Shades of the Silent: Black Birds

[aithne]

The first of several Yesui stories I'll post over the next few days.




The ride away from Khaba Katar was largely silent. I spoke with Ahmad about the box and found out that it could be destroyed by taking to the forests of Haerbin, in the far northeast of China. The wood for the box had been cut by a woodsman named Wahb, and a blow from the axe that had cut that wood would sunder the box. Unfortunately, the box could not affect itself; I could not wish it into nonbeing or harmlessness, even if I wanted to die in order to do so.

As the morning after Kamil killed Sacha and I had brought him back dawned, I realized that I had placed us in something of a quandary. The Kamil we had encountered would want the box back, since I had declined to use it to bring Sacha back. He would follow us, and likely find us. We could ride to the east quickly, keep moving, lay a trap for him somewhere. Lead him away from the silver spring and my sister.

But to do so would mean that I would miss the equinox, and it would be another year before I could destroy the branch. Chagatai would be lost in that time, if he were not already.

I tried to make the decision to head east. Tried--and failed. Every time I tried to say the words, my throat closed and I felt tears sting my eyes. Despite the danger I was putting my people, and the people of the silver spring, into, I could not turn my back on the chance to save my brother.

I wished I'd never decided to go look for Khaba Katar. I wished that we'd followed the brotherhood instead of the artifact. I wished that the equinox was not the only time of year the branch could be destroyed.

It was as it was. We turned southwest, towards the silver spring.

We didn't go into the camp, instead stopping a few hours away and telling Ata and Num to tell Raym we wanted to speak to him. "We won't come into the camp, but we need to speak with him," I said.

"It will be a few hours before we return, but return we will," Num said. Then they turned their horses and rode away.

We spent the time taking care of our own mounts, picking rocks out of their hooves, making sure their legs were sound. Wind lipped my hair affectionately as I picked up her left forefoot. She was definitely pregnant; her disposition had mellowed dramatically in the last few months. "Sweet girl," I told her as I put her hoof down. She snorted, seemingly in agreement.

Late afternoon, Al Alta in Raym's clothing appeared. She--he--spoke in sign and was interpreted by one of the fellows riding next to her. "We ran into trouble where we went," I told her. "We need to stay around here, but the trouble is very likely going to try to hunt us down. I think we'll lie low out in the desert as we can. If we come back into your camp, we endanger everyone in it."

She nodded, and signed to the man on her left. "Num knows of a place to stay that is cooler and safe for now. Difficult to find, unless you know it's there."

Sanctuary, of a sort. "That would be a very good thing. We still may be eventually tracked down, but at least for the moment it would be a haven."

"It is not far, you can start today and be there after nightfall."

I smiled. "We'll go, then. We'll be back when the equinox gets closer."

"We will look forward to your return," the interpreter said.

"As will we. And hopefully in one piece."

My sister nodded, then turned her horse and rode away. Num stayed behind and watched as we mounted up. "This way," he said, once we were ready to go.

We went south, and after sunset came and went, we arrived at our destination. Num dismounted and said, "Follow me." He walked toward a rock formation that was no taller than a tall man, and then abruptly disappeared behind a scrubby bush.

Following him, we saw that the bush hid an entrance down into a cave. It was cool and quite damp, with buckets on the walls to catch the water that seeped from the stone. It was large enough for us and all of the horses...barely. "Tight quarters, but we've been squished together before and will be again," I commented. "Is this under a spring?"

Num nodded and fetched a rusty dipper from where it hung on the wall, dipping water from a nearly-full bucket and drinking deeply. When he finished, he said, "Near one, if you press your ear to the rock you can hear it rushing by. We have long thought about digging for it, but this is solid granite stone. It may take more effort than it's worth."

I looked at the walls, and had to agree. "I can see that. It would take a long time to get through this stone, even with good tools. At least we won't lack for water, then."

He nodded. "I will take my leave of you in the morning, and return one day before the equinox."

"Sounds good. We should set watches and get some sleep."

We did, and in the morning Num departed. We had over two weeks to the equinox, and between the cramped quarters and the lack of motion, we were all irritable by the time the waiting was over. I spent some time scouting on Spirit, trying to figure out where the nearest artifact was. It turned out to be a ways to the east. Looking at my rudimentary map, I figured it was probably Kashi. We had come nearly full circle in the year we had been traveling.

