Chapter Five Hundred And Seventy One - 571
The company marched through the Fogland forests, making short work of the distance with their Tempered Bodies. Zara was happy to note that all of those going with Felix were at least Journeyman Tier, and their Aspects were powerfully bolstered by the Territorys signature Essence Draughts. Distilled from the Spirit Fruit of the Atlantes Anima, they were powerful and nearly universalhence the ease with which every Claw member plowed through waist-high snow drifts while carrying packs weighing at least half their body weight. Though small, it was a mighty force.
They reached a small grove in short order. It was heavily wooded, nestled so deeply into the wilds that Zara could sense dozens of weaker beasts flee their approach, and almost perfectly in the middle of nowhere. She cast her senses outward, mundane and Harmonic, yet found no telltale sign of the Dark Passage Felix was meant to access.
Strange. Usually these things left a mark upon the Continent, typically due to a great deal of usage over the Ages. The Passages in the Verdant Pass, for instance, had small stone pillars that were once decorative indicators. Here there wasnothing.
The company came to a disciplined halt, with the Chanters trailing some distance behind. Zara walked apart from them, mostly to avoid Mauvims curious questions. There would be time for that later. Though perhaps not too much later. Ahead, Felix detached himself from the rest at the forefront and made a b-line for her. The unassuming Lord was wearing his usual garb: a thin tunic, dark trousers, boots and greaves. His only nod to the bitter cold was the thick black jacket made of some unfamiliar fabric.
If you wish to disdain the cold, then I suggest going all the way, Zara said by way of greeting. The giants will likely find it more impressive were you to reject the jacket.
Felix plucked at the lapels of his jacket and laughed. Ill keep that in mind. With a free hand disguised in the folds of his jacket he formed a series of handsigns.
Please do, it is sound advice, she continued, while her hands fluttered.
As you said, first impressions are important. Felix turned to Mauvim, who had advanced the moment Zara had started talking to the Lord. She was accompanied by the rest of the Chanters, their faces studiously blank. Zara will be your liaison between my Territory and the Chanters. All questions and projects are to go through her first, and Karys will be the final arbiter in my absence.
Yes. A wise choice, Mauvim said. The way a few of Zaras fellows faces twitched was a sure sign that Mauvims words surprised them. Did they expect her to fight a losing battle? Zara is one of my most trusted friends. I will gladly defer to her judgment in these matters.
No. Mauvim was canny as they came, and while Felix had won a small battle here, he was far from victory in the war.
Felix merely inclined his headhis etiquette training with Vess was clearly paying offand gestured to his soldiers. Commander Kastos, Ill open the rift now.
Aye. Claw! Fall in!
The order was needless, as the soldiers had not moved from their resting positions. All of them looked forward, eager to see the Autarch in action. Zara was too.
Mauvim crunched through the snow, stopping only when she was next to Zara. Her sharp gaze was glued to Felix as he returned to the head of his company. He moves with surety. You said he gave up the Crown of Ahkestria?
He did.
Hm.
A ripple tore through the grove. It was a thing of wind, certainly, as snow and air was sucked into a widening black rift approximately twenty strides in diameterbut it was also a song of strange provenance that flowed over every one of the Chanters present. Zara rocked back, unable to help herself as the wave hit her Harmonic senses.
This feels nothing like a Dark Passage, Isla muttered.
It is chaoscontained, Laur said.
Some might call that order, Zara pointed out.
And they would be wrong. This is not the order of Harmony, but it borrows from it. Mauvim tilted her head, her eyes closed as she listened. It bears the roil of Dissonance far stronger than anything Ive felt in years.
Excited murmurs swept through the Claw as Felix stepped away from the star-filled rift. They were far less affected by the vagaries of the Grand Harmony, but their burgeoning talents could pick out the change. It was an air of uncertain danger, and the Claw were eager to face it.
Forward march! Harn commanded, taking the lead and the first Talon quickly slipped into the breach behind him.
Is this a new Skill? another asked. Zara thought it was Aidel, but she sounded so much like her sister Dalene that it was a toss up.
Or an old one, come again?
