Arbiter (The Arbiter Chronicles Book 1) (4 page)

“It’s like a contract,” said Cathel turning towards her. “It’s the way the Ivali ensure that promises are kept. I’m willing to bet that that thing will allow the Reaper to enter the Twilight Realm once the terms of your contract are up.”

“Allow?” asked Rae, drawing up beside him.

Cathel shot her a look that told her he still wasn't sure whether or not he could blame her for this. “Yes,” he finally said. “Allow. The Reaper was banished from this world centuries ago. I think he might be trying to make you his way home. But you weren't supposed to be able to see him in the first place. Why could you?”

“I ask myself that question every day,” replied Rae. She shook her head. “I don't know,” she said. “I didn't know this could happen.”

“You wouldn't know,” said Cathel, shaking his head. He said nothing, his green eyes fixed on the corner of the room, before he turned towards her. “Come with me,” he said.

“Where?” asked Rae, following him towards the door.

“We're going to interrupt the meeting of the masters,” said Cathel. He grabbed onto her wrist, leading her out into the hallway. “This changes things.”

“I can walk on my own,” said Rae, snatching her hand out of his grip. Cathel glanced at her but said nothing. He didn't attempt to reach for her hand again. “Where's the meeting?” she asked.

“The top of the tower,” he replied.

“We're taking the stairs?” asked Rae, glancing up at the spiral staircase that they seemed to be heading towards.

Cathel glanced at her, shaking his head. “Not quite,” he said.

He led her over to one of the tapestries on the walls. Now that Rae saw it, she realized that she had seen one just like it on the previous floor. The tapestry was blue, with a long winding tower embroidered on it in silver thread. As Cathel reached it, he stretched out a hand, and the silver thread began to glow, the tower shining with a soft light.

“This is going to feel a little strange,” he warned, glancing back at Rae. “Hold on to me, and when we get there, let me do the talking.”

Rae was about to argue, but she decided against it. She didn’t want to know what the consequences of not following his instructions would be, considering she had no idea how this magic worked. She placed her hand on his arm, holding him as lightly as possible without breaking the connection between them. Cathel glanced down at her once to make sure she was secure, before stepping into the tapestry and taking her with him.

At once, her world dissolved into silver light. The light swelled around the both of them, pushing them upwards. The magic coursed through her, leaving an indescribable feeling in its wake. Rae felt light, like she could sprout wings and take flight at any second. Almost too soon, the feeling ended, and she felt solid ground beneath her feet again. She closed her eyes as the light around her began to fade.

The two of them appeared inside a small circular chamber, lit by several large windows that surrounded it. A group of people sat behind a long table that spread in a half-circle directly in front of the tapestry. Rae had the feeling that they were talking to each other as they arrived, but with their arrival, a hush settled over the room, and every eye turned towards them. One man, a strict-looking older man with white hair and a pair of glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, turned towards them.

“Cathel, what is the meaning of this?” he asked.

Cathel stepped forward, bowing from the waist towards him. “My apologies, Master Alyan,” he said, straightening up. “I was speaking with our guest. She admitted a few things that I believe change the situation somewhat. I wished to share these things with the masters, before the group could come to a decision.”

The man, Alyan, frowned, folding his hands over each other on the tabletop.

“Very well,” he said. “If the gathering permits it, my former student will speak.”

“You have my thanks,” said Cathel, turning towards the gathering. “Masters, the girl is under a geis to find Kaeltharin within a year, or to forfeit her life.”

“And who placed this geis on her?” asked one of the masters, a woman with dark hair and sharp, piercing gray eyes. “There are no Ivali in the Daylight Realm.”

“There is one,” said Cathel. “The geis was placed on her by the Reaper. The Thief of Souls.”

A hush settled over the group. Rae took a step back, feeling some of their sudden hostility towards her. It was Alyan who spoke, turning towards Cathel. “You read the geis, I assume,” he said. “The Reaper isn't capable of killing from a distance. He must be present to take her life.”

“I read it,” said Cathel, nodding once. “It does not specify her death itself. Rather, it specifies that exactly one year from the date that she entered the Twilight Realm, the Reaper will enter the Realm again to meet with her.”