We kept close track of the days, and on the morning before the equinox, we got up before dawn to load the horses. We thought that Num would arrive in the early morning, but dawn came and went, and the minutes and then an hour went by with no sign of him.

I grimaced at the sky and sighed. "He's not coming. We know about where the spring is. Let's get going."

"You think something happened?" Sacha asked, quietly.

"Probably," I replied shortly. "Let's go."

Northward we turned, and despite the worry, it was good to be moving again. We had about six hours' worth of riding to do, and on the way I pulled out the cup and drank from it. If anyone could be helped there, or if Kamil was waiting for us, we might need the charge.

About two hours into the ride, Sacha reined up. His eyes were on the sky. I followed his gaze and saw black birds circling. A whole flock of them.

I narrowed my eyes. "I very much hope that does not mean what it very likely means."

"I wouldn't count on it, love." Sacha shook his head. "If he couldn't find us, he may have just lashed out at anyone. They would be the closest."

Worry was a sickness in my belly, roiling. "Or, he may have realized what they are guarding, and he may know we have to show up there sooner or later."

"Possible, but he said many times that he didn't know how we were destroying these things. I would doubt he knows how to destroy them, but I suppose he may have guessed if he has spies."

I breathed out, trying to dislodge the sick feeling. "True enough. Well, we keep going. He may be there, he might not. If we do run into him, I have something I want to try. It's going to be dangerous, but it might eject Kamil from that body he's occupying. If it doesn't, I'm very likely dead."

Sacha's dark eyes searched my face briefly. "I think it best next time if you let one of us do it, then."

I smiled crookedly. "It's the cup. I think that if a charge from it is used on someone possessed by Kamil, it would consider him an affliction. I've already used the cup for the day, but next time I'll pass it to one of you."

"I understand, Khanate," he said, and smiled coyly at me, like he was expecting to get hit for it. I wrinkled my nose at him and let it pass. Everyone had gotten out of the habit of calling me Khanate, and Sacha most of all.

He's not afraid to speak his mind to me now, I realized. "Let's get going. Keep your eyes out--I don't think he'd have brought the brotherhood with him, but anything's possible." He nodded, and we proceeded.

Four hours later, we reached the nomad camp at the silver spring.

It had been destroyed.

Tents were torn and sundered, the sky and the ground were alive with vultures picking at the corpses that lay everywhere. Horses lay in rows, where they had been slain as they stood in picket. This had happened at least ten days ago, maybe more. I swallowed my sorrow and my nausea. It was no worse than the aftermath of many battles I'd seen, but--

I'd never likely had a sibling lying dead in the wreckage before. Be stone, I told myself. Be stone, until you know.

We spread out, searching. I saw a familiar sword hilt and stepped forward. It was Num, I found when I pulled the hood away from his face. Nearby lay the guard who always spoke when Al Alta was being Raym. Next to him, a dark lump, shrouded in black cloth. A head.

Only one person in the camp had worn black robes.

I squatted by the head, gently pulled the cloth away from the face. My sister's empty eyes stared up at me. She had been spared the worst of the vulture depredations by her face coverings, but the flesh of her face had drawn close to the bone, desiccated by the desert dryness.

There was a piece of parchment between her dry lips, and I gently pulled it out. The note read, It was a great trick to use your magic to bring your man back to life, but thanks to Chagatai, I know who your relatives are and what they look like. Expect more. Kamil.

I had known, when I had seen that Kamil had left her head and taken her body. Hanks of hair lay around, Al Alta's wealth of hair cut when Kamil had taken her head. Stone, stone, stone. "I will kill him," I said aloud. My voice was granite and flint, grinding. "As many times as it takes for it to stick."

There was a hand on my shoulder, and I flinched. It was Sacha. I looked up at him, and something in my eyes took him aback. He tightened his hand on my shoulder briefly, then stepped back. I heard him say to the others, "Let's start digging. We still have to finish this tomorrow, we may as well bury the dead."

I drag destruction in my wake like a war banner, I thought. I looked back down at Al Alta's head. Shock was cold in my shoulders as I covered her face with her hood, and stood.

I did not think Kamil was still here. I stood watch anyway, until my frozen bones would move again, until the first shock had worn off. Stone, stone, stone.

Then I returned to the others, and helped dig and carry stones. None of us spoke to the others, and my eyes were dry and aching.

