Maker of Fire

Kamagishi, the Singing Shrine, Black Falls, Harvest Season, 8th rot., 3rd day

After an early repast, Losnana and I left for Black Falls before the sun rose over the mountains. We arrived half past the second bell. Convocation met in Sister Senlyosart's sitting room instead of the Well of Sassoo. With the disruption of the epidemic, the city's administration was using parts of the Shrine, including the dome chamber. Senlyosart had roped off the Well and posted a garrison guard to prevent the curious from entering. The city's healers specializing in mind healing were set up in the rest of the space under the dome for counseling the bereaved and those tasked with collecting and preparing the dead for the bidding farewell ceremonies. Senlyosart said that a surprising number of flying mounts were visiting the mind healers.

The sitting room was cosy, and I confess I liked meeting there. It was still a jolting contrast with what was happening under the Shrine's dome.

Young Foyuna finally showed some teeth at the beginning of the meeting. When she began her tenure as a high priestess six years ago, she initially came across as unsure of herself. However, since the Battle of the Shrine last year, she has finally grown into her role as a leader. I especially enjoyed how she ever-so-nicely, ever-so-politely smacked Fassex down during our discussion of the monument for the dead victims of the epidemic, which was our first item of business.

Satsusum presented her design for the monument. She proposed to place an eternal crystal on a pedestal nine hands high. Fassex immediately complained that all sacred pedestals should be twenty-five hands; anything less would be disrespectful. I know she was thinking of the god pedestals in shrines and chapel shrines. I don't understand how she thinks at times. It seems backward to me.

After Fassex made her disrespecting-the-gods argument, Foyuna slipped into the discussion, saying that scriptures do not discuss pedestals, statues, or other iconography other than the great crystals. Instead, she said erecting pedestals so tall that only Cosm benefited reflected the now-discredited belief that Cosm were the only race blessed by the gods. Because of the Scripture of the Trial, it was now clear to her, the leading scriptural authority for all the Shrines, that the gods valued the races equally. Therefore, a twenty-five-hand pedestal would be a deliberate rejection of that scripture. After all, Foyuna said, what good was a monument crystal memorializing dead Coyn if no Coyn could see it?

"I had not considered that," was Fassex's terse reply, and then she shut up for the rest of the morning. It was delightful. She didn't open her mouth again until after the day's bidding farewell ceremony. So many Coyn died each day that the local chapel shrine of Gertzpul was holding daily ceremonies. To her credit, Heir Sertfos has attended every one.

The ceremony was short and sorrowful. Along with the Heir haup Black, the King and Queen also attended, dressed in formal mourning-blue robes and white diadems. Because she was present, Satsusum took out Gertzpul's Ringed Staff and conducted the bidding farewell ceremony herself. An all-Coyn choir from the Singing Shrine sang a hauntingly beautiful Consolation of the Prophet hymn at the end. It was very moving.

After the ceremony and a quick mid repast, we reconvened the meeting, joined by the King and Queen. The Queen usually attended all our meetings, but the King only attended if a matter concerned the kingdom's finances or the kingdom's military affairs. I assumed, as did we all, that he was here because of the epidemic. I was mistaken.

The Senlyosart requested time during the meeting, and her time to address the Convocation was the first matter after we reconvened. What she had to say shocked everyone – except the King and Queen. They obviously knew in advance, which led me to suspect that Senlyosart's trip to Is'syal was about her announcement. What I couldn't fathom was why she communicated with the royal couple and not with the Convocation.

"Sisters," Senlyosart began, "I request an oath of confidentiality for what I am about to tell you."

"We know of this matter," Imstay King said, reaching over to clasp Aylem Queen's hand, "and we support the Holy Senlyosart in this."

"And if we do not give you that oath, Sister Senlyosart?" I had to ask.

"Then you place me in an extremely difficult position concerning a divine communication from the Lord of the Winds, which it is my duty to report to the rest of the Convocation. I will forego my duty in this case if I do not have your oaths." Senlyosart's face showed her resolve. Her expression reminded us that she had led the defense of her Shrine last year and destroyed most of an army by doing so. "And I will ask that you swear on the Singing Crystal this evening, once the dome is emptied of the healers using it."

"That is extreme," said Ashansalt of Mueb, who seldom spoke during meetings. Because she spoke little, she always commanded respect and attention when she did. "Is such a measure truly warranted?"