This time, all eyes turned towards her. In spite of herself, Rae took another step back, placing Cathel between her and the group of masters. Their looks were a mix of hostile and fearful.

“We should kill her,” said one of the masters, a woman with blond hair. Cathel took a step forward, placing himself slightly between her and them. Rae stared at him, a look of surprise on her face.

“Mira, you know as well as I do that killing her won’t invalidate the geis,” said another master, turning towards her. “It’ll just draw the Reaper here
in a year, to her body.”

“Then what do you suggest
we do?” asked Mira. “We can’t allow the Reaper back into the Realm!”

“We send her into the Edgelands,” said another master. “Let her find Kaeltharin. If by some miracle, she succeeds, then we are safe. If she fails, then she is in the land of the Ivali. Let the People take care of their own.”

“If
she succeeds, we are not
safe,” said the blond master again. “If she succeeds, we have given the Grim Reaper the Shard of the Star. That is worse
than allowing him back into this realm.”

“Who says she intends to give the Shard to the Reaper?” asked another master. “Has she said anything of the sort?”

Rae kept her eyes straight ahead of her, not saying anything. It had
been her plan to give the Shard to the Reaper, but she wasn’t stupid enough to say so here.

“Then one of our own should accompany her,” said another master, the same dark-haired woman as before. “As an added precaution, to make sure that if she succeeds, Kaeltharin does not fall into the wrong hands. I can’t say I would be upset to see the Shard of the Star in the hands of Laria Tower.”

“To go to the Edgelands is practically suicide,” said the blond master, angrily. “Who in their right minds would agree to such a thing?”

“Cathel will go,” said Alyan, interrupting the conversation. Rae’s eyes widened, and she glanced at Cathel. He stood next to her, his shoulders tensing and his mouth drawing into a fine line, but he didn’t interrupt the masters, and he didn’t protest. She saw his fists clench at his side, at their words.

“…That is,” said Alyan, glancing at him. “If you agree.”

“…I have no complaints, honored
master,” said Cathel stiffly. Considering his tone, Rae had the distinct feeling that he wanted to replace honored
with a different word.

“Does the council agree with this decision?”

Murmurs flooded the room as they discussed amongst themselves. Finally, one of the masters turned towards Alyan. “No complaints,” he said.

“Then you should prepare to leave,” said Alyan, turning towards Cathel and Rae. “With haste.”

“Of course,” said Cathel stiffly. “We’ll leave tomorrow.” He bowed once, a shallower bow this time, then turned around and stalked back towards the tapestry. Rae stared after him, then took a deep breath and turned as well, following him.

Cathel said nothing, he extended an arm towards her. Hesitantly, she placed her hand on it, and they stepped through the tapestry together, the light shimmering around them as they vanished from sight.

The light faded away, depositing both Rae and Cathel on a different floor from the one he had picked her up from. Rae didn't recognize the floor itself, but from the look of the trees outside the window, she guessed that this floor was lower than the library floor. The library floor saw the tops of trees, while this floor had its windows obscured by the forest's highest branches.

The floor was circular, like most of the other Tower floors, with several doors leading off from it. It reminded her of the floor she had first found herself in, though significantly lower.

Cathel wasted no time, walking briskly away from her and heading towards one of the doors directly across from the tapestry. Her eyes widened, and she turned towards him sharply. He paused for a brief moment, glancing over his shoulder at her.

"You might want to find Varra," he said dismissively, pointing off to his right. "That's her door over there. If she's not there, she's probably two floors down, in one of the alchemy labs. She should be able to help you prepare for the trip."

The words were cold, but the edge in them was not directed towards her. She stared after him, then took a few decisive steps forward, catching up with him. "Hey, wait a minute," she said. "You can't just leave me like that. What the hell happened back there?"

"I thought you spoke plain Common," said Cathel, shooting her a look over his shoulder. "Didn't you hear? I'm to escort
 
you into the Edgelands, like a good little boy."