We camped some way away from the nomad camp that night; the scavengers that this number of bodies would have attracted would not be pleasant sleeping companions. We built a fire that night, and Temur had shot a brace of long-legged desert rabbits--tough meat, but it was warm, at least. I could not taste it.

We didn't speak much, even then, crouched around the fire. I finished my supper, and threw the cracked bones into the fire. Then I began to sing.

My voice has never been good, a thin and cracked thing. But I sang for Al Alta, for her life and for her senseless death, for the children she never had and the husband she lost far too young, for the exile my father had forced her into and the good thing she had tried to make out of it. As I sang, for the first time since I had seen her empty eyes there were tears running down my face as I hurled my song of grief towards the stars.

When a sob broke my voice, I heard Nomolun stand, and then she lifted her own voice, supporting mine. A moment later, and Sacha and Temur joined in. The only one who was silent was Zayd, who had no reason to know this song. The four of us sang to the stars a soul-calling song, calling Al Alta's spirit to wherever it might call home.

When the song ended and silence fell again, I dropped back down cross-legged in the dirt, bent double, and shook with the force of my tears. Someone moved next to me--Sacha, I thought--and there was an arm encircling my shoulders. The storm passed quickly, and I wiped my eyes and running nose once I had myself back under control again. "Thank you," I breathed to Sacha.

His only response was to nod and kiss me on the forehead.

We were all tired from the day, and soon after the song we set watches and retired. I went to Zayd, who was staring into the fire as if it might hold answers. I crouched down next to him. "I know it's supposed to be your night," I said, very quietly, "but I think I need Sacha tonight. Do you--"

"I don't mind," he said, shaking his head. "I'll take first watch. Yeusi..." He reached for my hand and enclosed it in his. "I'm sorry about your sister."

I nodded shallowly, and leaned into him briefly, letting him put his arms around me and hold me for a moment before pulling away. I kissed him briefly and then went to join Sacha.

In the dark, wrapped in Sacha's arms, surrounded by the familiar, I shivered and cried again. Even after the tears were gone, after Sacha's breathing deepened and slowed as he fell asleep, after the light from the fire outside flickered low, I was wakeful in the dark, grief and guilt twin weights inside of me. If I had run to the east, if I had led Kamil away from this place--

If, if, if.

Sacha muttered in his sleep and shifted to curl around me, and grateful for his warmth in the desert cold, I pressed myself into him. I had chosen to do what I had done. I could not go back and undo it now.

It was still a long time before I managed to sleep.


*****

The next morning, we all rose when false dawn lightened the sky. "Will you take the cup, in case Kamil shows up?" I asked Sacha.

He nodded, and took the cup when I handed it to him. Camp was broken in record time, and by the time the eastern sky was turning lavender we were at the top of the ravine that the silver spring was at the bottom of. A trail clung to the side of the ravine, and we traversed down to the bottom, to where water bubbled out between cracked rocks into a small pool. The spring's water did look silver in the shifting light of dawn, and the sound it made as it flowed over the rocks was almost cheerful.

I called Ahmad out of the bracelet, and pointed to the source of the spring. "That's my best guess on where the branch needs to be planted. what do you think?"

He nodded. "I would think so. Ready yourself, you never know what these things do. Remember the Kali statue."

I remembered, and well. "I know." To the rest, I said, "Get back a bit, this might get interesting." They backed off as I walked forward to where water welled up out of cracked rocks. The sky was lightening rapidly as I wedged the branch between two stones, making sure the branch was upright, then backed off a bit.

Nothing happened for five heartbeats. Ten. Twenty. Thirty.

Then the black, twisted branch began to straighten. It turned silver as the light of the sun touched the western edge of the ravine, and I could see it sprout branches and then silver leaves from the top, and roots from the bottom.

The branch grew.

Up and up it went, passing through seasons and years in a near-blur. With a sharp crack, the stones at the new tree's roots cracked, releasing more water. The small stream surged suddenly to a river as the silver tree rose still upward, towards the sunlight.

Wherever the water touched, another silver tree sprang to life, and suddenly I was surrounded by a small forest of silver with water running in deep channels around them. The water had split around me, leaving me dry on an island, but the rapidly growing trees brushed my cheeks with their leaves as they shot upward. I couldn't help the smile on my face. The items always unleashed such beauty when they were destroyed.