"You will understand once you hear what I have to say," Senlyosart replied.

"What you do not know is that the Holy Senslosart is already bound by her own oath of confidentiality," Imstay added, "sworn on the Singing Crystal. She cannot tell you everything she knows because of that oath. She is not asking you for more than she has already given."

"You demanded such an oath from her?" snapped Irralray, the King's aunt.

"No, I did not," Imstay responded in a calm and apologetic tone, "and her oath was not made to me or for my benefit."

"I am having difficulty reconciling an oath sworn on a great crystal with a communication from Sassoo," remarked Fassex thoughtfully. "He will sometimes give warnings of natural disasters, but those do not require confidentiality. This is most unusual."

"I, for one, will trust in the judgment of my Sister Senlyosart," stated Foyuna in a confident voice. "She is one of the least frivolous people I have ever met. If she believes it is necessary, then I will swear."

"I will not," Irralray balked.

"Dammit," Imstay stood with his face turning red, "there are at least two lives at stake here and one of them is mine. If this matter does not stay within this room, if this information is leaked, then I will be guilty of the judicial murder of a sacred person, and I will kill myself rather than suffer the death of burning rocks. That is what is at stake here, Aunt. This is not some trivial matter."

We were all shocked into silence, and we could hear every loud, angry breath Imstay took as his glare pinned his Aunt Irralray to her armchair.

Then, the unexpected and unimaginable happened. For the first time ever, Aylem exercised her power as Queen to forbid an action.

"If the high priestesses present today do not give their oaths sworn on the Great Crystal," The Ice Queen pronounced, "then I invoke my right as Queen to forbid you, Senlyosart haup Yant, to divulge what has happened here at your shrine since the beginning of the sixth rotation."

"The judicial murder of a sacred person?" Fassex's frown rivaled the Ravine of the Rig River. "I will swear. Irralray? What say you?"

Irralray's grimace was exquisite. "I will swear."

After Irralray caved, the rest of the Convocation agreed.

Only then did Senlyosart speak. "On the night of the fourth day of the sixth rotation, Sassoo, as the Lord of the Winds, visited this Shrine. During that late-night visit, he spoke to and touched a boy who will be enrolled on Planting Midday. The child was here because I invited him to visit. When he touched the Singing Crystal, it flashed a blinding green light and sang so loud it was heard outside the city walls. He has Voice magic and the ability to play the lithophone. He is a phenomenal talent. Incidentally, that boy wrote the music to the Consolation of the Prophet, which you heard performed at the end of the bidding farewell ceremony today. It is safe to claim that he is a prodigy.

"I can see why you invited him to visit," said Fassex. "Is this the same child that you had me test with that lithophone crystal you sent during the fifth rotation?"

"He is," Senlyosart replied.

"And this requires an oath of confidentiality?" Fassex looked concerned rather than angry.

"He is a refugee from Impotu," Senlyosart continued. "He speaks with the inflections of a Western Impotuan aristocrat. His non-magical education surpasses that of most third-year trainees. He arrived in Capani during the Growing Season and found work in the kitchens at Manse Yuxviayeth. Lord Udayhar spotted that his new spitboy had a head full of silver hairs and sent him to your White Shrine, Sister Fassex, for testing to be admitted to a shrine.

"He goes by the name of Sidros Arkalkin, which is not his real name. I am sure he is the sole survivor of one of the eight great houses of Impotu. As you all know, the life of anyone from the eight great houses is forfeit if they are over the age of four and within three degrees of descent from the House of Ugi. We are eliminating claimants to the Impotuan throne just like Impotu eliminated claimants to the throne of Jutu four years ago.

Sidros is eleven. He watched Foskan soldiers kill his grandmother, but still managed to escape. He is a frightened child in fear for his life, running from that man," Senlyosart pointed at the King.

"I made a deal with Sidros that I would protect and defend him if he would do three things: first, that he would swear not avenge the death of his family, second, that he would enroll at my Shrine, and third, that he would document his true descent to be divulged to his progeny after his death. In return, I would adopt him as a ward of the Shrine, with the obligation to protect and defend him, even from that man there," she pointed again, "and last, that I would not inquire after his true identity.

