away in case it became useful later.
Because they’d recently discussed Lady Merinnia, some of the memories surrounding her were closer to the surface, allowing him to note that the Seer’s Sanctuary was not only on a different island, but an island on the other side of this island—a few days’ journey and a boat ride away. He winced at that revelation, knowing it was far too long for them to sneak away and find her on their own. They would only be going to Lady Merinnia if their visit was sanctioned.
Laughter rose around him, drawing him out from his perusal of the Sayhleen’s memories, reminding him that he was in a crowd of strangers listening to a woman describe her Awakening.
It sounded as if her story was coming to a close, so he needed to be quick. As he tuned in to Aquana’s memories surrounding their arrival and worked his way forward, he caught sight of the starbridges beingtaken to Aquana’s bedroom, where she and her husband looked them over, studying the inscriptions on their sides.
“Place them in the box,” Elder Algaen said before standing to watch over his wife.
She pried a loose board from the floor and reached down, dragging out a box the size of her hand. When she lifted the lid, she hesitated, and her husband tensed.
“Why do you keep that?” he asked.
“So I can remember.” Her words came out defensive.
He grunted his disapproval and left the room, but Aquana pulled out a pink shell, which brought up a memory within her memory. These were the worst for Gaeren, because they came through fragmented or distorted, like they were stuck behind a veil that threatened their veracity.
Two paths were given to Aquana by a woman covered in blue scales and red seaweed. Her eyes were a milky white, her haunted expression leaving Gaeren as terrified as Aquana was in both that moment and the memory recalling it. The first path flashed before Gaeren, showing Nori happily snuggled against Gellen, a baby in her arms. The other path held a bright light, followed by Nori’s glassy eyes staring up at him from her still face.
Aquana’s gasp pulled her from the second memory, bringing Gaeren back into the first. She shoved the shell and starbridges in the box before tucking them under the floorboard. Then Gaeren’s own gasp pulled him out from the first memory.
“Are you all right?” Aquana peered up into his face. Applause rang out around him as Ailah continued beaming from the dais.
“I’m fine,” he mumbled, but he couldn’t unsee the sight of Nori dead. “I’m just not used to Awakenings being a public affair.”
She patted his arm. “Vendarans are strange creatures.” Then her gaze caught on something, and she stood on tiptoe. “Oh, look! There’s Aeliana. The two of you should go near the dais. Soon the music and dancing will start.” She winked and gave him a light shove. “It would be a good test for these so-called bonds that you have with other people. And make sure you watch for the light show. The Stars alwaysshow their blessing over these affairs. You’ll never catch them dancing like it any other time.”
He headed toward Aeliana, glancing at the sky and wondering what the Stars’ blessing might mean. Did the Stars approve of their Awakening celebration? Did they approve of their worship of the sprites? His mind was still too muddled by the memories he’d taken from Nori’s mother. It was difficult to find something solid to hold on to, especially when he saw Nori and Gellen standing at Aeliana’s side.
“I don’t know how I lost you.” Gaeren stood a little closer than necessary to Aeliana, unsure how close Gellen needed to be to access his thoughts. He stared at Nori, who was very much alive, trying to fill his mind with her vitality instead of the possible death he’d seen.
