Compis: Five Tribes (19 page)

When the Initiates had finally arrived and settled into their bunkhouse, they had started learning their common magics, all of which were elementary for Nikka. She had learned them in a few lessons with Agga. Her first lesson, using the Praete Line to send a letter, was only the first of many little exercises given by Agga during available opportunities.

She'd learned any number of household magics: starting a fire, dusting a room, heating water, drying damp clothing. Then they'd moved on to more complicated spells involving moving and levitating objects, transporting objects from one place to another, and even making them invisible. Compared to the struggling Initiates, she was an expert in common magic. That didn't help her perfect her skills in Aquis magic, however.

“Can you teach me about Aquis next?” she'd asked Agga after their last lesson.

The slight creature shook her head.

“Sorry, pup. I can't do a thing in that gib-gab stuff. Messy and flowing all around, like the water it's based in,” she said.

Agga was still a mystery, refusing to comment on where the source of her powers lay. She moved about her business, addressed Jilli as, “Herself” and muttered sly insults under her breath whenever she thought she could get away with it.

“It's certainly better being at sea, than suffering in a classroom, isn't it, Nikka?” asked Jerem, with a grin.

“I'm thankful Jilli didn't make me stay with them,” said Nikka, “Although, I probably won't learn a thing about the Aquis now.”

“I promise I'll teach you,” said Jerem, with a look that promised more than a lesson on the Aquis.

“I'm getting hungry, Jerem,” said Luba, “why don't you see if Joaga has lunch ready?”

Jerem handed over the rudder to Luba and slipped down the narrow stairs to the galley in search of a filling meal and a hot drink.

“You don't have to hate me,” Nikka said, staring with deliberate attention at crashing waves.

“Excuse me?” said Luba, in an irritated tone.

Nikka turned to look at her and saw the sour mouth and cold eyes of the girl staring at her.

“I don't have any interest in Jerem,” she said.

“I never said-” started Luba, protesting.

“Oh, please, you didn't have to,” said Nikka. “You've been glaring at me since Jerem introduced me.”

Luba was silent, and Nikka could see that she didn't know how to proceed in the face of such honesty.

“I don't know what Jilli or Jerem have planned for me, but they didn't consult me. I have no interest in Jerem. Not one tiny bit, other than as a friend to pass the time with and this I swear to you, Luba,” said Nikka and she stood. “Excuse me for a minute, I need a drink.”

Luba looked at her and said, “I'll remember what you've said here.” She turned away from Nikka, peering out over the sea.

Nikka made her way across the deck to the small staircase that led down below. She was just stepping down into the galley, when a high squeal made her pause.

She peered around the low doorway and saw Jerem facing away from her. She stifled a cry when she saw him. He had Joaga pinned up against the small stove and the little creature was sobbing in fear.

“Listen, you little worm,” he said, in a menacing voice that made Nikka shudder. Her blood was racing and she wished the walls would swallow her up. “Your job is to do what I say. If you're having trouble doing that, maybe we can turn this boat around, go back to shore, and find the proper motivation for your obedience.”

His hand tightened, knuckles turning white as he gripped Joaga's shoulder. Joaga was a mess of snot and tears.

“Please, sir, please. I meant no disrespect. I'll have your drinks ready in a few moments. I'm sorry I didn't have them ready and waiting. I've learned my lesson, sir. Please don't hurt me,” said Joaga.

Jerem released him with a contemptuous shove and turned around. Nikka barely ducked back in time. She took a deep breath and walked slowly down the stairs trying to look as though she hadn't seen the exchange that had just taken place. Schooling her features into a brilliant smile, she stepped down into the galley.

“Nikka!” said Jerem, wiping the irritated mask from his face.

“I was freezing up there and I wondered if Joaga had any hot drinks for us down here,” she said, giving the small creature a gentle pat on the arm. He flinched away, cowering and she fought the urge to kick Jerem.

“I misunderstood Master Jerem's request, Mistress Nikka, and made the sweet cider. I was meant to make some strong tea, unsweetened, and it will be done in mere minutes. Sorry, sorry,” he said.