"Eighteen days ago, Sidros swore on the Singing Crystal not to avenge his family. I swore to protect him and his identity, whatever that may be. He is now my ward. Because of his mental trauma and because he is only eleven, I would like him to see a mind healer. However, I cannot send him to one because he may flee. In his mind, his only security is his anonymity. Sidros is timid and shy. He never relaxes and often flinches when spoken to. Since he arrived here, the second-year trainees have adopted him, and he has opened up to some of them, including the Princess Opo'aba.

"Because of these extraordinary circumstances, I am invoking my privilege as his guardian to restrict all outside access to the Revered Sidros Arkalkin, the Blessed of Sassoo. No one may approach this boy without my explicit consent until he is sixteen. We would lose him if he were confronted by the members of the Convocation. He is terrified of us. He fainted the first time I spoke to him. Gaining his tentative trust has been a struggle.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"We should be able to meet this newest sacred person at least once, Sister Senlyosart," Sutsusum protested, "to confirm his godmark, if nothing else." Several others murmured their agreement.

"I suggest we vote on it," Foyuna said.

"I invoke my right as Queen," Aylem pronounced, "to forbid any such vote."

"You cannot bar us from attending ceremonies at your shrine, Senlyosart, like enrollment on Planting Midday," Moxsef pointed out.

"You are correct," Senlyosart said with disapproval written on her face. "I cannot bar any high priestess access to the Well of Sassoo, but if you insist on visiting the enrollment ceremony at my Shrine, you will travel and attend incognito, sit in the very back because of your height, and leave your vestments at home. I will not invite any of you to the post-enrollment banquet, nor will I welcome you to stay in the Shrine's guest quarters. Sidros is already anxious over the enrollment ceremony. He's asked if he can enroll privately – that's how scared he is. If you make an issue of this, I will enroll him privately."

"That is contrary to the rites," protested Rakkalbos. "All ceremonies involving the great crystals must be public. How else will the people know that their clergy have indeed been blessed?"

"Not according to scripture," Senslyosart rebutted. "I have already confirmed this with Sister Foyuna. The only requirement for enrollment or elevation is a great crystal, a high priestess, and one other clergy witness. And in fact, the Healing Shrine conducted a private elevation last year."

"What?" Rakkalbos snapped and glared at Lisaykos. "Explain this!"

Lisaykos deliberately picked up her beaker of tea, took a slow sip, and savored that sip before swallowing. The temperature in the room dropped noticeably as she set the beaker down. "I will not be spoken to like that, Rakkalbos haup Yuxvos," Lisaykos said in a calm and regal voice. "While we may maintain the pretense that we are all sisters of equal standing, that is not true. I am a princess and a revelator. Only three others rank higher than I do. The first is the Prophet, and the others are the King and Queen. I do not answer to you, Holy One."

Lisaykos turned to Senlyosart and smiled warmly, "Sister Senlyosart, I find that you have the best of reasons to enroll the young Revered Sidros privately. In fact, it may be best if you do so. The enrollment ceremony is of great significance and celebration for the families of the new trainees, who are part of the proceedings. Sidros is an orphan who has lost his family in a way that has traumatized him. He has no one to escort him down the aisle to the Singing Crystal. He may suffer during the public ceremony if he is forced to watch the exuberance of the enrollees and their families around him when he has no family of his own to celebrate with him. Enroll him privately and invite the second-year trainees who have befriended him. Feed them a fancy dinner afterward. Just a suggestion, dear heart."

"I think that's a splendid idea, Lisaykos," the Queen's mouth smiled while her eyes smoldered at Rakkalbos. "And with that, I suggest we take a break."

Opa, Black Falls, Harvest Season, 8th rot., 3rd day

"This will do," my father said and sat down on a bench at a plank table in the back of the food stall area of Black Fall's famous spice market. Four garrison guards formed a cordon between the table and the rest of the eating area. Mother managed to wedge herself onto the bench next to my father.

My parents were in what my mother called street clothes. They also wore mantles with the hoods up. Street clothes for my parents were opulence for anyone else. Dad was wearing a fur-lined, wine-red silk-velvet overtunic piped in gold, with contrasting facings and decorative bands of deep green. His mantle was fur-lined, made of dark brown wool, with a pattern of embroidered stars in gold thread. The steel sword at his hip was in a jeweled scabbard. Mother was dressed in a fur-lined, tawny yellow gown with purple facings, covered in embroidery of twining vines and leaves. She wore a gold-piped black mantle of an adept of Landa. Other than rings on their gloved hands, neither displayed any visible jewelry. This is what my parent wore when dressing down.