"That's not what I meant," said Rae, scowling. She tugged on his sleeve as he attempted to walk away from her, keeping her in front of him. "What happened up there, between you and that Alyan?" She saw him tense at the mention of the name and his green eyes blazed, his mouth drawing into a tight line.

"That's none of your business," said Cathel, yanking his sleeve out of her hold. She didn't step back, but she didn't step closer towards him either, simply watching. He stepped away from her and let out a frustrated sigh, running his hand through his hair so quickly that she thought he would pull a chunk of it out by the roots.

"Look," he said. "I'm sorry. I know. It's not your fault. You didn't know any better. Just…please. Don't ask. Go find Varra and get ready. I don't want to spend any longer here than absolutely necessary, and if we're going on a suicide mission, we might as well be decently prepared."

He didn't say any more than that, but the look he sent her held a silent plea as he walked back to what she assumed was his room in silence. She watched him go, lowering the hand that had grabbed onto his sleeve. She certainly wasn't a stranger to needing space.

She left Cathel to his thoughts, turning around in search of Varra.

Cathel's fellow mage wasn't in her room, so Rae took that to mean that she was in the alchemy labs. Having no idea how to work the tapestry—and considering her most recent experience with casting magic hadn't been her proudest moment—she decided that the best course of action would be to take the stairs.

The first floor she passed looked mostly empty, although it had several glowing runes on the walls that she would have stopped to examine more closely had she not been in a hurry. The next floor had more of the same runes, but this one actually had doors leading away from it.

She found Varra inside the second door, standing over a work bench. Rae watched from the door as she separated out several bundles of plants, laying them out neatly in front of her. Her fingers were dusty with chalk, and she had drawn several symbols around her cutting board, a pot of water bubbling merrily to her left. She seemed engrossed in her work, so Rae watched her for a few moments before clearing her throat to get her attention.

Varra jumped, looking over her shoulder with wide eyes. When she saw Rae, she relaxed slightly, smiling as she put down the plants in her hand.

"Hello, Rae," she said. "What can I do for you?"

Rae stepped into the lab, letting the door swing closed behind her. She wasn't really sure how to go about this. She had spent most of her life observing people, so she knew how to read their moods, but she had spent a very good portion of her life 
avoiding 
interactions with others. How was she supposed to tell Varra that she was dragging her friend into something that may very well end in his death?

She didn't care, she reminded herself, taking a deep breath. She didn't care about these people. This meant nothing to her. She was not getting attached.

She felt her concerns start to fade away somewhat as she consciously kept them at bay, her expression growing colder.

"…Cathel said you knew how to prepare for a long trip?" she asked.

Varra slowly set down her work and turned around to face her. "Yes," she said. "Why?"

It was like removing a Band-Aid. The best thing to do was to get the pain over with as fast as possible. Rae took a deep breath, forcing herself to meet Varra's eyes. "…He's supposed to come with me to look for Kaeltharin. Into something called the Edgelands."

The look of disbelief and sudden horror on Varra's face was almost heart rending. Rae forced herself to look and not turn away. It would be easier for her to remain unattached by looking away from Varra, but this was her fault, and she deserved to see the consequences of her actions.

"What?" asked Varra. "Wh-Why? That's insane! Who ordered something like this?"

"Someone named Alyan," said Rae. "One of the masters."

"…Alyan…" muttered Varra under her breath. A look of comprehension dawned on her face, and she looked away, breaking eye contact.

Rae was relieved. She didn't know how long she could have stood it without allowing herself to feel some sort of sympathy. If the Reaper saw her now, she didn't doubt that he would target Varra just to spite her, but Varra was safe. From what Rae understood, the Reaper couldn't come into the Twilight Realm, and wouldn't be able to for the next year.

It made her slightly angry, to know that her suffering had been caused because this world couldn't take care of its own.

"Is Cathel seriously going to go?" asked Varra, looking up at Rae.

"Think so," said Rae, walking over to the other girl. She kept her eyes on the alchemy supplies in front of her, not making eye contact again.