The new river ran deep on either side of me, and I turned as I saw something move that shouldn't be moving. A figure rose out of the silver waters. It was made of water, roughly my height, humanoid, and though it was naked I couldn't tell what sex it was. Water like hair flowed over its shoulders to its feet, moving restlessly. It tilted its head at me. "Your brother is free."

The voice was somewhat male, and it sounded like listening to people underwater. I turned to the water creature, and asked, "He is still alive?"

He nodded. "Yes, he is. The parasite has left him."

I sagged with relief. I had done it. I had freed Chagatai. Then I remembered the price I had paid to do so, and shook my head. "One sibling saved. Another dead. Not a trade I ever wanted to make. My pardon, but...who are you?"

I could have sworn the creature smiled. "I am the spring. A creature made of water, that has lived beneath the surface for years."

I blinked. So that was why the water had always been so pure and cold. "Ah. Will this place stay like this?"

"The water will remain to feed the trees and all that come to drink."

"Where the branch caused famine before, what has become of it will create plenty. It seems like that happens a lot in the wake of the artifacts' destruction." I took a long breath, looking around me, and the leaves of the trees around me stirred in the slight breeze, whispering. "Balance, I suppose."

"The items create evil and destroy that which is good, destroy the item and the good is released, in simple terms."

"You will stay here, then, with the water?" I asked.

The creature's watery hair shifted and flowed, and I watched, fascinated. It seemed amused by my staring, but its voice was somber when it spoke again. "I will but you still need my help, pain resides. I cannot take the pain, but I can make it ease."

I swallowed, hope suddenly flaring in me despite myself. "I found out yesterday that my oldest sister is dead. You can help with that?"

The spring shook his head. "That which has died I can not restore, nor can your cup for long, with what little was left. But that which killed her passes Mandalgovi in Mongolia, heading for Ulaanbaatar and your mother." I choked. Mandalgovi was so far away. How had he gotten so far in so little time? Mandalgovi was almost to Ulaanbaatar. We would never catch him in time.

The creature saw my expression and spread his hands. "All living things need water. Kamil must inhabit the living, he needs that spark of life to keep him alive. Step into the water, and watch."

I nodded and carefully stepped into the water flowing beside me. It was clear, and shockingly cold. The spring stepped into the water, waded out to the center of the channel, and melted into the water. Hesitantly, I followed suit, wading into the middle of the channel and ducking under the water.

Everything changed.

I was held by--something. A pressure like firm hands on all sides of me. I felt no need to breathe, no panic even though water was pressing against my nose and mouth. I could see up into a grey sky above the surface of the water. Something moved above the surface. A man, kneeling over the water.

The Kamil we had met in the black city.

"That which you see is what my brother sees," the spring said in my ears. Kamil dipped a hand into the water--into me, it felt like, and that was a very odd feeling indeed--and drank. He repeated this several times, then splashed his face with the water. Then, a strange expression came over him, and he shuddered.

Suddenly, he was wracked with convulsions, falling with his head in the water, retching. There was foam at his mouth as he tried to rise. He simply fell back down again, this time all the way into the water.

The water held Kamil, then began to thrash him around, bashing him against large rocks. Blood stained the water as he began to come apart. Horrified, I realized I could feel him coming apart within me. "All living things need water, but not all the things in water are good for the living. Kamil is vulnerable, kill the body and he is helpless," the spring's voice said in my ears as the water calmed and the blood and body parts began to drift downriver. "The artifacts you carry, evil as they are, are also receptacles for the soul pieces. That Kamil is now locked in the box you carry. The part that resided in your brother has lost its link to this world, no longer anchored by the branch. It went where it was supposed to, when it should have died before."

"So every time I destroy an artifact, I send a piece of him on to the afterlife--I'm not concentrating all of the pieces down into one place, then?" I asked. It had been a fear of mine, that destroying the artifacts was only making him stronger.

"No, each death weakens him. Though he was powerful before, and even one piece of his soul will still have the ability to kill you. He fears you now."

I grimaced. "I thought he might stop underestimating me sometime soon. This is about to get harder, isn't it?"

"He will be coming for you, personally. If not you, then your family. He knows all of them, your brother, your father, he will try to bring you out. This one moved faster than all combined. A leftover from the body he inhabited. It remains to be seen if that which inhabits your father will kill his own children. So far he has not, the battle still rages within, like Chagatai."

"He hasn't given himself over to it entirely?" The hope was back, flaring once more.