“Cider sounds wonderful. Honestly, I'll just have some of that. I'd drink hot sea water right now,” said Nikka.

Joaga scrambled to fill her a mug of the cider and she sipped it with grateful relief. The truth was Nikka could barely swallow, but she wasn't about to let Jerem, who was staring at her, realize it. She felt ill. She had thought Jerem was a fun-loving, intelligent and charming man. Now she doubted everything she'd experienced since coming to Aquis territory. All the pleasantries that had been exchanged, each of the wonderful experiences, they were all lies, flung in her face like sour wine.

“I'd better relieve Luba,” said Jerem. “I'll see you up there?”

“I'll be up as soon as this is finished and I'll bring your tea with me. Do you want some food, as well?” said Nikka, smiling at him. She felt false, but she told herself it was good practice for being Compis. There would be many times when she would have to act a part in order to gather information.

He nodded and when he had gone, she sat at the little table, sipped her cider and watched Joaga bustle around the galley, mumbling and sniffling. It was much darker down here, with a few portholes to light the small space. The stove gave a cozy heat to the room, which would have been appealing, in better circumstances.

“What do you creatures call yourselves?” she asked. It was a question she could never get Agga to answer. Agga refused to talk about herself at all, preferring to cook, clean, and teach.

The creature stopped sniveling and crept over to her, clasping his hands together, almost as though he was pleading for something, but what she couldn't guess.

“We call ourselves the Roaneu,” he said.

“Why do the Aquis call you the Sea Fathers and Mothers?” she asked.

Glancing up toward the deck of the ship, he leaned forward and said in a quiet voice, “It is one of the old stories. Our people had lived in the sea since before humans came to this land. We were the shepherds of the deep, caring for the fish, and other sea creatures. We ate of them, and we protected them, as Iam willed it to be.”

“Yet now you live on land,” she said, making it a query.

“Iam wills it so. We have been turned into land dwelling creatures, and so we must wait, until we are united with the sea yet again,” said Joaga.

That was all he would speak on the subject. Nikka waited for him to serve her several warm fish turnovers that he had carefully wrapped in a towel to keep them warm, then she went back up to join the others, wondering what she had gotten herself mixed up in.

Luka was laying in bed, staring at the ceiling, composing his next letter to Nikka in his head. He'd sent her four thus far, in the almost four weeks he'd been living in Akme. He was the last of the Initiates left in the quarters they'd been assigned upon their arrival. All of the others, except him, he thought bitterly, had found a home with a mentor to shape their journey in joining with their Lumenta. Luka, though, they had no idea how to deal with, and so here he was, with nothing to do, and no one to do it with.

Oh sure, he still spent most of his free time with Joah, but it was harder now that they had nothing in common. Joah had his own interests, and talked during most of their time together about how connected he felt to the other members of the tribe, and how supportive his mentor, Alliac, was. Alliac was so helpful in instructing him how to form a picture of his Lumenta in his mind. Alliac had shown him how important it was to wait before transforming. Alliac was sure that he was progressing much faster than some of the other Initiates. This last statement was such a slap in the face to Luka, who couldn't help that no one knew what his Lumenta was. He was starting to regret refusing the tribeless and their invitation.

The only thing that kept him from leaving to find them now was May. He thought about her all day, when he wasn't dwelling on his frustrations with the Terris. If he could just hear one thing from her it would give him hope, but Nikka never mentioned her, though she had written him several letters. She, too, was something of a misfit, feeling out of place among the Aquis and especially the other Initiates—who she said stared and whispered about her. Well, he could sympathize.

Someone opened the door and called out his name. He slid his feet to the floor and stood, staring at Duor Hama, who had just stepped in. He was wearing a wide smile, and for a moment, Luka felt his heart leap, considering that maybe they had finally figured him out. Maybe he wasn't a freak.

“Hello, Luka. How are you doing?” He was a gruff man, and conservative, but Luka had learned Hama was also kind and sympathetic to his plight.

“I admit that I feel at loose ends around here,” he said looking around the bare room and its empty beds.