I was in my trainee robes of red ochre and a shrine cloak and mantle of light grey. I had a sheepskin coif hat and didn't bother putting my hood up. My father's page, Patrikos, was also in a hat with his hood down. It wasn't like anyone would bother us with my parents present.

My father handed Patrikos a purse full of coins and sent him off to get food. I sat at the table facing my parents.

My mother smiled, "Taking you out to eat street food before the stalls close for the day has saved me from having dinner with that brood of contrary old hens. I hope I didn't cause you trouble by pulling you out of your lecture."

"It's just theory of magic," I shrugged. "We're still on charms, so it's not like it's hard. If I hadn't flubbed the part of the test on magic tools, I would have been able to skip the class."

"Almost testing out of magic theory?" Dad had that proud father look on his face. "Well, she's your daughter, Dear," he looked at Mother.

Mother rolled her eyes. She cast a sound-blocking barrier and then turned her attention to me. "Where did your Mistress hide your friend Sidros? I couldn't find him anywhere inside the Shrine?"

"He's on a river boat with his tutor and two squads of wraiths," I replied. "He's fascinated with riverboats, so he's likely a very happy kid right now."

"Who told you that?" Dad glared at me.

"My Mistress," I glared back. "When Sid said he was going out on the river, I went to the Holy One to ask about it because I worry about the kid."

"Opa, it's dangerous to get attached to him." Dad looked angry and then crumpled, making a disturbed face. "We may have to eliminate him someday. If I had my way, he'd be safe in the dungeon of the citadel in Is'syal, surrounded by crystals to prevent him from using magic. He's the most dangerous person to Foskos."

"I thought that was the Prophet Emily," I needled my father.

Dad looked frustrated at me, "Her too."

"How did the Holy One's directive about access to Sid go at the Convocation meeting?" I had to ask. I was dying of curiosity. Mother grimaced. Dad grinned.

"Like a room full of children shown a box of sweets and then not allowed to eat them," Dad said, and then his expression changed to something grim. "To be truthful, it was tense. Your mother used her power of prohibition twice during the discussion. But for now, Sid should be safe from the high priestesses. Don't be surprised if the Holy Senlyosart holds a private enrollment for Sidros. But most importantly, this should keep Sidros safe from being discovered by the Holy Losnana. We have no idea what would happen if she knew he was alive. It appears that our best course of action right now is to keep everyone ignorant, including Sidros."

"We're counting on you, Opa," Mother looked at me with a frown, "to make sure the boy settles in and isn't bullied. That includes after he is formally enrolled. We don't know how he will fit in with his peers in the first-year class of trainees. I'm concerned he'll be harassed because he has an Impotuan accent."

"He's doing fine right now," I told Mother. "Everyone he meets likes him. He's shy and quite modest, despite his obvious musicianship. But he's considerate and doesn't shirk his share of chores. Because he doesn't have a regular schedule of classes, he's done double duty out on the Parting Grounds, and everyone's noticed how thoughtful he's been with the little people. He was upset enough over all the Coyn deaths that he wrote an amazing hymn for the Consolation of the Prophet prayer."

"We know," Dad nodded. "We heard it performed this morning. It's obvious why the kid has Sassoo's favor. Normally, we'd be parading a talent like Sidros around the kingdom instead of trying to hide him."

"You know he hadn't even met a Coyn before this year?" I said. "The first ones he met were at Manse Yuxviayeth. And now he's taking Prell lessons with Master Uka, and I can tell that Sid both likes and respects him. I think it's safe to say the Master Uka is Sid's first Coyn friend."

Mother smiled at that news. "That's good to hear," Mother looked pleased. "I would have thought he'd be put off by Coyn instructors, given where he was raised."

"Sid is deep, Mother," I remarked. "Underneath his timid exterior is someone who thinks everything over. He's scary smart. He said he was taught that Coyn were smart like hogs but could talk. However, now that he's met Coyn and watched them, he knows that's incorrect. Hey, why the face, Dad?"