"He still fights, he is losing but he still maintains a shred of who he was. Family is his strongest tie. He cannot kill them, so far. Another will, but they will take a great time to travel to them. When the family is gone, the Khan and the only one that reveres Kamil will be alive. The Khan will cease to exist, and only Kamil will remain to rule over all."

"So the rest of my family isn't in immediate danger, but they will be once one of the other Kamils gets to them." I shook my head. "I have to get those gloves and destroy them. Soon."

"It is a problem, the more you destroy the weaker he becomes. You have seen the gloves work. If you destroy more, your father may recover more and more of himself in the fight. With those gloves on, you will not live long."

I said slowly, "Kamil won't let my father not kill me. And once my father is free, Kamil may try to kill my family to try to get at me anyway."

"You are best letting your father, what's left of him, protect your family for now and hurry about your work. My part in your tragedy has come to an end. I wish you luck and leave you with this, that which you did to the cup can be done again by others, this hurts him and strengthens you." I felt the pressure around me release and bobbed upward, floating to the surface of the water and taking a deep breath.

Well, at least I got a bath, I thought to myself as I waded towards shore and the others. I had to laugh. Such things that happened in my life. As I came out of the river, I looked back and called, "Thank you, whatever your name is. You have done me a great service."

The only reply was the burble of flowing water.

I waded through another channel and to the edge of the ravine, where I caught a glimpse--there they were! The rest of my tribe stood, watching for me, worry on all of their faces. Sacha caught sight of me, and pointed as I squelched my way towards them. Zayd rushed toward me, catching me up in a bear hug that lifted me off the ground. "Don't, don't, I'll get you all wet!" I protested breathlessly.

"Do I look like I care?" he said, but set me down. The rest had caught up with him, and there were questions in their eyes.

I grinned. "That was--interesting. To say the least. The river told me all sorts of things. The Kamil that killed Al Alta is dead."

Zayd blinked. "How?"

"It's evidently dangerous to have a river angry with you," I said. "That Kamil was on his way to try to kill my mother. We'd never have caught him in time, he was too far away. He stopped to drink at a river that was inhabited by a brother of the river here, that I was talking to. The water apparently turned to poison, and when he fell in, the river there tore him apart."

Silence fell as the others looked at me as if trying to decide if I was mad or not. Finally, Nomolun said, "Normally about now I would be checking for head injuries but after all I have seen--" The cleric shook her head. "You lead an interesting life, Khanate. Where to?"

I brushed my still-dripping hair out of my eyes. "Kashi. Finally. Then east, to Beijing, Shanghai, and Haerbin. Somewhere between here and there is my father--he's heading towards Beijing, last I heard." I took a breath. "We should leave today, since it's still morning. I've had enough of sitting still, and I don't really want to linger near the camp."

Everyone agreed, and we filled waterskins and climbed up and out of the ravine. I put on a spare pair of pants, but left my shirt on to dry in the relentless sun that was going to be beating down on us.

We put the silver river and my sister's grave behind us that day, heading away. I spent the next two nights with Zayd, to make up for him missing a night, and we continued my Persian lessons after we retired. We tended to practice the language only when by ourselves in my tent, and I was starting to wonder if I'd ever be able to hear the language without getting warm and wet at the memory of those nights spent talking to each other and then in more intimate pursuits.

Even so, I still shivered with grief when I woke in the middle of the night, and I was in a somber mood during the day. My sister's death and the memory of finding her head was still strongly with me, despite knowing that her killer was dead.

The only town of any size between here and Kashi was Turpan once more, and we stopped to resupply and do the usual check of the bookstores. The one bookseller in town had nothing of any interest, but we did learn that the brotherhood had indeed left. The day we had arrived, they had boarded up the house they had been using and ridden out of town, and had not been seen again.

So far, nobody had had the courage to try to get into the house they had left behind. There were rumors of strong, nasty magic on the place that kept the curious away. "You have that look on your face again," Zayd said as we walked together down the street towards the market.

"Which look?" I asked.

"The one that says you're thinking about breaking into somewhere. You get this little smile, like you're about to get a present," he told me.

I laughed. "Tomorrow morning, before sunrise. I want to see if the brotherhood left anything behind."

Zayd grinned. "Ah, I'm right again, lovely one. Let's go pick up some supplies and let the others know."