That was Dalene. Zara knew the woman had an obsession with ancient Skills. All of the Chanters had a taste for history, but a few among them pushed it further than the rest. All of the Chanters were holding hushed conversations, while she and her twin sister were scribbling furiously onto vellum pads.
The rest of the company vanished into the rift, the blackness swallowing every single one of them without issue. Zara studied it, curious as to how it was so different from the Passages she had opened in the past. A fascinated Laur and stoic Tzfell followed the Claw, poking at the rift itself before taking the plunge. They vanished as all the rest, swallowed by an impenetrable darkness. Pit, Evie, Vess, Beef and his Hallow creatures were among the last to slip through, leaving Felix alone to stand before a field of stars.
A piece of night splayed across the earth.
Be safe, Felix, Zara said. Stay away from the Corrupted one, and return swiftly.
You know me, he said with an impish grin. She was struck by how little he resembled that scared and confused young boy she had met in Haarwatch only a year prior. Ill return within the month, another Unbound in tow.
He slipped through the rift, and it folded into itself with a prolonged, whispering chord.
A Skill is for certain, Isla said after a moment. The System is compensating for him. To walk the Dark Passages as we do takes true skill.
Zara, knowing it for a Skill, silently agreed. Apart from the disruptive song of its creation, she had been unable to pierce the rifts construction with her senses. Now that it had gone, she couldnt find a trace of the rift let alone muster the strength to open it back up. The Passage itself was too faint, too inaccessible to them. Without the System to aid him, it was unlikely Felix would have been able to traverse such a Passage.
Mauvim heaved a sigh. That boy might reject crowns, but he walks like a king. I simply hope he learns where we stand before that power goes to his head.
She turned and began trudging back toward Elderthrone, the rest of the Chanters swiftly following suit. Zara stayed, and soon a brightly colored kingfisher flew down to alight on her shoulder. He said nothing, merely watched the Chanters walk away. Where have you been, Keru?
Observing, he said. They do not like him very much.
Mhm. The fresh air was a balm for her thoughts, already a welter of plans and ideas. She and Felix had discussed a great many things the night previous, and the possibilities whirled through her Mind.
How much of that was your hand, Zara? Isla had remained as well, and she stomped over, staring daggers at the much taller Chanter.
I havent a clue what youre on about, Isla.
Isla snorted her disbelief. I must say, this Mask is far craftier than Ana or Wrydda. Or did you just take your gods mission to heart? Change is not needed here. We hold ourselves apart. We are meant to guide the Unbound, not serve them.
As always your point is muddled by your own ambitions. She looked down her nose at the blonde woman, thankful for her Masks height. Looming was quite effective at times. We serve the Continent, and the Unbound are the key to saving even a small piece of it from Ruin. Do not forget that.
I never have and never will. But I wonder if you forget what we risk as that boy places us further and further under his thumb. Ill not be a poppet to a trumped up Lordling, Unbound or not. Isla spun on her heel, skirts in her hands, and stomped after the others.
Zara watched her leave, waiting until she and the rest were well out of sight before allowing herself a beleaguered exhale. She recalled her words, spoken often to Felix the night before. This is no small task you set before me, Felix.
I know, he had said. And if I didnt think you could do it, I wouldnt have suggested it at all.But the Cantus Sodalus needs to work with us, and the first step to that is communication.
He was right, she knew, but convincing the other Cantus members would be a grand undertaking. They harbored a wealth of knowledge and capabilities, but all of that was considered quite private. Persecuted as they were across the Continent, a Chanter was almost required to hold their secrets close. Visceral examples were made of those who could not. Theirs was a power that worked outside of the System, a power that the Hierocracy and its allies could not control.
The Chanters were like the power they wielded, just as Felix was: unfettered. It was an inevitable consequence of touching the Grand Harmony. Choice was paramount, and the surest way to maintain autonomy was to hold a tight lid on the secrets of ones power. Foes could not easily combat that which they could not anticipate.
Felix had already convinced them to bend the knee. Only time would tell if the Cantus Sodalus was willing to truly work with him and the other Unbound he was soon to gather beneath his banner.
She stroked Kerus breast, and the little kingfisher cooed in appreciation. There is much to do, she said.
Better get started, eh?
Just so.
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