My father scowled and opened his mouth to answer when Partikos arrived with a platter of grilled grouse, mutton, and nips, followed by a garrison guard with two pitchers of hot cider. We settled down to eat.

"Was helping with the epidemic measures difficult?" Mother asked after destroying a whole platter of skewers. Mother always ate enough for three or four normal people.

"Very," I said around a mouthful of grouse. "Food and water distribution haven't been that bad. The little ones are quiet, and you can tell they're frightened, especially when someone they know has been taken by the guards to the tent city to die. It's hard seeing the few Coyn allowed to watch the bidding farewell ceremonies, being forced to stand twenty hands apart at the parting grounds and not being allowed to hug each other in their grief. If you look during the ceremonies, you can see Coyn standing on the roofs of their tenements and houses to watch the smoke from the burning. It's heartbreaking."

"The Revered Soslokoep reported that the number of Coyn dying has now dropped for three days in a row," my mother said. "The number of those dying in Gunndit, Kunnsifa, and Kitt's Canyon is also dropping. I am hoping this means the fever outbreak will be over by Coldtide. If not, we may need to postpone Heir Sertfos's handfasting."

"We should compel all the Coyn to have healing charm gems embedded behind their ears like Cosm," I stated.

"I think so too," Dad said, "but your mother thinks otherwise."

"Mother?" I found that hard to believe. I knew that the Coyn had been allowed to destroy their control gems. Still, I didn't understand why they were allowed to go gemless when embedding was obviously for their own good.

"We almost had another riot in Aybhas when the Blessed Lisaykos mandated all Coyn wear or carry a healing charm gem," Mother sighed. "The Coyn are afraid that any new gems will be to control them again."

"But that's so wrong," I stated. "That's just stupid. There are no more control gems. Don't they know that?"

"The smart ones believe us when we tell them that," Mother said sadly, "but that's not the issue here, Opa. The issues are trust and hatred. Charm gems are the symbols of slavery, so the Coyn hate carrying them. It took us a year to convince the Prophet Emily to wear a charm gem of healing – that's how much she hates charm gems – and she's the most rational of the little people. But most Coyn are less trusting than the Prophet. Coyn can't feel the magic in charm gems, so they have no way to tell what a charm gem can do, and they don't trust us enough to believe that new gems will be harmless to them."

"That's so dumb," I pronounced. "We should make it mandatory if they're going to be so stupid about it."

"It will be mandatory," Dad said. "After dinner, the Blessed Lisaykos will be outlining a proposal for the Coyn to manage their own healing charm gems. Aybhas will make a trial of it."

"That doesn't sound like the Blessed Lisaykos. Why not just embed the gems and be done with it?" I demanded.

"The proposal isn't Lisaykos's," Mother said. "This proposal came from the ward and block leaders in Aybhas. In two days, one of those block leaders will be going to Omexkel to the Building Shrine, to see how charm gems are made."

"Why? Everyone knows how charm gems are made," I pointed out.

"The Coyn don't," Mother replied.

"Huh?"

"The Coyn only know that charm gems come from the shrines," Mother shrugged. "I think that's part of the problem. They don't understand the process. However, it's getting late, and I need to return to the Convocation meeting by the seventh bell. We can talk about this more if you have time after early morn repast tomorrow."

I was hoping to dodge this subject, but my luck was bad. "I can't, Mother. I need to take the morning leftovers to the hog pens behind the Manse."

"Oh? Why are you doing farm chores at a shrine?" Mother looked scary.

"I'm on punishment detail for starting a food fight." I wanted to sink into the ground. I knew Mother would react badly.

"For how long?" Mother asked.

"Nine rotations," I waited for Mother to chew me out, flinching a little in advance.

"That punishment detail is a bit long for a food fight," Mother surprised me with her calm attitude. "I thought the punishment was shorter."

"You're not mad at me?"

"I can't say I'm happy about it, but it's up to the shrine to discipline you." Mother shrugged it off, which shocked me. "Why the fish face, Opa?" Mother looked confused.

"But . . . You . . . ," I was gobsmacked

"Opa, you're not a little kid anymore," Mother frowned. "This is a serious matter. As much as I don't like it, I need to trust the Shrine in this. Just don't make a habit of food fights, dear heart."

I was wondering if my mother had hit her head recently. "Are you really my mother? Who are you really, and what did you do with my real mother?"