“Well, I have some news that might cheer you up. We've found a mentor for you!”

Luka was skeptical. How could he have a mentor without knowing what his Lumenta was?

“But I don't have a Lumenta yet,” he said.

“Luka, you
do
have a Lumenta. We just haven't identified what it is yet. And I think you will be pleased in our choice of mentor. She was something of a puzzle to us, too, until we finally tracked down her Lumenta,” said Duor Hama. “You will also be pleased to hear that she is a craftswoman, woodwork is her specialty. So you see, it was meant to be.”

While he didn't have much hope that she could help him, Luka was happy to hear that he would be able to work with his hands again. Woodwork was one of the most soothing ways to put a person's hands to work.

“Get your things and come with me,” said Duor Hama.

~~~~~

They walked along the path that led to the residential district. Luka had discovered that the main reason the Terris looked so fit wasn't because they did many manual tasks—gardening, digging, and building—but because they believed in walking everywhere they went. The Initiates had been instructed that the Terris believed in a simple life as much as possible, to keep them connected to the earth that was their sacred element.

To this end, they used materials that were grown from the earth—wooden and metal tools, houses made of mud and wood, clay fired bowls and cups, and a local luminous rock to light their homes. They had several hot springs located throughout the town that provided some of the most luxurious bath houses that Luka had ever seen—all of them outfitted with the strange water boxes they called showers. After being introduced to all the ways in which the Terris stayed connected with their tribal element, it didn't surprise Luka that they insisted on walking everywhere they went, if at all possible.

They were also, to his surprise, strict vegetarians in most cases. “If you've transformed into a cow or sheep, you can hardly eat one,” he'd been told. And it made sense. He hadn't missed meat that much, though he'd grown up eating it his whole life. Some—High Council member Koen—still ate meat because of their Lumentas, but they were careful to keep it from offending their fellow tribe members.

As they traveled, he looked again at the houses around him, marveling at the idea that they lived in a city of thousands, or tens of thousands. Another of the Terris' interesting beliefs seemed to be space between buildings, so a city as large as Akme sprawled for miles and miles, stretching past the bounds a normal city would encompass. Somehow, all the Initiates managed to stay close enough to the Initiate's Hall to meet every day for their classes, though.

After a long walk, in which Luka once again found himself missing the cart and pony he'd left behind with his parents, they reached a small cottage with a fenced yard and a large shop off to its right. The yard was filled with herbs and plants that Luka had learned were oily enough for extraction, which made sense since his new mentor probably had to use them for making finishes.

Duor Hama led him through the gate and had him set his things on the porch next to the door. Then they walked over to the shop, where Luka could hear the sound of a hammer pounding. Waiting for Duor Hama to heft the door open, they stepped in, blinking in the dim light, although the shop, filled with several wide windows, was bright.

The shop was wide and open and seemed bigger from the outside than it did from the inside. It was filled with various pieces of furniture and other tools in various stages of construction. Along one wall was a well-organized collection of tools, each arranged by both size and type. Luka was impressed, as his parents had employed a more relaxed workspace for themselves. On the other side of the room were buckets, full and empty, and several large covered urns. In the corner near the door was an area with tables and tools for fine decorative work and near it was a ceramic-lined chimney and fire pit with a pot hanging on a hook over it, lid rattling to let off steam.

“Kanae,” Duor Hama called, gesturing for Luka to step forward.

From a door near the back of the workshop, came a woman whose appearance, after having lived with the Terris for almost three weeks, was a shock. She was the first
normal
looking woman he had seen since leaving behind the Citadel. She stood the same height as Duor Hama, and was also solid and stocky, though not unattractive. She had dark brown, almost black, eyes and cropped brown hair. She was clothed in green coveralls that look similar to the ones his mother wore when she worked and her hands showed her trade: cracked, brown, and thickly calloused.

She smiled at him, and he found himself smiling back, noticing the deep dimples on each side of her plump lips. She was attractive, but he saw her as a kindred spirit, and felt relief at the Duor for choosing her as his mentor.