"I see…" said Varra. She sighed heavily. "Well, if anyone can survive in the Edgelands, it's probably Cathel, I guess…" She shook her head. "Still, this is crazy. No one's ever been able to find Kaeltharin…and not many who left have come back alive."

"…I have to," said Rae, studying the small knife in front of her so that she wouldn't have to look at Varra. "I'm sorry. I'd rather not involve Cathel, but I have to go. You can ask him for the details if you like."

"…No, I believe you," said Varra, shaking her head. "You wouldn't be here from the Daylight Realm if you didn't have some task to accomplish…" With a wave of her hand, the pot of water at her side stopped boiling. "…That man," she muttered under her breath. "He's being stupid and reckless again…"

Rae took a deep breath, watching as Varra turned her eyes away. Her words were angry, but she could see the pain in them, the way Varra clenched her fist and kept her hands close to herself. Oh, this was even worse. They were close. Very close. For all she knew, Varra could be in love with him...Rae hesitated, then took a deep breath, resting her fingers lightly on the corner of the board.

"Varra…" she said. "…I can…ask him to stay…He doesn't need to go with me."

She shook her head. "He's not going to agree to that," she said. "If Alyan said that, then I'm sure Cathel would rather go to the Edgelands and die than spend another day in this Tower."

She said it with such certainty that Rae didn't need to ask her how she knew. She just took her word for it. "…Something happened between them in the past?" she asked.

"What didn't happen between them?" asked Varra, shaking her head. "There was a day when Cathel would have given anything in the world to study under Master Alyan. But that's old news, and it's his story to tell.” She sighed, slowly pushing herself away from her work. “Now isn't the time for it anyway. I need to get you some proper traveling clothes, and some supplies. I don't know what you'll need in the Edgelands, so it's best to be prepared for everything."

"Everyone keeps talking about the Edgelands," said Rae, following as Varra walked away. "What are they, and why are they so dangerous?"

"This world is divided into two areas," said Varra. "There's the Safelands, the lands where humans live, and the Edgelands, the lands that are ruled by the Ivali."

"Ivali?" asked Rae.

"Magical beings," said Varra. "Some of them look human, others, vastly different. They're not all bad, according to the tales, but they're all powerful, and I wouldn't trust any one of them fully. Mages can go into the Edgelands a little ways—it's where we get the best magical plants, and we can fight off the weaker Ivali. But if you want to find Kaeltharin, you'll have to go deep into the Edgelands, past the borderlands and into uncharted territory. Not many people who go there return."

"…But you said they weren't all bad," said Rae.

"They're not," said Varra. "But for every powerful benevolent one, there's an equally powerful malevolent one. Humans aren't meant to live in the Edgelands. The Towers can keep the Ivali out, between our power and the power of the existing barrier, but we'd be stupid to try and take them on in their territory.” She paused, her eyes hardening as she opened the door for Rae.

“If you run into one of the High Lords,” she said, “I suggest you run as fast as you can. They might let you. If you run into one of the Dark Lords, there won't be anywhere to run.”

She walked off, heading into a storage room. Rae followed her inside, still thinking over her words. The mage said nothing after that, grabbing what looked like a backpack from the wall and selecting items to place in it. The emotions Rae had seen in her earlier had disappeared, and she went about her task with a calm, business-like manner, as if she sent friends off to their deaths every day. But it startled her to know that she understood what Varra was feeling inside. She had felt it time and time again, when she looked away from a person that had the black mark on them.

A thought made her feel slightly sick. She was Cathel's black mark, and Varra had chosen to look away from her.

A single thought came unbidden to the forefront of her mind, and Rae felt a shudder run through her.

Bringing death to everything you touch
, it said.
Maybe the Reaper was right, maybe the two of you are similar after all.

She clenched her fist, putting the thought out of her mind as she listened to Varra explain what were essentials for her pack. It wasn't the same, she decided. It would never be the same.

It was their fault for following her down into the dark, but she wasn't responsible for taking their lives. It would always, always be the Reaper's fault.

Always.

Keeping that in mind, she nodded grimly, watching as Varra added more things to her pack and showed her which clothes were best to wear and what sort of fabric would keep them out of the weather.