We did, and the next morning found us sneaking around back of the brotherhood's house. We'd left Temur with the horses, and had taken Nomolun as a lookout, and Sacha and Zayd to go in with me. The house was reasonably well-built, the roof slate tile and the doors wooden. The doors were enchanted somehow to be neither breakable nor pickable. The walls, though, were vulnerable, made of thin thatch.

Zayd took a whack at the thatch with his scimitar, quickly cutting a hole large enough to slip through. I took the lead, going in through the hole and landing soundlessly on the other side, listening intently. It was deserted as it looked, and I risked my little light, to see for sure.

Sacha emerged from the hole beside me as I paced forward. It smelled in here, some of it rotting meat and vegetables in buckets, and under that a smell a lot like a lion's den. A lot of men had lived in here, or had come and gone often. It was a very small place, they must have been packed in here at night.

The bedclothes on the bed were rumpled, carelessly tossed aside, and there was rotting food on plates on the table. The shelves were bare of books, and the fireplace looked like it might hold something.

The floorboards were all enchanted with the same spell as the doors, except for a small place near the fireplace. I glanced into the fireplace and saw papers. I gently retrieved them, seeing that the edges were singed, as if someone had tossed them in and not bothered to make sure they caught on fire.

I glanced over the rows of neatly brushed characters. They were orders, it appeared, to transfer the candle to Lhasa after it was recovered in Turpan, to transport it in a lead box and bring it to the stronghold in Lhasa with all haste.

Lhasa...I closed my eyes, trying to remember the map. Due south from here. On the other side of the great mountain than we had been, when we destroyed the arch. I remembered mention of a candle as one of the items. We'd had a chance to get it here, and we had missed it.

The brotherhood appeared to be learning. They couldn't stay ignorant forever, unfortunately. I stuffed the papers in my bag for a more thorough going-over later, then knelt, probing at the edge of the non-magicked floorboard.

It was loose, and came up easily. Beneath it was a piece of paper that turned out to be a roughly drawn map, with what appeared to be markings of where I had been sighted, if I was reading the writing correctly. They were way off on a few of the sightings, and I wondered if I had a double lurking somewhere out there.

Beneath the map was a box. It was made of what seemed to be lead, and as I lifted it out I saw it had a mark on it, a Chinese dragon with a broad circle around it. I checked it then opened it to look inside. Both it and the false bottom in it were empty.

I lifted it to show the others. "Ever seen this mark before?"

Sacha shook his head, but Zayd nodded. "Yes, it's the symbol of the Chinese emperor's blacksmiths."

I frowned down at the box. "Wonder what they had stored in this, and why the brotherhood had something that once belonged to the Chinese emperor?"

"More mysteries, I fear," he said. "Might mean that the Chinese emperor is funding them somehow."

"That's what I'm afraid of. Well, I'll take this as well. We should get out of here before folks wake up."

Sacha asked, "Leave it or burn it down?"

"Burn it. If the brotherhood ever comes back this way, I don't want them to know we've been here. We might be able to make it look accidental, like someone was staying here and accidentally started a fire."

He nodded. "Head out, I will catch up in a few minutes. See you outside the city. I will make sure it doesn't take the whole block, just the building."

"Good. We'll see you when you get there." We turned and left as I saw him glance around, evidently calculating how to set it ablaze. A few minutes later, Sacha caught up with us as I heard the clang of alarm bells going off in town. We turned and left without further comment, going west.

It was not the easiest leg of this journey. We left the desert behind and entered into less arid land, rivers carving the landscape and leaving hills behind. Fording rivers delayed us, on one memorable occasion by two days as we hunted upriver for a good place to cross. The rivers were swollen with the spring thaw, and it rained constantly.

It was a nice change from sand in every pore, but dampness soon lost its appeal and became, well, simply damp. The evening usually brought a brisk wind with it, but that was almost pleasant.

The evening wind brought with it other, more worrying things than rain. Howls.

I remembered the stories I'd heard about Kashi, how packs of wolves with burning eyes had been terrorizing the countryside. It seemed that it was still the case. It had been almost a year, and I was surprised that the wolves, and the Eye, were still here.

We had passed Kashi by when we decided to flee south, after first encountering Hamid. It was strange to think of it, now. I hadn't met Zayd yet, hadn't invited either of my lovers into my bed, hadn't ever seen a dragon or met a unicorn. I wondered how much longer we were going to be on this journey. Another year? Three? Five?

I couldn't look that far ahead. I had the moment, and the moment was enough.